At the time seeking to comply with his usually supportive patron Esterházy's conservative tastes, the specter of a fragile livelihood perhaps induced the Haydn to seek a marketable venue for his musical wares as a safety net. Such is the case with Symphony No. 69 in C major, the "Laudon" Symphony, deriving its nickname from the Austrian spelling of Field-Marshall Gideon Freiherr von Loudon, hero of the Ottoman campaign. The victor's name was more a financial than patriotic move on Haydn's part, capitalizing upon the warrior's popularity. Haydn also made a piano arrangement of the symphony with an eye to home sales; despite the finale being rife with printing errors, the composer shrugged it off, saying the hero would sell the work sans the finale.

Generally not considered among Haydn's best, something like a noble feel can be obtained if the conductor adopts a broad tempo. With the orchestra supplemented by trumpets and tympani, the symphony opens with the first theme virtually a quote from "Maria Theresa" (No. 48). The effect is not as uplifting as the earlier work's, the fanfares reducing the work to more of a battle symphony, than a bona fide work in the genre. The slow movement alleviates the preceding with some appealingly subtle harmonic and dynamic turns. The minuet is proud (not exactly apropos to a dance movement) but lacks either the courtly charm or bucolic merriment one expects from Haydn in this mode. The finale, however, is mercurial and winsome, featuring some very fine string counterpoint.

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