Mendelssohn describes his 1840 work, Hymn of Praise, to his friend Klingemann as "a 'symphony for chorus and orchestra'... First are the three symphonic movements, to which 12 choral and solo movements are added;... from the words of the Psalms, 'Everything which has breath, Praise the Lord'; one understands that first the instruments give praise in their own way, and then the chorus and the individual voices."