Arch replies to me:

>>Well, many people have written symphonies on cyclic principles.  Franck
>>in his mature career made it his modus operandi.
>
>What is a cyclic principle?

As I understand it, it's when the composer uses only a few themes for a
multi-movement work and mixes up themes from every movement.  It differs
slightly from Beethoven's practice of building a multi-movement work from
a few generating cells (as in the fourth piano concerto).  Beethoven's
cells generate new themes in each movement.  Franck's themes appear entire
and recognizable from movement to movement.  The idea is to find new
contexts for the old themes.  It's a real art to keep the repetitions
from sounding mechanical.

Steve Schwartz