Beethoven. The great German composer was born on the 15th or 16th of December, 1770 (all we know for sure is that he was baptized on the 17th). There’s no need to recount his life: hundreds of books of books were written about him, and his life, from his birth in Bonn, to his studies with Haydn in Vienna, to his first works, still influenced by Mozart and Haydn, to the onset of his hearing loss, to his mature period and then the burst of immense creativity at the late period, when he was completely deaf – al of this is part of the cultural lore. Instead, we’ll just present several pieces from the different periods of his life.
Piano Trio, Op. 11 is an early piece. It was originally written in 1797 as a trio for clarinet, piano and cello, which he then transcribed the for the violin, cello and piano. The trio has the nickname "Gassenhauer" or "Street Song" Trio because of the theme in the last movement, which derives from a popular song of the day. Beethoven used it as a theme for nine variations. It is performed by Lincoln Trio and can be heard here.
String Quartet No. 6 in B-flat Major op. 18, no.6 was written two-three years later, around 1800. Beethoven published his first six quartets as a single opus, just as Haydn and Mozart, who also had published their own multi-quartet sets. The first movement is still quite Haydnesq, but it’s the finale, subtitled La Malinconia" (Melancholy), that is surprisingly innovative. The opening is full of unexpected harmonies and dynamic shifts, and in this sense it portends of the later quartets. It’s performed by Arianna String Quartet, and you listen to it here.
Sonata for violin and piano No. 8 in G Major, the third in opus 30 sonatas, was written in 1801 or 1802. It’s dedicated to the Russian czar Alexander I, somewhat surprising, considering Beethoven’s Republican inclinations.It’s played here by Christoph Seybold, violin and Milana Chernyavska, piano. With its solid sonata form, this wonderful piece is still characteristic of early Beethoven.
From 1804, the beginning of Beethoven's "Heroic" decade (1803-1812), comes one his greatest pianos sonatas of the period, Piano Sonata No. 21 in C major "Waldstein." The Waldstein surpasses Beethoven's previous sonatas in both depth, scope, and freedom of form, setting the stage for his later piano sonatas. The sonata got its name from the dedicatee, Count Waldstein. In Italy and Russia the sonata is known as 'L'Aurora' (the dawn in Italian), probably for the serenity of the opening chords of the third movement. The Waldstein is performed by the pianist Yukiko Sekino. Listen to it here.
We’ll jump almost 17 years, to one of Beethoven’s last sonatas, Sonata in A Flat Major, Op. 110. Between 1810 and 1819 Beethoven wrote just two piano sonatas, but in the years 1819 through 1822 he wrote and published one sonata a year, from the magisterial no. 29, op. 109 “Hammerklavier” to op. 111, the two-part sonata no. 32. Sonata no. 31 is in three movements; the profound third movements consists of several sections, two of which represent a fugue and another one, its inversion. The sonata is played here by the pianist Inesa Sinkevych.
And finally, Große Fuge (Grande Fugue), from 1826. Große Fuge was composed as the final movement of his Quartet No. 13 in B-flat Major, Op. 130. Later Beethoven replaced the finale of the quarter and published the Fugue separately, as opus 133. The contemporaries described the fugue as “incomprehensible” and “a confusion of Babel.” This contrapuntal tour de force is still very demanding on both performers and listeners. Here is it performed by the violinists Angelo Xiang Yu and Miriam Fried, Philip Kramp, viola, and Deborah Pae, cello.
December 12, 2011
Beethoven. The great German composer was born on the 15th or 16th of December, 1770 (all we know for sure is that he was baptized on the 17th). There’s no need to recount his life: hundreds of books of books were written about him, and his life, from his birth in Bonn, to his studies with Haydn in Vienna, to his first works, still influenced by Mozart and Haydn, to the onset of his hearing loss, to his mature period and then the burst of immense creativity at the late period, when he was completely deaf – al of this is part of the cultural lore. Instead, we’ll just present several pieces from the different periods of his life.
Piano Trio, Op. 11 is an early piece. It was originally written in 1797 as a trio for clarinet, piano and cello, which he then transcribed the for the violin, cello and piano. The trio has the nickname "Gassenhauer" or "Street Song" Trio because of the theme in the last movement, which derives from a popular song of the day. Beethoven used it as a theme for nine variations. It is performed by Lincoln Trio and can be heard here.
String Quartet No. 6 in B-flat Major op. 18, no.6 was written two-three years later, around 1800. Beethoven published his first six quartets as a single opus, just as Haydn and Mozart, who also had published their own multi-quartet sets. The first movement is still quite Haydnesq, but it’s the finale, subtitled La Malinconia" (Melancholy), that is surprisingly innovative. The opening is full of unexpected harmonies and dynamic shifts, and in this sense it portends of the later quartets. It’s performed by Arianna String Quartet, and you listen to it here.
Sonata for violin and piano No. 8 in G Major, the third in opus 30 sonatas, was written in 1801 or 1802. It’s dedicated to the Russian czar Alexander I, somewhat surprising, considering Beethoven’s Republican inclinations.It’s played here by Christoph Seybold, violin and Milana Chernyavska, piano. With its solid sonata form, this wonderful piece is still characteristic of early Beethoven.
From 1804, the beginning of Beethoven's "Heroic" decade (1803-1812), comes one his greatest pianos sonatas of the period, Piano Sonata No. 21 in C major "Waldstein." The Waldstein surpasses Beethoven's previous sonatas in both depth, scope, and freedom of form, setting the stage for his later piano sonatas. The sonata got its name from the dedicatee, Count Waldstein. In Italy and Russia the sonata is known as 'L'Aurora' (the dawn in Italian), probably for the serenity of the opening chords of the third movement. The Waldstein is performed by the pianist Yukiko Sekino. Listen to it here.
We’ll jump almost 17 years, to one of Beethoven’s last sonatas, Sonata in A Flat Major, Op. 110. Between 1810 and 1819 Beethoven wrote just two piano sonatas, but in the years 1819 through 1822 he wrote and published one sonata a year, from the magisterial no. 29, op. 109 “Hammerklavier” to op. 111, the two-part sonata no. 32. Sonata no. 31 is in three movements; the profound third movements consists of several sections, two of which represent a fugue and another one, its inversion. The sonata is played here by the pianist Inesa Sinkevych.
And finally, Große Fuge (Grande Fugue), from 1826. Große Fuge was composed as the final movement of his Quartet No. 13 in B-flat Major, Op. 130. Later Beethoven replaced the finale of the quarter and published the Fugue separately, as opus 133. The contemporaries described the fugue as “incomprehensible” and “a confusion of Babel.” This contrapuntal tour de force is still very demanding on both performers and listeners. Here is it performed by the violinists Angelo Xiang Yu and Miriam Fried, Philip Kramp, viola, and Deborah Pae, cello.