Ludwig van Beethoven

            The signal crisis of Beethoven’s life, in 1802, was the deep depression wrought by the stark reality of his increasing deafness.   In his famous “Heiligenstadt Testament” from that year he articulated his resolve to live, work, and overcome this crushing development.  There ensued the remarkable production of his...

            The concerto in its various guises has long been an important part of the symphonic literature, going back to the middle of the seventeenth century.  But by Beethoven’s time, some 150 years on, concertos were most often written for one instrument—usually piano, violin, or ‘cello–with orchestral accompaniment.  Of...

        Beethoven wrote almost a dozen overtures, the most famous, of course, being the four that are connected with his only opera, Fidelio. Some are awful, like Wellington’s Victory, and others are of the stellar quality that the composer’s name evokes. Coriolanus was a play about the tragic Roman general, who was torn between his plan to revolt and the...

          Beethoven wrote almost a dozen overtures, the most famous, of course, being the four that are connected with his only opera, Fidelio. Some are awful, like Wellington’s Victory, and others are of the stellar quality that the composer’s name evokes. Without doubt, in the forefront of the latter group is the Egmont overture from 1809-10. It is a...

        While today, opera—for any number of reasons—is not heard as frequently as the symphony orchestra, before the twentieth century it dominated the musical scene. Only gradually did permanent instrumental ensembles evolve that focused upon symphonies and the like. Composers made their reputations, or not, as composers of opera, and that’s what the nobility...

Of Beethoven’s five concertos for piano, the last three stand as immeasurably significant contributions to the genre.  The first two are youthful works, No. 1 having been composed in 1795, three years after his removal from Bonn to Vienna.  No. 2 was begun even earlier, around 1788, while he was still in Bonn, and only seventeen years old.  When Beethoven moved to Vienna, he was with high hopes...

        It is Mozart, of course, to whom we owe the creation of the mature, symphonic piano concerto. Beethoven wrote five works in this genre; the first two were composed in the 1790s and they owe much to the example of Mozart. The third, in C minor, begun around 1800, was completed in 1803, about the time of his second symphony, and it is a far darker and...

        It is Mozart, of course, to whom we owe the creation of the mature, symphonic piano concerto. Beethoven wrote five works in this genre; the first two were completed in the 1790s and owe much to the example of Mozart. The third, in C minor, was completed in 1803, around the time of his second symphony, and it is a far darker and impassioned work than the...

            It is Mozart, of course, to whom we owe the creation of the mature, symphonic piano concerto.  Following in his stead, Beethoven wrote five works in this genre; the first two were composed in the 1790s and owe much to the example of Mozart.  The third, in C minor, was completed in 1803, around the time of his second...

        By the late 1790s Beethoven had been in Vienna about six years, and was enjoying a growing reputation both as a virtuoso pianist and as a composer. While he had written some piano concertos for his own use, he had confined his compositional activities to more modest works. A dozen piano sonatas and chamber music constituted the bulk, including the famous...