ludwig van beethoven chevron nso “symphony goes to school” program prepared by shawn bennett and...
TRANSCRIPT
Ludwig van BeethovenChevron NSO “Symphony Goes to School” Program
Prepared by Shawn Bennett and Timothy Brennan© NSO 2015
fast facts
o Born in Bonn, Germany
o 1770 - 1827 (age 56)
o Played piano, organ, violin, and viola
o One of the most famous and influential composers of all time.
musical era
Beethoven began his composing career in the Classical era (~1750-
1820), but his innovative musical style bridges the Classical and
Romantic (~1810-1910) periods. Most Romantic composers credit
Beethoven as one of their major influences/inspirations.
personal life
Around the year 1800, Beethoven’s hearing began to deteriorate. While
he never stopped composing in his lifetime, many of his later
compositions are quite dark in character as they were composed in
almost total deafness and depression. He may never have known what
they sounded like, outside of his own head.
legacy
After Beethoven’s death, music had changed dramatically. This is evident by the
very noticeable differences between 18th century music and 19th century music.
He wrote for a bigger orchestra, his compositions were longer, and he wrote
music that had programmatic meaning. Seriously, have a listen to these two
orchestra pieces. Beethoven did that.
What do you notice is different?
18th Century (Mozart) 19th Century (Mahler)
compositionso 9 Symphonieso 5 Piano concertio 1 Violin concertoo 32 Piano Sonataso 16 String Quartetso 1 Opera (Fidelio)o 2 Masseso 1 Oratorioo Numerous chamber
works/orchestral overturesString Quartet No. 1 in F Major, Op. 18
composition spotlightSymphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92 – Mvt. 2
1812
composition spotlightFun Fact: Mvt. 2 of Symphony 7 was used on the soundtrack of the
2010 British historical drama film, The King’s Speech
Symphony no. 7
Beethoven’s 7th Symphony was composed in 1811/12 and premiered in
1813 at a war veterans charity concert. The second movement, which we
just heard, is often described as a “solemn march to war.” Beethoven may
very well have programmed this symphony to be about the Napoleonic
wars, even though the fourth movement has been described as the
“apotheosis of the dance.”
Maybe he just wanted a happy ending?
Have a listen to the fourth movement
compositions of note
o Symphony No. 3 “Eroica”
o Symphony No. 5 “Fate” (slide 3)
o Symphony No. 9 “Ode to Joy”
o Piano Sonata No. 14 “Pathetique”
o Piano Concerto No. 5 “Emperor”
o String Quartet Op. 133
see the performance!MASTERWORKS 1
September 25th, 2015The Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra
also featuring Jan Lisiecki