Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Layout of symphony #3 "Eroica"
Symphony No. 3 in E flat, 'Eroica'
By the time Beethoven entered the symphonic scene in 1800, four movements were standard (fast-slow-minuet-fast), slow introductions common and many changes were taking place. An example of this was the speeding up of the minuet that was later replaced by the scherzo. However, it was Beethoven who broke all the rules of the classical symphony with his Symphony No. 3 in E flat, commonly known as the Eroica.
The Eroica marks a turning point in symphonic writing. It was composed throughout 1803 and 1804 and is twice the length and complexity of the Mozart or Haydn symphonies as it continually builds upon new ideas.
Beethoven originally dedicated this work to the great conqueror Napoleon but later scribbled his name off the front page when Napoleon proclaimed himself emperor. Beethoven believed this was a result of self-interest rather than true democratic spirit and later dedicated the symphony 'to the memory of a great man', presumably the man Napoleon used to be.
Due to the great length, the Eroica was usually performed at the beginning of a concert rather than the end, as people could easily lose interest by this time, already 'worn out' by the other performances.
By the time Beethoven entered the symphonic scene in 1800, four movements were standard (fast-slow-minuet-fast), slow introductions common and many changes were taking place. An example of this was the speeding up of the minuet that was later replaced by the scherzo. However, it was Beethoven who broke all the rules of the classical symphony with his Symphony No. 3 in E flat, commonly known as the Eroica.
The Eroica marks a turning point in symphonic writing. It was composed throughout 1803 and 1804 and is twice the length and complexity of the Mozart or Haydn symphonies as it continually builds upon new ideas.
Beethoven originally dedicated this work to the great conqueror Napoleon but later scribbled his name off the front page when Napoleon proclaimed himself emperor. Beethoven believed this was a result of self-interest rather than true democratic spirit and later dedicated the symphony 'to the memory of a great man', presumably the man Napoleon used to be.
Due to the great length, the Eroica was usually performed at the beginning of a concert rather than the end, as people could easily lose interest by this time, already 'worn out' by the other performances.
Scoring:
2 flutes | 2 oboes | 2 clarinets | 2 bassoons
3 horns | 2 trumpets
Strings
Timpani
FIRST MOVEMENT: Allegro con brio
FORM: Sonata form
KEY: E flat major
2 flutes | 2 oboes | 2 clarinets | 2 bassoons
3 horns | 2 trumpets
Strings
Timpani
FIRST MOVEMENT: Allegro con brio
FORM: Sonata form
KEY: E flat major
SECOND MOVEMENT: Marcia Funebre
FORM: Rondo form
KEY: C minor
FORM: Rondo form
KEY: C minor
THIRD MOVEMENT: Scherzo - Allegro vivace
FORM: Ternary form
KEY: E flat major
FORM: Ternary form
KEY: E flat major
FOURTH MOVEMENT: Finale - Allegro molto
FORM: Synthesis of sonata, rondo, variations
KEY: E flat major
FORM: Synthesis of sonata, rondo, variations
KEY: E flat major
http://www.archive.org/details/BeethovenSymphonyNo.3eroica
Ludwig Van Beethoven Life Summary
Born: December 16, 1770
Bonn, Germany
Died: March 26, 1827
Vienna, Austria
Bonn, Germany
Died: March 26, 1827
Vienna, Austria
Ludwig van Beethoven was born in Bonn, Germany, on December 16, 1770. He was the eldest of three children of Johann and Maria Magdalena van Beethoven. His father, a musician who liked to drink, taught him to play piano and violin.
Beethoven was the eldest surviving child of Johann and Maria Magdalena van Beethoven. The family was Flemish in origin and can be traced back to Malines. It was Beethoven's grandfather who had first settled in Bonn when he became a singer in the choir of the archbishop-elector of Cologne; he eventually rose to become Kappellmeister. His son Johann was also a singer in the electoral choir; thus, like most 18th-century musicians, Beethoven was born into the profession. Though at first quite prosperous, the Beethoven family became steadily poorer with the death of his grandfather in 1773 and the decline of his father into alcoholism. By age 11 Beethoven had to leave school; Having observed in his eldest son the signs of a talent for the piano, Johann tried to make Ludwig a child prodigy like Mozart but did not succeed. It was not until his adolescence that Beethoven began to attract mild attention.
At the age of twelve Beethoven was a promising keyboard player and a talented pupil in composition of the court organist Christian Gottlob Neefe (1748–1798). He even filled in as church organist when Neefe was out of town. In 1783 Beethoven's first published work, a set of keyboard pieces, appeared, and in the 1780s he produced portions of a number of later works. In 1787 he traveled to Vienna, Austria, apparently to seek out Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) as a teacher. He was forced to return to Bonn to care for his ailing mother, who died several months later. His father died in 1792.Beethoven was the eldest surviving child of Johann and Maria Magdalena van Beethoven. The family was Flemish in origin and can be traced back to Malines. It was Beethoven's grandfather who had first settled in Bonn when he became a singer in the choir of the archbishop-elector of Cologne; he eventually rose to become Kappellmeister. His son Johann was also a singer in the electoral choir; thus, like most 18th-century musicians, Beethoven was born into the profession. Though at first quite prosperous, the Beethoven family became steadily poorer with the death of his grandfather in 1773 and the decline of his father into alcoholism. By age 11 Beethoven had to leave school; Having observed in his eldest son the signs of a talent for the piano, Johann tried to make Ludwig a child prodigy like Mozart but did not succeed. It was not until his adolescence that Beethoven began to attract mild attention.
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