We read again and again about how revolutionary Beethoven was in his time (1770-1827). Yet can we still hear that in his music? I find it really difficult for the most part. So much of what he did has been used, imitated, repeated, and rethought that it now sounds commonplace. Today we need guides to show us what was revolutionary in the music. What astounded his contemporaries.
We are told that his third symphony, the Eroica (Heroic), was a musical milestone unlike anything that came before. One prominent feature was the sheer length of the symphony, far longer than those that preceded it. Yet because of repeated performances and recordings, as well as what came after, it now sounds rather standard. A great work, but nothing revolutionary. We no longer have that early 19th century context. (A New York Philharmonic printed program for a Bruckner symphony concert has a conversation between a Texan and a resident of Vienna. Bruckner was heavily influenced by Beethoven and his symphonies are very long, at least an hour, and the Texan was complaining about the length. The Viennese is surprised by this and stammers out: “But…But we like music!”)
The fifth symphony was the first to use the technique of coupling movements together. The 3rd movement segues into the 4th without pause. The 4th movement reprises the 3rd movement’s main theme, another first. Each movement, one way or another, uses the famous (V for Victory) opening notes as its basis. How many composers, including Beethoven himself, subsequently used these techniques? Many. Today, nothing special.
To see how far we are from the early 19th century mindset, let’s look at the waltz. Eric McKee notes that the minuet, a precursor to the waltz, originated in the court of Louis XIV of France and was known as “the queen of dances”. It was meant to be performed by aristocrats who had the time and resources to learn it. As McKee notes:
Technically difficult and requiring years of instruction to master, the choreography of the minuet is characterized by intricate step patterns performed by dancers in opposition to each other; the man and woman never embrace.
Conversely, the waltz is an egalitarian dance that that emerged from the lower-class peasant culture of Austria, Germany, and Bavaria. Less technical and easier to learn, the waltz is characterized by a constant rotating motion, using the same step pattern throughout the dance. The constant spinning motion of the waltz required the couple to embrace tightly, torso to torso, for the duration of the dance. The waltz celebrated individuality, physical pleasure, and freedom from aristocratic convention and was considered by many to be an immoral dance.
How many of us today consider the waltz immoral? Can we even imagine that? Yet, let’s look at a musical evocation of that idea: Hector Berlioz’s brilliant orchestral arrangement (from 1841) of Carl Maria von Weber’s piano piece Invitation to the Dance (1819). It begins when a young man (solo cello) politely approaches a young woman (woodwinds) and asks her to dance. She accepts and they have a polite, pleasant conversation (the cello and the woodwinds demurely conversing). Then the waltz begins. It’s as though we go from a black and white scene to a frantic burst of Technicolor. Convention is thrown away as the now giddy couple whirl around the room with the other transported dancers. The dance becomes more and more intense until it suddenly stops. The couple comes back to earth and the scene is once again black and white. He (the cello) politely thanks her and she (the woodwinds) gracefully accepts.
Another example is focused on Beethoven. Beethoven is a colossus in European music whose influence is pervasive and inescapable. 19th century composers routinely referenced him. Those who found “modern music” to be blasphemous heresy saw Beethoven as the source of all that evil. One reaction was Leo Tolstoy’s story The Kreutzer Sonata (1889). (This is the nickname for Beethoven’s Sonata No. 9 for Violin and Piano in A Major, op. 47 from 1803.) The narrator relates that he hears his wife and a violinist playing the work. He is convinced that the music distorts people’s minds towards evil sexual thoughts. When I listen to the sonata, I don’t hear anything of the sort. Neither, I suspect, will you. We have lost even a hint of that connection. However, the Tolstoy novella inspired a painting by René-Xavier Prinet also called the Kreutzer Sonata (1901) which illustrates the concept:
(Wikipedia.org)
(This painting became well known through its use in advertisements for a perfume appropriately named Tabu.)
Where can we, the modern listener, still be shocked by Beethoven?
I submit that one work is the piano sonata No. 23 in F minor, Op. 57 “Appassionata”. (Beethoven wrote 32 numbered piano sonatas. He was born in Bonn and wrote 3 sonatas in Bonn before moving to Vienna. These early “Electoral” sonatas are not considered part of the canon.) This sonata was published in 1807 during what is referred to as Beethoven’s Middle Period. This was a time during which he wrote some of his most famous, most groundbreaking works such as the 5th and 6th symphonies and the 3 Rasumovsky quartets Op. 59.
The sonata starts softly, slowly. Then, a loud (seemingly) chaotic cacophony of notes. It still is a shocker today. The tension continues to build until another jangly passage. This is not the polite music of Haydn or even the more adventurous music of Mozart. In a relatively short time Beethoven has transformed musical expectations. Being from Beethoven’s Middle Period, this movement also uses those chords associated with the beginning of the 5th symphony. Rather than my continuing to give a poor description, listen to the sonata itself. Hear what you think. I will mention the very end of the last movement which, to me, sounds like something out of the 20th century.
A comparison between Haydn and Beethoven will demonstrate how far Beethoven took music. Let’s compare the first number of Haydn’s oratorio The Creation (see my ‘Tis the Season blog for more on this) and the beginning of the first movement of Beethoven’s 9th symphony. Both are supposed to represent chaos – Haydn’s explicitly Beethoven’s by inference. The Creation was premiered in 1798, the 9th in 1824, a 27 (more or less) year period. The difference between the works is astounding. The Haydn sounds like well behaved 18th century music. In order to understand why those contemporary audiences would even consider this music to be a representation of chaos has to be explained to modern listeners. On the other hand, Beethoven’s music is immediately obvious. The music rises quietly out of the abyss to a thundering climax. And then, it happens again. A striving from emptiness to order. 200 years after the premiere we can still hear that.
For More
McKee, Eric. Decorum of the Minuet, Delirium of the Waltz. Indiana University Press. 2012.
Recordings
There are lots and lots of recordings of the Appassionata sonata. I find that many try to be “correct” and careful. If you have been following my recording recommendations you might guess that I don’t favor those. I like recordings that have a bold sweep. That don’t try to tame the dissonances. That is what I call “show biz”. By show biz I refer to playing which plays to what the audience wants without worrying about period correctness.
The recording I most like is Vladimir Horowitz’s originally on Columbia now on Sony.
Disclaimer: The above constitutes my outlook and opinions and does not imply any agreement on the part of the VSO, its Board of Directors, musicians or staff.
Wonderful comments, Martin. You are so gifted at bringing the early music to the present time so that we can understand what the composers were trying to convey.