NATIONAL POLYTECHNIC SCHOOL

CONTACT WITH MUSIC

Name: Gerardo Pérez Hours: Tuesday 9-11

Ludwig van Beethoven

(Bonn, December 16, 1770 - Vienna, March 26, 1827)

German composer. With him a new phase in the history of music begins:
romanticism. He was born into a family of artistic traditions, he is the son of a
tenor, a bohemian and a drinker,
who immediately noticed his son's
extraordinary qualities for music.

His childhood was spent sad and

sickly, dedicated to the study of
music. At the age of eight he gave
his first concert, in Cologne, and took
a short trip through Holland. His
training, somewhat disorderly, has
been carried out by some of his
father's friends. Thanks to Christian
Nelfe, court organist, his true
teacher, he knows the works of Bach
and Handel.

At the age of 12 he was already a great performer, both on the piano and on the
organ, playing the viola in the archduke's orchestra. Helped by his teacher and
some aristocratic figures, he was able to travel to Vienna in 1787, where legend has
it that he played for Mozart, the undisputed genius of the time, who, astonished,
said: "Look at this man... he will give the world something to talk about." ». But
Ludwig has to return to Bonn: his mother had died and his father only lived for
alcohol. He has to occupy the position of head of the family, working for five years,
dedicating any free time to study and composition.
After the death of his father, he settled permanently in Vienna (1792), where he
met his true and great teachers: Haydn, Salieri and Albrechtsberger. He now
focuses on composition, although he sometimes acts as a concert pianist. His fame,
his successes begin to elevate him. In 1796 he began to feel the first symptoms of
deafness, which would be complete from 1819.

Julieta Guicciardi will be his first disappointed love. He will never marry, but there
will always be a woman in his life. Bettina Brentano, a 20-year-old poet, whom
Ludwig met in 1810 and who would become another of his loves, introduces him to
Goethe in Toplitz. Beethoven lives in a stable situation, from an economic point of
view, and critics consider him a genius destined to be Mozart's successor. His
artistic production is not interrupted. The composition of the symphonies begins
and their spiritual songs conclude. He dedicates the third symphony to Napoleon, a
victorious and tenacious warrior, a dedication that he destroys when he learns of
his coronation as emperor. In 1808 he composed his masterful "Fifth Symphony",
and in 1823, the "Ninth", which premiered the following year. In recent times, with
his intestinal illness worsening and completely deaf, he receives help from the
London Philharmonic Society.

It is traditional to divide Beethoven's production into three stages:

The first, lived under the influence more of Haydn than of Mozart, although it does
not lack his personal stamp, is represented in works such as "Pathetic Sonata",
some of the slow tempos of the first quartets and "Adelaide". The second is full of
the most beautiful examples of artistic maturity, from the "Third Symphony" to the
"Ninth", the "Trio in B major", the "Kreutzer Sonata", the "Quartets", "Fidelio", his
attempt to create an authentically German opera, and "The Battle of Vitoria", a
work of circumstances that, however, was a resounding success when it was
performed during the Congress of Vienna.

The third period, the one preferred by all romanticism, is represented by his
"Solemn Mass", the "Bagatelles", for piano, and his "Ninth Symphony", the pinnacle
of universal music.

Works: For orchestra, he composed 9 symphonies, 7 overtures, 5 concertos for

piano and orchestra, 1 for violin and orchestra, 1 for piano, violin, cello and
orchestra, ballet music and dances. Chamber music: 16 quartets, 3 quintets, 15
trios, 10 sonatas for violin and piano, 2 sonatas for cello and piano, sextet,
septimino, octet, serenades, dances and variations. For piano: 32 sonatas, 2
sonatinas, 22 series of variations, bagatelles, minor works and for four hands.
Singing: Lieder series, “Mass in C major”, “Solemn Mass”, “Christ on the Mount of
Olives” and several cantatas. Theater music: "Fidelio", "Egmont", "The Ruins of
Athens" and "Opferlied".

Periods in Beethoven's musical production:

Within Beethoven's musical production we can distinguish the following creative

periods:

• First period: conclusion of Classicism (1794-1800). Under the influence of Haydn

and Mozart he wrote the First and Second Symphonies, the first six Quartets and
the first ten Piano Sonatas, among which the Pathétique stands out, with a deep
dramatic sense.

• Second period: the transition (1800-1815). In this period, Beethoven's musical

works already manifest romantic characteristics. He composed the Third Symphony
("Eroica"), originally dedicated to Napoleon Bonaparte, although he later broke the
dedication; the Fifth, the Sixth (“Pastoral”), where the triumph of nature is evident;
and the Seventh, which is a song to freedom. Likewise, the Sonata no. 28, the
Emperor Concerto for piano, the opera Fidelio, in which he sings of freedom against
tyranny, and the Quartets, up to number 11.

• Third period: integration into Romanticism (1815-1827). He composed his

masterpiece, the Ninth Symphony, in which, in the fourth beat, he introduced the
human voice singing Schiller's "Ode to Joy", which is a song of love for humanity, a
cry of brotherhood that sublimates the pain and becomes joy and hope. Also in this
period he wrote his Missa solemnís, Sonatas 28 to 32 and the last Quartets,
considered the capital work of string music, in which he breaks the classical four-
beat form.

A song to joy

Prestigious orchestras often include in their repertoire two of Beethoven's most

celebrated symphonies, the Fifth and the Ninth (below, the Vienna Symphony
Orchestra performing the Ninth, Chorale). In fact, the fourth movement of the
Ninth Symphony is the favorite of the general public. Beethoven chose to celebrate
the unity and life of all men in harmony with nature and God. He translated it
musically into an enthusiastic ode, in which the orchestra and the voices merge in a
hymn with the solemnity of Gregorian chant and the joy of music in its purest form.
Fifth Symphony

A prodigy of alternation: without an introduction, its four movements go from the

tense construction of the first to the solemnity of the second, passing through the
instrumental tension of the third and the apotheosis of the fourth, an unusual
crescent of 50 measures (1808).

Ninth Symphony

It is called Chorale after the fourth movement, the famous Ode to Joy, a poem by
Friedrich V. Schiller adapted by Beethoven. It was premiered at the Imperial Court
Theater in Vienna, 1824. In 1972 the Council of Europe chose the Ode to Joy as the
European anthem.

CHRONOLOGY:

12-17-1770: Ludwig van Beethoven is baptized in Bonn (Germany).

1774: His first brother, named Kart Kaspar, is born. Goethe publishes the
misfortunes of young Werther.

1776: His second brother, Nikolaus Johann, is born.

1778: He gives his first concert in Cologne (Germany). At 8 years old he is already
considered a child prodigy.

1787: He moved to Vienna, where he achieved success. His mother dies and
Beethoven must return to Bonn.

1791: Mozart, one of his teachers, dies in absolute poverty.

1792: He settles in Vienna, where he will live until his death. His father dies (right).
He takes care of his brothers.

1796: His first symptoms of deafness appear.

1802: Describes his regret in the Heili-genstadt Testament. His deafness is now
total, but he continues composing.

1804: Napoleon is proclaimed Emperor of France. Beethoven removes the

dedication from his 3rd Symphony.
1805: He premieres his only opera Fidelio, which did not succeed until 1816.

1808: Vienna proudly celebrates its masterful 5th Symphony.

1812: He writes the famous letter to his “immortal beloved.”

1815: Suicide of Kart Kaspar. Beethoven, who had been left as his brother's tutor,
blames himself for his death.

1824: Beethoven premieres his Ninth Symphony with great success. It is his last
appearance in public. Seriously ill.

3-26-1827: Beethoven dies in Vienna at the age of 57.