As part of the international celebrations this year and next year, in honor of Beethoven, the Schiller Institute is happy to inaugurate a new feature on our website. We will regularly post selections of Beethoven’s music with short discussions of the pieces.
Beethoven: Sparks of Joy — Opus 110 well-known, presents a gamut of settings, much like a great drama. Opus 110 is the most popular of Beethoven’s late sonatas. The opening is lyrical and warm, and is followed by an exuberant…
Beethoven: Sparks of Joy — Wonder and human ingenuity got us to Mars, and this Beethoven song reflects upon such human qualities. The ongoing exploration of Mars by scientists of three nations leads one to ponder the true nature of…
Beethoven: Sparks of Joy — Op. 109 is the predecessor to the Hammerklavier. The Opus 109 sonata is a much smaller work than its immediate predecessor, the “Hammerklavier”. It has a fantasy-like first movement followed by a quick prestissimo, and…
Beethoven: Sparks of Joy — Op. 106, “Hammerklavier,” enfolds soul-wrenching drive with those unknown last moments of a Mars landing. The Opus 106 “Hammerklavier”, Beethoven’s 29th sonata, is one of the most demanding works in the entire keyboard repertoire. Magnificent…
Beethoven: Sparks of Joy – Op. 101 begins his “late period” sonatas. The Opus 101 is generally regarded as the first of the “late period” sonatas, in which Beethoven takes advantage of the expanded range and sturdier construction of the…
Beethoven’s sonata Op. 90 follows Napoleon’s defeat. Five years would lapse before another piano sonata appeared since Napoleon’s storming of Vienna. During these years, Beethoven composed his Mass in C, and organized a successful revival of his opera, now called…
Beethoven’s rebuke of Napoleonic forces; a sonata for Archduke Rudolph. Napoleon’s forces approached Vienna in April of 1809, forcing the nobility to flee to their country estates, and Beethoven to shelter in his brother’s cellar, with pillows strapped over his…
Beethoven’s “Cuckoo” sonatina. One might suspect that the Opus 79 sonatina was actually composed much earlier than its publication date of 1809, but Beethoven’s sketchbooks show that it is a contemporary of such works as the Emperor Concerto and the…
Beethoven’s “Shakespeare” sonata, “I scorn to change my state with kings;” the great Appassionata. Opus 57 – the “Appassionata” – one of the greatest works of Beethoven’s so-called “heroic” period, provides the backdrop for the following account: In the late autumn…
One of Beethoven’s “hidden” treasures is found in, Op. 54. Beethoven’s 22nd piano sonata, Opus 54, is like a buried treasure, appearing between the more famous Waldstein (Op. 53) and Appassionata (Op. 57). Its formidable technical and interpretive challenges also…