5th piano concerto (Beethoven)
The 5th Piano Concerto op. 73 in E flat major is Ludwig van Beethoven's last completed piano concerto . In the English-speaking world, this masterpiece is also known as the "Emperor Concerto" and is now one of the most popular and most frequently performed piano concerts in the world. The playing time is approx. 40 minutes.
Origin and Effect
The concert was performed from December 1808 to April 1809 and is dedicated to Archduke Rudolph . Europe was in the middle of the Napoleonic Wars . In April Austria declared war on France. In mid-May 1809, Vienna was bombed and occupied by French troops under Napoleon Bonaparte . On May 4th, the imperial family, including Archduke Rudolph, Beethoven's patron and pupil, fled Vienna to the Hungarian part of their domain. Beethoven's attitude towards Napoleon turned into rejection in 1809. The materials for the 5th piano concerto make this clear: A number of sketches for the 5th piano concerto are in close proximity to sketches for Heinrich Joseph von Collins' military song "Austria over everything". However, Beethoven did not complete the song composition. Another testimony to Beethoven's patriotism can be found in the autograph score for the 5th piano concerto, at the beginning of the 2nd movement. Beethoven says “Austria wages Napoleon” - Austria repays Napoleon! (Hans-Werner Küthen, editor of the piano concerto in the New Beethoven Complete Edition, concludes from this remark that Beethoven only wrote the middle movement of the concerto after the conquest of Vienna.)
The first performance took place on January 13, 1811 in a semi-public concert in the Vienna palace of Prince Joseph Lobkowitz with the Archduke as a soloist. This is confirmed by a diary note made by Count Johann Nepomuk von Chotek , who also recorded the other items on the program. On November 28, 1811, a performance with the pianist Friedrich Schneider followed in the Leipzig Gewandhaus . The first public performance in Vienna did not take place until February 11, 1812 at an academy in the Theater am Kärntnertor , where Beethoven's pupil Carl Czerny took over the solo part. In contrast to his other piano concertos, Beethoven himself never appeared in public with this work, probably due to his increasing hearing loss.
It is no coincidence that the Piano Concerto No. 5 appeared in print well before its premiere - in 1810 by Clementi in London and in February 1811 by Breitkopf & Härtel (as the publisher's printed books show) - so that the real connoisseurs, especially the Archduke Rudolph, were able to study the new work thoroughly. The main explanation for the early release is that this concerto was no longer intended to be performed by the composer himself. In addition, it was not only intended for professional concert pianists like Czerny, this can already be seen in the solo part: Until then, it was customary to only indicate the orchestral parts in the printed solo part by means of a figured bass , so experienced soloists could follow the orchestral passages and play along with them. Here, however, the piano part is provided with a full piano reduction . In addition, Beethoven had alternative versions ( ossia ) printed in some places in the solo part , which were either technically less demanding or playable on smaller instruments with a smaller range. The exceptionally precise performance instructions also distinguish the edition of this concert from all previous ones: articulation, pedal use, timbre, expressive content - nothing should be left to chance. And the cadences , traditionally the parts of the concert in which the soloist could develop freely, are now written out down to the last note.
Because of its "heroic" tone, the concert in Great Britain was given the nickname "Emperor Concerto" (after Johann Baptist Cramer ), which was later translated as "Imperial Concert", although it remains unclear which emperor is actually meant.
Musical shape (analysis)
1st movement: Allegro
E flat major, 4/4 time, 576 bars
The first movement is in sonata form . Beethoven opens the orchestral exposition (bars 1-111) - contrary to all previous conventions - with a virtuoso solo cadenza (bars 1-11). So the actual end here becomes the beginning of the piece: the orchestra first marks the cadenza chords with the tonic (E flat major), the subdominant (A flat major) and the dominant (B flat major), each followed by magnificent piano passages, the finally lead back to the root key. The main movement (bars 11-29) begins with the lively main theme (7 in 2 + 2 + 3 bars) in E flat major, which is introduced by the 1st violins. After a short, rather formulaic transition (bars 29-40), the side movement follows in bar 41. The contrasting secondary theme (8 in 4 + 4 bars), which with Beethoven can often have different forms, appears for the first time in the strings, clarinets and bassoons ( staccato / pp ) in the variant key of E flat minor and is then used in m. 49 by the on both horns in E-flat major “in folk tone” ( dolce / l egato ). A dialogical interplay of the 1st violins with the bass then increases to an extended final section (bars 57-111) in E flat major, which initially uses main movement material again, then is interrupted by a two woodwind passage in bars 78-85 and after a brief secondary idea that was casually introduced in m. 97 in the 1st violins (with triplet accompaniment) it finally ends on the dominant.
Now the piano leads with a chromatically ascending run to the solo exposition (mm. 111-268). The main theme in E flat major appears this time changed in character in the piano and Beethoven surprises with unexpected changes of mood, dynamic contrasts and key deviations. The secondary theme in the piano begins completely unexpectedly in bar 151 in the sub- mediante in B minor (actually Ces minor) and changes in bar 159 - now confused enharmonically - to its variant in C flat major. Only in the following by means orchestras passage chromatic skidding expected for the set page and the final group (T. 227- 268) dominant key B Major achieved. The secondary melodic idea surprisingly appears in m. 254 in the upper mediante in G major, but again ends in a semi-conclusive manner and flows seamlessly into the development. Beethoven extends the original key disposition of the classical sonata movement form with tonic (E flat major) and dominant (B flat major) here by the two mediants (B minor or C flat major and G major) and thereby engages the composer of the Romantic period ( including Schubert , Brahms ).
The implementation (T. 268-356) begins Beethoven now with the main theme in G major and leads the hearing in a multifaceted dialogue between piano and orchestra by various motives , timbres and tonalities (C minor, G major, D flat major and E flat major). It comprises a total of 94 bars, processed content va material of the main set and the final group (but not the page set!) And divided - as at the time of the Viennese Classical usual - by default into three sections (by Erwin Ratz ): 1. Introduction (T . 268-279), 2nd core (T. 280-337) with modulation processes, 3. dwelling on the dominant or return line (T. 338-356).
The recapitulation (T. 357-476) is, as usual, varied and expanded by an extended coda . After the preliminary cadenza (T. 357-367), the main subject is recapitulated by the orchestra in bright It major and in T. 377 from the piano with chromatic Provision varied. The secondary theme also appears again in m. 403, but this time in C sharp minor or D flat major and finally in m. 419 in the standard key of E flat major. The following final group (from bar 436) appears slightly shortened, the secondary melodic thought (cf. bars 97-102) and the obbligato solo cadenza are missing; instead, a notated piano passage continues into the coda. In order to avoid misunderstandings, Beethoven had the following instruction printed above the sixth fourth chord - in this context usually the signal for the insertion of a cadenza -: "Non si fa una cadenza, ma s'attacca subito il seguente" (Do not play any Cadence, but immediately join the following). Apparently the composer had little confidence in the musical competence of the pianists of his time.
In the context of the coda, which Beethoven designed here - as in his symphonies - entirely in the sense of a so-called final development, the secondary theme appears for the last time in E flat minor (in its original form) in the piano as well as its song-like variant (cf. T. 49-56) in the horns in E flat major. In the further course there are fragments of the main theme, alternating between orchestra and piano, and in bar 544 the secondary idea that has been left out in the woodwinds and in the solo part. The movement ends after a brilliant increase - Beethoven is writing the first Fortefortissimo ( fff ) in music history! - in the traditional manner.
2nd movement: Adagio un poco mosso
B major, 4/4 time, 82 bars
The poignant middle movement is set in B major, a third-third related key that has been confused enharmonically with E flat major (actually C flat major), and its sound is already reminiscent of the piano music of Chopin or Liszt . This is a three-part Adagio form (after Ratz) with the structure in ABB 'A' A '' as well as a 3-bar transition to the last movement.
Muted strings over a plucked bass line ( cf.Walking Bass ) first introduce the sustained, chorale- like main theme (16 bars) before the piano takes over in bar 16 and a second theme (11 bars) to accompany the orchestra, which in T. 26 ends in the dominant F sharp major. A 2-bar interlude of the strings modulates further to D major, where in m.28 the piano begins this time with a variant of the second theme and after a longer chain of trills returns to the basic key of B major together with the orchestra. In bar 45 there is a recapitulation of the main theme, whereby the piano initially leads the melody, but then only accompanies its varied repetition by the woodwinds (from bar 60), after a several bar reduction process ( semper più diminuendo ) finally in the deep register to fade away ( morendo ).
In bars 79-82 Beethoven composed a seamless transition to the final rondo: the two bassoons change their sustaining tone here - in the sense of a harmonic shift - in unison from B to B, the dominant of E flat major, and pass it on to the horns. The piano now softly and slowly hints at the theme of the last movement twice, only to move on to the third movement at the third attempt ( attacca il Rondo ).
3rd movement: Rondo. Allegro
E flat major, 6/8 time, 431 bars
The final movement with the structure in ABACABA + Coda opens the piano unaccompanied in thundering fortissimo . The main theme in E flat major, consisting of an emerging triad and a downward counter-motif, seems almost "compulsively" joyful due to its unusual rhythmic profile, the contrasting design and its formal openness - some people feel more like a manic "grin" here ”Reminds of a natural“ smile ”- and thus forms a clear contrast to the middle movement. The orchestra repeats the main theme in bar 17, this time expanding it into a self-contained complex of themes totaling 26 bars. The vocal secondary theme ( dolce ) appears in bar 49 first in E flat major and in bar 72 in a new form, then in B major, before the main theme appears again in the basic key in the sense of a refrain in bar 94 and the exposition with it completed.
Here, Beethoven lets the form of the rondo merge with the sonata movement form , as is customary in Viennese classicism ( sonata rondo ).
In the developmental part, the main theme is carried out in the keys of C major (m. 138), A major (m. 162) and even E major (m. 189), but material from the side movement is missing here, as in the first movement entirely. An extended double trill on the dominant and the two allusions to the main theme in the strings in bar 238 - comparable to the transition from the 2nd to the 3rd movement - lead to the recapitulation in bar 246: main and secondary movement (bar 294 ) now appear slightly varied in E flat major, before the main theme appears again in m . 341 in the subdominant key of A flat major (instead of E flat major), but later returns to the basic key.
In the coda, Beethoven first surprises the listener in m. 402 with a duet of the piano with the timpani - unusual for the time - whose ostinato gradually slows down and almost fades away ( ritardando / pianissimo ) before the piano suddenly and exaggerated in tempo (più allegro / fortissimo ) leads back to the initial character of the movement and in m. 425 the orchestra sets a triumphant conclusion with the shortened main theme in E flat major.
occupation
Piano solo, 2 flutes , 2 oboes , 2 clarinets in Bb (in the 2nd movement in A), 2 bassoons , 2 horns in E-flat (in the 2nd movement in D), 2 trumpets in E- flat , timpani (in E-flat and B-flat) and strings : violin (2), viola , violoncello , double bass
In the 2nd movement, the 2nd flute, the 2nd clarinet and the trumpets and timpani are tacet .
Significance in the overall work
The 5th piano concerto op.73 is Beethoven's last pure piano concerto and was written in his middle creative period, close to the 5th to 7th symphonies, the 4th piano concerto and the choral fantasy op.80 . The period between 1803 and 1813 was his most productive phase of work. The work continues the style of the symphonic piano concerto, which Mozart had previously developed in his late piano concertos from KV 466 (1785), and marks a temporary high point in the history of this genre. Like his 9 symphonies , Beethoven's piano concertos - especially the famous E-flat major concerto - had a lasting influence on later composers (including Schumann , Brahms, Chopin and Liszt as well as Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninov ) and thus provided decisive impulses for the further development of the genre.
The Eroica Variations op. 35 (1802), the revolutionary 3rd Symphony op. 55 (1803), 4 piano sonatas and some chamber music works are in the key of E flat major . In the 18th century it was generally given the nimbus of the "consecrated", was considered "solemn" and was therefore often used by Beethoven to represent heroism musically.
literature
- Jan Caeyers: Beethoven: The lonely revolutionary - a biography . Verlag CH Beck oHG, Munich 2009, ISBN 978-3-406-63128-3 .
- Georg Kinsky: Contributions to the Beethoven bibliography; Studies and materials for the list of works. G. Henle Verlag, Munich 1978, ISBN 3-87328-028-0 .
- Hartmut Hein: Ludwig van Beethoven. Piano Concerto No. 5 in E flat major, Op. 73. Facsimile. Laaber-Verlag, Laaber, 2005, ISBN 978-3-89007-584-6 .
- Hans-Werner Küthen (Ed.): New Beethoven Complete Edition; Department III, Volume 3. G. Henle Verlag, Munich 2002, HN 4091.
- Erwin Ratz: Introduction to the theory of musical forms. About formal principles in JS Bach's inventions and their significance for Beethoven's compositional technique. Universal Edition, Vienna 1973, ISBN 3-7024-0015-X .
- Hans Juergen Schaefer: Concert book orchestral music A-F . VEB German publishing house for music, Leipzig 1958.
- Hans Swarowsky, Manfred Huss (Ed.): Preservation of the shape . Writings on work and reproduction, style and interpretation in music. Universal Edition AG, Vienna 1979, ISBN 978-3-7024-0138-2 .
See also
Individual evidence
- ↑ Beethoven in the Diaries of Johann Nepomuk Chotek , ed. by Rita Steblin , Bonn: Verlag Beethoven-Haus 2013 (= publications of the Beethoven-Haus Bonn , series IV, writings on Beethoven research , volume 24), p. 113f.
- ↑ Kurt Dorfmüller, Norbert Gertsch and Julia Ronge (eds.), Ludwig van Beethoven. Thematic-bibliographical catalog raisonné, Munich 2014, Volume 1, pp. 457f.
- ↑ Jan Caeyers: Beethoven: The lonely revolutionary . CH Beck oHG, Munich 2009.
- ^ Stevenson, Joseph: Artist Biography by Joseph Stevenson. Retrieved February 26, 2020 .
- ↑ Booklet for recording with Radu Lupu / Zubin Mehta, Decca, 1982
- ↑ Klassika: Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827): catalog raisonné. Retrieved February 27, 2020 .
- ↑ Marcus Stäbler: Lively skirmish of the joy of playing. Retrieved February 28, 2020 .
- ↑ Michael Gassmann: Ten keys. Retrieved March 1, 2020 .
