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: Spark of Joy – the lied, “Der Wachtelschlag” (The Quail Song) – Another fascinating comparison is the various settings of “Der Wachtelschlag” (The Quail Song), based on a widely-known folk song from the 18th century in which the rhythm of the bird’s song constantly reminds the listener to invoke God. Schubert’s setting is the […]
Beethoven: Spark of Joy – HIs Mass in C, God’s Grace Comes to Those Who Act for Posterity Prince Nikolaus Esterházy II, the long-time patron of Franz Josef Haydn, commissioned a new mass setting each year for his wife’s name-day. In 1807, the commission fell to Beethoven, who, in his own words, “treated the text […]
Beethoven: Sparks of Joy – Lessons from history: act for your nation. Eleonore Prochaska was the daughter of a Prussian soldier, raised in a military orphanage after the death of her mother. She was one of many German women who fought in the Napoleonic Wars, though most were ejected from the army when it was […]
Beethoven: Spark of Joy — Tribute to the incomparable Christa Ludwig on her passing To honor the memory of the great mezzo-soprano Christa Ludwig, who passed away April 26th, we hear today her legendary performance in the title role of Beethoven’s opera, Fidelio. She sings the recitative, “Abscheulicher! Wo eilst du hin?” followed by the […]
Beethoven: Sparks of Joy — String quartet Opus 18, no. 3 The third of Beethoven’s Opus 18 string quartets was actually the first composed – Beethoven himself placed it third in the cycle. It’s a warm-hearted, genial work, with a rollicking, knee-slapping finale. We present once again the Amadeus Quartet. [Notes by Margaret Scialdone.]
Beethoven: Sparks of Joy – Quartet No. 2 in G major, Op. 18, No. 2 The second of Beethoven’s Opus 18 quartets has earned the nickname “Compliments Quartet” or “Quartet of Bows and Curtseys.” With Haydnesque overtones, it was first published in 1801. Good-natured and full of surprises, it’s performed here by the world-famous Amadeus Quartet. Founded in 1947 […]
Beethoven: Sparks of Joy – Piano trio, variations on “Ich bin der Schneider Kakadu” theme “Ich bin der Schneider Kakadu” (I am Kakadu the tailor) was the name of a popular tune from Wenzel Muller’s opera “Die Schwestern von Prag (The Sisters from Prague). Beethoven composed these variations during his early years in Vienna, then […]
Beethoven: Sparks of Joy — his beautiful song, An die ferne Geliebte to contemplate the future. Alois Jeitteles was a young physician who was also making a name for himself as a poet when he wrote the six poems which Beethoven wove into the beautiful “An die ferne Geliebte” (To the distant Beloved). It is […]
Beethoven: Sparks of Joy – Fifth piano concerto Beethoven’s fifth and last piano concerto was published in 1810 in French-occupied Vienna, but not performed until the following year in Leipzig. The Vienna premier took place in 1812, with Beethoven’s pupil Carl Czerny as the soloist, Beethoven being by this time too deaf to play with […]
Beethoven: Sparks of Joy — Fourth Piano Concerto Beethoven’s fourth piano concerto is unique in that it opens not with a grandiose orchestral introduction, but with a serene statement of the ideas by the piano soloist. Following its public premiere in December 1808 – part of a marathon concert which also featured the 5th and […]