El Piano en Beethoven
El Piano en Beethoven
El Piano en Beethoven
Daniel Costa
Profesor: Antonio Carvallo
Introducción
very mark of his creation and the form of his thought – an inherent form, a
natural one. (Edwin Fischer ‘Beethoven’s Piano Sonatas’)
Conciertos
Beethoven composed five piano concertos. In addition there are the Rondo for piano and
orchestra in B flat major Wo06, the Triple Concerto for piano, violin and cello in C major opus
56, the Fantasy for piano, chorus and orchestra in C minor opus opus 80 (Choral Fantasy), and
two early incomplete piano concertos dating from Beethoven’s Bonn days.
In the first movement ‘Allegro con brio’, Beethoven borrows a technique from Mozart in that
the piano starts, not with the theme presented by the orchestra, but with a new theme. In the
second movement ‘Largo’, the piano announces the theme which is then taken up by the
orchestra. The final movement ‘Allegro scherzando’ is a rondo based on a theme with a
dancing character.
The first movement, Allegro con brio, shows the influence of Haydn and Mozart. The second
movement, Adagio, is tender in mood, and the third movement, Allegro molto, is a rondo
based on a carefree, syncopated tune.
It was Beethoven’s first, and only, concerto in a minor key and it set him on an original,
creative path in which his piano style was less ornate and more varied, dynamic, muscular and
emotional.
The first movement, Allegro con brio, uses vigorous masculine tonalities while the second
subject is in lyrical mood. The second movement, Largo, opens with a piano solo, and is in a
mood of repose. The final movement, Rondo – allegro is somewhat lighter in mood than the
first movement and ends in C major.
Beethoven completed this concerto in 1806 and premièred it as soloist at the Theater an der
Wien on 22 December 1808. He attempted to present the concerto earlier but could not find a
pianist to play it. Beethoven dedicated it to his patron, pupil and friend Archduke Rudolph to
whom he dedicated his Emperor concerto and a number of other masterpieces.
In the first movement, Allegro moderato, Beethoven opens with the piano on its own, an
unprecedented procedure. The second movement, Andante con moto, is Beethoven at his
most emotional and involves a dialogue between the piano and the orchestra. The third
movement, Rondo – vivace, uses dance rhythms and is in a cheerful and optimistric mood.
Beethoven completed this concerto in 1809 at about the same time as his Appassionata
Sonata opus 57. Its powerful themes and heroic moods account, no doubt, for the nickname
‘Emperor’, which was not by Beethoven but probably by his friend, the composer John Baptist
Cramer.
The first performance took place in Leipzig in 1811 when the young church organist Friedrich
Schneider was the soloist. Beethoven’s pupil and friend Carl Czerny gave the first performance
in Vienna in February 1812. By this time Beethoven’s increasing deafness prevented him from
giving any kind of public performance.
The first movement, Allegro, starts with a piano introduction followed by a lengthy orchestral
statement before the piano and orchestra combine. The slow movement, Adagio un poco
mosso, introduces a mood of serenity and leads directly into the last movement, Rondo -
allegro, which is based on a powerfully rhythmic theme and a more tender second subject.
Piano 38-39