MuseData: Ludwig van Beethoven

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) brought the symphony, the concerto, and the string quartet to heights not imagined by his musical predecessors or peers. Born in Bonn (Germany), he flourished in Vienna (Austria), where he moved in 1792. Soon famous as a pianist, his compositional style began to change course a decade later, when the first signs of his deafness began to appear. A decade after that (in 1812 and 1813), Beethoven suffered financially from the devaluation of Austrian currency. He also suffered emotionally from the illness of his brother and the resulting prospect (never fully realized) of becoming the guardian of his nephew Karl. Beethoven’s fortunes improved over the next few years, but his hearing continuously declined. The year 1822 saw the completion of what were to be his two final piano sonatas and the Missa Solemnis. The Ninth Symphony was begun in that year. Beethoven remained engaged with writing string quartets almost until his death.

Orchestral Repertory

Symphonies

Beethoven’s works were predominately for instruments, but among them there was immense variety of types and styles, ranging from 29 short piano pieces to his final choral symphony (the Ninth). His orchestral works and string quartets enjoy great currency today. Most of Beethoven’s nine symphonies and seven concertos make stellar contributions to their respective repertories.

Opus	Title	Composition date	Publication date	Data	Score (PDF)
Op. 21	Symphony No. 1 in C major	1799-1800	1801	sym1	full: 1, 2, 3, 4
Op. 36	Symphony No. 2 in D major	1801-1802	1804	sym2	full: 1, 2, 3, 4
Op. 55	Symphony No. 3 in E♭ major ("Eroica")	1803	1806	sym3	full: 1, 2, 3, 4
Op. 60	Symphony No. 4 in B♭ major	1807	1808	sym4	full: 1, 2, 3, 4
Op. 67	Symphony No. 5 in C minor	1807-1808	1809	sym5	full: 1, 2, 3, 4
Op. 68	Symphony No. 6 in F major	1808	1809	sym6	full: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Op. 92	Symphony No. 7 in A major	1811-1812	1816	sym7	full: 1, 2, 3, 4
Op. 93	Symphony No. 8 in F major	1812	1817	sym8	full: 1, 2, 3, 4
Op. 125	Symphony No. 9 in D minor	1822-1824	1826	sym9	full: 1, 2, 3, 4

Apart from No. 6, the “Pastoral”, which has five movements, and No. 9, which accumulates nineteen segments in its construction of a pyramid of sounds and textures, the symphonies are four-movement works beginning and ending with movements in relatively fast tempos. The second movement is typically slow and pensive. The third is a minuet or scherzo employing a common highly patterned structure.

For a range of multimedia tools, printable scores, and re-editable musical data, see “The Nine Symphonies of Beethoven: A Digital Edition” at http://www.ccarh.org/publications/beethoven-symphonies/

Concertos

Although Beethoven’s concertos were largely composed within a single decade, several are hallmarks of the repertory. Celebrated for their balance of many musical factors in intricate ways and for the uniqueness of each work, they have been popular from Beethoven’s own time (during which he usually appeared in the first performance) to our own. Concentrated though the period of their composition may be, the piano was beginning to become a more robust instrument than its parent, the fortepiano. It was increasingly capable of a dramatic extensions to dynamic contrast and pitch registers. Beethoven exploited these capabilities in both his concertos and his piano sonatas.

Chamber Repertory

String Quartets

Opus	Title	Date	Score (PDF)
Op. 127	String Quartet No. 12 in E♭ Major	1825	full