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hero

Beethoven's heart is full of ideals of freedom, equality and universal love. He is an enthusiastic supporter of 1789 French bourgeois revolution. 1798, General Bernadotte (1763-1844) became the French ambassador to Vienna. Beethoven often visited his home and kept close contact with people around him. 1802, Beethoven began to compose the third symphony dedicated to Napoleon at the suggestion of Bernadotte. In his mind, Napoleon was a hero who destroyed the autocratic system and realized the ideal of republic. 1804, Beethoven completed the third symphony. Just as he was preparing to dedicate it to Napoleon, the news that Napoleon proclaimed himself reached Vienna. When Beethoven learned the news from the student Lisi (1784- 1838), he roared angrily: "He is just an ordinary person. Now he will trample on human rights to show his personal ambition. He will ride on everyone's head and become a tyrant! " As he spoke, he went to the table and tore up the dedication to Napoleon and threw it on the ground. No one was allowed to pick it up. After many days, Beethoven's anger gradually subsided and he was allowed to make this work public. 1804 65438+February, this symphony was first performed in the court of Prince Rob Kovitz in Vienna. 1The first public performance in Vienna Theatre in April, 805 was conducted by Beethoven himself. The program says, "Ludwig's new symphony in D major? Where is it? Written by Mr. Beethoven, dedicated to His Royal Highness Prince Robert Kovitz. " Strangely, Beethoven said that it was not in E flat major, but in D flat major. When1806 published its music score in June, it was printed on the title page: Heroic Symphony, written in memory of a great man. Since then, the third symphony has been called "Hero Symphony".

Symphony of destiny

The first four notes of Beethoven's Symphony in C Minor (Op.67) are as strong and heavy as the knocking of fate. This work is therefore called "Symphony of Destiny". The symphony of destiny was written from 1805 to 1808. Beethoven wrote a letter to his friend Wegele (1765- 1808) in June of12000. He had already said, "I want to hold my destiny by the throat, and it will never overwhelm me completely!" The knock of fate appeared in the third movement of Piano Sonata in C minor (Op. 10) written by 1798, and later appeared in the third movement of String Quartet in D major (Op. 18 No.3) and Sonata for Passion (Op.57). The passion for struggle shown in the Symphony of Destiny has a strong appeal. Mary Boland, a Spanish alto, was scared to death when she first listened to the Symphony of Destiny and had to leave. The old guard Napoleon heard the main melody at the beginning of the fourth movement and couldn't help jumping up and shouting, "This is the emperor!" " Berlioz regarded the thrilling struggle scene in the Symphony of Destiny as "Othello's terrible rage when he listened to the slanderers of the ego and mistakenly thought Desdemona had an affair." Schumann said, "Although you often hear this symphony, it always has a constant power for you-just like natural phenomena always scare people. "1In May and June of 830, Mendelssohn stayed in Weimar for two weeks, saw Goethe for the last time, and played famous works in ancient and modern times for him on the piano. Goethe was very excited after listening to the first movement of the symphony of destiny. He said: "This is magnificent and thrilling, and it almost collapses the house. I wonder what will happen if many people play together. "184 1 March, Engels listened to the performance of the symphony of destiny. In a letter to his sister, he praised the work and said, "If you don't know this wonderful thing, then you have never heard anything in your life." He said that in the first movement, he heard "that kind of complete despair and sorrow, that kind of sad pain"; In the second movement, I heard "tender sorrow of love"; The third and fourth movements, "the joy of strength, youth and freedom expressed by the trumpet" are so inspiring. Engels revealed the essence of the Symphony of Destiny in a few short sentences.

Moonlight Sonata

Song of Moonlight, originally named Piano Sonata in C minor, was written in 180 1, which is close to the maturity of Beethoven's creation. This work has three movements: the first movement, the theme of that sigh is integrated into his deaf and melancholy thoughts. The second movement shows that sweet dream in memory, and it is also like a blueprint for the future. Allegro in the third movement. The most beautiful thing about this work is the first movement, which reminds people of moonlight.

This piano piece is called Moonlight Music because the German poet Ludwig Lairstadberg said, "After listening to the first movement of this piece, I think of Lake Lucerne in Switzerland and the bright moonlight rippling on the lake." Later, according to this passage, the publisher added the title of "Song of the Moonlight", and all kinds of legends about composers improvising in the moonlight became popular. In fact, it was not the bright moonlight that touched Beethoven's creation, but the painful mood of Beethoven and Juliet Gitchati (1784- 1856) after their first love failed.

Juliet Gitchati is the earl's daughter, 14 years younger than Beethoven. They really love each other, and the gap in family status forced them to break up. After suffering this heavy blow, Beethoven poured all the inner pain and strong indignation caused by the feudal hierarchy into this passionate piano music. So, this song is dedicated to her.

Perhaps Stasov (1824- 1906), a Russian art critic, is more reasonable in explaining this work. Recalling listening to Liszt's performance in Petersburg, he thought the sonata was a complete tragedy. The first movement was a state of mind full of tenderness and sometimes dark premonition. He had a similar impression when listening to anton rubinstein's performance: "... from a distance, as if from the depths of an invisible soul, a silent voice suddenly rose. Some voices are melancholy and full of infinite sadness; Have a plenty of meditation, with endless memories and gloomy omen ... "

Around the moonlight, there is a misinformed anecdote. In the last half century, a German music critic published an article saying that Beethoven's Piano Sonata in C sharp minor reminded him of "the moonlight rippling on Lake Lucerne in Switzerland". So the shrewd publisher invented a touching story entitled "Moonlight Music": "One night, Beethoven was walking in the suburbs of Vienna when he suddenly heard the sound of the piano, and it was his work. He went to the window of an old house and found a blind girl playing. Only after he entered the room did he know that she liked Beethoven's music very much. The composer was very moved and wrote this moonlight song in the moonlight ... ".

This story is pure fiction. In fact, Beethoven wrote this work in 180 1 year. At that time, his deafness became more and more serious, and the pain of lovelorn had not been calmed down. He wrote this piano sonata with pain.

This fictional story was later applied to the text "Moonlight Song" in the fifth grade Chinese textbook of primary schools in China.

A passionate sonata

When Schindler once asked Beethoven about his sonatas in D minor (Op.312) and F minor (Op.57), Beethoven replied, "Please read Shakespeare's The Tempest." Therefore, the former is called "Sonata of Tempest", while the latter is named "Sonata of Passion" by Hamburg music publisher Crantz (1789- 1870). (On the other hand, the title of "Enthusiasm" was added by German pianist, violinist, composer and conductor Reineck (1824- 19 10), which seems unfounded. Beethoven didn't approve of the title "Enthusiasm", but for this heroic and magnificent work, the title is quite appropriate. Lenin, the teacher of proletarian revolution, once heard Russian composer and conductor Dobro Wan (1894- 1953) play this sonata in Moscow, and said, "I don't know what is better than the Sonata of Passion, and I am willing to listen to it every day. This is wonderful and unprecedented music. I always think with perhaps childish boast: what miracles can people create! " 18701On October 30th, Paris was surrounded by Prussian troops for more than three months during the Franco-Prussian War. Bismarck, the bloody prime minister, negotiated the armistice terms with thiers, the head of the French bourgeois government, in the stronghold of William, King of Prussia at Versailles. That night, Gaertel, the former German ambassador to Italy, played the Sonata of Passion for Bismarck on an old piano in Viham. After listening to the last movement, Bismarck said, "This is the cry of a whole generation." He understood Beethoven's "enthusiasm" from the standpoint of a bloodthirsty careerist. He once said: "If I can listen to this piece of music often, my courage will not run out" because "Beethoven is the best for my nerves". Beethoven said on June 29th, 180 1, "My art is used to improve the fate of the poor." If Beethoven knew what was underground and heard that his music was used by Bismarck, he must be dead.

Beethoven's friend

Melzer (1772— 1838) is famous for inventing and manufacturing mechanical musical instruments. 18 13 In the autumn, Beethoven wrote a war symphony entitled "Victory of Wellington" or "Battle of Victoria" for the universal piano invented by melzer, describing the scene that the British army defeated Napoleon in the northern Spanish city of Victoria on June 2 1 3 of the same year. On the basis of Winkle's invention (1776-1826), Meltzer once created today's universal slapping machine. Beethoven adopted it for the first time and marked the speed of his works according to the number of beats per minute. Beethoven's hearing AIDS were also made in melzer around 18 10. On one occasion, Beethoven Paimer took a trip, and he wrote that the richest man was a funny cannon to praise the creator of the holiday machine. This canon, which symbolizes the friendship between Beethoven and Meltzer, was later selected by Beethoven into his eighth symphony (Op. 93) and became the theme of the second movement.

Symphony no.7 on the ballet stage

Wagner called Beethoven's Symphony No.7 (Op.92) "the ultimate dance", "the highest form of dance" and "the most wonderful embodiment of body movement according to the ideal form". It is said that he once imagined that the Seventh Symphony would be represented by a dance accompanied by Liszt piano. Wagner's ideal was later realized by Russian choreographer Ma Xin. 1938, he compiled this symphony into a ballet, showing an allegorical story-the creation and destruction of the world: the first movement: creation-under the guidance of creative spirit, the chaotic world became an orderly residence for animals and plants. There are men and women, and dangerous snakes. The second movement: the earth-hatred and rape appear on the earth. A group of men and women mourned the murdered teenager. The third movement: the sky-the gods and goddesses in the sky are indifferent to the riots on the ground and still enjoy themselves. The fourth movement: debauchery and destruction-people indulge in debauchery. God saw them clumsily imitate the joy of the upper world and destroy the world with fire because of anger. 1938 In May, this ballet was first performed by the Brazilian Ballet of Russia in Monte Carlo, Monaco.

Ode to Joy and Chorus Symphony

1793 65438+ 10, a friend of German poet Schiller and a law professor at Bonn University wrote to Schiller's wife Charlotte, saying: "There is a young man ... with great and lofty aspirations, who wants to set Schiller's Ode to Joy to music paragraph by paragraph." This young man is Beethoven, who lived in Bonn at that time and was only 23 years old. Beethoven contributed the music of Ode to Joy in 1798 and 18 12. The theme of Ode to Joy, written in 18 12, was later used in 18 14 to complete the prelude to the named day festival in C major (Op. 1 15). Beethoven's song "Love each other" written for Bigger poems around 1795 is closely related to the theme of Ode to Joy in the last movement of the chorus symphony, which can be said to be the predecessor of the theme of Ode to Joy. Later, Beethoven used this tune as the theme in Fantasia for Piano Chorus in C Minor (op. 80)65438-0808, and sang Kuffner's poem praising the charm of music. The chorus part of piano chorus fantasia is an attempt at the finale of chorus symphony. 1in March, 824, Beethoven wrote to probst: "The finale of the chorus symphony was written in the style of piano chorus fantasia, but on a much larger scale." It can be seen that Beethoven's intention to compose "Ode to Joy" began at 1793, and it took 30 years to finish in the Chorus Symphony. The chorus symphony was completed in the reactionary period when all free thoughts and democratic movements were brutally suppressed after the Carlsbad resolution. 1824 During the first performance of Lentner Thor Theatre in Vienna in May, the audience's enthusiasm was unprecedented. The audience applauded and cheered five times when Beethoven appeared, so that the police had to intervene. But Beethoven, who stood in the band with his back to the audience, couldn't hear anything. Fortunately, contralto singer Hong Re turned around holding his hand and "saw" the cheers of the audience. From the unusual emotions caused by the first performance, we can see how profound the practical significance of singing, that is, the freedom of singing, was at that time.

◆ Le Sheng Jing Jie

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Xin Ran forgot to eat.

One day, Beethoven came to a restaurant for dinner. After ordering food, he was suddenly inspired, so he grabbed the menu on the dining table and made a song on the back of the menu. After a while, he was completely immersed in the beautiful melody. Seeing Beethoven's devotion, the waiter didn't dare to disturb him, and planned to serve him later. About an hour later, the waiter finally came to Beethoven's side: "Sir, are you ready to serve?" Beethoven paid the bill as if he had just woken up from a dream. The waiter is like a monk-confused: "Sir, you haven't eaten yet!" " ""no! I'm sure I've eaten. " Beethoven didn't listen to the waiter's repeated explanations at all. After paying the price on the menu, he grabbed the menu full of notes and rushed out of the restaurant.

Enter this country every day.

In his later years, Beethoven once heard a friend play his variations in C minor. After listening for a while, he asked, "Whose work is this?" "yours." The friend replied. "My? I wrote such a clumsy song? " Then he added, "Ah, Beethoven is a fool!" Goethe's evaluation of Schiller is completely applicable to Beethoven: "He is changing and growing every week. Every time I see him, I always feel that his knowledge, knowledge and opinions have improved compared with the last time. " Beethoven even tried to destroy the songs he wrote when he was young, Adelaide and Septet in E-flat Major (Op. 20). This is by no means accidental. Like Beethoven, it can really be said that "fifty knows forty-nine mistakes."

Make it impossible for opponents to copy.

Beethoven made friends with the Browning family in Bonn when he was 18 years old (1788). The daughter of this family is called Ereonole (1772-1841), and the son is called Rolenc (1777-65438+). 10, Beethoven left Bonn for Vienna. Because of a quarrel before he left, Beethoven didn't write to Errol for one year after he arrived in Vienna. 1793, he dedicated the title of his first work published in Vienna (some of which was written in Bonn) to Eleanor. This work is a variation on violin and piano with the theme of Figaro aria in the first act of Mozart's opera The Marriage of Figaro. 1793165438+1October 2, Beethoven wrote to Ereonole, and finally talked about the technically difficult vibrato of the piano, saying: "Some people in Vienna, after listening to my impromptu performance in the evening, will record the unique things in my style the next day and count them as their own. I wouldn't have written this kind of music if I hadn't seen through their behavior. I know their music will be published soon, so I decided to strike first. But I have another reason: I want to beat those Vienna pianists, some of whom are my sworn enemies. I want to repay them with this, because I expected that my variations would meet so-called gentlemen everywhere and make them look like a mess. " Soon after, Beethoven played this piece in public, showing his superb piano skills.

A rigorous attitude towards composition.

Mendelssohn once published a Beethoven manuscript. On this manuscript paper, there is a place that has been changed and changed, and twelve small pieces of paper have been posted. Mendelssohn opened these small pieces of paper one by one, and found that the innermost piece of paper (the initial idea) was exactly the same as the outermost piece of paper (the twelfth rewrite). At the beginning, Wang Anshi, a writer in the Northern Song Dynasty in China, took great pains and conceived dozens of schemes for the word "green" in the sentence "Spring breeze is greener in Jiang Nanan". It is precisely because of the creative spirit of outstanding artists at home and abroad that future generations can appreciate such touching works of art, and composing music is a very hard work for Beethoven. When he composed the opera Federio, he drafted ten opening lines for one of the choruses. People are familiar with the theme motivation of the first movement of the Symphony of Destiny, and more than a dozen different ideas have been found in his draft. Beethoven often takes a notebook with him, and he never forgets to record his sudden inspiration when he walks. This is very similar to China Tang Dynasty poet Li He.

◆ Radical personality

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Beethoven and his predecessors

Haydn, the "father of symphony", used to be Beethoven's teacher, but there were always differences between teachers and students because of different opinions. Haydn appreciates Beethoven's talent very much, but he can't tolerate Beethoven's bold and innovative spirit and unruly personality. So it's only a matter of time before they break up. Goethe and Beethoven met in Bohemia in 18 12 and spent a month together. Both of them left a deep impression on each other, but they didn't establish friendship. Beethoven admired Goethe's genius very much, but he could not tolerate some of Goethe's practices. One day, they went out for a walk together. On the way, I saw the Queen of Austria leading a group of royal family members and walking in the opposite direction with them. Goethe ignored Beethoven's repeated discouragement and immediately stood respectfully by the roadside. Beethoven said to Goethe, "You don't have to do this. The style of nobility is stupid, which only shows their mediocrity and incompetence. ..... They can pin the medal on anyone's chest, but this person will never get better. They may use seven or three products to make a person a civilian, but at any time they can't make Goethe or Beethoven ... "However, Goethe not only stood stiffly by the roadside, but also began to show a humble smile on his face. Beethoven realized that whatever he said was in vain. So he held his head high and walked on. As a result, after recognizing Beethoven, the queen and crown prince of Austria took the lead in paying tribute to Beethoven and took off their hats. When they passed by Goethe, Goethe had already taken off his hat and bowed, and even dared not lift his head. Afterwards, Beethoven said sadly to Goethe: "... you respect them too much." Even so, Beethoven still has great respect for Goethe. People found in the conversation book he used when he was completely deaf in his later years that he forbade others to talk about Goethe in a contemptuous tone; He once told people that he was willing to "sacrifice his life ten times" for Goethe. But Goethe can't forgive Beethoven all his life, and his attitude is cold and sometimes even ruthless, which is very puzzling.

"Playing the piano for pigs"

It is Beethoven's consistent character to despise dignitaries as their agents. A friend of Beethoven's, Duke Leigh Sinowski, invited Beethoven to play for a French officer living in his official residence, but Beethoven didn't agree. The duke finally put a straight face and changed the "invitation" to "order". But Beethoven not only refused without fear, but after returning home, he found a bust that Duke Leisinovsky had given him before and smashed it to pieces. Then, he wrote a letter to the duke, which read: "Duke, you just happened to be the duke;" I became Beethoven because of myself. There are many dukes like you now and in the future, but I have only one Beethoven forever! " Beethoven also hated the flattery of the rich in the upper class. In the era of Beethoven's life, there was a general trend of "collecting personal belongings of celebrities" in Europe. A countess asked Beethoven for a bunch of hair as a souvenir. Beethoven was very dissatisfied with this, and later wrapped a bunch of goatees in paper and sent the lady away. And the countess was still in the dark, thinking that she really got the child. On one occasion, several nobles were lucky enough to invite Beethoven to enjoy his piano performance. At first, Beethoven was in a good mood, but he gradually discovered that these nobles didn't care about his performance, just wanted to "decorate the window" after dinner. So Beethoven immediately covered the piano cover and left a sentence angrily: "I'm not interested in playing the piano for pigs!" " "After that, I went away.

People on the "blacklist"

1In the 1920s, the European capitalist revolution entered a low ebb, and the democratic republicans were ruthlessly suppressed. The same is true of Vienna. But Beethoven ignored the surveillance of spies and spies and often went to small hotels to meet Republicans engaged in underground activities. This made him the object of close attention of the Vienna police, and his name appeared in the "record list" of the secret police. Faced with this situation, Beethoven dared to publicly curse the Austrian emperor who returned to China: "He (referring to the Austrian emperor) should be hanged on the first tree!" "

1789 The thought of French bourgeois revolution and progress inspired him a lot and laid the curtain for his humanistic world. -Convinced that human beings are equal, pursuing justice and individual freedom, and hating the oppression of feudal autocracy. Although the three famous composers of Vienna Classical Music School lived in similar times, Beethoven's thoughts obviously did not belong to the same "era" as Haydn and Mozart. Haydn was humiliated all his life. Although he is occasionally provoked, he always leaves his fate to chance. At that time, progressive literary thoughts and revolutionary emotions rarely excited him, and his music was always insulated from struggle. Mozart suffered no less mental pain than Haydn. He dared to resist, preferring poverty to endure the insult of the archbishop. But in his music, from behind the joy full of sunshine and youthful vitality, we can often feel a trace of pain, melancholy and sadness. Only Beethoven, who not only angrily opposed the autocratic feudal system, but also called on people to fight for freedom and happiness with his music. Beethoven's creations in Bonn (1782- 1792) are mostly small piano pieces, duets and songs. It can be said that he was still in the preparatory stage of creation during this period. During his first ten years in Vienna (1792- 1802), his famous works were Sorrow, Moonlight, Croce Sonata, Piano Concerto No.3 and so on. However, during this period, he had a further understanding of social and political issues, and he could also achieve the goal he tried to explore. 1802- 18 12 years, his creation entered a mature period, which later became his "heroic era".

The mature process of Beethoven's creative activities seems to be quite slow on the surface, but in fact it is very smooth. He didn't write his first symphony until he was thirty, but Mozart had written about forty symphonies at this age.

Beethoven began to feel his hearing was getting weaker and weaker from 1796, but it was not until 180 1 that he was convinced that his ear disease was incurable and told his friends about it. However, his love for art and life overcame his personal pain and despair-suffering became the source of his creative power. At the peak of such a spiritual crisis, he began to write his optimistic hero symphony. The Heroic Symphony marks the turning point of Beethoven's spirit and the beginning of the heroic era.

In the later period of Beethoven's stay in Vienna, because Europe was experiencing a serious period of political reaction, that is, the period when metternich's reactionary rule was particularly rampant, his creation also experienced a temporary decline (1813-1817). From 18 18, in the last ten years of Beethoven's life (18 18- 1827), he still wrote the ninth symphony (chorus) with great perseverance, even though he was completely deaf, his health deteriorated, his life was poor and his spirit was poor.

Beethoven died in Vienna on March 26th, 1827. No one accompanied him when he died, but when he was buried on the 29th of the same month, there was a wave of mass activities. What is a fake play? Where's Topan? Tomb capital? Which tribute? Xiamen? Abuse? Shuo? Mulberry? 79 1- 1872) Inscription: "When you stand in front of his coffin, what hangs over you is not despair, but a noble feeling; We can only say to people like him that he has achieved great things ... "

Beethoven is one of the great composers in the world art history. His creation embodies his giant character and reflects the progressive thought of that era. His image of revolutionary heroism can be used as "through suffering-towards joy; Win through struggle. "

◆ others' evaluation

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◆ Chronology of Beethoven's Works

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1782- 1783 published variations and marches, three piano sonatas, fugue, two piano Rondo and a piano concerto.

1785, Alice became a violin teacher. Compose three piano quartets.

From 1787 to 1789, he composed a prelude, two preludes and two piano trio in f minor.

1790 Creation by Knight Ballet (dedicated to Wahlstam. 1791staged on March 6th)

From 1792 to 1795, he created the work number. 1, 2,3,87, 103,19,46, 129, etc. (among them, Op.2 is three piano sonatas and Op. 19 is piano concerto)

1795 playing his own works in Vienna for the first time. Three piano trio (Op. 1) were published.

1796-1797 composed a string quintet in e flat major (op 4), two piano and cello sonatas (op 5) and op 6, 7, 8, 25, 16, 7 1 8.

Hearing loss ranges from 1798 to 1799, Op. 9, 10,12, 13 (piano sonata of sadness) .10000.000000000103

Works from 1800 to 180 1 year: 17, 18, 22, 23, 24, 26, 27, 28, 29, 37 (namely "Piano Concerto No.3"

1802 created works nos. 30, 3 1, 33, 34, 35 and 40 (Romance in G major), No.50 (Romance in F major) and No.36 (Symphony No.2).

From 1803 to 1804, he wrote the third symphony and entered a mature period of creation.

1804, the third symphony originally dedicated to Napoleon was changed to a heroic symphony. On April 7th, 1805, the Hero Symphony premiered for the first time.

1804-1805 Works: Works 32, 53, 54, 57, 56 and 72.

February 23rd1806,65438+First violin concerto in D major. He composed the fourth piano concerto, three string quartets (Op.59) and an idyllic symphony.

Composed in 1807- 1808, his works include Symphony of Destiny (Symphony No.5), Symphony of Pastoral (Symphony No.6) and Works No.62, 69, 70, 80 and 86.

1809- 18 10 composed Piano Concerto No.5 (The Emperor) and Egmont, as well as works No.74, 76, 77, 78, 79 and 8 1(a).

1811-1812 He composed the seventh and eighth symphonies, with the number of 96,97, 1 13,1/.

1813 65438+February 8th, beating Wellington completely.

Creation year1813-181489, 90, 94, 15,18,1/kloc.

The work number is 98,1815-181,102, 1 108 was created in 2006.

He composed a quintet fugue (Op. 137).

18 18 B piano sonata (Op. 106).

18 19 began to write a solemn mass.

182 1No.10 piano sonata.

From 1820 to 1822, Beethoven composed 109,1,19,12/kloc-0.

1823 the solemn mass is over.

The ninth symphony was completed in 1824. Compose a string quartet (Op. 127).

The last string quartet was composed at 1825. Symphony No.9 premiered at Karen Turner Theatre in Vienna in April and was officially performed on May 8.

1826 is going to write the tenth symphony, and he is seriously ill.

1827 died on March 26th.

In addition, there is a famous piano piece composed about 18 10 years ago: To Alice (for Alice).