1823, Beethoven completed his last masterpiece, Symphony No.9 (Chorus). This work created his ideal world. 1826 65438+Beethoven had a bad cold in February, which led to pulmonary edema. 1827 On March 26th, he left in a snowstorm. Never married. On the 29th, there were 20,000 undertakers, and their bodies were buried in St. Max's Cemetery.
This composer has only been in the world for 57 years, and has completed more than 100 works in his life. The main works include 9 symphonies; Dozens of orchestral music (Egmont overture is the most famous); 5 piano concertos and 1 violin concerto; 5 other concertos; 32 piano sonatas (passion, moonlight, sadness, dawn, storm, etc. Are the most famous); 80 chamber music; Opera 1 Frederio; Another play1; Quality 2 and so on.
biography
More than love is pain and indignation. "Roland interpreted the first movement as melancholy, whining and crying. Russian musician Ole Biyishev (1794- 1858) thinks that the first movement is "deep sorrow" of lovelorn, just like "hanging fire". However, 180 1 was the time when Beethoven and Guichar Di fell in love. It may not be true to say that this work is about the pain of lovelorn love. 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's listening to Anton's song? Rubinstein also had a similar impression when playing: "... 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; Others are meditation, endless memories and gloomy omens ... "Sonata in C minor is especially famous for its title and legend of' Moonlight'. Beethoven once said, "People often talk about sonatas in C minor, but I have written better things than this, such as sonatas in F major (Op. 78)." It can be seen that Beethoven himself was not very satisfied with Song of the Moonlight.
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 "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
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 feature
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. Once, 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. -I firmly believe in human equality, pursue justice and individual freedom, and hate 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".