Symphony No. 3 (Beethoven)

The Symphony No. 3 in E major, Op. 55, titled as the Eroica Symphony, is a symphony in four movements by Ludwig van Beethoven.

One of Beethoven's most celebrated works, the Eroica symphony is a large-scale composition that marked the beginning of the composer's innovative "middle period".

Composed mainly in 1803–1804, the work broke boundaries in symphonic form, length, harmony, emotional and cultural content. It is widely considered a landmark in the transition between the Classical and the Romantic era. It is also often considered to be the first Romantic symphony. Beethoven first conducted a private performance on 9 June 1804, and later the first public performance on 7 April 1805.

Instrumentation

The Symphony is scored for:

;Woodwinds:

:2 flutes

:2 oboes

:2 clarinets in B

:2 bassoons

;Brass:

:3 horns in E (1 & 2 in C in mvt 2)

:2 trumpets in E & C

;Percussion

;Strings:

:violins I, II

:violas

:cellos

:double basses

Form

The work is in 4 movements:

Depending upon the conductor's style and observation of the exposition repeat in the first movement, the typical performance time is between 45 and 55 minutes.

I. Allegro con brio

The 1st movement, in time, is in sonata form, with typical performances between 12 and 18 minutes long depending on interpretation and whether the exposition repeat is played. Unlike the longer adagio introductions in Beethoven's first two symphonies, the movement opens with two loud E major chords, played by the whole orchestra, that establish the tonality of the movement.

The conductor Kenneth Woods has noted that the opening movement of Eroica was inspired by and modeled on Mozart's Symphony No. 39, and shares many attributes of that earlier symphony which precedes this one by a decade and a half.

Exposition

The exposition has three thematic groups with varying interpretations of functionality.

First group (measures 3 to 44, E major)
Second group (measures 45 to 83, B major)
Third group (measures 84 to 155, B major)

The exposition begins with the cellos introducing the first theme. By the fifth bar of the melody (m. 7), a chromatic note (C) is introduced, thus introducing the harmonic tension of the work. The melody is finished by the first violins, with a syncopated series of Gs (which forms a tritone with C of the cellos and a diminished chord). This resolves to the dominant of the relative minor (G/C minor) before a short cadential codetta in E major. The first theme is then transferred to wind instruments, then fragmented, moving through other keys with the b motif in canon and interchanged with a hemiola in the dominant, later moving between dominant and tonic. The main theme is finally restated with full orchestra in a and b before modulating to F major and the dominant B in group 2.

The modulation to the dominant key of B appears at mm. 42 to 44, although it is not yet fully stabilized and entrenched. Here follows a group of three or two subjects: a lyrical downward motif (mm. 45 to 56) in canon between oboe, clarinet, flute, and violin; a short upward scale motif (mm. 57 to 64) in strings with a variation; and a section beginning with rapid downward patterns in the violins (mm. 65 to 82).

The third theme of the second group eventually leads to a lyrical theme (m. 83), whose second half of the theme eventually builds to a loud melody (m. 109) that draws upon the earlier downward motif (m. 113). The climactic moment of the exposition arrives when the music is interrupted by 6 consecutives sforzando hemiola chords (mm. 128 to 131). Later, and following the concluding chords of the exposition (mm. 144 to 148), the main theme returns in a brief codetta (m. 148) that transitions into the repeat / development.

The status of these groups is debated as to which is more important in the structure. In the traditional analysis, the three early motifs are transitional subjects to arrive at the "unusually late" lyrical theme. The early modulation to B had been present in early drafts of the symphony, as was the indecisive nature of the second group.

Commenters have also observed that the sonata form and orchestration transitions would be fully preserved by cutting the third group (m. 83 to 143).</blockquote>

Recapitulation

The recapitulation starts in the tonic E♭ major as expected, but then features a sudden excursion to F major early on albeit one that is "large and amply developed" and in which the principal theme has the functions of a refrain as in rondo form. However, it can also be analyzed as having five parts, a combination of ternary, rondo, and sonata form:

The A theme of the outer scherzo section appears pianissimo in the dominant key of B (mm. 7, 21), then piano in the secondary dominant key of F which is when the B part of the outer scherzo is heard (m. 41). This is followed by a pianissimo restart in B (m. 73), which is when the A theme is heard again, leading to a full fortissimo statement in the tonic key of E (m. 93). Later, a downward arpeggio motif with sforzandos on the second beat is played twice in unison, first by the strings (mm. 115 to 119) and then by the full orchestra (mm. 123 to 127). This is followed by a syncopated motif characterized by descending fourths (m. 143), leading to the repeat.

The trio section features three horns, the first time this had appeared in the symphonic tradition.||Paolo Troncon||Marco Gozzi||Jordan Randall Smith

||Bass theme||rowspan=4 |E major||12–43||Bass theme||Theme A|| ||Ostinato theme||Theme X||Theme

||Variation a 3||44–59||Elaboration on bass theme||Variation A1||Variation I||Variation (with countersubject)||First variation of Theme X||Variation I

||Variation a 4||60–75||Elaboration on bass theme||Variation A2||Variation II||Variation (with counterpoint)||Second variation of Theme X||Variation II

||Melody theme||76–116||Melody theme||Theme B||Variation III||Variation (ostinato + foundational theme)||Theme A||Variation III

||Fugato on bass theme||C minor||117–174||Variation I||Variation Ax||Variation IV||Fugue with 5 voices||Fugato on Theme X||Variation IV

||Melody theme||D major||175–210||Variation II||Variation B1|| || ||First and second variations on Theme A||Variation V

||March theme||G minor||211–257||Variation III||Variation A3|| ||New theme on oboes and bassoons||New variation on themes A-X||Variation VI

||Melody theme||C major<br/>C minor||258–276||Variation IV||Variation B2|| || ||Fourth variation of Theme A||rowspan=2 |Variation VII

||Double fugue||rowspan =3|E major||277–348||Variation V||Variation Ax1|| ||Fugue with 5 voices<br/>(inverted ostinato theme)||Fugal episode

||"Poco andante"||349–380||Variation VI||Variation B3||Final variation (with new theme)||Theme (varied)||Fifth variation of Theme A||Variation VIII

||Melody theme||381–396||Reprise||Variation B4|| ||Reprise||Sixth variation of Theme A||Variation IX

After a short introduction on the tutti that begins with the mediant chord that transitions to the dominant seventh, the quiet theme, in E major, first appears and then is subjected to a series of 10 variations:

Variation 1: The 1st variation repeats the theme in "arco" while a new accompaniment is introduced. (E major)
Variation 2: The next variation, containing a new triplet accompaniment, leads to: (E major)
Variation 3: Where a new melody is introduced while the theme is still played on the bass. A brief transitional passage leads to: (E major)
Variation 4: In C minor, a fugue that starts quietly and suspensefully on the strings as it builds up to a dramatic and urgent climax. (See Beethoven and C minor.)
Variation 5: The playful 5th variation is in D major, involving a statement of the theme where the bass instruments play the first clause of the first half in a minor mode, before correcting themselves and moving to the major for the second clause. The variation also includes two virtuosic solo passages for the flute which accompany the melodic line. This directly leads to:
Variation 6: A stormy and raging variation in G minor, reminiscent of a Romani style dance.
Variation 7: An incomplete variation, which begins with a simple restatement of the first half of the theme in C major, before an almost immediate switch back to the minor mode in order to bring the piece into:
Variation 8: Another fugue, now it is bright and energized, as this time it is in the tonic (E major) instead of the submediant. It builds up to a climax again; the orchestra pauses on the dominant of the home key, and the theme is further developed in:
Variation 9: At this point, the tempo slows down to Poco Andante, and the piece becomes more serene and tranquil. The theme, first stated by an oboe and then by the strings, here is contemplative and wistful, bringing a greater sense of depth to what has been heard before. During the second half, another triplet accompaniment is introduced in the higher strings, while the melodies, played by the woodwinds, are made of syncopated 16th and 8th notes. (E major)
Variation 10: The final variation, which is when the "full image" of The Eroica is heard. Triumphant and heroic plunges are constantly heard on the tutti, with the triplet accompaniment from the previous variation still present, as the melody from the third variation, now victorious and energized, is heard on the brass. (E major)

The symphony ends with a coda, which takes image on all previous sections and variations of the movement. At the end of the coda, there is a "surprise", which is when the dynamic changes from ' on the flute, bassoon, and strings only to ' all of a sudden by a huge crash on the whole orchestra, as the tempo abruptly changes to Presto. A flurry of sforzandos appears, and the finale ends triumphantly with three large E major chords on the tutti.

History

Beethoven began composing the third symphony soon after Symphony No. 2 in D major, Opus 36 and completed the composition in early 1804. The first public performance of Symphony No. 3 was on 7 April 1805 in Vienna.

Thematic origins

thumb|upright|Beethoven most likely composed the Eroica in reverse order. and also from the Finale to his ballet [[The Creatures of Prometheus, Op. 43, both of which were composed in the winter of 1800–1801. It was unlikely that Beethoven knew of that unpublished composition. A possible explanation is that Mozart and Beethoven each coincidentally heard and learned the theme from elsewhere.

Dedication

thumb|upright|Beethoven originally dedicated the symphony to [[Napoleon Bonaparte (pictured: Bonaparte, First Consul, by Ingres), only to renege after the latter declared himself Emperor of the French.]]

Beethoven originally dedicated the 3rd symphony to Napoleon Bonaparte, who he believed embodied the democratic and anti-monarchical ideals of the French Revolution. In the autumn of 1804, Beethoven withdrew his dedication of the 3rd symphony to Napoleon, lest it cost him the composer's fee paid him by a noble patron; so, Beethoven re-dedicated his 3rd symphony to Prince Joseph Franz Maximilian Lobkowitz – nonetheless, despite such a bread-and-butter consideration, the politically idealistic Beethoven titled the work "Bonaparte". Later, about the composer's response to Napoleon having proclaimed himself Emperor of the French (14 May 1804), Beethoven's secretary, Ferdinand Ries said that:

<blockquote>In writing this symphony, Beethoven had been thinking of Bonaparte, but Bonaparte while he was First Consul. At that time Beethoven had the highest esteem for him and compared him to the greatest consuls of Ancient Rome. Not only I, but many of Beethoven's closer friends, saw this symphony on his table, beautifully copied in manuscript, with the word "Bonaparte" inscribed at the very top of the title-page and "Ludwig van Beethoven" at the very bottom ...

I was the first to tell him the news that Bonaparte had declared himself Emperor, whereupon he broke into a rage and exclaimed, "So he is no more than a common mortal! Now, too, he will tread under foot all the rights of Man, indulge only his ambition; now he will think himself superior to all men, become a tyrant!" Beethoven went to the table, seized the top of the titlepage, tore it in half and threw it on the floor. The page had to be recopied, and it was only now that the symphony received the title Sinfonia eroica.</blockquote>

An extant copy of the score bears two scratched-out, hand-written subtitles; initially, the Italian phrase Intitolata Bonaparte ("Titled Bonaparte"), secondly, the German phrase Geschriben auf Bonaparte ("Written for Bonaparte"), 4 lines below the Italian subtitle. Three months after retracting his initial Napoleonic dedication of the symphony, Beethoven informed his music publisher that "The title of the symphony is really Bonaparte". In 1806, the score was published under the Italian title Sinfonia Eroica ... composta per festeggiare il sovvenire di un grande Uomo ("Heroic Symphony, composed to celebrate the memory of a great man").

Early performances and reviews

Composed from the autumn of 1803 until the spring of 1804, the earliest rehearsals and performances of the third symphony were private and took place in the Vienna palace of Beethoven's noble patron, Prince Lobkowitz. An account record dated 9 June 1804, submitted by the prince's Kapellmeister Anton Wranitzky, shows that the prince hired 22 extra musicians (including the third horn required for the Eroica) for two rehearsals of the work. The fee paid to Beethoven by Prince Lobkowitz would also have secured further private performances of the symphony that summer on his Bohemian estates, Eisenberg (Jezeří) and Raudnitz (Roudnice). The first public performance was on 7 April 1805, at the Theater an der Wien, Vienna; for which concert the announced (theoretical) key for the symphony was Dis (D major, 9 sharps).

Reviews of the work's public premiere (on 7 April 1805) were decidedly mixed. The concert also included the premiere of a Symphony in E major by Anton Eberl (1765–1807) that received better reviews than Beethoven's symphony. One correspondent describes the first reactions to the Eroica:

Musical connoisseurs and amateurs were divided into several parties. One group, Beethoven's very special friends, maintains that precisely this symphony is a masterpiece.... The other group utterly denies this work any artistic value ... [t]hrough strange modulations and violent transitions ... with abundant scratchings in the bass, with three horns and so forth, a true if not desirable originality can indeed be gained without much effort. ...The third, very small group stands in the middle; they admit that the symphony contains many beautiful qualities, but admit that the context often seems completely disjointed, and that the endless duration ... exhausts even connoisseurs, becoming unbearable to the mere amateur. To the public the symphony was too difficult, too long ... Beethoven, on the other hand, did not find the applause to be sufficiently outstanding.

</blockquote>

One reviewer at the premiere wrote that "this new work of B. has great and daring ideas, and ... great power in the way it is worked out; but the symphony would improve immeasurably if B. could bring himself to shorten it, and to bring more light, clarity, and unity to the whole." Another said that the symphony was "for the most part so shrill and complicated that only those who worship the failings and merits of this composer with equal fire, which at times borders on the ridiculous, could find pleasure in it". But a reviewer just two years later described the Eroica simply as "the greatest, most original, most artistic and, at the same time, most interesting of all symphonies".

The finale in particular came in for criticism that it did not live up to the promise of the earlier movements. An early reviewer found that "[t]he finale has much value, which I am far from denying it; however, it cannot very well escape from the charge of great bizarrerie." Another agreed that "[t]he finale pleased less, and that "the artist often wanted only to play games with the audience without taking its enjoyment into account simply in order to unloose a strange mood and, at the same time, to let his originality sparkle thereby". An exhaustive review of the work in a leading music journal made an observation that may still be familiar to first-time listeners: "this finale is long, very long; contrived, very contrived; indeed, several of [its] merits lie somewhat hidden. They presuppose a great deal if they are to be discovered and enjoyed, as they must be, in the very moment of their appearance, and not for the first time on paper afterwards." A review of an 1827 performance in London wrote that this particular performance "most properly ended with the funeral march, omitting the other parts, which are entirely inconsistent with the avowed design of the composition".

Manuscripts and editions

The original autograph manuscript does not survive. A copy of the score with Beethoven's handwritten notes and remarks, including the famous scratched-out dedication to Napoleon on the cover page, is housed in the library of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde in Vienna. A first published edition (1806) of Beethoven's Eroica is on display at the Lobkowicz Palace in Prague.

Several modern scholarly editions have appeared in recent decades, including those edited by Jonathan Del Mar (published by Bärenreiter), Peter Hauschild (Breitkopf & Härtel), and Bathia Churgin (Henle).

Assessment

Significance

The work is a milestone work in classical music; it is twice as long as the symphonies of Joseph Haydn and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – the first movement is almost as long as a Classical symphony (with repetition of the exposition). Thematically, it covers more emotional ground than Beethoven's earlier symphonies and thus marks a key milestone in the transition between Classicism and Romanticism that would define Western art music in the early decades of the nineteenth century.

The second movement especially displays a great emotional range, from the misery of the funeral march theme to the relative solace of happier, major-key episodes. The finale displays a similar emotional range and is given a thematic importance then unheard of. In earlier symphonies, the finale was a quick and breezy conclusion; here, the finale is a lengthy set of variations and a fugue.

Critical opinions and phrases

Hector Berlioz discussed Beethoven's use of the horn and the oboe, in the Treatise on Instrumentation and Orchestration (1844, 1855).
J. W. N. Sullivan said that the first movement expresses Beethoven's courage in confronting deafness; the second movement, slow and dirge-like, communicates his despair; the third movement, the scherzo, is an "indomitable uprising of creative energy"; and the fourth movement is an exuberant outpouring of energy.
Richard Strauss presents themes similar to the funeral march, in Metamorphosen, Study for 23 Solo Strings (1945). Some academics say the 'In Memoriam' sub-title refers to Beethoven.
Leonard Bernstein said the first two movements are "perhaps the greatest two movements in all symphonic music", in the recording Eroica (1953) and book The Infinite Variety of Music (1966).
BBC Music Magazine called it the greatest symphony, based on a survey of 151 conductors in 2016.
Alex Ross said that this symphony "knows which way you think the music is going and veers triumphantly in the wrong direction".

Use as funeral music

The symphony's 2nd movement has been played as a funeral march at state funerals, memorial services, and commemorations including:

the funeral of German composer Felix Mendelssohn, in 1847.
the funeral of German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, in 1944.
to mourn the death of US President Franklin D. Roosevelt, in 1945.
Bruno Walter performed the entire symphony as the memorial concert for conductor Arturo Toscanini, in 1957.
to mourn U.S. President John F. Kennedy, in 1963.
the funeral of the 11 Israeli athletes killed at the 1972 Summer Olympics.

Cinema

Eroica, a film based in part on Ferdinand Ries' recollection of the symphony's 1804 premiere, was released in 2003.

Notes

References

External links

Reviews and further information:
Program notes for the Philadelphia Orchestra
, article about the debate between the two men on fugal theory and practice during the symphony's gestation
Sheet music:
Full score
Media:
Eroica website from SF Symphony's 'Keeping Score' with Analysis, Background and Commentary by Michael Tilson Thomas (needs Flash).
Discovering Music, BBC Radio 3. Videos of an analysis and complete performance of the symphony. The analysis is by Stephen Johnson and the symphony is performed by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, under Christophe Mangou. Listening notes for the symphony are also available here.