Eroica Variations
Encyclopedia
The Variations and Fugue for Piano in E major, Op. 35 are a set of fifteen variations for solo piano composed by Ludwig van Beethoven
in 1802. They are commonly referred to as the Eroica Variations because variations on the same theme were used as the finale of his Symphony No. 3 Eroica
composed the following year.
The theme used was a favorite of Beethoven's. It was featured in the finale of the ballet music he composed for The Creatures of Prometheus
(1800) and then as the seventh of his 12 Contredanses, WoO 14 (1800-02) before being the subject of the variations of this work and of the later symphony. It begins thus:
In a departure from the classical theme-and-variations
form, Beethoven opens the work not with the main theme, but the bass line to the main theme. He then follows with three variations of this bass line before finally stating the main theme. This approach was carried over from the ballet music, where it represented the gradual creation of life forms by Prometheus. The variations in the Eroica Symphony follow this same pattern. In another departure from traditional variation form, after the fifteen variations of the main theme, Beethoven finishes the work with a finale consisting of a fugue
followed by an Andante con moto.
The work lasts about 25 minutes.
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
in 1802. They are commonly referred to as the Eroica Variations because variations on the same theme were used as the finale of his Symphony No. 3 Eroica
Symphony No. 3 (Beethoven)
Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 3 in E flat major , also known as the Eroica , is a landmark musical work marking the full arrival of the composer's "middle-period," a series of unprecedented large scale works of emotional depth and structural rigor.The symphony is widely regarded as a mature...
composed the following year.
The theme used was a favorite of Beethoven's. It was featured in the finale of the ballet music he composed for The Creatures of Prometheus
The Creatures of Prometheus (Beethoven)
The Creatures of Prometheus is a ballet composed in 1801 by Ludwig van Beethoven following the libretto of Salvatore Viganò. The overture to the ballet is part of the concert repertoire...
(1800) and then as the seventh of his 12 Contredanses, WoO 14 (1800-02) before being the subject of the variations of this work and of the later symphony. It begins thus:
In a departure from the classical theme-and-variations
Variation (music)
In music, variation is a formal technique where material is repeated in an altered form. The changes may involve harmony, melody, counterpoint, rhythm, timbre, orchestration or any combination of these.-Variation form:...
form, Beethoven opens the work not with the main theme, but the bass line to the main theme. He then follows with three variations of this bass line before finally stating the main theme. This approach was carried over from the ballet music, where it represented the gradual creation of life forms by Prometheus. The variations in the Eroica Symphony follow this same pattern. In another departure from traditional variation form, after the fifteen variations of the main theme, Beethoven finishes the work with a finale consisting of a fugue
Fugue
In music, a fugue is a compositional technique in two or more voices, built on a subject that is introduced at the beginning in imitation and recurs frequently in the course of the composition....
followed by an Andante con moto.
The work lasts about 25 minutes.
External links
- Recording by Katherine Chi from the Isabella Stewart Gardner MuseumIsabella Stewart Gardner MuseumThe Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum or Fenway Court, as the museum was known during Isabella Stewart Gardner's lifetime, is a museum in the Fenway-Kenmore neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, located within walking distance of the Museum of Fine Arts and near the Back Bay Fens...
in MP3MP3MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
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