The Creatures of Prometheus (Beethoven)
Encyclopedia
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. Beethoven based the fourth movement of his Eroica Symphony and his Eroica Variations
(piano) on the main theme of the last movement of the ballet.
Prometheus
In Greek mythology, Prometheus is a Titan, the son of Iapetus and Themis, and brother to Atlas, Epimetheus and Menoetius. He was a champion of mankind, known for his wily intelligence, who stole fire from Zeus and gave it to mortals...
is a ballet
Ballet
Ballet is a type of performance dance, that originated in the Italian Renaissance courts of the 15th century, and which was further developed in France and Russia as a concert dance form. The early portions preceded the invention of the proscenium stage and were presented in large chambers with...
composed in 1801 by Ludwig van Beethoven
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...
following the libretto of Salvatore Viganò
Salvatore Viganò
Salvatore Viganò , was an Italian choreographer, dancer and composer.He was born in Naples. He studied composition with Luigi Boccherini and by the mid-1780s was composing original music. In 1788 he appeared as a dancer on the stage in Venice. He performed in the coronation festivities of...
. The overture to the ballet is part of the concert repertoire. Beethoven based the fourth movement of his Eroica Symphony and his Eroica Variations
Eroica Variations
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...
(piano) on the main theme of the last movement of the ballet.
Prometheus in other music compositions
- Prometheus: Poem of Fire, Op. 60 (1910) by Alexander ScriabinAlexander ScriabinAlexander Nikolayevich Scriabin was a Russian composer and pianist who initially developed a lyrical and idiosyncratic tonal language inspired by the music of Frédéric Chopin. Quite independent of the innovations of Arnold Schoenberg, Scriabin developed an increasingly atonal musical system,...
. - Prometheus: opera by Gabriel FauréGabriel FauréGabriel Urbain Fauré was a French composer, organist, pianist and teacher. He was one of the foremost French composers of his generation, and his musical style influenced many 20th century composers...
, 1910. - Prometheus: opera using Aeschylus's original Greek by Carl OrffCarl OrffCarl Orff was a 20th-century German composer, best known for his cantata Carmina Burana . In addition to his career as a composer, Orff developed an influential method of music education for children.-Early life:...
, 1968. - PrometheusPrometheus (Liszt)Franz Liszt composed his Prometheus in 1850, numbering it No. 5 in his cycle of symphonic poems when he revised it in 1855. The work is based on the Greek myth, Prometheus and is numbered S.99 in the Searle catalogue.-Composition:...
: symphonic poem of Franz LisztFranz LisztFranz Liszt ; ), was a 19th-century Hungarian composer, pianist, conductor, and teacher.Liszt became renowned in Europe during the nineteenth century for his virtuosic skill as a pianist. He was said by his contemporaries to have been the most technically advanced pianist of his age...
, 1850.