Questions tagged [beethoven]
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827), composer whose work spanned the boundary between the Classical and Romantic eras.
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Beethoven and parallel minor keys
I read somewhere recently that Beethoven considered the minor and major keys to be "one and the same"
The quote i reference was not referring to the relative minor (ie. Am in key of C), but ...
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Tempo for Rezitativ
What is the tempo for Rezitativ?
I found that: Rezitativ by Johann Sebastian Bach is played at 70 Beats Per Minute (Adagio), or 14 Measures/Bars Per Minute. Time Signature 5/4.
After the Presto (...
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What are these diagonal dashes in the Schnabel Ed. Beethoven Sonatas?
I'm working on Beethoven Sonata No. 1 and have noticed these diagonal dashes in the left hand in movement 2 (see bar 3).
I assume these are editorial markings as I am seeing them in other sonatas in ...
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Is the Violin Sonata No. 9 a particularly difficult Beethoven violin part to play? If so, what is it that makes it particularly challenging?
In The Daily Show's April 14, 2022 video CP Time: The History of Black Classical Music comedian (among other titles) Roy Wood Jr. mentions George Bridgetower:
George Augustus Polgreen Bridgetower (11 ...
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Why is the second movement to Beethoven's 9th notated in fast 3/4, rather than in 3/8?
Looking at the score for Beethoven's 9th symphony, it surprises me how the second movement is written in a breakneck 3/4 at 116 dotted half notes per minute.
Why did Beethoven opt for this 3/4, rather ...
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Piano - Triplets turn into sixteenths
I am having trouble with playing triplets at higher speeds (such as at the end of the Pathetique Sonata, 3rd movement). I find that when I speed things up to tempo that the triplets always turn into ...
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Moonlight Sonata 3rd movement bar 20-23 left-hand technique
My question is what technique should I focus on. In bar 20, I am using the tremolo, but in the passage of the chord there are 2 doubts: do I need to keep finger 1 pressed D # while I bring the other ...
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Writing error in Beethoven's autograph of "moonlight" sonata?
In Beethoven's op. 27/2 in the autograph, bar 20, in the left hand on musical beat 1, the lower tone seems to be d sharp ("dis").
https://www.beethoven.de/en/media/view/6442239777570816/scan/...
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What is the purpose of the first movement in Moonlight Sonata?
As someone inexperienced in formal music theory, I wonder what the purpose of the first movement of Moonlight Sonata is. Whenever I listen to Moonlight Sonata, I feel like skipping directly past the ...
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Spurious note in "Für Elise" (D in measure 76)?
Back in the olden days, when I walked to school barefoot in the snow uphill both ways, I learned "Für Elise" out of Suzuki Piano School Volume 5. In m. 76 (third measure in the below image), ...
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Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 3: Last notes played by piano or not?
I have a (probably pretty amateur) question regarding the Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 3, more precisely the last notes of the third movement. I've listened to different recordings of this piece and ...
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Did Beethoven "invent" ragtime with Piano Sonata No 32 Op 111?
I had an interesting question. It is common knowledge that ragtime came about as a genre with Scott Joplin. However, I am curious if anyone has any information about Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 32 in ...
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How to execute rapid broken chords in Beethoven Op. 90
I am looking for advice in executing the following passages of fast, broken chords in Beethoven's Sonata in E Minor (Op. 90), first movement. The passages in question are pictured below.
There are ...
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Acciaccatura vs Appoggiatura in Beethoven
While studying the 2nd movement of Beethoven's Sonata Op.90, I found these appoggiaturas in bars 28-29.
This is the Henle edition (which I find to be one of the most reliable editions for Beethoven); ...
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Ludwig van Beethoven "complete" 722 works in Chronological Order
It is known that "The compositions of Ludwig van Beethoven consist of 722 works".
However,
only about 138 of these works have Op opus numbers.
about 228 (till WoO 228b) have WoO numbers. (...
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Double basses in Beethoven's Eroica
I have just been listening to Beethoven's Eroica while following a miniature score: Eulenburg score at Amazon.
I was paying particular attention to the double basses and I noticed that frequently ...
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What makes Beethoven’s False Picardy Third so convincing?
So, there’s one aspect of Beethoven’s style that I personally, haven’t been able to write convincing examples of. That would be the False Picardy Third. To clarify, this is what I mean by False ...
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Texture of Beethoven's Symphony Number 8 movement 1
I have been struggling to come up with a conclusion if the first movement of Beethoven's Symphony No. 8 has a polyphonic texture. But I cannot find a valid reason. Does anyone have any solid ideas of ...
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Beethoven “Appassionata” measure 42
I’m trying to figure out the chord progression in the highlighted measure. I know the key shifts from A flat major to minor, but what do the #c minor and A major chords do here? How can I write them ...
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Repeated forte dynamics in more than 10 measures, What does that mean?
As I arrange the Scherzo movement of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony for a piano quintet(though I might expand this out to a sextet and use a double bass in place of a second cello), I notice something odd ...
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Do I need to worry about Tympani glissando here?
So I have come across another thing that some people have said about my Pathetique Sonata orchestration. That is that my tympani pitch changes are too quick and that there will be glissando on the ...
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What besides a fast tempo is causing this Measure - Beat equivalence?
I have noticed something with the scherzo from Beethoven's Ninth and particularly the beat. If I just listen to the scherzo and try to feel the beat, I feel an Allegro, say around 130 BPM at the ...
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How should I analyze this passage? As vii°7, V7, or both?
So, I'm doing another Beethoven analysis, this time using the Liszt transcription of Beethoven's Fifth so that I can more easily see the harmonies and form. I am analyzing it passage by passage, first ...
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Why is there a key signature change in Beethoven's Hammerklavier Sonata (2nd movement)?
I have listened to the Hammerklavier Sonata many times, sometimes while following the score, and I have noticed that, in the second movement, there is a change in the key signature for just a little. ...
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Is it normal at beginner level to feel piano pieces uninteresting?
This is the most stupid question that you may hear in your life but I dont have anybody to help me here.
I always loved the sound of piano from my childhood but never took it seriously. In last few ...
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Moonlight Sonata vs K.331 Andante Grazioso
I learned the first part of K.331 "Andante Grazioso", and I was moving to the first variation. However, I am finding very huge difficulties in learning it, especially when I compare it with Moonlight ...
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Augmented triad in Pathetique Sonata? How does it function?
I analyzed the harmony of the Pathetique Sonata as you already know, but one thing about the harmony in the first movement made me curious. No, not unconfirmed modulation or anything like that. No, it ...
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No connection between two melodies in an opus
I was listening to Beethoven - Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67:
I have noticed that the opus has two parts: the first part with the famous melody we all know, and ...
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Does Sforzando really mean a stronger accent?
I come across sforzando a lot as an arranger and even just as a classical music listener. I was told by my piano teacher that sforzando means a stronger accent than your typical accent mark. But I ...
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Dotted Rhythm in Dance
The Wikipedia article on Beethoven's 7th symphony talks about how "the work as a whole is known for its use of rhythmic devices suggestive of a dance, such as dotted rhythm" and "[the Vivace] is ...
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Rootless chords in Beethoven sonata?
Okay, I came across a bit of a wrinkle in the paper as I analyzed the third movement of Beethoven's Sonata Pathetique. It has to do with this passage in the C section(which is in Ab major):
For those ...
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Musescore issue: Bar going across the page
I am using Musescore 3.2.3 and I'm trying to analyze Beethoven's Pathetique sonata by first writing it down, and then analyzing the harmony. But, I have a slight issue. The bar is going right across ...
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Why is Beethoven's tempo so off?
There is one thing that brought me this question. Well 2 actually. First off is Wim Winters and his Authentic Sound channel where he argues that Beethoven is using double beat for his tempos. He ...
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Meaning of the words "Recitativo" and "tutte le corde" in music?
I am trying to understand Romantic music. I came across this extract from Beethoven's Piano Sonata op.110 from the Allegro man non troppo part.
I want to understand what the words "Recitativo" and "...
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Can an augmented sixth lead straight to tonic?
So I am almost finished with my harmonic analysis of Rondo a Capriccio. But I came across a mysterious chord. I'm trying to figure it out. Here is the chord:
I know from looking at it carefully, that ...
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Playing a fast but quiet Alberti bass
My Alberti bass in the 3rd movement of the "Moonlight" sonata by Beethoven is way too loud, so that the melody in the right hand often vanishes. So I wonder how I can fix it. It should be played piano ...
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Is this really better analyzed in G minor than in Bb?
So I have been analysing Rondo a Capriccio by Beethoven and I reached a point where a so called "expert's" opinion and mine differ drastically. It starts at bar 57 and continues to bar 68. After the ...
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How to turn Beethoven's fifth into a fugue?
I am composing a Theme and Variations based on the first theme of Beethoven's fifth. And one of the variations that I plan on doing is a fugal variation. I decided to write the fugal variation first, ...
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Anotations in Beethoven original score of the 9th symphony
I once heard that in the original handwritten score of the first movement of Beethoven's 9th symphony there are references to the creation myth as annotations. However, these were not replicated in ...
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Stopped notes in Beethoven's 2d
In David Zinman's complete Beethoven symphonies with the Tonhalle orchestra, he uses the Barenreiter edition, modern instrument, and fast tempos.
In his performance the first movement of the 2d ...
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Chromatic 7th chords going upwards in Beethoven
This is about how the harmony is working in Rondo a Capriccio by Beethoven. Here is the passage I am talking about:
So starting at measure 291, there is a passage where 7th chords go up chromatically,...
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Piano: quaver triplets in RH v dotted quaver and semiquaver in LH
Towards the end of the first movement of Beethoven's Piano Sonata Op 27 No 2 (Moonlight) the right hand is playing triplet quavers while the left has a dotted quaver and semiquaver.
If we are ...
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Did Beethoven write any modes other than the Ionian / Aeolian / Lydian modes?
The Ionian and the Aeolian modes are considered major and natural minor keys, and all composers used these modes all the time, including Beethoven, who also wrote Lydian mode in one of his string ...
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To compose music, do you have to be able to hear?
I am asking this question out of sheer curiosity. Ludwig van Beethoven was deaf but still made some amazing songs. Just like Beethoven, do your ears have to work normally (Like not deaf), to be able ...
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How accurate is the von Bulow edition of the Beethoven piano sonatas?
I'm wondering whether or not the Hans von Bulow edition is scholarly and accurate or not.I'm aware that Liszt favored it as his students recollect that he only used that edition when teaching the ...
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Could this Scherzo by Beethoven be considered to be a fugue?
I have listened to the scherzo of Beethoven's Piano Sonata op. 2 no. 3 and it is very fugal in nature. It even has a fugal exposition(though it is dominant, dominant, dominant, dominant of dominant, ...
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Stuck orchestrating the melody of a Beethoven sonata
I have been orchestrating the Pathetique Sonata for months. I looked on IMSLP and saw no orchestral transcription. And I figured, if I am going to orchestrate a piano sonata, this would be the sonata ...
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How is Beethoven able to make so many sudden shifts in key?
I know of 2 very common modulations that classical music composers of all ages have done. Those 2 are relative modulation and parallel modulation respectively. I myself have done those and I see both ...
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How to overcome emotional tension with this Beethoven rondo
I never thought this would happen but it just did. The Beethoven rondo I am referring to is the one in G major, widely known as "Rage over a Lost Penny". There is a 20 measure section starting at ...
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Advice on arranging piano music for wind quartet?
I am arranging the Moonlight Sonata for woodwind quartet. The adagio and the minuet are simple enough to transcribe note for note. But the presto, that is hard. I mean there are super fast arpeggios ...
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