Symphony No. 3 was started as a tribute to Beethoven's hero Bonaparte but when Bonaparte crowned himself emperor, Beethoven lost most of the respect he has for Bonaparte and changed it to Eroica which can be translated to Heroic roughly. I shall reserve my comments to a later date.
What prompted me to write on this Symphony is because it was premiered on 22nd December 1808 and both 21st and 22nd December are birthdays of two men that is very close to my heart and for privacy reasons, it shall remain so. Some of you reading it might be able to guess but please do not comment on the names and respect the privacy please.
Beethoven's 9 symphonies occupy such a large turf in classical music arena that Stefan Kunze commented that "it was the standard against which the claims of all serious symphonic were measured." I could not agree more although the likes of more contemporary symphonic composers like Shostakovich and Schnikte has taken symphonic music to a very new dimension especially with Schnikte.
To start off, symphony No. 6 is peculiar as it has a total of 5 movements instead of the standard 4 movements structure. His other symphony that has 5 movements is symphony No. 9 but I am not sure some would agree with me that the finale Chorale as an adjunct to the 4th movement rather than a movement by itself. As the father of symphonic genre, I guess you reach a certain stage where the person becomes the rule of the day rather than the statutes.My thoughts are that Beethoven might have intended it to be a 4 movement symphony because he placed the schezro in the 3rd movement which is normally followed by the 4th and last movement. However, Beethoven might want to avoid his composition to end up as another tone poem which has become so overly used that Goethe commented " Painting sounds with sounds - thunder, crashing, plashing and splashing has become detestable". This is purely speculation based on circumstantial backdrop against which surrounded Beethoven at that time.
The first movement is to convey his arrival at the pastoral which is the country side as it was commonly known in his time. The feeling is one of cheerfulness as it might have been a large contrast to the city of Vienna where Beethoven was staying at that time. The very subtle entrance could also mean an entrance into quietness and tranquility. There seems to be a parallel with his symphony No. 5 structure wise of letting a single motif move from one part of the orchestra to the next like starting with the strings, followed by woodwinds and finally with the brass section.
The second movement and also the fourth movement is where Beethoven got himself in a tone poem fashion most probably to serve as canvas rather than the painting itself. These 2 movements are bipolar in that the second movement seems to portray the beauty of the country side. The fourth movement on the other hand paints how a thunderstorm could change the canvas of the country side so much just like it does in the cities where he was more accustom save for some sarconant differences in the two places.
The 3rd movement must have been the most beautiful dance of all the dances he has composed in my opinion. The dance starts leisurely and simply perhaps to give the dancers time to admire each other before it launches itself into a romantic heart wrenching melody that could turn any heart of stone to jelly. Thereafter comes the more demanding parts to the dancers to concentrate on the music and their steps. The ending is grandiose and launches straight into the 4th movement. Time to take a back seat and enjoy the music. The 4th movements is also punctuated with many dramatic kettle drum parts where it punctuates the tune with strong and staccato type beats mimicking the storm.
The 5th and the last movement is where the symphony finds resolution in the form of man and nature having a happy co-existence and respect for each other. Perhaps Greenpeace might consider it as a possible tune for their occasions.
I spent a good part of my Sunday listening to all 5 versions of this symphony that I have in my collection. What I find interesting is that for most Beethoven pieces, the more recent recordings tend to play on a faster tempo than older recordings but it is the reverse for this symphony in that the later recordings are played much slower.
The versions that I have are as follows and album art and fuller details would follow as it is about bed time for me now.
1.Beethoven 9 Symphonien - Herbert von Karajan,Berlin Philharmonia. DG
2.Beethoven Shmphony 5 & 6 karajan gold-recent re-issue of the above recording done in 1982
3.Harnoncourt, Chamber Orchestra of Europe-Warner Classics-Winner of best classical album in 1992.
4.Osmo Vanska, Minnesota Orchestra-BIS-SACD Award winning also
5.Andre Cluytens, Berlin Philharmonia-EMI
If I am not mistaken, the version by Vanska listed in number 4 is about the slowest of the 5 interpretations.
Cheers,,,, Pete
Safe Harbor. Please note that information contained in these pages are of a personal nature and does not necessarily reflect that of any companies, organizations or individuals. In addition, some of these opinions are of a forward looking nature. Lastly the facts and opinions contained in these pages might not have been verified for correctness, so please use with caution. Happy Reading. Peter Lye