am deprived for a day or so of the free use of my arms, to say nothing
of the pain. I cannot, it is true, deny that the humming with which my
deafness actually began, has become somewhat weaker, especially in the
left ear. My hearing, however, has not in the least improved; I really
am not quite sure whether it has not become worse. My general health is
better, and especially after I have taken luke warm baths a few times,
I am fairly well for eight or ten days. I seldom take any tonic; I am
now applying herb-plasters according to your advice. Vering won't hear
of shower baths, but I am really very dissatisfied with him; he shows
so little care and forbearance for such a malady; if I did not actually
go to him, and that costs me a great effort, I should never see him.
What is your opinion of Schmidt? I do not like making a change, yet it
seems to me that Vering is too much a practitioner to be able to take
in new ideas through books. Schmidt appears to me a very different
kind of man, and perhaps would not be so remiss. I hear wonders of
galvanism; what do you say about it? A doctor told me he had seen a
deaf and dumb child in Berlin who had recovered his hearing, also a man
who had been deaf for seven years. I have just heard that your Schmidt
is making experiments with it.

My life is again somewhat pleasanter, for I mix in society. You
can scarcely imagine what a dreary, sad life I have led during the
past two years. My weak hearing always seemed to me like a ghost and
I ran away from people, was forced to appear a misanthrope, though
not at all in my character. This change has been brought about by an
enchanting maiden, who loves me, and whom I love. Again during the
past two years I have had some happy moments, and for the first time
I feel that marriage can bring happiness. Unfortunately, she is not
of my station in life, and now--for the moment I certainly could not
marry--I must bravely bustle about. If it were not for my hearing, I
should already long ago have travelled half over the world, and that I
must do. For me there is no greater pleasure than that of practising
and displaying my art. Do not believe that I should feel happy among
you. What, indeed, could make me happier? Even your solicitude would
pain me; at every moment I should read pity on your faces, and that
would make me still more miserable. My beautiful native country, what
was my lot when there? Nothing but hope of a better state, and, except
for this evil, I should already have won it! O that I could be free
from it, and encompass the world! My youth, yes I feel it, is only now
beginning; have I not always been sickly? My strength, both of body
and mind, for some time has been on the increase. Every day I approach
nearer to the goal; this I feel, though I can scarcely describe it.
Only through this, can your Beethoven live. Don't talk of rest! I know
no other but sleep, and sorry enough am I, that I am compelled to give
more time to it than formerly. If only half freed from my infirmity,
then--as a thorough, ripe man--I will come to you and renew the old
feelings of friendship. You will see me as happy as my lot can be here
below, not unhappy. No, that I could not endure; I will seize fate by
the throat; it shall certainly never wholly overcome me. Oh! life is so
beautiful, would I could have a thousand lives! I feel I am no longer
fit to lead a quiet life! Do write as soon as you can. See to it that
Stephen makes up his mind to get an appointment in the Order of German
Knights. For his health, life here is too fatiguing. And besides, he
leads such a retired life, that I do not see how he can get on. You
know how it is here; I do not mean to say that society would render him
less languid; he can never be persuaded to go into it. Some time ago I
had a musical party at my house; but our friend Stephen did not turn
up. Do advise him to take more rest and to be more steady. I have done
all I could; without he takes this advice, he can never become either
happy or healthy. Now, tell me in your next letter, whether it matters
if I send you a great deal of my music. What you really don't want you
can sell, and so you will have your postage--also my portrait. Best
remembrances to Lorchen--also Mamma--and Christoph. You do really love
me a little, do you not? Be as well assured of this (of my love), as of
the friendship of your

                                                          BEETHOVEN.

                                  VI.

                To CAPELLMEISTER HOFMEISTER in Leipzig.

             _Vienna_, 15_th_ (or something like it), _January_, 1801.

With great pleasure, my dearly beloved brother and friend, have I
read your letter. I thank you right heartily for the good opinion you
have expressed concerning me and my works, and hope I may prove myself
really worthy of it. Please also convey my dutiful thanks to Herr K.
for his courtesy and friendly feelings towards me.

Your undertakings likewise make me glad, and I hope, if works of art
can procure gain, that it will fall to the lot of genuine true artists,
rather than to mere shopkeepers. That you wish to publish the works
of _Sebastian_ Bach rejoices my heart, which beats in unison with the
high art of this forefather of harmony, and I desire soon to see the
scheme in full swing. I hope that here, so soon as golden peace has
been proclaimed, I shall be able to be of great assistance in the
matter, when you issue a subscription list. As regards our special
business, since you wish it, I hope this may be to your liking: I now
offer you the following: _Septet_ (concerning which I have already
written to you; by _arranging_ it for pianoforte, it would become
better known and be more profitable) 20 ducats, _Symphony_ 20 ducats,
_Concerto_ 10 ducats, _Solo Sonata_ (_Allegro_, _Adagio_, _Minuetto_,
_Rondo_) 20 ducats. This _Sonata_ is A1, dearest brother! Now for a
word of explanation; you will perhaps be surprised that I here make
no difference between _Sonata_, _Septet_, _Symphony_, because I find
that there is not such a demand for a Septet or a _Symphony_ as for
a Sonata; that is why I do so, although a _Symphony_ is undoubtedly
of greater value (N.B.--the Septet consists of a short introductory
_Adagio_, then _Allegro_, _Adagio_, _Minuetto_, _Andante_ with
_Variations_, _Minuetto_, another short introductory _Adagio_, and
then _Presto_). The _Concerto_ I only value at 10 ducats, because, as
I have already written, I do not give it out as one of my best. All
things considered, I do not think you will find this excessive; anyhow
I have tried to name prices for you as moderate as I possibly could.
Concerning the money order, since you leave me the choice, you could
make it payable at Geimüller's or Schüller's. The full amount would
therefore be 70 ducats for all four works. I do not understand any
other money than Viennese ducats; how many thalers and gulden that
makes, is no affair of mine, for I am a bad _business_ man and reckoner.

There is an end of the troublesome business. So I name it, because
I only wish it could be otherwise in the world. There ought to be an
artistic _depôt_ where the artist need only hand in his art-work in
order to receive what he asks for. As things are, one must be half a
business man, and how can one understand,--good heavens!--that's what
I really call _troublesome_. As for the Leipzig O (?) let them just go
on talking; _they_ will never by their chatter confer immortality on
any one, neither can they take it away from any one for whom Apollo has
destined it. Now, may heaven have _you and yours_ in its keeping. For
some time I have not been well; and so it is now somewhat difficult for
me to write notes, still more so alphabet letters. I hope that we shall
often have opportunity to assure ourselves that you are a great friend
to me, and that I am

                    Your devoted brother and friend,

                                                 L. V. BEETHOVEN.

                                 VII.

      Letter from Wegeler and Eleonore von Breuning to Beethoven.

                                      _Coblentz_, 28 _December_, 1825.

   My dear old Louis.

I cannot allow one of Ries' ten children to leave Vienna without
recalling him to your remembrance. If during the twenty-eight years
since I left Vienna, you have not received a long letter from me
every two months, you must put it down to your own silence after the
first letters which I sent you. It should not be so and especially
now that we other old people live so entirely in the past and derive
our chief pleasure in recollections of our youth. For me at least, my
acquaintance and my firm friendship to you, thanks to your good mother
whom God now blesses, is a guiding star in my life, towards which I
turn with pleasure.... I raise my eyes to you as to a hero, and I am
proud to be able to say: 'I have had some influence on his development;
he confided in me his ambitions and his dreams; and when later he was
so often misunderstood, I knew quite well what he wanted.' God be
praised that I have been able to speak of you with my wife, and now
with my children! My mother-in-law's house was more your home than your
own home, especially after the death of your good mother. Tell us still
once more, 'I think of you both in joy and in sorrow.' A man, even when
he has risen as high as you, is only happy once in his life: when he is
young. Your thoughts should hark back happily many times to the stones
of Bonn, Godesburg, Pépinière, etc. Now I want to speak of myself, of
ourselves, to give you an example of how you ought to reply to me.

After my return from Vienna in 1796, things went rather badly with
me. For a long time I had to rely for a living on my consultations as
a doctor, and that lasted for several years in this wretched country,
before I could even make a bare livelihood. Then I became a professor
with a salary, and I married. A year later I had a daughter who is
still living and who is quite accomplished. In addition to a very clear
head, she has the quiet ways of her father; and she plays admirably
some of Beethoven's Sonatas. She can claim no merit for this, for it
is an inborn gift with her. In 1807 I had a son who is now studying
medicine in Berlin. In four years I shall send him to Vienna. Will you
look after him for me? I celebrated, in August, my 60th birthday by a
party of sixty friends and acquaintances, including the chief people of
Bonn. I have lived here since 1807, and have a fine house and a good
position. My superiors are satisfied with me, and the King has given me
some orders and medals. Lore and I are content. Now that I have told
you all about ourselves, it is your turn....

Do you never wish to turn your eyes from the tower of St. Stephen's?
Has travel no charms for you? Do you never wish to see the Rhine again?
With every good wish from Madam Lore and myself,

                                    Your very old friend,

                                                         WEGELER.

                                     _Coblentz_, 29 _December_, 1825.

   Dear Beethoven--dear for such a long time!

It was my wish that Wegeler should write to you again. Now that this
is done, I should like to add a few words--not only to recall myself
to your remembrance, but to renew the pressing question whether you
have not a desire to see the Rhine and your birthplace again, and to
give Wegeler and me the greatest joy possible. Our Lenchen thanks you
for so many happy hours; she delights in hearing us speak of you; she
knows all the little adventures of our happy youthful days at Bonn--of
the quarrel and the reconciliation.... How happy she would be to see
you! Unfortunately, the little one has no special aptitude for music;
but she has done so much by application and perseverance that she
can play your Sonatas, Variations, etc.; and as music is always the
greatest relaxation for Wegeler, she is thus able to give him many
happy hours. Julius has some talent for music, but up to the present
it has been neglected; for the last six months, he has been learning
the violoncello with zest and pleasure; and as he has a good teacher
in Berlin I believe that he will get on well. The two children are
tall and resemble their father; they also possess that fine cheery
disposition which Wegeler, thanks to God, has not even yet lost....
He takes great pleasure in playing the themes of your Variations;
the old ones have the greater preference, but he often plays the new
ones, too, with incredible patience. Your _Opferlied_ is placed above
everything. Wegeler never goes to his room without putting it on the
piano. So, dear Beethoven, you can see how lasting and real a thing is
the remembrance which we always have of you! Tell us then just once
that this is not worthless to you, and that we are not quite forgotten.
If it were not so difficult to do as one wishes, we should already have
been to Vienna to see my brother, and have the pleasure of seeing you
again; but such a journey is out of the question now that our son is
at Berlin. Wegeler has told you how everything goes with us--we should
do wrong to complain. Even the most difficult times have been better
for us than for hundreds of others. The greatest blessing is that we
all keep well and that we have such good and noble children. Yes, they
have hardly given us any trouble, and they are such merry and happy
little people. Lenchen has had only one great grief; it was when our
poor Burscheid died: a loss none of us will ever forget. Adieu, dear
Beethoven, and think of us as the most loyal of friends.

                                                   ELN. WEGELER.

                                 VIII.

                         To Dr. FRANZ WEGELER.

                                      _Vienna_, 7_th_ _October_, 1826.

   My dear old friend.

I cannot tell you how much pleasure your letter and that of your
Lorchen gave me. Certainly, a reply ought to have been sent with
lightning speed, but I am generally somewhat careless about writing,
because I think that the better sort of men know me without this. I
often compose the answer in my mind, but when I wish to write it down,
I usually throw the pen away, because I cannot write as I feel. I
remember all the love which you have constantly shown me, for instance,
when you had my room whitewashed, and so pleasantly surprised me. It is
the same with the Breuning family. If we were separated, that happened
in the natural course of things; every one must pursue and try to
attain distinction in his calling; but the eternal unshaken foundations
of virtue held us ever firmly united. Unfortunately, I cannot write
to you to-day so much as I wished, as I am bed-ridden, and therefore
confine myself to answering certain points of your letter.

You write that I am somewhere spoken of as a natural son of the late
King of Prussia; I, likewise, heard of this long ago, but have made
it a principle never to write anything about myself, nor to reply to
anything written about me. So I willingly leave it to you to make
known to the world the uprightness of my parents, and especially of my
mother. You write about your son. I need not say that if he comes here
he will find in me a friend and father, and if I can help, or be of
service to him in any way, I will gladly do so.

I still have the silhouette of your Lorchen, from which you will see
that all the goodness and affection shown to me in my youth are still
dear to me.

Of my diplomas, I will only tell you briefly, that I am honorary
member of the Royal Society of Sciences of Sweden, as well as of
Amsterdam, and also honorary citizen of Vienna. A short time ago a
certain Dr. Spiker took with him my last great Symphony with chorus to
Berlin; it is dedicated to the King, and I had to write the dedication
with my own hand. I had already sought permission through the Embassy
to be allowed to dedicate this work to the King, and it was granted. At
Dr. Spiker's instigation, I was obliged myself to hand over to him the
manuscript for the King, with the corrections in my own handwriting, as
it was to be placed in the Royal Library. Something has been said to me
about the red order of the Eagle, 2nd class; what will come of it, I do
not know, for I have never sought such tokens of honour; yet in these
times, they would not be unwelcome to me for many reasons.

Moreover, my motto is always: 'Nulla dies sine linea,' and if I ever
let the Muse sleep, it is only that she may awaken all the stronger. I
hope still to bring some great works into the world, and then, like an
old child, to end my earthly career amongst good men.

You will also soon receive some music from Schott Brothers of Mainz.
The portrait which you receive enclosed, is certainly an artistic
masterpiece, but it is not the last which has been taken of me. With
regard to tokens of honour, which I know will give you pleasure, I may
also mention that a medal was sent to me by the late King of France
with the inscription: '_Donné par le Roi a Monsieur Beethoven'_,
accompanied by a very obliging letter from the _premier gentilhomme du
Roi Duc de Châtres_.

My dear friend, for to-day, farewell. For the rest, the remembrance
of the past takes hold of me, and not without many tears will you
receive this letter. A beginning is now made, and you will soon get
another letter, and the more frequently you write, the more pleasure
will you give me. No inquiry is necessary on either side concerning our
friendship; and so, farewell. I beg you to kiss and embrace your dear
Lorchen and the children in my name, and at the same time to think of
me. God be with you all.

             As always, your true friend who honours you,

                                                         BEETHOVEN.

                                  IX.

                     To Dr. F. G. WEGELER in Bonn.

                                          _Vienna, February_ 17, 1827.

Fortunately I received your second letter through Breuning. I am
still too weak to answer it, but you may believe me that everything
in it is welcome and desirable. My recovery, if I may call it so, is
very slow; a fourth operation is to be expected, although the doctors
do not say anything about it. I am patiently thinking that every evil
has sometimes its good. But now I am astonished to see from your last
letter that you have not received anything. From the present letter you
will perceive that I wrote to you already on the tenth of December last
year. With the portrait, it is the same, as you will see from the date
when you receive it. 'Frau Steffen said,'[87] in short, Stephen wished
to send you these things if some opportunity offered, but they remained
lying here up to this date; moreover until now, it was difficult to
send them back. You will now get the portrait by post, through Schott
and Co., who also send you the music. I should like to tell you still
much more, but I am too weak, thus I can only embrace you and your
Lorchen in spirit.

With true friendship and affection to you and yours, I am

                             Your old, true friend,

                                                        BEETHOVEN.

                                  X.

                      To Sir G. SMART in London.

                                                      _March_ 6, 1827.

I do not doubt that you, dear Sir, have received through Herr Moscheles
my letter of the 22nd of February; but as I have found by chance among
my papers, S.'s address, I do not hesitate to write direct to you and
recall my request again to your mind.

Up to now I cannot look forward to an end of my terrible illness;
on the contrary, my sufferings, and with it, my cares, have still
increased. On the 29th of February I underwent my fourth operation,
and it may be, perhaps, my fate to undergo a fifth or even more. If
this continues, my illness will surely last till the middle of summer,
and what will then become of me? How shall I then manage to live till
I have recovered strength enough to gain my own living by my pen? In
short, I will not trouble you further with my complaints, and refer
only to my letter of the 22nd of February, asking you to use all your
influence to induce the Philharmonic Society to carry out their former
resolution concerning the concert for my benefit.

                                  XI.

                      To I. MOSCHELES in London.

                                            _Vienna, March_ 14, 1827.

   My dear Moscheles.

Some days ago I found out through Herr Lewinger that you inquired
in a letter to him of the 10th of February regarding the state of my
illness, of which so many different rumours have been spread about.
Although I have no doubts whatever that my letter of the 24th of
February has arrived, which will explain everything you desire to know,
I can but thank you for your sympathy with my sad lot, and beseech you
to be solicitous about the request which you know of from my first
letter, and I am quite convinced that, in union with Sir Smart and
other of my friends, you will succeed in bringing about a favourable
result for me at the Philharmonic Society. I have once more written to
Sir Smart about it.

On the 27th of February I underwent the fourth operation, and there are
visible symptoms that I shall have to suffer a fifth. What does it tend
to, and what will become of me if it continues for some time longer? A
hard lot, indeed, has fallen upon me! However, I submit to the will of
fate, and only pray to God so to ordain it in His divine will, that I
may be protected from want as long as I have to endure death in life.
This will give me strength to bear my lot, however terrible it may be,
with humble submission to the will of the Most High.

Therefore, my dear Moscheles, I entrust once more my affair to you, and
remain with greatest respect ever

                               Your friend,

                                              L. VAN BEETHOVEN.

Hummel is here and has called on me several times.

                                 XII.

                      To I. MOSCHELES in London.

                                           _Vienna, March_ 18, 1827.

With what emotion I read your letter of the 1st March is not to be
described in words. This magnanimity of the Philharmonic Society, with
which they anticipated my request, has touched my inmost heart. I,
therefore, ask you, dear Moscheles, to be the organ through which I
can express my most heartfelt thanks to the Philharmonic Society for
their sympathy and help. Tell these worthy men that if God restores me
to health, I shall try practically to show my gratitude by works, and
that I leave it to the Society to choose what I shall write for them. A
whole sketched Symphony (the 10th) is in my desk, also a new Overture,
or even something else. As regards the concert which the Philharmonic
Society has resolved on giving for my benefit, I beg the Society not
to give up this intention. In short, I shall try to fulfil any wish
expressed by the Society, and never have I undertaken a work with such
ardour as will now be displayed. May it only please God to restore
me soon again to health, and then I shall prove to these magnanimous
Englishmen that I know how to value their sympathy to me in my sad
condition.

I was compelled to accept the whole sum of 1,000 fl., since I was then
in the disagreeable position of having to draw out invested money.

Your noble behaviour I shall never forget, and I shall soon render my
thanks in particular to Sir Smart and Herr Stump. The metronomised
_Ninth Symphony_ please hand to the Philharmonic Society. Enclosed find
the markings.

                   Your most devoted friend,

                                                        BEETHOVEN.

                                 XIII.

                 SCHINDLER to B. SCHOTT SOHNE, Mainz.

                                            _Vienna, April_ 12, 1827.

I would already have liked to take the liberty of forwarding to you the
enclosed document in the name of our Beethoven as his dying request;
but after the passing away of our friend, there was so much business
to attend to that I found it impossible. Unfortunately, it was not
possible to get the document legalised, for that Beethoven would
have had to sign it at the law court, which was utterly impossible.
Beethoven, however, requested Court Councillor v. Breuning and myself
to add our names as witnesses, as we were both present. We, therefore,
believe that it will serve the purpose for which it was drawn up. I
must further mention that in this document you possess the _last_
signature of this immortal man; for this was the last stroke of his pen.

I cannot now refrain from telling you something about the last hours
when he was still conscious (namely, on the 24th of March, from early
morning until about one o'clock in the afternoon), for to you, sirs,
this will surely be of great interest. When I came to him on the
morning of the twenty-fourth of March, I found his face quite drawn;
moreover, he was so weak that with the greatest effort he could only
utter two or three intelligible words. The _Ordinarius_ soon arrived,
and, after watching him for a few moments, said to me: 'Beethoven's
end is rapidly approaching.' As the business of the Will had been
settled, so far as was possible, the previous day, there remained for
us only one ardent wish: to get him reconciled with heaven, in order
that the world might also be shown that he ended his life as a true
Christian. The Professor Ordinarius wrote it down, and begged him in
the name of all his friends, to partake of the Sacrament for the dying,
whereupon he answered calmly and steadily: 'I will.' The doctor went
away, leaving me to see to this. Beethoven then said to me: 'My only
request is that you write to Schott and send him the document: he _will
need it_. And write to him in my name, for I am too weak, and say
that I much desire him to send the wine. Also, if you have still time
to-day, write to England.' The clergyman came about twelve o'clock,
and the religious ceremony took place in the most edifying manner. And
now for the first time he seemed to feel that his end was approaching,
for the clergyman had scarcely gone when he said to me and to young v.
Breuning: '_Plaudite amici, comœdia finita est!_' Have I not always
said that it would be thus? He then, once again, begged me not to
forget Schott; also again to write in his name to the Philharmonic
Society[88] to thank them for their great gift, and to add that the
Society had comforted his last days, and that even on the brink of the
grave he thanked the Society and the whole English nation for the great
gift. God bless them.

At this moment the chancery servant of v. Breuning entered the room
with the case of wine and the decoction, about quarter to one o'clock.
I put the two bottles of Rüdesheimer and the two other bottles of the
decoction on the table at his bedside. He looked at them, saying: ''Tis
a pity, a pity, too late!' These were his last words. Immediately
after, commenced the death throes, so that he could not utter a sound.
Towards evening he lost consciousness and became delirious, which
lasted up to the evening of the 25th, when visible signs of approaching
death appeared. In spite of it, he died only on the 26th at quarter to
six o'clock in the evening.

This death struggle was terrible to behold, for his constitution,
especially his chest, was like that of a giant. Of your Rüdesheimer, he
took still a few spoonfuls until he passed away.

Thus I have the pleasure of acquainting you with the last three days of
our unforgettable friend.

In conclusion, accept the assurance, etc.,

                                                  ANTON SCHINDLER.

                              FOOTNOTES:

[85] For the Letters, I have been kindly allowed by Messrs. J. M.
Dent & Co., to use Mr. J. S. Shedlock's splendid translation in his
monumental, "_Letters of Ludwig van Beethoven_" (2 volumes, 1909),
which contain no less than 7,220 documents.

[86] The variations mentioned were those for Piano and Violin on the
well-known theme, _Se vuol ballar_, from Mozart's _Figaro_. (See page
224, 1A).

[87] Quotation from a well-known song.

[88] This English Society had sent him a present of £100 and a
magnificent edition of Handel which gave him the greatest pleasure
during his last days.

                               THOUGHTS

       [ILLUSTRATION: PAGE OF AUTOGRAPH OF "MOONLIGHT" SONATA.]
                   (IN BEETHOVEN'S HOUSE AT BONN.)

                                              _To face page_ 100.

                               THOUGHTS

                               ON MUSIC.

"_Il n'y a pas de règle qu'on ne peut blesser à cause de_ SCHÖNER"
(There is no rule which one cannot break for the sake of BEAUTY). This
expression appears in the original in French except for the last word
_Schöner_.

"Music ought to create and fan the fire of the spirit of man."

"Music is a higher revelation than the whole of wisdom and the whole of
philosophy.... He who penetrates the meaning of my music shall be freed
from all the misery which afflicts others."

                          (To Bettina, 1810.)

"There is nothing finer than to approach the Divine and to shed its
rays on the human race."

"Why do I write? What I have in my heart must come out; and that is why
I compose."

"Do you believe that I think of a divine violin when the spirit speaks
to me and that I write what it dictates?"

                          (To Schuppanzigh.)

"According to my usual manner of composing, even in my instrumental
music, I always have the whole in my mind; here, however, that whole is
to a certain extent divided, and I have afresh to think myself into the
music."

     (To Treitschke: from correspondence concerning Beethoven's musical
     settings to some of his poems. Treitschke was the man who revised
     the libretto of _Fidelio_ when it was seriously thought of reviving
     it.)

"One should compose without a piano. The faculty of expressing what one
desires and feels (which is so essential a need to noble natures) comes
only by degrees."

                      (To the Archduke Rudolph.)

"The descriptions of a picture belong to painting; even the poet in
this matter may, in comparison with my art, esteem himself lucky, for
his domain in this respect is not so limited as mine, yet the latter
extends further into other regions, and to attain to our kingdom is not
easy."

      (To Wilhelm Gerhardi in Leipzig from Nussdorf, July, 1817.)

"Liberty and progress are the goals of art just as of life in
general. If we are not as solid as the old masters, the refinement of
civilization has at least enlarged our out-look."

                        (To Archduke Rudolph.)

"I am not in the habit of altering my compositions when they are once
finished. I have never done this, for I hold firmly that the slightest
change alters the character of the composition."

              (To George Thomson, publisher, Edinburgh.)

"Pure Church music ought to be performed entirely _by the voices
only_, except for the _Gloria_ or words of that kind. That is why
I prefer Palestrina; but it would be absurd to imitate him without
possessing his spirit and his religious convictions."

                    (To the organist Freudenberg.)

"When your piano pupil has the proper fingering, the exact rhythm and
plays the notes correctly, pay attention only to the style; do not stop
for little faults or make remarks on them until the end of the piece.
This method produces _musicians_, which after all is one of the chief
aims of musical art.... For the passage work (virtuosity) make him
use all the fingers freely.... Doubtless by employing fewer fingers
a 'pearly' effect is obtained--as it is put--'like a pearl.' But one
likes other jewels at times."

                             (To Czerny.)

     (The Baron de Trémont wrote in 1809, "Beethoven's piano playing was
     not very correct and his manner of fingering was often faulty; the
     quality of his tone was not beyond reproach. But who could dream of
     the player? One was completely absorbed by the thoughts which his
     hands tried to express as well as they could.")

"Amongst the old masters, only Handel and Sebastian Bach had true
genius."

                   (To the Archduke Rudolph, 1819.)

"My heart beats in entire concord with the lofty and grand art of
Sebastian Bach, that patriarch of harmony (_dieses Urvaters der
Harmonie_.")

                        (To Hofmeister, 1801.)

"I have always been one of the greatest admirers of Mozart, and I shall
remain so until my latest breath."

                     (To the Abbé Stadler, 1826.)

"I admire your works above all other pieces for the theatre. I am in
ecstasy each time I hear a new work by you, and I take more interest
in them than in my own. In brief, I admire you and I love you.... _You
will always remain the one I esteem most amongst all my contemporaries.
If you wish to give me an extreme pleasure do write me a few lines.
That would give me great satisfaction. Art unites everybody_, how much
more true artists, _and perhaps you will consider me also worthy_ of
being counted one of this number."

                         (To Cherubini, 1823.)

     (The words in italics are in French in the original with some
     defective spelling. This letter to Cherubini was not answered.)

                             ON CRITICISM.

"In all that concerns me as an artist, no one has ever heard me say
that I pay the least attention to what has been written about me."

                          (To Schott, 1825.)

"I think with Voltaire that mere fly-stings will not hold back a
run-away horse."

                                (1826.)

"As for these idiots, one can only let them talk. Their prattling will
certainly not make anyone immortal, any more than it will raise to
immortality any of those whom Apollo has destined for it."

                                (1801.)

                          THE NINE SYMPHONIES

                          THE NINE SYMPHONIES

                  SYMPHONY No. 1 in C major, Opus 21.

                  Dedicated to the Baron van Swieten.

_Adagio molto--Allegro con brio--Andante cantabile con moto--Minuetto e
Trio--Finale._

Although this Symphony was originally performed at the first of the
composer's personally-arranged concerts in Vienna, on April 2nd, 1800,
the sketches for it extend over the preceding five years. Though the
symphony is in the composer's first period style, it does not rank
amongst the very finest works of this period. The slow introduction
starts on a dominant seventh out of the key.

                                [Music score]

 The musical quotations are taken from E. Pauer's excellent piano solo
 arrangements of the Symphonies (Augener Ltd.).

The first movement proper is orthodox in form, and only once or twice
do we catch a glimpse of the Beethoven to be, notably in the muttering
bass passages near the end of the exposition. The _Andante_ which is
also in Sonata-form proper and opens fugally, contains some original
drum-work. The Minuet, purely Haydnesque, shows a certain delight in
orchestral colour.

                                [Music score]

In the trio the first chord is struck no less than nine times, as
though the young composer was entirely occupied with the charm of his
orchestral colouring. The _Finale_ is not highly individual. The work
is scored for strings, wood-wind, two horns, two trumpets and two drums.

                      2nd SYMPHONY in D, Opus 36.

                 Dedicated to Prince Carl Lichnovsky.

_Adagio molto--Allegro con brio--Larghetto--Scherzo and Trio--Allegro
molto._

In the Second Symphony, which is a great advance on the first,
the composer's hold of his subject is much firmer and the subjects
themselves are more striking.

                                [Music score]

The _Larghetto_ is full of lovely curves, and there is some charming
conversational work between the wood-wind instruments. The horn passage
is the precursor of many fine symphony subjects of a martial nature for
the horns.

                                [Music score]

Whilst the chromatic harmony is purely Mozartian, the _Scherzo_ is a
genuine Beethovenian outburst, full of verve and piquant in touch.

                                [Music score]

There is a feeling of broadness about the brilliant and energetic
_Finale_ which is absent from the _Finale_ of the First Symphony.

    3rd SYMPHONY, Opus 35, "Eroica" in E flat. Dedicated to Prince
                              Lobkovitz.

_Allegro con brio--Marcia funèbre--Scherzo and Trio--Finale._

This Symphony was completed in August, 1804, and first performed
on April 7th, 1805. The French Ambassador at Vienna had suggested
that Beethoven should write a work on the grand scale based on his
admiration for Napoleon as the saviour of France from the horrors of
the Revolution; and it is a fact that Beethoven actually dedicated this
Symphony to Napoleon, but when the news came that the First Consul had
declared himself Emperor, Beethoven tore up the title page in a rage
and added the following superscription:--

 _Sinfonia Eroica, composta per festeggiare il Souvenire di un
 grand' Uomo, E dedicata A Sua Altezza Serenissima Il Principe di
 Lobkovitz da Luigi van Beethoven, Op. 55 No. III. delle Sinfonie._

This is one of the grandest and most powerful of the works in the
Second Period style. It is noteworthy that all the principal themes are
based on the intervals of the common chord, or on the little pendant of
the diminished third which forms the tail of the first subject.

The work opens _in medias res_ with two strong chords, the chief
subject entering on the cellos.

                                [Music score]

There is some lovely responsive work between the wood-wind and the
string bands for the second subject. The development is masterly and
embraces a wonderful new subject, first entering on the oboes in
the strange key of E minor. The recapitulation is approached in a
marvellous way--the climax of the development being reached with a
chord in C flat, the echoing reflections of which gradually die away
until they reach a mere shimmering of violins, into which is suddenly
thrown an unexpected entrance of the horn with the chief theme in the
tonic key. Was it a slip? Of course not. Rather a stroke of genius. The
movement has an immense _coda_, which with Beethoven at this period
amounts to a second development.

The Funeral March is one of the grandest things in music. It is a
pageant of a great world tribulation rather than an elegy for Napoleon,
who was certainly not dead at that time. More probably Beethoven's mind
was occupied with the misery and wretchedness caused by war than with
the single hero of that period who reaped both glory and dishonour at
one blow. The oboe subject in the Trio portion is only one of many
wonderful passages in this piece. The speaking bass melodies, the
majestic second subject on the strings almost bursting with eloquence,
and the wonderful coda, not broken-hearted but buoyed up by the rhythm
of things viewed broadly. Any attempt to connect the _Scherzo_ and
_Finale_ with Napoleon must fail ludicrously. The _Scherzo_ is simply
one of Beethoven's finest productions in one of his bubbling, vivacious
moods. The three horns have a subject which appears to be a genuine
hunting call.

                                [Music score]

It is a seven-bar phrase, the echoes to which are enchantingly
coloured. The common chordal formation of the duple time interjection
near the end suggests something more massive, and the little _coda_
figure, _E flat, E natural, F_, comes from the opening theme of the
Symphony. The _Finale_ is an amazing set of variations, the bass of the
eight-bar theme being displayed and varied many times before the melody
itself enters at the eightieth bar; and even then we continually hark
back to the bass. It is not until the close, after the melody has been
given at a slow rate on the wood-wind in its proper setting, that it is
taken up triumphantly and carried victoriously into the coda. Beethoven
used this particular theme four times--in a Contretanz, in his _Finale_
to the _Men of Prometheus_, as the theme for his set of variations for
piano, Opus 35 and in this Symphony. This curious method of writing
a set of variations recurs 20 years later in the Ninth Symphony. A
somewhat similar process has been adopted by Elgar in his _Enigma
Variations_, as the theme used there is said to be the counter-subject
of a concealed melody.

                   4th SYMPHONY in B flat, Opus 60.

                    Dedicated to Count Oppensdorf.

          _Adagio--Allegro vivace--Adagio--Menuetto--Finale._

This happy and serene work has been undeservedly overshadowed by its
two towering neighbours. Schumann has called it a slender Greek maiden
between two Norse giants. The opening _Adagio_ sounds the only dark
mood in the Symphony.

                                [Music score]

It is lashed on to the _Allegro_ by some powerful violin scales.

                                [Music score]

The flute, oboe and bassoon converse sportively over the second
subject. A strange sequential passage in unison upon the strings in
three-bar phrases following a happy little canon on the wood-wind
instruments and some powerful syncopations lead in to the development.
An atmosphere of humour and good feeling permeates the movement.

The lovely melody which forms the chief theme of the _Adagio_ is given
to the violins. It is accompanied by a strong persistent rhythmic
figure, which is transferred later on to the drums with great effect.
The wood-wind work and the horn passages are exquisite.

The third movement _Allegro vivace_ is full of fun, lively syncopations
and duple time effects giving it more of the nature of a _Scherzo_.

                                [Music score]

It has a charmingly tender trio and a coda of exquisite poetry ending
with Schumann's "Just one more question for the horn to put" before the
final crash. This is one of the longest movements which Beethoven has
written in this form. The bright, sunny mood of the opening movements
increases in the radiant _Finale_. There the modulations are surprising
and the touches of humour delightful. The little skirmish on the part
of the bassoon just before the return, the whimsical little notes on
the flutes and violins, the augmentation of the subject as it fades
away into the stealthy questionings between the violins and bassoons
near the end, are but a few of the many little quips and sallies.

                   5th SYMPHONY in C minor, Opus 67.

  Dedicated to the Prince von Lobkovitz and the Count von Rasumovsky.

_Allegro con brio--Andante con moto--Scherzo and Trio--Finale Allegro._

This famous Symphony with its rugged first movement, its lovely
_Andante_, its mysterious _Scherzo_ and its proud, fiery _Finale_, was
first performed together with the so-called Sixth Symphony on December
22nd, 1808. The Pastoral Symphony No. 6 was probably written before the
5th.

The first movement opens without introduction with the famous phrase of
four unison notes which Beethoven once explained as "Thus fate knocks
at the door."

                                [Music score]

From this tiny germ the whole of this fierce stormy movement is
evolved. Not even the beautiful tender second subject, nor the lovely
little unbarred oboe cadenza can win it away from this rugged fierce
mood. When this second subject appears in the recapitulation, still
in the minor, the atoning major outburst which immediately follows is
quickly brushed aside by the impatience of the reinstated first theme.
Even the limitations of the old-fashioned horns and trumpets in those
days seemed to be turned to advantage in the colossal bare thirds and
fourths of the "Fate" notes.

The chief theme of the _Andante_, wonderfully sad, yet wonderfully
beautiful, is further enhanced by one of those majestic marching
subjects which only Beethoven could conceive. The beauty of the
wood-wind work is remarkable and the coda is full of strange fancies.

                                [Music score]

The _Scherzo_ has some eloquent bass passages, and its rhythmic horn
figures are full of veiled mystery and heavy with some dark foreboding.

                                [Music score]

The trio is a fiery _Fugato_ with strange outbursts on the basses.
The curious hesitations on its re-appearance and the weird bridge
passages at the end, with the long sustained chord on the strings and
the mysterious drum tapping, cause the movement to veer gradually round
to the fiery march-like coda, with its light, graceful, contrasted
episodes. The _Scherzo_ theme insinuates itself into the _Finale_ near
the coda, which is of amazing brilliancy, ending with a _Presto_ which
fairly sweeps the hearer away with it.

The orchestra is the largest the composer has used so far. It includes
three trombones, double bassoon, and piccolo, which, however, are only
used for the brilliant _Finale_.

                6th SYMPHONY (Pastoral) in F, Opus 68.

      Dedicated to Prince von Lobkovitz and Count von Rasumovsky.

    _Pastoral Symphony, or a recollection of country life. More an
                expression of feeling than a painting._

   _Allegro ma non troppo--Andante molto moto--Allegro--Allegretto._

This Symphony, often slighted on account of its so-called realisms and
its classification amongst "programme music," is, nevertheless, one of
the finest pieces in the whole range of absolute music. The labelling
of the various movements by Beethoven--"Joyous sensations roused by
arrival in the country," "Scene by the brook," "Merry gathering of
country peasants," "Thunderstorm," "Glad and grateful feeling after the
storm"--is quite superfluous. How artistically Beethoven has introduced
the bird calls--the quail, the nightingale, and the cuckoo--into just
the right place--the coda of the _Andante_. And the thunder-storm. What
a magnificent introduction to the _Finale_ it makes! Beethoven has
never once transgressed the great principles of form and balance in
this Symphony.

The opening movement is a true country picture, full of the tonics and
dominants of summer happiness.

                                [Music score]

Bird-like twitterings and horn calls come from all directions, yet
how perfectly balanced it all is and what a marvel of development!
The scene by the brook with its drowsy re-iterated figure on the
under-current of divided strings is the very Bourdon ever sounding in
Nature herself.

                                [Music score]

Wagner has not forgotten this in his _Woodland Murmurs_. The dance of
the villagers, founded on the old country dances, is full of humorous
touches, the drowsy bassoon notes, the romp round, and into this almost
without warning, breaks the storm. A remarkably controlled storm it is,
too, free from any vulgarity. A lovely bit of blue sky showing at the
end, leads straight into the shepherd's song of thankfulness, which
although containing several interesting points, the triple pedal at the
opening with its horn yodel, etc., is somewhat lengthy and not very
interesting. Beethoven had once intended to introduce words and chorus
here, "Lord, we thank Thee," and it seems a pity that this idea was not
carried out.

                   7th SYMPHONY in A major, Opus 92.

                 Dedicated to Count Moritz von Fries.

        _Poco sostenuto--Vivace--Allegretto--Scherzo--Finale._

This Symphony was completed in May, 1812, but was not performed until
December, 1813, at a Concert undertaken by Maelzel for the benefit
of the wounded soldiers at the Battle of Hanau, October 30th, which
Concert also contained Beethoven's _Battle Symphony_. In form, the
Symphony contains nothing unusual. In subject, it is full of romance
and colour from beginning to end.

Opening with a long introduction, which is almost a movement in
itself, this contains a strong marching figure, and runs into the
_Vivace_ by the means of a half cadence. The _Vivace_, a rhythmical
movement in 6-8 time, is full of a verve and vitality which seems to
reach its fullest power on the horns and wind instruments with their
tucketting rhythms.

                                [Music score]

The _Coda_ amounts to a second development, and the whole movement goes
with a splendid swing from beginning to end.

Rhythm but of another kind is also paramount in the elegiac
pageant-like movement designated _Allegretto_, but curiously enough
marked by Beethoven himself at 76, by Maelzel's newly-invented
metronome. It is a highly coloured pageant, seen through a veil of
mist, typified by the wonderful six-four chord on the wood-wind with
which it commences and concludes. The structure of the _Scherzo_ (here
marked _Presto_) has a strong relationship with its splendid fire and
strong duple time effects to that in the 6th Symphony. The romance of
the Trio with its wonderful low horn work is equally fine, and the
movement is broadened out to considerable length by the return of the
_Trio_ and of the _Presto_, thus making it a kind of Rondo--A, B, A, B,
A--to say nothing of the humorous juxta-position of the two near the
end.

The _Finale_ is also planned on the big scale, colossal in force and
mighty in stride. There is a curious perversity of scale in the First
Subject as though Beethoven was no longer satisfied with the ordinary
major. The marvellous stride of the Bass at the end is not the least
amazing of the features in this wonderful movement. Perhaps, this
symphony holds together as one complete whole more than any other. It
gives one the impression of having been written uninterruptedly from
the first movement to last.

                  8th SYMPHONY, in F major, Opus 93.

   _Allegro vivace e con brio--Allegretto--Presto--Allegro vivace._

"The little one," as Beethoven affectionately called this symphony,
was written during four months of the summer and early autumn of 1812.
It is smaller in scale, slighter in texture, than the other symphonies.
Erroneously regarded as a return to an earlier style, and labouring
for some time under the absurd title of "Ballet-Symphony," it has been
somewhat neglected in the past. Without the grandeur of the Fifth or
the romance of the Seventh, it contains a lasting, if less easy, charm,
perfect finish, and a rich fund of good humour. Only a small orchestra
is used, but it is handled in a masterly way, as the octave drums in
the masterly finale, the charming _staccato_ chords for wood-wind
with boisterous interjections from the full orchestra, the running
conversations between the violins and the basses, fully testify.

The first movement is in the usual development form.

                                [Music score]

A sprightly _Allegretto_ takes the place of the slow movement. The
third movement goes back to the early minuet, instead of the Scherzo.

                                [Music score]

The final movement is a masterpiece of construction and development
which its astounding interruptions so amply justifies finally.

                                [Music score]

  9th SYMPHONY, in D minor, With Final Chorus on Schiller's "Ode to
                           Joy." (Op. 125).

 _Allegro ma non troppo un poco maestoso--Molto vivace--Adagio molto e
                      cantabile--Choral Finale._

It is important to remember, as M. Romain Rolland has reminded us,
that this is not a Choral Symphony in the strict sense of the term,
but a "Symphony with a Final Chorus." The choral _Finale_ was written
by Beethoven in a separate MS., and, as with most of his other final
movements, he seems to have expected no closer connection with the
preceding three movements than that of general suitability. His
original idea for a last movement to this Symphony was the Finale of
the String Quartet in A minor, Opus 132, but for some reason or other
his sketches for voices on Schiller's Ode were taken up again and
worked into a _Finale_ for this Symphony. Ten years had elapsed between
the completion of the Eighth Symphony and the consummation of the
Ninth, the colossal first three movements of which are on the highest
plane of all music. As to the complete success of the choral numbers,
opinions differ widely. The first movement, colossal in conception and
dignified in tone, has moods of great passion and wonderful tenderness.
The opening theme is mighty in aspiration, rugged in power.

                                [Music score]

The second movement is the _Scherzo_, one of Beethoven's longest, and
perhaps his very finest. It is all brought about by the little germ
theme of three notes, which, amongst other things, suggests an unusual
tuning of the drums in octaves. A _fugato_ follows, after which the
second subject enters in the unorthodox key of C major. It is here that
many conductors take upon themselves to thicken Beethoven's wood-wind
melody, with the brass instruments. The _Trio_ is built up on a
delightful double theme ushered in by the very first entry of the bass
trombone.

                                [Music score]

The _Adagio_ opens with a melody of the utmost nobility, perfect in
curve, and of a marvellous serenity.

                                [Music score]

A sudden modulation brings us to a new subject in D major in 3/4 time.

                                [Music score]

The first subject then re-appears in G major, this is followed by a
mystic passage in E flat major, in which fragments of the first theme
appear after the manner of a dreamy meditation in which there is some
magnificent work for the horn. The first subject then appears in the
original key and gradually passes over into a solemn and majestic
_coda_. The form is original, even with Beethoven.

Immediately a huge hubbub breaks out from the whole of the wood-wind
instruments. A short hasty review of a few bars from each of the first
three movements follows, and after the bass instruments had commented
rather brusquely on these appearances, the famous tune in D major
breaks in on the cellos and basses alone. The melody gradually unfolds
itself but finally is suddenly broken off by the discordant hubbub
again, and the solo baritone voice enters with the words, "O brothers,
not these tones."

                                [Music score]

The opening quartet and chorus is based entirely on the famous tune.
The following number is a tenor solo and chorus to the accompaniment of
a military band with all the appurtenances thereof--big drum, triangle
and cymbals. A broad chorus follows, _Andante maestoso, a capella_ in
style; and as movement after movement enters, the devout feeling of
mysticism and awe increases, until the final chorus

                _Chant one greeting, myriads countless_

caps with warm dazzling sunlight one of the highest peaks in all music.

                        THE PIANOFORTE SONATAS

                        THE PIANOFORTE SONATAS

                 1st SONATA, Op. 2, No. 1, in F minor.

The first Sonata has the usual four movements of the Haydn form:
_Allegro--Adagio--Menuetto and Trio--Prestissimo_. The first and the
last are in the usual Sonata form proper. The slow movement follows
Mozartian lines. This Sonata is the first of the set of three in this
Opus, which are all dedicated to Joseph Haydn, and the fact of such a
superscription points to the respect which Beethoven had for the older
composer, although he could not find it in his heart to continue with
him long as his pupil. The whole of the Sonata, which appeared for the
first time in 1796 and was probably written much earlier, is decidedly
conventional in form, and shews us Beethoven starting on the lines laid
down by those who went before him--Philip Emanuel Bach, Haydn, and
Mozart.

The first movement is pure Haydn music, and the only glimmer of the
future Beethoven comes in with that lovely little tune at the _Coda_.
The development portion is thin and characterless. The first subject
of the second movement was adapted from an early pianoforte quartet.
A similar process was resorted to in the first movement of the third
Sonata of this set for the second subject. The expression of this
movement is not deep, nor does it sound that note of serenity which we
regard as the chief characteristic of a Beethoven slow movement of the
mature period.

The _Minuet and Trio_ is purely Mozartian, especially in its double
counterpoint and its inversion of parts. Some characteristic touches
are found in the second subject of the last movement, which is in two
parts, and the use of an altogether new subject in the development
portion. This device is next used in the Sonata in F, Opus 10, No.
2--a device carried to great perfection in the development portion of
the first movement of the _Eroica Symphony_. The use of this broad
subject does away with any idea of development, although the movement
is built up on a figure of three chords, a point referred to in both
codas. The first part of the second subject has that weird, foreboding
feeling, which we feel frequently in Schumann's music. Already he shews
a striking fondness for the diminished third; but the passage is not
particularly striking. Far otherwise is the beautiful little tune of
eight bars which forms the second part of this subject.

                    2nd SONATA, Op. 2, No. 2, in A.

_Allegro vivace--Largo appassionata--Scherzo and Trio--Rondo grazioso._

There is a distinct advance in the second Sonata. Although there are
still the accepted four movements, the Minuet has now become a Scherzo.
This Sonata was probably written shortly after the first, and in it
we see how quickly Beethoven took a firm hold of form and design in
construction. There is a feeling of considerable power about the first
subject, and its short, pithy figures promise well for the development
portion, a fact of which Beethoven takes immediate advantage.

The second subject has a dual tonality, beginning in E minor and ending
in E major. This, of course, re-appears in the final section in A minor
and major. There is considerable double counterpoint, and we have the
characteristic rumblings in the bass. The canon in three parts at
the octave, in the development portion, taxes the right hand of most
players. The recapitulation is shortened and considerably altered.

In the _Largo Appassionata_ we get very near to the grandeur of
Beethoven's middle style. The opening subject has serenity, and there
is scarcely anything passionate in the whole movement which breathes of
solemn yet tender earnestness. This movement may be regarded as either
in Rondo form or in Ternary form. There is a powerful episode in flats
near the end, but the music closes with an epilogue full of tender
feeling.

We find a right boisterous joy in the _Scherzo_, which is evolved from
one single little figure. The sequence of dominant seventh chords in
the bridge, however, was already somewhat hackneyed even at that time.

The final Rondo is a graceful movement which owes much to Mozart. An
episode leads to the second subject in E major, and this in its turn
to the re-appearance of the first subject in varied form. Then comes a
stormy episode in the minor which gradually subsides into the return
of the first subject, then of the second subject, and finally winds up
with a long _coda_ containing reminiscences of all the subjects.

                3rd SONATA, Opus 2, No. 3, in C major.

          _Allegro con brio--Adagio--Scherzo--Allegro assai._

This, the third of the set of the three early Sonatas dedicated to
Haydn, appeared for the first time on March 9th, 1796, when Beethoven
was twenty-six years of age. Eugen d'Albert regards this Sonata as
essentially a virtuoso piece. This is saying rather much, although he
is right in warning the interpreter against any attempts to render it
mysterious by hyper-critical subtleties.

The first subject of the opening movement is a typical Beethoven
one, evolved from a short figure of two bars. Some brilliant passage
work then occurs. It was certainly Beethoven's custom at this early
period to regard such passages in a more physical sense. The second
subject enters with a dominant minor section, followed by a major
section, in which appears some fine canonic work. The minor part of
this subject, which was adapted from an early pianoforte quartet which
Beethoven had written in his youthful period, abounds in the turns and
trills characteristic of that time. The broken octaves in the coda are
frequently rendered now-a-days by alternate double octaves between the
two hands in demisemiquavers.

The development is much more Beethovenish, containing some striking
double octave cataclysms. There is also a very fine enharmonic change
from an F minor chord to F sharp minor. The Coda is noteworthy as it
includes some fine arpeggio effects and a striking slow _cadenza_.

The second movement, _Adagio_ in E major, opens with one of
Beethoven's dignified slow themes, which is sandwiched in Rondo fashion
with disturbing episodes throughout. The first episode (in E minor)
contains conversational work between the bass and the treble, the left
hand crossing the right for the latter. At the end of the return of
the first theme, there is a very striking example of an interrupted
cadence--the dominant chord of E major being followed by the tonic
chord of C.

The _Scherzo_ (three-four time) is in C major, and should be taken at
a fast rate. It is one of those movements which would have been better
written in six-four time by running two bars into one.

The final movement is a grandiose Rondo--six-eight time--in C major,
which requires a good technique, especially for the left hand. The
second subject is somewhat conventional, but the next episode contains
one of those lovely hymn-like tunes in which Beethoven delights. For
the third episode, the subject of the first episode is repeated, but
here in the tonic key; thus making the form what is known as Modern
Rondo or Sonata Rondo, in contrast to the old Rondo in which every
episode was different. The _Coda_ is remarkable and is certainly of
the virtuoso order. I never play it without thinking of the _Coda_ to
Mendelssohn's _Wedding March_. The sequences at the 15th bar after the
_Vivacissimo_ are not easy to finger. D'Albert fingers the upper part,
3, 4, 5, and the lower three notes with the thumb. Larger hands will
produce a better effect by fingering the right hand top notes, 4, 5,
5, and the alto, 2, 1, 1. The triple shake near the end is frequently
played by an alternation of six-four chords in either hand. There is
a remarkable example of an interrupted cadence here, where D becomes
D sharp leading to an A major chord. These unexpected rallentandos
and calando before the strepitous rush home become a standing
characteristic in Beethoven's music.

                    4th SONATA, Opus 7, in E flat.

   _Allegro molto e con brio--Largo con gran espressione--Allegretto
                            Minore--Rondo._

This Sonata which appeared for the first time on October 7, 1797, is
dedicated to the Countess Babette von Keglevics. The composer, at the
age of twenty-seven was rapidly winning his spurs, but still wrote on
the old lines and with the customary four movements. His Minuet however
has now become a lively movement and lost all traces of its origin in
the stately dance. It is quite likely, however, that the Minuets of
Haydn and Mozart were also taken at a lively rate, incompatible with
the dance.

The first movement in regular "Sonata Form" is in six-eight time, in
happy mood. The joyous rhythm is occasionally emphasised by sforzando
syncopations. The subjects are all very taking, and there are some
striking modulations in the development.

The _Largo_ is full of religious calm. There is a striking interrupted
cadence at bar 19, and one of those majestic march-like movements for
the second subject, which on its return at the end, appears as a tenor
melody. The movement is full of rich colouring. The tones of the flutes
and other wood-wind instruments, may be imitated in parts also the song
of birds.

The first part of the _Allegro_, which takes the place of the Minuet
movement, is much more extended than usual. In place of the Trio, we
have a movement in the tonic minor of low broken chords, full of that
brooding sadness to which Schumann and Brahms in later days became so
prone. This is linked up, however, to the return of the first joyous
theme to which it forms an effective foil. The final Rondo in E flat is
real Mozart, and Mozart at his best. Play the first subject through,
sixteen bars in length. Still the bridge passage which follows is real
Beethoven. He seems fairly obsessed with his little figure, unable to
let it alone, repeating it no less than thirteen times in succession.
There is a virile second subject. The middle episode is stormy and
difficult to play unless one divines intuitively the right action.
There is a remarkable enharmonic change on the last page but one, where
the tonality is moved up a semitone from B flat to B natural (a device
of which the composer is fond), returning seven bars later on by the
chameleon-like "diminished seventh" chord. Reference is made in the
_Coda_ to the rhythm of the stormy middle episode which is here turned
to good use in the brilliant peroration.

                5th SONATA, Opus 10, No. 1, in C minor.

        _Allegro molto e con brio--Adagio molto--Prestissimo._

This Sonata is dedicated to the Countess von Brovne, and appeared for
the first time on September 26, 1798. It is in three movements--the
slow movement in A flat major. There is no _Minuet_ or _Scherzo_, the
_Finale_ instead being instilled with the spirit of the _Scherzo_.

The first movement is the usual development form, the first subject
being composed in Beethoven's usual manner of two figures here, (a)
upward flight, (b) soft chords. It ends with a decided perfect cadence,
the bridge subject entering after a bar's silence. It is noteworthy
that the second subject on its return appears in F major, before
settling down finally into C minor. This first movement, although
in the minor, breathes a happy contented spirit, which deepens into
seriousness in the Adagio. This opens with a beautiful 16 bar phrase.
We then pass straight into the second subject, a florid one in a
lighter vein of thought, closing in E major. A sprinkled dominant
seventh takes the place of the development section, and the whole is
then repeated. For the Coda, the first subject has passed into that
serene happy atmosphere which only Beethoven's spirit seems to have
penetrated. The Finale is again cast into development form, and is
typical of the way Beethoven expands his movements from the smallest
idea. There is a beautiful hymn-like second subject. Characteristically
enough, just before finishing this bubbling movement joyfully, the
composer falls into a deep reverie, but only to brush it aside almost
impatiently by returning to the original idea.

                6th SONATA, Opus 10, No. 2, in F major.

                    _Allegro--Allegretto--Presto._

The tenth Opus, which first appeared on September 26th, 1798, contains
three Sonatas, all dedicated to the Countess von Brovne. The Sonata is
in three movements--the first a movement of development, the second
a _Scherzo_, and the third a playful _Presto_. The whole Sonata is
cast in happy mood. The mysterious and somewhat eerie feeling of the
Minuet being completely dispelled by the happiness of the Trio (which,
curiously, enough, Brahms seems to have written over again in his
Scherzo in E flat minor). The mood at the first part of this _Scherzo_
has a close relationship with the _Scherzo_ in the _Eroica Symphony_.

There are several noteworthy points about the development of the first
movement. It opens with a treatment of the last three notes of the
exposition in capricious manner. The development closes, too, with this
idea, but it also contains a completely new subject in D minor. The
prevalence of this tonality brings in the return section irregularly in
D major. The _Presto_ is one of those playful movements, full of fun
and written broadly in Sonata form lines.

                7th SONATA, Opus 10, No. 3, in D major.

            _Presto--Largo e mesto--Menuetto--Trio--Rondo._

This Sonata is one of the greatest works of the first period, if not,
indeed, the greatest of them all. The first movement is a wonderful
evolution from the first four-note figure, the development full of
all kinds of strong devices, the stormy episode in the middle based
on the rhythm of the opening phrase of the Sonata and the marvellous
slow movement full of passion and tenderness, from its opening five-bar
phrase to its beautiful close with those amazing tonic pedal chords.
The spirited Minuet, really a _Scherzo_ with two bars taken as one, is
admirably contrasted with the Hunting Song of the _Trio_. Did Beethoven
ever use the horse which Count Brovne gave him? The fine Rondo is cast
on the old lines but filled with such new feeling.

The structure of the slow movement is in song form with five sections:--

 (a) Theme in D minor in two parts with cadences in C major and A minor.

 (b) Modulatory section from F to D minor.

 (c) Theme in D minor with cadences in B flat and in D.

 (d) Development of the (a) and (b) sections.

 (e) Concluding portion.

            8th SONATA, (Pathétique), Opus 13, in C minor.

    _Grave--Allegro di molto e con brio--Adagio cantabile--Rondo._

Published for the first time in 1799, and dedicated to the Prince
Carl von Lichnovsky. Although one of the few authentic titles, it is
difficult to see the meaning of its bearing of the Sonata as a whole,
unless indeed it is applied to the sad and dramatic introduction theme
which, indeed, deserves as a leading motive to the first movement being
introduced before the development section, and it ends just before the
coda. The slow movement is of wonderful serenity and breathes a great
religious calm. Still, it was a great offence against good feeling
to make the single a double chant out of it as one of our cathedral
organists has done. The Rondo does not quite reach the high plains of
the first two movements, it was probably written much earlier; note
the reflective mood again just before the final whirlwind. There is no
Scherzo or Minuet in this Sonata.

                9th SONATA, Opus 14, No. 1, in E major.

                     _Allegro--Allegretto--Rondo._

The two Sonatas in this Opus, which is dedicated to the Baroness
von Braun, are not very interesting. No. 9 has no slow movement. The
meditative feeling having, apparently, crept into the _Allegretto_,
which should again be taken as two bars in one. The Rondo in E is of
great beauty and finish. The middle episode has again the feeling of a
hunting song.

They appeared for the first time in December, 1799.

               10th SONATA, Opus 14, No. 2, in G major.

                     _Allegro--Andante--Scherzo._

The first movement, in Sonata form, is a remarkable example of the
growth of a whole movement from a single germ.

The Andante is an air with variations. The form of this is really
ternary, although if the second part be repeated, it will throw the
theme into five sections, A, B, A, B, A. The first variation places
the air in the tenor, the second divides the harmony rhythmically, the
third breaks up the harmony into semiquavers. Purists hold that this
movement is wrongly barred throughout, the first beat coming where the
third now is.

In the last sprightly movement, the _Scherzo_ and _Finale_ seem to have
run into one.

 The only other examples of Beethoven's use of the designation
 _Scherzo_ for a movement not in Scherzo and Trio form are in the
 pianoforte sonata Opus 31 No. 3, and in the string quartet in C minor.

                   11th SONATA, Opus 22, in B flat.

  _Allegro con brio--Adagio con molta espressione--Minuetto--Rondo._

                 Dedicated to the Countess von Brovne.

This Sonata is the finest since the Opus 10, No. 3 in D. It is not so
deep in feeling as some of the preceding pieces, and the composer's
preoccupation with development somewhat duly prolongs the first
movement. It is full, however, of characteristic vigour for its own
sake, and the _Adagio_, long-drawn as it is, possess a great charm.

This long-drawn meditative piece is the only case in the Sonatas
of a slow movement having all the elements of the true Sonata
forms--exposition and development, recapitulation, coda. If the
_Adagio_ breathes of the open country, the Minuet savours of the salon.
In this rather old-fashioned Minuet, the _Trio_ is styled "Minore." The
Rondo with four refrains, the last two varied.

                    12th SONATA, Op. 26, in A flat.

       _Andante con variazioni--Scherzo--Marcia funèbre--Rondo._

             Dedicated to the Prince Carl von Lichnovsky.

This Sonata was announced for the first time on March 3rd, 1802.
Two of the movements are in slow time--an Air with Variations, and a
"Funeral March on the death of a hero." The March is said to have been
written as a set-off to the popular one of that day in Paer's opera,
_Achilles_.

It is not a lamentation, but rather a tragic elegiac picture set
in an impressive frame. One feels the throb of brass, the blare of
trumpets, the roll of muffled drums, the impressive pageantry of
death. The opening _Andante_ is beautiful, and in the variations the
theme breathes as it were through a thin lovely veil. The technique
looks backwards rather than forwards, and the movement ends with a
calm phrase. The final Rondo bubbles with life ceaselessly until it
disappears in a faint whisper.

                13th SONATA, Opus 27, No. 1, in E flat.

                     _Sonata quasi una Fantasia._

    _Andante--Allegro--Andante--Allegro molto e vivace--Adagio con
                     espressione--Allegro vivace._

                  Dedicated to Princess Lichtenstein.

This Sonata was first published together with the following one in C
sharp minor on March 3rd, 1802. They were both composed in 1801, the
happy year of the composer's love for Countess Giuletta Guicciardi.
The term _Fantasia_ by no means implies formlessness, but rather
a departure from the ordinary Sonata form. The first movement--an
_Andante_, full of light and shade--is held by purists to be wrongly
barred throughout, the first beat being the third, and so on. It is
followed by an _Allegro_ in C major which leads back to the return of
the _Andante_, this time varied. The _Allegro_, which takes the place
of the _Scherzo_, is full of imagination and vigour. The slow movement
is used as a bridge leading into the _Finale_. All the movements are
chained together in one whole. Just before the precipitant _Coda_,
Beethoven takes a final glance back at the subject of the _Adagio_.

            14th SONATA, Opus 27, No. 2, in C sharp minor.

            _Adagio sostenuto--Allegretto--Presto agitato._

The title page describes the work as _for clavecin or pianoforte_.
The nickname, "Moonlight," given to it by the poet Rellstab, has no
authority and only serves very faintly to define the peaceful charm
of this sensitive picture, which was more probably inspired by the
composer's romantic love for the Countess Giulietta Guicciardi. The
direction in Italian, "to be played throughout with the greatest
delicacy," is significant, although the term _senza sordini_ is
somewhat vague. It may have meant that it is to be played with the
sustaining pedal, i.e., without the dampers. It is probably a general
indication that the piece requires the pedal to sustain each harmony,
for nowhere is harmony put to such effective use as in the dreamy yet
placid opening _Adagio_. There is scarcely a stir, except where an
occasional minor 9th causes a slight emotional ripple.

A little _Allegretto_ takes the place of the usual Minuet. It might be
a dance of peasants, heard in the distance. The restless and passionate
_Presto_ is one of the finest movements in all the master's works.

Like the preceding Sonata, all the movements follow on without
break. But there is a definite organic connection between them, the
_Finale_, and the opening movement in particular. Compare the first
four semiquavers of the _Presto_ with the second quaver group of the
_Adagio_, and the quaver chords in the second bar of the _Presto_ with
the melodic figure in bars 5 and 6 of the opening movement.

The second subject of the _Finale_ has three well-defined sections,
the first melodic, the second dolorous expressive chords, the third a
souvenir of the first. The _Coda_ is one of the most deeply expressive
things Beethoven has ever written. It ends with a powerful gust of
unpent passion.

                   15th SONATA, Opus 28, in D major.

                  _Allegro--Andante--Scherzo--Rondo._

               Dedicated to Joseph Eiden von Sonnenfels.

It was christened by the Hamburg publisher, Cranz, with the name
of "Pastoral Sonata." The autograph is dated 1801, and the work is
exceeding happy in mood, the last two movements almost boisterously so,
the _Finale_ being a mad gallop home. This Sonata has four movements,
and it is most probable that it was written before the two _Fantasia
Sonatas_. The first movement opens with a phrase of nine bars over a
gentle tapping tonic pedal. It is a splendid specimen of development by
elimination and condensation. In the middle portion, just before the
recapitulation, the phrase seems almost to disappear into thin air.

The _Andante_ in D minor, with its epigrammatic _Trio_ in the tonic
major, was once a great favourite with the composer. The _Scherzo_
which despite its title is really a _Minuet_, is one of his happiest,
and the Rondo is full of the joy of field and forest.

               16th SONATA, Opus 31, No. 1, in G major.

               _Allegro vivace--Adagio grazioso--Rondo._

This Opus contains three Sonatas--a favourite grouping with the
composer. Although No. 1 was published in 1802, this Sonata, so simple
in technique, has the feeling of having been conceived much earlier.
The _Adagio_, with its elaborate flowery passages of no particular
meaning, drops back to the Hummel style, and is developed to a
considerable length. The Rondo is bright and sunshiny throughout.

               17th SONATA, Opus 31, No. 2, in D minor.

                    _Allegro--Adagio--Allegretto._

One of the most splendid of all Beethoven's Sonatas. The opening
movement is full of the most speaking of all Beethoven's sonorous and
passionate recitatives. The _Adagio_ is in full binary form. It is
very expressive, entirely evolved from a three-note figure, a little
Hummelian. The final _Allegretto_ is all spun out from the little
four-note germ said to have been suggested to the composer by the
cantering of a horse.

                18th SONATA, Opus 31, No. 3, in E flat.

        _Allegro--Scherzo--Minuet and Trio--Presto con fuoco._

In this characteristic work, where we find both a Scherzo and a
Minuet, the former in duple time, we again return to four movements.
The mood throughout is of unclouded happiness. It is extremely
interesting throughout, from the first bar which opens in an original
manner with the "added sixth" chord to the Coda which returns to the
same idea.

The _Scherzo_ is in one of Beethoven's freakish moods, full of
capricious turns and fun of all kinds. The third movement is a true
Minuet of the olden style, whilst the _Presto_ is one of those
cantering movements the germ for which must have been derived from the
hunting songs of the people.

          19th SONATA, Opus 49, No. 1, in G minor and major.

                           _Andante--Rondo._

This and the following Sonata, although published in 1802, must have
been written much earlier; in fact, the theme of the G major Rondo was
the original of the Minuet of the _Septet_.

               20th SONATA, Opus 49. No. 2, in G major.

               _Allegro ma non troppo--Minuet and Trio._

This Sonata contains little of interest, both the Allegro and the
Minuet are in the olden style.

                   21st SONATA, Opus 53, in C major.

               _Allegro con brio--Introduzione--Rondo._

This fine Sonata, too often made a mere piece of virtuosity, was
dedicated to Beethoven's early friend and patron, Count Waldstein.
The form is remarkable. A first movement, full of light and colour,
and the romantic _Molto Adagio_ forming an introduction to the final
Rondo with its magnificent _Coda_. Beethoven originally intended the
famous _Andante in F_ for the slow movement of this Sonata, but finally
discarded it in favour of the present slow introduction. The second
hymn-like subject of the first movement does not appear in the tonic
key, either in the exposition or in the recapitulation, but only after
the final development near the end of the piece. The simple subject
of the Rondo was the result as shown of six separate attempts in
Beethoven's note-books. The whole meaning of it is lost unless the low
C of the left hand is taken into the phrase. It will then be seen to
have a close connection with the opening figure of the introduction.
The Rondo is often played too fast, the full effect of the _Coda_ is
often lost by the preceding Rondo being taken too fast.

The _glissando_ octave passage in it is very difficult on modern
pianos on account of the deeper key fall.

                   22nd SONATA, Opus 54, in F major.

This remarkable Sonata, which appeared for the first time in April,
1806, is in two movements only--a _Tempo d'un Menuetto_, in full binary
form (more like a Sonata movement than a Minuet), and a _Allegretto
con moto_ (somewhat Etude-like), with a _Prestissimo_ Coda in which
the hands very easily get tied up. This Sonata is comparatively
little known, doubtless on account of its over topping neighbours,
the _Waldstein_ and the _Appassionata_. Bulow metronomed the opening
movement at the quite moderate rate of 104 to the crotchet. The octave
_bravura_ subject appears there in its full majesty. The _cadenza_ is
noteworthy.

                   23rd SONATA, Opus 57, in F minor.

           (Labelled _Appassionata_ by the publisher Cranz).

      _Assai allegro--Andante con moto with variations--Allegro
                            ma non troppo._

This Sonata, which was dedicated to Count Franz von Brunswick, is
perhaps the most truly characteristic of all Beethoven's sonatas. The
usual portrait of Beethoven with the massive jaws firmly set, the
upturned eyes, the visage lined by suffering, the head of a Titan,
might be quite appropriately placed here in the volume of the Sonatas,
rather than at the beginning; for with the deep passionate note which
sounds ceaselessly throughout the first movement and the immense
vitality of the _Finale_, the calm beauty of the _Andante_ with its
variations, it holds the palm amongst all sonatas written for the
clavier. Hackneyed it certainly is, but even through the indifferent
temperaments of mere finger players, the immense force of the ideas
easily penetrates.

It is a superb example of the growth of Beethoven's immense creations
from two of the tiniest of germs (a) the first three opening
notes--_C_, _A flat_, _F_--(b) the _C_, _D_, _C_ in the third and
fourth bars. The whole sonata grows as naturally from these as the huge
oak from the acorn. Bridge subjects, second subjects, coda figures,
the chief theme of the _Andante_, as also the _impetuoso_ subject of
the _Finale_, are all derived from these two little germs. Lenz calls
the Sonata "a volcanic eruption, which rends the earth and shuts out
the sky with a shower of projectiles." The first movement and the last
movement have truly immense _codas_.

For a clue to this sonata, Beethoven told an enquirer to read
Shakespeare's _Tempest_.

                24th SONATA, Opus 78, in F sharp major.

  _Adagio cantabile (4 bars)--Allegro ma non troppo--Allegro vivace._

This Sonata was composed in October, 1809 (considerably later than
_Les Adieux Sonata_, which was published in July, 1811) and appeared
for the first time in December, 1810. Thus an interval of five years
separates it from the _Sonata Appassionata_. It was dedicated to the
Countess von Brunswick, and the piece was a special favourite with the
composer. A delightful feeling of happiness pervates the whole piece,
and one cannot help feeling that this cheerful mood drew the composer
to the choice of this radiant key. The first four bars form a sort of
question to which the succeeding _Allegro_ supplies the answer.

The movements are succinct in form, almost epigrammatic, and whilst
very gracious and pleasing, are not hefty for all sorts and conditions
of hands. The opening phrase of the Finale is very striking, so, too,
is the coda with its wonderful disappointed cadence and its equally
marvellous finish. The intricate work of the arpeggios relates it to
the E major Sonata, Opus 109, and all the way through it, there is a
curious oscillation betwixt major and minor modes.

                      25th SONATA, Opus 79, in G.

                _Presto alla tedesca--Andante--Vivace._

This is practically a Sonatina, and calls for little mention. Some
authorities regard it as an unfinished sketch, whilst others ascribe
it to a considerably earlier date although it was clearly completed in
1809. The term _Tedesca_ means "in the German style," and has reference
to the country dance, _Ländler_. Beethoven employs the term only
twice in his published works--here and in the fifth movement of the B
flat quartet, Opus 130, where he describes the movement in one of the
sketches as _Allemande Allegro_. In a Bagatelle, No. 3 of Opus 119, he
uses the term in French, _A l'allemande_.

The first movement gives some good practice in crossing the hands. The
second movement might easily be mistaken for a gondolier's song by
Mendelssohn. The third movement is a lively _Con Moto_ in simple Rondo
form.

                   26th SONATA, Opus 81a, in E flat.

       _Adagio--Allegro--Andante espressivo--Vivacissimamente._

Styled by Beethoven himself, _Les adieux, l'absence, et la retour_.
(The parting, the absence, and the return). As such it is the finest
piece of programme music ever written. It is dedicated to his friend
and patron, the Archduke Rudolph, but it is not known definitely
that it was connected with the absence of the Archduke himself. The
general feeling seems to suggest a more tender attachment. The music is
Beethoven at his very best, and is truly representative of his mature
period. The interrelation of the whole of the music, its close affinity
with the opening musical motto of three notes, under which Beethoven
wrote _Lebe-wohl_ (Fare thee well) is astounding. Whether written in
clear notes or obscured subtly, this leading motive lies at the bottom
of every phrase. It is the generating idea, the essence of the whole
Sonata. Although we have styled it programme music, it would be the
greatest mistake, however, to regard it as something pictorial and
definite. The idea is only used as the generating impulse of each of
the three chief movements, and the work loses no whit (perhaps, even
gains) by being heard as a piece of absolute music. Those interested in
musical psychology will find it, however, a most interesting study to
trace the derivation of the various phrases of the opening _Allegro_ of
the _Andante_ (see bass chords), and even of the _Finale_ to one of the
two tiny cellules found in the first three bars of the introduction.
The movements are all in Sonata form. The _Andante_ has no development
section and runs into the _Finale_ without break.

                      27th SONATA, Opus 90, in E.

   _Con vivacità a sempre con sentimento ed espressione--Non troppo
                           presto (Rondo)._

This work, completed on August 16th, 1814, appeared for the first time
in June, 1815. It is in two movements, and is one of the first works
in which Beethoven gave bi-lingual _tempo_ indications (Italian and
German), the other example being _Les Adieux_ Sonata, Opus 81. On one
occasion, in 1815, when the Englishman Neate was discussing the meaning
of music with Beethoven, the composer admitted somewhat vaguely that
he "never worked without a picture in his mind." Be this as it may,
the composer was always greatly enraged when other people attempted to
fix pictures to his music, as did the publisher who gave the title "La
chasse" to the unchristened overture, Op. 115. The first movement has
a tender wistful charm and romantic feeling; it is the very poetry of
sound. The first subject with its three themes is square-cut, exactly
24 bars in length, ending with a perfect cadence in the tonic key. The
development is closely knit, and the overlapping phrases with their
diminution and augmentation, which bring in the return of the first
subject, are as wonderful as they are convincing.

Schindler relates that Beethoven, referring to these two movements,
said: "The first might represent 'Combat between Heart and Head,'
and the second, 'Dialogue with the beloved one.'" Be this as it may,
the Rondo, judging from the interior evidence, was written first.
In many of his sonatas the only connection apparently aimed at
between the various movements is that of right contrast and suitable
key-relationship.

                  28th SONATA, Opus 101, in A major.

     _Allegretto ma non troppo--Vivace alla Marcia--Adagio ma non
                      troppo--Allegro risoluto._

Dedicated to Freund Dorothea Ertmann and performed for the first time
as new on February 18th, 1816; it was not published until February,
1817. With this Sonata we reach the third period of Beethoven's works,
that in which reflection and philosophy play such a great part. Many
passages in some of his latest works reach such a massive spaciousness
that they seem to lose all touch of human comprehension. Beethoven was
seeking a new style, in striving after which his music became more and
more contrapuntal. One cannot help connecting his use of the fugue
in many of his later works with this new phase. But it was not the
fugue of Bach, but one filled with sublimity and mysticism in which he
attempted to render the spiritual force more and more concentrated,
the meaning sometimes becomes completely dissipated in his attempt to
grasp and hold it. Such is not the case, however, with the fugue with
which this Sonata ends. It grows out of the chief theme of the Finale
and forms the development portion in this combination of the Fugue and
Sonata form proper.

The martial feeling in the first movement seems to have produced a
substitute for the _Minuet_ or _Scherzo_ movement. The _trio_ with its
prolonged coda is in deep poetic vein. The _Largo_ is permeated with
profound feeling and is connected with the _Finale_ by a reminiscence
of the first movement. The whole work is entirely happy and presents an
untroubled frame of mind.

                        29th SONATA, Opus 106.

             _Allegro--Scherzo--Adagio sostenuto--Fugue._

The first two movements were finished in April, 1818; the two last
were composed in the summer of that year. The Sonata was ready for
publication in March, 1819, but did not appear until September, 1819.
It carried the sub-title "Sonata for the Hammerclavier."[89] It is
dedicated to the staunch friend and patron, the Archduke Rudolph, and
is the longest of all Beethoven's sonatas, being about twice as long as
the longest of the others. The first movement (over four hundred bars
in length) is evolved from the two little germs contained in the first
two bars. There is a long bridge passage in which derivative themes
occur before the second subject in three sections. A long development
follows and a superb return with a powerful coda. In the three bars
preceding the return, all the "A sharps" are usually misprinted
"natural." This A sharp should be the enharmonic of the following B
flat.

The _Scherzo_ is fantastic in the extreme. From the playful mood of
the first part it is suddenly plunged into the inexpressible anguish of
the minor trio. A short _Presto_ unison phrase of eight bars brushes
this aside, a tremor on a minor ninth preceding the happy return of the
Scherzo.

The _Adagio_ is one of the sublimest things in all music. It certainly
reaches heights which transcend the limits of the piano. A remarkable
bridge, which changes mood no less than six times, forms a sort of
prelude to the final fugue which is drawn from the opening germ of the
work. It is a struggle of giants, unbridled in its onslaught. _Fuga
a tre voci, con alcune licenze_ Beethoven marked it, and its great
licenses and amazing contortions have puzzled many minds. The heavenly
interludes, however, transport one into the pure air of the _Sanctus_
of the Mass in D. The similarity of the opening phrases of the
_Allegro_, the _Scherzo_ and the _Adagio_, should be noticed. It was by
such means that Brahms later on strove to unify the separate movements
of his longer forms.

                  30th SONATA, Opus 109, in E major.

     _Vivace ma non troppo--Prestissimo--Andante and Variations._

                  Dedicated to Maximiliana Brentano.

Written at the age of fifty, it seems possible that he poured into
these later instrumental movements much that he felt was beyond the
vocal forms of the great _Mass in D_ which was occupying his thoughts
at this time. The rhapsodic first movement with its light and happy
figures, repeatedly broken in upon by the deeply expressive _Adagio_
phrases; the remarkable uncouth Scherzo with the subject in the bass
and the angelic variations, one in fugue form, and the other a _tour
de force_ with its thrilling pedals, the beatific return of the theme
at the end, given this sonata a high place amongst the happiest
conceptions of the master.

                   31st SONATA, Opus 110, in A flat.

      _Moderato cantabile--Molto allegro--Arioso dolente--Fuga._

The autograph is dated December 25th, 1821, and the work appeared for
the first time in August, 1822. Here we find Beethoven in his most
exalted mood, and it is significant that whilst the main outlines of
the Sonata-form are at the foundation of the piece, he has gone still
a step farther in the direction of welding the whole sonata into one
piece. The first, the movement of development, is on the usual lines
but is handled with great freedom. The second movement is one of those
fast pieces, somewhat fantastic, with which Schumann has made us
familiar at a later period. A remarkable _recitative_ bridge portion
follows which leads into one of the most beautiful airs ever penned by
Beethoven, the _Arioso Dolente_. This runs into the Fugue, which is
here used not so much as a movement in itself, but a concentration of
the chief expression of the whole piece. Vincent d'Indy compares the
expression here with that of the 15th String Quartet, Opus 132, written
four years later, which contains the Song of gratitude to God for his
goodness. In this Sonata, we have as it were a terrible combat against
misfortune, then a return to life and hope, not in a calm pious prayer,
but in an exultant hymn of joy triumphant.

The subject of the final Fugue is a simplification of the initial idea
of the first movement. This opening movement is penetrated with a great
religious calm. The _Scherzo_ is somewhat puzzling, but appears to be
a somewhat sorrowful frolic, a rather bitter amusement. In the Fugue,
suffering disappears; even fantastic cleverness comes to the fore with
the subject in contrary movement. Little by little life and joy return,
and with the re-establishment of the tonic key, the piece triumphs in
an enthusiasm of good feeling. The Italian indications to this sonata
are fuller and more unusual, and show that Beethoven was aiming at
the deepest possible expression. The use of the _Una Corda_, and the
insertion of the _Arioso Dolente_ into the Fugue, show what a struggle
Beethoven underwent in the conquest of his feelings.

                  32nd SONATA, Opus 111, in C minor.

                _Maestoso--Allegro con brio--Arietta._

Although the designation _Sonata_ persists with Beethoven right along
throughout all his periods, yet in this last sonata we have left the
first ones completely out of sight. The name must be taken merely in
its general sense of a piece of high aims; or even in its literal
sense, the Italian word meaning simply _to play_. This Sonata, which
was dedicated to the Archduke Rudolph, is practically a Prelude and
Fugue, with an Air and Variations. The introduction contains two
themes, a leonine, stormy one and a singing phrase. The Fugue opens
like a veritable thunder-storm. There are short phrases in the major
which answer to the second subject, a brief snatch of two celestial
bars, and the agitated atmosphere again unfolds itself. This second
subject, which is a mere phrase, is repeated in the last portion of the
Fugue in the tonic major, which brings the Fugue into line with the
Sonata form proper. The beauty of the Coda has not been surpassed by
Brahms in his sublimest moments.

After the storm, a calm. Beethoven concludes his world contribution
of Sonatas with an air of celestial happiness, varied in the most
lovely manner possible. "A voice from above," someone has called it.
The variations lap round it tenderly like the waves caressing the sands
on a beautiful calm day. The first variation gently stirs the rhythm of
the theme. The second doubles the movement, and the third redoubles,
and yet the peaceful calm is not disturbed. Into the _Coda_ steals one
of those beautiful pensive movements in the minor key. This emerges
into the return of the theme, scintillating with heavenly radiance.
Thus Beethoven closes his Sonatas in a heavenly peace.

                              FOOTNOTES:

[89] Beethoven could not endure the foreign word _pianoforte_.

                 THE SONATAS FOR VIOLIN AND PIANOFORTE

                 THE SONATAS FOR VIOLIN AND PIANOFORTE

                   1st SONATA, Opus 12, No. 1, in D.

            _Allegro con brio--Tema con Variazioni--Rondo._

This is the first of a set of three Sonatas published in 1799, and
dedicated to F. A. Salieri. It is noteworthy that it was a favourite
custom with Beethoven to publish his works in sets of threes; thus,
Opus 1, Three Trios for Pianoforte, Violin and Cello; Opus 2, Three
Sonatas for Pianoforte; Opus 9, Three Trios for Strings; Opus 10, Three
Sonatas for Pianoforte; Opus 30, Three Sonatas for Pianoforte and
Violin; Opus 31, Three Sonatas for Pianoforte; Opus 59, Three Quartets
for Strings (dedicated to Prince Rasumovsky); and the Opus 12.

No. 1 of this Opus is a vivacious work of no great depth, and the
phraseology is in the Mozartian manner. The theme is a 16-bar phrase,
given out by the piano and repeated on the violin in two sections. The
variations are four in number, the third being in the minor, and there
is a short Coda. The Rondo is on modern lines approximating to Sonata
form.

                   2nd SONATA, Opus 12, No. 2, in A.

  _Allegro vivace--Andante più tosto Allegretto--Allegro piacevole._

Although this Sonata offers no outstanding point of interest, it is to
be regretted that it is not more frequently heard. There are one or two
places where the sunny sky is slightly overcast, but on the whole, it
is a work brimful of youthful happiness. The _Andante_, somewhat frail,
is like the _Finale_, full of fine melody, and gay with optimistic
feelings of youth.

                3rd SONATA, Opus 12, No. 3, in E flat.

      _Allegro con spirito--Adagio con molto espressione--Rondo._

The tuneful, breezy _Allegro_ contains some brilliant work for the
piano. The _Adagio_ seems hardly deep enough to carry its broad time
with dignity. The delicate Finale--short, simple, and tuneful--is well
rounded off.

              4th SONATA, Opus 23, in A minor and major.

              _Presto--Andante--Scherzo--Allegro molto._

This Sonata, published in 1801, and dedicated to the Count Moritz von
Fries, is one of the more serene works of the "first-period" style.
Its charms are not readily apparent, but it is full of interest to
the serious musician. The subjects of the opening _Presto_ are not
very distinguished. The composer seems to have felt this, and has
consequently introduced an unusual amount of new matter into the
development section. The gentle, placid _Andante_, with its eloquent
rests, has some unusual passages, notably the bridge (bar 33) where
a definite theme is treated fugally in three parts. The Finale,
undefined, strange and unusual, possesses that weird note which so
frequently sounds in Schumann's pieces. The key of A minor seems
to possess the right key-colour for this bustling, indefinite, and
somewhat uneasy sort of mood. In this direction, one calls to mind
the _Kreutzer Sonata_, with which this movement has much in common.
There are more subtle reminiscences; the new theme in semibreves,
which plays such a great part in the middle of the Rondo, recalls the
fugal _Finale_ of Mozart's _Jupiter Symphony_. The powerful _Coda_
recalls all the foregoing moods. The movement is very valuable from the
psychological point of view, for Beethoven was at the age of 31 years.

                      5th SONATA, Opus 24, in F.

          _Allegro--Adagio molto espressivo--Scherzo--Rondo._

This graceful and happy Sonata, also published in 1801 and dedicated,
like its predecessor, to the Count Moritz von Fries, is the most
popular in the "early-period" style. The first movement is full of
serene happiness. The Adagio has a lovely theme, dreamy and languorous
as a summer's day. The _Scherzo_ is characteristic, full of fun and
oddity; the Rondo, full of good spirits, the chief theme being varied
at each return.

                   6th SONATA, Opus 30, No. 1, in A.

    _Allegro--Adagio molto espressivo--Allegretto con variazioni._

This is the first of a set of three Sonatas dedicated to the Kaiser
Alexander I. With this Opus the true individuality of Beethoven is
manifested. Although the opening of this work is not particularly
striking, yet the movement has a clarity of style and delicacy of
workmanship together with distinct melodic charm. The theme of the
_Adagio_ is of great beauty, caressing in its tenderness. For the
_Finale_, Beethoven turns to his beloved Variations form. This was not
the original Finale which was "lifted" in a moment of haste to form
the conclusion of the Kreutzer Sonata. Still, one cannot deny that the
present variations suit this charming poetical sonata much better than
the _Finale_ of the _Kreutzer_ would have done.

                7th SONATA, Opus 30, No. 2, in C minor.

        _Allegro con brio--Adagio cantabile--Scherzo--Allegro._

This favourite work is one of the great masterpieces of music.
The first and last movements sound the clear note of Beethoven's
personality--a king here comes to his own. The first movement opens
with a veritable quatrain of musical poetry. The gay martial swing
of the second subject is remarkable. Stormy episodes follow, and the
development section commences with a new idea. Conflict succeeds
conflict before the serenity of the exposition returns. The beautiful
_Adagio_ flows along with a solemn majesty, although there are one or
two short dramatic points. The _Scherzo_, bright and tuneful, somewhat
naive, does not give us the fulness of the real Beethoven which we get
in the sombre, energetic and passionate _Finale_.

                   8th SONATA, Opus 30, No. 3, in G.

          _Allegro assai--Tempo di Minuetto--Allegro vivace._

After the stormy power and the serene beauties of the Sonata in C
minor (a key which always called forth Beethoven's best) this Sonata
appears somewhat colourless. The long-drawn _Tempo_ _di Minuetto_ is a
little tedious, whilst the first and last movements, though vigorous
and well varied in mood, by no means give us the deep Beethoven of the
C minor Sonata. The scoring of many of the passages is unusually thin,
and reminiscent of Haydn not at his best.

                      9th SONATA, Opus 47, in A.

                    Dedicated to Rudolph Kreutzer.

           _Adagio--Presto--Andante con variazioni--Presto._

Though absurdly over-estimated, perhaps on account of Tolstoy's stupid
novel, this still remains one of the great masterpieces in music.
Commissioned by a Mulatto violinist named Bridgetower, and written, as
the original title-page says, "in a specially brilliant style," it was
first given at 8 o'clock on a May morning in 1803 in the Augarten at
Vienna, with Beethoven at the piano and Bridgetower with the violin.
The Sonata opens with a majestic introduction, ending on a dominant
pause. Tradition has it that Bridgetower improvised a cadenza here and
that Beethoven approved. Amongst the whirl and excitement of the bold
and vigorous opening _Presto_, the hymn-like second subject stands
out with a marvellous way. Nothing is lost of the tenderness of the
_Andante_ in the brilliant variations which follow it, and this is all
the more wonderful because this piece is the most virtuoso-like of all
Beethoven's chamber-music. Tenderness with Beethoven is no maudlin
sentiment, but the gentle sympathy of a strong man. The Tarantelle-like
_Finale_ originally belonged to the Sonata of Opus 30, No. 1, A major,
but, as Beethoven had been dilatory in his commission, the time having
arrived and no _Finale_, he took the _Finale_ from the earlier Sonata
and wrote a new one for it later on.

                      10th SONATA, Opus 96, in G.

_Allegro moderato--Adagio espressivo--Scherzo allegro--Poco Allegretto._

This was written in 1810 and dedicated to Beethoven's firm friend and
patron, the Archduke Rudolph. Although not really characteristic of the
master's latest style, which does not commence until Opus 106, yet it
is the most intimate of all the violin sonatas. It stands amongst the
very great works and is indeed in some ways superior to the C minor.
The _Adagio_, calm and sublime, is one of the most beautiful things in
music. The scoring is like that of a string quartet. The ending dies
away and creeps almost imperceptibly into the _Scherzo_ through an
unexpected C sharp. Full of life and bubbling over with fun, it has a
jolly _trio_ and a _coda_ of its own. The _Finale_ touches every mood
from gay to sad, from lively to severe. The lovely _Adagio_ makes a
re-appearance in it, but the gay mood wins, for with a freakish little
_Presto_ the Sonata is brought to a triumphant close.

                          THE STRING QUARTETS

                          THE STRING QUARTETS

                  1st QUARTET, Opus 18, No. 1, in F.

                    Dedicated to Prince Lobkovitz.

_Allegro con brio--Adagio affettuoso ed appassionato--Scherzo--Allegro._

Composed in 1800 at the age of 30, this first set of quartets belongs
to the same period as the great C minor Symphony, No. 5. The music of
No. 1 is Mozartian in type, very charming, and the scoring is light and
graceful. The _Adagio_ is very beautiful, and one can feel in it the
future Beethoven. Indeed we almost arrive at maturity in the episode in
D flat in the _Finale_, where Beethoven uses the melody which he again
took up in his ballet "The Men of Prometheus" and in his Third Symphony.

               2nd QUARTET, Opus 18, No. 2, in G. major.

   _Allegro--Adagio cantabile--Scherzo--Allegro molto quasi Presto._

This quartet is even more like Mozart and Haydn than No. 1, except for
the fact that Beethoven keeps his music in rather higher registers. The
_Adagio_ is not so Beethovenish as the slow movement of No. 1, but it
contains an episode marked Allegro. The _Finale_ is full of spirit, but
it is not the Beethoven in the "unbuttoned" mood of the later works.
There is some effective work for the G string on the 1st Violin, for
Paganini had already cast his glamour over Europe.

                  3rd QUARTET, Opus 18, No. 3, in D.

             _Allegro--Andante con moto--Allegro--Presto._

This beautiful quartet, composed a year later than the first two,
already points to the maturity of the second period, especially in the
first movement. The _Andante_ opens with a lovely melody for the 2nd
Violin on the G string; restraint and broadness in playing should be
the player's aim here. Parry refers to the fine balance of form in this
Quartet in his article in Groves' Dictionary. The _Scherzo_ is here
marked _Maggiore--Minore--Maggiore_. The _Presto_ is full of Beethoven
spirit and handling, in one passage in particular, having spaciousness,
which is such a striking feature in the final quartets.

               4th QUARTET, Opus 18, No. 4, in C minor.

           _Allegro ma non tanto--Scherzo--Menuetto--Rondo._

Written in Beethoven's favourite key, C minor, this quartet is
remarkable for its melodiousness. It has no slow movement and contains
both a Scherzo and a Minuet, the former marked Andante Scherzoso quasi
Allegretto and opening in a Fugato style reminiscent of the Andante of
the First Symphony. Both this and the Minuet contain the characteristic
Sforzandi, especially that on the third beat of triple time. The
Prestissimo Coda brings the Finale to a powerful conclusion.

                  5th QUARTET, Opus 18, No. 5, in A.

            _Allegro--Minuet--Air and Variations--Allegro._

This quartet is chiefly remarkable for its lovely _Andante_ and set of
variations on the beautiful theme which has all the natural feeling
of a genuine folk-song. The first variation is _Fugato_; the second
has sparkling triplets for the 1st violin; the third woodland murmurs,
whilst the cellos and violas occupy themselves with the melody.

The fourth is organ-like in treatment, whilst the final one starts on
a boisterous scamper home, which ends, however, in a melancholy, dreamy
meditation. The _Finale_ is Mozartian.

                6th QUARTET, Opus 18, No. 6, in B flat.

         _Allegro con brio--Adagio ma non troppo--Scherzo--La
                Malinconia--Allegretto quasi Allegro._

This favourite quartet, composed in 1800, has five movements; whereas
the fourth quartet has no slow movement.

The arrangement of the five movements seems to suggest some sort of
carefully-arranged "programme;" but woe always overtook the man who
dared to attach a definite story to any of the music in these pieces in
Beethoven's lifetime. The opening movement, full of vitality, and asks
for _spiccato_ bowing. It is very light in texture. The first _Adagio_
is full of graceful tunefulness, somewhat elaborate in texture, and
containing many characteristic touches of expression; so too, does the
_Scherzo_. The second slow movement _Adagio_, entitled by Beethoven _La
Malinconia_ (grief), is one of Beethoven's most moving pieces of music.
Knowing here that he was entering into new territory, he especially
marks such movements to be played with the greatest feeling _più gran
delicatezza_. This movement runs directly into the final _Allegretto_,
which indeed returns to it twice, as though unable to throw off
completely the bitter taste of those sad moments.

                  7th QUARTET, Opus 59, No. 1, in F.

            No. 1 of the set dedicated to Count Rasumovsky.

    _Allegro--Allegretto Vivace e sempre Scherzando--Adagio molto e
                  mesto--Thème russe con Variazioni._

This fine but difficult quartet, sometimes called the Cello Quartet
on account of the prominence given to this instrument, was written
in 1806. The Count himself is supposed to have played the cello, and
the set of variations on the Russian song used for the _Finale_ was a
second compliment to Beethoven's noble Russian patron. Beethoven took
his theme from the Prabst collection, 1815, which is not now published,
having been superseded by Rimsky-Korsakoff's fine collection. The theme
is found there (No. 13) marked _Andante_ and the Russian words may be
translated--

      Ah, is this my fate?
      And what a fate!

The technique and the subject matter is very much more advanced.
The first movement contains a remarkable unison passage for the
full strings, some remarkable high work for the 1st violin and some
wonderful colour effects. The _Allegretto_ is a busy, gossipy movement
in B flat. The _Adagio molto_ is a typical Beethoven _Adagio_. It is
the real thing. It runs into the Finale through a long and difficult
cadenza for the 1st Violin over a dominant pedal. The ending of the
quartet contains some very full effects and is almost orchestral in
style.

               8th QUARTET, Opus 59, No. 2, in E minor.

                _Allegro--Adagio--Allegretto--Finale._

The second quartet of the Rasumovsky set is even more elaborate
than the first. The opening movement, though containing some dark,
passionate moods akin to the _Appassionata Sonata_, is nevertheless
happy and delicate in tone. Its technical requirements are great.
The quartet opens with two strong chords, then a silent bar, which
the composer fills in curiously enough in the recapitulation. The
lovely long-drawn Adagio in E major is marked by Beethoven _con molto
di sentimento_ (with great feeling). Here again he is in his new
territory. It is as though he said to the players, "Wake up! this is
an entirely new kind of music." The playful _Allegretto_ introduces
another Slav folk-song, which can be found in Rimsky-Korsakoff's
collection (No. 45). It is sacred and majestic in tone, a song of glory
to the Creator. It forms the major _trio_ portion, which is carefully
welded on to the return of the opening minor movement. The _Finale_
represents Beethoven's very happiest mood. It starts clean out of the
key in C major. Seldom is Beethoven so happy as we find him here in the
_Finale_, which although written in the sharp signature throughout, is
really in the key of C major; the episodes only and the coda only just
managing to restore the balance of E minor.

               9th QUARTET, Opus 59, No. 3, in C major.

  _Introduzione--Allegro vivace--Andante con moto--Menuetto--Allegro
                            molto (Fuge)._

This, the third of the Rasumovsky set, was composed in 1806. Starting
clean out of the key, a few bars of _Andante_ introduction gradually
lean towards C major. The first movement is remarkably clear and
lucid in style and finely coloured in harmony. Beethoven is in one of
his happiest moods. The exquisite _Andante_ in A minor opens with a
_pizzicato_ bass and ends in the same manner. It is a highly finished
movement. The Minuet is of the stately dance order and appears in the
tonic key C major. The coda to it ends on the dominant seventh, thus
bringing in the remarkable spiccato Fugue which Brahms played from
memory as an encore at a concert in Vienna in 1867. The _Una Corda_ set
of entries preserving the homogeneity of tone and adding greatly to the
effect of the intensity of the _crescendi_ is particularly fine.

                   10th QUARTET, Opus 74, in E flat.

  _Poco adagio--Allegro--Adagio ma non troppo--Presto--Allegretto con
                             variazione._

This remarkable quartet, composed in 1809 and dedicated to the Prince
Lobkovitz, is widely known under the title of the Harp Quartet on
account of the remarkable pizzicato arpeggios in the opening Allegro.
A short introduction is marked _sotto voce_. The _Allegro_ contains
a brilliant cadenza for the Violin--Beethoven's only excursion into
the virtuoso field in chamber music. The very beautiful _Adagio_ is
Beethoven at his very best, whilst the _Presto Scherzo_ is curious
in form, being arranged with varying _tempi_, thus, on the following
plan:--_Presto_ C minor, _Più Presto-Trio_ C major, C minor, _Presto_
repeated, and again the C major, finishing with the C minor. This leads
without break into a set of six variations: the second, notable for
its lovely viola melody; and the sixth, organ-like in character over a
cello pedal-point.

                  11th QUARTET, Opus 95, in F minor.

 _Allegro con brio--Allegretto ma non troppo--Allegro assai vivace ma
                     serioso--Allegretto agitato._

This quartet is dedicated to Count Zmeskal, Beethoven's willing
secretary and man of affairs. Here in this work which stands on the
border line between Beethoven's second and third styles, we have the
gruff and brooding Beethoven. The somewhat short opening movement
is full of intense feeling. The _Allegretto_ is calm and religious,
ethereal in tone and contains a fine fugato passage. The third
movement, which takes the place of a _Scherzo_, is dark in feeling
and pervaded with gloom. A short _Larghetto_ introduction leads into
the _Finale_ agitated and restless in character, but ending with a
brilliant gleam of sunshine.

                  12th QUARTET, Opus 127, in E flat.

               Dedicated to Count Nicolas von Galitzen.

        _Maestoso--Allegro--Adagio--Scherzando vivace--Finale._

Although probably published before his death, this quartet is generally
classed with the posthumous ones which represent fully Beethoven's
third style. Although all these quartets contain many orchestral
effects, yet he never exceeds the limits of the true string quartet
style. To say that string quartet writing is only an imperfectly
filled-in sketch of orchestral idium is not correct; otherwise, when
Beethoven had four instruments at his disposal, would he have written
some of those spacious passages for three, or even two instruments only?

The opening movement has a double subject--the _Maestoso_ introduction
accompanying the _Allegro_ subject on every appearance. The _Adagio_ is
dreamy in mood and has a touching _Andante_ episode, also a striking
excursion to E major before the final return. The _Scherzando vivace_,
which must not be taken too quickly, is also a striking example of
Beethoven's characteristic contrapuntal writing and contains a passage
in Beethoven's famous _Ritmo di tre battute_ (Rhythm of three bars);
another instance of this occurs in the _Ninth Symphony_. The tempo
is constantly changing throughout and the highly dramatic music,
free in style, settles down more into a lyric and rhythmic style for
the _Finale_, the long _coda_ of which is extremely characteristic,
starting right away from the key.

                  13th QUARTET, Opus 130, in B flat.

               Dedicated to Count Nicolas von Galitzen.

 _Adagio ma non troppo--Allegro--Presto--Andante con moto--Danza alla
                      tedesca--Cavatina--Finale._

This quartet, written in 1825, is one of Beethoven's longest, and
contains six movements. The opening piece carries its _Adagio_
introduction through all the appearances of the _Allegro_ subject.
The second subject is of wonderful beauty. The development section
very short. The unusual _Presto_ in B flat minor very succinct; is the
nearest approach to Brahms. The _Andante_ is really a _Scherzo_ treated
like an _Andante_ in form. The third movement is cast in the rhythm
of a German country dance; the theme is varied on its re-appearance.
The famous _Cavatina_ has a remarkable _beklemmt_ (fear) episode and
a wonderful _Bebung_ chord at the close. The lovely second subject
of The _Finale_ has been used by Borodin as a theme in the _Finale_
of his Second Quartet. There is a very proper little Fugue in the
development portion. The original _Finale_ was published separately as
Opus 133; it is a terrificly long-drawn Fugue and is regarded as almost
incomprehensible by even the most ardent admirers of Beethoven's third
style.

               14th QUARTET, Opus 131, in C sharp minor.

                          Published in 1827.

  _Adagio--Allegro molto vivace--Allegro moderato--Andante--Presto._

Although marked off in separate movements, this quartet is practically
one long continuous piece. It opens with a mystic Fugue, organ-like in
character and contains several fine enharmonic changes of key. At the
_Allegro molto vivace_ the tonality is lifted a semitone. This movement
is light in character and simple in texture, almost Mozartian. An air
with variations is approached by a _recitative_ and introduction. This
is followed by a _Presto_, where Beethoven appears in one of his joking
moods. The _tempo_ here alters continually, then comes a short _Adagio_
section, a lamentation broken off by one of Beethoven's gruff shrugs,
and the last movement opens with a clearly marked theme in happy mood.
Strongly contrasted portions occur from time to time, but the work ends
triumphantly.

                  15th QUARTET, Opus 132, in A minor.

        _Assai sostenuto--Allegro--Allegro ma non tanto--Molto
         adagio--Andante--Alla marcia--Allegro appassionata._

The opening movement is on the same lines as that of the preceding
quartet. Moods change constantly and the development is of the freest
kind; there are two parts to the second subject, one a vivacious little
figure, two a short singing phrase. The _Allegro_ in A major is in
ternary form and takes the place of the _Scherzo_. Then follows that
remarkable movement in the Lydian mode headed "A convalescent's sacred
song of thanksgiving to the divinity." This interesting modal piece was
written after the composer's illness. The variations of it alternate
with the _Andante_ in D major, thus producing striking contrasts of key
colour. The final _Allegro_ is in free Sonata form.

                  16th QUARTET, Opus 135, in F major.

    _Allegretto--Vivace--Lento assai--Grave ma non troppo tratto._

This quartet is on a much smaller scale. The opening movement, whilst
characteristic of the third period, is easily comprehended. The subject
of the slow movement is one of Beethoven's most beautiful melodies, and
the _Finale_ commences with the famous musical motto--

      "_Must it be?
      It must be_"

founded on a little altercation with his cook.

The movement is characterised by some very perverse part-writing.

These final quartets present many problems, even to the most profound
students of Beethoven's works.

                             BIBLIOGRAPHY

                             BIBLIOGRAPHY

If one wishes to know Beethoven better, reference should be made to the
principal biographies and other works on Beethoven, of which we give a
brief list:--

                    I.--FOR BEETHOVEN'S LETTERS.

LUDWIG NOHL.--_Briefe Beethovens_, 1865, Stuttgart.

LUDWIG NOHL.--_Neue Briefe Beethovens_, 1867, Stuttgart.

LUDWIG RITTER VON KOECHEL.--_83 Original Briefe L.V.B. an den
Erzherzog Rudolph_, 1865, Vienna.

ALFRED SCHOENE.--_Briefe von Beethoven an Marie Graefin Erdödy geb.
Graefin Niszky und Mag. Brauchte_, 1866, Leipzig.

THEODOR VON FRIMMEL.--_Neue Beethoveniana_, 1886.

    _Katalog der mit der Beethoven--Feier zu Bonn, an II.--15 Mai, 1890,
    verbundenen Ausstellung von Handschriften, Briefen, Bildnissen,
    Reliquien Ludwig van Beethovens._ Bonn, 1890.

LA MARA.--_Musikerbriefe aus fünf Jahrhunderten._ Leipzig, 1892.

DR. A. CHRISTIAN KALISCHER.--_Neue Beethoven, Briefe_. Berlin and
Leipzig, 1902.

DR. A. CHRISTIAN KALISCHER.--_Beethovens Sämmtliche Briefe._
Kritische Ausgabe mit Erläuterungen, 5 vol. Leipzig and Berlin,
1906-1908.

DR. FRITZ PRELINGER.--_Beethovens Sämmtliche Briefe und
Aufzeichnungen_, 3 vols. Vienna and Leipzig, 1907.

By far the most useful books for the English reader, and, indeed, for
any reader, are the two splendid volumes of _Beethoven's Letters_. A
critical edition with explanatory notes translated from Kalischer by J.
S. Shedlock. (London: J. M. Dent & Co., 1909).

The translation of the letters contained in this present volume have
been taken from that work by kind permission of the author and the
publishers.

A good selection from these letters, issued in one volume at a
moderate price, would be a great boon to English readers.

                      II.--FOR BEETHOVEN'S LIFE.

GOTTFRIED FISCHER.--_Manuscrit_ (especially interesting for the
  childhood of Beethoven). Fischer, who died in 1864, was the owner
  of the house where the Beethoven family lived for two generations.
  He and his sister Cecilia knew Beethoven as a boy intimately, and
  have recorded their remembrances of him, which are very valuable, on
  condition that they are used with some criticism. The manuscript is
  in the Beethovenhaus at Bonn. Deiters (see below) has published some
  extracts from them.

F. G. WEGELER and FERDINAND REIS.--_Biographie Notizen über Ludwig
  van Beethoven_ (especially valuable for the first part of his life),
  Coblentz. 1838. Re-issued by Dr. Kalischer in 1905.

LUDWIG NOHL.--_Eine stille Liebe zu Beethoven._ Berlin, 1857. (A
  publication of the Journal of Mlle. Fanny Giannatasio del Rio, who
  knew and loved Beethoven about 1816).

ANTON SCHINDLER.--_Beethovens Biographie._ 1840. (For the second part
  of his life).

ANTON SCHINDLER.--_Beethoven in Paris, Münster_, 1842.

GERHARD VON BREUNING.--_Aus dem Schwarzspanierhause_, 1874. (The
  Schwarzspanierhaus was the house in Vienna in which Beethoven died. It
  was pulled down during the winter of 1903).

MOSCHELES.--_The Life of Beethoven_, London, 2 vols. 1841.

ALEXANDER WHEELOCK THAYER, and continued by HERMANN DEITERS, and
  later by HUGO REIMANN.--_Ludwig von Beethovens Leben_ (Translated
  into English), 5 vols., 1908. This biography was commenced in 1866,
  but was interrupted by the death of the author in 1897 at Trieste
  where he was the American Consul. The work stood still till 1816,
  when Deiters undertook to finish it; but he died in 1907 before he
  had published the second volume. Riemann finished the work from the
  materials left by Deiters. It is by far the most important work on
  Beethoven.

LUDWIG NOHL.--_Beethovens Leben_, 4 vols., 1864-1877.

LUDWIG NOHL.--_Beethoven nach den Schilderungen seiner Zeitgenossen_,
  Stuttgart.

A. B. MARZ.--_L. van Beethovens Leben und Schaffen_, 2 vols. 5th
  Edition revised by G. Behncke. Berlin, 1902.

VICTOR WILDER.--_Beethoven, sa vie et son œuvre_, 1883.

                     III.--FOR BEETHOVEN'S WORKS.

BEETHOVEN.--_Complete works_, critical edition, Breitkopf and
  Haertel, Leipzig, 38 vols.

G. NOTTEBOHM.--_Thematisches Verzeichniss der im Druck erschienen
  Werke von Ludwig van Beethoven_, Leipzig, 1868.

A. W. THAYER.--_Chronologisches Verzeichniss der Werke von
  Beethoven._ 1865.

G. NOTTEBOHM.--_Ein Skizzenbuch von Beethoven._ 1865.

G. NOTTEBOHM.--_Ein Skizzenbuch von Beethoven aus dem Jahre, 1803._
 1880.

G. NOTTEBOHM.--_Beethovens Studien._ 1873.

G. NOTTEBOHM.--_Beethoveniana. Zweite Beethoveniana._ 1872-87.

GEORGE GROVE.--_Beethoven and his Nine Symphonies._ London, Novello,
 1896.

J. G. PRODHOMME.--_Les Symphonies de Beethoven_, 1906.

ALFREDO COLOMBANI.--_Le Nove Sinfonie di Beethoven._ Turin, 1897.

ERNST VON ELTERLEIN.--_Beethovens Claviersonaten._ Fifth edition,
  1895.

WILLIBALD NAGEL.--_Beethoven und seine Klavier-sonaten._ Two volumes,
  1903-1905.

J. S. SHEDLOCK.--_The Pianoforte Sonata._ London, Methuen, 1900.

CHARLES CZERNY.--_Pianoforte School_ (part 4, chapters 2 and 3).

THEODOR HELM.--_Beethoven's Streichquartette._ 1885.

H. DE CURZON.--_Les lieder et airs detaches de Beethoven_, 1906.

OTTO JAHN.--_Leonore. Klavierauszug mit Text, nach der zweiten
  Bearbeitung_, 1852.

DR. ERICH PRIEGER.--_Fidelio. Klavierauszug mit Text, nach der ersten
  Bearbeitung_, 1906.

WILHELM WEBER.--_Beethoven's Missa Solemnis_, 1897.

MARIAM TENGER.--_Beethoven's Unsterbliche Geliebte_, 1890. The