| Contents |
Introduction. Symphony biography ; Beethoven and the eighteenth-century symphony ; Sketching the symphonies ; Commissions and performances ; Publication -- The long and hazardous road to the First Symphony, op. 21. First steps along the road ; Symphony no. 0 ; The middle movements of no. 0 ; The finale problem ; The abandonment of the sketches ; Completion of the First Symphony -- A creation in two parts: the Second Symphony, op. 36. Preliminary work and first movement ; The middle movements ; The finale ; Missing sketches ; Performance and publication -- Elevating the genre: the Third Symphony (Eroica), op. 55. Disputed origins ; Main work on the first movement ; The slow movement ; The scherzo ; The finale ; Performance and publication -- The Oppersdorff connection: the Fourth Symphony, op. 60. Genesis and context ; The autograph score ; Performance and publication -- Motivic intensity: the Fifth Symphony, op. 67. C minor ; Early sketches ; Intermediate sketches ; The autograph score ; Complications in transmission -- 'More an expression of feeling than painting': the Sixth Symphony (Pastoral), op. 68. A characteristic symphony ; Early ideas ; The Pastoral symphony sketchbook ; The later movements ; From autograph score to publication -- 'Great, exalted' work: the Seventh Symphony, op. 92. Initial plans ; Further work on the first movement, and ideas for later ones ; Completion of the slow movement ; The last two movements ; The autograph score -- 'Just because it is much better': the Eighth Symphony, op. 93. The symphony that began as a concerto ; Transformation of the second movement ; A traditional minuet ; The protracted finale ; The amended autograph score ; Performance and publication of the Seventh and Eighth Symphonies -- The Philharmonic connection: the Ninth Symphony, op. 125. Earliest ideas ; The Philharmonic Society ; Resumption of sketching ; The main sketchbooks ; The finale ; The autograph score ; Copying, performances and publication -- Epilogue. After the Ninth: a Tenth? ; The nine symphonies as musical monuments ; Losses of source material ; Diversity. |
| Abstract |
Beethoven's nine symphonies are a cornerstone of Western classical music and have revolutionised it. Composers succeeding Beethoven found their output measured against this master's work. But how did his symphonies come into being and how did they reach their final form? These are the questions this book seeks to answer. The author has been one of the leading advocates of the need for extensive studies of Beethoven's sketches, and we see him here applying his usual investigative rigour to the study of the symphonies. For most of the symphonies the sketches have not previously been fully examined. In contrast, this book provides a much deeper exploration of these sketches, along with autograph scores, corrected copies and first editions, while the Beethoven correspondence offers additional information on the first publication and performances of the symphonies. The result is a clear overview of the creation of each symphony in turn, placed within the context of musical life in Beethoven's Vienna. Another strand of the investigation covers Beethoven's unfinished symphonies and how they helped to provide the fertile soil from which the finished ones grew. Most of those did not progress beyond a few bars, but two, known as No. 0 and No. 10, were sketched extensively. This book therefore offers a unique investigation of the composition of the entire corpus of Beethoven's symphonies, reconstructing their creation from Beethoven's rather than posterity's viewpoint. |
| Bibliography note | Includes bibliographical references and indexes. |
| LCCN | 2023567359 |
| ISBN | 1783277912 (hardback) |
| ISBN | 9781783277919 (hardback) |
