Ludwig van Beethoven: Coriolan Overture, Op. 62
In 1807 Beethoven premiered his ‘Symphony No. 4’ and ‘Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major’ at Joseph von Lobkowitz’s palace. The concert was preceded by a newly composed work, the overture to Heinrich Joseph von Collin’s drama entitled ‘Coriolan’. Collin’s tragedy hardly addresses the course of actual historical events: it is rather the title character’s monologues that form the centrepiece of the text. Not reflecting historical narratives, the drama finally ends with Coriolan’s suicide. There is nothing uplifting or triumphant about Coriolan’s downfall, and so the essential heroic theme of Beethoven’s lifework finds its most pessimistic expression in this very piece.
Ludwig van Beethoven: Triple Concerto in C Major, Op. 56
This triple concerto for violin, cello and piano is a late example of the today increasingly neglected genre of “sinfonia concertante,” and constitutes Beethoven’s only composition of this kind. The themes of the march-type opening movement, the expressive Largo in A flat major and the dance-like Polacca are all defined by the presence of dotted rhythms. What is interesting about the musical piece is that Beethoven – in a manner that is typically unlike him – takes the abilities of the soloists into account. Beethoven wrote a relatively easy piano part for his pupil Archduke Rudolf of Austria, while he could demand considerably more from the strings as the violin and cello parts were played by professional musicians belonging to the Archduke’s court.
In 1917 the Hungarian press reported as a sensation that Ernő Dohnányi was to “repeat what no pianist since Bülow has attempted: playing all of Beethoven’s piano concertos one after the other. The two concerts will take place on Friday 13th April and Monday 16th April in Vigadó with the participation of the Philharmonic Society under the direction of Chief Music Director István Kerner. The musical cycle will conclude with ‘Triple Concerto’ performed by music teachers [Emil] Baré and [Jenő] Kerpely”. In fact, pianist and composer Ernő Dohnányi performed ‘Triple Concerto’ between two piano concertos (in B flat major and in E flat major), and it was then that “Dohnányi’s comprehensive and perfect artistry was fully realised”.
Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, Op. 67
Beethoven’s best-known and most frequently played orchestral composition is his ‘Symphony No. 5’. The motto-like main theme of the first movement of the Symphony has become the composer’s distinctive piece. Schindler, referring to Beethoven, described ‘Symphony No. 5’ as follows: “This is how fate knocks on your door.” The young Mendelssohn – although Goethe was reluctant to listen to his play – played the first movement of the symphony on the piano, after which prince of poets Goethe allegedly said: “This piece does not evoke any emotion, only amazement; it is something grandiose. The music was something very great, very wild, and one actually fears that the whole house will collapse. What if a full orchestra were to play the piece!” The composition premiered on 22nd December 1808 at Theater an der Wien. The concert lasted for more than four hours and featured ‘Symphony No. 5’, ‘Symphony No. 6’, ‘Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major’, an aria, two excerpts from ‘Mass in C Major’, a free piano fantasy and ‘Choral Fantasy’. Only Beethoven’s most devoted fans stayed in the unheated hall until the end of the concert, with ‘Symphony No. 5’ being the ninth piece on the programme. It is therefore no surprise that the reception of this symphony in Vienna did not in fact reflect the later phenomenal success of the piece.