Beethoven Symphonies

If you are learning to play the piano, the violin or indeed most instruments developed before 1827 you will no doubt have come across Beethoven. He�s a feature of many music examinations from the comparatively lowly Grade III to the lofty degree.



Beethoven�s sheets of music apparently covered his attic when he died, and therein must have been a treasure trove of unheard snippets of music, whole sonatas, later re-written and bits of symphonies. A wonder for the music historian to ponder over and put in place.



Much of Beethoven�s sheet music was just bits of scribbling, you may think on first sight. �It doesn�t even have the notes in� you may say. Ah! But we are actually talking about a genius here who was able to compose wonderful and powerful music despite his deafness, he therefore had to be a perfectionist in both his melodies and his harmonies. His new use of larger orchestras for the bigger and better form of symphony needed a bit of work. His attic seemed to be his waste basket for genius he may use later.



If you actually have a look at some of Beethoven�s scribblings, particularly for his symphonies, you may not see any actual notes on the staves because the scribble was working out rhythms rather than the notes to put to them (Beethoven�s 5th da-da-da-daaaaa, for instance). The odd one may be trying to find a good melody for the French horn or clarinet to counterpoint together in the background of a symphony, or just provide some good ideas for the full orchestration of parts of the Second movement.



Beethoven�s teacher and mentor Hayden wrote over 100 symphonies and Mozart 41. The styles of both these composers featured in Beethoven�s earliest symphonies, but, whilst not getting entirely lost, took second place in his later ones. Beethoven expanded the idea of a symphony, four movements, a medium sized orchestra and not very long, to include larger orchestras, grander themes and longer performances.



His transition away from the more �classical� towards and eventually into the more �romantic� age, for which he had a lot of admirers from fellow composers, made Beethoven famous in his time and, indeed to this day.



Some people at the time criticised his symphonies as heavy, but the 6th (Pastoral) perhaps puts paid to this. His 5th of course became Britain�s signature�tune in the Second World War, (da-da-da-daaaaa, spelling in Morse code V for Victory), whilst �Ode to Joy� in the last movement of his 9th and last symphony was more usually heard the other side if the Rhine at the time.



Political connotations apart, the great thing about Beethoven�s symphonies is that they are still listened to by people all around the world. Many people don�t know its Beethoven they�re listening to, but they �know the tune�. What a wonderful way to be remembered. That�s a really good tune. Says it all really.



The more you listen to Beethoven�s symphonies the more �tunes� you will hear in them. He was not a Master of counterpoint for nothing. Just listen to what is going on underneath the melody and you will immediately recognise that here is a �Great� composer at work. It�s not just what you hear but the harmonics and orchestrational cleverness which may not be apparent in first hearing.



Oh, and some of his endings go on for ever, and ever, and ever����..Enjoy them.