- Beethoven composed this work in 1801-2, and it premiered on April 5, 1803. Beethoven dedicated it to his patron his patron Prince Karl von Lichnowsky.1
- Prince Lichnowsky (not to be confused with his younger brother, Count Moritz von Lichnowsky) was the dedicatee of several Beethoven works, including (among others), the Three Piano Trios, Op. 1, and the Piano Sonata No. 8 in c minor, “Pathétique,” Op. 13.2
- Prince Lichnowsky was also a collector of scores by J.S. Bach, and had been a student and patron of Mozart. (He and Mozart were members of the same Masonic lodge.)3
- Musicologist Donald Tovey identified an obscure quotation from Haydn’s Creation in this symphony. Haydn was one of Beethoven’s teachers, and since this piece is also a bit musically conservative for Beethoven, the symphony could be considered a reflection on Haydn’s training, or perhaps an homage.4
- Beethoven wrote this symphony while he was coming to terms with his developing deafness. He wrote his “Heiligenstadt Testament” on October 6, 1802.5
Sources
- Douglas Johnson et al, “Beethoven, Ludwig van,” Grove Music Online (Oxford University Press, 2001), accessed September 23, 2021, https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-0000040026.
- Ibid.
- Elliot Forbes and William Meredith, “Lichnowsky family,” Grove Music Online (2001), accessed September 23, 2021, https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-0000016584.
- Johnson et al, “Beethoven, Ludwig van,” Grove Music Online
- Ibid.
Cut IDs
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