Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92

Composer: BEETHOVEN, Ludwig van
  • Beethoven completed this symphony in the spring of 1812.1
  • This symphony premiered in two charity concerts in Vienna on the 8th and 12th of December, 1813.2 Beethoven conducted the symphony in these concerts, which were held to raise money to support wounded Austrian and Bavarian Napoleonic War veterans–specifically those who had served at the Battle of Hanau.3
    • The big hit on these programs, however, was not the 7th Symphony, but a different Beethoven piece called the Battle Symphony, a celebration of Wellington’s victory at Vittoria on June 21 of that year. The Battle Symphony (which would later be orchestrated as Wellingtons Sieg) was written for a sort of mechanical organ called the pantharmonicon recently invented by Johann Nepomuk Maelzel, who would later invent the metronome. These concerts led to a period of great popularity for Beethoven in Vienna.
  • In case you find Wagner’s point of view interesting, this NPR story includes the entirety of his rather florid description of this symphony as “the apotheosis of dance.” It is thought that Wagner was referring to Beethoven’s use of many dance rhythms in the work.

Sources

  1.  Douglas Johnson et al, “Beethoven, Ludwig van,” Grove Music Online (Oxford University Press, 2001), accessed February 10, 2021, https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-0000040026.
  2. Ibid.
  3.  Betsy Schwarm, “Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92,” Encyclopedia Britannica (January 3, 2017), accessed February 11, 2021, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Symphony-No-7-in-A-Major-Opus-92. 

Cut IDs

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