THROUGH THE EYE OF THE CAMERA: LEARNING TO SEE AND SEEING TO LEARN

  

Beethoven and Napoleon: Decomposing Symphony Number 3 "Eroica"

By Mark Alan Fulco

Overture

The year is 1802. Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827), a renowned composer, lived in Vienna at the age of 31. This city was the capital of the Austrian Empire and the center of the modern music world. Here, Beethoven would compose a symphony that would spark controversy from its title to its inner workings. This symphony, Symphony Number 3, Opus 55, Eroica, would establish Beethoven's reputation as a world-famous and even legendary composer. It would also be a turning point for him, both financially and mentally. The inspiration for the symphony initially was an underdog Corsican by the name of Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821), who became a military hero, then a political hero, and ultimately decided to become Emperor of France. Beethoven liked and admired Napoleon up until that last point. By 1802, Beethoven had achieved financial independence. However, due to this success, his family and friends were perceived as opportunists, so he turned inward and accepted only those who could further his musical career. That same year, the first signs of deafness plagued him, eventually overtaking him long before his compositional powers faded. Throughout this time, Beethoven developed a philosophy of life, influenced by the new thinking associated with the Romantic movement, which would also be a significant part of the Eroica Symphony. Let’s look at this window in time when classical music evolved away from the Neoclassical era to Romanticism, and how Beethoven changed the symphony, the orchestra, and music in general. We will see how Napoleon’s rise came into Beethoven’s purview and how he left it. Finally, the Eroica Symphony will be examined in its various parts to show how Beethoven expressed his emotional genius.

Rising Star

Born in Bonn, Germany, into a musical family, Beethoven's father, Johann van Beethoven (1740-1792), was a court singer, musician, and teacher. His grandfather, Ludwig Heinrich van Beethoven (1712-1773), was also a well-known composer and musician (more successful than Johann). The musical genius genes were passed on to young Beethoven, who demonstrated exceptional musical talent from a young age. Hoping to repeat the achievements of child prodigies like Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) and Joseph Martin Kraus[i] (1756-1792), Johann saw his son’s early prodigal ability. Johann began teaching him music when he was young.[1] However, the dynamic between Johann and his son was problematic and abusive. Johann was an alcoholic and a severe disciplinarian, constantly punishing young Ludwig when he made a mistake in ways that would have landed Johann in prison for child abuse today.[2] Beethoven’s mother, Maria Magdalena (1746-1787), was the only kind and gentle soul standing between him and his alcoholic father.

Struggling through a mediocre education, Beethoven had the chance to study music full-time with Christian Gottlob Neefe (1748-1798), who taught him new ideas in musical composition, theory, and piano, as well as violin and organ.[3] Neefe also introduced young Beethoven to popular literary works by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) and Johann Christoph von Schiller (1759-1805).[4] While living in Bonn from 1787, Beethoven’s father was sickly and succumbing to his alcoholism. Beethoven’s mother had died that year, and now he needed to support himself and his siblings financially. To make ends meet during the next five years, Beethoven would play the viola in the court orchestra, teach piano lessons (which he detested), and compose two cantatas.[5] Along the way, Beethoven befriended notable families and other musicians (a practice now referred to as “networking”), some of whom would later become staunch advocates for him. Beethoven became popular as a composer and virtuoso, as well as a profound thinker and an artist conscious of himself and his world. His mind was so inquisitive and receptive that virtually nothing in philosophy, pictorial arts, botany, anthropology, optics, philology, sociology, literature, and practical politics failed to interest him.[6]

Beethoven in Vienna

Austrian by birth, Joseph Haydn (1732-1809) was widely recognized as the progenitor of symphonies and string quartets and as the popularizer of the sonata form.[7] He had been a court composer for many different royals, notably in England, Hungary, and, of course, Austria. By 1792, Haydn returned from England to Bonn[8], had for a second time paid a visit to Beethoven, who was working as a court musician for Archduke-Elector Maximilian Franz (thanks to Neefe). Haydn encouraged and ultimately convinced Beethoven to move to Vienna, where he would meet Haydn for further musical training. Vienna was the center of the musical world during the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries[9]. As one of the major capitals of Europe, Vienna, the center of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, was tightly controlled by the Habsburg royal family for three hundred years. Here, in the musical hub of the classical continent, Beethoven, a bright-eyed and bushy-tailed young composer, made his way to meet and learn from the major music icon Haydn. Together, they studied musical contrast[10], and Haydn would criticize the new compositions by Beethoven. Although Beethoven owes a great deal to Haydn for his musical education, he was not always an excellent pupil. He struggled under pressure and disliked being told what to do, often having heated arguments with Haydn. Despite all these obstacles, their complex relationship never faltered. The mutual respect between Haydn and Beethoven was too great, and the latter understood that a public feud with the greatest living composer would be detrimental to his career.[11]

Apart from Haydn, Antonio Salieri (1750-1825) and Johann Georg Albrechtsberger (1736-1809) were also renowned composers and teachers, who had a significant influence on Beethoven. Yet another Austrian, Albrechtsberger, a musical theorist, organist, and composer, was most influential on Beethoven in terms of musical expression, harmony, counterpoint[12], and choral fugues[13].[14] Opposing Haydn's strict nature of instruction, Albrechtsberger was more encouraging, patient, and paid more attention to Beethoven. Their relationship was based on mutual respect, rather than the overbearing teacher-student dynamic that Haydn exemplified. Salieri was a celebrated Italian (born in Venice) composer and teacher of aspiring musical composers, and spent most of his life in Vienna, becoming the Austrian Imperial Kapellmeister (from 1788 to 1824)[15]. Besides Beethoven, among Salieri’s diverse students were Franz Schubert (1797-1828) and Franz Liszt (1811-1886). With Salieri, Beethoven studied Italian vocal composition, verbal accents, expressions, rhythm, and some counterpoint, with the aim of composing Italian-style opera.[16] Beethoven and Salieri were good professional friends and had only one falling out. Beethoven was having a competitive concert at the same time as Salieri was hosting a benefit concert for orphans and widows, but later, they smoothed things over.[17]

By 1793, Beethoven began to develop his virtuosity at the piano to earn an income, and he had to be somewhat of a hustler. With big names like Haydn, Salieri, and Albrechtsberger instructing the young Beethoven, he slowly built a reputation while simultaneously maneuvering to be invited to the imperial court, where the real money would be spent by potential patrons. He composed and conducted at benefit concerts, with himself as the beneficiary.[18] During his early years in Vienna, Beethoven composed several musical works influenced by his teachers, specifically highlighting the challenges and possibilities of variation form.[19] Gradually, Beethoven began to attract royal patrons, such as Baron Gottfried van Swieten (1733-1803), Director of the Imperial Library, his landlord and friend. Also, there was Karl Lichnowsky (1761-1814), a Prussian Prince who spent most of his time in Vienna. Lichnowsky was a prominent music patron and had a buddy-buddy relationship with Mozart. Then Lichnowsky met Beethoven, ja-wohl![20]

Romanticism, its influence, and Goethe

Romanticism burst onto the European scene in the twilight of the eighteenth century, setting hearts ablaze from 1800 until the 1850s. This powerful movement swept through art, literature, and intellectual circles, championing raw emotion over cold reason, celebrating the individual's unique spirit, embracing the wild flights of imagination, and finding profound truth and beauty in the natural world. This philosophy would affect painters, musicians, and other artists, who were no longer considered craftsmen but privileged persons in society's eyes.[21] In The Social History of Art: Rococo, Classicism, and Romanticism, Arnold Hauser examines the eighteenth- to nineteenth-century eras that led to Romanticism. In Romanticism, he argues, there was a complex reaction to industrialization and political turmoil, embodying both a revolutionary sentiment and a conservative longing for a pre-industrial society. Hauser states: “Romanticism was the ideology of the new society and the expression of the world-view of a generation which no longer believed in absolute values, could no longer believe in any values without thinking of their relativity, their historical limitations. It saw everything tied to historical suppositions because it had experienced, as part of its own personal destiny, the downfall of the old and the rise of the new culture.”[22]

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, a German polymath, was considered the most important and influential writer in German history and one of the most influential writers during the Romantic movement. Goethe would be the titular head of the period in which art, literature, and music were influenced. His talents included being a scientist, statesman, poet, playwright, novelist, theater director, critic, and amateur artist. His works include plays, poetry, aesthetic criticism, and treatises on botany, anatomy, and color.[23] Goethe’s life bridged the Neoclassical and Romantic periods and was a figure who profoundly influenced Beethoven's thinking. Beethoven became a devoted fan of Goethe, and like his musical hero, Mozart, and later composers such as Franz Schubert (1797–1828) and Hector Berlioz (1803–1869), he composed musical pieces inspired by Goethe's literature and poetry. Unfortunately for Beethoven, although Goethe was aware of and liked Beethoven’s music, he did not have a particularly high opinion of the musical genius. In a lengthy process, Beethoven was persuaded to write and arrange music to meet Goethe. When Goethe finally met Beethoven in Teplitz[24], he formed a divided opinion of the composer. Goethe’s impression of Beethoven was that he admired his energetic fervor for musical composition. However, Goethe did not like the composer’s personal habits. According to a letter from Goethe to Carl Friedrich Zelter[25] (1758-1832), “His talent astounded me; nevertheless, he unfortunately has an utterly untamed personality, not completely wrong in thinking the world detestable, but hardly making it more pleasant for himself or others by his attitude. Yet he must be shown forgiveness and compassion, for he is losing his hearing, something that affects the musical part of his nature less than the social. He is naturally laconic, and even more so due to his disability.”[26] For Beethoven’s part, he was also somewhat disenchanted, and although he admired Goethe, he noted that he was an aristocratic sycophant.[27] Never meet your heroes, for they will surely disappoint.[28]

Napoleon, from no one to someone

France needed someone, anyone, to save itself from the suicide that was the French Revolution. Enter a savior, Napoleon Bonaparte, an outsider born on the French island of Corsica to an Italian family who moved to the French mainland. After a rudimentary schooling in Corsica and France, Napoleon enlisted and was eventually commissioned into the French Royal Army in 1785. And then came Revolution. Destruction, anarchy, and death characterized the French Revolution of 1789. To further this absurdity, France slid into war with the surrounding nations of Europe. Shortly after the execution of King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette in 1793, France went through an implosion of political control and a purge of royal and peasant citizens who did not fit into the revolutionary junta’s world. These fanatics who took control of the country included Maximilien Robespierre, Georges Danton, Jean-Marie Roland, and Jacques-Pierre Brissot, representing different factions such as the Jacobins[29] and the Girondins[30]. Initially, Napoleon supported the French Revolution in 1789 and promoted its cause. Having risen rapidly through the army ranks and after winning the siege of Toulon[31] in 1793, Napoleon then went on to defeat the royalist insurgents in Paris on 13 Vendémiaire[32] in 1795. Through his military prowess against internal and external enemies, he was the hero that revolutionary France needed. By 1799, the French Revolution had entered its tenth turbulent year. The Reign of Terror[33] had ended, but the Directory, France's governing body since 1795, was plagued by corruption, financial instability, and military setbacks. Public disillusionment with the Revolution's unfulfilled promises was widespread, and many French citizens craved stability and effective leadership. This political vacuum created the perfect conditions for the charismatic Napoleon to seize power.

On November 9-10, 1799, Napoleon planned a coup d'état with the help of his fellow conspirators, brother Lucien Bonaparte (president of the Council of Five Hundred[34]), Abbe Emannuel Sieyès (the brains of the coup plan), Joseph Fuche (Police Chief and Spy Master) and Pierre Roger Ducos (Member of the Executive Directory of the French Republic), a closely knit group of others, and a whole bunch of French Grendier soldiers.[35] Known as the Coup of 18 Brumaire[36], it was barely successful. Still, a new government was formed: the Consulate, with Napoleon as First Consul alongside Sieyès and Ducos as Second and Third Consuls because dividing power three ways has always worked.[37] Napoleon quickly dominated the triumvirate while ostensibly sharing power with his fellow consuls. The Constitution of Year VIII, drafted in December 1799, created the appearance of democratic institutions while concentrating actual power in the hands of the First Consul. Napoleon controlled the army, appointed ministers, judges, and local officials, proposed legislation, controlled foreign policy, and reinstated the Catholic religion.[38] Napoleon consolidated his position in 1802 when he was named Consul for Life after a heavily managed plebiscite. The Constitution was revised to enhance his powers and effectively transform the republic into an autocracy—a crucial step toward his eventual proclamation as Emperor in 1804.[39]

Romanticism’s Hero

Napoleon was a dream come true during the Romantic period. He had his admirers across Europe, who fell for the dashing Hero of France. For one, Romanticism's “Founding Father,” Goethe, met Napoleon in 1808. It was love at first sight. Goethe, twenty years older than Napoleon, met at the Congress of Erfurt, a summit meeting between Napoleon and Tsar Alexander I of Russia, to fortify their partnership alliance.[40] Napoleon had read Goethe's The Sorrows of Young Werther[41] and kept it in his campaign library.[42] Goethe admired Napoleon's control and order, which saved France from the bedlam of the French Revolution, and accepted his autocracy as necessary for France and for stabilizing Europe. Goethe wrote about his two meetings with Napoleon, particularly noting that he had received the Cross of the Legion d'Honneur from him.[43] George Gordon, known as Lord Byron (1788-1824), British poet and peer, in his Ode to Napoleon Buonaparte, had 19 stanzas of pure admiration for Napoleon, comparing him to America's Founding Father, George Washington.[44]

Up Beethoven! Down hearing.

Meanwhile, Beethoven became a celebrity composer in Vienna, composing prolifically, including his first two symphonies, piano cantatas, and works for every known orchestral instrument of the time. The astute Beethoven had established himself as a household name among the elite of Vienna, achieving this by performing his own compositions and, more significantly, improvising on themes he had created himself or those of his competitors.[45] Yet, just as Beethoven was skyrocketing to acclaim, he was going through a crisis of confidence because of the ever-increasing disability that was diagnosed just before his Third Symphony achievement. Beethoven was losing his hearing. In what became known as the Heiligenstadt Testament, written in 1802, Beethoven wrote to his brothers Nikolaus Johann (1776-1848) and Kaspar Anton Karl (1774-1815), and to his father, Johan (the space for his name was left blank on the letter). This letter was also intended for the general public. Beethoven describes his agony in detail.

“For my brothers Karl, Kasper, and [       ] Beethoven.

Oh, you men who think or say that I am malevolent, stubborn, or misanthropic, how greatly do you wrong me. You do not know the secret cause which makes me seem that way to you. From childhood on, my heart and soul have been full of the tender feeling of goodwill, and I was ever inclined to accomplish great things. But, think that for 6 years now I have been hopelessly afflicted, made worse by senseless doctors, from year to year deceived with hopes of improvement, finally compelled to face the prospect of a lasting malady (whose cure will take years, or perhaps be impossible). Though born with a fiery, active temperament, even susceptible to the diversions of society, I was soon compelled to withdraw myself, to live life alone. If at times I tried to forget all this, oh, how harshly was I flung back by the doubly sad experience of my bad hearing. Yet it was impossible for me to say to people, 'Speak louder, shout, for I am deaf.” ”[46]

Beethoven never sent the letter. He shoved the letter in a drawer, pulled himself up by his liederhosen, and carried on. Nothing was going to stop him from achieving what he wanted.

Origins of the Third Symphony Dedication

As Beethoven’s career progressed, so did his ambition for what an orchestra could achieve, hinting at the revolutionary spirit that would later define him. He wanted to evolve away from the eighteenth-century orchestral works of Mozart and Haydn. Beethoven initially adhered to the norms of his predecessors but soon began to push past the musical envelope. Between 1800 and 1802, following the classical style of Haydn and Mozart, Beethoven composed the first two symphonies in four movements.[47] He started experimenting with larger orchestras and a wider range of instruments, breaking new ground in musical composition and symphony length. The conductor became a more centralized figure, necessary to control the orchestra in Beethoven's intricate works. As a result, the conductor's responsibilities shifted from keeping the beat to interpreting the music. As ensembles grew larger and more diverse, the role of the conductor became increasingly important in maintaining harmony and unity. The growing complexity of orchestral compositions made the necessity for dedicated, full-time musicians clear. Over time, orchestras transitioned from loosely organized gatherings to more structured ensembles.[48]

Beethoven and Napoleon shared some similarities. Both men rose from relatively humble origins and were contemporaries, born one year apart. These similar characteristics included ambition, reformism, and a revolutionary spirit. Napoleon in the military and political arena, Beethoven in compositional music, and the orchestra's expansion. In their own way, they were on similar paths to become famous in their lifetime. According to Beethoven’s pupil, Ferdinand Ries (1784-1838), the idea for the Third Symphony dedication was Beethoven’s own. Another source, Beethoven’s biographer and sometime secretary, Anton Schindler (1795-1864), reported that Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte (1763-1844), the French Ambassador to Austria, first suggested dedicating the Third Symphony.[49] Why was Napoleon the person to whom the symphony was dedicated? Before Napoleon became the scourge and bane of Europe and self-proclaimed Emperor, Beethoven learned of Napoleon's rise to power through his democratic reforms, which occurred when he was appointed First Consul of France. Beethoven became enamored with the "little corporal's"[50] rise and early political and military successes, so he composed and dedicated his Third Symphony to Napoleon. Still, as we shall see, he would later retract the dedication.

The Third Symphony Eroica

The symphony itself was "revolutionary" in its making, changing the movements, and it also changed how future symphonies would be composed and conducted. Beethoven’s genre of musical compositions, first and second symphonies, piano sonatas, and other musical works, thematically fit into the Romantic period. Formally known as Symphony No. 3 in E♭ major, Op. 55, titled as the Eroica. The Third Symphony would be bolder, distinctive, and relatively different from Beethoven’s previous work. This symphony represented a departure from the music associated with Mozart and Haydn, rejecting traditional forms and redefining musical conventions.[51] At its 45-minute running time, the Third Symphony surpassed all previous symphonies in length. The harmonies Beethoven employed were completely novel and different from anything that had come before.

Additionally, Beethoven incorporated unconventional forms into several movements. He heightened the symphony's dramatic potential by employing a dynamic pace and contrasts.[52] Throughout his career, Beethoven had ever-higher expectations of an orchestra's capabilities and began experimenting with larger ensembles and a wider range of instruments, exploring new sounds. His deteriorating hearing prompted him to rely more on the tangible sound experience, which led to this exploration.[53] Getting started, Beethoven created the symphony's layout in early pieces, sketches, and ideas from 1802-1803, which were discovered in 1962 and compiled in what was identified as the “Wielhorsky Sketchbook.” This discovery was presented at the Bonn Beethoven Congress in 1970, where it was announced that Beethoven had scratched out the earliest ideas associated with the Eroica Symphony, which became the background for the symphony.[54]

There are many recordings of the Eroica. However, for my descriptive reference, I will use my favorite recording of Eroica, performed by the Berliner Philharmonic under the late Austrian conductor Herbert von Karajan. Karajan seems to feel every note as if it were a natural part of his body.

The first movement, Allegro con brio[55], bangs into play, full of vigor and strength, like a rescuing cavalry, bold and in charge. Undoubtedly, the hero has entered the fray, taking control of the situation with confidence forged in iron. The harmony remains bold, ebbs slightly, and then builds to a crescendo that leaves you with an elevated feeling of confidence. The old-fashioned, broad, slowly unfolding introduction standard in earlier symphonies, like those from Mozart and Haydn, is gone. Instead, we charge into the exposition like a tidal wave of energy. An immense, formidable, and autonomous entity has been unleashed. Beethoven increased the number of instruments, raising the orchestra's sound and enhancing rhythmic counterpoints with abrupt, powerful jabs that immediately clash with each other. [56] An enormous, formidable, and autonomous entity has been unleashed. This emotional rollercoaster of musical schematic was allegedly how Napoleon saved France from falling into the depths of chaos before he took the title of Emperor.

The second movement, Marcia Funebre, Adagio Assai[57], gives you an immediate sense of seriousness about something that happened. As it states, “Marcia Funebre” is a funeral march, but for whom? By the end of 1804, Napoleon was still very much alive, had crowned himself Emperor, and was beginning his conquest of the European continent. It is for the hero of the first movement, not his death, but the aftermath of what Beethoven thought of Napoleon at the beginning of his rise to power. The awful toll that war takes is brought to light in the second movement. It starts with a muted string theme reminiscent of funeral marches composed in revolutionary France; the double basses mimic the drumming that would have accompanied such a procession. The music builds to a tense climax, as trumpets and brass sections evoke the devastating reality of war by alternating between somber melancholy, nostalgic melancholy, and heroic memorialization of the departed.[58] This underlying funereal theme permeates throughout the movement. You can’t escape its sad and tragic intonation. The gloomy theme is repeated towards the end of the movement, a little softer, more solemn, and quieter, perhaps offering a slight relief from the seriousness at the beginning. The movement slowly fades as if the piece were saying goodbye to the honored one.

In the third movement, Scherzo[59]: Allegro vivace[60], we are woken up from our despondency of the funeral and thrown into a beautiful, restored feeling. This feeling helps our spirits recover and invites us to reach out to others in a mutual support group or camaraderie. The Scherzo's opening bars evoke a sense of frenzied agitation and anticipation. It is an almost uncontrollable surge of electric excitement. There is a sense that it's only a matter of time before the music explodes into a rough and rowdy party. An oboe solo sets the tone for a rustic theme, which is then handed from one instrument to another like a secret joke until the entire orchestra belts it out.[61] Each instrumental section takes turns expressing this jovial recovery, building to a dance-like movement, with the hunting horns section blowing proudly as if announcing a new era.

The fourth movement, Finale: Allegro molto[62], starts with a melodic joke; a raging deluge of sounds opens the piece. After a big flourish, there is an anticlimactic, unadorned bass line. This bass line is from Beethoven's 1801 ballet, The Creatures of Prometheus, which tells the story of the Titan who defied the Olympian gods by giving humanity fire, thereby illuminating humanity.[63] As the last movement begins with the whole orchestra in a fanfare of dramatic string cascades, the listener is surprised to hear a delicate, almost mockingly humorous bass tune. This tune turns out to be the bass line for a far more elegant and satisfying theme, which evolves and changes until the horn calls a triumphant ending.[64]

The Hero’s Downfall

By 1804, Napoleon had become the supreme leader. Yet, another version of a monarch, this time an Emperor. Emperor Bonaparte had conquered Europe, including Spain, Italy, and North Africa, and acquired lands west of the burgeoning United States of America in the Louisiana Basin. Napoleon had progressive ideas, such as freedom of the press and the reform of the French legal code, which drew the attention of citizens under repressive, authoritarian regimes like Austria. Austria, or the Austrian Empire, was the primary European player, rivaled only by the Kingdom of Great Britain.[65] Austria’s Francis I (1768-1835), who was also Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor, did not favor revolutions or revolutionaries like Napoleon and instead championed the counter-revolution in France. Especially scathing for Francis I was the fact that Napoleon won victories over the allies in the War of the Third Coalition and France consequently controlled Austria's former colonial holdings in the Netherlands, southern Germany, and northern Italian territories, including Lombardy, Tuscany, and Venice.

Enevitably, Napoleon, in 1812, would go too far by invading Russia, suffering ultimate defeat, and retreat to France. In early 1814, following the Battle of Leipzig in late 1813, Allied forces, led by Austria, Prussia, Russia, and others, invaded France as part of the War of the Sixth Coalition. The Allies finally crossed the Rhine after a long and bloody campaign. On March 31, 1814, Paris capitulated, forcing Napoleon to abdicate and go into exile on the island of Elba that same year. But you can’t keep a good Emperor down, and Napoleon returned to France and rallied the country again on the warpath. Old habits die hard. Finally, on June 18, 1815, the Little Corporal and French forces were defeated by the combined British and Prussian armies led by the Duke of Wellington, Arthur Wellesley (1769-1852), and Marshal Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher (1742-1819), respectively. This defeat, near Waterloo in Belgium, effectively ended Napoleon's attempt to regain power. In 1815, Napoleon was securely imprisoned and spent the rest of his days on the British overseas territory of Saint Helena, a volcanic, tropical island in the South Atlantic. He died in 1821 from complications of bleeding gastric ulcers after receiving a medical compound containing mercury, which at the time of the autopsy was described as stomach cancer.[66] I guess Napoleon did not have the stomach for forced retirement.

The Aftermath

As he documented his recollections of Beethoven, Ferdinand Ries solidified one of the long-lived legends about the maestro that in 1804, upon learning of Napoleon Bonaparte's proclamation as Emperor, the composer furiously rescinded his intended dedication to the French leader. So the story goes, Beethoven so ruthlessly removed Napoleon's name from his manuscript that he scratched the title page, leaving a noticeable hole in the paper.[67] Ries wrote:

“In writing this symphony, Beethoven had been thinking of Buonaparte, but Buonaparte while he was First Consul. At that time, Beethoven had the highest esteem for him and compared him to the greatest consuls of ancient Rome. Not only I, but many of Beethoven's closer friends, saw this symphony on his table, beautifully copied in manuscript, with the word "Buonaparte" inscribed at the very top of the title-page and "Luigi van Beethoven" at the very bottom....I was the first to tell him the news that Buonaparte had declared himself Emperor, whereupon he broke into a rage and exclaimed, ‘So he is no more than a common mortal! Now, too, he will tread under foot all the rights of man, indulge only his ambition; now he will think himself superior to all men, become a tyrant!’ Beethoven went to the table, seized the top of the title-page, tore it in half, and threw it on the floor. The page had to be re-copied, and it was only now that the symphony received the title "Sinfonia Eroica."[68]

In 1804, one of Beethoven’s many patrons, Bohemian Prince Joseph Franz von Lobkowitz (1772–1816), hosted a private concert at his Vienna residence[69] where the Eroica Symphony was initially performed. The Theater an der Wien, which had hosted numerous prior world premieres by Beethoven, hosted the public premiere on April 7, 1805.[70]

 

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Notes

[1] The Life of Ludwig van Beethoven: Music & More | English National Opera. (n.d.). https://www.eno.org/composers/ludwig-van-beethoven/. Accessed 03/30/2025.

[2] Biography.com Editors. (2024, July 17). Ludwig van Beethoven. Biography. https://www.biography.com/musicians/ludwig-van-beethoven

[3] The Life of Ludwig van Beethoven: Music & More | English National Opera. (n.d.). https://www.eno.org/composers/ludwig-van-beethoven/

[4] Beethoven and Christian Neefe. (n.d.). https://www.popularbeethoven.com/beethoven-and-christian-neefe/

[5] Overture: Adventures with Beethoven — Skagit Symphony. (n.d.). Skagit Symphony. https://www.skagitsymphony.com/adventures-with-beethoven-1

[6] Ibid. Page 150.

[7] Haydn and Beethoven. (n.d.). Popular Beethoven. https://www.popularbeethoven.com/haydn-and-beethoven/

[8] At this time, Bonn, located in western Germany, was a territory of the Electorate of Cologne, Holy Roman Empire, where Beethoven was born and where he lived into his twenties.

[9] A whole pantheon of musical giants living in Germany and Austria, dominated the nineteeth century. Besides Hayden and Beethoven, there were Johannes Brahms, Anton Bruckner, Gustave Mahler, Felix Mendelssohn, Franz Schuber, Robert Schumann, Johann Strauss II, Richard Strauss, Richard Wagner, and tens of others.

[10] Contrast is a compositional method in music that highlights important parts, adds interest, and keeps a song from being monotonous by utilizing variations between musical elements such as pace, melody, harmony, dynamics, or timbre.

[11] Adventures with Beethoven. Scene Two: Table of Contents; Beethoven’s Childhood and Early Life (1770-1792) — Skagit Symphony. (n.d.). Accessed April 24, 2025. Skagit Symphony. https://www.skagitsymphony.com/scene-two-table-of-contents

[12] The musical technique of counterpoint occurs when two or more melodic lines in music are connected harmonically, creating a polyphonic texture where each line has its own significance.

[13] In polyphonic (many sounds or voices) compositions known as choral fugues, a melodic idea or theme is introduced and then "chased" or repeated by numerous voices in a contrapuntal texture, resulting in a complex and beautiful artistic web.

[14] Beethoven and Albrechtsberger. (n.d.). Popular Beethoven. https://www.popularbeethoven.com/beethoven-and-albrechtsberger/

[15] Salieri and Beethoven. (n.d.). Popular Beethoven. https://www.popularbeethoven.com/salieri-and-beethoven/#:~:text=This_article_will_uncover_how,care_and_attention_to_details.

[16] Ibid..

[17] Ross, Alex. (2019, May 27). Antonio Salieri’s revenge. The New Yorker. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/06/03/antonio-salieris-revenge.

[18] Marek, George R. (1969). Beethoven: Biography of a Genius [Hardback]. Thomas Y. Crowell. https://www.abebooks.com/Beethoven-Biography-Genius-Marek-George-R/31789003229/bd.

[19] Ibid. Page 136.

[20] German, pronounced: yah-VOL, meaning is either, “yes, sir!”, yes, certainly,” or “yes, indeed.”

[21] Ibid. Page 149

[22] Hauser, Arnold. "The Social History of Art. Volume Three, Rococo, Classism, Romanticism." Pages 172-173. (1958) (Stanley Godman, Trans.; 1st ed.) [Routledge, 3rd edition February 11, 1999] [Paperback]. Vintage Books, Inc. Reprinted by Arrangement with Alfred A Knoff, Inc.

[23]Johann Wolfgang von Goethe -- Biography. (n.d.). University of Pennsylvania. https://knarf.english.upenn.edu/Goethe/bio.html Accessed April 22, 2025.

[24] Teplitz or Teplice, is located in the modern Czech Republic, formerly under the Austria-Hungary Empire and is known for its thermal spring baths.

[25] Zelter was a was a German composer, conductor, teacher of music, and a close friend of Goethe’s.

[26] McCarthy, James. A meeting of genius: Beethoven and Goethe, July 1812. (2012, July 2). Gramophone. https://www.gramophone.co.uk/features/article/a-meeting-of-genius-beethoven-and-goethe-july-1812#:~:text=The-same-year-201814-Goethe,found-overblown-and/or-incomprehensible.

[27] The meeting of Beethoven and Goethe. (n.d.). Popular Beethoven. https://www.popularbeethoven.com/the-meeting-of-beethoven-and-goethe/

[28] A quote often attribbuted to Marcel Proust (1871-1922), who was a French novelist, literary critic, and essayist.

[29] From 1792 until 1794, the Jacobins were an extreme political group of the French Revolution, under the leadership of Maximilien Robespierre, who oversaw the Reign of Terror.

[30] Prominent from 1791 to 1793, the Girodins were a moderate political group who advocated liberal economic policies and representative democracy. They opposed the increasingly radical measures of the Jacobins.

[31] Napoleon’s first victory, Toulon is a southern French city, in which the combatents were the foreces of the French Republic against Royalist rebels.

[32] Vendémiaire was the first month in the French Republican calendar, the first month of the autumn quarter.

[33] From 1793 to 1794, the Reign of Terror, was a period of intense violence and mass executions, orchestrated by the Committee of Public Safety.

[34] The Council of Five Hundred  was the lower house of the legislature of the French First Republic under the Constitution of the Year III. It operated from 31 October 1795 to 9 November 1799 during the Directory period of the French Revolution.

[35] Roberts, Andrew. (2014). Napoleon a life (First) [Paperback].Chapter 9 Brumaire, pages 206-217.

[36] Brumarie (October and November), was the second month of the French Revolutionary calendar, which translates to the “month of mist.” .

[37] A jab at acient Roman Ceasars and early European history.

[38] Doyle, William. (2018). The Oxford History of the French Revolution (Third)s [Paperback]. Oxford University Press. Ch. 16 An End to Revolution, 1799-1802, pages 371-392.

[39] Roberts, Andrew. (2014). Napoleon a life (First) [Paperback]. Ch. 14 Amiens, pg 311; Ch. 15 Coronation, page 353.

[40] Selin, Shannon. (2024, December 20). When Napoleon met Goethe. Imagining the Bounds of History. https://shannonselin.com/2016/10/napoleon-met-goethe/

[41] This novel is a tragic love triangle that delves into the emotional issues shared by the three characters, ending with the suicide of the main character. This novel served as a prototype for future tragic relationship novels, stories, and poetry that emerged during the Romantic period.

[42] Ibid.

[43] Fondation Napoleon. (2008, October 14). Goethe and Napoleon I meeting in Erfurt (Germany) in the governor’s palace-Napoleon.org. https://www.napoleon.org/en/history-of-the-two-empires/images/goethe-and-napoleon-i-meeting-in-erfurt-germany-in-the-governors-palace/

[44] Poets’ Corner-Lord Byron-Ode to Napoleon Buonaparte. (n.d.). https://www.theotherpages.org/poems/2001/byron0101.html

[45] Beethoven’s Eroica: Keeping Score | PBS. (n.d.). https://www.pbs.org/keepingscore/beethoven-eroica.html

[46] Beethoven’s Heiligenstadt Testament. (n.d.). https://www.popularbeethoven.com/beethovens-heiligenstadt-testament/

[47] Adventures with Beethoven. Scene Four — Skagit Symphony. (n.d.). Accessed April 24, 2025. Skagit Symphony. https://www.skagitsymphony.com/scene-four-table-of-contents

[48] Admin. (2024, January 22). “Exploring Beethoven’s impact on orchestra configuration.” LVBeethoven.com. https://lvbeethoven.com/exploring-beethovens-impact-on-orchestra-configuration/

[49] Lee, Alexander. Beethoven and Napoleon. (n.d.). History Today. Volume 68, Issue 3. March 2018. https://www.historytoday.com/archive/music-time/beethoven-and-napoleon

[50] Bonaparte was called "the Little Corporal" by his soldiers as a term of affection, primarily due to his young age when he rose to leadership positions in the French army, not necessarily because of his height; "Le Petit Caporal" (French for "The Little Corporal") was a way for his troops to show endearment towards their young commander, even though the myth of Napoleon being short is widely known.

[51] Cassedy, Steven. “Beethoven the Romantic: How E. T. A. Hoffmann Got It Right.” Journal of tahe History of Ideas 71, no. 1 (2010): 1–37; page 9. http://www.jstor.org/stable/20621921.

[52] Adventures with Beethoven. Scene Four — Skagit Symphony. (n.d.). Skagit Symphony. https://www.skagitsymphony.com/scene-four-table-of-contents

[53] Admin. (2024, January 22). “Exploring Beethoven’s impact on orchestra configuration.” LVBEETHOVEN.COM. https://lvbeethoven.com/exploring-beethovens-impact-on-orchestra-configuration/

[54] Lockwood, Lewis. “Beethoven’s Earliest Sketches for the ‘Eroica’ Symphony.” The Musical Quarterly 67, no. 4 (1981): 457–78; page 458. http://www.jstor.org/stable/742074.

[55] This phrase can literally translate as "lively, with brightness," the music's tempo is to be played at a quick pace, and cheerfully or merrily.

[56] Judd, Timothy. (2020, December 10). Beethoven’s third symphony, “Eroica”: Music of Revolution. The Listeners’ Club. https://thelistenersclub.com/2020/12/14/beethovens-third-symphony-eroica-music-of-revolution/

[57] “Funeral march: very slowly.”

[58] Dotsey, C. (2022, April 5). Musical Revolution: Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3, Eroica. Houston Symphony. Originally published April 2019. https://houstonsymphony.org/beethoven-symphony-3-eroica/

[59] A vigorous, light, or playful composition, typically comprising a movement in a symphony or sonata

[60] Allegro vivace Is a musical tempo marking that translates to "fast and lively." It indicates that the music should be played at a fast tempo, but also with a sense of energy and vivacity.

[61] Ibid.

[62] “Finale” – ending, with “allegro molto” in music means very fast or extremely fast. The word "molto" intensifies the meaning of "allegro," making it a significantly faster tempo than "allegro" alone.

[63] Glass, Herbert. Symphony No. 3, “Eroica”, Ludwig van Beethoven. (n.d.). LA Phil. (Los Angeles Philharmonic) https://www.laphil.com/musicdb/pieces/3969/symphony-no-3-eroica

[64] Symphony No. 3 in e-flat, Op. 55 “Eroica” (1804) – Beethoven Symphony Basics at ESM - Eastman School of Music. (n.d.-b). https://www.esm.rochester.edu/beethoven/symphony-no-3/

[65] By 1801, the United Kingdom (also known as the Second British Empire), comprised the Kingdom of England, Principality of Wales, Kingdom of Scotland, Ireland, and surrounding island territories. This also included the territorial commonwealth territories of Canada, Australia, New Zeeland, and encrouching territories of greater India.

[66] Markel, Howard Dr. | How Napoleon’s death in exile became a controversial mystery. (2022, August 15). PBS News. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/how-napoleons-death-in-exile-became-a-controversial-mystery#:~:text=The-physicians-who-conducted-Napoleon's,the-day-before-he-died.

[67] Beethoven’s Eroica: Keeping Score | PBS. (n.d.). https://www.pbs.org/keepingscore/beethoven-eroica.html

[68] George, Christopher T. INS Scholarship 1998: The Eroica Riddle: Did Napoleon remain Beethoven's "Hero?" (n.d.). https://www.napoleon-series.org/ins/scholarship98/c_eroica.html

[69] Lobkowitz’s home is now known as “Eroica Hall” where concerts are still performed to this day.

[70] Glass, Herbert. Symphony No. 3, “Eroica”, Ludwig van Beethoven. (n.d.). LA Phil. https://www.laphil.com/musicdb/pieces/3969/symphony-no-3-eroica

 

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