Work
Ludwig van Beethoven Composer
Discussion and Introduction to Beethoven's 'Pastoral Symphony' (Naxos): Narration by Jeremy Siepmann
Performances: 1
Tracks: 125
Loading...
Musicology:
-
Discussion and Introduction to Beethoven's 'Pastoral Symphony' (Naxos): Narration by Jeremy SiepmannPr. Instrument: Narrator
- On Beethoven's Openings
- Opening phrase of the 'Pastoral': Mood, Symbolism and Musical Function
- Musical Acorns: the outline of melody; the shape of a question
- The 'question' in the 'Pastoral' repeated...
- ...and answered
- The opening phrase ends on a note full of pregnant expectation
- Starting with a stop
- The rhythmic profile of the opening phrase; a two-part construction
- Phrase One, Part One
- Phrase One, Part Two
- The properties of rhythmic ambiguity; the 'question' of Phrase One answered
- Phrase Two: from meander to march
- The makings of a conversation: contrast and variation
- Repetition as a major factor, but it's never mere repitition; each time something new is added
- From soft to loud and back again; instrumental enrichment from horns and double-basses
- Mega-repetition: violins play exactly the same little fragment ten times in a row
- But no two repetitions are quite the same; varieties of contrast
- More variation: pitch rises; violins joined first by the clarinet, then by the oboe
- Return to the opening idea, but with new instrumentation and articulation
- Clarinets, horns, bassoons and flutes now join expansive variation
- 'New' insistent rhythm derived from the first four notes of the piece
- With the dawn chorus, a whole forest is waking up; feelings of rapture
- First violins play a derivative of the opening figure, joined by wind and strings
- Sudden change of key, from the home key (tonic) to the dominant
- Arrival at the highly contrasting second main theme
- Unusual properties of second main theme
- Rhythmic clash between simultaneous groups of three beats and groups of two
- Winds fall silent as the violins and violas interrupt with a new theme
- Winds answer with the same morse-like rhythm but at half the speed
- Crescendo leads to strings' acceleration of the pace with no increase in tempo
- Beginning of coda, directly based on morse-like rhythm of the main theme
- Strings reiterate small fragment of the new theme 13 times in a row
- A simple, rising violin phrase leads to a repeat of the Exposition
- The nature and function of the Development section in sonata form: 'harmonic' rhythm explained
- The nature of harmonic rhythm illustrated
- A typically Beethovenian exercise in the frustration of experience
- Repetitiousness and magic effected largely through instrumental colour
- Then come four, almost identical bars
- Even greater magic, with sudden switch of key and tone colour
- Entire Development section up to this point
- The Development continued
- Increased unease and suspense as harmonic rhythm accelerates
- Arrival at the point of Recapitulation; back to the beginning, as a reminder
- Beginning of Recapitulation
- More Beethovenian frustrations of expectations which he himself has just set up
- Harmonic rhythm speeds up, giving the impression of an accent on every beat
- Prevailing mood restored; new theme from clarinets and bassoons
- Violins and violas take up theme; horns, cellos, double-basses accompany
- A hush falls, followed by a return of the movement's most familiar tag in strings
- Clarinet takes up the running triplet figures of the main closing theme
- First violins take up the opening phrase again, accompanied by double-basses
- Beethoven slips in one last surprise; cue to complete movement
- First Movement (complete)
- General introduction; the birth of a melody
- Brook music quickens; syncopated horns; theme changes hands; evocation of birdsong
- The 'motto' theme introduced by violins and treated to round-like overlappings
- Transitional 'bridge' theme sets off for new key group. But is it? And does it?
- Will he, or won't he? Beethoven keeps us guessing
- The run-up to the Second Group
- Arrival at the Second Group; but where is the actual Second Subject?
- A new tune is introduced by the bassoon
- Tune is repeated three times
- ...which the full orchestra now takes up in varied form
- Theme carried by flutes and first violins in a charmingly waltz-like development
- A reminder of the precedent
- Back to the prevailing triple-metre with violins, bassoons and flutes
- Another reminder of precedent...
- ...and a cue to some unexpected departures
- The transformational magic of Beethoven's 'tone-painting' - and a new variation
- Conversation of clarinet, flute and oboe on the way to the Development
- Harmonic movement emphasised by violins; oboe takes up the First Subject
- Flute and oboe discuss the First Subject, before arriving together at the Transition
- Gains in volume and intensity lead to a new key-change
- More thematic transformation through the agency of tone-colour
- Harmonic fluidity - instability - as the central engine of the Development section
- Harmonic instability, thematic dissolution increase, then lessen with approach of Recapitulation
- Recap. and transformation: key and material are right, but what a change of presentation!
- Just when we know that's coming, Beethoven changes the rules (or at least the harmony)
- Transformation by reorchestration; switch to long sustained chords; then everything stops
- The silence is broken by voices of nightingale (flute), quail (oboe) and cuckoo (clarinet)
- First violins bring back the motto theme
- Cue to complete movement on CD 2
- Second Movement (complete)
- Beethoven and the Scherzo: and introduction; Part One of opening phrase taken by the strings
- Immediate response; Part One is answered by a much more singing, continuous legato
- Entire orchestra gives out opening theme, this time fortissimo and with powerful accents
- A musical ball game. The contrast of this and the first two movements could hardly be greater
- After quietly teasing suspense, Beethoven mocks village band, first the oboe, then the bassoon
- Clarinet joins in, then horns take the tune - the dance no longer boisterous but lyrical
- Strings sweep the village musicians aside and hurtle us into the new, boisterous 'Trio' section
- The air is alive with the sound of (mock) bagpipes, tambourines and fifes
- Coda; begins as the movement itself begins, but soon diverges in harmony and instrumentation
- Original layout compressed; order of events is changed and Beethoven springs a big surprise
- Third movement (complete)
- Unparalleled portrait of nature's power over humanity, with some stupendous orchestration
- Self-generating form and terror of total unpredictability; 'anxiety motif' from the violins
- The 'lashing rain' motif - downward-driving arpeggios from the first violins and violas
- The 'lightning' motif, and its recurrence later in the movement
- 'Rain' motif, derived from descending scale pattern from the violins at the outset
- Shivering tremolandos from the strings and increasingly eerie harmonies from the wind
- Steady crescendo in strings; terrifying, downward spelling-out chords in the violins
- Extremes of dynamic contrasts; the unsettling, disturbing, undermining effects of chromaticism
- Abandonment of the melody, and most traces even of rhythm; sustained, discordant harmony
- Storm dispersed, the sun reappears, bathing sodden earth below with its life-giving rays
- Cue to complete performance of Fourth Movement
- Fourth movement (complete)
- 'Yodelling' figure from clarinet, then horn, then violins, who introduce the main theme
- Details of instrumental magic in the interplay of horns, cellos, clarinets and bassoons
- Main theme heard three times in a row - and yet never the same way twice
- Now we get the whole orchestra, playing full out, with violins all double-stopping
- Transition to the next section, based on the last two notes of the main theme
- The rhythmic basis of new transition theme, first in violas, then taken up by first violins
- Another rhythmic detail of extended transition comes increasingly into the foreground
- ...and is then heard in expanded version, taken in sequence by the strings, from the top down
- New phrase, introduced by violins, brings us resoundingly back to the opening material
- Main theme, re-orchestrated; unexpected drift into another key and a new, gently flowing theme
- Hints of a return to main them; long 'pedal point'; running commentary from the violins
- Main theme returns, but significantly altered, and not entirely intact
- Running commentary now heard in the middle, with alternating pizzicatos both above and below
- Part Three of main theme given to entire orchestra, leading to final appearance of Theme two
- Extended coda; overlapping variations of main theme, rather in the manner of a round
- Suddenly the scene changes. A variation of the 'running commentary' cited in tracks 34 and 36
- The crowning glory, as the Shepherd's Song of Thanksgiving takes on a 'heavenly' magnificence
- Cue into complete performance of Fifth Movement through the 'gateway' of the Fourth
- Fourth and Fifth movements (complete)
There are no reviews for this work.
