Time present and time pastAre both perhaps present in time future,And time future contained in time past.If all time is eternally presentAll time is unredeemable. T.S. Eliot, Four Quartets, "Burnt Norton" The Ninth was not the end for Beethoven. Having scaled to the very summit of what symphonic composition can achieve, he retreated into his … Continue reading The Greatest Music Ever Written
Category: Classical Period
The Friday Symposium: Assessing the Recorded History of Beethoven’s Ninth
One of the great joys of classical music is delving into the often rich recorded history of a particular composition. Conductors, often lampooned in popular culture, are all very serious students of the music they perform and their directorial decisions significantly shape the music we hear. How? Tempo is the most obvious lever, but so … Continue reading The Friday Symposium: Assessing the Recorded History of Beethoven’s Ninth
The Answer is Joy
Beethoven is the ultimate progressive, believing that the world exists for us to improve. While his own circumstances were miserable – loveless, pain-stricken and frustratingly deaf – he retained to the last a shining faith in peace and understanding. Norman Lebrecht At the end of his Missa Solemnis, Beethoven asks great and terrible questions. Why … Continue reading The Answer is Joy
From the Heart: Beethoven’s Great Question
From the heart – may it return again – to the heart. Ludwig van Beethoven, as written on the autograph score In the last decade of his life, Beethoven turned his mind to composing an oratorio--a mass to celebrate the Archduke Rudolf's appointment to Archbishop. Rudolf, Beethoven's patron, student, and friend, commissioned the work, but … Continue reading From the Heart: Beethoven’s Great Question
The Friday Symposium: Beethoven Swings
It should not be a surprise to any regular reader of this blog that I consider Beethoven's chamber works to be his most significant compositions, and his piano sonatas in particular to be among those where my connection to Beethoven is strongest. Beethoven's final piano sonatas are breathtaking in their beauty and inventiveness and, perhaps, … Continue reading The Friday Symposium: Beethoven Swings
A Gertus History of Music 