Beethoven's Symphonies ETerm 2021

An introduction to what we'll be doing and how we will do it, some basic background essential to any music appreciation experience geared for non-majors.

We will go in-depth into Beethoven's first symphony, using it as a model to understand the Symphony as it existed in the 18th Century, and how Beethoven took the genre and began making it his own, even in this first effort as a young man newly arrived in cosmopolitan Vienna.

A closer look at the Second Symphony - how it continued Beethoven's development from the First Symphony, and brought to a close the symphonies that were part of his "first" period as a composer.

Due via email no later than Sunday night Jan 10 to lseigel@bsc.edu.

With his Third Symphony, Beethoven took the genre in a radically new direction. Many feel that this is the beginning of Beethoven's celebrated "Heroic" style - one of the defining features of his entire compositional career. We will take two class days to examine and discuss this most amazing work - still for many, one of the best symphonies ever composed.

Just as with the Third ("Eroica") Symphony, "Beethoven's Fifth" has become his most well-known composition. Despite its huge reputation, it is actually in some ways a very compact work--but it packs an enormous punch, in many respects. This will be a great day, examining one of the world's great musical masterpieces in a morning!

Due no later than Sunday night, Jan. 17 by email to lseigel@bsc.edu.

The Sixth Symphony is unique in the entire canon of the Nine. Subtitled "Pastoral" by the composer, it is an example of a "characteristic" or "program" symphony - the first in what would become a much more popular genre in the years after Beethoven by other composers, right on into the 20th century, and today. Its five movements will occupy us for two class days.

The Seventh Symphony is a delight in so many ways. The energy of the first, third and fourth movements are really distinctive, while the second movement was so instantly popular that the audience demanded it be repeated on the very day of its premiere! Speaking of all four movements, the later composer Richard Wagner called it "the apotheosis of the dance." What was Beethoven "dancing" about? We'll take a closer look.

Due no later than Sunday, Jan. 24 via email to lseigel@bsc.edu

The Eighth Symphony comes as something of a surprise in many ways, given its position among the Nine. After composing this work, Beethoven seemed to take a break from writing symphonies, and in fact would only write one more, and that one many years later. In a difficult time in Beethoven's life, the Eighth Symphony is an outburst of youthful enthusiasm, belying all the troubles the composer was undergoing with his health and his personal life. 

The immense Ninth Symphony is a product of Beethoven's last years, and forever broke down norms associated with the symphonic genre as only Beethoven could do. Yet, in it are important components that Beethoven pondered as a composer for decades, only realizing his ideas in this valedictory work as a symphonist. Its fame and life in the years since its premiere have associated it with some of the most dramatic events in European and American history, and it remains a touchstone of Beethoven's idealism and genius, as well as a compelling statement of his lifelong goal to re-make the Symphony, and to use his art to express a larger vision for humanity.

Whew! 

So many titanic musical works, packed into just a few weeks. Today we'll decompress, reflect and enjoy some final thoughts about our musical journey and what we have learned and come to appreciate in our exploration of Beethoven's symphonies.