Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 14 – Moonlight Sonata

The famous Moonlight sonata, with so many false traditions and interpretations, is in focus in this article. This is a remarkable piece, with emotions so extreme and contrasting, that it stands out as an all time favorite for any audiences throughout history. Beethoven’s famous Moonlight Sonata was born in 1801 as op. 27./2. Not a very marketable name, for sure. …

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The birth date of Beethoven

Birthday candles

When is the birthday of Beethoven? It is highly probable that Ludwig van Beethoven was born on December 16, 1770. Why only probable? Let us find out from this article! Ludwig van Beethoven was born in the Holy Roman Empire, in the Electorate of Cologne and in the city of Bonn. His date of birth is December 16, 1770. |Related: …

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The concerto – part III.

empty orchestra

Following the first and second article in the subject, this part will be the last in discovering the basics of the concerto works. In this article we focus on the structural plan of a typical concerto music in the classical and romantic era. We established in the previous articles that for musicians the concerto was a vehicle for improvisation. The …

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The concerto – part II.

empty orchestra

Following my first article published recently, we continue our discovery in concertos. In this part we interpret the cultural background, the associated second meaning of the music. In the early eighteenth century concertos were commonly played in churches or chambers. As decades passed it was more and more ordinary to hear a concerto in a new institution, the public concert. …

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The concerto – part I.

empty orchestra

In a series of articles we will discover what is the origin of the concerto as musical genre. What does it mean and how Beethoven worked in this art form? What is tutti, what is solo? Why concerto was the show of real Masters? Let’s find out!  The first form of a concerto music has origins in the early 1500s. …

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Parents and Grandparents of Beethoven

ancestry of Beethoven

This is a short essential coverage on Beethoven’s ancestry, who they were, where this family of musicians came from. Let’s dive in!   As far as the family’s history is traceable (beginning of the seventeenth century) the Beethovens came from a Belgian village near Louvain. The family name originally was written as Biethoffen, meaning Beet-garden in English. |Related: What does Beethoven’s …

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