Beethoven Egmont Overture

Beethoven
Beethoven is considered the transitional figure between Classical composers Haydn and Mozart on the one hand, and the Romantics on the other. His innovations included his construction of his Sixth Symphony (The Pastoral) as program music and his expansion of the quartet, concerto, sonata, and symphony forms. And these are some of the forms he is best known for. He wrote ninesymphonies, 17 string quartets, 32 sonatas, 5 piano concerti, a violin concerto, and a triple concerto, as well as an opera, a ballet, incidental music, and overtures. Many people recognize by sound, if not by name, his Fifth Symphony, his Ninth (Choral) Symphony, and the Emperor Concerto.
Egmont Overture
Background
Egmont Op. 84 is a set of incidental music pieces write for Goethe’s tragedy Egmont in1809. It consists of an overture followed by a sequence of nine additional pieces for soprano, male narrator and full symphony orchestra. Beethoven did not complete the score in time for the opening of they play and the music was first performed at the play’s fourth repetition on June 15 in 1810 and published in 1811 as opus 84.
* In Egmont, Beethoven combines the romantic spirit as expressed inthe heroic ideal and defiance of tyranny, with classical form and thematic treatment.

* In Goethe’s drama Egmont appears as a symbol of liberty and courage.
Form and style
The overture is scored for two flutes (one doubling piccolo), two oboes, two clarinets, tow bassoons, four horns, tow trumpets, timpani and strings. The overture is written in a sonata form., it begin with a somberintroduction marked with Sostenuto ma non troppo, the middle section is marked with Allegro and the closing or coda is marked with and Allegro con brio.
* Beethoven’s style in Egmont illustrates the spirit of Romanticism presented in classical sonata form.
* The overture is brief, clearly organized, and contains none of the structural and harmonic complexities of later nineteenth centurymusic.

* The overture is similar to the style of the late fifth symphony that Beethoven completed two years earlier.

* Beethoven expressed his own political concerns trough the exaltation of the heroic sacrifice of a man condemned to death for having taken a valiant stand against oppression.

* The overture is one of the last works of his middle period.
The overture has aprogrammatic role. It starts with a slow introduction– Sostenuto ma non troppo – where the first theme is presented as a contrast between two images. The first motive is rendered through a slow dance of Spanish origin associated with the image of the Spanish invaders, and the second motive renders the image of the conquered people.

Leonore Overture no. 2
Background
Beethoven composed the LeonoreOverture no. 2 in the fall of 1805; the first performance was given on November 20 of that year in Vienna. According to some scholars, Beethoven composition process for his one Opera, Fidelio, was a heartbreak effort in his career. It took him 10 years, inspired four different overtures and underwent two major revisions and a name change. The number sequence of the overtures has the numbers mistakenlygiven and Beethoven’s first effort is now known as no. 2 and his second as no. 3.
The score calls for two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, tow bassoons, four horns two trumpets, three trombones, timpani, strings and an offstage trumpet.

* Beethoven overture Leonore no. 2, as it is known, represents his original thoughts on writing an opera overture which end in a powerful composition thatmoved away of its original purpose and results in a drama on his own.
* Beethoven music result too overwhelming to the opening scene for the opera and he made the same mistake with his Leonor no. 3.

* The Fidelio overture is shorter and lighter and it leads to the opera first number rather that upstaging it but is less important as music.
The overture is hugely dramatic, mirroring the...