Beethoven & TRP

[Paul Murphy]

Andrew Dinn wrote:

>But
>Beethoven's 3rd symphony did not destroy Classical form, despite its
>near riotous reception. On the contrary it can only be appreciated
>fully with reference to Classical form. What it did do was break the
>hold the previous form had over people's expectations of music. Showed
>them how their musical world was constructed and could be
>reconstructed in an altered image (just one?). But he could only
>achieve this because Classical form was already understood. His music
>only connected because it related to the commonplace (at least to the
>limited audience whom economic circumstances gave him
>access). Revolution is parasitic on tradition.

Though Beethoven's late period (esp. _Missa Solemnis_, late piano sonatas,
_Diabelli Variations_, late quartets) is marked by deliberate archaisms,
reversion in some places to pre-classical modes of composition: use of
fugue and variation structures, even going so far as to write in pre-Bach
modal style (like the mammoth slow 'Thanksgiving' movement of the op.132
quartet, in the Lydian mode). Beethoven's invention results from absorbing
tradition and convention and (like TRP?) giving it an especially forceful
shake, till the rails of tradition are jumped (esp. Grosse Fuge op.133!).
Which struck the listeners of his day as incomprehensible to the point of
perverse.
Cheers,
Paul

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                             Paul Murphy
                       paul.murphy at utoronto.ca
                 ------------------------------------
         "The earth that has grown remote to itself is without
      the hope the stars once promised. It is sinking into empty
      galaxies. On it lies beauty as the reflection of past hope,
        which fills the dying eye until it is frozen below the
                     flakes of unbounded space"
             -T.W. Adorno, _Mahler: a Musical Physiognomy_