MUS302H1 Lecture 4: Part 2
Document Summary
Beethoven"s 9th symphony, his last one, is his largest orchestral work: comes from his late period when he was completely deaf. Everything in this work builds on tradition, but the whole is unprecedented. Beethoven"s combination of innovation with respect for the past of disparate styles, and of supreme compositional control with profound emotional expression. Characteristic of his last period and has been seen as a measure of his greatness. The work has some new, expansive features. First movement, allegro, ma non troppo, un poco maestoso. Hushed beginning, with its ambiguity of key, mode, and even rhythm. A few different melodies tightly wound around a single unifying theme. Dev"t section opens similar to the exposition with an introductory passage. Recapitulation also uses introductory theme, but in d major (rather than d-: rather than fade in (like the beginning), announced fortissimo with full orchestra. Includes an extended coda of 120 mm. (longer than many earlier symphonies)
