DAILY DOSE of BEETHOVEN (May 1, 2020)
The Ninth Symphony
Now, we begin to approach the very heart of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. Beethoven is standing on the shoulders of two giants in this work. One we have met—who is Friedrich Schiller. The other is Johann Sebastian Bach.
After Bach's death in 1750, his music was considered old-fashioned; too complex; and thus relegated to obscurity. The trend was a preference for simple melody and accompaniment. Fortunately, this did not apply to all musicians and composers. In 1782, Mozart (then 26 years old), was introduced to the music and Bach and Handel at the salon of Baron von Swieten. Mozart seized upon it powerfully. Such is the case as well with Beethoven. As a boy, Beethoven played all of Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier. He also composed fugues.
In a fugue, one voice plays a theme, or subject alone. Soon another voice plays the same subject while the first voice goes on to something else. Four voices is standard, but it can go up to six. Fugues are challenging, but rewarding. A double fugue develops two subjects at the same time.
Not everyone cared for Beethoven's double-fugal method. The famous author, Leo Tolstoy wrote, in his What is Art:
“…not only do I not see how the feelings transmitted by this work could unite people not specially trained to submit themselves to its complex hypnotism, but I am unable to imagine to myself a crowd of normal people who could understand anything of this long, confused, and artificial production, except short snatches which are lost in a sea of what is incomprehensible. And therefore, whether I like it or not, I am compelled to conclude that this work belongs to the rank of bad art.”
As we shall see, nothing is confused, or artificial about Beethoven’s fugue. It is totally integrated. The difference is, it does not follow any formula.
There are three double fugues in the Ninth Symphony, the most important of which is a vocal one. We have not got to that yet, but in today's video, we will introduce you to the first two.
If you would like to compare Beethoven's double-fugal writing to that of Bach, we have included a performance of the Prelude and Fugue in C# Minor, played by Edwin Fischer. Bach does not begin both fugue subjects at the same time though. He brings in the 2nd fugue at half-way point. The prelude lasts almost 3 minutes. the fugue begins at 2:50 with a 4-note subject. The 2nd subject enters at 4:48. Listen and tell us if you hear them!