| Piano Trios | |
|---|---|
| by Ludwig van Beethoven | |
.jpg) The earliest known portrait of Beethoven; 1801 engraving by Johann Joseph Neidl after a now-lost portrait by Gandolph Ernst Stainhauser von Treuberg, ca. 1800 | |
| Key | |
| Opus | 1/1–3 |
| Dedication | Prince Lichnowsky |
| Performed | 1795 (1795): Vienna |
Ludwig van Beethoven's Opus 1 is a set of three piano trios (written for piano, violin, and cello), first performed in 1795 in the house of Prince Lichnowsky, to whom they are dedicated. The trios were published in 1795.
Despite the Op. 1 designation, these trios were not Beethoven's first published compositions; this distinction belongs rather to his Dressler Variations for keyboard (WoO 63). Clearly he recognized the Op. 1 compositions as the earliest ones he had produced that were substantial enough (and marketable enough) to fill out a first major publication to introduce his style of writing to the musical public.
No. 1 in E-flat major
- Allegro (E-flat major),
4 - Adagio cantabile (A-flat major),
4 - Scherzo. Allegro assai (E-flat major, with trio in A-flat major),
4 - Finale. Presto (E-flat major),
4
The first movement opens with an ascending arpeggiated figure (a so-called Mannheim Rocket, like that opening the first movement of the composer's own Piano Sonata no 1, Opus 2 no 1),
No. 2 in G major
- Adagio,
4 – Allegro vivace,
4 (G major) - Largo con espressione (E major),
8 - Scherzo. Allegro (G major, with a trio in B minor),
4 - Finale. Presto (G major),
4
No. 3 in C minor
- Allegro con brio (C minor),
4 - Andante cantabile con Variazioni (E-flat major),
4 - Minuetto. Quasi allegro (C minor, with a trio in C major),
4 - Finale. Prestissimo (C minor, concluding in C major),
2
Unlike the other piano trios in this opus, the third trio does not have a scherzo as its third movement but a minuet instead.
This third piano trio was later reworked by Beethoven into the C minor string quintet, Op. 104.
References
- "Beethoven's Trios for string instruments, wind instruments and for mixed ones", All About Beethoven. Retrieved 2011-12-10.
- "Beethoven's first childhood composition is predictably incredible for a 12-year-old". Classic FM (UK). Retrieved 13 May 2021.
- Cummings, Robert. "Piano Sonata No. 1 in F minor, Op. 2/1 (1793–1795)" in All Music Guide to Classical Music: The Definitive Guide to Classical Music, p. 106 (Chris Woodstra, Gerald Brennan, Allen Schrott eds., Hal Leonard Corporation, 2005).
- String Quintet in C minor, Op. 104. Hyperion Records. Retrieved 2011-12-10.
External links
- Piano Trio No. 1, Piano Trio No. 2, Piano Trio No. 3: Scores at the International Music Score Library Project
- Performance of Piano Trio No. 1 by the Claremont Trio from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in MP3 format
