On Listening to Beethoven's Last Piano Sonata

Beethoven's Sonata in C, Opus 111, is dedicated to the Rudolph, a pupil of Beethoven who apparently was an excellent pianist and also showed talent in composing. His full name and title were Rudolf Johann Josef Rainer, of Austria, Cardinal of the Holy Roman Church, Prince-Archbishop of Olmutz, and Count of the Royal Bohemian Chapel. Beethoven dedicated many other compositions to him as well; among these are the Piano Trio, Opus 97 (which has become known as the Archduke Trio), the piano sonatas, Les Adieux, Opus 81a, and the Hammerklavier, Opus 106, and theMssa solemnis, Opus 123. More than one hundred letters that Beethoven wrote to the are known today. All reveal an appropriate expression of humility towards the Archduke; invariably Beethoven addresses him as Imperial (Ihro Kaiserliche Hoheit), and occasionally refers to him as his exalted pupil. In spite of the fact that many of the letters contained excuses for Beethoven's failures to keep his appointments for lessons, and that elsewhere the impression is gained that Beethoven considered these lessons a yoke from which he wanted to be relieved, Beethoven seems to have held the in great esteem.1 The had been one of the three signatories to the contract concluded in 1809 that guaranteed Beethoven a yearly stipend for his agreement to remain in Vienna. On July 1, 1823, Beethoven wrote to the about Opus 111: As Your Imperial Highness appeared to find pleasure in the Sonata in C-Minor, I believed I would not overstep my bounds if I surprised you by dedicating it to your Highness.2 A few months before, however, Beethoven had written to the publisher of the first edition (Maurice Schlesinger) with different instructions about the dedication: The dedication of the Sonata in C-minor is given to Antonia Brentano, nee von Birkenstock.3 Beethoven and Antonia Brentano knew each other well. The Beethoven biographer Maynard Solomon claimed that she was the long sought Immortal Beloved.4 The sonata is in two movements. This somewhat unusual arrangement prompted one publisher to inquire of Beethoven whether he might expect to receive a third, final movement.5 (Only five of the thirty-two piano sonatas with opus numbers have two movements; these are Opus 49, nos. 1 and 2; 54; 78; and 90). The first movement has a brief introduction marked Maestoso, followed by the body of the movement, an Allegro con brio ed appassionato. The movement is in C minor, a that has often been regarded as a key of fate for Beethoven; other important works in C minor are the Fifth Symphony and the Pathetique Sonata. The Allegro places great demands on the performer, and attests to the high opinion Beethoven must have had of the pianistic skills of the performer.6 In an unusual twist that prepares the listener for the second movement, the first movement ends in the of C major with a diminuendo topianissimo. The second movement is marked Arietta. Adagio, molto semplice e cantabile. It begins and ends in C major, and the form is that of a theme with four variations and a coda. For many years, some great pianists have refused to play this sonata in a public concert. This is not, however, because of the great technical demands placed on the performer, but because of the musical demands. As one pianist expressed it, There are so few notes for so much to express! In particular, the theme of the second movement conveys for me the feeling of great loneliness and despairing abandonment. Beethoven did much of the work on this sonata in 1821, a year in which he was beset by diseases such as jaundice and rheumatism. He was also deaf beyond hope of improvement and found himself short of funds. The death in March ofthat year of the Countess Deym (Baroness Stackelberg, nee Josephine von Brunswick), whom Beethoven had known well for many years, may have contributed to his feeling of sadness. …