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The Andante favori is a work for piano solo by Ludwig van Beethoven. In catalogues of Beethoven's works, it is designated as WoO 57.
The Andante favori was written between 1803 and 1804, and published in 1805. It was originally intended to be the second of the three movements of Beethoven's Waldstein Piano Sonata, Op. 53. The following extract from Thayer's Beethoven biography [1] explains the change:
It was composed as a musical declaration of love for Countess Josephine Brunsvik, [3] but the Brunsvik family increased the pressure to terminate the relationship. [4] She could not contemplate marrying Beethoven, a commoner. [5]
The reason for the title was given by Beethoven's pupil Czerny, quoted in Thayer: "Because of its popularity (for Beethoven played it frequently in society) he gave it the title Andante favori ("favored Andante").
The Andante favori is in F major (the subdominant of the Waldstein key), in 3/8 time, and is marked Andante grazioso con moto. Formally, the work is a rondo, with each return of the theme appearing in varied form. The theme itself is fairly extended and in ternary form. The work takes about nine minutes to play.
The makers of the 1995 BBC adaptation of Jane Austen's novel Pride and Prejudice used the Andante favori as the musical content of a concocted scene in which Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy exchange tender glances while his sister Georgiana plays the andante on the fortepiano. [lower-alpha 1] The action of the scene is timed to match two modulations in the music, from F to D♭ major and then back again.
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire and span the transition from the Classical period to the Romantic era in classical music. Beethoven's career has conventionally been divided into early, middle, and late periods. His early period, during which he forged his craft, is typically considered to have lasted until 1802. From 1802 to around 1812, his middle period showed an individual development from the styles of Joseph Haydn and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and is sometimes characterized as heroic. During this time, he began to grow increasingly deaf. In his late period, from 1812 to 1827, he extended his innovations in musical form and expression.
The Piano Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp minor, marked Quasi una fantasia, Op. 27, No. 2, is a piano sonata by Ludwig van Beethoven. It was completed in 1801 and dedicated in 1802 to his pupil Countess Julie "Giulietta" Guicciardi. The name Moonlight Sonata grew popular later, likely after Beethoven's death.
Ludwig van Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 23 in F minor, Op. 57 is among the three famous piano sonatas of his middle period ; it was composed during 1804 and 1805, and perhaps 1806, and was dedicated to Count Franz von Brunswick. The first edition was published in February 1807 in Vienna.
Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 21 in C major, Op. 53, known as the Waldstein, is one of the three most notable sonatas of his middle period. Completed in summer 1804 and surpassing Beethoven's previous piano sonatas in its scope, the Waldstein is a key early work of Beethoven's "Heroic" decade (1803–1812) and set a standard for piano composition in the grand manner.
Ludwig van Beethoven composed his Piano Sonata No. 12 in A♭ major, Op. 26, in 1800–1801, around the same time as he completed his First Symphony. He dedicated the sonata to Prince Karl von Lichnowsky, who had been his patron since 1792.
Anton Felix Schindler was an Austrian law clerk and associate, secretary, and early biographer of Ludwig van Beethoven.
The Immortal Beloved is the addressee of a love letter which composer Ludwig van Beethoven wrote on 6 or 7 July 1812 in Teplitz in what would be today Czech Republic. The unsent letter is written in pencil on 10 small pages. It was found in the composer's estate following his death and is now in the Berlin State Library.
The Piano Sonata No. 19 in G minor, Op. 49, No. 1, and Piano Sonata No. 20 in G major, Op. 49, No. 2, are short sonatas by Ludwig van Beethoven, published in 1805. Both works are approximately eight minutes in length, and are split into two movements. These sonatas are referred to as the Leichte Sonaten to be given to his friends and students.
Piano Sonata No. 13 in E-flat major, Op. 27 No. 1, "Quasi una fantasia", is a sonata composed by Ludwig van Beethoven in 1800–1801.
Countess Therese (von) Brunsvik, sometimes referred to in English as Therese, Countess von Brunsvik or Brunswick, was a member of the Hungarian nobility, pedagoge and a follower of the Swiss Pestalozzi.
Alexander Wheelock Thayer was an American librarian and journalist who became the author of the first scholarly biography of Ludwig van Beethoven, still after many updatings regarded as a standard work of reference on the composer.
Quintet in E-flat for Piano and Winds, Op. 16, was written by Ludwig van Beethoven in 1796.
Kaspar Anton Karl van Beethoven was a brother of the composer Ludwig van Beethoven.
The Three Piano Sonatas, WoO 47, were composed by Ludwig van Beethoven probably in 1783, when he was twelve years old. The sonatas show a certain level of precocity and serve as a precursor to the masterworks he later produced. They are dedicated to the Prince-elector Maximilian Friedrich and therefore also known as the Kurfürstensonaten.
Josephine Brunsvik or Countess Jozefina Brunszvik de Korompa, Countess Josephine Deym, was probably the most important woman in the life of Ludwig van Beethoven, as documented by at least 15 love letters he wrote her where he called her his "only beloved", being "eternally devoted" to her and "forever faithful”. Several musicologists consider her to be the most likely recipient of the mysterious "Letter to the Immortal Beloved".
Ludwig van Beethoven wrote 32 mature piano sonatas between 1795 and 1822. Although originally not intended to be a meaningful whole, as a set they comprise one of the most important collections of works in the history of music. Hans von Bülow called them "The New Testament" of piano literature.
Julie "Giulietta" Guicciardi was an Austrian countess and briefly a piano student of Ludwig van Beethoven. He dedicated to her his Piano Sonata No. 14, later known as the Moonlight Sonata.
Nikolaus Simrock was a German horn player at the court of the Elector of Cologne in Bonn and a music publisher. He was a friend of Ludwig van Beethoven and founder of the N. Simrock music publishing house. "Highly esteemed as a man and a musician", he remained in contact with Beethoven throughout the 1790s and is regarded as a "reliable witness" to Beethoven's years in Bonn.
The Piano Quartets, WoO 36, by Ludwig van Beethoven are a set of three piano quartets, completed in 1785 when the composer was aged 14. They are scored for piano, violin, viola and cello. He composed a quartet in C major, another in E-flat major, and a third in D major. They were first published posthumously in 1828, however numbered in a different order: Piano Quartet No. 1 in E-flat major, Piano Quartet No. 2 in D major, and Piano Quartet No. 3 in C major.