"Germania", WoO 94, is a patriotic song by Ludwig van Beethoven written in order to celebrate the victory against Napoleon.
During and after the defeat of Napoleon during the Wars of Liberation, German patriotism flourished and spurred the production of poems, plays, and songs exalting the nation. Among these German artists who contributed to the glorification of their country was Friedrich Treitschke. In 1814, he wrote a patriotic opera, Die gute Nachricht, to which several Viennese composers contributed music. Beethoven composed the music for the closing song, in B-flat major, celebrating Germania, the allegory of Germany. [1] The work was first performed on 11 April 1814 in the Theater am Kärntnertor in Vienna. It is written for a baritone solo (the role of Bruno), SATB chorus, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 2 French horns, 2 trumpets, timpani, and a string section. [2]
Beethoven's own patriotic motivation is illustrated in the following letter he wrote about his participation in a charity concert for the soldiers of the preceding war:
It was a rare assembly of outstanding artists, in which each one, inspired by the sole thought of contributing by his art something for the benefit of the Fatherland, worked together without thought of rank and in subordinate positions to bring about an outstanding performance. ... The leadership of the whole assemblage fell to me only because the music was of my composition. Had it been by someone else, I should have been as willing as Hr. Hummel to take my place at the great drum, since we were all filled solely with the purest feeling of love for the Fatherland and with the joy of giving of our powers for those who had given so greatly for us. [3] | Es war ein seltener Verein vorzüglicher Tonkünstler, worin ein jeder einzig durch den Gedanken begeistert war, mit seiner Kunst auch etwas zum Nutzen des Vaterlandes beitragen zu können, und ohne alle Rangordnung, auch auf untergeordneten Plätzen zur vortrefflichen Ausführung des Ganzen mitwirkte ... Mir fiel nur darum die Leitung des Ganzen zu, weil die Musik von meiner Komposition war; wäre sie von einem Anderm gewesen, so würde ich mich eben so gern wie Herr Hummel an die grosse Trommel gestellt haben, da uns alle nichts als das reine Gefühl der Vaterlandsliebe und des freudigen Opfers unserer Kräfte für diejenigen, die uns so viel geopfert haben, erfüllte. [4] |
German [2] | |
---|---|
1. Germania, Germania, | 1. Germania, Germania, |
2. Germania, Germania, | 2. Germania, Germania, |
3. Germania, Germania, | 3. Germania, Germania, |
4. Germania, Germania, | 4. Germania, Germania, |
5. Germania, Germania, | 5. Germania, Germania, |
Besides "Germania", Beethoven also set other patriotic songs to music, for example "Des Kriegers Abschied" and "Abschiedsgesang an Wiens Bürger".
Des Kriegers Abschied | Abschiedsgesang an Wiens Bürger [5] | ||
---|---|---|---|
1. Ich zieh' ins Feld, von Lieb' entbrannt, | 1. I approach the battlefield, inflamed by love, | 1. Keine Klage soll erschallen, | 1. No complaint shall resound |
2. Ich kämpfte nie, ein Ordensband | 2. I have never fought | 2. Freunde, wünscht in Siegestönen | 2. Dear friends, wish us, with cries of victory, |
3. Denk' ich im Kampfe liebewarm | 3. If I, during battle, ardently have | 3. Trotzend steh'n vor Donnerschlünden | 3. Every villain can |
4. Leb' wohl, mein Liebchen, Ehr und Pflicht | 4. Farewell, my sweetheart, honour and duty | 4. Freut euch, Väter, jubelt, Mütter! | 4. Rejoice, fathers, and cheer, mothers! |
5. Bessre Menschen, bessre Bürger, | 5. Better humans, better citizens | ||
6. Lasst uns folgen dieser Fahne, | 6. Let us follow this banner | ||
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. 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, Beethoven began to grow increasingly deaf. In his late period, from 1812 to 1827, he extended his innovations in musical form and expression.
Bagatelle No. 25 in A minor for solo piano, commonly known as "Für Elise", is one of Ludwig van Beethoven's most popular compositions. It was not published during his lifetime, only being discovered 40 years after his death, and may be termed either a Bagatelle or an Albumblatt. The identity of "Elise" is unknown; researchers have suggested Therese Malfatti, Elisabeth Röckel, or Elise Barensfeld.
Louis Spohr, baptized Ludewig Spohr, later often in the modern German form of the name Ludwig was a German composer, violinist and conductor.
Werke ohne Opuszahl (WoO), also Kinsky–Halm Catalogue, is a German musical catalogue prepared in 1955 by Georg Kinsky and Hans Halm, listing all of the compositions of Ludwig van Beethoven that were not originally published with an opus number, or survived only as fragments. The work was originally titled in German Das Werk Beethovens: Thematisch-bibliographisches Verzeichnis seiner sämtlichen vollendeten Kompositionen.
Ferdinand Ries was a German composer. Ries was a friend, pupil and secretary of Ludwig van Beethoven. He composed eight symphonies, a violin concerto, nine piano concertos, three operas, and numerous other works, including 26 string quartets. In 1838 he published a collection of reminiscences of his teacher Beethoven, co-written with Beethoven's friend, Franz Wegeler. Ries' symphonies, some chamber works—most of them with piano—his violin concerto and his piano concertos have been recorded, exhibiting a style which, given his connection to Beethoven, lies between the Classical and early Romantic styles.
Marie Christiane Eleonore Prochaska was a German female soldier who fought in the Prussian army against Napoleon during the War of the Sixth Coalition.
The Catalogues of Beethoven compositions are all of the different ways in which the musical compositions by Ludwig van Beethoven have been organized by researchers into his music.
Baroness Therese von Droßdik was an Austrian musician and a close friend of Ludwig van Beethoven. She is best known as one of the possible dedicatees of Beethoven's famous bagatelle, "Für Elise", WoO 59.
"Zärtliche Liebe", WoO 123, or "Ich liebe dich", is a love song by Ludwig van Beethoven that he composed in 1795 and first published in 1803. Beethoven was 25 years old when he wrote it. The song is occasionally referred to by its first line, "Ich liebe dich, so wie du mich".
Max Ernst Unger was a German musicologist. Although he wrote on a variety of subjects, he is chiefly known for his extensive research and writings on the life and works of Ludwig van Beethoven.
Friedrich August Kanne (1778–1833) was a composer and music critic in Vienna.
Johann Baptist Malfatti, Edler von Monteregio baptized as Giovanni Domenico Antonio Malfatti was an Italian/Austrian doctor famous for treating the composer Ludwig van Beethoven.
The Three Equals for four trombones, WoO 30, are three short equales for trombones by Ludwig van Beethoven.
Joseph Karl Bernard was an Austrian journalist and librettist, and friend of Ludwig van Beethoven.
Ludwig van Beethoven's "Es ist vollbracht", WoO 97, was written in 1815 as a finale chorus for a Singspiel by a variety of composers called Die Ehrenpforten on a drama by G. F. Treitschke. It honours the second seizure of Paris in 1815 after the abdication of Napoleon. It remains one of Beethoven's lesser-known works and is rarely produced nowadays.
Ludwig van Beethoven composed at least six works for mandolin, four of which survive. None were published during his lifetime. Though known better as a pianist, Beethoven possessed a Milanese mandolin, which was hung beside his piano. He was friends with two prominent mandolinists, both of whom were linked to his surviving mandolin music.
Sieghard Brandenburg was a German musicologist, who stood out especially as a Beethoven researcher.