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Hello and welcome to the Insights and Sounds podcast, a podcast centered around classical music. Join Dr. John Sinclair, and explore composers past and present, their works, and an occasional classical music informational episode.
Beethoven Mass in C
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Dr. Sinclair: [00:00:00] Hello, good people. Thank you for joining us for Insights and Sounds. Today, we're going to be talking about the immortal genius, Beethoven, with some emphasis on his magnificent mass in C. Beethoven epitomized the saying that some people walk a fine line between genius and insanity. And after our discussion today, judge for yourself which side of the line Mr.
Beethoven often occupied. Of all the great composers throughout time, Beethoven might well cover the gamut of emotions. He was bad tempered, arrogant, often insulting, moody, but could be loyal, affectionate, and even good humored.
Insert Music 00:47
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Dr. Sinclair: Let's go back to his childhood. Beethoven's father and grandfather heard a young Mozart perform seven years before Ludwig's birth.
And when Ludwig started to demonstrate musical [00:01:00] talent, his imagination went wild. But Ludwig's father was not the teacher that Mozart's father, Leopold Mozart, was. And while young Ludwig was very skilled, and his notoriety grew, he never obtained anything near the fame as did Mozart. And while Leopold was controlling, Johan was cruel.
A reputable account of his childhood states that it was a, quote, a rare day that he wasn't locked in a cellar or flogged. To acquire that level of skill, Beethoven's father forced him to practice, including waking him up in the middle of the night to practice. And when he wasn't practicing piano, he was studying theory and playing violin.
Given the relentless discipline he endured as a child, many scholars speculate that his early childhood can explain some of the anger and aggression that we hear in his music. Beethoven as a child was unkempt, a grubby little boy who quit school at age 11 and at the time was already working as a professional musician.
At age [00:02:00] 16, he went to work for the Elector as the court organist, replacing his first teacher, a very fine teacher, Christian Neff. And his ability to read music at sight and to improvise was legendary, even as a child. Patrons in his hometown of Bonn sent Ludwig to Vienna in 1897 to study with Mozart. But before any lessons could take place, he returned home to be with his mother as she died.
And because the family was so unstable, He stayed at Bond for five more years to supervise his two younger brothers and to care for his father. He said that his mother Maria was quote, such a good, kind mother to me and indeed my best friend. In reality, the mother was probably the only unconditional love.
He probably ever knew.
New Music 2:47 a
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Dr. Sinclair: Forward to 1792. At age 22, he moved to Vienna, where he studied composition with Joseph Haydn, then the prominent local composer, George Albrechtsberger, and even [00:03:00] Antonio Salieri. Haydn was also an admirer to Ludwig, but the relationship was often strained. He supplied Beethoven with compositional exercises on which to hone his skills.
And while Beethoven's not especially a good student, scholar Jan Swofford wrote, Quote, Beethoven was showing the fruits of his study in his startling, mature way. After his months with Haydn, Beethoven emerged a far more sophisticated composer. Yet, to the extent of the debt Beethoven owed his teachers, he never understood.
Or anyway, he never acknowledged it.
He was stubborn, and his success was getting in the way of his education. He was already a big hit in the Viennese society as a concert pianist. His playing made him a rock star among the elite in Vienna, and he described the first few years at Vienna as the most joyful of his entire life, being in demand as a performer and admired by the public.
He lacked social graces, though, and didn't possess any sense of protocol, refusing to allow societal norms, [00:04:00] such as being subservient to the royalty and to patrons. He once told a prince that, quote, There are and there will be thousands of princes, but there's only one Beethoven. And it seems that maybe he was right.
He was tolerated because his performing brilliance and rising reputation as a composer. Now, as a person, he was often aloof, kind of lost in thought. He could be found talking to himself, waving his arms and composing as he took his long walks. A favorite story of mine is when Beethoven was arrested after one of his long walks that took him many miles from Vienna, where he was wandering into a small town.
Beethoven had been lost and hungry and was gazing into people's windows evidently. He was promptly arrested by the town's constable, who mistook him for a vagrant and threw him in jail. The constable said, We've arrested someone who will give us no peace. He keeps on yelling that he's Beethoven, but he's a tramp, has no hat, an old coat, [00:05:00] nothing but which he can be identified.
Well, the community released the dirty middle aged man, who was indeed Beethoven, and they sent him on his way after being fed with some new clothes. Another documented example of his preoccupation was when a first class violinist complained about a particular difficult passage in one of his string quartets, and Beethoven shouted at him, quote, I can't think about your miserable violin when I am speaking to God.
Well, not only did he dress poorly, cleanliness was not necessarily a priority. He had some other annoying habits, such as loud and unpleasant attention getting laugh, possessed a quick temper, was known to have a hard time keeping servants. He could be violent and use phrases to describe his service, such as unbearable swine of a housemaid or disgusting beasts of a filthy tribe.
Not exactly the way to keep good employees. He was no nicer to waitresses in his favorite restaurants, the Zoom Camille [00:06:00] and the Golden Head. By the way, those businesses are still working today. He sometimes would forget to pay his bill and wrote music on the tablecloth. Yet there are other times. He overpaid.
And was extremely kind.
Music, new chapter 6:14
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Dr. Sinclair: Well, by his late 20s, Beethoven had already started to suffer significant hearing loss. And by the time he reached his early 30s, it was clear that all attempts at reversing were going to be in vain. As he became deaf, he carried around a conversation book to communicate. Those books not only tell us what he was thinking and doing, but they also gave us a real glimpse into his character.
He really did not seem to be concerned about his living conditions. One visitor to his apartment in 1809 wrote that he lived in, quote, the dirtiest, most disorderly place imaginable. Every chair was covered with plates of half eaten food and draped with discarded clothing. The piano and the desk beside it were filled with half completed, [00:07:00] ink smudged scores and below the piano sat an unemptied chamber pot.
And regarding food, He liked fish, but his favorite meals were scrambled eggs in bread soup or a bowl of macaroni with Parmesan cheese. Doesn't sound too bad, does it? And he certainly liked his wine, lots of it, which in later life exasperated other health conditions. He must have been difficult tended, demonstrated by the fact that he moved with his grand piano in tow nearly 40 times in just 30 years in Vienna.
Sometimes simultaneously holding multiple leases. And by all accounts from his contemporaries, he was clumsy to go along with his lack of manners. He would sometimes spit randomly and grab any close object to pick at his teeth. Now, no surprise, he had strained relationships with most of his musical colleagues and contemporaries, and they all have stories to tell about him.
. After attending concerts and meetings with Beethoven, composer [00:08:00] Luigi Carabini referred to Beethoven as an unlicked bear cub. Now, Beethoven admired the poet Goethe, but after meeting with Beethoven, Goethe described him as, quote, an absolutely uncontrollable personality.
Johann Hummel was a fixture in Viennese musical world, former pupil of Mozart, renowned for his incredible virtuosity at the keyboard, and legendary prowess as an improviser. Frankly, he was Beethoven's only competition, and for many years Hummel enjoyed close friendship with Beethoven. Several incidents, however, marred their relationship.
Beethoven felt competition in his playing, he resented Hummel arranging his compositions, and the incidents surrounding one of Beethoven's great choral works, his Mass in C, added to the awkward relationship.
Insert Mass in C 8:49a
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Dr. Sinclair: The Mass, however, represents a pivotal work. In the composer's musical repertoire, written during his middle period, the Mass was commissioned by Prince Nikolaus [00:09:00] Ezerhazy II, though Hummel's influence was there because he was employed by Ezerhazy, and this was all for the Princess's Name Day, and was premiered in Einstadt, Austria.
The Mass is structured in a traditional five movement format, the Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus and Agnus Dei. Each movement features Beethoven's innovative harmonic language and dramatic musical sensibilities. And Beethoven, though, described the work as gentle. And while there are many such moments, it also possesses the Beethoven fire to which we've grown accustomed.
Let's go through it a bit.
Start With Kyrie (9:36)
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Dr. Sinclair: The Kyrie opens with a somber tone. Featuring intricate interplay between the choir, soloist, and orchestra. And then on to the Gloria, Beethoven unleashes the dramatic muscle with sudden dynamic changes and complex contrapuntal writing that would have seemed very progressive for this musical era. The Credo movement is particularly fascinatingly original, [00:10:00] starting with a hushed unison in the choir, and then builds to a full voiced outburst. His treatment of the Crucifixus text is forceful, which in contrast to how most composers treat this text, his word painting is evident through, throughout, but never more so than when the basses sing, , Supantius Pilate with a chromatic passage sliding downward.
Beethoven uses dynamic contrast to express scriptural concepts. For triumphant to introspective, The musical setting of the text, Et incarnatus est, appears to reflect Beethoven's deep spirituality. Now the Sanctus is surprisingly simple and serene, very elegant before the joyous Hosanna ending.
And Beethoven chooses to use only six words in his Benedictus, translated, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, where the soulless work in partnership [00:11:00] until the return of the graceful Hosanna. The final movement, Agnus Dei, has a pulsing orchestral intro that leads to the choirs powerfully exclaiming, Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy.
And then the work ends with a peaceful reprisal of the opening Kyrie theme, but with the text Dona nobis pacem, or grant us peace.
Musically, the mass in C major demonstrates Beethoven's use of classical forms with emerging romantic expressivism. The orchestration is refined and rich, featuring especially beautiful writing for the woodwinds and brass, alongside traditionally excellent string writing, and the vocal parts demand that the soloist and the choir possess considerable technical and expressive skills.
In essence, the choir, orchestra, and orchestra. are all equally important. I'm always convinced that [00:12:00] Beethoven really never thought of a choir separately than the orchestra. Yes, he had words to express, but I'm convinced that he really thought of voices as instruments. And while you listen to a Brahms and you think of Brahms thinking in loving voices, I always think of Beethoven loving the sound and the end result.
Music Transition (Back to Mass) 12:20
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Dr. Sinclair: Well, back to the mass in C major, a significant work that illuminates Beethoven's evolving musical language and spiritual depth by using intimate, lyrical passages in contrast with dramatic outbursts. It represents an important milestone in the composer's sacred music journey. And from its meager beginnings, is now considered one of his many masterpieces.
Let's go back to the performance of this work. Evidently, it was under rehearsed. And the performance went badly. And the prince came up to Beethoven and made less than a complimentary remark, saying, quote, Beethoven.
What have you done now? Hummel laughed at the prince's words, [00:13:00] compounding Beethoven's embarrassment. Beethoven's feelings were sensitive, already seemed to travel with a rain cloud of feeling, persecuted and taken advantage of, and he was understandably humiliated. So he promptly picked up his music, stormed out, left Einstein, immediately and carried the grudge for years.
However, upon hearing of Beethoven's serious illness, Hummel traveled from Weimar to Vienna to visit his friend. Hummel visited Beethoven three times while he was on his deathbed, just three days before he died, and he participated in his funeral with nearly 30, 000 people lining the streets as the body was taken to its grave.
Transition (Liszt music?) 13:43
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Dr. Sinclair:
The twelve year old Hungarian pianist Franz Liszt performed in Vienna and was able to meet Beethoven, through his teacher Czerny, who was in turn Beethoven's student. Liszt recounted his meeting with Beethoven, quote, It was one morning about ten o'clock when we [00:14:00] entered the two small rooms where Beethoven lived.
Dr. Sinclair: I was somewhat embarrassed, but Czerny kindly encouraged me. Beethoven was sitting by the window at a long narrow table working. He looked up at us with a serious face. Then signaled for me to go to the piano. First,
Insert Ferdinand Reis tune or c minor fugue WTC (14:18)
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Dr. Sinclair: I played a small piece by Ferdinand Reis, a pupil of Beethoven. When I finished, Beethoven asked if I could play a fugue by Bach.
I chose a C minor fugue from the well tempered clavier. Then he asked, can you transpose this fugue? Fortunately, I could. After the finishing chord, I looked up. Beethoven's deep glowing eyes rested upon me. But suddenly a light smile flew over his otherwise serious face. Suddenly my courage rose. May I play one of your pieces?
Beethoven nodded with a smile. I played the first movement of his C major piano concerto. And when I had finished, Beethoven stretched out his arms, [00:15:00] kissed me on my forehead, and said in a soft voice, You go ahead now. You are one of the lucky ones. It will be your destiny to bring joy and delight to many people.
And that is the greatest happiness one can achieve.
Insert Schubert Music (15:16)
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Dr. Sinclair: Franz Schubert lived most of his short life in Vienna during the height of Beethoven's popularity. Even though Schubert and Beethoven resided in the same city, Schubert held Beethoven in the highest esteem, and they didn't meet until the last five years of Beethoven's life.
And when Beethoven was on his deathbed in 1827, Beethoven was given some manuscripts of Schubert's songs and commented, quote, Truly. In Schubert, there is a divine spark. Schubert would visit Beethoven on his deathbed more than once, and Schubert served as a pallbearer at Beethoven's funeral. Now Ludwig van Beethoven was very unlucky in [00:16:00] love.
He had the bad habit of falling in love with unavailable women, usually of higher society class or often married. He must have been a bit difficult to love. He was very small in stature. No taller than five foot four with a severely pockmarked face. Many reported that his clothes were usually torn and so dirty that people would often bring him clothes.
Many reported that he loved to flirt even though he was really bad at it. And one of his friends stated that, quote, he always is in love with someone, but it seems to be never reciprocated. And yes, in a minute, let's talk about who was the infamous immortal beloved. So following are a few of his love interests.
Theresa from Brunswick. was one he taught. He supposedly wrote works for her and their lessons could go on for three hours, but it was her sister Josephine that caused Beethoven a great deal of heartache. He wrote, quote, Long, long, of [00:17:00] long duration may our love become, for it is noble, so firmly founded upon mutual regard and friendship.
Insert Moonlight Sonata (17:07)
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Dr. Sinclair: Then Beethoven writes his friend in 1801, that would make him 31, about
I am now feeling a slightly more pleasant life. This change has been brought about by a dear, charming girl who loves me and whom I love. And this has been brought about by a dear, charming girl who loves me and whom I love. But there appears to be no mutual interest here, also. She ended up marrying someone else in her social class.
Oh, and by the way, he wrote Moonlight Sonata for her. A few years later, he wrote about a countess, Anna Maria. Quote, You are all so dear and precious to me that it would be hard to find a greater measure of affection. I shall see you soon as possible. Continue to be fond of me. He was smitten by her. [00:18:00] But once again, we had the social status problem.
But later in this woman's life. In a position she held, she arranged for a pension for him. He wrote a friend about Bettina Bertano, saying, quote, She makes you feel like you have nothing more important to do than to please her. And when Beethoven was almost 40, he lost his head over an 18 year old Theresa Malfatti.
His friends knew he was serious when he started cleaning up and dressing better. So in the spring of 1810, he was invited to the Malfatti household for a party, thrown by her father for his acquaintances and business partners. Beethoven intended to propose marriage to her that night and play a composition he had composed especially for her.
Unfortunately, he drank too much that night and was unable to play or propose. All he could do was write Therese's name on a title page of a short piece [00:19:00] he left for her.
When the manuscript was found upon Therese's death, it was published.
Dr. Sinclair: But since the writing by Beethoven was illegible, it became furilis.
Insert Fur Elise (19:14)
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Dr. Sinclair: Concerning Antony Birkenstock, he wrote, quote, I have found only one whom no doubt I shall never possess. She was an aristocratic lady, and a planned meeting between her and Beethoven never took place.
She worshipped his music, but it was not to be. Many believe that Ms. Birkenstock was his immortal beloved. Beethoven was obsessed with the idea of family, even though he had alienated both of his brothers by violently opposing their marriages. He actually had their fiancés declared immoral in court. And when his brother Caspar fell ill with tuberculosis, Ludwig fixated on gaining custody of Caspar's son [00:20:00] Karl.
He convinced Casper to give him sole custody, though was eventually overturned. When Casper finally died, Beethoven first accused his wife of poisoning her husband, then snatched the nine year old Karl from her care. His rants against her became increasingly deranged, and Karl became the pawn in a series of legal attacks that went on for four and a half years in the courts.
And Beethoven, who had power and money, eventually won in court, but Karl kept running back to his mother. Now poor Karl reached adulthood emotionally scarred. Beethoven barely let him out of his sight. Karl wanted to join the military, and this resulted in Beethoven getting so out of control that the landlord evicted him because of the screaming and the damage he was creating.
Karl then tried to kill himself, but the bullet got lodged in the skull with no damage to his brain, and as soon as he got out of the hospital, he ran away and joined the military. Beethoven was invited to stay with his [00:21:00] brother once, and But his brother finally ordered him out. The only silver lining for Carl was that he was named beneficiary of his estate and use the money to support his wife and subsequent five children.
Beethoven was also very suspicious of people. He wrangled over terms and conditions of most every financial contract with his publisher and concert promoters due to continually complaints. He was thought to be penniless. So on his deathbed, the London Philharmonic, who heard of his plight. Send him a sizable financial gift, only to find out that he had actually saved around 250, 000 based on today's dollars.
Ludwig was not good at simple math. He could hardly multiply or divide, usually transposing numbers, which leaves some scholars to believe there was some dyslexia.
A testament like document was found in Beethoven's room after his death. [00:22:00] It was written in October of 1802. In Heiligenstadt, a Viennese suburb where Beethoven would convalesce at the request of his doctor, the document was addressed to his brothers, Karl and Johann, to be read and executed after his death.
Allow me to share an excerpt from this rather long and revealing document that was found after his death. It would serve each of you well to go online and read the entire document. Here's an excerpt.
Insert Music 22:31
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Dr. Sinclair: For my brothers. You men think that I am stubborn. How greatly do you wrong me? You do not know the secret cause which makes me seem that way to you.
From childhood on, my heart and my soul have been full of the tender feelings of goodwill, and I was never inclined to accomplish great things. Though born with fiery active temperament, even susceptible to the diversions of society, I was soon compelled to withdraw myself. [00:23:00] To live life alone. If at times I tried to forget all this, how harshly I was flung back to doubly sad experience of my bad hearing, it was impossible for me to say to people,
speak louder, shout, for I am deaf.
Now let's go to the end of the document, where he says to his brothers, recommend virtue to your children. It alone, not money, can make them happy. I speak from experience. This is what upheld me in my time of misery. Thanks to it and to my art, I did not end my life by suicide. Farewell and love each other.
I thank all my friends. With joy I hasten to meet death. If it comes before I have the chance to develop all my artistic capacities, it will still be coming too soon despite my harsh fate. I should probably wish it later, yet even so, I should be happy, for would it not free me from the state of endless suffering?
Come [00:24:00] death, when thou wilt, I shall meet thee bravely. Farewell, and do not wholly forget me when I am dead. I deserve this from you, for during my lifetime I was thinking of you often, and of ways to make you happy. Please be so. This confirms the question of when he was experiencing profound hearing loss.
The letter was completed when he was 32 years old, with more than 25 more years of life to live.
Now, a few stories about Beethoven. He loved to program long concerts. I'm not sure whether he just was vain or he rented the hall and he wanted to get his money's worth. But one such concert was three days before Christmas in 1808 that took place in a very cold theater and lasted for four hours. In this one concert, he premiered his fifth and sixth symphonies, his fourth piano concerto, and the choral fantasy, [00:25:00] with various movements being repeated.
There was truly his last successful playing engagement, though he tried to play his Emperor Concerto three years later, but it was a disaster, and he had to have a past student step in to play the performance.
Insert 9th Symphony 25:17
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Dr. Sinclair: His Ninth Symphony premieres legendary, was also accompanied by three movements of the Missa Solemnis.
It occurred in May of Viennese theater. The conductor was a man named Michael Umlauf, who instructed all the performers to ignore Beethoven because he couldn't hear, although Beethoven sat on the stage given tempi. The work was a smashing success, and at the conclusion Beethoven received standing ovations, but word has it that he had his back to the public, plunged in deep thought and in silence.
One of the soloists took the composer's hand and turned him to the public. The whole audience acclaimed him through five [00:26:00] standing ovations, and there were handkerchiefs in the air, hats raised, as Beethoven was so sincerely moved by the applause. The theater house had never seen such enthusiasm.
Interestingly, at this time in history, it was customary that the imperial couple be greeted with three ovations. The fact that a private person, and even more, a musician, received five ovations was inadmissible.
Dr. Sinclair: Almost indecent, police agents present at the concert had to break off the spontaneous explosion of ovations, but Beethoven left the concert deeply moved.
Music Transition 26:37
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Dr. Sinclair: Now, I have described a rather rude, ill mannered, arrogant, and difficult person, and yes, that is Beethoven. But we simply must look at the brilliant, long suffering, kind hearted, confident.
In the end, people at his side when he died say that he raised himself from a coma to [00:27:00] shake an angry fist at the heavens, and then with a mighty flash of lightning, he was gone. On his deathbed a few days before, he said, quote, Friends, applaud. The comedy is almost over. He suffered a great deal through health issues.
And through an autopsy of his death, it was discovered multiple issues, starting with a severely shrunken liver, probably as a result of heavy alcohol consumption. Also had heavy metal contamination, he thought to be a contributive factor in Beethoven's death. As these were commonly used in medicines at the time, it was also been theorized that he consumed large amounts of lead from illegally fortified wine.
Putting lead sugar into wine was a very common practice to sweeten cheap wines. The autopsy also indicated damage to the oral nerves, as well as hardening of the arteries, and growths in the kidneys, and abdominal fluid. But Beethoven's [00:28:00] brain was described as possessing exaggerated folds.
after Beethoven died, his friend, Johann Hummel and his student Ferdinand Healer, paid their last respects in a gesture of homage. Healer tipped a lock of the composer's hair. This hair eventually made its way to Sweden by the healer family as they escaped Nazi Germany. It was eventually auctioned off, with the strands of hair examined.
And it was then that we discovered that his lead levels were a hundred times higher than normal. Such massive lead levels explain the constant nausea, intestinal pain, headaches, and the destruction of the liver. And on the musical front, rather than the medical one. He straddled and transitioned from the classical era into the romantic era.
He enlarged and refined existing musical forms such as sonata, symphonies, quartets. He was the first composer to put a choir as part of a symphony. [00:29:00] He made a living by commissions, teaching lessons, and royalties from his compositions, making him the first truly successful Freelance musician.
Ludwig van Beethoven lived a rather miserable life. It was filled with torment, rejection, pain, humiliation, yet he persisted. Though he kept composing, and for as long as he could, he continued to perform. What must have kept him writing was quite simply courage.
Dr. Sinclair: This courage was born from his devotion to music and his determination, in his own words, quote, brought forth all I felt within me. Great music to him was a proper fusion of inspiration and industry. His music has never fallen out of fashion, which is a claim that neither Bach or Mozart can make. Leonard Bernstein said Beethoven's music is, quote, simply right.
It is beautifully crafted and always has something [00:30:00] to say. It is always interesting and is as fashionable today as when it was written.
The fact that Beethoven composed, but could not hear. is not completely surprising. He could intellectually hear what he saw, but the fact that he could not hear was a personal tragedy. It must have been an amazing source of frustration.
He was deprived of the sensory delights of music, not just his own. And even though he had little grasp of the world and spent much of it in solitude, he changed the world. He believed that, quote, only art and science can raise men to the level of God. So, do we have better music from Beethoven because of his tortured life or in spite of?
Dr. Sinclair: Well, in two years, we will be commemorating the 200th anniversary of his passing. But there's never a wrong time to celebrate this [00:31:00] extraordinary genius. His music is, in his words, the soil where the soul lives and breathes. Hail Beethoven. Once again. Thank you for spending your time listening to this insights and sounds podcast. I hope you will join us for another episode and remember that the power of music belongs to each of us.
So I wish for you happy listening and do take good care of yourself.