Piano Trios Nos. 1 - 3, Opus 1 (Beethoven)
Encyclopedia
Ludwig van Beethoven
's Opus 1 is a set of three piano trios
(written for piano
, violin
, and violoncello
), first performed in 1793 in the house of Prince Lichnowsky
, to whom they are dedicated. The trios were published in 1795.
Despite the Op. 1 designation these were not Beethoven's first published compositions; this
distinction belongs to his Dressler Variations for keyboard (WoO 63).
Op. 1 No. 2 - Piano Trio No. 2 in G major
Op. 1 No. 3 - Piano Trio No. 3 in C minor
This 3rd piano trio was later reworked by Beethoven into the C minor string quintet, Op. 104
.
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
's Opus 1 is a set of three piano trios
Piano trio
A piano trio is a group of piano and two other instruments, usually a violin and a cello, or a piece of music written for such a group. It is one of the most common forms found in classical chamber music...
(written for piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
, and violoncello
Cello
The cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
), first performed in 1793 in the house of Prince Lichnowsky
Karl Alois Johann-Nepomuk Vinzenz, Fürst Lichnowsky
HSH Karl Alois, Prince Lichnowsky , was second Prince Lichnowsky and a Chamberlain at the Imperial Austrian court...
, to whom they are dedicated. The trios were published in 1795.
Despite the Op. 1 designation these were not Beethoven's first published compositions; this
distinction belongs to his Dressler Variations for keyboard (WoO 63).
Op. 1 No. 1 - Piano Trio No. 1 in E-flat major
- Allegro (E flat major)
- Adagio cantabile (A flat majorA flat majorA-flat major is a major scale based on A-flat, consisting of the pitches A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. Its key signature has four flats .Its relative minor is F minor, and its parallel minor is A-flat minor....
) - ScherzoScherzoA scherzo is a piece of music, often a movement from a larger piece such as a symphony or a sonata. The scherzo's precise definition has varied over the years, but it often refers to a movement which replaces the minuet as the third movement in a four-movement work, such as a symphony, sonata, or...
. Allegro assai (E flat major, with a trio in A flat major) - Finale. Presto (E flat major)
Op. 1 No. 2 - Piano Trio No. 2 in G majorG majorG major is a major scale based on G, with the pitches G, A, B, C, D, E, and F. Its key signature has one sharp, F; in treble-clef key signatures, the sharp-symbol for F is usually placed on the first line from the top, though in some Baroque music it is placed on the first space from the bottom...
- Adagio - Allegro vivace (G major)
- Largo con espressione (E majorE majorE major is a major scale based on E, with the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. Its key signature has four sharps .Its relative minor is C-sharp minor, and its parallel minor is E minor....
) - ScherzoScherzoA scherzo is a piece of music, often a movement from a larger piece such as a symphony or a sonata. The scherzo's precise definition has varied over the years, but it often refers to a movement which replaces the minuet as the third movement in a four-movement work, such as a symphony, sonata, or...
. Allegro (G major, with a trio in B minorB minorB minor is a minor scale based on B, consisting of the pitches B, C, D, E, F, G, and A. The harmonic minor raises the A to A. Its key signature has two sharps .Its relative major is D major, and its parallel major is B major....
) - Finale. Presto (G major)
Op. 1 No. 3 - Piano Trio No. 3 in C minorC minorC minor is a minor scale based on C, consisting of the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. The harmonic minor raises the B to B. Changes needed for the melodic and harmonic versions of the scale are written in with naturals and accidentals as necessary.Its key signature consists of three flats...
- Allegro con brio (C minor)
- Andante cantabile con VariazioniVariation (music)In music, variation is a formal technique where material is repeated in an altered form. The changes may involve harmony, melody, counterpoint, rhythm, timbre, orchestration or any combination of these.-Variation form:...
(E flat major) - MinuettoMinuetA minuet, also spelled menuet, is a social dance of French origin for two people, usually in 3/4 time. The word was adapted from Italian minuetto and French menuet, and may have been from French menu meaning slender, small, referring to the very small steps, or from the early 17th-century popular...
. Quasi allegro (C minor, with a trio in C majorC majorC major is a musical major scale based on C, with pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. Its key signature has no flats/sharps.Its relative minor is A minor, and its parallel minor is C minor....
) - Finale. Prestissimo (C minor, with a tierce de picardie)
This 3rd piano trio was later reworked by Beethoven into the C minor string quintet, Op. 104
String Quintet, Op. 104 (Beethoven)
The String Quintet, Op. 104 in C minor, by Ludwig van Beethoven is an arrangement of the early C minor Piano Trio, Op. 1 No. 3. This work is a "viola quintet" in that is scored for string quartet and an extra viola ....
.
External links
- Performance of Piano Trio No. 1 by the Claremont TrioClaremont TrioClaremont Trio is a piano trio composed of Juilliard School alumnae Emily Bruskin , Julia Bruskin , and Donna Kwong . The group was founded at Juilliard in 1999, and made its performance debut at the 92nd Street Y, on the Upper East Side...
from the Isabella Stewart Gardner MuseumIsabella Stewart Gardner MuseumThe Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum or Fenway Court, as the museum was known during Isabella Stewart Gardner's lifetime, is a museum in the Fenway-Kenmore neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, located within walking distance of the Museum of Fine Arts and near the Back Bay Fens...
in MP3MP3MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
format