Beethoven’s Symphony No.3 in E-flat, op.55, Eroica
For my first concert, I took it upon myself to go with an open mind, without having any previous predispositions that would affect my reaction to the concert. I just wanted to go in there, not knowing anything about the concert, and see what I hear in the music. The concert that night was entitled “Revolutionary Music”, and truthfully, I was extremely impressed, not only was the music played beautifully, it seemed as if it was telling a story. The music had me sitting on the edge of my seat. At times, I felt as if the music came o life, and I was an actual character in the story. My favorite piece from that evening was Beethoven’s Symphony No.3 in E-flat, op.55, Eroica. What I enjoyed most about it was its uniqueness in comparison to the other symphonies played that night, or that we have listened to. Although this piece follows what we have learned is the actual structure and design of a symphony, Beethoven adds plenty of original touches and alterations which puts it in a class by itself. The first movement opened with loud and powerful chords which gave me a feeling of suspense, from the very beginning I had a feeling of not knowing what to expect next. I felt as if something big was to come, and it was almost like I
was scared to blink because I might miss something important. Most symphonies start out with a slow introduction, but Beethoven probably altered this “rule” in order to convey a powerful tension, which is associated with war, and fighting, so the music can resemble more of what revolutions are and feel like. After that powerful introduction the theme is played back time and time again with different variations. This bringing back of the same idea, but in different ways, made me feel like he was trying to convey the story through other people’s eyes. I found that similar to war, because although we all see the war, the fighting, and the killing, each person sees it in their own perspective. In my opinion the same thing was occurring in the music. The whole movement was a play of exploration and it gave me a sense of incompletion for even in the end, in the Coda, the exploration in variations in the theme was still present. I felt as if he was searching for the “right” perspective, the “right idea”, but couldn’t come to a resolution. We then entered the second movement, which was very different than the first. The movement began with the sounds of soft drums, as if they are being played in the background and then a mournful melody which seems to be getting sadder and sadder as the tone color changed. I felt as if all the frustration in trying to find a solution in the first movement had come to a resolution, but not a happy one,
Some topics in this essay:
No3 E-flat,
,
Hunter College,
feel trying,
resolution happy,
mournful melody,
people forget,
war fighting,
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Approximate Word count = 980
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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