In April of 1805, Ludwig Van Beethoven finished his third symphony. It was the time of the French Revolution and Napoleon. Beethoven, a poor, lower-middle class musician living in Bonn, Germany, was affected by the Revolution, as was the rest of European citizens. Napoloen as looked up to during these times. Beethoven believed Napoleon to be “Unique among leaders in his concern for oridnary people.” The idea of composing a heroic symphony to honor Napoleon was first suggested in 1789.
Despite the fact that Beethoven has a growing dissatisfaction with the course of the Revolution, he began the composition of the symphony. Beethoven composed the symphony during May and November of 1803. At this time, the symphony was still to be dedicated in honor of Napleon, but it soon evolved into a symphony not about Napoleon’s heroism, but it developed into a symphony about heroism in a “Promethean sense.” While composing this symphony, Beethoven was beginning to become aware of his hearing problems. The frustration that was caused with the hearing loss served only to reinforce the revolutionary aspects of his artistic personality.
On May 18, 1804, Napoleon crowned himself Emperor. By this time, the symphony had already been completed and was ready for shipment to Paris, when a friend presented the news that Napoleon had crowned himself Emperor. When Beethoven was told, he went into a rampage, crying out, “Is he then too nothing more than an ordinary human being? Now he too will trample on the rights of man and indulge only his ambition. He will exalt himself above all others and become a tyrant!” Beethoven went to the table, took his neatly printed copy of his “heroic sumphony” and tore the title page in two then threw it on the floor. He then began to rewrite the symphony, then titleing “Eroica” was first performed in February of 1805 in E flat. Players, listeners, and critics found the work extraordinarly difficult. It was clear from the beginning that this was no ordinary symphony. The first movement was twice as long as any other piece of music written before. In classical symphonys it was unusual to find a “funeral march” in place of a song-like slow movement. The third movement was no different than traditional minuets. The last movement was a set of variations on a theme from Beethoven’s bellet “The Creatures of Prometheus.” Never before in history of music had a composers produced such a revolutionary work. It hasbeen said that words cannot describe the symphony. Fourteen years after the work was premiered, a close friend of Beethoven’s asked Beethoven which of the eight sumphonies at the time was his favorite. He unhesitantingly replied, “The Eroica.”
The Term Paper on Napoleon Bonaparte France Revolution One
From the moment of his birth, something in the stars said that Napoleon Bonaparte would one day emerge as the leading power of the French. He was a man of many talents. His distinctive personality was a clear indicator of his glory and fame to come. He tended to appeal to other's senses in order to gain for himself. " His rule was to mark the close of the revolution, a return to order and ...
