Academic literature on the topic 'Beethoven family'

A review of contemporary documents suggests that, contrary to wide-spread assertions in the earlier biographical literature, Beethoven did not spend his entire childhood and youth in highly straitened circumstances, let alone in what Alexander Wheelock Thayer and others called "great poverty." His grandfather, as court Kapellmeister and wine dealer, had a substantial income. And Beethoven's father, Johann, earned amounts from his activities as a court musician and teacher normally sufficient to support a family in a modest way. Upon the Kapellmeister's death, on 24 December 1773, Johann became sole heir to a sizable estate, consisting of a legacy in cash, household possessions, accounts receivable, and outstanding loans, advances, and mortgages. In the course of time the inheritance was largely but not entirely dissipated, and, despite the addition of income from Beethoven's own activities as court musician, composer, and virtuoso keyboard performer, the family lived in precarious but not debt-ridden circumstances.

Anxiety in preoperative patients with Sectio Caesarea is a specific anxiety, namely concern about operating procedures, anesthesia procedures, information deficits, and concerns about family financial problems, concerns about themselves and the baby to be born. Music is applied into therapy, because music can restore, and maintain physical, mental, emotional, social and spiritual health. The provision of classical music therapy can releases pain and reduces stress levels, so that it can cause a decrease in anxiety. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of Beethoven classical music therapy to reduce anxiety in cesarean section. This study used a pre-experimental design with the design of two group control interventions. The number of samples in this study were 10 people each in the intervention and control groups. Sampling is done using accidental techniques. Data analysis using the t-dependent test. The t-dependent statistical test results can be concluded that there is a significant influence of classical music therapy to reduce anxiety in cesarean section delivery mothers in the intervention and control groups (P = 0.041). From the results of this study it is known that Beethoven classical music therapy is effective for reducing anxiety, so that nurses can apply classical music therapy in providing care to cesarean section mothers.

The article introduces the newly discovered manuscript of Osip Mandelstam's poem “Ode to Beethoven”, which was preserved in the family archive of Semen Lipkin. The autograph was taken into account in Nikolay Khardzhiev’s notes to the “Poems” in the Big Series of “Poet’s Library” (1973), but later it had been inaccessible to researchers for many years. The authors describe and comment in detail on the draft manuscript of the poem — the poet’s first appeal to the ode genre with the development of a stanza inherent in the genre. The text on the back of the sheet is identified by the authors as a fragment of an abstract on the history of the Western Church, which directly correlates with the manuscript “Justification of the Conciliarity” from the poet’s archive in Princeton. Saying that it is impossible to establish exactly whether the fragment is an abstract of a book or a lecture, the authors attempt to date it on the basis of biographical information and a number of textual features. The publication is concluded with a brief commentary on the abstract, as well as photocopies of the manuscript (on both sides of the sheet), which should greatly facilitate researchers' access to this important source

This article investigates from a historical and sociological perspective, Beethoven's struggle for the guardianship of his nephew, Karl, from November 1815 until September 1820. Its purpose is to illuminate Beethoven's knowledge and actions in the case of guardianship against the backdrop of contemporary historical and sociological conditions. In the early nineteenth century guardianship meant most certainly more than just the acceptance of legal custody of a minor; rather it was understood as an expression of the public recognition of talent, assets and social standing, as well as of character and honor. It furthermore functioned as an indicator of social status and position. Of great significance were also aspects of the position of legal guardian, the types of disputes with relatives, matters of family politics, the societal roles of fathers, issues of child-rearing, perceptions of status and rank, the traditional construction of gender difference and, lastly, norms of sexual behavior. The article reads Beethoven's letters and statements against the guardianship provisions of the Allgemeines Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch and contemporary legal practice, and argues that his struggle for Karl's guardianship was motivated by his ideas about social advancement through education as well as gendered norms of good parenthood.

The stay of Władysław Kędra, a charismatic virtuoso pianist representing the Columbus Gene- ration, in Vienna has so far seemed a very good and successful period in the life of this musician originating from Łódź. However, the studies conducted in the archives of the Akademie für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien, cast a new light on these eight years. The information included in previous publications about the reasons why the Polish virtuoso left for Vienna and why he returned from the capital of Austria were not confirmed when confronted with the preserved documents. Thanks to a thorough analysis of source materials, the author of the article managed not only to recreate the course of events but also to uncover extremely important facts from the professor’s life, e.g. that he had Austrian citizenship. Now there is no doubt that Władysław Kędra intended to stay there and settle in Vienna for good. The analysis of the Viennese docu- ments allows for recreating to a significant extent the way how he fought for the life he had dreamt of during the occupation of the Stalin era. From the first preserved letter to Dr Hans Sittner, President of Vienna’s Akademie für Musik und darstellende Kunst, of 23 May 1957, we can follow the efforts of the Polish pianist to be given a contract, i.e., contract of employment for a fixed period, which was extended for him year by year, then to have an opportunity to see his family, have independent accommodation and bring his closest relatives to Vienna, and finally, find out how he applied for citizenship and was given a permanent contract of employment, which entailed awarding him with the lifelong title of Professor by Austrian authorities. Władysław Kędra achieved his goal – he became the citizen of his new home country, gained prestige and recognition, became music professor in the city of Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert... And yet, at that very moment when he had everything and fulfilled his dreams, he suddenly left Austria in unclear circumstances. What dramatic events occurred on 2 June 1964 when Prof. Kędra suddenly wrote two applications for discharge from employment – in one of them he did not justify his decision, only referring very precisely to relevant regulations, which were undoubtedly dictated to him by some official, while in the second one he gave an untrue and completely unlikely in his situation reason for his quitting? There is no trace in the documents of the events which were the cause of that sudden decision. It needs to be stressed that the present article was written exclusively based on the docu- ments (including letters) kept at the Viennese Akademie für Musik und darstellende Kunst in Władysław Kędra’s personal file. The author did not refer to his family’s recollections or to texts published previously about the pianist so as to present facts in a reliable way, and not inter- pretations of these facts.

Abstract The 178 letters, nearly all of them by the Halle University medical student and amateur violinist Adolph Müüller, published in 1874 as Briefe von der Universitäät in die Heimath, provide an opportunity to explore in detail one individual's uses of music as a means of social interaction, identity construction, and aesthetic cultivation and reflection during the first decade of the nineteenth century. The immediacy and self-representational nature of the medium of the letter result in a record that makes clear not only the variety of musical experiences at all levels woven into the daily life of a young German Büürger but also how his accounts of those experiences could help align Müüller with——and sometimes vividly over against——his family. Participating in and describing music in society as well as extraordinary works (especially Mozart's and Beethoven's) that he came to value explicitly over conventional and socially acceptable music, Müüller provides a colorful if often inconsistent account of living with and coming to terms with that music in a daily context of aesthetic values, class and gender ideologies (the latter particularly evident in his musical encounters with Friedrich Schleiermacher), and the institutions and relationships that structured his life.

Background. George Gershwin is often considered as a composer who wrote mainly songs and musicals, but this is a misconception: beside the pieces of so-called “light” genres, among the composer’ works – two operas, as well as a number of outstanding instrumental compositions (“Cuban Overture” for a symphony orchestra, two Rhapsodies, Variations for piano and orchestra and Piano Concerto etc.). Gershwin had a natural pianistic talent, and there was almost not a single piece of his own that he did not perform on the piano, and most of them were born in improvisation (Ewen, 1989). The basis for the creation of this study was the desire to increase interest in the work of Gershwin as a “serious” composer and to draw the attention of domestic academic pianists to the value of his piano works, presented not only the “Rhapsody in Blue”, which has been mostly played lately. The purpose of our research is to prove the relevance of the performance of Gershwin’s instrumental works in the academic concert environment as the music of the classical tradition, tracing the formation of specific features of the composer’s instrumental creativity and their reflection in the cycle of “Three Preludes for Piano” in 1926. Studies of the life and work of G. Gershwin, illuminating a special path in music and the unusual genius of an outstanding musician, were created mainly in the 50–70s of the XX century. D. Ewen – the author of the most detailed biography of the composer (first published in 1956, the Russian translation – in 1989) – was personally acquainted with the great musician and his family, took numerous interviews from the composer’s relatives, friends and teachers, had access to his archives (Ewen, 1989: 3–4). The author of the book enters into the details of the life and creative work of the genius and creates a portrait of the composer as a person “in relationships” – as a son, brother, friend. A separate chapter devoted to the music of Gershwin is in the fundamental work of V. Konen (1965) “The Ways of American Music”, an extremely useful study of the folklore origins and musical foundations of jazz. Cognitive is the “popular monograph” by V. Volynskiy (1988) about Gershwin, carefully structured chronologically and thematically. The Internet-pages of A. Tikhomirov (2006–2020) on the resource “Classic Music News.ru” are also very valuable, in particular, thanks to retrospective photographs and audio recordings posted there. From the point of view we have chosen, the piano Preludes by G. Gershwin have not yet been considered by domestic researchers. Research methodology is based on comparative analysis and then synthesizing, generalization and abstraction when using data from biographical literature, and tested musicological approaches when considering musical samples and audio recordings of various versions of the Preludes (including the author’s playing). The results of reseaching. G. Gershwin, despite his Jewish-Slavic family roots (his parents emigrated to America from the Russian Empire at the end of the 19th century), is undoubtedly a representative of American culture. Outstanding artists have almost always turned to the folklore of their country. In Gershwin, this trait manifested itself in a special way, since American folklore, due to historical and political circumstances, is a very motley phenomenon. Indian, English, German, French, Jewish, African, Latin American melodies surrounded Gershwin everywhere. Their rhythms and intonations, compositional schemes were melted, transformed in professional music (Konen, 1965: 231–246). The first musical teacher of Gershwin was the sound atmosphere of New York streets. This is the main reason that the style of his musical works is inextricably linked with jazz: Gershwin did not encounter this purely American phenomenon, he grew up in it. Among the numerous other teachers of Gershwin who significantly influenced on the formation of his music style, one should definitely name the pianist and composer Charles Hambitzer, who introduced his student to the music of Bach, Beethoven, Chopin, Liszt, Debussy, Ravel (Ewen, 1989: 30–32). The most part of Gershwin’s creativity consisted of working on musicals, a typically American genre. The work with the musicals gave the composer the basis for writing his first jazz opera “Blue Monday“, 1922 (other name – “135th Street”), which became the predecessor of the famous pearl of the new genre, “Porgy and Bess” (1935). Following the production of “Blue Monday”, Gershwin began collaborating with the Paul Whiteman Orchestra, who was impressed by the piece. On the initiative of the latter, Gershwin created his masterpiece, “Rhapsody in Blue” (1924), which still remains a unique musical phenomenon, since the composer brought jazz to the big stage, giving it the status of professional music (Ewen, 1989: 79–85; Volynskiy, 1988: part 4). V. Konen (1965: 264–265) believes that Gershwin is a representative of symphonic Europeanized jazz, since he uses it in musical forms and genres of the European tradition. However, we cannot agree that Gershwin “used” jazz. For him, jazz was organic, inseparable from the author’s style, and this is what makes his music so attractive to representatives of both classical and pop traditions. For Gershwin, due to life circumstances, turning to jazz is not an attempt at stylization, but a natural way of expression. “Three Preludes for Piano” are significant in the composer’s work, because it is the only known concertо work for solo piano published during his lifetime. At first, Gershwin planned to create a cycle of 24 Preludes, but only seven were created in the manuscript, then the author reduced the number of works to five. A year after the creation of the Piano Concerto, in 1926, Gershwin presented this new opus. The pieces performed by the author himself sound impeccably technically and even austerely-strictly (audio recording has been preserved, see ‘Gershvin plays Gershvin 3 Preludes’, video on You Tube, published on 2 Aug. 2011). It can be noted that Gershwin is close to the European pianistic style with its attention to the accuracy of each note. The cycle is built on the principle of contrasting comparison: the first and third Preludes are performed at a fast pace, the second – at a slow pace (blues-like). The analysis of the cycle, carried out by the author of the article, proves that “Three Preludes” for piano reflect the main features of Gershwin’s creative manner: capriciousness of syncopated rhythms, subtle modulation play, improvisational development. Breathing breadth, volumetric texture, effective highlighting of climaxes bring the cycle closer to the composer’s symphonic works. Jazz themes are laid out at a high professional level, using traditional European notation and terminology. Thus, although Gershwin was a brilliant improviser, he made it possible for both jazz pianists and academic performers to master his works. Conclusions. The peculiarities of Gershwin’s development as an artist determined the combination of the jazz basis of his works with the compositional technique of European academic music. The versatility and musical appeal of the Preludes are the key to their long stage life. Plays are well received both in cycles and singly. Their perception is also improved by the fact that the original musical speech is combined in them with the established forms of academic music. The mastery of the Preludes by pianists stimulates the development of technical skill, acquaints with jazz style, sets interesting rhythmic problems. The pieces are bright and winning for concert performance. Thus, the presence of the composer’s piano pieces and other his instrumental works in the programs of classical concerts seems appropriate, useful and desirable.

This chapter focuses on the Blumenfeld family's emigration from Europe in 1867 (Fanny Blumenfeld's name was changed to Fannie Bloomfield soon after), their reasons for leaving, and their eventual establishment of a home and business in Chicago. It describes the discovery of Fanny Blumenfeld's talent and its nurturing by noted German immigrant musicians such as Bernhard Ziehn and Carl Wolfsohn. Wolfsohn founded Chicago's Beethoven Society, which provided the initial opportunities for Fannie Bloomfield's public performance. The chapter also recounts the “discovery” of Bloomfield in 1876 when she visited Russian virtuoso Annette Essipoff, who advised that she study in Vienna with noted pedagogue Theodor Leschetizky. Family conflicts and money considerations initially made this impossible, but when financial difficulties were alleviated by a wealthy Jewish benefactor, Blumenfeld set out for Vienna in 1878 with her mother and grandmother; she was fifteen at the time.

Sébastien Erard’s (1752–1831) inventions have had an enormous impact on instruments and musical life and are still at the foundation of piano building today. Drawing on an unusually rich set of archives from both the Erard firm and the Erard family, Robert Adelson shows how the Erard piano played an important and often leading role in the history of the instrument, beginning in the late eighteenth century and continuing into the final decades of the nineteenth. The Erards were the first piano builders in France to prioritise the more sonorous grand piano, sending gifts of their new model to both Haydn and Beethoven. Erard’s famous double-escapement action, which improved the instrument’s response while at the same time producing a more powerful tone, revolutionised both piano construction and repertoire. Thanks to these inventions, the Erard firm developed close relationships with the greatest pianist composers of the nineteenth century, including Hummel, Liszt, Moscheles, and Mendelssohn. The book also presents new evidence concerning Pierre Erard’s homosexuality, which helps us to understand his reluctance to found a family to carry on the Erard tradition, a reluctance that would spell the end of the golden era of the firm and lead to its eventual demise. The book closes with the story of Pierre’s widow Camille, who directed the firm from 1855 until 1889. Her influential position in the male-dominated world of instrument building was unique for a woman of her time.

Bach’s succeessor Harrer was already installed as cantor and music director at Leipzig, instituting a new musical repertory, by the time Bach’s estate was divided between his heirs several months after his death. This chapter considers Bach’s material legacy as well as the family, students, and music that he left behind. His possessions included musical instruments and books, as well as musical scores and parts that were distributed among his survivors. Three of his sons were important composers, directly influencing later ones such as Mozart. Indirect influence of later musicians, such as Beethoven and Chopin, stemmed especially from the dissemination and eventual publication of Bach’s works during the so-called Bach Revival, which began in the early nineteenth century.