The A-Z Beethoven Quiz (rules of the game)

[Michael]

"O Care selve" (Lieder, WoO119)




.

[Roehre]

P= Prometheus, Classical hero turned into a ballet before ending up as symphonic finale

[Sorrano]

Q is for Quartet, of which Beethoven composed 16.

[Michael]

R is for Ritterballet, Beethoven's "Knightly Ballet", ghost-written for Count Waldstein.

[Roehre]

S = Stich, Johann Wenzel (aka Punto), horn player for whom the sonata opus 17 was composed

[Michael]

S = Stich, Johann Wenzel (aka Punto), horn player for whom the sonata opus 17 was composed

He also played in the premiere of the Ninth Symphony. In fact he was the only member of the brass section to come in correctly, otherwise the performance would have been a disaster.
It's from this event that the expression "A Stich in time saves Nine" comes.

(Before you start Googling, I confess to making up the whole thing. )

[Roehre]

He also played in the premiere of the Ninth Symphony. In fact he was the only member of the brass section to come in correctly, otherwise the performance would have been a disaster.
It's from this event that the expression "A Stich in time saves Nine" comes.

(Before you start Googling, I confess to making up the whole thing. )

[Sorrano]

Nice one, Michael!

T is for Tempest, Sonata, Op. 31, No. 2.

[Roehre]

U = Urians Reise um die Welt opus 52/1

[Michael]

Vestas Feuer (Vesta's Fire). Only about ten minutes of this opera remains in full score. The idea for Fidelio came along and B abandoned it.

[PDG]

Dear old Sorrano. There he is, green light on, desperately waiting for someone....anyone...to lay their W tile so he can ace with his much anticipated X...

[PDG]

W for Wellington's Victory, Op.91. Near-unpalatable Beethoven. Jingoistic programme music for the masses.

[Sorrano]

X is for XP (Windows) wherein one of the music samples provided contains an excerpt of Beethoven's 9th Symphony. (Okay, that may be stretching it, but it's an X.)

Thanks, PDG!

[PDG]

You're welcome, Sorrano, but quite honestly....(groan...), after such a big build up, that's nearly as bad as Roehre's Symphony no.X...

[Michael]

I'm afraid it didn't live up to Xpectations, Sorrano. Still, there was nothing Xceptional about all the other Xs. If someone could find a really good one, I'd be Xstatic. But if there is a fourth round of this, I'll be on Xanax!

I think I'll post a Y now:


Yellowhammer. According to the ever-reliable Schindler, the call of the yellowhammer bird was the origin of the mighty theme which opens the Fifth. It's about as likely as his "Fate knocing on the door" story.

He also describes a walk with Beethoven in which the composer discusses the Pastoral symphony and mentions yellowhammers, quails, nightingales and cuckoos. Schindler supposedly asked B why he didn't include the yellowhammer in the scene by the brook, but B said he had done so elsewhere in the movement and sketched some notes in G major which illustrated his point.