Beethoven and the violin

[chopithoven]

I have a biography which says Beethoven was "angered by a french officer who asked him if he played the violin, in Prince Lichnowsky's castle" (after this dinner it was that he escaped under the rain with the Appassionata inside his coat). I suppose from this that he didn't knew how to play the violin. Is this true?

[Chris]

I thought he did play it. I've seen it written many times that he did. Of course, many people seem to have difficulty telling the difference between the violin and the viola (which he definitely did play) for some reason, so those could have been mistakes. But if you play the viola, how hard is it to move to the violin? Not that hard, especially for someone of Beethoven's skill. So, I'd say he did play.

[Bob-composer]

Originally posted by chopithoven:
I have a biography which says Beethoven was "angered by a french officer who asked him if he played the violin, in Prince Lichnowsky's castle" (after this dinner it was that he escaped under the rain with the Appassionata inside his coat). I suppose from this that he didn't knew how to play the violin. Is this true?

He did play the violin. I think that in this situation, Beethoven was upset at the idea that he was being asked to play on demand as if he "belonged," for lack of a better word, to Prince Lichnowsky.

Bob


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I love Piccardy Thirds!

[chopithoven]

Originally posted by Bob-composer:
He did play the violin. I think that in this situation, Beethoven was upset at the idea that he was being asked to play on demand as if he "belonged," for lack of a better word, to Prince Lichnowsky.

Bob

Well, if he did play the violin it was a lack of consideration to ask that to the best pianist of the time, anyway.

[Rutradelusasa]

If I'm not mistaken, by what I've read of Beethoven, he played (very well) piano, (well) violin and viola, (well ma non troppo) cello, (something) contrabass and horn.

[Chaszz]

Originally posted by Rutradelusasa:
If I'm not mistaken, by what I've read of Beethoven, he played (very well) piano, (well) violin and viola, (well ma non troppo) cello, (something) contrabass and horn.

On a Wagner site in which I participate, there is a discussion about which composers were either sensitive or insensitive to the demands and limitations of various instruments. An oboist writes in to say "Few composers were oboists, with the notable exception of Beethoven, who played oboe briefly for the Bonn court. You can tell in LvB's orchestral works that he really understood woodwinds."