Beethoven's Symphony 7 - The Joyous Seventh
Beethoven 7th Symphony is an exciting whirlwind of sound, a piece full of the spirit of dance and celebration.
Explosively popular when the composer premiered it, the symphony's happy energy has thrilled audiences ever since.
Personally I love it - the seventh is probably my favorite Beethoven symphony.
First, let's explore the origins of this brilliant symphony...
History
Vienna during the early 1810s was a grim place. Napoleon, the insane French Emperor, had conquered Vienna twice in the last decade, and the Austrian capital's citizens were fearful, tired, and unhappy.
In 1811, Beethoven found himself in the spa town of Teplice (nowadays in the Czech Republic), trying to get healthier (perhaps clear his system of all the cheap wine he liked to drink).
Inspired by the tranquility and beauty of his holiday, he set about sketching a new symphony. This one would be full of the joy of life and dance.
He completed it the next year. The premiere had to wait until 1813 though, at a charity concert for soldiers wounded at the Battle of Hanau (fought against Napoleon's army).
The performers were top class. Beethoven himself, already Vienna's most famous composer, conducted (what a concert that must have been!), and the orchestra was packed with the very best musicians and composers of the era.
The weary, miserable Viennese audience absolutely loved the symphony's fresh and positive energy. They even demanded an encore of the beautiful second movement (still the most popular movement from the Beethoven Symphony 7).
And the piece never stopped stirring audiences into frenzies. At repeat performances in Vienna, listeners would cheer and clap their hands raw for the music which lifted their hopes and reminded them what was worth living for.
Now it's definitely time to look at the music itself...
Music of the Beethoven Symphony 7
What made the seventh symphony so popular? I think it's the bright energy and powerful rhythms.
Beethoven was known for relying heavily on rhythm to create his music, but the seventh goes further. The composer crafted almost the entire symphony from simple dance-like rhythms, evoking wild celebrations and festivals:
The symphony is in four movements...
- Poco sostenuto: After a loooooong introduction, the main ideas of the first movement explode into our ears. The brilliant energy of the central theme is still audible while it gets passed around and transformed by the orchestra.
- Allegretto: The much slower and more sober second movement again uses rhythm, this time with a measured, driving pulse beneath most of the movement. The mood changes from dark to light repeatedly before ending sadly.
- Presto: The jittery third movement is perhaps the most light-hearted of them all, full of jerky melodies and quick rhythms.
- Allegro con brio: This blistering finale blazes along, whipping up the orchestra into a crazy whirlwind of excitement and joy. Just listen to how it opens!
I would love to have seen Beethoven's energetic conducting of this movement at the premiere.
Most musicians absolutely love performing the Beethoven Sympony 7. Richard Wagner, the epic opera composer, nearly frothed at the mouth praising it. He called the "apotheosis of the dance", and to prove his point he performed a solo dance to a piano transcription of the symphony.
The conductor Thomas Beecham wasn't too fond of the piece's energy though. He's quoted as saying "What can you do with it? It's like a lot of yaks jumping about".
See more quotes about Beethoven's music here
Recordings
There are of course dozens of recordings of the seventh, and a few brilliant ones stand out.
Carlos Kleiber's recording with the Vienna Philharmonic has somehow claimed the fame of being the best recording, but I'm not convinced. The energy is not that impressive, and the old recording has weak acoustics which don't capture the spirit of the piece.
Herbert von Karajan's recording from the 80s with the Berlin Philharmonic has a wonderful depth and richness. The faster-than-normal last movement will make your senses explode. The second movement is disappointing though, lacking any kind of weight or thought.
So for me the Leonard Bernstein recording, with the New York Philharmonic, is the perfect balance. The sound is raw and powerful, and the orchestra play their hearts out. All the tempi work well, except for the last two movements which I find a touch slow.
Nevertheless, it's the best recording of the Beethoven Symphony 7 for me!
You might want to have a look at (and listen to!) some of Beethoven's other symphonies...
- 3rd Symphony (Eroica), inspired by Napoleon.
- 5th Symphony, the grand 5th, with its famous opening death-knock, has become part of popular culture!
- 9th Symphony (Ode to Joy), Beethoven's glorious choral symphony, which he wrote when completely deaf.
You may also like Brahms's Academic Festival Overture, which has a similarly explosive and joyful feeling.
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