Ep. 25: Are Two Musicians Rewriting Beethoven?

For this episode, we recorded an extended interview in our own studio with Werner Trio, one of the best-known voices of classical music radio in Flanders.The conversation marks the release of our recording of Beethoven’s complete symphonies performed according to Whole Beat metronome practice, and explores the ideas behind this controversial approach to Beethoven’s tempo indications.Together with pianist Alberto Sanna, I discuss how our collaboration began and why the traditional interpretation of Beethoven’s metronome markings increasingly appears difficult to reconcile with both historical sources and practical musicianship.The discussion ranges from the Hammerklavier Sonata to the physical limits of pianistic technique, and from 19th-century tempo traditions to the modern assumption that Beethoven’s metronome marks must be taken in Single Beat.Rather than presenting a technical argument alone, the interview tells the story behind the project itself: how two musicians from different backgrounds arrived at the same conclusion that something in the modern understanding of Beethoven’s tempos may be fundamentally wrong.The episode also opens a new listening journey: a series of discussions that revisit Beethoven’s symphonies from the perspective of Whole Beat metronome practice. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wimwinters.substack.com/subscribe