Ep.32: Beethoven Was Wagner Before Wagner Was Born

Navigate through this episodes with these time codes:00:06 Introduction14:13 I. Adagio molto – Allegro con brio1:11:02 II. Larghetto1:33:55 III. Scherzo. Allegro – Trio1:41:45 IV. Allegro moltoIn this third episode of our Beethoven Listening Guide, Alberto Sanna and I turn to Beethoven’s Second Symphony, a work that is often treated as a lighter companion to the First, yet proves on closer listening to be one of the most astonishingly constructed symphonies of the entire cycle. We discuss its immense introduction, the precision of Czerny’s four hand transcription, the role of trills, articulation, pedal, and tempo stability, and the way Beethoven builds entire movements from the smallest rhythmic and melodic cells. The discussion moves movement by movement, from the extraordinary breadth of the first movement to the noble tenderness and rhythmic refinement of the Larghetto, the character shift of the scherzo, and a finale whose tiny motifs generate an almost inexhaustible musical logic. The episode also reflects on our own recording process, including the fact that this symphony was one of the last to be re-recorded and that the close of the Larghetto marked the end of the entire four year Beethoven symphony project. The episode explicitly presents this as podcast number three of the series, devoted to Beethoven’s Second Symphony, and describes the work as one that became far more compelling once approached at these tempos. It also stresses the unusually large introduction of the first movement, the sense that it already points toward later Beethoven, and the need to listen differently to long notes, punctuation, and trills. The later discussion highlights the finale’s Figaro-like energy and the way Beethoven builds the movement from a minimal two-note idea, while the Larghetto is linked to the final moments of the whole recording project. 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