The Omniscient Mussel

Beethoven Piano Sonata Op 81a ‘Les Adieux’

Sonata in E flat major Op 81a ‘Les Adieux’ (1810/11)
Das Lebewohl: Adagio – Allegro
Das Abwesenheit: Andante espressivo
Das Wiedersehen: Vivacissimamente

In the 11 years between Op 10 and Op 81a, much had changed both for Beethoven personally and in Europe politically. Beethoven had become a household name throughout Europe for his music, the impact of which was compounded by his near complete deafness and unpredictable behaviour. Since Op 10, he had written 6 symphonies, 5 piano concerti, 9 violin sonatas, the Violin Concerto, the Triple Concerto, 18 piano sonatas and 9 string quartets, all of which have become standard repertoire in their respective genres.

Beethoven wasn’t the only one who had arrived however. An Italian megalomaniac called Napoléon had been terrorising much of Europe since the turn of the century. When the French Revolution first started Beethoven was enamoured, as most students are, with the ideas of liberty, fraternity and equality. He was often frustrated by the customs and rules of the aristocracy that provided his support and found in Napoleon an embodiment of the triumph he wished for himself.

Beethoven’s admiration for the French general was withdrawn abruptly in 1803, when Napoleon had a spot of amnesia regarding the republican ideals of the French Revolution and declared himself First Consul for Life. This imperial gesture was too much for Beethoven and upon hearing the news he tore the dedication out of his Third Symphony manuscript.

The lives of the two revolutionaries intersected again in 1809 when Napoleon was advancing with his troops to Vienna. The majority of the Viennese aristocracy sensed trouble afoot and fled the city. Beethoven’s good friend and patron Archduke Rudolf left with his entire family, leaving Beethoven without any friends in the city. Op 81a depicts the Archduke’s departure, Beethoven’s feelings about his absence and the Archduke’s return to Vienna. It is Beethoven’s only concretely programmatic work and it is dedicated to its subject.

Beethoven was unable to escape Napoleon’s influence even after the General left Vienna. When the sonata was being printed, the publisher insisted on using French titles with Italian tempo markings rather than the German that Beethoven had insisted on. Naturally this decision disgusted him and he dismissed the French and Italian as being Napoleonic, an adjective that he would have used as a superlative eight years previously. In later sonatas, he made sure to avoid using the offending languages, titling them für Hammerklavier rather than pianoforte and using German tempo markings.

The first movement, entitled Das Lebewohl, was written in May 1809 when the Archduke left Vienna with his entourage. It is reported that he spent the duration of the siege holed up in his brother’s cellar with a pillow over his head to protect what little remained of his hearing. The published dedication reads, “On the departure of his Imperial Highness, for the Archduke Rudolph in admiration.” Private notes in the sketches indicated that the movement was “from the heart.” The opening, descending motive is a distant horn call, a device used by composers before and after Beethoven to indicate a farewell. In the score, he makes his intentions perfectly clear by writing the word Le-be-wohl over these three notes.

The second and third movements were written in January of 1810 after the Archduke and the rest of the court returned to Vienna. Das Abwesenheit expresses Beethoven’s feeling loss during the Archduke’s absence. It is improvisatory in nature and one can easily imagine Beethoven at the piano working out the loneliness he felt during that time. The second theme is slightly more optimistic than the first and although this movement isn’t his most tragic, Beethoven does manage to convey a strong sense of pathos. The extended chain of false cadences immediately preceding the third movement are brilliantly tense. The harmonic unrest deliciously amplifies the euphoria of the maniac third movement opening.

Das Wiedersehen is in strict sonata form but in many ways it resembles a caprice. It is short on melody but there are plenty of fireworks, with the pace only lessening slightly during the second theme. Beethoven even marks the tempo a rather silly vivacissimamente. The coda starts out calmly and it appears as though Beethoven has finally managed to get his excitement under control. It is not too long however, before the seams burst and the piece comes to a dazzling end.

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