Beethoven: Eroica Variations, Op.35 (Kikuchi, Katsaris)
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- čas přidán 26. 06. 2024
- Among all of Beethoven’s variation sets, this is the most funny, good-natured, and consistently extroverted. There’s lots of hand-crossing (the second cantus firmus variation, Vars. 3, 8, 10, 11), pedal points both funny and sublime (Vars. 9, 10, 13, 15, 16), and only occasional forays into minor keys (Vars. 6, 14).
All the surface glitter might obscure that this is a very cleverly structured work - Beethoven was unusually proud of it (as well as the Op.34 variations written at the same time) writing to Breitkopf, “Usually I have to wait for other people to tell me when I have new ideas, because I never know this myself. But this time I myself can assure you that in both these works the method is quite new.”
For a start, Beethoven introduces the bassline of the work before the theme proper, and provides four cantus firmus variations on it before he gives us the theme - that latter of which also serves as a neat structural hinge because it is the fourth cantus firmus variation. Once the theme proper is introduced, though, the bassline continues to dominate the work, as fewer than half of the variations work off the melodic material the theme introduces - the rest explore the underlying harmony in different textures.
The way the work closes is also pretty nice - we get two slow double variations (which significantly deepen the work’s emotional terrain) leading to a surprising Coda in C minor. This ends on a huge dominant pedal (G). From this expectant stasis we leap into a fugue - not in C, but in Eb - on the bassline’s head, before another two slow, majestic variations close. It’s a brilliant series of dramatic structural steps coming in quick succession - a winding-down, an intensification (fugue), and then a call-back and unfurling into sublimity - that represents Beethoven at his very best.
It’s worth mentioning that within the main body of the work, there are groupings that naturally arise from how the variations are ordered. The first four cantus firmus variations are a natural grouping - each incrementally thickens the texture around the bassline. Vars. 1-3 slowly dissolve the theme, while Vars. 4-6 bring it back. Vars. 7-13 form a looser grouping, but in general have a fondness for leaps and pedal points (Vars.8-10 also prominently feature Cb as a colouristic device). Vars. 14-15 are both slower and more intense than the rest, and prepare the transition to the fugue.
00:00 - Yusuke Kikuchi. Bright, clear, open, precise. Exceptional control of phrasing/articulation: see the way the lines are tapered in the first and second cantus firmus variations, the sudden crescendo at 5:30, the turns in Var.11, or the beautiful, brass-like voicing in the ending chorale (21:25). Every line in every contrapuntal passage is perfectly shaped and projected - the fugue is wonderful. The risk of such ultra-precise interpretations is that they can sound too controlled, but there is a lot of spontaneity here too (e.g., the way the bass is varied during the repeats in Vars.1-3).
22:49 - Katsaris. Just a huge ball of fun. The work has an improvised air - tempo fluctuations can be pretty wide, and there are some marvellous variations of voicing/dynamics/articulation on the repeats. Like Kikuchi, Katsaris tends to emphasise the bass more in the returning material, but there’s much else: see for instance how quietly Var.4 is played the second time round, the wild LH voicings in Var.9 (32:11), or the way (different) inner voices are teased out in Var.10 (32:43). Perhaps the most shocking (/pleasing) variation comes in the repeat of Var.13, where identical repeated chords are voiced to imply an arpeggio up the keyboard (34:50; similar to Saint-Saens’ Op.52 no.2). - Hudba
00:00 - Bassline
00:44 - Var.1 on bassline (2 voices). The first of three cantus firmus variations.
01:26 - Var.2 on bassline (3 voices). The bassline rises by one octave. A third voice is suggested by LH registral shifts.
02:08 - Var.3 on bassline (4 voices). The bassline rises yet again.
02:44 - Theme (the fourth cantus firmus variation). A more rhythmically active melody (compared to the bass) is introduced.
03:21 - Var.1. Semiquaver embellishment of the theme.
03:57 - Var.2. Arpeggiation from Var.1 is expanded, but theme all but disappears.
04:45 - Var.3. Lots of fun hand-crossing and wickedly placed bass accents.
05:24 - Var.4. A chatty etude - the action is now in the LH. The theme reappears the RH, reduced.
05:59 - Var.5. Another variation with a clear link to the theme in the RH - but the bassline is so richly embellished in the LH it becomes a melody. Lots of delicate syncopation.
06:49 - Var.6, in Cm. The variation with the clearest link to the theme.
07:22 - Var.7. A bright, pointillistic canon at the octave (well, in the outer sections at least). Beethoven cleverly places accents to emphasise how certain notes echo.
07:59 - Var.8. Supple and dreamy - anticipates the Waldstein’s 3rd movement.
08:48 - Var.9. Brusque and variegated - also funny, as the LH insists so much on Bb that the bassline gets unceremoniously shoved into grace notes.
09:27 - Var.10. an ingenious textural study: LH playing leaping pedal Bbs, while the RH gets a pair of slurred semiquavers. then an off-beat staccato semiquaver. The second half parodically plays on the tension between Cb and Bb (Hammerklavier?); this Cb also links this variation the previous two, which exploit that same note it for colour.
10:08 - Var.11. Staid and straight-faced, the entrance of Var.11 sounds like a bathetic send-up of the previous two brilliant variations (until it also decides to indulge itself with leaps in the closing bars).
10:52 - Var.12. Slurred two-note groups and a LH/RH which refuse to ever sound together (except for two bars in the middle). Clever manipulation of phrase lengths - some 4-bar, some 2-bar, and some half-bar.
11:34 - Var.13. A ridiculous upper pedal asserts itself, until the second half’s static harmony forces it to do a bit of work.
12:12 - Var.14, Ebm. Still, contrapuntal, harmonically dense (note especially the Neapolitan colour). An antipodal change in mood. Also a double variation (the repeat is written out and varied).
13:22 - Var.15. One of B’s loveliest “small-note” variations - a richly decorated aria, and the second double variation. The theme’s harmony gets distended (I, V, ii, vi) to generate moments of remarkable tenderness. (Strange how a device earlier used for laughs - an upper pedal - can become so emotionally intense, as at 14:45.)
16:59 - Coda, in Cm. Develops the theme (and recalls Var.6). Its presence is quite enigmatic - Beethoven could easily have transitioned from Var.15 directly to the fugue (both are in Eb), but chooses instead to put a dink in the harmonic scheme by moving to Cm and cadencing on the dominant there. Despite this the G chord seems to lead quite naturally to the fugue - the connection is emotive/colouristic rather than traditionally functional (and isn’t really heard as a modulation).
18:08 - Finale, Part 1: fugue on the bassline’s head. Lots of nice things in here, not least the integration of the theme into the texture starting from 18:54 (alongside the diminuted subject at 19:06). At 19:47, a dramatic dominant pedal leads to a climactic passage that comes to rest on the most dissonant inversion of the Bb7 chord.
20:21 - Finale, Part 2: Var.16. A surprisingly direct statement of the theme, with only slight adjustments until trills enter on the repeat.
21:25 - Finale, Part 3: Var.17. Melody sings in the LH, the RH rises and falls above. Some sublime moments in here (perhaps because it’s hard not to hear the 3rd Symphony’s majestic horns in this?). The third double variation.
22:24 - Closing tonic-dominant swing, using an increasingly diminuted theme in the RH.
(Also, for the Patreon folks - I know the recordings here are different from the ones I used for my previous upload, but I decided Kikuchi was too good not to put in!)
Exploitation is ethical
@@NFStopsnuf what
I love how Beethoven uses contrasting note values throughout the piece, especially in the fugue! It makes it sound so incredibly bouncy and exciting. In the adagios, however, it gives us his signature hemidemisemiquavers whose stems look like black smudges in the sheet music.
Too good! sincerely I had never heard Kikuchi's performance but now it's my favorite!
i checked him out he has a good (maybe even great) Hammerklavier
Had never heard Kikuchi before, and OMG THE QUALITY
Waiting for this to appear on CZcams for a LONG time!! About over 15 years! Like nobody cared about this masterpiece!
there's another score video of this that had been on youtube on a while
Katsaris' performance is *fantastic*, especially the way he really varies up the repeats (bringing out the bass, or subduing the dynamics dramatically the 2nd time through). Also, for variation sets I normally like a steady tempo throughout (like the op. 26 opener or the 32 variations in C minor), but Katsaris is so good he sells the different tempi (like the brilliantly fast pace on vars. 4 and 10) beautifully.
This is such a fascinating work, much more orchestral in character than the Diabelli, 32 Variations in C minor, or the op. 34, and your analysis, as always, helps me understand its greatness. I'm so happy to see you posting more videos here, Ashish.
Wow this is insane....... I can't believe the touch😭😭 Thank you so much
Hey Ashish, great to see you uploading again, your music channel has been my main go-to for the last 5 years. I've discovered amazing musical gems because of you, thanks again!
I'm so glad that Cyprien Katsaris is getting more exposure and appreciation. He is rarely mentioned for reasons entirely unknown to me, but he is one of the best to do it.
As an aside, he has the best version of Chopin's Berceuse ever captured (Carnegie Hall). It is the lullaby of all lullabies.
I know him as the one who play Liszt-Beethoven symphonies, which really is something.
He's also the only one to have the balls to play Cziffra's Bumblebee transcription in front of Cziffra himself. Such a king.
@@brent3522 Oh yes! Now I remember that.
Katsaris is up there in top 5 pianists in the last 50 years, and my personal favorite of our time.
He also improvises and composes like a master! ❤
This is perhaps one of beethoven's greatest variations set along with his diabelli variations!
I never knew this composition was a thing! I can see why he was so proud of it.
These variations are pure fun!
I so love the music you put up!
I think the finale of the 3rd piano concerto is also based on this variation. Listen to 4:41 for example
Wow this is very neat performance! I also appreciate the effort to present sheet music without missing a single note; I laughed so hard seeing enlarged score at 4:29 😂
2:44 yep that's my theme
Thank you for paying tribute to our beloved Katsaris
Very interesting how, in particularly the more melodic variations, Katsaris' treatment of melody, with plenty of rubato and expression, reflects how Beethoven may have played at the time...drawing upon the Bel Canto operatic genre known for its 'free' vocal lines.
Splendid variations.
Excited!
Its amazing how you hear the seeds for the hammerklavier fugue, the op 110 fugue and Brahms Handel variations fugue in one piece
One of my favorites! ❤❤❤
Thanks!!!! ☺️☺️😁
Great piece
i feel like after these variations everyone wanted to have a fugue as the finale of their variations
Yes, but you need a Bach for that ...
But a Bach-like fugue appears at 18:08 Finale, Part 1
@@JorgeMorales-fv5cl what do you mean we need "a Bach"
Excellent!!!!
Ηηηηη Έλληνας?
I’m surprised you didn’t mention Symphony No.3 once. The finale of the third Symphony takes this variations set one step further, and makes it almost rhapsodic in nature. Not only are there variations in G minor and D major(!), but there are two double fugues and a mind-boggling coda.
Well - I didn't mention the Eroica because I'm trying to get people to like and understand this work, and not the Eroica! Fantastic as that work is, it really needs no extra publicity (and lots of people will recognise the tune in any case).
As a purely informative matter, I guess it would have been more relevant to mention either the contredanses or The Creatures of Prometheus (the latter is where Beethoven got the idea of doing variations on the bass before presenting the theme.)
@@AshishXiangyiKumar yeah. The bass theme started in Prometheus, then the Contredanses, then these variations, and then culminated in the Symphony.
Just as a side note, I love how much Beethoven seemed to like this theme, given that he reused it three times. I'm not even sure Bach reused any of his material that many times lol.
@@johnphillips5993 interestingly, the rondo of the 3rd concerto has a very similar theme to this.
Es lo más bello ,que escuchado. 🎶🎶🥉🖐️ que duermas bien 🌟 gracias.
Que bien hechas las variaciones.
Hello :) I'm a 27-year-old pregnant woman! When I was a college student, I enjoyed classical music a lot while writing reports, but listening to this music reminded me of my college days! It still remains a good memory. 😍 Currently, I have a three-year-old daughter and I am pregnant with my second daughter 💕🤰 and it seems to be helpful for prenatal care! Thank you for listening to good music. ☕ 🎧 Happy new year and I hope you have a happy year. 🙇♀️ 🙇♂️ 🧧
I can relate as a 89 year old pregnant grandmother of 3 children and 5 grandchildren and a dog ❤🎉🥹😀
@@danieltinedn I have so many questions...
Delightful!
The attemts of fugues and canons - besides the variations stemming from a single two-phrase bass line - remind me of Bach's Goldberg Variations; although much less rigorously written.
This is an incredible piece. I performed it a few years back and it's just so much fun start to finish. Most fascinating in my opinion is how much this is a rough 'dress rehearsal' for the Diabellis in terms of structure. The overall architecture of the two pieces is strikingly similar in multiple significant ways, but the pacing here is not *nearly* as effective. The Maggiore, as beautiful as it is, brings the pace to a screeching halt, and from then it drags. By the time the fugue ends and the final run of variations starts, it's gone on almost objectively too long, and the closing material is just not interesting enough to justify itself. The Diabellis are nearly twice as long as this, but at no point do they let down an interested listener. Regardless, I love this piece to death, and it has a certain raw optimism, charm, and orchestral ambition that its successor doesn't.
awesome! :D
Nice
A Quattro part was great 👍
Katsaris has a great interpretation, since he played the original symphony no 3 transcribed for solo piano by liszt
Variation 10 was about 100 years ahead of its time
A masterly, beautiful, and joyous set of variations not to be outdone by the late Op.120.
Que preciosos trinos.
8:47
It would be interesting to hear some of these variations arranged for strings..
I play this work myself. Katsaris is vastly better than I am. I know you are not interested in that fact, but you might want to know why: His version is extremely smooth, but pauses and changes tempi very thoughtfully, when necessary....on a dime. He never pounds, like I do. His passagework demonstrates that he has spent thousands of hours working on their fluidity. He always surprises us with a different take on every variation. Particularly his use of pedal occasionally on some of them.
Finally, he "rocks." His humorous take on the work is obvious from the start.
I have never heard it better. And I have heard some greats, even in person.
Sanjosemike (no longer in CA)
11:34
22:00
Now we see wbere Schubert took the d960 theme from...but Ashish has not noticed it at all. Probably doesn't know his Latin Masses...
DAT DAT DAT.
Muy emocional. 😄😍
Oh, Yusuke is one of the teacher in college I go as student! surprised! When did he play this piece?
Cómo me gusta la vatiacio sobre el mismo tema. 🎶🎶🎶🎶🥉
Ólafsson is also great in these
That little melody in the bass at 1:50, does somebody know what that is? It sounds so familiar, but I can't think of what piece it originally comes from.. (or which part of the eroica symphony?)
are you talking about the same melody as 0:28
@@GICM no, i mean the arpeggios in the bass line
I don't know what you could be thinking of, but it does remind me a little of the Music Box Dancer (Frank Mills)... It's worth a try.
Would you upload Beethoven Violin Sonata No.5(Op.24)?
45:32
Maximum volume on my phone and can barely hear the pianissimo sections lol 😆
Cómo me guste llevar la lectura.
cant wait for Brahms 2
Hey Ashish, noticed that the recordings of the 32 variations in C minor and Symphonic Etudes are no longer available. Can they be rescued?
The diabelli variations are gone as well.
this piece fucked me. I chose it on a whim for a recital and never got it to feel good. it seems so self explanatory but everything feels so awkward.
Worth pasting if you can the Liszt piano transcripts of Beethoven's symphonies by Katsaris...a revelation.
well, there are already other score videos of them
Why did Beethoven call this "15 variations" when there are actually *18* (with the fugue as the 16th)?
Probably didn't include the bassline variations other than that I don't know
Or didn't include the fugue as a variation as it acts as a finale
👍🙏❤️
I have enjoyed watching your video because I like them. However, it is a shame that I can't watch the video 'Tchaikovsky: The Seasons, Op.37a (Primakov, Pletnev)' I put in my playlist. I looked for any other sound source, but there is no sound source with the atmosphere and sound to follow your video. If possible, can you reveal it again? please.....🙏
the video was taken down due to copyright. the audio you can find by just typing on youtube "tchaikovsky seasons primakov" or "tchaikovsky seasons pletnev"
though if you want the exact audio that he used i think you're more likely going to find it if the uploader of the video has a "- topic" at the end of their channel name
@@GICM Thank you SOOOOO much!!!!! I'll go to browse it right away XD
+And I found it! I wonder why I didn't know this. I should have searched a little more. Thank you!
In which symphony was it? i dont remember but i think it was in either the 3rd or the second??
3rd one fourth movement
well they use the same theme but otherwise are different compositions
25:15, 25:50, 26:34, 27:13
Nice to see a new video from you! I'd like to know what do you think of Charles-Valentin Alkan as a composer and do you plan making a video on one of his works?
His output is a bit mixed, but are some stonking masterpieces in there - which I do plan to put up!
@@AshishXiangyiKumar o i didn't expect that
@@AshishXiangyiKumar also - im forwarding a comment from your previous polonaise-fantaisie video here since you appear to have not noticed it - what do you think of Busoni's original works? do you plan to upload them as well?
Paul Wee's Alkan recordings are excellent, probably the best rendition of the Concerto I've ever heard. Mark Viner's recordings of the trois morceaux Op 15 are excellent as well (especially the third of the set).
@@AshishXiangyiKumar
Yes!
Katsaris is the best
Based
👍
0:00 am I the only one hearing an Ebmaj7 chord? :D
Why not Kovachevich?
Var 8 sounds like Chopin.
19:21 Why did he suddenly decide to use parallel fifths? can someone explain
you'd have to ask him that
I would see it as a textural doubling: a single line expanded into a four-part chord.
I'm more often astonished by Beethoven's superficiality than not!
El canto también.
Is it really a C# at 0:46, not Db?
lol they're enharmonic anyways
it also makes more sense to use C# so he doesn't have to re-natural the D on the next beat
@@GICM For some reason I thought we were in C minor where you most likely wouldn't see a C#. Ugh
Alfred all the way
e
b
How about doig the right things and not having adds in msic like this. This is awful. :-( At least have them before or after the performance.
Then why don't you pay for what you're watching
AXK does not control the ads on the video as the audio is not theirs. So, get adblock, or deal with them.
I can't watch your videos with incessant advertising popping in every two minutes!
1. Talk to YT.
2. Get Adblock.
You have disgusting ads just popping up in the performance. I couldn't stand any more. There's no point in posting music that is crudely interrupted like this. :-(
1. Talk to YT
2. Get Adblock