Ludwig van Beethoven's first printed work was a set of variations, published in 1783 when he was only twelve years old and his final keyboard composition was the massive set of thirty-three variations on a theme by Anton Diabelli, composed almost four decades later. Not counting the several movements in variation form included in the sonatas, his twenty-one sets of piano variations thus trace a line of development in his production, parallel to those formed by the 32 piano sonatas or the 16 string quartets. On this the 14th volume in his acclaimed traversal of Beethoven's keyboard music, Ronald Brautigam performs five sets, composed between 1802 and 1809. In three of these Beethoven uses themes of his own, including the Ruins of Athens Variations, Op.76, nick-named after the play for which Beethoven later wrote incidental music, reusing the martial theme in a 'Turkish march'. The two remaining sets both use English themes; Beethoven's choice of God save the King and Rule Britannia may well reflect his often expressed respect for that country - as well as his interest in the English market for sheet music. As the final part of the program, Brautigam includes a selection of smaller pieces, most of them of an earlier date than the preceding variations. Some of these are probably student pieces, in particular the Preludes Op.39 and WoO 55 and the Fugue in C major, fruits of the counterpoint exercises Beethoven was assigned by his first teacher, Christian Gottlob Neefe, and by Johann Albrechtsberger. Six dances close a disc that offers many opportunities to glimpse another Beethoven than the composer we all believe we know.

Tracklist:

6 Variations In F Major, Op. 34: Theme: Adagio
6 Variations In F Major, Op. 34: Variation 1
6 Variations In F Major, Op. 34: Variation 2: Allegro Ma Non Troppo
6 Variations In F Major, Op. 34: Variation 3: Allegretto
6 Variations In F Major, Op. 34: Variation 4: Tempo Di Menuetto
Variation 5: Marcia: Allegretto
6 Variations In F Major, Op. 34: Variation 6: Allegretto - Coda: Adagio Molto
7 Variations On "God Save The King", Woo 78: Theme
7 Variations On "God Save The King", Woo 78: Variation 1
7 Variations On "God Save The King", Woo 78: Variation 2
7 Variations On "God Save The King", Woo 78: Variation 3
7 Variations On "God Save The King", Woo 78: Variation 4
7 Variations On "God Save The King", Woo 78: Variation 5: Con Espressione
7 Variations On "God Save The King", Woo 78: Variation 6: Allegro, Alla Marcia
7 Variations On "God Save The King", Woo 78: Variation 7: (Allegro) - Adagio - Allegro
5 Variations On "Rule Britannia", Woo 79: Thema: Tempo Moderato
5 Variations On "Rule Britannia", Woo 79: Variation 1
5 Variations On "Rule Britannia", Woo 79: Variation 2
5 Variations On "Rule Britannia", Woo 79: Variation 3
5 Variations On "Rule Britannia", Woo 79: Variation 4
5 Variations On "Rule Britannia", Woo 79: Variation 5
32 Variations In C Minor, Woo 80
6 Variations In D Major, Op. 76: Theme: Allegro Risoluto
6 Variations In D Major, Op. 76: Variation 1
6 Variations In D Major, Op. 76: Variation 2
6 Variations In D Major, Op. 76: Variation 3
6 Variations In D Major, Op. 76: Variation 4
6 Variations In D Major, Op. 76: Variation 5
6 Variations In D Major, Op. 76: Variation 6
2 Preludes, Op. 39: Prelude No. 1
2 Preludes, Op. 39: Prelude No. 2
Fugue In C Major, Woo 215, Hess 64
Prelude In F Minor, Woo 55
Menuett In F Major, Woo 217
Allemande In A Major, Woo 81
Anglaise In D Major, Woo 212, Hess 61
Menuett In E-Flat Major, Woo 82
Waltz In E-Flat Major, Woo 84
Waltz In D Major, Woo 85

UPC: 7318599919423
Label: Bis
Release Date: 1.8.16
Format: CD

Beethoven / Brautigam - Beethoven: Complete Works for Solo Piano, Vol. 14 (CD)