The first movement of op. 79 might not exactly be hefty, but its other movements REALLY aren’t– in fact, the other two movements combined take no longer to play than the first does all on its own. If the first movement was supposed to evoke a German dance, the second is very much a trip to Italy – I think of the piece as a sort of musical travelogue. This movement is a barcarolle – a venetian gondolier’s song. Beethoven never went to Venice, and this being 1809 and thus before the era of globalism and also Euro Disney, that means he had probably never heard an authentic barcarolle. Still, while the barcarolle became especially popular in the 19th century, in both opera and instrumental music, it was already in fairly common use in the 18th century, and therefore Beethoven would have heard operatic barcarolles. The most famous examples of barcarolles – both later than this one – are the duet from Offenbach’s Tales of Hoffman, (MUSIC) and Chopin’s great, late one. (MUSIC) As you can hear, they are typically in a 6/8 meter; Beethoven’s is actually in 9/8 – meaning that there’s one extra big beat in each bar – but its lilting rhythm, and the shape of its accompaniment make it unmistakably a Barcarolle. (MUSIC) I once heard this described as "two melancholy ladies accompanied by a lute", and the description sort of fits. The motion of the two voices, almost always in thirds and sixths, (MUSIC) it's honestly more Offenbach than Beethoven – a performance of sorrows, from a light opera. It’s very appealing, but it doesn’t aim to be either sophisticated or deep, and it isn't. This brief movement is in a strict ABA form. The contrasting section features one voice instead of two, and it's in major rather than minor: a memory of a happier time. (MUSIC) The return of the A section is literal, and a brief coda puts the theme in octaves for the first time, rather than thirds and sixths, making it a bit more mournful. (MUSIC) One major characteristic of Beethoven’s music is that it demands your full attention – permanently. When you hear the tempest sonata or a late string quartet or so many other of his pieces, it sticks in your mind; it changes you. You know that this movement is atypical Beethoven because of how absolutely not the case that is here: it’s beautiful, and its affecting, but by the standards of Beethoven slow movements, it’s really in one ear and out the other. So, if this piece is indeed a travelogue, the destination in the last movement is not another country, but the future. (MUSIC) If this theme sounds familiar, even if you’ve never heard the piece before, it’s because of how closely it anticipates the first movement of the sonata op. 109. (MUSIC) The harmonic progression of the first four bars is identical, (MUSIC) and they are further linked by their rhythmic regularity, and even their tempo marking – vivace, in both cases. It’s fascinating how the same progression and shape can be put to such totally different uses: whereas op 109 is deeply philosophical, this is merely sweet, and perhaps a little sly. You can tell from the theme itself – the internal rhythm of each beat in op. 79 is a bit playful, (MUSIC) but you can REALLY tell from how they continue. 109, (MUSIC) and op 79. (MUSIC) Beethoven had the germ of the idea already, but the substance of 109 – one of his very greatest works – doesn’t seem to have come to him yet. This movement is more-or-less a rondo, with two contrasting episodes, both –like the main theme – light hearted. The first one has a bit of sturm und drang, but in a joke-y, performative way. (MUSIC) This is, after all, a composer who once wrote a piece called "Rage over a lost Penny". The rage here might be over a lost nickel, but no more. If that episode is mock-rage, the second episode is what I’d call mock-pomp. (MUSIC) This is Beethoven laughing at the ridiculousness of a person who takes himself too seriously. But the most important thing about these episodes – more important than the content, even – is how brief, how evanescent they are. Ideas come, ideas go. Development and examination are not for this sonata. So, each time the main theme comes, it's just a bit more ornate, kind of like the rondo of op. 22. The second appearance (MUSIC), and then the third (MUSIC). None of this embellishment is meant to add anything beyond a bit of color – there’s no real drama in this movement, structural or otherwise. After a brief coda, it seems like it’ll end in a bang of exuberance, but instead it simply disappears. (MUSIC) This ending –like the whole piece, and most unlike Beethoven, generally – is light as air. It's not a piece for the ages, perhaps, but one that displays yet another side of Beethoven’s gigantic personality.
