Piano Concerto No. 0 (Beethoven)
Ludwig van Beethoven's Piano Concerto in E flat major, WoO 4, is one of his earlier works, written in 1784 when he was 13. Only the piano part survives today, although there are some indications in the manuscript for orchestral cues.[1] On the occasions when the work has been performed, the orchestral part has had to be arranged beforehand. The concerto is sometimes referred to as Piano Concerto No. 0, as it came before all of Beethoven's other piano concertos. It is rarely performed.
Description
The work is in three movements as follows:
- Allegro moderato
- Larghetto
- Rondo allegretto
The fact that each performance has a different orchestration makes it difficult to describe the work accurately, but in general the concerto has the style of classical composers of the late 18th century such as Joseph Haydn, who would later come to tutor Beethoven.
The first movement has a piano part using mainly scale ideas at a fast tempo, and the slow movement is quite similar in form, with arpeggiation and ornamenting quite common. The last movement has a jolly melody for the main theme, played very fast, again based on scales. This is composed when Beethoven was still in Bonn. Note: In this time period, Mozart had not yet composed the Symphony No, 39, 40, or 41 yet. It was composed in 1788. Beethoven went to Vienna in 1792.
References
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