Estructura y expression, UNL 2015

Copyright 2015 Martin Kutnowski

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Overture Egmont, Op. 84, Beethoven

The Overture for Goethes play Egmont was commissioned by the Court Theater in
Vienna and first heard on the production that took place on 15 June 1810. The drama had
already been published and staged (with revisions by Schiller) some twenty years earlier;
however, it was only after Beethoven wrote the incidental music for it that the original
version (for which the score was conceived) was restored.

The play is based on the 1566 revolution of the Netherlands, a tragic historical episode
that was freely modified by the poet to fit his expressive needs. The story is focused on
Lamoral, count of Egmont and Prince of Gaure, a nobleman and warrior that was unjustly
executed during the ruthless slaughter that followed the revolt. Although the actual
Egmont was in fact not the most important political player during this historical episode,
Goethe managed to distort the facts so as to make them agree to the kind of dramatic
conflict he wanted to address: the idealistic and brave struggle between a small nation
against the most powerful empire of the time, the opposition between sheer individuality
and arbitrary power. Hence, the brave and chivalrous figure of Egmont, personifying
liberal government and personal freedom, is contrasted by three other characters: Orange,
a Dutch nobleman that chooses to flee the country instead of defying the King of Spain;
the grim Duke of Alba, the man in charge of the bloody repression; and Clrchen, the
Princess who is in love with the hero and eventually chooses to die for him.

Rather than making a chronological account of the story, Beethovens score refers to
these contrasting characters through musical symbols. The Overture is thus divided in
three sections. The first, Sostenuto ma non troppo, starts out with a long drawn-out
unison that prefigures the gravity of the events that will follow and the grievous fate of
the hero. Slow tempo and the integration of ample rests within the phrases contribute to
the sense of suspense. It has been said that the second theme, which is in fact derived --
through rhythmic diminution-- from the gloomy melody initially presented in the
woodwinds, depicts the romance between Egmont and Clrchen, or even Clrchen
herself. A small lead-in connects the Sostenuto with the next section, Allegro. Also
motivically derived from the primary materials of the introduction, the new theme has
two basic antagonistic aspects: a descending wide melodic arpeggio on the low strings,
answered by a short and fast ascending motive in the violins. The musical climax of the
exposition, a clamorous syncopated tutti, reminds the listener of the fortissimo beginning
of the overture. This leads to the developmental segment, which comments on the diverse
dramatic forces introduced so far. After the recapitulation, a short transition brings the
third and last part of the Overture, Allegro con brio, in F Major. This fragment has been
described as the Victory Symphony. The energetic tempo and the resolved mood
clearly refer to the exalted qualities of the hero, which by extension symbolize the utmost
ideals of the romantic spirit.

Activities

1. Identify the formal sections described in the essay above

2. Identify the instruments that Beethoven chose to feature each theme.
3. Identify tempo changes.

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