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"An die ferne Geliebte", Liederkreis von Alois Jeitteles für Singstimme und Klavier op. 98
 Listening samples
Composition
Jahresanfang bis April 1816
dedicated to Franz Joseph Maximilian Fürst Lobkowitz
Text poet: Alois Jeitteles
Beethoven finished the song cycle "To the distant beloved" op. 98, in April 1816. A hard year laid behind him. Around 1814/15 the composer was at the peak of his public success, celebrated by the leaders of the European courts during the Vienna Congress. 1815, however, turned into a bad year. Beethoven fell into a deep depression, both in a psychic and artistic way. His health was in a poor state and his hearing deteriorated. On January 25th, 1815, he gave the last concert where he played the piano. His bad hearing made any further performances together with other musicians and even solo performances impossible. The awareness of not being able to partake in public music life led to a depression which he expressed in a letter to his friend Brauchle written in September 1815: "Annoyed and more sensitive than all others and burdened with my bad hearing, I find human contact very painful." (Quote from BGA 835). Furthermore and despite his success, Beethoven's financial situation worsened due to worries about his dying brother whose family the composer supported since his brother had become unemployed. Regarding his artistic accomplishments, Beethoven was not content either. His idea about pure art was particularly extreme and he had very high quality standards.
In spite of his success at the Vienna Congress, the works on which his glory was based on - mainly "Wellington's victory" op. 91 and "The glorious moment" op. 136 - were of a lower musical quality. Beethoven certainly knew how much he had distanced himself from his own standards and the great compositions of the first decade of the century: Symphonies, sonatas, string quartets and concerts. Around 1815/16 he managed to overcome his creative and psychic crisis and his will to live returned. He composed chamber music as if a more conservative form should be taken on after the loud symphonies of the congress time: Cello sonatas op. 102, piano sonata op 101 and the song cycle op. 98. A new era of his life and work began. Does the title "To the distant beloved" mirror Beethoven's feelings? In 1812 the composer wrote the famous letter to the so-called immortal lover. In September 1816 he admitted to his friend Cajetan Giannatasio del Rio an intense five year long love. In this regard, the song cycle also marks a period: Overcoming an old dream, a fervid hope. (J.R.)
| First editions |
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Originalausgabe, op. 98, Steiner, 2610 |
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Originalausgabe, op. 98, Steiner, 2610; Teilscan |
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Originalausgabe, op. 98, Steiner, 2610; Teilscan |
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Titelauflage, op. 98, Haslinger, 2610; Teilscan |
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Titelauflage, op. 98, Steiner, 2610 |
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Titelauflage, op. 98, Steiner, 2610; Teilscan |
Scores
Literatur
Location of other important manuscript sources
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Großbritannien, London: The British Library
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USA, Princeton (N. J.): William H. Scheide private collection, in: Princeton University Library
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