Beethoven, Sonata "Les Adieux"

Although by that time he had been dealing with increasing deafness for about a decade, between 1808 and 1811 Beethoven did complete a stream of compositions that, if his life had stopped at the end of that period, would have been enough to secure him a prominent place in the history of music. The composition of the Fifth and Sixth Symphonies, the piano concertos No. 4 and No.5, the violin concerto, the opera Fidelio, and the piano sonatas Waldstein, Appassionata, and Les Adieux belong to this period.

The three patrons
These were also the years of the signing of the "pact" by which his main patron and pupil, Archduke Rudolph, together with his peers Princes Lobkowitz and Kinski, agreed to give Beethoven financial support of no less than 4000 florins per year. Due to fateful circumstances, only Archduke Rudolph was able to fulfill the agreement, paying the maestro his share faithfully year after year. It is no coincidence then that the archduke was the recipient of fourteen of the master's compositions.

Archduke Rudolph of Austria
1788 - 1831

Sonata No. 26, in E flat major, "Les Adieux"
On May 12, 1809, for the second time in a decade, Napoleonic forces seized Vienna. The imperial family was forced to leave the capital of the Empire. A week before the occupation, Archduke Rudolph had also left the city, although to return soon. But he had to wait until January 30, 1810. Upon his arrival in Vienna, he was offered the dedication of Sonata No. 26 composed by Beethoven in the preceding months, not by commission, but to mark the departure, absence, and return of his most faithful patron and friend.

The sonata was first published in London by Muzio Clementi, who translated Beethoven's original subtitles into French for market reasons. The dedication reads: "On the departure of His Imperial Highness, Archduke Rudolph, with admiration".

Movements:

00       Les Adieux: Adagio - Allegro (1:54)

07:14  L'Absence: Andante espressivo - Links without pause to the third movement, at:

10:50  Le Retour: Vivacissimamente - A technically demanding movement, it is supposed to express the rejoicing at the return of the friend and protector to whom the work is dedicated.

The performance is by the Chilean maestro Claudio Arrau, in a solo Beethoven recital. Berlin, April 10, 1970.