Although Ludwig van Beethoven is often characterized as having somewhat of a problematic personality—due in large part, perhaps, to the deafness that isolated him increasingly throughout his life—his friendship with Archduke Rudolph, son of Austria’s ruling Hapsburg family, presents a different side of the composer. While the Archduke’s high station was doubtless why Beethoven accepted him as a student, genuine affection seems to have existed between the two. It was expected, of course, for composers to flatter royalty and other wealthy citizens (not to mention potential patrons) by dedicating compositions to them, and Rudolph’s name found its way onto many of Beethoven’s works, including the Fourth and Fifth Piano Concertos, the Lebewohl and Hammerklavier Sonatas, the Op. 96 Violin Sonata, the Archduke Trio, the Missa solemnis, and the Grosse Fuge.
In 1804, when the Archduke was only fifteen, Beethoven crafted a composition just for him—the Triple Concerto, written for piano, violin, cello, and orchestra. While it is not entirely clear why Beethoven opted to compose a concerto for Rudolph featuring multiple soloists—recalling the sinfonias concertante of Mozart and Haydn, or even the concerti grossi of the Baroque period—it is generally suspected that the composer sought to give his pupil the experience of performing a major work, while respecting and even disguising the Archduke’s technical limitations. (To further ensure a good experience, Beethoven arranged for his student to share the stage with two renowned musicians—violinist Carl August Seidler and cellist Anton Kraft.)
Beethoven faced several compositional challenges in the Triple Concerto, each of which he conquered with aplomb. Although his musicians’ technical skills were not equivalent, he weaved the piano ingeniously around the more challenging parts for cello and violin, creating a solo group that sounds equally virtuosic and evenly matched. Considering the high stature of all three musicians, Beethoven also faced the challenge of giving each a moment in the sun without writing a ridiculously long composition. He achieves this goal in all three movements by using compact, simple themes, generating musical interest with the interplay between soloists and contrasting sonorities. While somewhat understated in contrast with the intensity of the Eroica Symphony, created around the same time, the result is a fitting homage to a student who remained Beethoven’s friend throughout his life.
© Jennifer More
