Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No.1 in C Major, Op.21

Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and the predominant musical figure in the period between the Classical and Romantic eras.

As a German pianist and composer, he is widely considered the greatest of all time, whose innovative compositions combined vocals and instruments, widening the scope of sonata, symphony, concerto, and quartet. He is the crucial transitional figure connecting the Classical and Romantic ages of Western music. Beethoven’s personal life was marked by a struggle against deafness, and some of his most important works were composed during the last 10 years of his life when he was quite unable to hear.

He died at the age of 56.

Symphony No. 1 in C major, Op. 21

It was written in 1795 when he was 30 years old.

The symphony is clearly indebted to Beethoven’s predecessors, Joseph Haydn and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, but nonetheless has characteristics that mark it uniquely as Beethoven’s work, notably the frequent use of sforzandi and the prominent, more independent use of wind instruments.

It consists of 4 movements:

1 Adagio molto – Allegro con brio
2 Andante cantabile con moto
3 Menuetto (Allegro molto e vivace)
4 Adagio – Allegro molto e vivace