Piano Trios, Op. 1 (Beethoven)

Ludwig van Beethoven's Opus 1 is a set of three piano trios (written for piano, violin, and cello), first performed in 1795 in the house of Prince Lichnowsky, to whom they are dedicated.^[1] The trios were published in 1795.

Piano Trios
by Ludwig van Beethoven
The earliest known portrait of Beethoven; 1801 engraving by Johann Joseph Neidl after a now-lost portrait by Gandolph Ernst Stainhauser von Treuberg, ca. 1800
Key	E-flat major G major C minor
Opus	1/1–3
Dedication	Prince Lichnowsky
Performed	1795 (1795): Vienna

Despite the Op. 1 designation, these trios were not Beethoven's first published compositions;^[2] this distinction belongs rather to his Dressler Variations for keyboard (WoO 63). Clearly he recognized the Op. 1 compositions as the earliest ones he had produced that were substantial enough (and marketable enough) to fill out a first major publication to introduce his style of writing to the musical public.

No. 1 in E-flat major

1. Allegro (E-flat major), ⁴
   ₄
2. Adagio cantabile (A-flat major), ³
   ₄
3. Scherzo. Allegro assai (E-flat major, with trio in A-flat major), ³
   ₄
4. Finale. Presto (E-flat major), ²
   ₄

The first movement opens with an ascending arpeggiated figure (a so-called Mannheim Rocket, like that opening the first movement of the composer's own Piano Sonata no 1, Opus 2 no 1),^[3]

No. 2 in G major

1. Adagio, ³
   ₄ – Allegro vivace, ²
   ₄ (G major)
2. Largo con espressione (E major), ⁶
   ₈
3. Scherzo. Allegro (G major, with a trio in B minor), ³
   ₄
4. Finale. Presto (G major), ²
   ₄

No. 3 in C minor

1. Allegro con brio (C minor), ³
   ₄
2. Andante cantabile con Variazioni (E-flat major), ²
   ₄
3. Minuetto. Quasi allegro (C minor, with a trio in C major), ³
   ₄
4. Finale. Prestissimo (C minor, concluding in C major), ²
   ₂

Unlike the other piano trios in this opus, the third trio does not have a scherzo as its third movement but a minuet instead.

This third piano trio was later reworked by Beethoven into the C minor string quintet, Op. 104.^[4]

References

1. "Beethoven's Trios for string instruments, wind instruments and for mixed ones", All About Beethoven. Retrieved 2011-12-10.
2. "Beethoven's first childhood composition is predictably incredible for a 12-year-old". Classic FM (UK). Retrieved 13 May 2021.
3. Cummings, Robert. "Piano Sonata No. 1 in F minor, Op. 2/1 (1793–1795)" in All Music Guide to Classical Music: The Definitive Guide to Classical Music, p. 106 (Chris Woodstra, Gerald Brennan, Allen Schrott eds., Hal Leonard Corporation, 2005).
4. String Quintet in C minor, Op. 104. Hyperion Records. Retrieved 2011-12-10.

External links

• Piano Trio No. 1, Piano Trio No. 2, Piano Trio No. 3: Scores at the International Music Score Library Project
• Performance of Piano Trio No. 1 by the Claremont Trio from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in MP3 format