Mozart and Beethoven
For the better part of the past year I’ve been playing out of 3 books. I start with Hanon, then move to Mozart. His early works are surprisingly complex. So far I haven’t moved into more complex works than some of “Das Londoner Notenbuch”. Then I play a few of Beethoven’s lighter works. The “Minuet in G” and “Sonatina in F” are favourites, although I enjoy anything I can play without too many errors. Some day I’ll tackle the better-known Sonatas again. I was able once to play a few of them without undue embarrassment.
I find that Mozart, even the simpler pieces, is more challenging for me than the Beethoven. Why is that? My tentative answer is that I have always loved Beethoven’s work. My father loved Mozart, liked Beethoven, and had no time for Bach or Bruckner. I have come to love Bach and Bruckner, for entirely different reasons. But Beethoven - there is nothing comparable.
Bach for me epitomizes structure and order. There is nothing as relaxing, yet invigorating, as listening to a recording of Yo Yo Ma playing the Cello Suites. Bruckner I came to love through Georg Tintner. Georg was a most unique person who I am honoured to have known. His Magnum Opus is the complete set of Bruckner symphonies. They have kept me company on many long drives. The bombast and pugnacious attitude is such a contrast to Bach.
None of these pieces are background music. For that, I have my Spotify on random feeds of my preferred styles - folk of all types - North American, Scandinavian, Eastern European, and sometimes other genres; popular music from the past 70 or so years; sometimes German Operetta. Now and then I’ll make a semi-random selection of a style I wouldn’t normally listen to, and have found pleasant surprises there. I liked “Tröstevisa” by Benny Andersson so much I went looking for the sheet music.
Some day I’ll play more challenging pieces by Mozart because it’s good practice. Some day I’ll play some of the Beethoven Sonatas and enjoy it. Some day I’ll try playing some Bach with the windows closed.