Beethoven and Tchaikovsky’s Final Symphonies: Comparative Analysis
Nicole
Music 122
Dr.
December 5, 2012
Beethoven and Tchaikovsky’s Final Symphonies: Comparative Analysis
Although from different eras, embracing different styles, Beethoven and Tchaikovsky can both be identified as two of the most influential, emotional composers. As men they were alike in the profound emotion put into everything they did. They both had emotional issues though Beethoven was angrier, and frustrated while Tchaikovsky was quite depressed and always had feelings of guilt following him (Abraham p.20). It’s likely that they both had some sort of serious psychological disorders. While Beethoven was prone to fits of rage and paranoia, Tchaikovsky would have episodes of extreme depression, guilt, and self pity. This is believed to be attributed to his homosexual tendencies that were socially unacceptable in his lifetime. Tchaikovsky was also a very religious man which probably created a lot of his guilt issues. Both had peculiar eccentricities that severely affected their lives and the outcome of their careers. There are many differences in the two composer’s lives but when looking at the central, driving force of their lives you see that they were motivated largely by emotions so strong that they were constantly on the verge of madness. Music served the same purposes for these men. It was a means of survival financially, emotionally, and creatively. To not express the things inside of them would leave them to fester into madness. These men found solace in composing and probably would have lived much more miserably if they hadn’t embraced their gift.
Beethoven was a serious man of uneven temperament. He had a hard time keeping apartments because he was so noisy, dirty, and destructive. His neighbors often complained about the noise, so he was asked by landlords to leave. It is said that he was amazingly clumsy, and no piece of furniture that he owned could survive long. He was always prone to dropping things, and his chunky fingers had
Music 122
Dr.
December 5, 2012
Beethoven and Tchaikovsky’s Final Symphonies: Comparative Analysis
Although from different eras, embracing different styles, Beethoven and Tchaikovsky can both be identified as two of the most influential, emotional composers. As men they were alike in the profound emotion put into everything they did. They both had emotional issues though Beethoven was angrier, and frustrated while Tchaikovsky was quite depressed and always had feelings of guilt following him (Abraham p.20). It’s likely that they both had some sort of serious psychological disorders. While Beethoven was prone to fits of rage and paranoia, Tchaikovsky would have episodes of extreme depression, guilt, and self pity. This is believed to be attributed to his homosexual tendencies that were socially unacceptable in his lifetime. Tchaikovsky was also a very religious man which probably created a lot of his guilt issues. Both had peculiar eccentricities that severely affected their lives and the outcome of their careers. There are many differences in the two composer’s lives but when looking at the central, driving force of their lives you see that they were motivated largely by emotions so strong that they were constantly on the verge of madness. Music served the same purposes for these men. It was a means of survival financially, emotionally, and creatively. To not express the things inside of them would leave them to fester into madness. These men found solace in composing and probably would have lived much more miserably if they hadn’t embraced their gift.
Beethoven was a serious man of uneven temperament. He had a hard time keeping apartments because he was so noisy, dirty, and destructive. His neighbors often complained about the noise, so he was asked by landlords to leave. It is said that he was amazingly clumsy, and no piece of furniture that he owned could survive long. He was always prone to dropping things, and his chunky fingers had
Bibliography: Abraham, Gerald. The Music of Tchaikovsky. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 1946. Komroff, Manuel. Beethoven and the World of Music. New York: Dodd, Mead & Company, 1961. Lockwood, Lewis. Beethoven: The Music and the Life. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2003. Schonberg, Harold C. The Lives of the Great Composers. Lancaster: Abacus, A Division of Little Brown and Company (UK) Limited, 1992. Solomon, Maynard. Late Beethoven: Music. Thought. Imagination. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2003.