Programme

Beethoven Symphony No. 3 in E flat Major, Op. 55 Eroica

Miguel Harth-Bedoya Conductor

Beethoven’s Third Symphony looms large as a great work. Its effect on 19th-century classical music was cataclysmic; after the Third, the symphony as a form was never the same again.

The E flat major chords that kickstart the third symphony are decisive, definite, firm, like the hammer blows of a gavel or the slashes of a sword. Though the main theme seems lyrical enough, the churning harmonic motor keeps the theme from becoming sentimental. Instead, when the full orchestra joins in, the main theme is triumphant, bold and joyous.