Archduke Trio, by Beethoven

This afternoon I am listening to Beethoven's Archduke Trio for the first time.  Marvelous!

Who is the Archduke?   Rudolf Johann Joseph Rainer Habsburg, that's who -- better known as Archduke Rudolf.  Beethoven dedicated more compositions to Rudolf than to any other person.  Those works inclue the Triple Concerto, the Grosse Fugue, the Missa Solemnis, two piano concertos, two piano sonatas, one violin sonata, and the eponymous "Archduke" Trio.  Archduke Rudolf was a wealthy patron, but also a friend and student, a musically talented young nobleman who accepted Beethoven and his compositions despite the eccentricities of both.   (So, at rate, I have read.) 

Comments

[alexandra]

Indeed, it's beautiful and sublime. It's touched many, including Haruki Murakami, an incredible Japanese fiction writer who features this piece throughout several parts of his recent novel "Kafka on the Shore." The Archduke serves to transform one of the main characters into a Beethoven loving fiend! Reading the novel encouraged me to revisit the Archduke. I find something new in it every time (although I was already in love with Beethoven).