Triple Concerto in C major, Op.56

Before Beethoven wrote his Triple Concerto no one had ever risked mixing chamber music with orchestral music. Mozart and Haydn had both written concertante works for two or more solo instruments but neither of them had attempted to integrate a chamber ensemble like the piano trio - violin, cello and piano - with the orchestra. Even Beethoven seems to have been intimidated by the idea. He had sketched a Triple Concerto in D for piano trio in 1802 but had abandoned it at a fairly early stage. A year or two later he started again and completed the Triple Concerto in C in 1804 - but not, his treatment of the first movement suggests, without misgivngs.

The opening Allegro is a substantial piece, as long as the second and third movements put together. Introducing the three soloists and giving them room to expand, both as individuals and as an ensemble, takes time. But it can also cause structural problems. That could be why, fearing perhaps that he could lose his grip on a problematic situation, Beethoven was careful to link all his main themes by giving them a prominent rhythmic feature in common. The feature in question is anticipated on cellos and basses in the opening bars, incorporated in the first subject as it is introduced on a crescendo by violins and woodwind, and slightly reshaped in the first bar of the second subject floated on violins over lower strings.

The soloists make their entries one by one - first the cello, which is joined by violin and then by the piano to complete the trio. That break with convention having been made, the orchestra introduces another theme with the same rhythmic feature. So the material is there for an extensive development motivated mainly by the soloists, who indulge their virtuosity in every possible combination and in a variety of harmonies and figurations. Their most spectacular contributions are a three-part cadenza of triplet arpeggios and, just before the recapitulation, a brilliant display of upward scales and prolonged trills - an idea bright enough to be repeated as they make an accelerated run for the end of the movement.

Though not a full-scale slow movement - it is more an introduction to the finale than anything else - the Largo is one of Beethhoven’s finest melodic inspirations. The one and only main theme is introduced by the solo cello to the accompaniment of the orchestral strings, briefly passed to woodwind over a decorative piano part, and extended into an amorous duet for violin and cello with the piano still in an accompanying role. It is also the cello that takes it upon itself - on one note repeated no fewer than forty times - to accelerate the tempo to meet that of the next movement.

Following without a break and beginning on that same note, the Rondo alla Polacca (Polish Rondo) is based on the handsome dance tune first heard on the cello in the opening bars. Between its several reappearances there is a variety of similarly tuneful episodes, including one in a characteristically bouncy polonaise rhythm and another in a quicker tempo initiated by the violin and involving the vigorous participation of all three soloists. The opening tempo is restored towards the end for a last recall of the main theme and a final exchange of bravado gestures between piano trio and orchestra.

Gerald Larner ©2005