Opus 115 Ouverture « zur Namensfeier » in C major
Maestoso – Allegro assai vivace
Opus 115 – Overture in C major “zur Namensfeier”, Op. 115, 1808–March 1815, published in full score and orchestral parts in Vienna by Steiner, April 1825, with a dedication to Prince Radziwill. G.A. No. 22 (series 3/5) – B. 115 – KH. 115 – L. IV, p. 124 – N. 115 – T. 191.
The composition of this Overture extended over a period of seven years, being taken up and set aside several times, without the composer, at least at first, having a clear idea of what he intended to make of it.
Nottebohm reports some sketches from the middle of 1809 bearing the title “Ouverture für jede Gelegenheit oder zum Gebrauch im Konzert”, which were reworked in 1811, and again in 1812, when they briefly intertwined with a vocal theme based on the opening verses of the Ode to Joy from the Ninth Symphony — though without any musical resemblance to that later work.
Further, more definitive sketches, in which the Overture begins to take on its present form and character, date from 1814 and 1815. The original score, preserved in the Nationalbibliothek in Vienna, bears the title “Ouverture von L. v. Beethoven am ersten Weinmonath 1814 – Abends zum Namenstag unsers Kaisers” (Overture by L. v. Beethoven, for the first of the Wine Month [October] 1814, in the evening for the Name Day of our Emperor).
Such a date, however, cannot refer to the completion of the work, which took place only in the following March; it may rather indicate the direction Beethoven intended for the piece at that time, though this purpose was never officially mentioned again.
The Overture was performed only on 25 December 1815, in the great hall of the Ridotto in Vienna, at an “Academy” concert for the benefit of the Bürgerspital, together with Christ on the Mount of Olives and the cantata Meeresstille und glückliche Fahrt. It opens with a grand and stately introduction (Maestoso), followed by an Allegro assai vivace of an outwardly festive character.
The orchestra consists of 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 4 horns, 2 trumpets, timpani, and strings.
[By Biamonti Giovanni – Catalogo cronologico e tematico delle opere di Beethoven comprese quelle inedite e gli abbozzi non utilizzati, Torino, ILTE 1968]
Official title: Opus 115 Ouvertüre (C-dur) Widmung: Anton Heinrich Fürst von Radziwill NGA II/1 AGA 22 = Serie 3/5 Beiname: Zur Namensfeier, La Chasse
Composition and publication: The first sketches for a version in E-flat major (in 3/4 time) date back to the summer of 1809. Beethoven worked on the piece in 1811 and again in 1812/13, but did not write the full score until between October 1814 and around March or April 1815. The original edition, in full score and orchestral parts, was published by Steiner & Comp. in Vienna in April 1825.
Beethoven conceived Op. 115 in the summer of 1809, initially as an “overture zu jeder Gelegenheit oder zum Gebrauch im Konzert”. A first elaboration from 1811 was not completed, and in 1812/13 Beethoven attempted to incorporate into the overture’s material a composition based on Friedrich von Schiller’s An die Freude. At that point, the sketches change key: Beethoven transposed them from E-flat major to C major and changed the metre from 3/4 to 6/8, only shortly before beginning work on the autograph score.
The date “am ersten Weinmonath 1814” marks the start of the writing of the autograph score. Beethoven’s addition “zum Namenstag unsers Kaisers” shows that he was planning a performance of the new overture for 4 October 1814, which, however, did not take place. At the end of April or the beginning of May 1815, after signing the contract with Sigmund Anton Steiner in Vienna, the engraving model was delivered. Beethoven sold Op. 115 to Steiner together with the overtures Op. 113 and Op. 117 and other works in the spring of 1815, as part of a larger contract. By mid-May 1815, Steiner must already have had the engraver’s models, since Beethoven requested the return of Op. 115 shortly before or on 16 May for a few days to correct the material (BGA 805).
At the end of April 1820, Beethoven reminded Steiner that the publication of the three overtures (BGA 1389) was still pending. Op. 115 was not published until the spring of 1825, as can be seen from Beethoven’s letter to Ferdinand Ries of 9 April 1825 (BGA 1957): „ich habe Ihnen eine overture in C 6/8, die noch nicht öffentlich erschienen [geschickt], auch die gestochenen Stimmen erhalten Sie nächsten Posttag“.
The full score and parts, as well as two piano arrangements (for four and two hands), were published on 30 April 1825 in the Wiener Zeitung. Charles Neate added the title “Ouverture Namensfeier” to the copy for the Royal Philharmonic Society. The title of the autograph score, “zum Namenstag unsers Kaisers”, confirms the legitimacy of this title, even though it does not appear on the original edition. Beethoven objected to the description “Ouverture à la chasse” at a concert in 1818. Nevertheless, after 1830, Maurice Schlesinger published in Paris an edition entitled “La Chasse, grande Ouverture en Ut” (Nottebohm/Beethoveniana I, p. 38).
For the dedication, see Op. 108. Beethoven may have considered this dedication because he hoped that Prince von Radziwill might mediate the dedication of the Ninth Symphony to the King of Prussia.
First performance: 4 October 1815, on the occasion of the Emperor’s Name Day. The venue in Vienna is not known. Beethoven wrote to George Smart about this performance: “The one in C did not displease when performed on the 4th of October last year [1815] in the presence of Mr. N.[eate]” (BGA 983). Another performance took place on 25 December 1815 at a charity concert in aid of the St. Marx City Hospital, in the great Redoutensaal of the Hofburg in Vienna.
The sketches will be featured in an article specially created for the Beethovenian Music Research Center, www.lvbeethoven.org
