WoO 10 – 6 Minuets for piano or two violins and bass
(perhaps from a lost orchestral series)
The musical examples are by Gerd Prengel
WoO 10, 6 Minuets for piano, c. 1795 published in Vienna, Artaria, March 1796. GA. No. 194 (series 18/12) – B. 167 – KH- 10 – L. -IV, p. 343/4 I No. p. 150 –
The original manuscript is unknown. In the Thayer catalogue there is the opinion of Dr. Leopold Sonnleithner (a nephew of the librettist of “Fidelio”, an amateur in music and frequenter of the Viennese artistic world among which Beethoven lived) that the original draft of these Minuets, now lost, would have been for orchestra. Hess supposes that it is the piano reduction of the second part of a unique series of twelve Minuets (similar to those WoO 7), the first part of which would consist of the Six Minuets for 2 violins and WoO 9 bass of the previous number. As regards form and character, the general observations made in WoO 7 are also repeated here.
Composed in Vienna probably in 1795, at the latest at the beginning of 1796. The original edition of the piano score was published in March 1796 by Artaria in Vienna. An edition of Dances No. 1 and 2 for two violins and bass (cello), which is probably an arrangement of others, followed in February 1808 with the same publisher.
Apart from a draft for no. 5, dated 1795, no autographs of the minuets are known (Kojima/Authenticity p. 317; JTW p. 521). Ignaz Sonnleithner remarked on these pieces: “These 6 Minuets were published by Artaria et Comp, for piano, but from the movement itself and the designation of the 2nd part it is highly probable that they were composed for the orchestra.” (Quoted from Thayer/1865, p. 170.) Further indications of an original orchestral version of the minuets are the type of setting of the minuets, which – as far as can be seen from the piano writing – corresponds more to the orchestra than to a string trio.
A reconstruction of Franz Beyer’s orchestral version based on the 1796 piano reduction was published in 1982 (?) by Breitkopf & Härtel in Wiesbaden, and in 1995 Thomas Christian David arranged for string orchestra at Döblinger in Vienna, to finish this very recent orchestration by the German musician Gerd Prengel.
WoO 10 – 6 Minuets for piano
(two violins and bass)
WoO 10 – 6 Minuets for two violins and bass
(piano)
WoO 10 – 6 Minuets for orchestra – Gerd Prengel
(for piano or two violins and bass)
The Minuet theme (Beethoven)
Specially arranged for Metro Picture, Rex Ingram’s SCARAMOUCHE “my Ladye Fayre” From the Novel by Rafael Sabatini Distributed in the United Kingdom by Jury’s Imperial Pictures LTD, Boosey & Co., 295 Regent Street, London WI. And at New York.
This transcription for voice and piano adapted for the original soundtrack of this film is taken from the famous minuet WoO 10 number 2 and is just one of the countless transcriptions and variants that have honored (and tormented) this small Beethoven composition. Here in a few words is the plot of the film (surpassed in fame by the subsequent remakes of 1952 and 1963)
André-Louis Moreau (Ramon Novarro) loves, reciprocated, Aline de Kercadiou (Alice Terry), niece of his godfather, Quintin de Kercadiou (Lloyd Ingraham), Obviously, as per tradition, her uncle would prefer to marry the Marquis of the Tour d’Azyr (Lewis Stone), a middle-aged nobleman, rather than a disinherited and moreover orphaned like André.
One day, the expert swordsman de la Tour kills André’s friend, Philippe de Vilmorin, in a duel. André turns to the king’s lieutenant for justice. However, when the official finds out who the defendant is, he immediately orders the arrest of André who goes on the run.
Meanwhile, France is approaching revolution. When a speaker who is haranguing the crowd in favor of freedom and equality is killed by a soldier, André takes his place and remains undeterred when he is hit by a bullet. When the dragons are called to disperse the crowd, a certain Chapelier helps André escape.
André finally joins a traveling theater company, led by Challefau Binet (James A. Marcus); he wrote works for their performances that became a great success, even ending up performing in a theater in Paris. André becomes the boyfriend of Binet’s daughter, Climène (Edith Allen).
Aline and de la Tour attend a performance of her latest work; however, Aline no longer wants to have anything to do with André….. Passing over the other events, the thousand plots of this film, it is enough to know that at the outbreak of the Andé revolution he manages to get his mother (obviously a countess found in the meantime) and Aline into a carriage and all three can leave Paris.
Unfortunately, the film is silent, as the music was played separately and then synchronized to the video, or even played at the same time as the screening. Nowadays the film can be seen with a soundtrack adapted specifically for this film.