WoO 72 – Eight Variations in C Major for Piano on the Theme “Une fièvre brûlante” from Richard Coeur de Lion by Grétry
Thema – Allegretto
WoO 72 – Eight Variations in C Major for Piano on the Theme “Une fièvre brûlante” from Richard Coeur de Lion by Grétry
Theme – Allegretto Composed between 1796–1797, published in Vienna by Traeg in November 1798.
Catalog References: GA No. 171 (Series 17/10) Biamonti 184 Kinsky-Halm (WoO) 72 L. IV, p. 317/7 N. p. 157 P. 105 T. 61
Manuscript Status: The original manuscript is unknown. Nottebohm reports sketches found alongside: The first movement of the Piano Sonata in C minor Op. 10 No. 1. The soprano aria “Soll ein Schuh” (WoO 91 No. 2). Variations on “Là ci darem la mano” for two oboes and English horn (WoO 28).
Source of the Theme: Although Grétry’s opera Richard Coeur de Lion was known in Vienna since 1788, Beethoven did not draw directly from it. Instead, he referenced a ballet of the same name staged by Salvatore Viganò, with music by Joseph Weigl, performed multiple times during the summer of 1795. This ballet incorporated Grétry’s theme
[To Biamonti Giovanni – Catalogo cronologico e tematico delle opere di Beethoven comprese quelle inedite e gli abbozzi non utilizzati, Torino, ILTE 1968]
Official Title: WoO 72 Acht Variationen (C-dur) über das Thema „Mich brennt ein heißes Fieber“ aus der Oper „Richard Löwenherz“ von André Ernest Modeste Grétry für Klavier
Composition and Publication: Sketched between 1795 and 1796. A fair copy was likely available at Traeg’s in Vienna by autumn 1798, forming the basis for the original edition published in November. Surviving sketches are preserved in the “Fischhof” sketchbook, adjacent to: Op. 10 No. 1 (1st movement) WoO 28. WoO 91 No. 2. Douglas Johnson’s paper studies suggest Beethoven wrote these before his 1796 journey to Prague, Dresden, Leipzig, and Berlin.
About the Theme: Composer: André Ernest Modeste Grétry (1741–1813). Opera: Richard Coeur de Lion, a three-act comédie mise en musique with libretto by Michel Jean Sedaine, based on the Blondel legend. Premiered: October 21, 1784, at the Comédie-Italienne (Salle Favart), Paris. Vienna premiere: January 7, 1788, in German translation by Gottlieb Stephanie the Younger at the Kärntnertortheater. Nine performances followed until February 3, 1788. In 1788, Nikolaus Simrock offered a piano reduction of the opera (likely manuscript copies, not printed editions).
Ballet Adaptation: On February 2, 1795, the heroic pantomime ballet Riccardo Cuor di Leone by Viganò, with music by Joseph Weigl, premiered in Vienna. It included Grétry’s romance and was performed 32 times until August 30, 1795. Wolfgang Osthoff, however, does not consider this ballet insertion as the direct model for Beethoven’s theme version.
Other Variations on the Theme: Daniel Steibelt’s Fantaisie avec 6 Variations sur la Romance de Richard Coeur de Lion (Op. 77), published in 1792 by André (Offenbach) and Erard (Paris). Variations falsely attributed to Mozart (e.g., Rellstab, Berlin 1792; Breitkopf & Härtel, Leipzig 1798) are spurious (Köchel Index C 26.02 [ex Annex 285], p. 895).
First Performance: Unknown.
Sketches: A-Wgm, A 64. Dating: 1795/96 (Johnson/Fischhof Vol. 1, p. 140). Transcription: Johnson/Fischhof Vol. 2, p. 135. D-B, Mus. SM. autogr. Beethoven 28 (“Fischhof”) Folio 7 verso. Dating: Likely late 1795 (Johnson/Fischhof Vol. 1, p. 101). Facsimile: SBB.Transcription: Johnson/Fischhof Vol. 2, p. 135
Original Edition. Published: November 1798, Vienna, Jean Traeg (no VN/PN) Title: VIII VARIATIONS / sur le Tême / (Mich brant’ ein heisses Fieber) / de l’ opera Richard Löwenherz / pour le / Piano-Forte / Composées / par / LOUIS VAN BEETHOVEN / N° 7. / à Vienne chez Jean Traeg dans la Singerstrasse.
André Ernest Modeste Grétry (1741–1813) – A Pioneer of French Opéra Comique
André Ernest Modeste Grétry was born on February 8, 1741, in Liège, then part of the Prince-Bishopric of Liège (now Belgium), into a modest musical family. His father, a violinist of humble means, introduced him early to music, and Grétry began his career as a choirboy at the Church of Saint-Denis in Liège. His formative musical education included studies with Jean-Pantaléon Leclerc and organist Nicolas Rennekin, but it was his exposure to Italian opera—particularly the works of Galuppi and Pergolesi—that ignited his passion for theatrical composition.
In 1759, thanks to a scholarship funded by Canon Hurley of Liège Cathedral, Grétry traveled to Rome, where he studied composition under Giovanni Battista Casali at the Collège de Liège. Though he later admitted to moderate proficiency in counterpoint, his talent for melody and dramatic instinct flourished. His first notable success came with La vendemmiatrice, an Italian intermezzo performed at the Teatro Aliberti in Rome, which received enthusiastic acclaim.
Grétry’s artistic turning point occurred when he encountered the score of an opera by Pierre-Alexandre Monsigny, which inspired him to pursue French opéra comique. In 1766, he moved to Geneva, where he met Voltaire and composed another operetta. By 1767, he had settled in Paris, where he endured initial obscurity and financial hardship. His breakthrough came in 1768 with Le Huron, set to a libretto by Jean-François Marmontel. The opera’s success established Grétry as a leading figure in the genre.
Over the next four decades, Grétry composed more than 50 operas, including masterpieces such as:
- Zémire et Azor (1771), a lyrical fairy tale blending romance and fantasy
- Richard Coeur-de-Lion (1784), notable for its patriotic themes and melodic elegance, later referenced by Beethoven in his WoO 72 variations
Grétry’s music is distinguished by its melodic finesse, dramatic clarity, and sensitive text setting, which helped elevate opéra comique from light entertainment to a more expressive and semi-serious art form. His influence extended to composers such as Mozart and Beethoven, both of whom wrote variations on his themes.
Beyond composition, Grétry was a prolific writer. His Mémoires ou Essais sur la musique (1789) reflect his philosophical views on musical aesthetics and the role of drama in composition. He also pioneered the use of the tuba curva, a revival of an ancient Roman brass instrument, notably employed during Voltaire’s funeral ceremonies.
Grétry’s career spanned the Ancien Régime, the French Revolution, and the Napoleonic era. Though he fell out of favor during the Revolution, he was later honored by Napoleon, who granted him a pension in 1802. He spent his final years in Montmorency, residing at the Ermitage once occupied by Rousseau, and died there on September 24, 1813.
In 1842, his heart was ceremonially interred in a monument facing the Opéra Royal de Wallonie in Liège, a lasting tribute to one of the most influential figures in French musical history.
