Saturday, 7 March 2020

Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3, also known as Sinfonia Eroica, or Heroic Symphony, is a piece of classical music steeped in history.

Composed in 1803-04, the work is understood to be a turning point in the transition from the Classical period to the Romantic era.

This was also a moment in time when Beethoven began to divulge to friends and family he was suffering from hearing loss. In 1802, he wrote to his brothers of the severe, and almost life-threatening, depression he experienced as his hearing deteriorated.

Eroica emerged as an act of defiance against these conditions – and is one of the most interesting works of Beethoven’s career, even without mentioning its original (but abandoned) dedication to Napoléon Bonaparte.

Hear Eroica performed by the ASO, led by composer Brett Dean, with added context from Professor of History at Cambridge University, Sir Christopher Clark.