Overture to The Creatures of Prometheus (Die Geschöpfe des Prometheus), Op. 43
2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 2 horns, 2 trumpets, timpani, and strings
Program Notes by Martin Pearlman
In 1800, the 29-year-old Beethoven received a major commission to write his first work for the stage, a ballet based on the Prometheus myth. It was to be presented at the Hofburg Theater in Vienna with choreography by the well-known dancer Salvatore Vigano. Beethoven was later said to have been disappointed in the story line of the ballet, which does not include Prometheus's rebellion or punishment. In it, Prometheus fashions two human figures and brings them to life, but, finding himself unable to teach them reason, he takes them to Apollo to experience music, to the muses to learn tragedy, comedy and dance, and to Bacchus to feel the joys of wine. Only then are they ready to be fully human.
The premiere of The Creatures of Prometheus took place on March 28, 1801, and the work was repeated 23 times in that and the following year. It was an important success for Beethoven, leading eventually to the commission for his opera Fidelio. The complete music for the ballet consisted of an overture, introduction and sixteen numbers, but, since the overture was, for a time, the only overture that Beethoven had written, he often performed it separately to open concerts of his music.
Boston Baroque Performances
Overture to The Creatures of Prometheus, Op. 43
March 4 & 5, 2016
NEC’s Jordan Hall, Boston, MA
Martin Pearlman, conductor