Beethoven: Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major, Op. 55 (arr. for string quintet)

Description

Chamber ensemble arrangements of large-scale works like symphonies were highly popular in Beethoven's day. They were an important means of disseminating music to a wide audience before the days of regular public concerts and long before the era of the gramophone. Beethoven's own symphonies were the subject of hundreds of arrangements produced over the course of the nineteenth century. The present edition is the first publication of one such arrangement of Beethoven's Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major, Op. 55 (Eroica). This anonymous arrangement for a quintet of two violins, two violas, and cello with optional double bass is believed to date from between 1810 and 1820. The unique set of manuscript parts lacks the first violin performance part, which was lost at some stage and has been reconstructed by the editor based on the orchestral score. As the only known string quintet arrangement of the Eroica Symphony written during Beethoven's lifetime, the music of this edition fills a notable gap in the Beethoven symphony arrangement repertoire.