Beethoven : the philosophy of music : fragments and texts

When Theodor W. Adorno -- one of the twentieth century's most influential thinkers in the areas of social theory, philosophy, aesthetics, and music -- died in 1969, he left behind an unfinished work on Beethoven, which had occupied him fitfully for more than thirty years. His notes and texts, which remain in fragmented form, were described by Adorno as a "diary of his experiences of Beethoven." The editor has organized the fragments to bring out their inherent logic and relatedness, and has incorporated those few texts on Beethoven that Adorno managed to complete, as well as extracts from larger published works that came out of the project Beethoven is a classic study of the composer's music, written by one of the most important thinkers of our time. Throughout his life, Adorno wrote extensive notes, essay fragments and aides-memoires on the subject of Beethoven's music. This book brings together all of Beethoven's music in relation to the society in which he lived. Adorno identifies three periods in Beethoven's work, arguing that the thematic unity of the first and second periods begins to break down in the third. Adorno follows this progressive disintegration of organic unity in the classical music of Beethoven and his contemporaries, linking it with the rationality and monopolistic nature of modern society. Beethoven will be welcomed by students and researchers in a wide range of disciplines - philosophy, sociology, music and history - and by anyone interested in the life of the composer. This study identifies three periods in Beethoven's work, arguing that the thematic unity of the first and second periods begins to break down in the third. Throughout his life, Theodor Adorno wrote extensive essays on the subject of Beethoven's music