Beethoven: Complete Orchestral Works Vol. 11

Even from a classical master like Ludwig van Beethoven, there are works that are literally never performed. As part of their complete recording of Beethoven's orchestral works, the Swedish Chamber Orchestra Örebro and its chief conductor Dausggard present one of these works with the ballet "The Creatures of Prometheus". Premiered in 1801 at the Vienna Court Theatre, Beethoven's ballet was his only major contribution to this genre. In his time, Prometheus was considered a metaphor for Napoleon – and it seems obvious how much Beethoven incorporated his view of Napoleon. Furthermore, the theme of the finale appears in many of his later works, most clearly as the theme of the variations in the "Eroica". With the two available sets of dances, Beethoven follows a tradition of popular dance music, to which Haydn, Mozart, and Schubert had already contributed before him. The dances were first heard on the occasion of a ball organized by the Vienna Artists' Pension Fund on November 22, 1795. In the German Dances, many popular ingredients of the time can be found. Beethoven uses triangle, tambourine, and bass drum. Melodic echoes of Papageno from Mozart's "Magic Flute" are also perceptible.