Beethoven Für Elise

The Meaning of Music The history of music is one that can be traced back as far as to the first signs of life on Earth. Music has become today’s most universal language. It is one that can be interpreted in a multitude of ways, regardless of cultures, ethnicity, or life experiences. Music is comprised in various forms and sounds, whether natural or electronically produced. Classical music is just one of many musical genres that is open to interpretation from a listener’s perspective, just like Beethoven’s Für Elise for example. The meaning of a musical piece written by the composer can be understood by the listener in a similar context, but depending on an individual’s personal experience, it will relate to them differently. As an inexperienced

Beethoven’s oeuvre of Für Elise was inspired by the innocence of childhood and femininity.1 Although there is insufficient evidence behind the work of Für Elise, as the song was released 40 years after Beethoven’s passing, it has been come to believe that Beethoven was influenced by his own personal experience with love. It was thought by some that the piece was written for Beethoven’s love interest, Therese Malfatti. The intended title of the song was supposed to be “Für Therese”, but was mistake for Für Elise because of his poor handwriting. However, many musicians and scholars did not believe in this theory. Kalus Martin Kopitz, a Beethoven researcher, stated the piece was written for Elisabeth Röckel, an opera singer and close friend of Beethoven. Despite Röckel and Beethoven’s close friendship, Röckel later married Johann Nepomuk Hummel, one of Beethoven’s on-and-off friend and foe.3 Nethertheless, Für Elise symbolizes Beethoven’s perspective on the complexity of love. As Für Elise is written in rondo form, the first A section reveals Beethoven’s feelings of hopelessness and euphoria in his quest for love.2 Section B describes the story of how the lovers meet and the beautiful experiences they share together through the series of crescendos and rise in tempo. In this section,

Each section of the piece illuminates different emotional feelings it gives listeners as they can personally visualize the scenario in their minds; similar to how it would play in Beethoven’s mind. Upon further research of Für Elise, my reaction did change about this musical piece. I was able to gain a deeper understanding of how musical elements, when used in unison, can have an immense impact as to how a story is depicted. My initial perception of the piece was similar in context, but I related it differently based on my personal experiences. While Beethoven was writing in regards to his emotional experience about love, I related the piece to the general difficulties everyone faces in life. I had never experienced what finding true love means nor have I felt suffocated by the idea of lost love. Regardless of individual experiences, the musical language is universal. People are able to understand the core idea of a musical piece in terms of the emotions they should feel as told by the music’s composition. An upbeat tempo signifies joyfulness while slower composed music displays somber moods. It is easy to pinpoint the emotional feeling of a piece, but relating the piece to one’s life is what differentiates the meaning of music to individual listeners. There is no concrete reasoning as to why music should be bounded by one idea, emotion, or story. Rather, music is a form of self-expression, a way to