Classical Era

Für Elise

Beethoven's best-known piano miniature, a bagatelle in A minor. Unpublished in his lifetime, it appeared only in 1867 and who ‘Elise’ was remains a mystery.

💡 Did you know? Some scholars read the dedication as ‘Für Therese’ (Therese Malfatti): a misreading of the manuscript.

Moonlight Sonata

The first movement (Adagio sostenuto), with its gently rocking triplets, is among the most famous in all piano music. The nickname ‘Moonlight’ came from critic Ludwig Rellstab.

💡 Did you know? Beethoven titled it ‘Sonata quasi una fantasia’: a sonata almost like a fantasy.

Symphony No. 5

Its four opening notes (‘short-short-short-long’) are among the most famous in music. Beethoven reportedly described them as ‘fate knocking at the door.’

💡 Did you know? In WWII the motif stood for the Morse letter ‘V’ for Victory: three short signals and one long.

Ode to Joy (Symphony No. 9)

The joy theme from the finale of the Ninth (set to Schiller's ode) is today the anthem of Europe.

💡 Did you know? By the 1824 premiere Beethoven was completely deaf and had to be turned around to see the cheering audience.

Eine kleine Nachtmusik

Mozart's cheerful G-major serenade (K. 525) opens with a buoyant, instantly memorable theme.

💡 Did you know? One movement of the originally five-movement serenade is lost.