For the exhibition Beethoven. Welt. Bürger. Musik, currently on display at the Kunsthalle in Bonn, Klassiek Centraal no longer needs to do any advertising. That has already been done sufficiently. Our unanimous advice remains unchanged: go see it! This exhibition is not only a must for Beethoven enthusiasts, but also for any true music lover.
By the way, the exhibition catalogue is also in a class of its own. I have rarely seen a catalogue that provides such a complete picture of an exhibition, unless it was the catalogue of Music and Painting in the Golden Age, an exhibition held in 1994 at the Hessenhuis Museum in Antwerp. That was also such a book that transcended the exhibition through its extensive documentation and beautiful execution. I remember going to that exhibition just to buy the catalogue.
This catalogue falls into the same category and therefore deserves extra attention. Like any good catalogue, you can use it as a reference work to relive the exhibition at home. All the paintings, documents and objects on display are reproduced in it. Well, almost all of them anyway: I searched in vain for an image of that magnificent double bassoon by the Viennese bassoon maker Koch, but that will be of little concern to the average visitor.
The curators of Beethoven. Welt. Bürger. Musik, Agnieszka Lułinska and Julia Ronge chose to challenge the traditional image of Beethoven. Instead of opting for the usual survey of Beethoven perception, they boldly chose the duster, for modernization.
They present the composer as an artist inextricably linked to the lived world and the socio-historical relations of his time.
Away with the myth of Beethoven as revolutionary, as Titan or as struggling and tormented genius!
Beethoven as pure as can be
We see Beethoven as a human being with feelings and needs, with his good but also less pleasant sides. As a professional musician who occasionally had to be shamelessly opportunistic, simply to make a living, connected by a fine-meshed network with his contemporaries. A network that enabled him to get so far and ultimately to transcend all existing musical boundaries. Everything placed in the historical context of the continual wars, the politically extremely precarious times. The negative impact of the French Revolution in Bonn. The economic crisis, the peace of 1814/1815. The horrors of war that were also visible in Vienna. All of this must have profoundly influenced Beethoven.
The added value of this catalogue lies in the fact that Lułinska and Ronge used it to further deepen and reinforce their innovative vision of Beethoven. To this end, they invited a number of leading specialists, including our own Jan Caeyers, to write an essay on one of the facets of Beethoven's life, work and time.
Thus the catalogue has also become a collection of scholarly essays.
In contrast to the usual tripartite division of Beethoven's life, they distinguish five periods: Professional musician in the making, youth and training in Bonn; Vienna, new horizons; the path to success; fame and its price; the boundless Beethoven. The titles speak for themselves.
Each period is examined from different angles. The reader thus gets a very thorough and complete picture of Beethoven's life, work and time. No facet is left in the dark. Everything you might not yet know about Beethoven can be found here.
This is no longer an exhibition catalogue in the classical sense of the word, but a magnificently illustrated and very comprehensive book about Beethoven, which is a supplement to the already richly documented exhibition.
With its clear, understandable content, timelines, short, clear and very readable essays, this is a jewel of a book. Beautifully designed too.
The love for Beethoven shines from every page!
If you have the opportunity to visit the exhibition, you would be foolish not to purchase this catalogue. You are guaranteed to regret it! You don't need to worry about the cost: at thirty-five euros, this is a bargain!
Of course, not everyone has the opportunity to travel to Bonn. For those unlucky souls, this catalogue is a golden opportunity to experience the exhibition at home and thoroughly immerse yourself in Beethoven's life, comfortably nestled in an armchair by the central heating, leafing through this very attractively designed book. The Germans call this schmökern.
Highly recommended!
- WHAT: Catalogue Welt. Bürger. Musik.
- DESIGN: Studio Pandan, Berlin - 264 pages with approximately 282 color and 8 black and white images, hardcover, 30.5 x 24.0 cm
- MUSEUM EDITION: € 35
- BOOKSTORE EDITION: published by Wienand, Köln for € 39.80
