{"product_id":"beethovens-french-piano-a-tale-of-ambition-and-frustration-hardcover","title":"Beethoven's French Piano: A Tale of Ambition and Frustration - Hardcover","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eTom Beghin\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eUsing a replica of Beethoven's Erard piano, scholar and performer Tom Beghin launches a striking reinterpretation of a key period of Beethoven's work.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e In 1803 Beethoven acquired a French piano from the Erard Frères workshop in Paris. The composer was \"so enchanted with it,\" one visitor reported, \"that he regards all the pianos made here as rubbish by comparison.\" While Beethoven loved its sound, the touch of the French keyboard was much heavier than that of the Viennese pianos he had been used to. Hoping to overcome this drawback, he commissioned a local technician to undertake a series of revisions, with ultimately disappointing results. Beethoven set aside the Erard piano for good in 1810. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eBeethoven's French Piano\u003c\/i\u003e returns the reader to this period of Beethoven's enthusiasm for all things French. What traces of the Erard's presence can be found in piano sonatas like his \"Waldstein\" and \"Appassionata\"? To answer this question, Tom Beghin worked with a team of historians and musicians to commission the making of an accurate replica of the Erard piano. As both a scholar and a recording artist, Beghin is uniquely positioned to guide us through this key period of Beethoven's work. Whether buried in archives, investigating the output of the French pianists who so fascinated Beethoven, or seated at the keyboard of his Erard, Beghin thinks and feels his way into the mind of the composer, bringing startling new insights into some of the best-known piano compositions of all time.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eTom Beghin\u003c\/b\u003e is a senior researcher at the Orpheus Institute in Ghent, Belgium. He is the author of \u003ci\u003eThe Virtual Haydn: Paradox of a Twenty-First-Century Keyboardist\u003c\/i\u003e and coeditor, with Sander Goldberg, of \u003ci\u003eHaydn and the Performance of Rhetoric\u003c\/i\u003e, both also published by the University of Chicago Press. His discography includes the complete keyboard works of Haydn and many piano works by Beethoven.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 384\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1.3 x 9.1 x 6 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eIllustrated:\u003c\/strong\u003e Yes\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e July 21, 2022\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42159024472199,"sku":"9780226818351","price":89.1,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0601\/2623\/2711\/files\/ee8a73acb8cec56e7d52f9b9a640a5cd.webp?v=1733263461","url":"https:\/\/booksby.splitshops.com\/products\/beethovens-french-piano-a-tale-of-ambition-and-frustration-hardcover","provider":"Books by splitShops","version":"1.0","type":"link"}