Экосез для фортепиано Es-dur, WoO 86

Время создания: 1825 г.

Gianluca Cascioli (фортепиано)

"Écossaise" is the French term for "Scottish," and indicates a type of contredance popular in the early nineteenth century. Scholars disagree on the origins of the écossaise; some argue that it is indeed a very old Scottish dance, originally with bagpipe accompaniment, while others insist it represents merely a French idea of a Scottish dance. Whatever its origins, écossaises were known in eighteenth-century France and were danced by the upper classes. In Vienna, they became popular ballroom dances that attracted the attention of first-rate composers. Beethoven wrote écossaises for both piano and instrumental ensembles and Schubert produced numerous examples for piano. Usually in a lively 2/4 meter, an écossaise is a binary structure consisting of two eight-measure phrases, each repeated.

The Écossaise in E flat major, WoO 86, was one of Beethoven's last works for piano. Composed in 1825, the Écossaise was published in the same year in a collection of dances published by C. F. Müller, Ernst und Tändeley. Müller (not Beethoven) dedicated the piece to the Duchess Sophie of Austria.

Beethoven adheres to the traditional écossaise format in his Écossaise in E flat, although he adds a pickup to each of the two melodies. The texture is sparse—a single line with accompaniment—and the harmony mainly alternates between the tonic and the dominant (B flat major). The technique required to perform the work is minimal. Even in a piece of such brevity and simplicity Beethoven strove to create unity. For instance, the first two measures of the contrasting second melody replicate the fourth and fifth measures of the opening phrase and appear again three measures later in the second part, but an octave higher.

(All Music Guide)