Beethoven's Oratorio and the Heiligenstadt Testament

Abstract

THE SUBJECT MATTER OF BEETHOVEN'S ORATORIO CHRISTUS AM OELBERGE, which was first performed on April 5, 1803, is unusual in that it does not cover whole Christ's Passion but concentrates entirely on scene on Mount Olives, just before and during his arrest. The text, by Franz Xaver Huber, places much emphasis on Christ's agony and suffering, his struggle against adversity, and his ultimate triumph through his love mankind. A number scholars have commented on connections between this subject and Beethoven's personal situation at time. Alan Tyson, for example, has pointed out that there are parallels between Christ's agony and Beethoven's sense isolation through his deafness (and also Florestan's agony and isolation in dungeon in Fidelio), and that text Christus - particularly phrase Nimm den Leidenskelch von mir (take cup suffering from me) - was of a sort to make strongest possible appeal to Beethoven's imagination.1 Similarly, Maynard Solomon has drawn attention to proximity oratorio to Beethoven's Heiligenstadt Testament, stating that Christus was clearly created in aftermath crisis.2 Theodore Albrecht has taken up this point, saying that the libretto surely reflected Beethoven's feelings moment: text to Christus am Oelberge must be almost contemporary with signed copy Heiligenstadt Testament, dated October 6 and 10, 1802.3 A detailed comparison Testament and oratorio, however, reveals a much stronger relationship, with oratorio being more closely modeled on Beethoven's personal life than has been realized. This becomes still more evident if a group his letters written a little earlier and expressing similar sentiments is taken into account. When chronology is considered too, interesting questions arise about how oratorio and especially its text came to be written. The close similarity between two texts is best illustrated by placing together short extracts from each, in pairs. Both texts contain ideas extreme and undeserved suffering, expressions terror, fear imminent death, and a sense isolation and loneliness. In quotations below, first each pair is taken (except where indicated) from Heiligenstadt Testament; second is from Christus am Oelberge. Yet there is a certain stoicism and resignation to fate, and a willingness to fight fierce battles that lie ahead, even if they end in death: Throughout struggle and suffering, however, there remains desire to do good and love mankind: And there is anticipation ultimate triumph over adversity, with struggle and agony being resolved in death and eternal joy: Some parallels are closer than others, and rarely are exactly same words used in both texts. Yet, considering differences between Christ's situation and Beethoven's, similarities between two sets quotations are extraordinary. Many phrases would be almost equally appropriate in either context, and oratorio text is often closer to Heiligenstadt Testament than to original Biblical narratives on which it is based. The sentiments are often virtually identical, and differences lie mainly in fact that oratorio tends to express ideas much more poetically and loftily than Beethoven's rather down-to-earth comments. Even individual words are occasionally identical: particularly striking is use word outcast (Verbannte), very uncommon as a description Christ, though not inappropriate; and Beethoven's Menschenliebe (love humanity) is very close to Christ's die Menschen alle lieben. Also notable is idea embracing world, even though Christ's word (umschliessen) is different from Beethoven's (umspannen); and curious equivocation between welcoming and fearing death is prominent in both texts. How could Huber have produced an oratorio text incorporating so many ideas from Beethoven's private correspondence? …

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