An Essay on the Psychological, Sociological, and Musical Roots of Beethoven\u27s Concerto No. 4 in G, Opus 58, Together with a Project in Piano Performance

This thesis investigates Beethoven\u27s Piano Concerto No. 4 in G, Op. 58. Highlighted are psychological and sociological explanations of Beethoven\u27s style and form. Beethoven countered the despair of losing his hearing with remarkable mettle. Indeed, his music may be characterized as a fierce existential roar occasionally interrupted with moments of bliss. Societal aspects of the latter eighteenth and early nineteenth century found expression in the sonata-allegro from (also concerto from): people saw themselves capable of new thematic change, unfettered by the old conventions insisting that people live out their lives according to the class they were born into. Development in society and in the sonata is no longer hindered by determined beginnings. The thesis continues with an analysis of thematic development and structure of the concerto. Finally, I complete the project by performing the first movement of the Concerto No. 4, Allegro moderato