regular repertoire and other violinists followed suit. In this work too Beethoven precedes his time. Although the Concerto lacks the stormy drama of his great symphonies, it is considered a revolutionary work, a landmark and bridge between the Violin Concertos of Mozart and Brahms' Violin Concerto. The Violin Concerto is a unique world of sound, a kind of symphony in structure and development, in which the main role is dedicated to the solo violin as an inseparable part of the symphonic array. The first movement is one of the most beautiful and remarkable ever written by Beethoven, "Romantic and majestic", to quote Joachim. Beethoven takes us to unknown and unexpected heights. The duration of the movement is the same as that of an entire concerto by Haydn or Mozart. It opens with an extensive orchestral introduction that begins in a unique manner: four delicate drum beats resembling heart-beats, that recur throughout the movement in the orchestra and solo part. They are followed by a noble and festive theme in the woodwinds, heralding the melodious main theme. This theme returns alternately in the violin and the orchestra, in various shades. The first entry of the violin, soaring to high tones, is also unprecedented. The violinist is immediately given the opportunity to exhibit their technical and expressive ability. Before the end of the movement, the soloist plays a cadenza and the movement concludes only after the violin reiterates the main theme in its entirety. The second movement, in G major, is slow and moderate in the character of a sacred hymn, a kind of dialogue between soloist and orchestra. It is based on four variations in free style. Beethoven again manages to use the tonal shades of each one of the violin strings, softly ornamenting melodic phrases played by muted strings and wind instruments. The violin continues to resound a vibrating and moving theme of its own. In the middle part, the orchestra reiterates the first theme with increasing sound volume, and its thundering response towards the end arouses a reply from the violin in prayer-like fashion. The movement goes with a cadenza straight into the concluding Haydnesque Rondo. A gay mood pervades most of the Rondo. Written in the triple metre (6/8) of a folk dance, it has an intermediate minor-key section, elegiac and dreamlike, with a vein of yearning. The main theme recurs several times, interspersed with various episodes presenting new ideas. Many papers and books have been written in the attempt to interpret and explain Beethoven's music. Leonard Bernstein referred in his annotated and broadcast concerts, in lectures and articles, to its simplicity - the sublime quality that reigns supreme in Beethoven's works. He pointed out that in all the realm of arts one cannot find such simplicity as that of Beethoven, which radiates with purity enveloped by complex human emotions. According to him, Beethoven succeeded in capturing the truth, the actual essence and basic reality, encompassing the entire human experience. Every selfrespecting violinist tries at one stage or another in their life to master the Concerto. This is a "certificate of maturity" in the violinists' world. Yisrael Daliot
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