Seven Variations in E flat major for cello and piano on the aria Bei Männern welche Liebe fühlen from Mozart’s opera The Magic Flute
Of Beethoven’s three collections of variations for cello and piano, two were written on themes from Mozart’s Magic Flute. All belonged to the composer’s early works and were destined for the salon: their technical difficulty was adapted to the potential of amateur performance.
The cycle of seven variations, a piece with no opus number, on the theme Bei Männern, welche Liebe fühlen (“In men, who feel love”) was created in 1801 and published in the following year. Exact circumstances of its origin are unknown; only the dedication shows that it was a gift to Count Johann von Brown-Camus, described by the author as “the first patron of my muse”.
The theme of the variation, taken from the duet of Pamina and Papageno in the first act of Mozart’s opera, allowed the instruments to conduct a dialogue on equal terms. The structure of the cycle is straightforward and conventional: the middle variation stands out with its minor mode (E flat minor), the last three are all in different time. The melody of the theme (Andantino, E flat major), with its dancing features, all but vanishes in virtuosic figurations in both instruments and only returns in the final variation. The most song-like and lyrical variation (Adagio) precedes a joyful and extensive finale (Allegro).
Ewa Siemdaj