Grand Creations for Piano--Variations on a Theme of Beethoven

Back in 1994 I wrote and recorded an original collection of piano music, Grand Creations.  I’d like to make recordings of these 14 pieces available for all of my readers through download.  

The pieces are mostly classic-sounding arrangements of hymns with a couple of little surprises.  Watch this post over the next few weeks to obtain your free copies.  

I chose the title because the co-star of the production is the beautiful, 8 foot Steinway grand piano.  A magnificent piano is such a “grand” work of art! Metal and wood, painstaking craftsmanship, history, and artistry all combine to create an instrument of amazing subtlety and power!  Unlike even the best electronic instruments, an acoustic grand piano has a character all its own.  Each acoustic piano has its own personality, beauties and quirks.  

Today, I’ll begin with “Variations on a Theme of Beethoven.”  The theme is the closing melody we hear at the end of his monumental Ninth Symphony.  It emerges in all of its simplicity and joy from the anguish and confusion of much of the rest of the symphony. Sung by soloists and a choir (using a choir in a symphony was highly unusual), Beethoven (1770-1827) chose Schiller’s “Ode to Joy” as the lyrics.  The tune was picked up by Edward Hodges (1796-1867) with lyrics provided by Henry Jackson van Dyke (1852-1933).  Many churches sing the hymn, which celebrates the trust and joy of the Christian life. The variations heard on the recording, of course, are mine.