Romantic imagery reflecting the intimate and lyrical character of Beethoven’s Für Elise , believed to have been written for his student Therese Malfatti. Für Elise belongs to the musical genre of the bagatelle —a short, characterful piano piece marked by apparent simplicity and direct expression. While bagatelles existed before him, Ludwig van Beethoven was the composer who elevated the genre, transforming it into a vehicle of genuine artistic value. This celebrated piece is the most famous bagatelle in Beethoven’s output. According to several biographers, the work may not have been dedicated to an “Elise” at all. A widely accepted theory suggests that the intended dedication was to Therese , and that the name Elise resulted from a copyist’s misreading. If so, the work was almost certainly written for Beethoven’s student Therese Malfatti , with whom the composer was romantically infatuated at the time. Composed in 1810, Für Elise remained unpublished until 1867, decades after Beeth...
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