The Fifteen Variations (with Fugue) op. 35 composed in 1802 are known primarily by their sobriquet “Eroica Variations” because the theme is also used in the finale of the Third Symphony. Together with its sister work, opus 34, this composition marks the breakthrough of character variations. Not without pride did the composer stress to his publisher that both works were “arranged in a truly quite new fashion.” For the first time ever, the Eroica Variations are available in a standalone edition. The musical text of the Urtext edition, with extensive foreword and commentary, was prepared on the basis of the later Critical Apparatus of the Beethoven Complete Edition. The fingering comes from the esteemed hands of Ian Fountain.
G. Henle Publishers stands for Urtext sheet music of the highest quality. The Urtext editions not only provide the undistorted and authoritative musical text but are also aesthetically pleasing, optimised for practical use and extremely durable. And then there is the strong, distinctive blue profile: (almost) all of the Urtext editions are bound in the characteristic blue cardboard.
Musicians trust Henle's blue Urtext editions because they:
- provide an undistorted, reliable and authoritative musical text
- offer superb, aesthetically appealing music engraving
- are optimised for practical use (page turns, fingerings)
- are of high quality and durable (cover, paper, binding)
- contain a short preface that introduces the work (particularly useful for AMEB exams) in German, English and French, as well as explanatory footnotes for particularly interesting passages in the score
- contain a description of the sources, an evaluation of the sources, readings and a documentation of the corrections made (= "Critical Report") in German and English, and often also in French
