Abwesenheit and Anwesenheit in Beethoven's Op. 81a

Abstract

A sense of absence can be evoked in a piece of music through various means. For instance, the appearance of a musical event may be suggested through certain features while being noticeably obscured by others, or the arrival of an event that is strongly prepared ultimately may be conspicuously thwarted. Such strategies may be witnessed in the second movement of Beethoven's Sonata for Piano in E♭, Op. 81a. Significantly, Beethoven subtitled this movement "Abwesenheit"—that is, "Absence." This subtitle and also the layout of the movement arguably have programmatic implications possibly understandable as relating to landmark events that occurred in Vienna around the time of the sonata's composition.