When I first recorded the Beethoven symphonies the 1960s it was above all the speeds that shocked people. Old instruments, size of orchestra, seating, vibrato-free sound were all new, but for us the speeds were vitally important. And of course Beethoven wrote a clear metronome mark for every movement of every symphony. We cheekily printed these speeds on the cover of the CDs, because after all they are a part of the score.

Only a few years earlier one quite well-known English critic spent weeks listing, and averaging, the recorded Beethoven symphony speeds of 5 or 6 famous conductors of the time. By the amount the average differed from the score, he claimed that by that amount the composer’s metronome must have been faulty.

It was a ridiculous idea of course, to give any conductor more importance than the composer. It showed how powerful the curious hero-worship of maestri was at that time. And I have met students who still think that the interpretations of the hero maestri of the 20th century must now be considered “a part of the score”.

Of course that too is a preposterous notion. I turned both ideas on their heads: By the amount that each average speed differed from the metronome, I said it was the conductors who were at fault. The evidence of the metronome is there to be taken seriously, not arrogantly ignored. And no interpretation, however good, should ever take the place of the score.

In any case Beethoven’s metronome was not faulty, as so many students have been wrongly told. It’s a simple clock mechanism; nothing much to go wrong with it. I’ve checked old metronomes in various musical instrument museums against my Seiko; they’re still quite accurate.

So too is the Long Case clock in my hallway here (made in 1827). It ticks away happily at 60. In 1800, 60 was the only mechanical sound anyone was likely to hear. People were hard-wired to 60 from the clocks in their own homes.

In any case you don’t have a choice; as I just said Beethoven’s markings are a part of the score. He said himself that they would ensure the proper performance of his music in the future. It’s true that he got that wrong; his wonderful music survived all sorts of pulling around over the years. But  nevertheless, and unsurprisingly, it sounds far far better at his prescribed tempi.

It’s difficult to understand what conductors like Furtwängler and Klemperer, and dozens of others, thought they were doing, playing Beethoven’s slow movements at literally half speed or less. The faster movements are sometimes right and sometimes wrong, but the so-called Slow Movements are a disaster.

The metronome marks show that, just as we saw with Haydn and Mozart, there are no really slow movements in Beethoven. They  indicate what were simply the normal speeds of Classical, 18th century music.

When I was researching these matters back in the 1970s, I got my wife to cover up the metronome marks in all 9 symphonies. Then, for each movement, I wrote down what speed I thought an 18th century musician would assume from the Italian words (Andante, Allegro etc) that Beethoven used. I found my suggestions were sometimes new to us, but always on, or very near, the mark. It’s not  difficult if one has seriously studied the tempi of Haydn and Mozart.

To get this right of course I had to pay close attention to the difference between simple and compound metres (for instance C and 6/8). Just as in Haydn and Mozart, so also for Beethoven 6/8 is not“in 6” , but “in 2”. The eighth note was not a unit of measure.

In the 20th century there seemed to be a craving for very slow movements. But even with the “Romantic” Beethoven there are, in fact, none.

Let’s have a look through the slow movements in each of the Nine, with a metronome in hand:

Symphony No.1.

Andante con moto: Eighth note=120.

As in Mozart 3/8 is beaten “in 1”.

Obviously Andante refers to the measure. And remember my tip to think of two of the eighths as Andante 2/4. That gives us 60. Perfect.

Symphony no. 2.

Larghetto: Eighth note=92.

As in No. 1 the Larghetto is to be    felt “in 1”. Because the speed is gentler you may want to beat 3 at the start, or at some places later on. But if you can’t beat 1 most of the time you are probably too slow!

Symphony No. 3.

Adagio assai: Eighth note=80.

Adagio of course refers to the quarter note, two beats of 40.

40 is still exactly the speed of the modern British Army’s Slow March. It’s steady, but not all that slow. We moved our old Queen all over London at that pace for her funeral a couple of years ago.

Symphony No. 4.

Adagio: Quarter note=84

Again Adagio clearly refers to the quarter note. The movement is to be beaten in 3 at metronome 42 (same speed as Eroica by the way).

Symphony No. 5.

Andante con moto: Eighth note=92.

Beethoven changes tack this time: here Andante must refer to the eighth note. Nonetheless the feeling must still be “in one” (like the Larghetto 92 in Symphony No. 2.) If he had wanted a slow tempo he would have written the movement in ¾.

Symphony No. 6.

Andante molto moto: Dotted quarter=50.

As so often Andante refers to the groupings of three eighth notes.

Any slower and the stream wouldn’t flow at all.

Symphony No. 7.

Allegretto: Quarter=76.

This symphony, and the next, don’t even pretend to have “Slow Movements”. 76 may seem a bit slow for Allegretto. But that’s where the metronome marks are so important. They’re exact, where mere words are not.

Despite that, nothing seems to stop some conductors from taking the piece funereally slowly. Please don’t do that. It’s got to dance. Again a feeling of “one in a bar” helps.

Symphony No. 8.

Allegretto scherzando: Eighth note=88.

An easy one this. It won’t be “jokey” if it’s slow.

Symphony No. 9.

Adagio molto e cantabile: Quarter note=60.

Once again confusion for the unaware. And once again the metronome can save us (though not old friends like Furtwängler, Böhm, and Klemperer).

Maelzel’s metronome chart actually shows Adagio as 60. We can either play the score, or an arrangement. I prefer the score.

By the way, all the relatively lively “Slow Movements” in Beethoven give yet another very valuable layer of scientific proof looking back at similar movements in Haydn and Mozart. His metronome markings show us what was absolutely typical in the late 1700s.

You might be surprised how few recordings reach the exact tempo Beethoven calls for. Many are miles away. A few get near. But getting near is not the same as being on the button. if I listen to 20 or 30 performances I realise what a difference it makes to hear the real thing. At the exact tempo all sorts of energy is released. Often I am shocked to be the only successful candidate on the list!

I believe Beethoven, one of the great geniuses among composers, knew what he wanted. Let’s obey him. He’s worth it.