ABSTRACT
Just as in his pianistic work Beethoven lives on the piano, so, in his symphonies, overtures, and chamber music he draws his sustenance from his instrumental ensemble. With him the instrumentation is never apparel, and that is why it never strikes one. The profound wisdom with which he distributes parts to separate instruments or to whole groups, the carefulness of his instrumental writing, and the precision with which he indicates his wishes — all these testify to the fact that we are above all in the presence of a tremendous constructive force.
