DAILY DOSE of BEETHOVEN (April 29, 2020)

Beethoven remarked that the only piece he had written which moved himself to tears, long after its composition, was the Cavatina from his String Quartet Op. 130.

The great conductor, Wilhelm Furtwangler, knew that an orchestra could not perform such works better than the string quartet that they were composed for. He nonetheless conducted an orchestra performance, because he felt that he had never heard a string quartet do it correctly. This beautiful performance was broadcast in 1940, as WWII was underway.

Beethoven marked the short one-minute section beginning at 5:00, "verklempt", translated variously as "choked -up, unable to speak", even "gasping for breath."