Prometheus: The Creation of Beethoven’s Eroica Symphony
Presented by Jan Swafford, Musicologist
Saturday, May 9, 2026, 3:30 PM
About the Lecture:
Jan Swafford is an award-winning composer, writer, and musicologist whose works and writings have deeply shaped contemporary understanding of classical music.
Jan Swafford is an award-winning composer, writer, and musicologist whose works and writings have deeply shaped contemporary understanding of classical music.
About Jan Swafford
Jan Swafford is an award-winning composer, writer, and musicologist whose works and writings have deeply shaped contemporary understanding of classical music. He is the acclaimed author of major biographies on Johannes Brahms, Ludwig van Beethoven, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, all widely praised for their insight, scholarship, and narrative style.
Jan Swafford is an award-winning composer, writer, and musicologist whose works and writings have deeply shaped contemporary understanding of classical music. He is the acclaimed author of major biographies on Johannes Brahms, Ludwig van Beethoven, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, all widely praised for their insight, scholarship, and narrative style.
As a composer, Swafford’s music has been performed by ensembles across the United States and abroad, noted for its lyrical intensity and expressive depth. He has written extensively for The Boston Globe, Slate, and American Scholar, and is a frequent lecturer for orchestras and universities, including the Boston Symphony pre-concert lectures.
A graduate of Harvard University and the Yale School of Music, Swafford brings to his work a unique combination of rigorous scholarship and a storyteller’s voice, making the world of classical music accessible and vividly alive for audiences and readers alike.
About the Series:
Arts Speak is an educational series of lectures and performance lectures that celebrates the power of creativity through arts and music. Join us in person or tune in virtually to explore, learn, and connect on a wide variety of topics surrounding Arts and music with renowned experts. Presenters have included Dr. Samuel Adler, Susan Rogers, Michael Burritt, M. T. Anderson, and Ēriks Ešenvalds.
Arts Speak is an educational series of lectures and performance lectures that celebrates the power of creativity through arts and music. Join us in person or tune in virtually to explore, learn, and connect on a wide variety of topics surrounding Arts and music with renowned experts. Presenters have included Dr. Samuel Adler, Susan Rogers, Michael Burritt, M. T. Anderson, and Ēriks Ešenvalds.
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