Polonaise, Op. 89 (Beethoven) Polonaise, Op. 89 (Beethoven) The Polonaise in C major, Op. 89, by Ludwig van Beethoven is a polonaise for solo piano, published in 1815. He composed it in December 1814, at a time when the polonaise was becoming a popular dance and class marker among the European nobility. Beethoven was presented as a prominent artist at the ongoing Congress of Vienna, where he met the visiting Russian Empress Elizabeth Alexeievna. He dedicated the polonaise to the Empress, and was compensated with a sum of 50 ducats. The piece is Beethoven's first and only published standalone polonaise, and is notable as
Polka polka op. 45 and other examples. Earlier, Johann Strauss I and Josef Lanner wrote polkas designated as a "galop" (quick tempo) or as a regular polka that may not fall into any of the categories above. The polka was a further source of inspiration for the Strauss family in Vienna when Johann II and Josef Strauss wrote one for plucked string instruments (pizzicato) only, the well-known 'Pizzicato polka'. Johann II later wrote a 'New pizzicato polka' (Neu pizzicato-polka), opus 449, culled from music of his operetta 'Fürstin Ninetta'. Much earlier, he also wrote a 'joke-polka' (German "scherz-polka") entitled 'Champagne-polka', opus