Variations on an Original Theme, op. 76

The Variations in E♭ major piano trio, Op. 44, by Ludwig van Beethoven, is a series of fourteen variations on a theme, written for piano, violin and cello. Although this may be one of Beethoven's early works (written circa 1792, i.e., at around age 22), it was assigned its opus number when it was published in 1804 by Hoffmeister in Leipzig more than a decade after Beethoven began writing it.

Following common practice at the time, in this work Beethoven incorporated variations on popular themes from opera, notably from Das rote Käppchen (The Red Cap), a Singspiel by Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf, which had its premiere in Vienna in 1788. The opera reached Bonn in 1792, during the last months that Beethoven stayed there. Beethoven took one of the most popular pieces of this opera, a small segment of melody of "Ja, ich muss mich von ihr scheiden" (Yes, I must leave her), as the starting point for this trio. This line is from an aria sung by the village mayor Hans Christoph Nitsche, who announces that he must leave his wife. Beethoven's variations were probably finished when he left Bonn – a short sketch from 1792 has survived – but were published as Op. 44 in 1804.