Ludwig van Beethoven: An Overview

This December 16 marks the birthday of one of the world’s greatest composers. Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) was born to a musical family in Bonn, Germany. He was a pianist virtuoso from a young age and toured Europe to critical acclaim before going deaf in his late twenties/early thirties. Despite this seemingly crippling ailment, Beethoven continued to compose some of the greatest works of the Classical and Romantic eras, encapsulating the quintessential human spirit of perseverance.

Beethoven had a harsh upbringing by his abusive father who often beat him and woke him up in the middle of the night to practice. After his father’s passing, Beethoven studied with the great Joseph Haydn and, for a fleeting moment, crossed paths with Mozart. Beethoven was known for being a talented composer all-around, but his piano technique was unparalleled at the time. Even today, his 32 piano sonatas are a necessary staple of any serious piano student’s repertoire. Some famous ones to check out would be: “Pathétique”; “Moonlight”; “Tempest”; “Appassionata”; “Waldstein”; and “Hammerklavier”. Note that the names of these sonatas were given after these compositions were written, often by publishers and not by Beethoven.

After going deaf, Beethoven entered a state of depression in which he penned a quasi-suicide note, known as the “Heilegenstad Testament”. At the conclusion of this note we see his urge to continue composing despite such hardships. He would no longer continue to compose for the piano, but switched focus to mainly symphonies and chamber works. His symphonies are considered the pinnacle of the form and are some of the most performed to this day. Important ones to know are: No. 3 ” Eroica”; No. 5; No. 7; and No. 9 “Choral”, which features the tune “Ode to Joy”. Among many others, the Opus 133 quartet is one of the most complex string quartets ever written.

Beethoven was a quirky character, sometimes prone to being misanthropic and perhaps at times downright rude! Here are a couple interesting mannerisms of Beethoven:

• He didn’t know how to multiply!
• He was reported to move 70 to 80 times during his life!
• He counted the precise number of beans to go in his coffee every morning (60 beans).
• He frequented a pub everyday for about 4 hours.
• He loved long walks through the woods. (This isn’t particularly weird but it’s interesting to note that many successful composers and successful people in general did this!)