Ludwig van Beethoven (Bonn,1770-Vienna,1827)
He was a German composer and
pianist, who lived between the Classical and Romantic eras. Beethoven became
one of the most famous and influential of all composers. His most known
compositions include: 9 symphonies, 5 concerts for piano, 32 piano sonatas, and
16 string quartets. He also composed other chamber music, choral works and
songs.
- Background and early life
Beethoven
was the grandson of Lodewijk van Beethoven, a musician who moved at the age of
twenty to Bonn. Lodewijk had one son, Johann van Beethoven (1740–1792), who
worked as a tenor and gave lessons on piano and violin to supplement his
income.
Johann married Maria Magdalena Kewerich in 1767.Beethoven was born of this marriage
in Bonn. Seven children born to Johann van Beethoven, and only Ludwig, the
second-born, and two younger brothers survived infancy.
Beethoven's
first music teacher was his father. Sometime after 1779, Beethoven began his
studies with his most important teacher in Bonn, Christian Gottlob Neefe. Neefe
taught Beethoven composition, and by March 1783, had helped him write his first
published composition. Maximilian Frederick noticed
Beethoven's talent early and subsidized and encouraged the young man's musical
studies.
In
March 1787 Beethoven traveled to Vienna for the first time, apparently in the
hope of studying with Mozart.After just two weeks Beethoven
learned that his mother was severely ill, and returned home. His mother died
shortly thereafter, and his father lapsed deeper into alcoholism. As a result,
Beethoven became responsible for the care of his two younger brothers, and he
spent the next five years in Bonn.
- Establishing his career in Vienna
Beethoven was probably first
introduced to Joseph Haydn in late 1790. With the Elector's help, Beethoven
moved to Vienna in 1792. From 1790 to 1792, he composed a significant number of
works that demonstrated his growing range and maturity.
Beethoven
did not immediately set out to establish himself as a composer, but rather
devoted himself to study and performance. His friend Nikolaus Simrock had
begun publishing his compositions. Beethoven's first public performance in
Vienna was in March 1795, a concert in which he first performed one of his
piano concerts.
Beethoven became regarded as one of
the most important of a generation of young composers following Haydn and
Mozart.
- Loss of hearing
Around
1796, by the age of 26, Beethoven began to lose his hearing. He suffered from a
severe form of tinnitus, a "ringing" in his ears that made it hard
for him to hear music; he also avoided conversation. The cause of Beethoven's
deafness is unknown, but it has variously been attributed to typhus, auto-immune
disorders, and even his habit of immersing his head in cold water to stay
awake.
- Custody struggle
After the
illness and death of his brother, Kaspar, Beethoven
immediately became embroiled in a protracted legal dispute with Carl's wife
Johanna over custody of their son Karl. While
Beethoven was successful at having his nephew removed from her custody in
February 1816, the case was not fully resolved until 1820.On 18 December 1818 the case was
transferred to the Magistracy, where he lost guardianship. Beethoven appealed and regained custody.
- Late works (1822-1827)
Beethoven
began a renewed study of older music, including works by J. S. Bach and Handel, and he
returned to the keyboard to compose.
- Illness and death
There is
dispute about the cause of Beethoven's death: alcoholic cirrhosis, syphilis,
infectious hepatitis, lead poisoning, sarcoidosis and Whipple's disease have
all been proposed. Some analyses have led to controversial assertions that
Beethoven was accidentally poisoned to death by excessive doses of lead-based
treatments administered under instruction from his doctor.
- Memorials
The
Beethoven Monument, Bonn, was unveiled in August 1845, in honor of his 75th
anniversary. It was the first statue of a composer created in Germany. Vienna
did not honor Beethoven with a statue until 1880. There is a museum, the
'Beethoven Haus', in central Bonn, the place of his birth.
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