Beethoven Biography

Ludwig van Beethoven is perhaps the most famous and Influential of all the pianist composers of his time. He was considered instrumental In the transition of between the classical and romantic eras In Western Art Music. Beethoven was born on December 1 6th, 1770 In Bonn (now called Cologne, Germany) to parents of Belgian descent. HIS father, Johann, was a musician at the court of Bonn, and his mother, Maria, whom he later deemed as his best friend, was described as a warmhearted gentle women.There were seven children born into his family, only three survived, in which Ludwig was the oldest. Johann supplemented his income by teaching piano and violin and so took an interest in teaching Ludwig from a very early age. He began to see Ludwig as prodigy, a young Mozart. Ludwig gave his first public performance at the age of 7-1/2, In cologne, however, his father exploited his son, announcing that he was only 6. Because of this, Beethoven was always thought of as being younger than he actually was. Ludwig soon outgrew the teachings of his father and began to study with Christian Gotten Neff, who was the Courts organist.Neff taught Ludwig about composition and by March of 1783, had helped him write his first published composition: a set of keyboard variations. He then began working with Neff as an assistant organist and published three piano sonatas. By his teenage years, Beethoven had become influenced by the political philosophies of the time, such as freemasonry and Order of the Illuminate. In 1787 Beethoven traveled to Vienna, as Vienna was becoming a beacon of culture and music. He had hoped to be able to study with Mozart. It is unclear if Beethoven actually met or studies with Mozart.After two weeks, Ludwig learned that his mother was dying and so went back home. HIS mother died shortly thereafter. His father turned to alcohol and left Beethoven to care for his younger siblings for 1 OFF He then returned to Vienna and was introduced to many influential people during this time. Franz Wiggler, a young medical student, introduced Ludwig to the von reining family, where he taught piano to some of the children. Beethoven would eventually come to marry one of the von Briefings young daughters. Everyone in the musical and aristocratic world would come to admire the young composer. They Nerve indeed Beethovens greatest supporters. He often became angry with one or all of them, however, his talents often excused his excessive, impulsive behavior. In 1796 Beethoven began to lose his hearing (the cause of this is unknown, but recent tests on Beethovens hair indicate he may have had lead poisoning). He was lust 26 years of age. He also suffered from ringing in the ears, this made if hard for him to hear music. Because of this, he often avoided conversation. In 1800, Beethoven organized a concert in Vienna, including among his other Norms, his first symphony. At the time, this symphony was considered strange, overly extravagant, and even risquà ©. At this very young age, Beethoven was pushing the boundaries of music for the times. In 1801, Beethoven confessed to his friend that he feared he was becoming deaf. On advice from his doctor, he moved to a small town called Halogenated in an attempt to come to terms with his deafness. Over time, his hearing loss became profound. There is a well known story about Beethoven that at one of his concerts, he had to be turned around to hear the thunderous applause from the audience, but upon hearing nothing, he wept.However, it did not stop him from composing music. He continued to compose, although playing concerts became impossible, after an attempt to play his symphony #5 at a concert in 1811, in which he failed miserably, he never played biblically again. He tried many types of hearing aids, IEEE. , a special ear horn but to no avail. By 1814 Beethoven was totally deaf, so he devised a plan to have a conversation book, in which his friends wrote down their conversations to be able to communicate with him. He could then respond orally or in the book.Out off total 400 conversation books, 264 books were altered to destroyed after Beethovens death by Anton Schneider (Beethovens biographer) , who wished only an idealized biography of the composer to survive. In 1807, Beethoven wrote his third symphony for Bonaparte. Bonaparte was seen as a liberator of people, which then opened the door of hope for all people. However, thieving became angry and when the First Consul declared himself emperor and put that anger into his music, spewing out his name from the musical score.It was During this time period, Ludwig was commissioned by the Viennese government o begin composing an opera, entitled Lenore. This would be the only opera he Mould compose. Critics speculate it is because he was not skilled in this area. It Net through several revisions and was retiled Fiddled, against his wishes. It debuted on November 20th, 1805 to a very small audience of French officers under Napoleon. From the 1805 onward, Beethovens productivity increased dramatically, having reached his musical maturity. He had become regarded as one of the most important in a generation of young composers, following Hayden and Mozart. Thieve continued to teach students, and one student, Franz Lists, premiered dovecotes fifth piano concerto, entitled The Emperor in 1812. Beethoven had been supported in Vienna by many wealthy benefactors in order to be able to pursue his love of music freely. However, that came to an end when Prince Lobotomize fell into financial difficulty, and Prince Sink died. Thereafter, Beethoven had to struggle for money and financial independence. In 1813, Johann Envenom Emanuel, inventory, made contact with Ludwig, creating arioso devices to help Beethoven with his hearing. Beethoven created The Victory of Wellington, a work written for a mechanical instrument created by Emanuel called the pan harmonica, but it was above all the metronome, which helped evolve music and Beethoven took an interest immediately, and this helped him to play music as he Niches it to be played, with his hearing deficits. 1814, Beethoven wrote his seventh and eighth symphonies, and also re-worked his opera, renaming it Fiddled, gaining popularity with the new version. In November 1815, Ludwig life would take a dramatic change. His brother died, paving custody of his son, Karl, aged 9, to be shared by both his wife and Beethoven.He found it very hard to raise the child, being deaf and unable to understand him. He often was in conflict with his sister in law. In 1816, Carl Czerny (past student of Beethoven) became Karts music teacher, but he did not find him to be talented, as Beethoven had wished him to be. At this time, thieving would draft the first theme as to what would become his ninth and final be his greatest, and considered by some to be the greatest piece of music ever ruttier. It was commissioned by the Philharmonic Society of London, and debuted n 7th of May, 1824 in Vienna.Unfortunately, the ninth symphony was not financially rewarding. Financial problems continued to undermine the composer. At this time, he began to compose the last quartet, in the midst of failing health. He was now 54. He was ill and bedridden, however, he was able to complete the Fifteenth quartet during this time. Slow to recover, he continued on to complete the remainder of Thirteen, Fourteen and Sixteen, when he took sick again and remained In bed for many months. Beethoven died on March 26, 1827 at the age of 56, during a thunderstorm.An autopsy revealed that he had significant liver from alcohol. It is estimated that he composed over 650 pieces of music, including nine symphonies, nine concertos and 32 piano Sonatas, and many other unfinished Norms. There is no clear agreement among critics and scholars as to Beethovens most significant contribution to classical music. This, more than anything else, speaks to the composers true greatness and talent. It cannot be disputed that Beethoven played an essential role in influencing composers to this day because his achievements were so numerous and his scope of music was so vast.