LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN (1770-1827)

A composer of the Classical and Romantic eras.

Ludwig van Beethoven had a very poor and unhappy childhood. He began piano lessons at age four. When Ludwig turned eight his father decided to make money from his son’s talent. He presented Ludwig as a concert pianist and advertised that the eight-year-old Ludwig was only six years old.

Although Ludwig was never a successful child performer like his father had hoped, by 14 he was quite a good musician and became the assistant organist at a local church. At 17, he met composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, who predicted a great career in music for Ludwig. By age 19, he was playing violin in local orchestras and giving music lessons to help support his family.

In his early twenties, Beethoven moved to Vienna, Austria, and began composing and performing as a concert pianist. Here, he took composition lessons from composer George Frederic Handel. Beethoven knew that to earn a living as a composer, he needed wealthy patrons who would help him financially. He began making friends with wealthy supporters of music. By 1795 (age 25) he abandoned teaching and began composing and performing full time.

The period of 1800-1815 was prolific for Beethoven. By 1815 (age 45) he had completed eight symphonies, twenty-seven piano sonatas, numerous sonatas for various string instruments, ten piano trios, eleven string quartets, dozens of orchestral works, and many vocal solos and choral works.

Composing was difficult for Beethoven. He anguished over every piece.He had begun losing his hearing as a young man, and by his mid-forties gave up his performing career, devoting as much time as possible to composing. The last 12 years of his life were spent composing while he slowly but steadily became deaf.

Beethoven spent his life seeking financial support from wealthy patrons of the arts. He fell in love several times but never married, his poor origins preventing him from marrying the upper -class women he desired. In practical matters such as renting an apartment, or organizing performances or publication of his music, he was a disaster.

Beethoven was short, stocky, and muscular. He dressed carelessly. He was often restless and moody, and worked at composing every morning with intense concentration. He would fly into rage at small matters that upset him, yet he was always loyal to his friends and supporters. Those friends and supporters helped to give Beethoven the freedom to compose some of the greatest European music of the 19th century.