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| Ludwig van Beethoven |
Today, The Grandma has received the wonderful visit of Tina Picotes, one of her closest friends, who is a great painter and fan of classical music. The Grandma loves classical music, too. They have been talking about sonatas, allegros, concerts and authors and they have dedicated special attention to Ludwig van Beethoven, the German music who is considered a crucial figure in the transition between the classical and romantic eras in classical music, who was born on a day like today in 1770.
Before Tina's arrival, The Grandma has read a new chapter of Clare West's Treading on Dreams-Stories from Ireland.
Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 1770-26 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist.
A crucial figure in the transition between the classical and romantic eras in classical music, he remains one of the most recognized and influential musicians of this period, and is considered to be one of the greatest composers of all time.
Beethoven was born in Bonn, the capital of the Electorate of Cologne, and part of the Holy Roman Empire. He displayed his musical talents at an early age and was vigorously taught by his father Johann van Beethoven, and was later taught by composer and conductor Christian Gottlob Neefe.
At age 21, he moved to Vienna and studied composition with Joseph Haydn. Beethoven then gained a reputation as a virtuoso pianist, and was soon courted by Karl Alois, Prince Lichnowsky for compositions, which resulted in Opus 1 in 1795.
More information: Ludvig van Beethoven
The piece was a great critical and commercial success, and was followed by Symphony No. 1 in 1800. This composition was distinguished for its frequent use of sforzandi, as well as sudden shifts in tonal centers that were uncommon for traditional symphonic form, and the prominent, more independent use of wind instruments.
In 1801, he also gained notoriety for his six String Quartets and for the ballet
The Creatures of Prometheus. During this period, his hearing began to
deteriorate, but he continued to conduct, premiering his third and fifth
symphonies in 1804 and 1808, respectively. His condition worsened to
almost complete deafness by 1811, and he then gave up performing and
appearing in public.
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| Ludwig van Beethoven |
During this period of self exile, Beethoven composed many of his most admired works; his seventh symphony premiered in 1813, with its second movement, Allegretto, achieving widespread critical acclaim. He composed the piece Missa Solemnis for a number of years until it premiered 1824, which preceded his ninth symphony, with the latter gaining fame for being among the first examples of a choral symphony.
In 1826, his fourteenth String Quartet was noted for having seven linked movements played without a break, and is considered the final major piece performed before his death a year later.
His career is conventionally divided into early, middle, and late periods; the early period is typically seen to last until 1802, the middle period from 1802 to 1812, and the late period from 1812 to his death in 1827.
During his life, he composed nine symphonies; five piano concertos; one violin concerto; thirty-two piano sonatas; sixteen string quartets; two masses; and the opera Fidelio. Other works, like Für Elise, were discovered after his death, and are also considered historical musical achievements.
Beethoven's legacy is characterized for his innovative compositions, namely through the combinations of vocals and instruments, and also for widening the scope of sonata, symphony, concerto, and quartet, while he is also noted for his troublesome relationship with his contemporaries.
Beethoven was the grandson of Ludwig van Beethoven (1712–1773), a musician from the town of Mechelen in the Austrian Duchy of Brabant (in what is now the Flemish region of Belgium) who had moved to Bonn at the age of 21.
Ludwig was employed as a bass singer at the court of Clemens August, Archbishop-Elector of Cologne, eventually rising to become, in 1761, Kapellmeister (music director) and thereafter the pre-eminent musician in Bonn. The portrait he commissioned of himself towards the end of his life remained displayed in his grandson's rooms as a talisman of his musical heritage.
Ludwig had one son, Johann (1740–1792), who worked as a tenor in the same musical establishment and gave keyboard and violin lessons to supplement his income. Johann married Maria Magdalena Keverich in 1767; she was the daughter of Johann Heinrich Keverich (1701–1751), who had been the head chef at the court of the Archbishopric of Trier.
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| Ludwig van Beethoven |
Beethoven was born of this marriage in Bonn. There is no authentic record of the date of his birth; however, the registry of his baptism, in a Catholic service at the Parish of St. Regius on 17 December 1770, survives.
As children of that era were traditionally baptised the day after birth in the Catholic Rhine country, and it is known that Beethoven's family and his teacher Johann Albrechtsberger celebrated his birthday on 16 December, most scholars accept 16 December 1770 as his date of birth.
Some time after 1779, Beethoven began his studies with his most important teacher in Bonn, Christian Gottlob Neefe, who was appointed the Court's Organist in that year. Neefe taught him composition, and by March 1783 had helped him write his first published composition: a set of keyboard variations (WoO 63).
Beethoven soon began working with Neefe as assistant organist, at first unpaid (1781), and then as a paid employee (1784) of the court chapel conducted by the Kapellmeister Andrea Luchesi. His first three piano sonatas, named Kurfürst (Elector) for their dedication to the Elector Maximilian Friedrich (1708–1784), were published in 1783. Maximilian Frederick noticed his talent early, and subsidised and encouraged the young man's musical studies.
Maximilian Frederick's
successor as the Elector of Bonn was Maximilian Francis, the youngest
son of Empress Maria Theresa of Austria, and he brought notable changes
to Bonn. Echoing changes made in Vienna by his brother Joseph, he
introduced reforms based on Enlightenment philosophy, with increased
support for education and the arts.
More information: Classic FM I & II
The teenage Beethoven was almost certainly influenced by these changes. He may also have been influenced at this time by ideas prominent in freemasonry, as Neefe and others around Beethoven were members of the local chapter of the Order of the Illuminati.
In December 1786, Beethoven travelled to Vienna, at his employer's expense, for the first time, apparently in the hope of studying with Mozart. The details of their relationship are uncertain, including whether they actually met. Having learned that his mother was ill, Beethoven returned quickly to Bonn in May 1787. His mother died shortly thereafter, and his father lapsed deeper into alcoholism. As a result, he became responsible for the care of his two younger brothers, and spent the next five years in Bonn.
From 1790 to 1792, he
composed a significant number of works -none were published at the time,
and most are now listed as WoO, works without opus number- that
demonstrated his growing range and maturity. With the Elector's help,
he left Bonn for Vienna in November 1792, amid rumours of war spilling
out of France; he learned shortly after his arrival that his father had
died.
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| Ludwig van Beethoven |
Beethoven composed his first six string quartets (Op. 18) between 1798 and 1800 -commissioned by, and dedicated to, Prince Lobkowitz. They were published in 1801.
With premieres of his First and Second Symphonies in 1800 and 1803, he became regarded as one of the most important of a generation of young composers following Haydn and Mozart. He also continued to write in other forms, turning out widely known piano sonatas like the Pathétique sonata (Op. 13), which Cooper describes as surpass[ing] any of his previous compositions, in strength of character, depth of emotion, level of originality, and ingenuity of motivic and tonal manipulation. He also completed his Septet (Op. 20) in 1799, which was one of his most popular works during his lifetime.
With premieres of his First and Second Symphonies in 1800 and 1803, he became regarded as one of the most important of a generation of young composers following Haydn and Mozart. He also continued to write in other forms, turning out widely known piano sonatas like the Pathétique sonata (Op. 13), which Cooper describes as surpass[ing] any of his previous compositions, in strength of character, depth of emotion, level of originality, and ingenuity of motivic and tonal manipulation. He also completed his Septet (Op. 20) in 1799, which was one of his most popular works during his lifetime.
His
compositions between 1800 and 1802 were dominated by two large-scale
orchestral works, although he continued to produce other important works
such as the piano sonata Sonata quasi una fantasia known as the Moonlight Sonata. In the spring of 1801 he completed The Creatures of
Prometheus, a ballet. The work received numerous performances in 1801
and 1802, and he rushed to publish a piano arrangement to capitalise on
its early popularity.
In
the spring of 1802 he completed the Second Symphony, intended for
performance at a concert that was cancelled. The symphony received its
premiere instead at a subscription concert in April 1803 at the Theater
an der Wien, where he had been appointed composer in residence. In
addition to the Second Symphony, the concert also featured the First
Symphony, the Third Piano Concerto, and the oratorio Christ on the Mount
of Olives. Reviews were mixed, but the concert was a financial success;
he was able to charge three times the cost of a typical concert ticket.
More information: The Guardian
Beethoven is reported to have dated his hearing loss from a fit he suffered in 1798 induced by a rage at the interruption of his work-having fallen over, he got up to find himself deaf. His hearing only ever partially recovered and, during its gradual decline, was impeded by a severe form of tinnitus.
As early as 1801, he wrote to friends describing his symptoms and the difficulties they caused in both professional and social settings, although it is likely some of his close friends were already aware of the problems.
The cause of his
deafness is unknown, but has variously been attributed to typhus,
auto-immune disorders, such as systemic lupus erythematosus, and even
his habit of immersing his head in cold water to stay awake. The
explanation from his autopsy was that he had a distended inner ear,
which developed lesions over time. Paget's disease is another possible
cause of his deafness.
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| Ludwig van Beethoven |
In the autumn of 1808, after having been rejected for a position at the royal theatre, he received an offer from Napoleon's brother Jérôme Bonaparte, then king of Westphalia, for a well-paid position as Kapellmeister at the court in Cassel. To persuade him to stay in Vienna, the Archduke Rudolph, Prince Kinsky and Prince Lobkowitz, after receiving representations from the composer's friends, pledged to pay him a pension of 4000 florins a year.
Between 1815 and 1817 Beethoven's output dropped again. He attributed part of this to a lengthy illness, he called it an inflammatory fever, that he had for more than a year, starting in October 1816. Biographers have speculated on a variety of other reasons that also contributed to the decline, including the difficulties in the personal lives of his would-be paramours and the harsh censorship policies of the Austrian government. The illness and death of his brother Kaspar from tuberculosis may also have played a role.
Beethoven was bedridden for most of his remaining months, and many friends came to visit. He died on 26 March 1827 at the age of 56 during a thunderstorm. His friend Anselm Hüttenbrenner, who was present at the time, said that there was a peal of thunder at the moment of death. An autopsy revealed significant liver damage, which may have been due to heavy alcohol consumption. It also revealed considerable dilation of the auditory and other related nerves.
Beethoven's funeral
procession on 29 March 1827 was attended by an estimated 20,000 people.
Franz Schubert, who died the following year and was buried next to him,
was one of the torchbearers. He was buried in a dedicated grave in the
Währing cemetery, north-west of Vienna, after a requiem mass at the
church of the Holy Trinity (Dreifaltigkeitskirche). His remains were
exhumed for study in 1862, and moved in 1888 to Vienna's
Zentralfriedhof. In 2012, his crypt was checked to see if his teeth had
been stolen during a series of grave robberies of other famous Viennese
composers.
More information: Gramphone
The Beethoven Monument in Bonn was unveiled in August 1845, in honour of the 75th anniversary of his birth. It was the first statue of a composer created in Germany, and the music festival that accompanied the unveiling was the impetus for the very hasty construction of the original Beethovenhalle in Bonn, it was designed and built within less than a month, on the urging of Franz Liszt. A statue to Mozart had been unveiled in Salzburg, Austria, in 1842. Vienna did not honour Beethoven with a statue until 1880. His is the only name inscribed on one of the plaques that trim Symphony Hall, Boston; the others were left empty because it was felt that only Beethoven's popularity would endure.
There is a museum, the Beethoven House, the place of his birth, in central Bonn. The same city has hosted a musical festival, the Beethovenfest, since 1845. The festival was initially irregular but has been organised annually since 2007.
The Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies serves as a museum, research center, and host of lectures and performances devoted solely to this life and works.
The third largest crater on Mercury is named in his honour, as is the main-belt asteroid 1815 Beethoven.
More information: Euronews
Music is the one incorporeal entrance
into the higher world of knowledge which comprehends mankind
but which mankind cannot comprehend.
Ludwig van Beethoven
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