Adventures with Beethoven

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Biography

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) 

Ludwig van Beethoven (Lood-vig vahn Bay-toh-vinn) was born in Bonn, Electorate of Cologne, Holy Roman Empire (Germany) in 1770. His grandfather and father were both singers and composers. His grandfather eventually became the music director for the court of the Archbishop-Elector of Cologne, making him the most prominent musician in Bonn. Beethoven’s father sang at the court and taught piano and violin lessons. 

Ludwig was born in 1770 and had two younger brothers, Kaspar, known as Karl, and Nikolaus. Beethoven began piano lessons at a young age with his father as his first teacher. He moved on to study with other musicians in town; continuing to study piano, as well as learning violin and viola. Around the age of nine Beethoven began composition lessons with the court’s organist, Christian Gottlob Neefe. Over the next four years, Beethoven began to write his first works and published his first composition, a set of piano variations, in 1783. He also got his first job as a musician, serving as Neefe’s assistant organist. He wrote three piano sonatas which he dedicated to the Elector (the highest ranking official in town) who recognized Beethoven’s talent and encouraged his musical studies. 

In 1787 Beethoven traveled to Vienna for the first time, at his employer’s expense. He hoped to meet Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Wolf-gang Ah-ma-day-us Mow-tsart), the most famous composer of the day, while in Vienna; however, there is no evidence to show whether they met. During his trip, Beethoven learned that his mother was ill. He returned home and was able to see her before she died. Beethoven’s father became ill shortly thereafter, leaving Beethoven to care for his two younger brothers and keeping him in Bonn for another five years. During these years he supported himself by teaching piano lessons and playing viola for the court orchestra. He also made friends with other musicians and prominent families who would go on to become important supporters later in his life. 

During this period in Bonn, Beethoven also composed quite a bit, including two cantatas performed for the new Holy Roman Emperor, and a set of variations based on a theme that he would use later on in his Symphony No. 3. In 1792 Franz Joseph Haydn, the most famous musician of the day, stopped in Bonn on his way home from London. Beethoven played in an orchestra for Haydn and arrangements were made for Beethoven to finally move to Vienna to study with Haydn. 

The Vienna Years 

Beethoven arrived in Vienna in November 1792, learning shortly after he arrived that his father had died. Unfortunately, Mozart had died recently as well, so Beethoven never had a chance to study with him. Rather than immediately trying to set himself up as a composer, Beethoven spent his time studying and performing. He took counterpoint lessons from Haydn, studied violin, and learned about opera from Antonio Salieri (An-toe-knee-oh Sal-ee-air-ee), the music director for the Imperial Court.

In 1794 Haydn returned to London for more concerts and the Elector back home in Bonn expected Beethoven to return since his teacher was gone. Instead Beethoven decided to stay in Vienna and study with other teachers. Also, the French army attacked Bonn and the city fell to French forces in October 1794, leaving Beethoven without money or a job to return to. 

During his time in Vienna, Beethoven became well-known as a performer, often giving recitals in the homes of wealthy individuals. He performed his first public recital in March 1795, performing one of his own piano concerti. Shortly after his successful performance, he published his first compositions which were a huge success. His profits were almost enough to cover his expenses for the entire year. Beethoven’s reputation as a composer continued to grow. Over the next few years he completed his first six string quartets, two symphonies, and a number of piano sonatas. His works from this period are undoubtedly influenced by Mozart and Haydn, but they do have his own distinct styles, such as the use of modulation and heightened emotional impact. 

By 1800 publishers and the public were demanding more and more new music from him. Beethoven earned extra money by teaching piano lessons, including to the daughters of a Hungarian countess. Apparently, Beethoven fell in love with one of his students, Josephine, perhaps the intended recipient of his “Immortal Beloved” letter in which he wrote of a relationship that would not work out. Beethoven wrote more works, including his Third Piano Concerto, a ballet, and an oratorio. He presented these successfully in concerts. His brother, Kaspar, moved to Vienna and helped manage publications and arrangements, allowing Beethoven to earn more money and retain better control over his work. 

Composing with Hearing Loss 

As early as 1798, Beethoven began to suffer hearing loss. He blamed it on a fit he suffered after being interrupted while working. When he got up after falling over, he said he stood up deaf. His hearing only partially recovered and he suffered from tinnitus, a ringing in his ears, for the rest of his life. No one is sure what caused his deafness, whether it was an illness, injury, or accident, but over the rest of his life his hearing kept getting worse until he was completely deaf. 

In 1802 Beethoven traveled to Heiligenstadt (Hi-lig-in-sh-da-tt), a small town outside of Vienna, to try and accept what was happening to him. He wrote a letter to his brothers, the Heiligenstadt Testament, explaining how devastated he was by his hearing loss, but resolving to not give up and keep writing new music. He did try to perform the premiere of his Piano Concerto No. 5 in 1811; however, his hearing had deteriorated so much, he couldn’t hear the orchestra. He did not perform in public again, except for conducting the premiere of his Symphony No. 9 in 1824. He used a variety of early hearing aids, including ear horns, to try and hear. He also was able to feel the vibrations, especially of the bass notes, from his piano. To communicate with his friends, he used notebooks. Visitors would write what they wanted to say to Beethoven and he would answer them, sometimes spoken, sometimes written. These books, mostly from the last ten years of his life, provide a wonderful view into Beethoven’s thoughts and feelings. 

Beethoven’s Heroic Period 

Although his hearing was deteriorating rapidly, from 1802 to 1812 Beethoven wrote a number of his best-known works in what scholars call his “heroic” period. His first composition from this era was Symphony No. 3, Eroica. It premiered in 1805 and, at the time, was the longest symphony ever written and featured many new and different ideas. Beethoven wrote the symphony with Napoleon Bonaparte, the famous French general, in mind. However, when Bonaparte crowned himself Emperor of France, Beethoven was so angry and disappointed he erased the dedication so roughly that he tore the manuscript. He then renamed the work Eroica, meaning heroic. 

During this decade, Beethoven completed five more symphonies (Numbers 4-8), string quartets, piano sonatas, his Violin Concerto, and Fidelio, the only opera he ever composed. Beethoven made a fairly good living through the earnings from publication of his works and concert performances. Because of the support and regular payments by wealthy nobles, Beethoven never had to take a job working full-time for one person. This allowed Beethoven more freedom to compose what he wanted, rather than what an employer requested. 

Toward the end of this period, Beethoven had struggles with his family and other relationships. Beethoven had fallen in love with several different women over the years. However, the feelings were never reciprocated. Beethoven and his brother, Kaspar, both got very sick. Beethoven paid to take care of his brother’s family and the resulting bills, along with Beethoven’s lack of new compositions, left him worried about money. He felt well enough by the summer of 1813 to complete a couple of small works. However, he was soon ill again and not writing. 

In the last decade of his life, Beethoven composed several more major works which feature a new, more romantic style. In these later works, Beethoven expanded and changed usual structural and harmonic forms. He completed a set of variations for piano, a Mass, several new piano sonatas, and a set of string quartets. He also completed his Symphony No. 9, Choral which featured vocal soloists and a choir within a symphony, the first time a composer had ever done that. Illness confined Beethoven to bed for the last eighteen months of his life. He did work, however, completing his last three string quartets. Many friends came to visit his sickbed. He died in Vienna in March 1827 during a thunderstorm right as a giant clap of thunder struck overhead. 

Historical Notes 

At this time Germany was not a fully unified country. There were many states ruled by Electors, Dukes, Princes, etc. Germany became the country we know it as today in January 1871 when Wilhelm I of Prussia became the first German Emperor. 

Electors were the seven selected members of the electoral college who then met to choose the Holy Roman Emperor. This position began in the 13th century and lasted beyond the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806. The electors kept their titles and reigned over their territories in some form until the unification of Germany. After the collapse of the Empire, some electors changed their titles to King or Grand Duke. These positions were sometimes hereditary and the heir apparent would be called the Prince-Elector. There was also a balance of secular and sacred Electors, with several Archbishops serving as Elector as well, including the Archbishop of Cologne, who brought Beethoven’s grandfather to Bonn.