A difficult childhood Born in 1770 in Bonn, Ludwig von Beethoven was forced to care for his two younger brothers at the tender age of 16 due to his mother's death and his father's alcoholism.
Wanting to ensure that his family had enough money to live on, Beethoven was bold enough to demand half of his father's salary from the man's employer.
Studies in Vienna Beethoven left Bonn at the age of 22 and emigrated to Vienna where he studied under Haydn.
Despite his rather unsophisticated behavior, he was supported by the aristocracy based on the reputation he established for himself as a master of improvisation on the keyboard.
Archduke Rudolph went so far as to proclaim that Beethoven was exempt from court etiquette others in the aristocracy were expected to adhere to.
Initial success and hearing problems In 1795, Beethoven performed three piano trios, his first opus, which garnered critical acclaim.
Unfortunately, his hearing began to suffer shortly thereafter, making it difficult for him to hear and perform his music.
His antisocial behavior also increased.
The situation became so intolerable that Beethoven thought about killing himself, but decided against it in favor of his art, and the world has benefited tremendously from this incredible artist's decision to continue composing music.
The themes of struggle and heroism are evident in many of his compositions.
Beethoven originally dedicated his third symphony, Eroica, the first of these heroically themed works, to Napoleon but when Napoleon decided to give himself the title of Emperor, Beethoven withdrew the dedication.
"The Immortal Beloved" While he received critical acclaim for his compositions, Beethoven's love life was not as successful.
In 1812, he went through a period of depression during which he composed very little, possibly because he realized that he would never have a wife.
The famous letter to an "Immortal Beloved" was written that year to a woman whose identity has never been discovered.
Late Beethoven More family difficulties came Beethoven's way when he went through a protracted struggle to gain custody of his nephew, Karl, after his brother's untimely death.
But again, Beethoven's artistic abilities and creativity served as a counterbalance to his familial troubles toward the end of the 1810s.
During this period, Beethoven made free use of a variety of forms, many of them large-scale, as well as contrapuntal writing techniques, to create a musical style that is uniquely his own.
Beethoven was able to conduct music on numerous occasions despite the fact that he was deaf.
He actually wept at the sight of the unrestrained applause he received when he conducted his Ninth Symphony for the first time.
At his death in the midst of a severe thunderstorm on March 26, 1827, it is said that he spurned the heavens by shaking is fists as he took his last breath.
Wanting to ensure that his family had enough money to live on, Beethoven was bold enough to demand half of his father's salary from the man's employer.
Studies in Vienna Beethoven left Bonn at the age of 22 and emigrated to Vienna where he studied under Haydn.
Despite his rather unsophisticated behavior, he was supported by the aristocracy based on the reputation he established for himself as a master of improvisation on the keyboard.
Archduke Rudolph went so far as to proclaim that Beethoven was exempt from court etiquette others in the aristocracy were expected to adhere to.
Initial success and hearing problems In 1795, Beethoven performed three piano trios, his first opus, which garnered critical acclaim.
Unfortunately, his hearing began to suffer shortly thereafter, making it difficult for him to hear and perform his music.
His antisocial behavior also increased.
The situation became so intolerable that Beethoven thought about killing himself, but decided against it in favor of his art, and the world has benefited tremendously from this incredible artist's decision to continue composing music.
The themes of struggle and heroism are evident in many of his compositions.
Beethoven originally dedicated his third symphony, Eroica, the first of these heroically themed works, to Napoleon but when Napoleon decided to give himself the title of Emperor, Beethoven withdrew the dedication.
"The Immortal Beloved" While he received critical acclaim for his compositions, Beethoven's love life was not as successful.
In 1812, he went through a period of depression during which he composed very little, possibly because he realized that he would never have a wife.
The famous letter to an "Immortal Beloved" was written that year to a woman whose identity has never been discovered.
Late Beethoven More family difficulties came Beethoven's way when he went through a protracted struggle to gain custody of his nephew, Karl, after his brother's untimely death.
But again, Beethoven's artistic abilities and creativity served as a counterbalance to his familial troubles toward the end of the 1810s.
During this period, Beethoven made free use of a variety of forms, many of them large-scale, as well as contrapuntal writing techniques, to create a musical style that is uniquely his own.
Beethoven was able to conduct music on numerous occasions despite the fact that he was deaf.
He actually wept at the sight of the unrestrained applause he received when he conducted his Ninth Symphony for the first time.
At his death in the midst of a severe thunderstorm on March 26, 1827, it is said that he spurned the heavens by shaking is fists as he took his last breath.
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