"The vibrations on the air are the breath of God speaking to man's soul. Music is the language of God. We musicians are as close to God as man can be. We hear His voice, we read His lips, we give birth to the children of God, who sing His praise. That's what musicians are."
— Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven (December 1770 March 1827) was a German composer and is widely regarded as the greatest composer who ever lived. He was the predominant musical figure in the transitional period between the Classical (1730s - 1820s) and Romantic (1800 1910) eras. In musical form, he was a considerable innovator and widened the scope of the sonata, symphony, concerto, and quartet.
Of the seven children born to his parents, only he and two brothers survived infancy. His first teacher was his father, who steadily declined into alcoholism, and by the age of 18, Beethoven was the breadwinner of his family. Yet Beethoven’s incredible musical talents did not go unnoticed.
At the age of 12, Beethoven became the Holy Roman Empire’s court organist. And at 14, he was sent to Vienna, Austria to study with Mozart. In 1790, at the age of 20, he was recognized by Joseph Haydn, a famous Austrian composer, who was very impressed by Beethoven’s talent and made him his pupil.
Beethoven composed regularly, and like most composers of his generation, he was greatly influenced by folk music and rhythms, and his literary world was rooted in German classics.
In 1800, the first symptoms of deafness began to occur. By 1819, he was fully deaf. Yet before his death, he raised instrumental music to the highest plane of art with his compositions.
The works of Beethoven, despite his advancing deafness, have become some of the most beloved compositions of all time. His Symphony No. 9, composed when he was fully deaf, is regarded as one of the most supreme achievements in the history of music. He died in 1827 at the age of 56.
Click here to listen to Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 - Listen to this remembering that Beethoven was deaf when he composed it!
Click here to listen to Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata - A beautiful piano sonata!
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