#ludwigvanbeethoven

Ludwig van Beethoven

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) was a German composer of Classical and Romantic music; he is widely regarded as one of the greatest musicians to have ever lived. Most famous for his nine symphonies, piano concertos, piano sonatas, and string quartets, Beethoven was a great innovator and very probably the most influential composer in the history of music.

Early Life

Ludwig van Beethoven was born in Bonn, Germany, on 16 December 1770. His grandfather was the director of music (Kapellmeister) to the Archbishop-Elector of Cologne at Bonn and his father, Johann van Beethoven (c. 1740-1792), worked at the same court as both an instrumentalist and tenor singer. Ludwig's mother was a head cook in the palace. Ludwig had only two other surviving siblings, his younger brothers Caspar Anton Carl (b. 1774) and Nikolaus Johann (b. 1776). Ludwig's father was keen for Ludwig to develop his obvious musical skills but went rather overboard so that his eldest son spent so much time practising on the piano he did not have a lot of time left for all the other things children need to learn to become rounded adults. Johann was violent and an alcoholic, so there was not much that could be done against his wishes.

Ludwig's musical education continued at the Cologne court from 1779 under the tutorship of the organist and composer Christian Neefe (1748-1798). Ludwig impressed, and he was made the assistant court organist in 1781, and the next year, he was appointed the court orchestra's harpsichordist. Already composing his own pieces, Ludwig's work was catalogued by his teacher and a set of keyboard variations was published in 1782. Three of Ludwig's piano sonatas were published in 1783. In a smart move, Ludwig dedicated his sonatas to the Elector, and although he died that year, the next Elector saw fit to keep him on in the court orchestra.

In 1787, Ludwig was all set to go to Vienna where it was arranged he would take lessons from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791). Although he made it to Vienna, when Ludwig's mother became ill, he was obliged to return home after only two weeks. Unfortunately, Ludwig did not manage to return to Bonn before his mother died, likely of tuberculosis. In 1789, Johann van Beethoven had descended deeper into alcoholism and grief so that Ludwig was obliged to take over responsibility for his family's affairs, which included controlling half of his father's salary. A second opportunity to learn from a master came in 1792 when Ludwig was given leave to study under Joseph Haydn (1732-1809), who was also in Vienna. The music of both Mozart and Haydn influenced Beethoven in the first stage of his career as a composer, as did the guidance of another teacher, Johann Georg Albrechtsberger (1736-1809), particularly regarding counterpoint.

Beethoven: Piano Sonata ’’Les Adieux’’ op. 81

My second post is about a piece which is a monument of friendly love, which is often underappreciated in classical music. The sonata ’’Les Adieux’’(Farewell) is his 26th sonata, one of the last piano pieces from the middle period. It is a programmatic and autobiograhpic piece too. He composed this piece from 1809 to 1810. In 1809, Napoléon Bonaparte attacked Vienna, and Beethoven’s patron (and close friend) Archduke Rudolphe had to leave the city. The Archduke was an accomplished musician, and other famous works, such as the Hammerklavier Sonata, Missa Solemnis or the Archduke Trio were also dedicated to him.

This sonata tells the story of the Archduke’s departure, his absence and return in three movements.

I. Das Lebewohl (The Farewell)

II. Abwesenheit (Absence)

III. Das Wiedersehen (The Return)

The sonata’s title originates from the first movement. The syllabes of the German word Lebewohl are written above the first three chords, forshadowing the Leitmotif technique later used by romantic era composerts such as Liszt and Wagner.

I chose a recording by Richard Goode, who is the first American pianist to record all the piano sonatas by Beethoven.