Emma Kenney

Ludwig van Beethoven is one of the most renowned composers and pianists to walk the earth, even nearly 200 years after his death. Credited with writing 9 symphonies, 32 piano sonatas, 5 piano concertos, 16 string quartets, and countless other works, the man left quite an impact on the world. However, the life of this musician was not as splendid as one might be inclined to assume.

It is unknown for certain when Beethoven was born, but due to when the musician was baptized — December 17, 1770 — it is readily accepted he was born on or very near December 16, 1770. He was the oldest of three children born to Maria Magdalena and Johann van Beethoven in Bonn, Germany. Beethoven was introduced to music by his father at a young age, first in the form of the clavier, and then in the form of the violin. However, this was not a pleasant experience for the boy as his alcoholic father was often physically abusive toward him. There are multiple accounts of the little boy being beaten, deprived of sleep, or thrown into the family cellar by his father for any mistakes or hesitation while practicing music. Still, the boy developed not only talent but a love for music as well and performed his first concert at the age of seven on March 26, 1778. His father announced he was only six, because Mozart had been six at the time of his first performance. This ultimately led to Beethoven believing he was younger than he really was, even after being presented with his baptism certificate. It is unknown whether his brothers, Caspar and Johann, were also trained as musicians when they were born.

Meanwhile, the boy was attending Tirociniun, a local Latin school. He struggled to maintain proper grades, as school did not come easy to him. It has been theorized the composer might have been dyslexic. In his own words, “Music comes to me more readily than words.” Beethoven, however, did not have to struggle with school for long. He was withdrawn from school to study music full time with Christian Gottlob Neefe, the Court Organist, at the age of 10. Under Neefe’s wing, Beethoven published his first composition by the age of 12 and became the official Assistant Court Organist in 1784 at the age of 13. Finally, in 1787, the court sent him to Vienna to study music and composition. Legend states here Beethoven studied under Mozart, but there is barely enough evidence to support Beethoven having met Mozart, let alone studied music theory and composition under him during this short time. Only a few weeks later the boy returned to Bonn after receiving word his mother’s health was failing. By this point, he was the one supporting his family as his father’s drunkenness worsened and prevented him from being a productive member of society.

Beethoven returned to Vienna in 1792, hoping to study music under Joseph Haydn, who was accepted as the greatest living musician of that time. He did indeed study piano with the man, as well as counterpoint with Johann Albretchsberger and vocal composition with Antonio Salieri, both of whom were also considered top musicians of that age. Word spread of this rising musician with a gift for improvisation, and Beethoven made his debut in Vienna on March 29, 1795, supposedly performing his piano concerto in C Major. Soon after his debut Beethoven published his “Opus 1,”  which turned out to be incredibly successful both in terms of monetary gain and critical review.

Still Beethoven’s success continued to grow, leading to his performance of his Symphony No. 1 in C Major at the Royal Imperial Theatre of Vienna. His performance was incredibly successful, leading to become even more famous and anticipated. This piece successfully established him as one of the top composers of the age, though the musician would later grow to detest that composition.

After this performance Beethoven continued to compose. His work of that era included a popular ballet titled The Creatures of Prometheus performed at the Royal Imperial Theatre of Vienna over 25 times and “Symphony No. 3” (also known as the “Eroica Symphony”), published in honor of Napoleon in 1804 directly after he declared himself emperor. The “Eroica Symphony” yet again established Beethoven as something spectacular. This piece was incredibly different from anything that had been composed up until that time. In fact, it was so different in style during rehearsals the musicians struggled to understand how it was to be played.

After this, Beethoven decided he was ready to leave Vienna. Before he could do so, his friend Countess Anne Marie Erdody struck a deal with him. As long as he stayed in Vienna he would be paid a large annual sum, allowing him to live without worry of supporting himself or his family. By accepting this deal, Beethoven became one of the world’s first independent composers, not working for a church or any other group. This granted him complete freedom over what he was allowed to write and when he would write. Between his musical freedom and the large sum he was receiving, Beethoven experienced some of the best conditions musicians had been granted up until then.

Unfortunately, things would not continue to be easy for the composer. Around this time, Beethoven realized he was going deaf, though he would do everything within his power to conceal this fact from the public knowledge for as long as he possibly could. The weight of this deafness caused the man to fall into a numbing depression and struggle with suicidal thoughts, as well as an anger and hatred toward mankind. The man had already been an introvert up until this point, but after this he became downright antisocial and hostile. He fought with everyone around him, and he even went as far as to attempt to break a chair over the head of on of his closest and only  friends of that time, Prince Lichnowsky. He wrote:

I must confess that I lead a miserable life. For almost two years I have ceased to attend any social functions, just because I find it impossible to say to people: I am deaf. If I had any other profession, I might be able to cope with my infirmity; but in my profession it is a terrible handicap….O you men who think or say that I am malevolent, stubborn or misanthropic, how greatly do you wrong me. You do not know the secret cause which makes me seem that way to you and I would have ended my life — it was only my art that held me back. Ah, it seemed impossible to leave the world until I had brought forth all that I felt was within me.

Despite his increasing deafness and hostility toward the world and everyone who was occupying it, Beethoven continued to compose, at times claiming music was the only thing convincing him to keep going in life and not take his own life. He composed over 100 pieces during this era, ranging from overtures and trios to symphonies and concerti. His work during this time included the incredibly famous and beloved “Moonlight Sonata” and Fidelio, which was the man’s only opera.

One theory for Beethoven’s deafness is arterial disease, as it explains not only his deafness but also his quick temper and moodiness. It is more readily accepted, however, the cause of his hearing impairment and ultimately deafness was the nasty typhus he battled over the summer of 1796.

Beethoven’s challenges continued in 1815 after the death of one of his brothers. He engaged in an enormous custody battle with his sister-in-law over her son and his nephew, lasting for seven years. Ultimately, Beethoven won the legal feud but lost the respect of many of his family members, including his nephew. Soon after this, Beethoven lost the majority of his beneficiaries and began to struggle financially to support himself and the family he felt such loyalty to and responsibility for.

However, Beethoven’s challenges were not over even here. The musician, who was entirely deaf by this point, lost his eyesight as well. What would have ended the musical careers of most composers only seemed to spur Beethoven on. During this period of his life Beethoven composed some of his most beloved pieces, such as his Missa Solemnis. During this period he also composed what can possibly be considered his most famous piece of all time, his “Symphony No. 9,” simply referred to by many as “Beethoven’s Ninth.”

Before going blind, the composer fell in love with a woman by the name of  Antonie Brentano. He wrote her a letter over the course of two days in 1812, but he never sent it. The letter stated: “My heart is full of so many things to say to you — ah — there are moments when I feel that speech amounts to nothing at all — Cheer up — remain my true, my only love, my all as I am yours.”

However, nothing would ever happen between the two. Unfortunately Brentano was already happily married when the composer developed feelings for her. It is believed she was the only woman Beethoven could ever bring himself to love.

The musician passed away on March 26, 1827 at the age of 56 in Vienna, Austria due to a post-hepatitic cirrhosis of his liver. Recently scientists examined fragments of his skull. They found high levels of lead, which causes some to believe the man died of lead poisoning instead. However, this theory is controversial and highly unpopular with most, as immediate evidence was found at the time of Beethoven’s to point to post-hepatitic cirrhosis of the liver. Yet another theory for Beethoven’s death is he died of a common cold, but once again this theory is not readily accepted, especially within the medical community.

He died without a family to bear his legacy or a son to carry on his lineage, as he never married or had children of his own, between his distaste for humanity and his supposed relentless heartbreak over Antonie Brentano. The closest thing he had was his nephew, Karl van Beethoven, who still hated him at this point in time. Though he didn’t have a family of his own, he had a large number of supporters. An estimated 20,000 people attended his funeral. The man’s last words were, “Plaudite, amici, comoedia finita est,” which translates from Latin to “Applaud, friends, the comedy is over.”

Beethoven faced many challenges over the course of his life; the odds were almost always stacked against him. Even so, Beethoven worked to overcome all he faced in order to produce the music he so loved. Through every situation, even overwhelming depression, he clung to music in order to find purpose. He faced financial peril, blindness, and deafness, and still the man is known as one of the greatest composers to have ever walked the face of the earth. Ultimately, Beethoven is a perfect example of why one should never allow challenges to stop one from achieving one’s dreams, even when those challenges seem like they should reasonably end all possibility of success, such as deafness to a musician.

Bibliography

“Beethoven Piece Is Discovered After 192 Years.” CORDIS. University of Manchester, 25 Oct.  2012. Web. 20 Sept. 2016.

“Biography: Beethoven’s Life — Ludwig Van Beethoven’s Website.” Ivbeethoven. Ivbeethoven, n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2016.

“Ludwig Van Beethoven Biography.” Biography.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 19 Sept. 2016.