Ludwig van Beethoven
The events of Beethoven's life are the stuff of Romantic legend, evoking images of the solitary creator shaking his fist at Fate and finally overcoming it through a supreme effort of creative will. His compositions, which frequently pushed the boundaries of tradition and startled audiences with their originality and power, are considered by many to be the foundation of 19th century musical principles.
Born in the small German city of Bonn on or around December 16, 1770, he received his early training from his father and other local musicians. As a teenager, he earned some money as an assistant to his teacher, Christian Gottlob Neefe, then was granted half of his father's salary as court musician from the Electorate of Cologne in order to care for his two younger brothers as his father gave in to alcoholism. Beethoven played viola in various orchestras, becoming friends with other players such as Antoine Reicha, Nikolaus Simrock, and Franz Ries, and began taking on composition commissions. As a member of the court chapel orchestra, he was able to travel some and meet members of the nobility, one of whom, Count Ferdinand Waldstein, would become a great friend and patron to him. Beethoven moved to Vienna in 1792 to study with Haydn; despite the prickliness of their relationship, Haydn's concise humor helped form Beethoven's style. His subsequent teachers in composition were Johann Georg Albrechtsberger and Antonio Salieri. In 1794, he began his career in earnest as a pianist and composer, taking advantage whenever he could of the patronage of others. Around 1800, Beethoven began to notice his gradually encroaching deafness. His growing despondency only intensified his antisocial tendencies. However, the Symphony No. 3, "Eroica," of 1803 began a sustained period of groundbreaking creative triumph. In later years, Beethoven was plagued by personal difficulties, including a series of failed romances and a nasty custody battle over a nephew, Karl. Yet after a long period of comparative compositional inactivity lasting from about 1811 to 1817, his creative imagination triumphed once again over his troubles. Beethoven's late works, especially the last five of his 16 string quartets and the last four of his 32 piano sonatas, have an ecstatic quality in which many have found a mystical significance. Beethoven died in Vienna on March 26, 1827.
Beethoven's epochal career is often divided into early, middle, and late periods, represented, respectively, by works based on Classic-period models, by revolutionary pieces that expanded the vocabulary of music, and by compositions written in a unique, highly personal musical language incorporating elements of contrapuntal and variation writing while approaching large-scale forms with complete freedom. Though certainly subject to debate, these divisions point to the immense depth and multifariousness of Beethoven's creative personality. Beethoven profoundly transformed every genre he touched, and the music of the 19th century seems to grow from his compositions as if from a chrysalis. A formidable pianist, he moved the piano sonata from the drawing room to the concert hall with such ambitious and virtuosic middle-period works as the "Waldstein" (No. 21) and "Appassionata" (No. 23) sonatas. His song cycle An die ferne Geliebte of 1816 set the pattern for similar cycles by all the Romantic song composers, from Schubert to Wolf. The Romantic tradition of descriptive or "program" music began with Beethoven's "Pastoral" Symphony No. 6. Even in the second half of the 19th century, Beethoven still directly inspired both conservatives (such as Brahms, who, like Beethoven, fundamentally stayed within the confines of Classical form) and radicals (such as Wagner, who viewed the Ninth Symphony as a harbinger of his own vision of a total art work, integrating vocal and instrumental music with the other arts). In many ways revolutionary, Beethoven's music remains universally appealing because of its characteristic humanism and dramatic power.
© Rovi Staff /TiVo
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A Beethoven Odyssey, Vol. 2 - Piano Sonatas Nos. 8 "Pathétique, 14 "Moonlight", 21 "Waldtstein", 19 and 20
Classical - Released by MSR Classics on 13 Aug 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Concerto pour piano n°5
Concertos - Released by Claves Records on 1 Jun 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ludwig van Beethoven : Sonates pour violon et piano (Vol. 3)
Alina Ibragimova, Cédric Tiberghien
Chamber Music - Released by Wigmore Hall Live on 11 Apr 2011
Gramophone Editor's Choice16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: The Late String Quartets
Chamber Music - Released by Avie Records on 6 Mar 2012
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 3
The Netherlands Symphony Orchestra, Jan Willem de Vriend, Hannes Minnaar
Classical - Released by Challenge Classics on 2 Jun 2017
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven Sonata No. 14 (Single)
Classical - Released by Best Buy Classical on 4 Apr 2012
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Beethoven: Piano Concertos Nos. 3 & 4
Classical - Released by Onyx Classics on 30 Jun 2014
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Howard Griffiths: Beethoven Rarities
Claire Huangci, Brandenburgisches Staatsorchester Frankfurt, Howard Griffiths, Ludwig van Beethoven
Classical - Released by Rondeau Production on 23 Feb 2018
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Beethoven: The Middle String Quartets, Opp. 59, 74, & 95
Chamber Music - Released by AVIE Records on 11 Nov 2014
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Beethoven - Piano Sonatas - Moonlight - Pathetique - Appassionata
Ludwig van Beethoven, Walter Klien
Classical - Released by Denon on 1 Jan 2007
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Beethoven: The Complete String Quartets, Vol. 1
Chamber Music - Released by Wigmore Hall Live on 12 Jan 2015
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The Masters of Classical Music - Beethoven
Classical - Released by Cobra Entertainment LLC. on 7 Jul 2009
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Beethoven: Piano Concerto Nos. 1 & 2
Concertos - Released by Regis Records on 1 Feb 2014
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Perspectives 5: Beethoven • Liszt
Classical - Released by AVIE Records on 8 Nov 2011
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Beethoven: Sonatas Vol. 4
Ludwig van Beethoven, Costantino Mastroprimiano
Classical - Released by Aulicus Classics on 4 Mar 2024
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Beethoven: Symphony No. 9
Bruno Walter, John Finley Williamson, Westminster Choir
Symphonic Music - Released by Urania on 1 Jan 2003
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Piano Classics 1, die schönsten klassischen Klavier-Melodien
Classical - Released by Media Sound Art on 30 Oct 2018
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Oscillations
Classical - Released by Challenge Classics on 10 May 2013
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Perspectives 6: Beethoven • Berio • Schumann
Classical - Released by AVIE Records on 7 Apr 2014
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Classical Dreaming - Cello & Piano
Ludwig van Beethoven, Franz Schubert, Johannes Brahms
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 18 Mar 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brendel plays Beethoven
Alfred Brendel, Ludwig van Beethoven
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 4 Jan 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo