|
|
Ludwig Von Beethoven
Biography |  |
The Shakespeare of the realm of music, as he has been called, first
saw the light on December 16, 1770, in the little University town
of Bonn, on the Rhine. His father, Johann Beethoven, belonged to the
court band of the Elector of Cologne. The family were extremely poor.
The little room, where the future great master was born, was so low,
that a good-sized man could barely stand upright in it. Very small
it was too, and not very light either, as it was at the back of the
building and looked out on a walled garden.
The fame of young Mozart, who was acclaimed everywhere as a marvelous
prodigy, had naturally reached the father's ears. He decided to train
the little Ludwig as a pianist, so that he should also be hailed as
a prodigy and win fame and best of all money for the poverty-stricken
family. So the tiny child was made to practice scales and finger
exercises for hours together. He was a musically gifted child, but how
he hated those everlasting tasks of finger technic, when he longed to
join his little companions, who could run and play in the sunshine. If
he stopped his practice to rest and dream a bit, the stern face of his
father would appear at the doorway, and a harsh voice would call out,
"Ludwig! what are you doing? Go on with your exercises at once. There
will be no soup for you till they are finished."
The father, though harsh and stern, wished his boy to have as thorough
a knowledge of music as his means would permit. The boy was also sent
to the public school, where he picked up reading and writing, but did
not make friends very quickly with the other children. The fact
was the child seemed wholly absorbed in music; of music he dreamed
constantly; in the companionship of music he never could be lonely.
When Ludwig was nine his father, regarding him with satisfaction and
some pride, declared he could teach him no more--and another master
must be found. Those childhood years of hard toil had resulted in
remarkable progress, even with the sort of teaching he had received.
The circumstances of the family had not improved, for poverty had
become acute, as the father became more and more addicted to drink.
Just at this time, a new lodger appeared, who was something of a
musician, and arranged to teach the boy in part payment for his room.
Ludwig wondered if he would turn out to be a more severe taskmaster
than his father had been. The times and seasons when his instruction
was given were at least unusual. Tobias Pfeiffer, as the new lodger
was called, soon discovered that father Beethoven generally spent his
evenings at the tavern. As an act of kindness, to keep his drunken
landlord out of the way of the police, Tobias used to go to the tavern
late at night and bring him safely home. Then he would go to the
bedside of the sleeping boy, and awake him by telling him it was time
for practice. The two would go to the living room, where they would
play together for several hours, improvising on original themes and
playing duets. This went on for about a year; meanwhile Ludwig studied
Latin, French, Italian and logic. He also had organ lessons.
Things were going from bad to worse in the Beethoven home, and in the
hope of bettering these unhappy conditions, Frau Beethoven undertook
a trip through Holland with her boy, hoping that his playing in the
homes of the wealthy might produce some money. The tour was successful
in that it relieved the pressing necessities of the moment, but the
sturdy, independent spirit of the boy showed itself even then. "The
Dutch are very stingy, and I shall take care not to trouble them
again," he remarked to a friend.
The boy Ludwig could play the organ fairly well, as he had studied it
with Christian Neefe, who was organist at the Court church. He also
could play the piano with force and finish, read well at sight and
knew nearly the whole of Bach's "Well Tempered Clavichord." This was
a pretty good record for a boy of 11, who, if he went on as he had
begun, it was said, would become a second Mozart.
Neefe was ordered to proceed with the Elector and Court to Münster,
which meant to leave his organ in Bonn for a time. Before starting
he called Ludwig to him and told him of his intended absence. "I must
have an assistant to take my place at the organ here. Whom do you
think I should appoint?" Seeing the boy had no inkling of his meaning,
he continued: "I have thought of an assistant, one I am sure I can
trust,--and that is you, Ludwig."
The honor was great, for a boy of eleven and a half. To conduct the
service, and receive the respect and deference due the position, quite
overwhelmed the lad. Honors of this kind were very pleasant, but,
alas, there was no money attached to the position, and this was what
the straitened family needed most sorely. The responsibilities of the
position and the confidence of Neefe spurred Ludwig on to a passion of
work which nothing could check. He began to compose; three sonatas
for the pianoforte were written about this time. Before completing his
thirteenth year, Ludwig obtained his first official appointment from
the Elector; he became what is called cembalist in the orchestra,
which meant that he had to play the piano in the orchestra, and
conduct the band at rehearsals. With this appointment there was no
salary attached either, and it was not until a year later when he was
made second organist to the Court, under the new Elector, Max Franz,
that he began to receive a small salary, equal to about sixty-five
dollars a year. We have seen that the straits of the family had not
prevented Ludwig from pursuing his musical studies with great ardor.
With his present attainments and his ambition for higher achievements,
he longed to leave the little town of Bonn, and see something of the
great world. Vienna was the center of the musical life of Germany; the
boy dreamed of this magical city by day as he went about his routine
of work, and by night as he lay on his poor narrow cot. Like Haydn,
Vienna was the goal of his ambition. When a kind friend, knowing his
great longing, came forward with an offer to pay the expenses of the
journey, the lad knew his dream was to become a reality. In Vienna he
would see the first composers of the day; best of all he would see and
meet the divine Mozart, the greatest of them all.
Ludwig, now seventeen, set out for the city of his dreams with the
brightest anticipations. On his arrival in Vienna he went at once to
Mozart's house. He was received most kindly and asked to play, but
Mozart seemed preoccupied and paid but little attention. Ludwig,
seeing this stopped playing and asked for a theme on which to
improvise. Mozart gave a simple theme, and Beethoven, taking the
slender thread, worked it up with so much feeling and power, that
Mozart, who was now all attention and astonishment, stepped into the
next room, where some friends were waiting for him, and said, "Pay
attention to this young man; he will make a noise in the world some
day."
Shortly after his return home he was saddened by the loss of his
good, kind, patient mother, and a few months later his little sister
Margaretha passed away. No doubt these sorrows were expressed in some
of his most beautiful compositions. But brighter days followed the
dark ones. He became acquainted with the Breuning family, a widow
lady and four children, three boys and a girl, all young people. The
youngest boy and the girl became his pupils, and all were very fond
of him. He would stay at their house for days at a time and was always
treated as one of the family. They were cultured people, and in
their society Beethoven's whole nature expanded. He began to take an
interest in the literature of his own country and in English authors
as well. All his spare time was given to reading and composition.
A valuable acquaintance with the young Count Von Waldstein was made
about this time. The Count called one day and found the composer at
his old worn out piano, surrounded by signs of abject poverty. It
went to his heart to see that the young man, whose music he so greatly
admired should have to struggle for the bare necessities of life while
he himself enjoyed every luxury. It seemed to him terribly unjust. He
feared to offend the composer's self-respect by sending him money, but
shortly after the call Beethoven was made happy by the gift of a fine
new piano, in place of his old one. He was very grateful for this
friendship and later dedicated to the Count one of his finest sonatas,
the Op. 53, known as the "Waldstein Sonata."
With a view of aiding the growth of the opera, and operatic art, the
Elector founded a national theater, and Beethoven was appointed viola
player in the orchestra besides still being assistant organist in the
chapel. In July, 1792, the band arranged a reception for Haydn, who
was to pass through Bonn on his way from London, where he had had
a wonderful success, to his home in Vienna. Beethoven seized the
opportunity to show the master a cantata he had just composed. Haydn
praised the work and greatly encouraged the young musician to go
forward in his studies. The Elector, hearing of Haydn's words of
praise, felt that Beethoven should have the chance to develop his
talents that he might be able to produce greater works. Therefore
he decided to send the young composer, at his own expense, to
study strict counterpoint with Haydn. He was now twenty-two and his
compositions already published had brought him considerable fame and
appreciation in his vicinity. Now he was to have wider scope for his
gifts.
He bade farewell to Bonn in November of this year and set out a second
time for the city of his dreams--Vienna. He was never to see Bonn
again. He arrived in Vienna comparatively unknown, but his fine piano
playing and wonderful gift for improvising greatly impressed all
who heard him. He constantly played in the homes of the wealthy
aristocracy. Many who heard him play, engaged lessons and he was
well on the road to social success. Yet his brusque manners often
antagonized his patrons. He made no effort to please or conciliate;
he was obstinate and self-willed. In spite of all this, the innate
nobleness and truth of his character retained the regard of men and
women belonging to the highest ranks of society. With the Prince and
Princess Lichnowsky Beethoven shortly became very intimate, and was
invited to stay at the Palace. The Princess looked after his personal
comfort with as motherly an affection as Madame Breuning had done.
The etiquette of the Palace however, offended Ludwig's love of
Bohemianism, especially the dressing for dinner at a certain time.
He took to dining at a tavern quite frequently, and finally engaged
lodgings. The Prince and his good lady, far from taking offense at
this unmannerly behavior, forgave it and always kept for Beethoven a
warm place in their hearts, while he, on his part was sincere in his
affection for his kind friends.
Beethoven began his lessons with Haydn, but they did not seem to get
on well together. The pupil thought the master did not give him enough
time and attention. When Haydn went to England, about a year after the
lessons began, Beethoven studied with several of the best musicians
of the city, both in playing and composition. Albrechtsberger, one of
these, was a famous contrapuntist of his time, and the student gained
much from his teaching. The young musician was irresistible when he
seated himself at the piano to extemporize. "His improvisating was
most brilliant and striking," wrote Carl Czerny, a pupil of Beethoven.
"In whatever company he might be, he knew how to produce such an
effect upon the listeners that frequently all eyes would be wet,
and some listeners would sob; there was something wonderful in his
expressive style, the beauty and originality of his ideas and his
spirited way of playing." Strange to say the emotion he roused in
his hearers seemed to find no response in Beethoven himself. He would
sometimes laugh at it, at other times he would resent it, saying, "We
artists don't want tears, we want applause." These expressions however
only concealed his inner feelings--for he was very sympathetic
with those friends he loved. His anger, though sharp, was of short
duration, but his suspicions of those whose confidence he had won by
his genius and force of character, were the cause of much suffering to
himself and others.
Beethoven in appearance was short and stockily built; his face was not
at all good looking. It is said he was generally meanly dressed and
was homely, but full of nobility, fine feeling and highly cultivated.
The eyes were black and bright, and they dilated, when the composer
was lost in thought, in a way that made him look inspired. A mass of
dark hair surmounted a high broad forehead. He often looked gloomy,
but when he smiled it was with a radiant brightness. His hands were
strong and the fingers short and pressed out with much practise. He
was very particular about hand position when playing. As a conductor
he made many movements, and is said to have crouched below the desk in
soft passages; in Crescendos he would gradually lift himself up
until at the loudest parts he would rise to his full height with arms
extended, even springing into the air, as though he would float in
space.
Beethoven as a teacher, showed none of the impatience and carelessness
that were seen in his personal habits. He insisted on a pupil
repeating the passage carefully a number of times, until it could be
played to his satisfaction. He did not seem to mind a few wrong notes,
but the pupil must not fail to grasp the meaning or put in the right
expression, or his anger would be aroused. The first was an accident,
the other would be a lack of knowledge of feeling.
Beethoven loved nature as much or more than any musician ever did. How
he hailed the spring because he knew the time would soon come when he
could close the door of his lodgings in the hot city, and slip away to
some quiet spot and hold sweet communion with nature. A forest was a
paradise, where he could ramble among the trees and dream. Or he
would select a tree where a forking branch would form a seat near the
ground. He would climb up and sit in it for hours, lost in thought.
Leaning against the trunk of a lime tree, his eyes fixed upon the
network of leaves and branches above him, he sketched the plan of his
oratorio "The Mount of Olives"; also that of his one opera "Fidelio,"
and the third Symphony, known as the "Eroica." He wrote to a friend,
"No man loves the country more than I. Woods, trees and rocks give the
response which man requires. Every tree seems to say 'Holy, holy.'"
Already, as a young man, symptoms of deafness began to appear, and
the fear of becoming a victim of this malady made the composer more
sensitive than ever. He was not yet thirty when this happened, and
believing his life work at an end, he became deeply depressed. Various
treatments were tried for increasing deafness; at one time it seemed
to be cured by the skill of Dr. Schmidt, to whom out of gratitude he
dedicated his Septet, arranged as a Trio. By his advice the composer
went for the summer of 1820 to the little village of Heiligenstadt
(which means Holy City) in the hope that the calm, sweet environment
would act as a balm to his troubled mind. During this period of rest
and quiet his health improved somewhat, but from now on he had to give
up conducting his works, on account of his deafness.
It may be thought that one so reticent and retiring, of such hasty
temper and brusque manners, would scarcely be attracted to women.
But Beethoven, it is said, was very susceptible to the charm of the
opposite sex. He was however, most careful and high-souled in all his
relations with women. He was frequently in love, but it was usually a
Platonic affection. For the Countess Julie Guicciardi he protested
the most passionate love, which was in a measure returned. She was
doubtless his "immortal beloved," whose name vibrates through the
Adagio of the "Moonlight Sonata," which is dedicated to her. He wrote
her the most adoring letters; but the union, which he seemed to desire
so intensely, was never brought about, though the reason is not known.
For Bettina von Arnim, Goethe's little friend, he conceived a tender
affection. Another love of his was for the Countess Marie Erdödy,
to whom he dedicated the two fine Trios, Op. 70, but this was also
a purely Platonic affection. The composer was unfortunate in his
attachments, for the objects were always of a much higher social
standing than himself. As he constantly associated with people of rank
and culture, it was natural that the young girl nobly born, with all
the fascinations of the high bred aristocrat, should attract him far
more than the ordinary woman of his own class. And thus it happened
that several times he staked his chances of happiness on a love he
knew could never be consummated. Yet no one needed a kind, helpful,
sympathetic wife more than did our poet-musician. She would have
soothed his sensitive soul when he suffered from fancied wrongs,
shielded him from intrusion, shared his sorrows and triumphs, and
attended to his house-keeping arrangements, which were always in a sad
state of confusion. This blissful state was seemingly not for him. It
was best for the great genius to devote himself wholly to his divine
art, and to create those masterpieces which will always endure.
In 1804 Beethoven completed one of his greatest symphonies, the
"Eroica." He made a sketch, as we have seen, two years before. He had
intended it to honor Napoleon, to whose character and career he was
greatly attracted. But when Napoleon entered Paris in triumph and was
proclaimed Emperor, Beethoven's worship was turned to contempt. He
seized the symphony, tore the little page to shreds and flung the work
to the other end of the room. It was a long time before he would look
at the music again, but finally, he consented to publish it under the
title by which it is now known.
When we consider the number and greatness of Beethoven's compositions
we stand aghast at the amount of labor he accomplished. "I live only
in my music," he wrote, "and no sooner is one thing done than the next
is begun. I often work at two or three things at once." Music was his
language of expression, and through his music we can reach his heart
and know the man as he really was. At heart he was a man capable of
loving deeply and most worthy to be loved.
Of the composer's two brothers, one had passed away and had left his
boy Carl, named after himself, as a solemn charge, to be brought up by
Uncle Ludwig as his own son. The composer took up this task generously
and unselfishly. He was happy to have the little lad near him, one of
his own kin to love. But as Carl grew to young manhood he proved to
be utterly unworthy of all this affection. He treated his good uncle
shamefully, stole money from him, though he had been always generously
supplied with it, and became a disgrace to the family. There is no
doubt that his nephew's dissolute habits saddened the master's life,
estranged him from his friends and hastened his death.
How simple and modest was this great master, in face of his mighty
achievements! He wrote to a friend in 1824: "I feel as if I had
scarcely written more than a few notes." These later years had been
more than full of work and anxiety. Totally deaf, entirely thrown in
upon himself, often weak and ill, the master kept on creating work
after work of the highest beauty and grandeur.
Ludwig van Beethoven passed from this plane March 26, 1827, having
recently completed his fifty-sixth year, and was laid to rest in the
Währing Cemetery near Vienna. Unlike Mozart, he was buried with much
honor. Twenty thousand people followed him to his grave. Among them
was Schubert, who had visited him on his deathbed, and was one of the
torch bearers. Several of the Master's compositions were sung by a
choir of male voices, accompanied by trombones. At the grave Hummel
laid three laurel wreaths on the casket.
Beethoven Facts and Information
Copyright 2004-2005 by Classical-Music-Opera.com, all rights reserved.
|
| |
| Listening to classical music is a passtime that can provide hours of excitement or quiet contemplation. Whether you prefer to attend a concert performance in person, listen to an audio cd or watch your favorite orchestra or opera company on dvd, a knowledge of the composer and facts and information about the provenance of various pieces enhances the experience. We offer these biographies, criticisms and essays in hope that your listening experience will be as enjoyable as possible. |
|
|
