One of the most influential composers in the history of classical music, Ludwig van Beethoven was born presumably on December 16th, 1770 in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne. No official record exists of his birth, only a record of his baptism on the 17th at the Parish of St. Regius. Given that children were generally baptized the day after their birthday and that Beethoven’s family celebrated his birthday on December 16th, that date is generally accepted by modern scholars.
Origin
Beethoven was third in a line of musicians. His grandfather, also named Ludwig, hailed from Mechelen, a town in what is now Belgium. Initially employed at the Elector’s court as a bass singer, he rose to become Kapellmeister in 1761. Ludwig’s only son, Johann, likewise worked at the court as a singer and taught keyboard and violin lessons to supplement his income. Beethoven was proud of his musical heritage, and kept a portrait of his grandfather displayed in his rooms later in life. Johann was Beethoven’s first music teacher, and he set his son on an intensive and sometimes harsh curriculum. Beethoven’s talent, however, was unmistakable, and his father, well aware of the success Leopold Mozart had had with Wolfgang, attempted to recreate that success for himself. Promoting his son as another child prodigy, Beethoven gave his first public performance in March 1778 at the age of seven (though his father claimed he was only six). To Johann’s chagrin, however, the European public did not seem interested in another prodigy so close on the heels of Mozart.
Sometime after 1779, Beethoven began studying with Christian Gottlob Neefe, the Court’s organist, and his most influential teacher during his early years in Bonn. From Neefe, Beethoven learned composition and with his help, published his first work, a set of piano variations, in 1783. Beethoven also completed his first three piano sonatas that year. Though lacking in individuality, these early works nonetheless revealed the young Beethoven’s compositional talent and were certainly enough to catch the attention of the Elector Maximilian Friedrich, who subsequently subsidized and encouraged the boy’s musical studies.
Vienna
In 1787, Beethoven made his first trip to Vienna where he hoped to begin studying with Mozart. Though it is unknown whether the two actually ever met, there is an anecdote in which Mozart, upon hearing Beethoven improvise a set of variations, proclaimed to those present "Mark that young man; he will make himself a name in the world!" However, news of his mother’s failing health soon forced Beethoven to return home to Bonn after only two weeks in Vienna. His mother soon after passed away, and his father slipped further into alcoholism. As a result, Beethoven was left with the responsibility of caring for his two younger brothers, Carl and Johann, which kept him rooted in Bonn for the next five years.
With the Elector’s help, Beethoven returned to Vienna 1792. Mozart had died the year before, and Beethoven was already stepping into the role of successor with compositions influenced by his study of the deceased master’s works. However, Beethoven did not initially set out to establish himself as a composer, but instead dedicated himself to performance. By 1793, he was well regarded as an excellent improviser, and in 1795 he made his first public performance in Vienna with one of his own piano concerti. To improve himself as a composer, Beethoven studied counterpoint under Haydn (purportedly with some frustration) until the elder composer’s departure for England in 1794, then with Johann Albrechtsberger. Beethoven also studied Italian vocal composition with Antonio Salieri until at least 1802, and violin from Ignaz Schuppanzigh, who would later perform many of his quartets.
Beethoven's Compositions
Many of Beethoven’s early compositions, such as the opus 1 trios and the early piano sonatas and concerti, centered around his career as a performer. However, the distressing loss of his hearing beginning in 1798, gradually forced him from the stage. At the same time, Beethoven began to tackle the pinnacles of composition—the string quartet and symphony. His op. 18 quartets and the First and Second Symphonies gained him the reputation as an influential young composer following in the illustrious steps of the deceased Mozart and aging Haydn.
Beethoven’s frustration and depression over his loss of hearing reached its tipping point in 1802. On the advice of his doctor, Beethoven left Vienna in April for the small Austrian town of Heiligenstadt. In October, he penned the now famous letter to his brothers known as the Heiligenstadt Testament. Beethoven finally gave utterance to his deepest grief over his growing deafness and even admitted to contemplating taking his own life. Yet, Art, alone, he says, stayed his hand. The letter, however, was never sent, but Beethoven kept it among his private paper until his death.
Having come to terms with his condition, Heiligenstadt became a watershed for Beethoven. From the depths of despair, the composer emerged triumphant and a master of his craft. His first major work to appear was the Eroica Symphony, a pivotal work in the continuing development of the symphony, far grander and lengthier than anything Mozart or Haydn had attempted. Over the next decade, often referred to as Beethoven’s “heroic” period, the models of his predecessors were expanded and reshaped to make room for his grander ideas. From the Eroica to the Eighth Symphony is a remarkable development of the symphonic form. A similar progression and expansion can be seen in the piano sonatas and string quartets, among which stand such immortal works as th Waldstein, Appassionata, and Les Adieux piano sonatas, and the Rasumovksy quartets. This period also saw the composition of Beethoven’s only opera, Fidelio, the Violin Concerto and “Emperor” Piano Concerto.
Interlude
Following the success of a decade's worth of compositions, Beethoven's output dropped off significantly beginning around 1815. Beethoven himself attributed this decline in part to a lengthy illness that plagued him for more than a year beginning in October 1816. However, the more likely reason was the protracted legal battle he became embroiled in over the custody of his nephew, Karl. When Beethoven’s brother, Carl, died on November 15, 1815 from tuberculosis, his will named Beethoven and the boy’s mother, Johanna, as joint guardians. Beethoven had little respect for Johanna and challenged her custody of Karl on moral grounds—she had given birth to an illegitimate child before marrying Carl and had been convicted of theft. Beethoven successfully, albeit temporarily, removed his nephew from Johanna’s custody in February 1816, but the legal battle lasted until 1820. At first, Beethoven sought to have the case heard in the Landrecht, the Austrian court for the nobility. He cleverly disguised the commonplace Dutch “van” in his name with the German “von,” which denoted nobility. However, when he was unable to prove his noble birth, the Landrecht transferred the case to the Civil Court of the Vienna Magistrate, one of the many courts for commoners. Beethoven temporarily lost custody of his nephew, but later regained sole guardianship after an appeal. Besides legal matters, much of Beethoven’s time during these years was devoted to Karl’s upbringing, which he sought in accordance with the highest moral standards. However, Beethoven’s good intentions often came across as overbearing. Frustrated with he saw has his uncle’s meddling, Karl attempted suicide on July 31, 1826. He failed and was taken to his mother’s house to recover. Karl and Beethoven ultimately reconciled, and they last saw each other in January 1827, just a few months before Beethoven’s death.
Though not as poignant as the earlier Heiligenstadt Testament, this protracted struggle coincided with another monumental change in Beethoven’s style. With the first attempts at publishing the works of J.S. Bach and Handel in complete editions, Beethoven took a renewed interest in the study of older music, which would be reflected in many of the works he composed during his “late period.” By 1818, his health had improved, and that year saw the creation of the “Hammerklavier” Sonata, which would become a harbinger of what was to come. Besides its great expanded form and unusual fugal finale, the Hammerklavier perplexed audiences at the time, and even today it is one of the least heard of Beethoven’s sonatas. The following year he began work on the Missa Solemnis, and then after its completion, the colossal Ninth Symphony, both markedly different than anything that had come before them.
The Finale
Beethoven's final words, however, were spoken through the string quartet. Ranging from brash and outspoken to intensely intimate, the last quartets span a wide range of emotions. At the time of their composition, they were little understood by musicians and audiences alike. Contemporary composer, Louis Spohr called them "undecipherable, uncorrected horrors;" yet, Franz Schubert, after hearing the String Quartet No. 14 in C-sharp minor, remarked, "After this, what is left for us to write?"
For the remaining months of his life, Beethoven was bedridden. His last completed composition was the alternate finale for the String Quartet No. 13 in B-flat major. He died on March 26, 1827. His funeral was held three days later in which 20,000 Viennese citizens attended.