Ludwig van Beethoven

Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. One of the most revered figures in the history of Western music, his works rank among the most performed of the classical repertoire. They span the transition from the Classical period to the Romantic era.

His personal life was marked by a heroic struggle against encroaching deafness, and some of his most important works were composed during the last 10 years of his life when he was quite unable to hear. In an age that saw the decline of court and church patronage, he not only maintained himself from the sale and publication of his works but also was the first musician to receive a salary with no duties other than to compose how and when he felt inclined.

Beethoven’s music had an enormous influence on his successors, such as Robert Schumann and Johannes Brahms. Works that had been popular mostly remained so, while those that had seemed bizarre to his contemporaries were gradually recognized as masterpieces and have spread across the world. Even today, analysts still find new things to say about them. Never has a single composer dominated a period as much as Beethoven.