Ludwig van Beethoven year of birth. The last years of Beethoven's life

Ludwig van Beethoven comes from a musical family. As a child, the future composer was introduced to playing the musical instruments such as organ, harpsichord, violin, flute.

Composer Christian Gottlob Nefe is Beethoven's first teacher. At the age of 12, Beethoven became an assistant organist at court. In addition to studying music, Ludwig was engaged in the study of languages, reading such authors as Homer, Plutarch, Shakespeare, while simultaneously trying to compose music.

Beethoven loses his mother early and takes on all the expenses of the family.

After moving to Vienna, Beethoven took music lessons from such composers as Haydn, Albrechtsberger, Salieri. Haydn notes the gloomy manner of performance of the future genius of music, but despite this virtuoso.

Famous works of the composer appeared in Vienna: Moonlight Sonata, and the Pathetic Sonata,

Beethoven loses his hearing due to a middle ear disease and settles in the city of Heiligenstadt. The peak of the composer's popularity is coming. A painful illness only helps Beethoven to work with even greater enthusiasm on his compositions.

Ludwig van Beethoven dies of liver disease in 1827. More than 20 thousand fans of the composer's work came to the composer's funeral.

Ludwig van Beethoven. Detailed biography

Ludwig van Beethoven was born on December 17, 1770 in Bonn. The boy was destined to be born in musical family. His father was a tenor, and his grandfather was a choir director. Johann Beethoven laid on his son great expectations and wanted to develop outstanding musical ability. The methods of education were very cruel, and Ludwig had to study all night long. Despite the fact that in short time Johann failed to make the son of the second Mozart, the gifted boy was noticed by the composer Christian Nefe, who made a great contribution both to his musical and personal development. Due to heavy financial position, Beethoven began to work very early. At the age of 13, he was accepted as an assistant organist, and later became an accompanist in National theater Bonn.

The turning point in Ludwig's biography was his trip to Vienna in 1787, where he managed to meet Mozart. "One day the whole world will talk about him!" - such was the summary of the great composer after listening to Beethoven's improvisations. The young man dreamed of continuing his studies with his idol, but due to a serious illness of his mother, he was forced to return to Bonn. Since then, he had to take custody of his younger brothers, and the issue of lack of money has become even more acute. During this period, Ludwig finds support in the Breuning family of aristocrats. The circle of his acquaintances is expanding, the young man finds himself in a university environment. He is actively working on musical works large form, such as sonatas and cantatas, and also writes songs for amateur performance, including "Marmot", " Free man"," Sacrificial song.

In 1792 Beethoven moved to live in Vienna. There he takes lessons from Y. Gaydan, and later goes to A. Salieri. Then he becomes known as a virtuoso pianist. Among the fans of Ludwig there are many influential people However, the composer was remembered by his contemporaries as a proud and independent person. He said: "What I am, I owe to myself." In the "Viennese" period of 1792 - 1802. Beethoven wrote 3 concertos and several dozen sonatas for piano, works for violin and cello, the oratorio Christ on the Mount of Olives and the overture to the ballet Creations of Prometheus. At the same time, Sonata No. 8 or "Pathetic" was created, as well as Sonata No. 14, better known as "Moonlight". The first part of the work, which Beethoven dedicated to his beloved, who took music lessons from him, received the name "Moonlight Sonata" from the critic L. Relshtab after the death of the composer.

Beethoven meets the beginning of the 19th century with symphonies. In 1800 he completed the First Symphony, and in 1802 the Second was written. Then comes the hardest period in the life of the composer. The signs of developing deafness intensify and lead Ludwig into a state of deep mental crisis. In 1802, Beethoven writes the Heiligenstadt Testament, in which he addresses people and shares his experiences. Despite everything, the composer once more managed to find a way out of a difficult situation, learned to create with his serious illness, although he emphasized that he was very close to suicide.

Period 1802-1812 - the heyday of Beethoven's career. Victory over yourself and events French Revolution are reflected in the Third Symphony, called "Heroic", Symphony No. 5, and the "Appassionata". The Fourth and "Pastoral" symphonies are filled with light and harmony. For the Congress of Vienna, the composer wrote the cantatas "The Battle of Vittoria" and "Happy Moment", which brought him a resounding success.

Beethoven was an innovator and a seeker. In 1814, his first and only opera, Fidelio, saw the light of day for the first time, and a year later he created the first vocal cycle titled "To a Distant Beloved". And fate, meanwhile, continues to challenge him. After the death of his brother, Ludwig takes his nephew to his upbringing. The young man turned out to be a gambler and even attempted suicide. Worries about his nephew seriously undermined Ludwig's health.

Meanwhile, the deafness of the composer increased. For everyday communication, Ludwig started "conversational notebooks", and to create music, he had to capture the vibration of the instrument with a wooden stick: Beethoven held one tip in his teeth, and applied the other to the instrument. Fate tested the genius and took from him the most precious thing - the opportunity to create. But Beethoven again conquers circumstances and discovers new stage in his work, which became an epilogue. In the period from 1817 to 1826, the composer wrote fugues, 5 sonatas and the same number of quartets. In 1823, Beethoven completed work on the Solemn Mass, which he treated with particular trepidation. Symphony No. 9, performed in 1824, caused real delight among the listeners. The hall greeted the composer standing up, but he maestro could only see a standing ovation when one of the singers turned him to the stage.

In 1826, Ludwig van Beethoven fell ill with pneumonia. The condition was complicated by pain in the stomach and other concomitant diseases, with which he was never able to cope. Beethoven died in Vienna on March 26, 1827. It is believed that the death of the composer was the result of poisoning with a drug containing lead. More than 20 thousand people came to say goodbye to the genius.

Ludwig van Beethoven wrote his most famous works in the most difficult periods life. Scientists have established that the rhythm of a composer's work is the frequency of his heartbeats. The great genius gave his heart and life to music so that it could penetrate our hearts.

Option 3

There is probably not a single person in the world who has not heard the name of the greatest composer of all time, the last of the representatives of the "Viennese classical school by Ludwig van Beethoven.

Beethoven is one of the most talented figures in the history of music. He wrote music in all genres, including operatic works and choral compositions. Beethoven's symphonies are still popular today: many musicians record cover versions in various styles. You need to get acquainted with the biography of the composer.

Childhood.

It is not known exactly when Ludwig was born. Rather, it happened on December 16, 1770, since it is known for sure that his christening fell on December 17 of the same year. Ludwig's father wanted to make his son talented musician. The first serious teacher of little Beethovin was Christian Gottlob Nef, who immediately saw in the boy musical talent and began to introduce him to the works of Mozart, Bach and Handel. At the age of 12, Beethoven wrote his first work, Variations on Dressler's March.

As a seventeen-year-old youth, Ludwig first visited Vienna, where Mozart listened to improvisation and appreciated it. At the same age, Beethoven loses his mother, she dies. Ludwig had to take on the leadership of the family and responsibility for his younger brothers.

Career flourish.

In 1789, Beethoven decides to go to Vienna and study with Haydn. Soon, thanks to the works of Ludwig, the composer receives his first fame. He writes the Moonlight and Pathetic Sonatas, and then the First and Second Symphonies and the Creation of Prometheus. Unfortunately, the great composer is overcome by an ear disease. But even with complete deafness, Beethoven continued to compose.

Last years.

At the beginning of the 19th century, Beethoven wrote with particular enthusiasm. In 1802-1812, the Ninth Symphony and the Solemn Mass were created. In those years, Beethoven was popular and universal recognition, however, due to the guardianship of the nephew, which the composer took upon himself, he immediately grew old. In the spring of 1827, Ludwig died of liver disease.

Despite the fact that the composer lived for a relatively short time, he is recognized the greatest musician of all time. His memory lives on today and will always live on.

Ludwig van Beethoven - great German composer, one of the famous Viennese classics, conductor and pianist.

Biography

Childhood

Beethoven's father, Johann, was a singer (tenor) in the court chapel. Mother, Mary Magdalene (nee - Keverich), was the daughter of a chef who worked at the court. He was the eldest son in the family and had six younger brothers.

Education

His father wanted to make a second Mozart out of little Ludwig, from a young age he taught him to play the violin and harpsichord. In 1780, Christian Gottlob Nefe, an organist and composer, arrived in Bonn. He became a real teacher of Beethoven. Due to poverty, Ludwig dropped out of school, but taught himself Latin, French and Italian.

creative path

At the age of 12, Ludwig is already working, because after the death of his grandfather, the family is in need. At the same time, Nefe helps him publish his first essay.

After the death of his mother in 1887, Beethoven joined the orchestra as a violist. Wishing to continue his studies and get an education, in 1789 the composer began attending university lectures. Supports the French Revolution that took place in those years, enters Freemasonry.

Actively engaged teaching activities, teaching music to his numerous students, including Stefan Breining, Ferdinand Ries, Karl Czerny, Theodor Leshetitsky.

After meeting Haydn, Beethoven leaves for Vienna to take lessons from the great composer.

Haydn and Beethoven's views on music differ: the teacher is frightened by the gloomy tone musical compositions student. Soon Antonio Salieri becomes Beethoven's teacher.

Despite his almost always careless appearance - disheveled hair, shabby clothes - Beethoven conquers Vienna with his virtuoso piano playing. His character is quite complex, he is quarrelsome and has a high opinion of himself.

For 10 years of the Viennese period, Beethoven becomes a popular composer. Here he wrote 20 sonatas for piano, 3 piano concertos, 8 sonatas for violin, many quartets and other chamber works, the oratorio "Christ on the Mount of Olives", the First and Second Symphonies, the ballet "Creations of Prometheus".

But from 1796, Beethoven began to lose his hearing. He is diagnosed with an incurable diagnosis - inflammation of the inner ear (tinitis). Solitude in little Heiligenstadt does not bring relief. Beethoven writes a letter, called the Heiligenstadt testament, in which the composer describes his terrible and painful experiences about his illness.

In the last years of his life, he constantly criticized the authorities. However, he is so popular that the government does not touch him. Beethoven becomes gloomy, irritable, unsociable. Almost without leaving home, he creates his own famous works(Third Symphony, opera "Fidelio"). Hearing leaves him completely. He communicates with relatives and friends exclusively through conversational notebooks.

Beethoven's liver begins to collapse.

Personal life

The personal life of the composer was full of secrets, but it never worked out, although there were always many women around him.

In Vienna, his student was the beautiful Countess Juliet Guicciardi, whom the composer became seriously interested in and even thought about marrying. He dedicated his beautiful Moonlight Sonata to her. However, the countess married Count Gallenberg, whom she considered the best composer.

Beethoven's passion was another of his students, the beautiful Teresa Brunswick. She devoted herself to the cause of raising children and charity, but she had a long heartfelt friendship with the composer. After Beethoven's death, a tender letter was found, the addressee of which is unknown, but many biographers of the composer consider it to be Teresa Brunswick. The letter is famous under the name "Letter to the immortal beloved."

The last hope for happiness for Beethoven was Bettina Brentano, Goethe's friend, a German writer. But here, too, failure awaited him: in 1811, she married another, the writer Achim von Arnim. Happiness bypassed the great composer.

Death

Beethoven died in Vienna on March 26, 1827. More than twenty thousand people saw off his coffin to his favorite tune - the funeral mass Requiem in C minor by Luigi Cherubini.

Beethoven's main achievements

• Beethoven is rightfully the key figure in Western classical music.
• This is one of the most performed composers in the world.
• Beethoven wrote in all genres: opera, choral compositions, music for dramatic performances.
• Author of the Immortals instrumental works: overtures, violin, piano and cello sonatas, symphonies, concertos for violin and piano, quartets.
• His work had a huge impact on the symphony of the 19th and 20th centuries.
• Beethoven created a new piano style, opposing extreme registers, using the pedal extensively, using massive chordal harmonies.

Important dates in Beethoven's biography

• 1770 - birth
• 1778 - first performance little Beethoven in Cologne
• 1780 - studying with Nefe
• 1782 - work as an assistant to the court organist, publication of the first composition, variations on the theme of Dressler's march
• 1887 - death of mother, position of violist in the orchestra
• 1789 attending lectures at the university
• 1792 - the beginning of the Viennese period
• 1796 - the beginning of the disease
• 1781 - "Moonlight Sonata"
• 1803 - "Kreutzer Sonata"
• 1805 - opera "Fidelio"
• 1824 - Ninth Symphony
• 1827 - death

• Before creating another immortal masterpiece, Beethoven dipped his head in ice water. Most likely, this was the main cause of hearing loss. But the habit was so strong that the composer could not give it up until the end of his days.
• In 1822 to Carl Czerny, former student Beethoven, a Hungarian boy named Liszt entered the training. Hearing him at a concert, Beethoven was excited by his playing and silently kissed the little pianist. Liszt kept the memory of this kiss all his life. It was this Hungarian boy, who later became a great composer, who inherited Beethoven's unique playing style. In 1839, having arrived in Bonn and learned that the monument to Beethoven was not erected due to a lack of state Money, Liszt was indignant for a long time, and then donated the missing amount. The monument was completed.
• On March 26, the day of Beethoven's death, a terrible snow storm raged over Vienna, a terrible lightning flashed. The dying composer suddenly stretched out on his bed, raised himself, shook his fist at the sky and died.
• In 2007, Christian Reiter, a Viennese forensic expert, after examining Beethoven's preserved hair, concluded that the lead content in the composer's body exceeded the permissible limit, which could have caused death. According to his assumptions, Beethoven's attending physician Andreas Vavruh regularly pierced the patient's peritoneum, and applied lotions of lead to the resulting wound.

Ludwig Beethoven was born in 1770 in the German town of Bonn. In a house with three rooms in the attic. In one of the rooms with a narrow dormer window that let in almost no light, his mother, his kind, gentle, meek mother, whom he adored, often bustled about. She died of consumption when Ludwig was barely 16, and her death was the first major shock in his life. But always, when he remembered his mother, his soul was filled with tender warm light as if the hands of an angel touched her. "You were so good to me, so worthy of love, you were my most best friend! O! Who was happier than me when I could still pronounce the sweet name - mother, and it was heard! To whom can I tell it now? .. "

Ludwig's father, a poor court musician, played the violin and harpsichord and had a very beautiful voice, but suffered from conceit and, intoxicated with easy successes, disappeared in taverns, led very scandalous life. Having discovered musical abilities in his son, he set out to make him a virtuoso, a second Mozart, at all costs, in order to decide material problems families. He forced the five-year-old Ludwig to repeat boring exercises for five or six hours a day, and often, having come home drunk, woke him up even at night and half-asleep, crying, sat him at the harpsichord. But in spite of everything, Ludwig loved his father, loved and pitied him.

When the boy was twelve years old, a very significant event- it must be fate itself sent Christian Gottlieb Nefe, court organist, composer, conductor, to Bonn. This extraordinary man, one of the most advanced and educated people of that time, he immediately guessed a brilliant musician in the boy and began to teach him for free. Nefe introduced Ludwig to the works of the greats: Bach, Handel, Haydn, Mozart. He called himself "an enemy of ceremonial and etiquette" and "a hater of flatterers", these traits were later clearly manifested in Beethoven's character. During frequent walks, the boy eagerly absorbed the words of the teacher, who recited the works of Goethe and Schiller, talked about Voltaire, Rousseau, Montesquieu, about the ideas of freedom, equality, fraternity that freedom-loving France lived at that time. Beethoven carried the ideas and thoughts of his teacher through his whole life: “Gifting is not everything, it can die if a person does not have diabolical perseverance. If you fail, start again. Fail a hundred times, start again a hundred times. Man can overcome any obstacle. Giving and a pinch is enough, but perseverance needs an ocean. And in addition to talent and perseverance, self-confidence is also needed, but not pride. God bless you from her."

Many years later, Ludwig will thank Nefe in a letter for the wise advice that helped him in studying music, this “divine art”. To which he modestly answers: "Ludwig Beethoven himself was Ludwig Beethoven's teacher."

Ludwig dreamed of going to Vienna to meet Mozart, whose music he idolized. At 16, his dream came true. However, Mozart reacted to the young man with distrust, deciding that he performed a piece for him, well learned. Then Ludwig asked me to give him a topic for free fantasy. He had never improvised with such inspiration! Mozart was amazed. He exclaimed, turning to his friends: “Pay attention to this young man, he will make the whole world talk about him!” Unfortunately, they never met again. Ludwig was forced to return to Bonn, to his dearly beloved sick mother, and when he later returned to Vienna, Mozart was no longer alive.

Soon, Beethoven's father completely drank himself, and on the shoulders of a 17-year-old young man lay the care of two younger brothers. Fortunately, fate extended a helping hand to him: he had friends from whom he found support and comfort - Elena von Breuning replaced Ludwig's mother, and brother and sister Eleanor and Stefan became his first friends. Only in their house did he feel at ease. It was here that Ludwig learned to appreciate people and respect human dignity. Here he learned and fell in love for life epic heroes"Odyssey" and "Iliad", the heroes of Shakespeare and Plutarch. Here he met Wegeler, the future husband of Eleanor Braining, who became his best friend, a friend for life.

In 1789, the desire for knowledge led Beethoven to the University of Bonn at the Faculty of Philosophy. In the same year, a revolution broke out in France, and news of it quickly reached Bonn. Ludwig, together with his friends, listened to lectures by professor of literature Eulogy Schneider, who enthusiastically read his poems dedicated to the revolution to students: “To crush stupidity on the throne, to fight for the rights of mankind ... Oh, not one of the lackeys of the monarchy is capable of this. This is only possible for free souls who prefer death to flattery, poverty to slavery.” Ludwig was among Schneider's ardent admirers. Full of bright hopes, feeling great strength in himself, the young man again went to Vienna. Oh, if friends had met him at that time, they would not have recognized him: Beethoven resembled a salon lion! “The look is direct and incredulous, as if sideways watching what impression it makes on others. Beethoven is dancing (oh grace in the highest degree hidden), rides (poor horse!), Beethoven, who has good location spirit (laughter at the top of my lungs). (Oh, if old friends had met him at that time, they would not have recognized him: Beethoven resembled a salon lion! He was cheerful, cheerful, danced, rode and looked askance at the impression he made on others.) Sometimes Ludwig visited frighteningly gloomy, and only close friends knew how much kindness was hidden behind outward pride. As soon as a smile illuminated his face, it was illuminated with such childish purity that in those moments it was impossible not to love not only him, but the whole world!

At the same time, his first piano compositions were published. The success of the publication turned out to be grandiose: more than 100 music lovers subscribed to it. Young musicians were especially eager for his piano sonatas. Future famous pianist Ignaz Moscheles, for example, surreptitiously bought and dismantled Beethoven's Pathétique sonata, which had been banned by his professors. Later, Moscheles became one of the maestro's favorite students. The listeners, with bated breath, reveled in his improvisations on the piano, they touched many to tears: "He calls spirits both from the depths and from the heights." But Beethoven did not create for money and not for recognition: “What nonsense! I never thought of writing for fame or for fame. I need to give an outlet to what I have accumulated in my heart - that's why I write.

He was still young, and the criterion of his own importance for him was a sense of strength. He did not tolerate weakness and ignorance, treated condescendingly as common people, and to the aristocracy, even to those nice people who loved him and admired him. With royal generosity, he helped friends when they needed it, but in anger he was ruthless towards them. In him, great love and the same force of contempt clashed. But in spite of everything, in the heart of Ludwig, like a beacon, lived a strong, sincere need to be the right people: “Never, since childhood, has my zeal to serve suffering humanity weakened. I have never charged any fee for this. I do not need anything but the feeling of contentment that always accompanies a good deed.

Youth is characterized by such extremes, because it is looking for an outlet for its internal forces. And sooner or later a person faces a choice: where to direct these forces, what path to choose? Fate helped Beethoven to make a choice, although her method may seem too cruel ... The disease approached Ludwig gradually, over the course of six years, and struck him between 30 and 32 years old. She hit him in the most sensitive place, in his pride, strength - in his hearing! Complete deafness cut off Ludwig from everything that was so dear to him: from friends, from society, from love and, worst of all, from art! new Beethoven.

Ludwig went to Heiligenstadt, an estate near Vienna, and settled in a poor peasant house. He found himself on the verge of life and death - the words of his will, written on October 6, 1802, are like a cry of despair: “O people, you who consider me heartless, stubborn, selfish - oh, how unfair you are to me! You do not know the secret reason for what you only think! From the early childhood my heart was inclined towards a tender feeling of love and benevolence; but consider that for six years now I have been suffering from an incurable disease, brought to a terrible degree by inept doctors ... With my hot, lively temperament, with my love of communicating with people, I had to retire early, spend my life alone ... For me, not there is rest among people, no communication with them, no friendly conversations. I must live as an exile. If sometimes, carried away by my innate sociability, I succumbed to temptation, then what humiliation I experienced when someone next to me heard a flute from afar, but I did not hear! .. Such cases plunged me into terrible despair, and the thought of committing suicide often came to mind. Only art kept me from it; it seemed to me that I had no right to die until I had done everything to which I felt called... And I decided to wait until the inexorable parks would please to break the thread of my life... I am ready for anything; in my 28th year I was to become a philosopher. It is not so easy, and more difficult for an artist than for anyone else. O deity, you see my soul, you know it, you know how much love it has for people and the desire to do good. Oh people, if you ever read this, then remember that you were unfair to me; and let everyone who is unhappy take comfort in the fact that there is someone like him, who, in spite of all obstacles, did everything he could to be accepted among worthy artists and people.

However, Beethoven did not give up! And before he had time to finish writing his will, as in his soul, like a heavenly parting word, like a blessing of fate, the Third Symphony was born - a symphony unlike any that existed before. It was her that he loved more than his other creations. Ludwig dedicated this symphony to Bonaparte, whom he compared with the Roman consul and considered one of the greatest people new time. But, subsequently learning about his coronation, he was furious and broke the dedication. Since then, the 3rd symphony has been called the Heroic.

After everything that happened to him, Beethoven understood, realized the most important thing - his mission: “Let everything that is life be dedicated to the great and let it be the sanctuary of art! This is your duty to the people and to Him, the Almighty. Only in this way can you once again reveal what is hidden in you. The ideas of new works rained down on him like stars - at that time the Appassionata piano sonata, excerpts from the opera Fidelio, fragments of Symphony No. 5, sketches of numerous variations, bagatelles, marches, masses, the Kreutzer Sonata were born. Finally choosing your life path, the maestro seemed to have received new forces. So, from 1802 to 1805, works dedicated to bright joy appeared: “ Pastoral symphony», piano sonata"Aurora", "Merry Symphony" ...

Often, without realizing it himself, Beethoven became a pure spring from which people drew strength and consolation. Here is what Beethoven's student, Baroness Ertman, recalls: “When my last child, Beethoven long time could not decide to come to us. Finally, one day he called me to his place, and when I came in, he sat down at the piano and said only: “We will talk to you with music,” after which he began to play. He told me everything, and I left him relieved. On another occasion, Beethoven did everything to help the daughter of the great Bach, who, after the death of her father, found herself on the verge of poverty. He often liked to repeat: "I do not know any other signs of superiority, except kindness."

Now the inner god was Beethoven's only constant interlocutor. Never before had Ludwig felt such closeness to Him: “... you can no longer live for yourself, you must live only for others, there is no more happiness for you anywhere except in your art. Oh Lord, help me overcome myself!” Two voices constantly sounded in his soul, sometimes they argued and were at enmity, but one of them was always the voice of the Lord. These two voices are clearly audible, for example, in the first movement of the Pathetique Sonata, in the Appassionata, in Symphony No. 5, and in the second movement of the Fourth Piano Concerto.

When the idea suddenly dawned on Ludwig during a walk or a conversation, he experienced what he called an "enthusiastic tetanus." At that moment he forgot himself and belonged only to musical idea and he didn't let her go until he had completely mastered her. This is how a new bold, rebellious art was born, which did not recognize the rules, "which could not be broken for the sake of more beautiful." Beethoven refused to believe the canons proclaimed by the harmony textbooks, he believed only what he had tried and experienced. But he was not guided by empty vanity - he was the herald of a new time and a new art, and the newest in this art was a man! A person who dared to challenge not only generally accepted stereotypes, but, first of all, his own limitations.

Ludwig was by no means proud of himself, he constantly searched, tirelessly studied the masterpieces of the past: the works of Bach, Handel, Gluck, Mozart. Their portraits hung in his room, and he often said that they helped him overcome suffering. Beethoven read the works of Sophocles and Euripides, his contemporaries Schiller and Goethe. God alone knows how many days and sleepless nights he spent comprehending great truths. And even shortly before his death, he said: "I begin to learn."

But how new music received by the public? Performed for the first time in front of selected listeners, the "Heroic Symphony" was condemned for "divine lengths." At an open performance, someone from the audience pronounced the verdict: “I’ll give a kreuzer to end all this!” Journalists and music critics Beethoven did not get tired of instructing: "The work is depressing, it is endless and embroidered." And the maestro, driven to despair, promised to write a symphony for them, which would last more than an hour, so that they would find his "Heroic" short. And he will write it 20 years later, and now Ludwig took up the composition of the opera Leonora, which he later renamed Fidelio. Among all his creations, she occupies an exceptional place: "Of all my children, she cost me the greatest pain at birth, she also gave me the greatest grief - that's why she is dearer to me than others." He rewrote the opera three times, provided four overtures, each of which was a masterpiece in its own way, wrote the fifth, but everyone was not satisfied. It was an incredible work: Beethoven rewrote a piece of an aria or the beginning of some scene 18 times and all 18 in different ways. For 22 lines vocal music- 16 test pages! As soon as "Fidelio" was born, as it was shown to the public, but in auditorium the temperature was "below zero", the opera survived only three performances... Why did Beethoven fight so desperately for the life of this creation? The plot of the opera was based on a story that took place during the French Revolution, its main characters were love and fidelity - those ideals that Ludwig's heart has always lived. Like any person, he dreamed of family happiness, of home comfort. He, who constantly overcame illnesses and ailments, like no one else, needed care loving heart. Friends did not remember Beethoven except as passionately in love, but his hobbies were always distinguished by extraordinary purity. He could not create without experiencing love, love was his sacred.

Autograph score of "Moonlight Sonata"

For several years, Ludwig was very friendly with the Brunswick family. The sisters Josephine and Teresa treated him very warmly and took care of him, but which of them became the one whom he called his "everything", his "angel" in his letter? Let this remain Beethoven's secret. Its fruit heavenly love steel Fourth Symphony, Fourth piano concert, quartets dedicated to the Russian Prince Razumovsky, a cycle of songs "To a Distant Beloved". Until the end of his days, Beethoven tenderly and reverently kept in his heart the image of the "immortal beloved".

The years 1822-1824 became especially difficult for the maestro. He tirelessly worked on the Ninth Symphony, but poverty and hunger forced him to write humiliating notes to publishers. He personally sent letters to the "chief European courts”, those who once paid attention to him. But almost all of his letters remained unanswered. Even despite the enchanting success of the Ninth Symphony, the fees from it turned out to be very small. And the composer laid all his hopes on the "generous Englishmen", who more than once showed him their enthusiasm. He wrote a letter to London and soon received £100 from the Philharmonic Society on account of the academy being set up in his favor. “It was a heartbreaking sight,” recalled one of his friends, “when, having received a letter, he clasped his hands and sobbed with joy and gratitude ... He wanted to dictate again thank you letter, he promised to dedicate one of his works to them - the Tenth Symphony or Overture, in a word, whatever they wish. Despite this situation, Beethoven continued to compose. His last works were string quartets, opus 132, the third of which, with his divine adagio, he entitled "A song of thanksgiving to the Divine from a convalescent."

Ludwig seemed to have a premonition imminent death- he copied the saying from the temple of the Egyptian goddess Neith: “I am what I am. I am all that was, is, and will be. No mortal has lifted my veil. “He alone comes from himself, and everything that exists owes being to this one,” and he loved to reread it.

In December 1826, Beethoven went on business with his nephew Karl to his brother Johann. This trip turned out to be fatal for him: a long-standing liver disease was complicated by dropsy. For three months the illness severely tormented him, and he talked about new works: “I want to write a lot more, I would like to compose the Tenth Symphony ... music for Faust ... Yes, and a piano school. I think of it to myself in a completely different way than it is now accepted ... ”He did not lose his sense of humor until the last minute and composed the canon“ Doctor, close the gate so that death does not come. Overcoming incredible pain, he found the strength to console his old friend, the composer Hummel, who burst into tears, seeing his suffering. When Beethoven was operated on for the fourth time, and water gushed from his stomach when pierced, he exclaimed with a laugh that the doctor seemed to him to be Moses, who struck the rock with a rod, and immediately, to console himself, added: “Better water from the stomach than from - under the pen.

On March 26, 1827, the pyramid-shaped clock on Beethoven's desk suddenly stopped, which always foreshadowed a thunderstorm. At five o'clock in the afternoon a real storm broke out with a downpour and hail. Bright lightning lit up the room, there was a terrible thunderclap - and it was all over ... On the spring morning of March 29, 20,000 people came to see off the maestro. What a pity that people often forget about those who are near while they are alive, and remember and admire them only after their death.

Everything passes. Suns also die. But for thousands of years they continue to carry their light in the midst of darkness. And for thousands of years we receive the light of these faded suns. Thank you, great maestro, for the example worthy victories, for showing how you can learn to hear the voice of the heart and follow it. Each person seeks to find happiness, each overcomes difficulties and longs to understand the meaning of their efforts and victories. And maybe your life, the way you searched and overcame, will help to find hope for those who seek and suffer. And a spark of faith will light up in their hearts that they are not alone, that all troubles can be overcome if you do not despair and give all the best that you have. Maybe, like you, someone will choose to serve and help others. And, like you, he will find happiness in this, even if the path to it leads through suffering and tears.

to the magazine "Man Without Borders"

Ludwig van Beethoven was born on December 16, 1770 in Bonn. The future great German composer was baptized on December 17 of the same year. In addition to German blood, Flemish blood flowed in his veins, his paternal grandfather was born in Flanders in 1712, for some time he served as a chorister in Louvain and Ghent, and then moved to Bonn. The composer's grandfather was good singer, very smart person and a well-trained instrumentalist. In Bonn, Beethoven's grandfather became a court musician in the chapel of the Archbishop of Cologne, then received the position of court bandmaster, he was highly respected by others.

Ludwig Beethoven's father's name was Johann, from childhood he sang in the archbishop's chapel, but later his position became precarious. He drank heavily and led a chaotic life. The mother of the future great composer, Maria Magdalena Laim, was a daughter. Seven were born in the family, but only three sons survived, the eldest of them was Ludwig.

Childhood

Beethoven grew up in poverty, his father drinking away all his small salary. At the same time, he studied a lot with his son, taught him to play the piano and violin, hoping that young Ludwig would become the new Mozart and provide for his family. Subsequently, Beethoven's father nevertheless added a salary with the expectation of the future of his hardworking and gifted son.

The training of little Beethoven was carried out by very cruel methods, the father forced the four-year-old child to play the violin or sit at the piano for hours. As a child, Beethoven played the violin uncertainly, preferring the piano. He liked to improvise more than to improve his playing technique. At the age of 12, Ludwig van Beethoven wrote three harpsichord sonatas, and at 16 he was already very popular in Bonn. His giftedness attracted the attention of some enlightened Bonn families.

The education of the young composer was unsystematic, but he played the organ and viola, performed in the court orchestra. His first real music teacher was the Bonn court organist Nefe. Beethoven first visited the musical capital of Europe, Vienna, in 1787. Mozart heard Beethoven play and predicted a great future for him, but soon Ludwig had to return home, his mother was dying, and the future composer was to become the sole breadwinner of the family.

Beethoven was born presumably on December 16 (only the date of his baptism is precisely known - December 17) 1770 in the city of Bonn in a musical family. From childhood, they began to teach him to play the organ, harpsichord, violin, flute.

For the first time, the composer Christian Gottlob Nefe became seriously involved with Ludwig. Already at the age of 12, the first work was added to Beethoven's biography musical orientation- assistant organist at court. Beethoven studied several languages, tried to compose music.

The beginning of the creative path

After his mother's death in 1787, he took over the financial responsibilities of the family. Ludwig Beethoven began to play in the orchestra, listen to university lectures. Having accidentally encountered Haydn in Bonn, Beethoven decides to take lessons from him. For this, he moves to Vienna. Already at this stage, after listening to one of Beethoven's improvisations, the great Mozart said: "He will make everyone talk about himself!" After some attempts, Haydn sends Beethoven to study with Albrechtsberger. Then Antonio Salieri became Beethoven's teacher and mentor.

The heyday of a musical career

Haydn briefly noted that Beethoven's music was dark and strange. However, in those years, virtuoso piano playing brought Ludwig first glory. Beethoven's works differ from classic game harpsichordists. In the same place, in Vienna, well-known compositions were written in the future: Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata, Pathétic Sonata.

Rude, proud in public, the composer was very open, friendly towards friends. Beethoven's work of the following years is filled with new works: the First, Second Symphonies, "The Creation of Prometheus", "Christ on the Mount of Olives". However future life and Beethoven's work were complicated by the development of an ear disease - tinitis.

The composer retires to the city of Heiligenstadt. There he is working on the Third - Heroic symphony. Complete deafness separates Ludwig from the outside world. However, even this event cannot make him stop composing. According to critics, Beethoven's Third Symphony fully reveals him greatest talent. Opera "Fidelio" is staged in Vienna, Prague, Berlin.

Last years

Between 1802 and 1812, Beethoven wrote sonatas with special desire and zeal. Then a whole series of works for piano, cello, the famous Ninth Symphony, Solemn Mass were created.

Note that the biography of Ludwig Beethoven of those years was filled with fame, popularity and recognition. Even the authorities, despite his frank thoughts, did not dare to touch the musician. However strong feelings for his nephew, whom Beethoven took in guardianship, the composer was quickly aged. And on March 26, 1827, Beethoven died of liver disease.

Many works by Ludwig van Beethoven have become classics not only for adults, but also for children.

About a hundred monuments around the world have been erected to the great composer.

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