In a family with Flemish roots. The composer's paternal grandfather was born in Flanders, served as a choirmaster in Ghent and Louvain, and in 1733 moved to Bonn, where he became a court musician in the chapel of the Elector-Archbishop of Cologne. His only son Johann, like his father, served in the choir as a vocalist (tenor) and earned money by giving violin and clavier lessons.
In 1767 he married Maria Magdalene Keverich, daughter of the court chef in Koblenz (seat of the Archbishop of Trier). Ludwig, the future composer, was the eldest of their three sons.
His musical talent manifested itself early. Beethoven's first music teacher was his father, and the choir musicians also studied with him.
On March 26, 1778, my father organized the first public speaking son.
Since 1781, the composer and organist Christian Gottlob Nefe supervised the lessons of the young talent. Beethoven soon became accompanist of the court theater and assistant organist of the chapel.
In 1782, Beethoven wrote his first work, Variations for Clavier on a March Theme by composer Ernst Dresler.
In 1787, Beethoven visited Vienna and took several lessons from the composer Wolfgang Mozart. But he soon learned that his mother was seriously ill and returned to Bonn. After the death of his mother, Ludwig remained the sole breadwinner of the family.
The young man's talent attracted the attention of some enlightened Bonn families, and his brilliant piano improvisations provided him with free entry into any musical gatherings. The von Breuning family did especially a lot for him, and took custody of the musician.
In 1789, Beethoven was a volunteer student at the Faculty of Philosophy at the University of Bonn.
In 1792, the composer moved to Vienna, where he lived almost without leaving for the rest of his life. His initial goal when moving was to improve his composition under the guidance of composer Joseph Haydn, but these studies did not last long. Beethoven quickly gained fame and recognition - first as the best pianist and improviser in Vienna, and later as a composer.
In the prime of his creative powers, Beethoven showed tremendous efficiency. In 1801-1812 he wrote the following outstanding works, as Sonata in C sharp minor ("Lunar", 1801), Second Symphony (1802), "Kreutzer Sonata" (1803), "Eroica" (Third) Symphony, sonatas "Aurora" and "Appassionata" (1804), opera " Fidelio" (1805), Fourth Symphony (1806).
In 1808, Beethoven completed one of his most popular symphonic works‒ The Fifth Symphony and at the same time the “Pastoral” (Sixth) Symphony, in 1810 – the music for Johann Goethe’s tragedy “Egmont”, in 1812 – the Seventh and Eighth Symphonies.
From the age of 27, Beethoven suffered from progressive deafness. A serious illness for the musician limited his communication with people and made it difficult for him to perform as a pianist, which Beethoven eventually had to stop. Since 1819, he had to completely switch to communicating with his interlocutors using a slate board or paper and pencil.
In his later works, Beethoven often turned to the fugue form. The last five piano sonatas (Nos. 28-32) and the last five quartets (Nos. 12-16) are distinguished by a particularly complex and sophisticated musical language, requiring the greatest skill from the performers.
Later creativity Beethoven has long been a source of controversy. Of his contemporaries, only a few were able to understand and appreciate him latest works. One of these people was his Russian admirer, Prince Nikolai Golitsyn, on whose order Quartets No. 12, 13 and 15 were written and dedicated to him. The overture “Consecration of the House” (1822) is also dedicated to him.
In 1823, Beethoven completed the Solemn Mass, which he considered his greatest work. This mass, designed more for a concert than for a cult performance, became one of the landmark phenomena in the German oratorio tradition.
With the assistance of Golitsyn, the “Solemn Mass” was first performed on April 7, 1824 in St. Petersburg.
In May 1824, Beethoven's last benefit concert took place in Vienna, in which, in addition to parts from the mass, his final Ninth Symphony was performed with a final chorus based on the words of the poet Friedrich Schiller's "Ode to Joy." The idea of overcoming suffering and the triumph of light is consistently carried through the entire work.
The composer created nine symphonies, 11 overtures, five piano concertos, a violin concerto, two masses, and one opera. Beethoven's chamber music includes 32 piano sonatas(not counting six youth sonatas written in Bonn) and 10 sonatas for violin and piano, 16 string quartets, seven piano trios, as well as many other ensembles - string trios, a septet for mixed composition. His vocal heritage consists of songs, over 70 choirs, and canons.
On March 26, 1827, Ludwig van Beethoven died in Vienna from pneumonia, complicated by jaundice and dropsy.
The composer is buried in the Vienna Central Cemetery.
Beethoven's traditions were adopted and continued by composers Hector Berlioz, Franz Liszt, Johannes Brahms, Anton Bruckner, Gustav Mahler, Sergei Prokofiev, Dmitri Shostakovich. The composers of the New Viennese school - Arnold Schoenberg, Alban Berg, Anton Webern - also revered Beethoven as their teacher.
Since 1889, a museum has been opened in Bonn in the house where the composer was born.
In Vienna, three house museums are dedicated to Ludwig van Beethoven, and two monuments have been erected.
The Beethoven Museum is also open at Brunswick Castle in Hungary. At one time, the composer was friendly with the Brunswick family, often came to Hungary and stayed in their house. He was alternately in love with two of his students from the Brunswick family - Juliet and Teresa, but neither of the hobbies ended in marriage.
The material was prepared based on information from open sources
In this issue we will talk about the last years of the life of the great Beethoven.
In the previous issue, we talked about the composer’s life, overshadowed by a meager financial situation and consistent failures in relationships with the fair sex. But these details, as well as the character, which was far from the most beautiful character of the composer, did not prevent Ludwig from writing his beautiful music.
Today we, finishing our short excursion according to the biography of Beethoven, let's talk about the last twelve (1815-1827) years of his life.
Beethoven's family problems
It cannot be said that Beethoven ever got along well with his brothers, especially with Beethoven, who by that time was already a wealthy pharmacist who supplied medicines to the army.
In 1812, after meeting Goethe, the composer went to the city of Linz to visit Johann. True, apparently, Ludwig was prompted for this trip by a selfish idea, namely, to upset the engagement between Johann and one of his employees, Therese Obermayer, whom the composer simply could not stand. True, the result was not in Ludwig’s favor, because his younger brother did not listen to him.
A few years earlier, back in 1806, Ludwig prevented the marriage of his other brother, and also his secretary, Kaspar, and the attempt was equally unsuccessful. But all these attempts by the composer to interfere in the personal lives of his brothers were not without reason.
After all, the surname BEETHOVEN by that time was thundering throughout Europe, and the composer could not afford for his younger brothers to disgrace this family. After all, both Teresa and Johanna, potential daughters-in-law of the great composer, to put it mildly, were not worthy of bearing this surname. But it was still useless, because the brothers did not listen to him.
On the other hand, Kaspar himself will understand that he has made a stupid mistake - in 1811 he will be so disappointed in his wife that he even tries to divorce her, although he still will not get a final divorce. His wife, Johanna, turned out to be far from the most decent woman, as his older brother, Ludwig, predicted several years ago, in every possible way preventing their marriage.
Well, in 1815, Kaspar left this world. The late Kaspar Karl, in his dying will, asked Ludwig, his older brother, to become the guardian of his son, a nine-year-old boy also named Karl.
This boy, as he grew up, caused his uncle, the great Beethoven, a huge amount of trouble.Moreover, immediately after the death of his brother, Ludwig had to “fight” with the child’s mother, Kaspar’s widow Johanna, whom he could not stand. For five years, Beethoven tried with all his might to deprive Johanna of parental rights, and in 1820 he finally achieved his goal.
Financial problems still haunted the composer, who struggled to earn money to feed his beloved nephew and continue to engage in creativity.
There was even a case when the British pianist Charles Neate, together with Ferdinand Rees, advised Beethoven to hold a concert in England. Beethoven's music was greatly appreciated in this country. The composer had an excellent reputation in England, which means that his performance at a recital would guarantee him an excellent income.
Beethoven understood this perfectly well, and, in general, he had long dreamed of going on tour to London, as one of his teachers did in his time, Joseph Haydn. Moreover, the British Philharmonic sent Ludwig official letter with conditions that were simply amazing for a composer bathing in everyday problems ah, partly related to poor financial condition.
But at the last minute, Beethoven changed his mind, or rather, was forced to refuse to go to England due to illness. Moreover, the composer felt that he could not leave his nephew for such a long time, so he refused such a generous gift from fate.
We will not dwell on Beethoven’s nephew, because it will be dedicated to him. For now, let’s just note that the guy caused the composer a lot of everyday problems and emotional experiences, which affected Beethoven’s already “undermined” health for the worse.
But still, the composer madly loved his nephew and helped him in every possible way, despite all the bad sides of his character. After all, the composer understood that he would no longer have other heirs. Even in letters, the composer addressed his nephew as “Dear Son.”
The last "Academy" of a deaf composer
Beethoven continues to write his beautiful music, radically different from the works written in his youth. The composer is finishing his last piano sonatas, while simultaneously composing simple piano pieces and chamber music commissioned by publishers in order to provide himself and his nephew with income for subsistence.
One of the most important events of this period of Beethoven’s life is his last “Academy”, held on May 7, 1824 in the famous Kärtnertor Theater.
There his famous “Solemn Mass” was performed, and also the famous “Ninth Symphony” was presented to the public for the first time - a unique work that breaks all ideas about the traditional classical symphony.
Viennese old-timers testified that at this event there was an ovation previously unheard of at any concert of any other musician. Even now there is no need to invent anything about the success of the Ninth Symphony, because a fragment of this particular work was used in the anthem of the European Union.
Well, that evening, when the completely deaf composer first presented this masterpiece to the Viennese public, the delight of the listeners was indescribable. Hats and scarves flew through the air. The applause was so loud that it simply hurt the ears. But only the completely deaf composer, unfortunately, did not see anything of this (for he stood with his back to the audience) and did not hear until Caroline Unger, one of the vocalists, turned Ludwig towards the applauding audience.
The ovation touched Beethoven so emotionally that the composer, who saw flying scarves and tears in the eyes of the applauding listeners, literally fainted.
At that moment, the hall simply exploded with applause, which subsided with renewed vigor. The emotions were so powerful that after some time the police were forced to intervene. It was a huge success. Well, in less than 2 weeks the performance will be repeated in the Redoubt Hall of the same Vienna.
True, the artistic success of the work still did not bring serious material benefits to Beethoven. The financial side again let the composer down - both concerts turned out to be absolutely unprofitable and even unprofitable for Beethoven himself.
Of course, soon one reputable publishing house paid the composer both for the “Ninth Symphony” and for the “Solemn Mass” and several other works, but still the artistic success of the works was significantly higher than the material profit.
Beethoven was such a unique composer: all the dukes, barons, lords, kings and emperors of Europe knew his name. But until the end of his days he remained poor.
Progressive disease. Last months of life.
In 1826, Beethoven's health deteriorated further after twenty-year-old Karl, his favorite nephew, attempted suicide, possibly due to large gambling debts (however this is not confirmed).
After this reckless act of his nephew, Beethoven's health deteriorated so much that he would never recover, unlike Karl, who survived this moment and soon enlisted in the army.
Pneumonia, inflammation of the intestines, cirrhosis of the liver and subsequent dropsy, due to which the composer’s stomach was pierced several times - even in our age, the chances of recovery from such a set of diseases seem to be something supernatural.
In the last days of the sick Beethoven's life, the most different people: Cramolini with his bride, Hummel, Jenger, Schubert (although it is believed that he could not enter the composer’s room. And, in general, the fact of Schubert’s visit to Beethoven has not been proven) and other people who appreciated the composer’s work.
But most of the time with Beethoven was spent by the friends who looked after him - Schindler and another old friend - the same Stefan Breuning from Bonn, but now living nearby with his family.
Speaking about the Breuning family, it is worth noting that Stefan’s son, Gerhard, nicknamed “Ariel,” brought Beethoven especially much joy in these days darkened by illness. Beethoven simply adored this boy, who understood nothing and was constantly “shining,” and this love was mutual.
Even the stingy brother Johann began to spend a lot of time with the dying composer. And this, despite the fact that literally a few months before his death, Ludwig and his nephew (after his suicide attempt) came to Johann with some requests, and the latter treated his brother like a stranger - he took money from him and his nephew for an overnight stay , and also sent them home in an open carriage (after which Ludwig is believed to have contracted pneumonia).
The composer's material poverty last weeks his stay was supplemented by a good sum received from the London Philharmonic Society, and collected thanks to Moscheles, one of Beethoven’s students.
Another joy for Ludwig was another truly valuable and for that time extremely rare gift sent from the English capital by Johann Stumpf (a harp maker) - it was the complete works of Handel, whom Beethoven considered almost the greatest composer.
Modest, but at the same time very pleasant gifts for the composer in the form of jars of compote, were sent by Baron Pascalati, in whose house Beethoven lived for some time. The publisher Schot also distinguished himself by sending the dying Beethoven famous Rhine wines. Only Beethoven himself noted with regret that this gift was a little late, although in his heart he was glad about this parcel.
And, of course, two weeks before his death, Ludwig was finally awarded the title of honorary member of the Vienna Society of Music Lovers of the Austrian Empire. Only this title remained only symbolic, since it was not supported by any material benefit.
It is also worth noting that until his death, Ludwig, despite his incurable illness, thought more than adequately. Even suspecting that he could die at any moment, Beethoven still continued to read the most complex philosophical and other literature on different languages, thereby continuing to enrich themselves intellectually.
Already on March 24, 1827, the composer signed a will, according to the contents of which, all his property would be inherited by his nephew, Karl. On the same day, Beethoven is visited by a priest.
The death of the great Beethoven occurred after three days of hellish torment - March 26, 1827. This happened in Vienna, in the very house where Beethoven lived recent months life. This house had interesting name"Schwarzpanierhaus", which translates as "House of the Black Spaniard".
At the time of his death, the composer's friends, Breuning and Schindler, were not around. At that moment, foreseeing Ludwig’s imminent death, they went to negotiate a burial place (possibly with Ludwig’s brother, Johann), leaving a common friend, Anselm Hutenbrenner, next to the composer.
It was the latter, perhaps together with Therese (the wife of Johann, Ludwig's brother), who witnessed the death of the great Beethoven. It is he who will later tell how the great Ludwig van Beethoven met his death, looking menacingly into her eyes and shaking his fist (literally) to the sound of thunder. It was Hutenbrenner who closed the eyes of the great composer, whose soul from that moment left this world.
Ludwig van Beethoven was buried on March 29. The scale of the ceremony is amazing: about 20 thousand people took part in the procession - this is almost a tenth of the entire population of Vienna at that time.And this is surprising, given the fact that compared to the funeral of Beethoven, the scale of the funeral of the older classics, Mozart and Haydn, was much less significant.
One of the torchbearers of the funeral ceremony was another great composer, Franz Schubert, who, by the way, will die literally next year.
A variety of people, from ordinary Viennese citizens to representatives of the imperial palace, came to send the great Beethoven on his last journey.
My willingness to serve poor suffering humanity with my art has never, since childhood... needed any reward other than inner satisfaction...
L. Beethoven
Musical Europe was still full of rumors about the brilliant miracle child - W. A. Mozart, when Ludwig van Beethoven was born in Bonn, into the family of a tenor player of the court chapel. He was baptized on December 17, 1770, naming him in honor of his grandfather, a venerable bandmaster, a native of Flanders. First musical knowledge Beethoven received it from his father and his colleagues. His father wanted him to become a “second Mozart” and forced his son to practice even at night. Beethoven did not become a child prodigy, but he discovered his talent as a composer quite early. He was greatly influenced by K. Nefe, who taught him composition and playing the organ, a man of advanced aesthetic and political convictions. Due to the poverty of the family, Beethoven was forced to enter the service very early: at the age of 13 he was enrolled in the chapel as an assistant organist; later worked as an accompanist at the National Theater in Bonn. In 1787, he visited Vienna and met his idol, Mozart, who, after listening to the young man’s improvisation, said: “Pay attention to him; he will someday make the world talk about himself.” Beethoven failed to become Mozart's student: a serious illness and the death of his mother forced him to hastily return to Bonn. There Beethoven found moral support in the enlightened Breuning family and became close to the university environment, which shared the most progressive views. The ideas of the French Revolution were enthusiastically received by Beethoven's Bonn friends and had a strong influence on the formation of his democratic beliefs.
In Bonn, Beethoven wrote a number of large and small works: 2 cantatas for soloists, choir and orchestra, 3 piano quartets, several piano sonatas (now called sonatinas). It should be noted that the sonatinas known to all beginning pianists salt And F major, according to researchers, do not belong to Beethoven, but are only attributed, but another, truly Beethoven Sonatina in F major, discovered and published in 1909, remains, as it were, in the shadows and is not played by anyone. Most Bonn's creativity also includes variations and songs intended for amateur music-making. Among them is the familiar song “Groundhog”, the touching “Elegy for the Death of a Poodle”, the rebellious poster “ Free man", dreamy "Sigh of the unloved and happy love", containing a prototype future topic joy from the Ninth Symphony, "Sacrifice Song", which Beethoven loved so much that he returned to it 5 times (last edition - 1824). Despite the freshness and brightness of his youthful compositions, Beethoven understood that he needed to study seriously.
In November 1792, he finally left Bonn and moved to Vienna, the largest musical center in Europe. Here he studied counterpoint and composition with J. Haydn, J. Schenk, J. Albrechtsberger and A. Salieri. Although the student was obstinate, he studied zealously and subsequently spoke with gratitude about all his teachers. At the same time, Beethoven began performing as a pianist and soon gained fame as an unsurpassed improviser and a brilliant virtuoso. On his first and last long tour (1796), he captivated the audiences of Prague, Berlin, Dresden, and Bratislava. The young virtuoso was patronized by many distinguished music lovers - K. Likhnovsky, F. Lobkowitz, F. Kinsky, Russian Ambassador A. Razumovsky and others; Beethoven's sonatas, trios, quartets, and later even symphonies were first heard in their salons. Their names can be found in the dedications of many of the composer's works. However, Beethoven's manner of dealing with his patrons was almost unheard of at the time. Proud and independent, he did not forgive anyone for trying to humiliate his dignity. The legendary words uttered by the composer to the patron of the arts who insulted him are known: “There have been and will be thousands of princes, but there is only one Beethoven.” Of the many aristocratic women who were Beethoven's students, Ertman, the sisters T. and J. Bruns, and M. Erdedi became his constant friends and promoters of his music. Although he did not like to teach, Beethoven was nevertheless the teacher of K. Czerny and F. Ries in piano (both of them later won European fame) and the Archduke Rudolf of Austria in composition.
In the first Viennese decade, Beethoven wrote mainly piano and chamber music. In 1792-1802 3 piano concertos and 2 dozen sonatas were created. Of these, only Sonata No. 8 (“ Pathetic") has the author's title. Sonata No. 14, which bears the subtitle of a fantasy sonata, was called “Moonlight” by the romantic poet L. Relshtab. Stable names were also established for sonatas No. 12 (“With Funeral March”), No. 17 (“With Recitatives”) and later ones: No. 21 (“Aurora”) and No. 23 (“Appassionata”). The first Viennese period includes, in addition to the piano ones, 9 (out of 10) violin sonatas (including No. 5 - “Spring”, No. 9 - “Kreutzer”; both titles are also not the author’s); 2 cello sonatas, 6 string quartets, a number of ensembles for various instruments (including the cheerfully gallant Septet).
Since the beginning of the 19th century. Beethoven also began as a symphonist: in 1800 he completed his First Symphony, and in 1802 his Second. At the same time, his only oratorio, “Christ on the Mount of Olives,” was written. The first signs appeared in 1797 incurable disease- progressive deafness and awareness of the hopelessness of all attempts to treat the disease led Beethoven to a mental crisis in 1802, which was reflected in the famous document - the “Heiligenstadt Testament”. The way out of the crisis was creativity: “... A little was missing for me to commit suicide,” the composer wrote. - “It was only art that held me back.”
1802-12 - the time of the brilliant flowering of Beethoven's genius. His deep-rooted ideas of overcoming suffering through the power of spirit and the victory of light over darkness after a fierce struggle turned out to be consonant with the basic ideas of the French Revolution and the liberation movements of the early 19th century. These ideas were embodied in the Third (“Heroic”) and Fifth symphonies, in the tyrannical opera “Fidelio”, in the music for the tragedy of J. V. Goethe “Egmont”, in Sonata No. 23 (“Appassionata”). The composer was also inspired by the philosophical and ethical ideas of the Enlightenment, which he perceived in his youth. The natural world appears full of dynamic harmony in the Sixth (“Pastoral”) Symphony, in the Violin Concerto, in the piano (No. 21) and violin (No. 10) sonatas. Folk or close to folk melodies are heard in the Seventh Symphony and in quartets Nos. 7-9 (the so-called “Russian” ones - they are dedicated to A. Razumovsky; Quartet No. 8 contains 2 melodies of Russian folk songs: used much later also by N. Rimsky-Korsakov “Glory” and “Oh, is my talent, talent”). The Fourth Symphony is full of powerful optimism, the Eighth Symphony is permeated with humor and slightly ironic nostalgia for the times of Haydn and Mozart. The virtuoso genre is treated epically and monumentally in the Fourth and Fifth Piano Concertos, as well as in the Triple Concerto for violin, cello and piano with orchestra. In all these works, the style of Viennese classicism with its life-affirming belief in reason, goodness and justice, expressed at the conceptual level as a movement “through suffering to joy” (from Beethoven’s letter to M. Erdedi), and at the compositional level, found the most complete and final embodiment of the style of Viennese classicism - as a balance between unity and diversity and adherence to strict proportions at the largest scale of the composition.
1812-15 - turning points in the political and spiritual life of Europe. The period of the Napoleonic wars and the rise of the liberation movement was followed by the Congress of Vienna (1814-15), after which in domestic and foreign policy European countries Reactionary-monarchist tendencies intensified. The style of heroic classicism, expressing the spirit of revolutionary renewal late XVIII V. and patriotic sentiments of the beginning of the 19th century, should inevitably either turn into pompous and official art, or give way to romanticism, which became the leading trend in literature and managed to make itself known in music (F. Schubert). Beethoven also had to solve these complex spiritual problems. He paid tribute to the victorious jubilation by creating the spectacular symphonic fantasy “The Battle of Vittoria” and the cantata “Happy Moment”, the premieres of which were timed to coincide with the Vienna Congress and brought Beethoven unprecedented success. However, in other works of 1813-17. reflected a persistent and sometimes painful search for new paths. At this time, cello (Nos. 4, 5) and piano (Nos. 27, 28) sonatas and several dozen arrangements of songs were written different nations for voice and ensemble, the first in the history of the genre vocal cycle“To a Distant Beloved” (1815). The style of these works is, as it were, experimental, with many ingenious discoveries, but not always as integral as in the period of “revolutionary classicism.”
The last decade of Beethoven's life was marred both by the general oppressive political and spiritual atmosphere in Metternich's Austria and by personal adversity and upheaval. The composer's deafness became complete; from 1818 he was forced to use “conversation notebooks” in which his interlocutors wrote questions addressed to him. Having lost hope for personal happiness (the name of the “immortal beloved” to whom Beethoven’s farewell letter dated July 6-7, 1812 was addressed remains unknown; some researchers consider her to be J. Brunswick-Dame, others - A. Brentano), Beethoven accepted took care of raising his nephew Karl, the son of his younger brother who died in 1815. This led to a long-term (1815-20) legal battle with the boy's mother over sole custody rights. The capable but frivolous nephew caused Beethoven a lot of grief. The contrast between sad and sometimes tragic life circumstances and the ideal beauty of the works created is a manifestation of the spiritual feat that made Beethoven one of the heroes of European culture of the New Age.
Creativity 1817-26 marked a new rise in Beethoven's genius and at the same time became an epilogue to the era of musical classicism. Before last days Remaining faithful to classical ideals, the composer found new forms and means of their implementation, bordering on romantic ones, but not turning into them. Beethoven's late style is a unique aesthetic phenomenon. The central idea for Beethoven of the dialectical relationship of contrasts, the struggle between light and darkness, acquires an emphatically philosophical sound in his late work. Victory over suffering is no longer achieved through heroic action, but through the movement of spirit and thought. Great master sonata form, in which dramatic conflicts previously developed, Beethoven in his later works often turns to the form of fugue, which is most suitable for embodying the gradual formation of a generalized philosophical idea. The last 5 piano sonatas (Nos. 28-32) and the last 5 quartets (Nos. 12-16) are distinguished by a particularly complex and sophisticated musical language, requiring the greatest skill from the performers, and soulful perception from the listeners. 33 variations on the Waltz of Diabelli and Bagateli op. 126 are also true masterpieces, despite the difference in scale. Beethoven's later work has long been controversial. Of his contemporaries, only a few were able to understand and appreciate his latest works. One of these people was N. Golitsyn, on whose order the quartets No. , and were written and dedicated to him. The overture “Consecration of the House” (1822) is dedicated to him.
In 1823, Beethoven completed the “Solemn Mass,” which he considered his greatest work. This mass, designed more for concert than for religious performance, became one of the landmark phenomena in the German oratorio tradition (G. Schütz, J. S. Bach, G. F. Handel, W. A. Mozart, I. Haydn). The first mass (1807) was not inferior to the masses of Haydn and Mozart, but did not become a new word in the history of the genre, like the “Solemn”, which embodied all the skill of Beethoven as a symphonist and playwright. Turning to the canonical Latin text, Beethoven highlighted in it the idea of self-sacrifice in the name of the happiness of people and introduced into the final plea for peace the passionate pathos of the denial of war as the greatest evil. With the assistance of Golitsyn, the “Solemn Mass” was first performed on April 7, 1824 in St. Petersburg. A month later, Beethoven’s last benefit concert took place in Vienna, in which, in addition to parts from the mass, his final Ninth Symphony was performed with a final chorus based on the words of “Ode to Joy” by F. Schiller. The idea of overcoming suffering and the triumph of light is consistently carried through the entire symphony and is expressed with utmost clarity at the end thanks to the introduction of a poetic text, which Beethoven dreamed of setting to music back in Bonn. The Ninth Symphony with its final call - “Embrace, millions!” - became Beethoven’s ideological testament to humanity and had a profound impact on symphony in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Beethoven's traditions were adopted and one way or another continued by G. Berlioz, F. Liszt, J. Brahms, A. Bruckner, G. Mahler, S. Prokofiev, D. Shostakovich. Beethoven was also revered as a teacher by the composers of the New Viennese school - the “father of dodecaphony” A. Schoenberg, the passionate humanist A. Berg, the innovator and lyricist A. Webern. In December 1911, Webern wrote to Berg: “Few things are as wonderful as the holiday of Christmas. ... Isn’t this how we should celebrate Beethoven’s birthday?” Many musicians and music lovers would agree with this proposal, because for thousands (and perhaps millions) of people, Beethoven remains not only one of the greatest geniuses of all times and peoples, but also the personification of an unfading ethical ideal, an inspirer of the oppressed, a consoler of the suffering, a faithful friend in sorrow and joy.
L. Kirillina
Beethoven is one of the greatest phenomena of world culture. His work ranks alongside the art of such titans artistic thought, like Tolstoy, Rembrandt, Shakespeare. In terms of philosophical depth, democratic orientation, and courage of innovation, Beethoven has no equal in the musical art of Europe of past centuries.
Beethoven's work captured the great awakening of peoples, the heroism and drama of the revolutionary era. Addressed to all progressive humanity, his music was a bold challenge to the aesthetics of the feudal aristocracy.
Beethoven's worldview was formed under the influence revolutionary movement, which spread in the advanced circles of society at the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries. As its unique reflection on German soil, the bourgeois-democratic Enlightenment took shape in Germany. Protest against social oppression and despotism determined the leading directions of German philosophy, literature, poetry, theater and music.
Lessing raised the banner of the struggle for the ideals of humanism, reason and freedom. The works of Schiller and young Goethe were imbued with a civic feeling. The playwrights of the Sturm und Drang movement rebelled against the petty morality of feudal-bourgeois society. The challenge to the reactionary nobility is heard in Lessing’s “Nathan the Wise,” in Goethe’s “Götz von Berlichingen,” and in Schiller’s “The Robbers” and “Cunning and Love.” The ideas of the struggle for civil liberties permeate Schiller's Don Carlos and William Tell. Tension social contradictions reflected in the image of Goethe’s Werther, the “rebellious martyr,” as Pushkin put it. The spirit of challenge marked every outstanding work of art of that era created on German soil. Beethoven's work was the most general and artistically perfect expression in the art of popular movements in Germany at the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries.
The great social upheaval in France had a direct and powerful impact on Beethoven. This brilliant musician, a contemporary of the revolution, was born in an era that perfectly suited his talent and his titanic nature. With rare creative power and emotional acuity, Beethoven sang the majesty and tension of his time, its stormy drama, the joys and sorrows of the gigantic masses of people. To this day, Beethoven's art remains unsurpassed as an artistic expression of feelings of civic heroism.
The revolutionary theme in no way exhausts Beethoven's legacy. Undoubtedly, the most outstanding Beethoven works belong to the art of heroic-dramatic nature. The main features of his aesthetics are most clearly embodied in works that reflect the theme of struggle and victory, glorifying the universal democratic principle of life and the desire for freedom. “Eroica”, Fifth and Ninth symphonies, overtures “Coriolanus”, “Egmont”, “Leonore”, “Sonata Pathétique” and “Appassionata” - it was this circle of works that almost immediately won Beethoven the widest global recognition. And in fact, Beethoven’s music differs from the structure of thought and manner of expression of its predecessors primarily in its effectiveness, tragic power, and grandiose scale. It is not surprising that his innovation in the heroic-tragic sphere, earlier than in others, attracted general attention; mainly based on dramatic works Beethoven was judged on his work as a whole by both his contemporaries and the generations immediately following them.
However, the world of Beethoven's music is staggeringly diverse. There are other fundamentally important aspects to his art, without which its perception will inevitably be one-sided, narrow and therefore distorted. And above all, this depth and complexity of the intellectual principle inherent in it.
The psychology of the new man, freed from feudal shackles, is revealed in Beethoven not only in terms of conflict and tragedy, but also through the sphere of high inspired thought. His hero, possessing indomitable courage and passion, is also endowed with rich, subtly developed intellect. He is not only a fighter, but also a thinker; Along with action, he is characterized by a tendency to concentrated thinking. No secular composer before Beethoven achieved such philosophical depth and breadth of thought. Beethoven's glorification real life in its multifaceted aspects intertwined with the idea of the cosmic greatness of the universe. Moments of inspired contemplation coexist in his music with heroic and tragic images, illuminating them in a unique way. Through the prism of sublime and deep intellect, life in all its diversity is refracted in Beethoven’s music - violent passions and detached daydreaming, theatrical dramatic pathos and lyrical confession, pictures of nature and scenes of everyday life...
Finally, compared to the work of his predecessors, Beethoven's music stands out for its individualization of the image, which is associated with the psychological principle in art.
Not as a representative of the class, but as an individual possessing his own rich inner world, a man of a new, post-revolutionary society recognized himself. It was in this spirit that Beethoven interpreted his hero. He is always significant and unique, every page of his life is an independent spiritual value. Even motives that are related to each other in type acquire such a richness of shades in conveying mood in Beethoven’s music that each of them is perceived as unique. Given the unconditional commonality of ideas that permeate all of his work, with the deep imprint of a powerful creative individuality lying on all Beethoven’s works, each of his opuses is an artistic surprise.
Perhaps it is precisely this undying desire to reveal the unique essence of each image that makes the problem of Beethoven's style so complex.
Beethoven is usually spoken of as a composer who, on the one hand, completes the classicist (In Russian theater studies and foreign musicological literature, the term “classicist” has been established in relation to the art of classicism. Thus, the confusion that inevitably arises when the single word “classical” is used to characterize the peak, “eternal” phenomena of any art, and to define one stylistic category, we, by inertia, continue to use the term “classical” in relation to it. musical style XVIII century, and to classical examples in music of other styles (for example, romanticism, baroque, impressionism, etc.) era in music, on the other hand, opens the way to the “romantic age”. From a broad historical perspective, this formulation is not objectionable. However, it gives little insight into the essence of Beethoven's style itself. For, while in some respects at certain stages of evolution it comes into contact with the work of the classicists of the 18th century and the romantics of the next generation, Beethoven’s music does not actually coincide in some important, decisive ways with the requirements of either style. Moreover, it is generally difficult to characterize it using stylistic concepts developed on the basis of studying the work of other artists. Beethoven is inimitably individual. Moreover, he is so many-sided and multifaceted that no familiar stylistic categories cover all the diversity of his appearance.
With a greater or lesser degree of certainty, we can only talk about a certain sequence of stages in the composer’s quest. Throughout creative path Beethoven continually expanded the expressive boundaries of his art, constantly leaving behind not only his predecessors and contemporaries, but also his own achievements more early period. Nowadays, it is customary to be amazed at the versatility of Stravinsky or Picasso, seeing in this a sign of the special intensity of the evolution of artistic thought characteristic of the 20th century. But Beethoven in this sense is in no way inferior to the above-mentioned luminaries. It is enough to compare almost any randomly selected works of Beethoven to be convinced of the incredible versatility of his style. Is it easy to believe that an elegant septet in the style of the Viennese divertissement, a monumental dramatic “ Heroic Symphony"and deeply philosophical quartets op. 59 belong to the same pen? Moreover, they were all created within one, six-year period.
None of Beethoven's sonatas can be singled out as the most characteristic of the composer's style in the field piano music. Not a single work typifies his quest in the symphonic sphere. Sometimes in the same year Beethoven releases works that are so contrasting with each other that at first glance it is difficult to recognize the common features between them. Let us at least recall the well-known Fifth and Sixth Symphonies. Every detail of thematicity, every formative technique in them is as sharply opposed to each other as the general artistic concepts of these symphonies - the acutely tragic Fifth and the idyllically pastoral Sixth - are incompatible. If we compare works created at different, relatively distant stages of the creative path - for example, the First Symphony and the “Solemn Mass”, quartets op. 18 and last quartets, the Sixth and Twenty-ninth piano sonatas, etc., etc., then we will see creations so strikingly different from each other that at first impression they are unconditionally perceived as the product of not only different intellects, but also different artistic eras. Moreover, each of the mentioned opuses is highly characteristic of Beethoven, each is a miracle of stylistic completeness.
About one thing artistic principle characterizing Beethoven's works, one can speak only in the most in general terms: throughout his entire career, the composer’s style evolved as a result of the search for a truthful embodiment of life. The powerful embrace of reality, the richness and dynamics in the transmission of thoughts and feelings, and finally, a new understanding of beauty compared to its predecessors led to such multifaceted original and artistically timeless forms of expression that can only be summarized by the concept of the unique “Beethoven style.”
According to Serov's definition, Beethoven understood beauty as an expression of high ideology. Hedonistic, gracefully diversified side musical expressiveness was deliberately overcome in mature creativity Beethoven.
Just as Lessing advocated precise and spare speech against the artificial, decorative style of salon poetry, saturated with elegant allegories and mythological attributes, so Beethoven rejected everything decorative and conventionally idyllic.
In his music, not only the exquisite ornamentation, inseparable from the style of expression of the 18th century, disappeared. Balance and symmetry musical language, smooth rhythm, chamber transparency of sound - these stylistic features, characteristic of all of Beethoven’s Viennese predecessors without exception, were also gradually crowded out of his musical speech. Beethoven's idea of beauty required emphasized nakedness of feelings. He was looking for different intonations - dynamic and restless, sharp and persistent. The sound of his music became rich, dense, and dramatically contrasting; his themes acquired hitherto unprecedented laconicism and stern simplicity. To people brought up on the musical classicism of the 18th century, Beethoven’s manner of expression seemed so unusual, “unsmoothed,” and sometimes even ugly, that the composer was repeatedly reproached for striving to be original, and they saw in his new expressive techniques a search for strange, deliberately dissonant sounds that grate the ear.
And yet, for all its originality, courage and novelty, Beethoven’s music is inextricably linked with the previous culture and with the classicist system of thought.
Advanced schools of the 18th century, spanning several artistic generations, prepared Beethoven's work. Some of them received a generalization and final form in it; the influences of others are revealed in a new original refraction.
Beethoven's work is most closely connected with the art of Germany and Austria.
First of all, there is a noticeable continuity with Viennese classicism of the 18th century. It is no coincidence that Beethoven entered the history of Culture as the last representative of this school. He began on the path paved by his immediate predecessors Haydn and Mozart. Beethoven also deeply perceived the structure of heroic-tragic images of Gluck's musical drama, partly through the works of Mozart, which refracted this figurative principle in their own way, and partly directly from Gluck's lyrical tragedies. Beethoven is equally clearly perceived as Handel's spiritual heir. The triumphant, light-heroic images of Handel’s oratorios began a new life in instrumental basis in Beethoven's sonatas and symphonies. Finally, clear successive threads connect Beethoven with that philosophical and contemplative line in musical art, which has long been developed in the choral and organ schools of Germany, becoming its typical national principle and reaching its peak expression in the art of Bach. The influence of Bach's philosophical lyrics on the entire structure of Beethoven's music is deep and undeniable and can be traced from the First Piano Sonata to the Ninth Symphony and the last quartets, created shortly before his death.
Protestant chorale and traditional everyday German song, democratic Singspiel and Viennese street serenades - these and many other types national art also uniquely embodied in Beethoven’s work. It recognizes both the historically established forms of peasant songwriting and the intonations of modern urban folklore. Essentially everything organically national in the culture of Germany and Austria was reflected in the sonata-symphonic work of Beethoven.
The art of other countries, especially France, also contributed to the formation of his multifaceted genius. In Beethoven's music one can hear echoes of Rousseauist motifs, which were embodied in French music in the 18th century. comic opera, starting with “The Village Sorcerer” by Rousseau himself and ending with the classic works in this genre by Grétry. The poster, sternly solemn character of the mass revolutionary genres of France left an indelible mark on it, marking a break with the chamber art of the 18th century. Cherubini's operas introduced acute pathos, spontaneity and dynamics of passions, close to the emotional structure of Beethoven's style.
Just as Bach’s work absorbed and generalized at the highest artistic level all the schools of any significance from the previous era, so the horizons of the brilliant symphonist of the 19th century embraced all the viable musical movements of the previous century. But Beethoven's new understanding of musical beauty reworked these origins into such an original form that in the context of his works they are not always easily recognizable.
In exactly the same way, the classicist system of thought is refracted in Beethoven’s work in a new form, far from the style of expression of Gluck, Haydn, and Mozart. This is a special, purely Beethovenian type of classicism, which has no prototypes in any artist. Composers of the 18th century did not even think about the very possibility of such grandiose constructions that became typical of Beethoven, such freedom of development within the framework of sonata formation, about such diverse types of musical thematics, and the complexity and richness of the very texture of Beethoven’s music should have been perceived by them as unconditional a step back to the rejected manner of Bach's generation. And yet, Beethoven’s belonging to the classicist system of thought clearly appears against the background of those new aesthetic principles that began to unconditionally dominate in the music of the post-Beethoven era.
Ludwig van Beethoven remains a phenomenon in the world of music today. This man created his first works as a young man. Beethoven, Interesting Facts from whose life they still make one admire his personality, all his life he believed that his destiny was to be a musician, which he, in fact, was.
Ludwig van Beethoven family
Unique musical talent The family had Ludwig's grandfather and father. Despite his rootless origin, the first managed to become a bandmaster at the court in Bonn. Ludwig van Beethoven Sr. had a unique voice and hearing. After the birth of his son Johann, his wife Maria Theresa, who had an addiction to alcohol, was sent to a monastery. Upon reaching the age of six, the boy began to learn to sing. The child had a great voice. Later, men from the Beethoven family even performed together on the same stage. Unfortunately, Ludwig’s father was not distinguished by the great talent and hard work of his grandfather, which is why he did not reach such heights. What couldn’t be taken away from Johann was his love of alcohol.
Beethoven's mother was the daughter of the Elector's cook. The famous grandfather was against this marriage, but, nevertheless, did not interfere. Maria Magdalena Keverich was already a widow at the age of 18. Of the seven children in the new family, only three survived. Maria loved her son Ludwig very much, and he, in turn, was very attached to his mother.
Childhood and adolescence
The date of birth of Ludwig van Beethoven is not listed in any documents. Historians suggest that Beethoven was born on December 16, 1770, since he was baptized on December 17, and according to Catholic custom, children were baptized the day after birth.
When the boy was three years old, his grandfather, the elder Ludwig Beethoven, died, and his mother was expecting a child. After the birth of another offspring, she could not pay attention to her eldest son. The child grew up as a hooligan, for which he was often locked in the room with the harpsichord. But, surprisingly, he did not break the strings: little Ludwig van Beethoven (later composer) sat down and improvised, playing with both hands at the same time, which is unusual for small children. One day the child’s father found him doing this. Ambition played a role in him. What if his little Ludwig is a genius like Mozart? It was from this time that Johann began to study with his son, but often hired him teachers who were more qualified than himself.
While his grandfather, who was actually the head of the family, was alive, little Ludwig Beethoven lived comfortably. The years after the death of Beethoven Sr. became a difficult ordeal for the child. The family was constantly in need due to his father's drunkenness, and thirteen-year-old Ludwig became the main earner of their livelihood.
Attitude to study
As contemporaries and friends noted musical genius, it was rare in those days to encounter such an inquisitive mind as Beethoven possessed. Interesting facts from the composer’s life are also connected with his arithmetic illiteracy. Perhaps the talented pianist failed to master mathematics due to the fact that, without graduating from school, he was forced to work, or perhaps the whole point is in a purely humanitarian mindset. Ludwig van Beethoven cannot be called ignorant. He read volumes of literature, adored Shakespeare, Homer, Plutarch, was fond of the works of Goethe and Schiller, knew French and Italian, and mastered Latin. And it was precisely the inquisitiveness of his mind that he owed his knowledge, and not the education received at school.
Beethoven's teachers
WITH early childhood Beethoven's music, unlike the works of his contemporaries, was born in his head. He played variations on all kinds of compositions known to him, but because of his father’s conviction that it was too early for him to compose melodies, the boy did not record his compositions for a long time.
The teachers his father brought to him were sometimes just his drinking buddies, and sometimes they became mentors to the virtuoso.
The first person Beethoven himself remembers with warmth was his grandfather’s friend, the court organist Eden. Actor Pfeiffer taught the boy to play the flute and harpsichord. For some time, Monk Koch taught the organ to play, and then Hanzman. Then the violinist Romantini appeared.
When the boy was 7 years old, his father decided that the work of Beethoven Jr. should become public knowledge, and organized his concert in Cologne. According to experts, Johann realized that outstanding pianist Ludwig did not work out, and, nevertheless, the father continued to bring teachers to his son.
Mentors
Soon Christian Gottlob Nefe arrived in the city of Bonn. Whether he himself came to Beethoven’s house and expressed a desire to become a teacher of the young talent, or whether Father Johann had a hand in this is unknown. Nefe became the mentor whom Beethoven the composer remembered all his life. After his confession, Ludwig even sent Nefa and Pfeiffer some money as a token of gratitude for the years of training and help provided to him in his youth. It was Nefe who helped promote the thirteen-year-old musician at court. It was he who introduced Beethoven to other luminaries of the musical world.
Beethoven's work was influenced not only by Bach - the young genius idolized Mozart. Once upon his arrival in Vienna, he was even lucky enough to play for the great Amadeus. At first, the great Austrian composer received Ludwig’s playing coldly, mistaking it for a piece he had learned previously. Then the stubborn pianist suggested that Mozart himself set the theme for the variations. From that moment on, Wolfgang Amadeus listened without interruption to the young man’s play, and subsequently exclaimed that the whole world would soon be talking about his young talent. The classic's words became prophetic.
Beethoven managed to take several playing lessons from Mozart. Soon news arrived about the imminent death of his mother, and the young man left Vienna.
Afterwards, his teacher was someone like Joseph Haydn, but they did not find one. And one of the mentors, Johann Georg Albrechtsberger, considered Beethoven to be completely mediocrity and a person incapable of learning anything.
Character of a musician
The history of Beethoven and the ups and downs of his life left a noticeable imprint on his work, made his face gloomy, but did not break the persistent and strong-willed young man. In July 1787, the most close person for Ludwig - his mother. The young man suffered the loss hard. After the death of Mary Magdalene, he himself fell ill - he was struck down by typhus, and then smallpox. The young man's face was left with ulcers, and his eyes were affected by myopia. The still immature youth takes care of his two younger brothers. His father had completely drunk himself by that time and died 5 years later.
All these troubles in life affected the character of the young man. He became withdrawn and unsociable. He was often sullen and harsh. But his friends and contemporaries claim that, despite such an unbridled temper, Beethoven remained a true friend. He helped all his friends who were in need with money, provided for his brothers and their children. It is not surprising that Beethoven's music seemed gloomy and gloomy to his contemporaries, because it was a complete reflection inner world the maestro himself.
Personal life
Very little is known about the spiritual experiences of the great musician. Beethoven was attached to children, loved beautiful women, but never created a family. It is known that his first bliss was the daughter of Elena von Breuning, Lorchen. Beethoven's music of the late 80s was dedicated to her.
She became the first serious love of a great genius. This is not surprising, because the fragile Italian was beautiful, flexible and had an inclination for music, and the already mature thirty-year-old teacher Beethoven focused his attention on her. Interesting facts from the life of a genius are connected specifically with this person. Sonata No. 14, later called “Moonlight,” was dedicated to this particular angel in the flesh. Beethoven wrote letters to his friend Franz Wegeler, in which he confessed his ardent feelings for Juliet. But after a year of studies and tender friendship, Juliet married Count Gallenberg, whom she considered more talented. There is evidence that a few years later their marriage was unsuccessful, and Juliet turned to Beethoven for help. The former lover gave money, but asked not to come again.
Teresa Brunswik, another student of the great composer, became his new hobby. She devoted herself to raising children and charity. Until the end of his life, Beethoven was connected with her by correspondence.
Bettina Brentano, a writer and friend of Goethe, became the composer's latest passion. But in 1811, she too connected her life with another writer.
Beethoven's longest lasting affection was his love of music.
Music of the great composer
Beethoven's work has immortalized his name in history. All his works are masterpieces of world classical music. During the composer's lifetime, his performance style and musical compositions were innovative. Before him, no one had played or composed melodies in the lower and upper registers at the same time.
Art historians distinguish several periods in the composer’s work:
- Early, when variations and plays were written. Then Beethoven composed several songs for children.
- The first - the Viennese period - dates from 1792-1802. Already famous pianist and the composer completely abandons the manner of performance characteristic of him in Bonn. Beethoven's music becomes absolutely innovative, lively, sensual. The manner of performance makes the audience listen and absorb the sounds of beautiful melodies in one breath. The author numbers his new masterpieces. At this time he wrote chamber ensembles and pieces for piano.
- 1803 - 1809 characterized by dark works reflecting the raging passions of Ludwig van Beethoven. During this period he wrote his only opera, Fidelio. All compositions of this period are filled with drama and anguish.
- The music of the last period is more measured and difficult to perceive, and the audience did not perceive some concerts at all. Ludwig van Beethoven did not accept this reaction. The sonata dedicated to Ex-Duke Rudolf was written at this time.
Until the end of his days, the great, but already very ill, composer continued to compose music, which would later become a masterpiece of the world musical heritage of the 18th century.
Disease
Beethoven was an extraordinary and very hot-tempered person. Interesting facts from life relate to the period of his illness. In 1800, the musician began to feel. After some time, doctors admitted that the disease was incurable. The composer was on the verge of suicide. He left society and elite and lived in solitude for some time. After some time, Ludwig continued to write from memory, reproducing the sounds in his head. This period in the composer’s work is called “heroic”. By the end of his life, Beethoven became completely deaf.
The last journey of the great composer
Beethoven's death was a huge grief for all fans of the composer. He died on March 26, 1827. The reason was not clear. For a long time, Beethoven suffered from liver disease and was tormented by abdominal pain. According to another version, the genius was sent to the next world by mental anguish associated with the sloppiness of his nephew.
Recent data obtained by British scientists suggests that the composer could have been unintentionally poisoned by lead. The content of this metal in the body of the musical genius was 100 times higher than the norm.
Beethoven: interesting facts from life
Let's briefly summarize what was said in the article. Beethoven's life, like his death, was surrounded by many rumors and inaccuracies.
The date of birth of a healthy boy in the Beethoven family still raises doubts and disputes. Some historians argue that the parents of the future musical genius were sick, and therefore a priori could not have healthy children.
The composer's talent awoke in the child from his first lessons in playing the harpsichord: he played the melodies that were in his head. The father, under pain of punishment, forbade the child to play unreal melodies; he was only allowed to read from sight.
Beethoven's music had an imprint of sadness, gloom and some despondency. One of his teachers, the great Joseph Haydn, wrote to Ludwig about this. And he, in turn, retorted that Haydn had taught him nothing.
Before composing musical works, Beethoven dipped his head in a basin of ice water. Some experts claim that this type of procedure could have caused his deafness.
The musician loved coffee and always brewed it from 64 beans.
Like any great genius, Beethoven was indifferent to his appearance. He often walked disheveled and unkempt.
On the day of the musician’s death, nature was rampant: bad weather broke out with a blizzard, hail and thunder. In the last moment of his life, Beethoven raised his fist and threatened the sky or higher powers.
One of the great sayings of genius: “Music should strike fire from the human soul.”
Biography
The house where the composer was born
Ludwig van Beethoven was born in December 1770 in Bonn. The exact date of birth has not been established, presumably it is December 16, only the date of baptism is known - December 17, 1770 in Bonn in the Catholic Church of St. Remigius. His father Johann ( Johann van Beethoven , 1740-1792) was a singer, tenor, in the court chapel, mother Mary Magdalene, before her marriage Keverich ( Maria Magdalena Keverich, 1748-1787), was the daughter of the court chef in Koblenz, they married in 1767. Ludwig's grandfather (1712-1773) served in the same chapel as Johann, first as a singer, bass, then as a bandmaster. He was originally from Mechelen in the Southern Netherlands, hence the prefix "van" before the surname. The composer's father wanted to make a second Mozart out of his son and began teaching him to play the harpsichord and violin. In 1778, the boy's first performance took place in Cologne. However, Beethoven did not become a miracle child; his father entrusted the boy to his colleagues and friends. One taught Ludwig how to play the organ, the other taught him the violin.
In 1780, organist and composer Christian Gottlob Nefe came to Bonn. He became Beethoven's real teacher. Nefe immediately realized that the boy had talent. He introduced Ludwig to Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier and the works of Handel, as well as the music of his older contemporaries: F. E. Bach, Haydn and Mozart. Thanks to Nefa, Beethoven's first work was published - variations on the theme of Dressler's march. Beethoven was twelve years old at that time, and he was already working as an assistant to the court organist.
After my grandfather's death financial situation family has worsened. Ludwig had to leave school early, but he learned Latin, studied Italian and French, and read a lot. Having already become an adult, the composer admitted in one of his letters:
There is no work that is too learned for me; Without pretending in the slightest degree to be learned in the proper sense of the word, I have nevertheless, since childhood, striven to understand the essence of the best and wisest people of each era.
Among Beethoven's favorite writers are the ancient Greek authors Homer and Plutarch, the English playwright Shakespeare, and the German poets Goethe and Schiller.
At this time, Beethoven began to compose music, but was in no hurry to publish his works. Much of what he wrote in Bonn was subsequently revised by him. Three children's sonatas and several songs are known from the composer's youthful works, including "The Marmot".
He will make everyone talk about himself!
But the classes never took place: Beethoven learned about his mother’s illness and returned to Bonn. She died on July 17, 1787. The seventeen-year-old boy was forced to become the head of the family and take care of his younger brothers. He joined the orchestra as a violist. Italian, French and German operas are staged here. Especially strong impression The young man was impressed by the operas of Gluck and Mozart.
Haydn stopped in Bonn on his way from England. He spoke approvingly of Beethoven's compositional experiments. The young man decides to go to Vienna to take lessons from the famous composer, since, having returned from England, Haydn becomes even more famous. In the autumn of 1792, Beethoven left Bonn.
First ten years in Vienna
Arriving in Vienna, Beethoven began studying with Haydn, and subsequently claimed that Haydn had taught him nothing; The classes quickly disappointed both student and teacher. Beethoven believed that Haydn was not attentive enough to his efforts; Haydn was frightened not only by Ludwig’s bold views at that time, but also by the rather gloomy melodies, which were rare in those years. Haydn once wrote to Beethoven:
Your things are beautiful, they are even wonderful things, but here and there there is something strange, gloomy in them, since you yourself are a little gloomy and strange; and the style of a musician is always himself.
Already in the first years of his life in Vienna, Beethoven gained fame as a virtuoso pianist. His performance amazed the audience.
Beethoven at 30
Beethoven boldly contrasted the extreme registers (and at that time they played mostly in the middle), made extensive use of the pedal (it was also rarely used then), and used massive chord harmonies. In fact, it was he who created piano style, far from the exquisitely lacy manner of harpsichordists.
This style can be found in his piano sonatas No. 8 "Pathetique" (title given by the composer himself), No. 13 and No. 14. Both have the author's subtitle Sonata quasi una Fantasia(“in the spirit of fantasy”). The poet Relshtab subsequently called Sonata No. 14 “Moonlight,” and although this name fits only the first movement and not the finale, it stuck with the entire work.
Beethoven also stood out for his appearance among the ladies and gentlemen of that time. Almost always he was found carelessly dressed and unkempt.
Beethoven was extremely harsh. One day, while he was playing in a public place, one of the guests began to talk to the lady; Beethoven immediately interrupted the performance and added: “ I won't play with such pigs!" And no amount of apology or persuasion helped.
Another time, Beethoven was visiting Prince Likhnovsky. Likhnovsky had great respect for the composer and was a fan of his music. He wanted Beethoven to play in front of the crowd. The composer refused. Likhnovsky began to insist and even ordered to break down the door of the room where Beethoven had locked himself. The outraged composer left the estate and returned to Vienna. The next morning Beethoven sent Likhnovsky a letter: “ Prince! I owe what I am to myself. There are and will be thousands of princes, but Beethoven is only one!»
However, despite such a stern character, Beethoven's friends considered him quite kind person. For example, the composer never refused help from close friends. One of his quotes:
None of my friends should be in need as long as I have a piece of bread, if my wallet is empty and I am not able to help right away, well, I just have to sit down at the table and get to work, and pretty soon I will help him to get out of trouble.
Beethoven's works began to be widely published and enjoyed success. During the first ten years spent in Vienna, twenty piano sonatas and three piano concertos, eight violin sonatas, quartets and other chamber works, the oratorio “Christ on the Mount of Olives”, the ballet “The Works of Prometheus”, the First and Second Symphonies were written.
Teresa Brunswik, Beethoven's faithful friend and student
In 1796, Beethoven begins to lose his hearing. He develops tinitis, an inflammation of the inner ear that leads to ringing in the ears. On the advice of doctors, he retires for a long time to the small town of Heiligenstadt. However, peace and quiet do not improve his well-being. Beethoven begins to understand that deafness is incurable. During these tragic days, he writes a letter that will later be called the Heiligenstadt will. The composer talks about his experiences, admits that he was close to suicide:
It seemed unthinkable to me to leave the world before I had fulfilled everything to which I felt called.
In Heiligenstadt, the composer begins work on a new Third Symphony, which he will call Heroic.
As a result of Beethoven's deafness, unique historical documents: “conversation notebooks” where Beethoven’s friends wrote down their remarks for him, to which he responded either orally or in a response note.
However, the musician Schindler, who had two notebooks with recordings of Beethoven's conversations, apparently burned them, since “they contained the most rude, bitter attacks against the emperor, as well as the crown prince and other high-ranking officials. This, unfortunately, was Beethoven's favorite theme; in conversation, Beethoven was constantly indignant at the powers that be, their laws and regulations.”
Later years (1802-1815)
When Beethoven was 34 years old, Napoleon abandoned the ideals of the French Revolution and declared himself emperor. Therefore, Beethoven abandoned his intentions to dedicate his Third Symphony to him: “This Napoleon too ordinary person. Now he will trample underfoot all human rights and become a tyrant.”
In piano music, the composer’s own style is noticeable already in early sonatas, but symphonic maturity came to him later. According to Tchaikovsky, only in the third symphony " for the first time all the immense, amazing power was revealed creative genius Beethoven» .
Due to deafness, Beethoven rarely leaves the house and is deprived of sound perception. He becomes gloomy and withdrawn. It was during these years that the composer created his most famous works one after another. During these same years, Beethoven worked on his only opera, Fidelio. This opera belongs to the genre of horror and salvation operas. Success for Fidelio came only in 1814, when the opera was staged first in Vienna, then in Prague, where it was conducted by the famous German composer Weber, and finally in Berlin.
Shortly before his death, the composer handed over the manuscript of Fidelio to his friend and secretary Schindler with the words: “ This child of my spirit was born in greater torment than the others, and caused me the greatest grief. That’s why it’s dearest to me...»
Last years
After 1812, the composer's creative activity declined for a while. However, after three years he begins to work with the same energy. At this time, piano sonatas from the 28th to the last, 32nd, two cello sonatas, quartets, and the vocal cycle “To a Distant Beloved” were created. Much time is also devoted to adaptations of folk songs. Along with Scottish, Irish, Welsh, there are also Russians. But the main creations of recent years have been Beethoven's two most monumental works - “Solemn Mass” and Symphony No. 9 with choir.
The Ninth Symphony was performed in 1824. The audience gave the composer a standing ovation. It is known that Beethoven stood with his back to the audience and did not hear anything, then one of the singers took his hand and turned him to face the audience. People waved scarves, hats, and hands, greeting the composer. The ovation lasted so long that the police officials present demanded that it stop. Such greetings were allowed only in relation to the person of the emperor.
In Austria, after the defeat of Napoleon, a police regime was established. The government, frightened by the revolution, suppressed any “free thoughts.” Numerous secret agents penetrated into all layers of society. Beethoven’s conversation books contain warnings every now and then: “ Quiet! Watch out, there's a spy here!"And, probably, after some particularly bold statement from the composer: " You'll end up on the scaffold!»
Beethoven's grave at the Central Cemetery of Vienna, Austria
However, Beethoven's popularity was so great that the government did not dare to touch him. Despite his deafness, the composer continues to be aware of not only political, but also music news. He reads (that is, listens with his inner ear) scores of operas by Rossini, looks through a collection of songs by Schubert, and gets acquainted with the operas of the German composer Weber “The Magic Shooter” and “Euryanthe”. Arriving in Vienna, Weber visited Beethoven. They had breakfast together, and Beethoven, usually not given to ceremony, looked after his guest.
After the death of his younger brother, the composer took care of his son. Beethoven places his nephew in the best boarding schools and entrusts his student Karl Czerny to study music with him. The composer wanted the boy to become a scientist or artist, but he was attracted not by art, but by cards and billiards. Enmeshed in debt, he attempted suicide. This attempt did not cause much harm: the bullet only slightly scratched the skin on the head. Beethoven was very worried about this. His health deteriorated sharply. The composer develops a serious liver disease.
Beethoven's funeral
He was an artist, but also a man, a man in the highest sense of the word... One can say about him as about no one else: he did great things, there was nothing bad in him.
Teacher
Beethoven began giving music lessons while still in Bonn. His Bonn student Stefan Breuning remained the composer's most devoted friend until the end of his days. Breuning helped Beethoven rework the libretto of Fidelio. In Vienna, the young Countess Giulietta Guicciardi became Beethoven's student. Juliet was a relative of the Brunswicks, whose family the composer visited especially often. Beethoven became interested in his student and even thought about marriage. He spent the summer of 1801 in Hungary, on the Brunswick estate. According to one hypothesis, it was there that the “Moonlight Sonata” was composed. The composer dedicated it to Juliet. However, Juliet preferred Count Gallenberg to him, considering him a talented composer. Critics wrote about the Count’s compositions that they could accurately indicate from which work of Mozart or Cherubini this or that melody was borrowed. Teresa Brunswik was also Beethoven's student. She had musical talent - she played the piano beautifully, sang and even conducted.
Having met the famous Swiss teacher Pestalozzi, she decided to devote herself to raising children. In Hungary, Teresa opened charitable kindergartens for poor children. Until her death (Teresa died in 1861 at an old age), she remained faithful to her chosen cause. Beethoven had a long friendship with Teresa. After the composer's death, a large letter was found, which was called "Letter to the Immortal Beloved." The addressee of the letter is unknown, but some researchers consider Teresa Brunswik to be the “immortal beloved.”
Dorothea Ertmann, one of the best pianists in Germany, was also Beethoven's student. One of her contemporaries spoke of her like this:
The tall, stately figure and the beautiful face, full of animation, aroused in me... intense anticipation, and yet I was shocked as never before by her performance of the Beethoven sonata. I have never before seen a combination of such power with soulful tenderness - even among the greatest virtuosos.
Ertman was famous for her performances of Beethoven's works. The composer dedicated Sonata No. 28 to her. Having learned that Dorothea’s child had died, Beethoven played for her for a long time.
Dorothea Ertmann, German pianist, one of best performers Beethoven's works
At the end of 1801, Ferdinand Ries arrived in Vienna. Ferdinand was the son of the Bonn Kapellmeister, a friend of the Beethoven family. The composer accepted the young man. Like Beethoven's other students, Ries already mastered the instrument and also composed. One day Beethoven played him the Adagio he had just completed. The young man liked the music so much that he memorized it by heart. Going to Prince Likhnovsky, Rhys played a play. The prince learned the beginning and, coming to the composer, said that he wanted to play him his composition. Beethoven, who showed little ceremony with princes, categorically refused to listen. But Likhnovsky still started playing. Beethoven immediately realized what Ries had done and became terribly angry. He forbade the student to listen to his new compositions and indeed never played anything for him again. One day Rees played his own march, passing it off as Beethoven's. The listeners were delighted. The composer who appeared right there did not expose the student. He just told him:
You see, dear Rhys, what great experts they are. Give them just the name of their pet, and they don't need anything else!
One day Rhys had a chance to hear Beethoven's new creation. One day they got lost while walking and returned home in the evening. Along the way, Beethoven roared a stormy melody. Arriving home, he immediately sat down at the instrument and, carried away, completely forgot about the presence of the student. Thus the finale “Appassionata” was born.
At the same time as Rees, Karl Czerny began studying with Beethoven. Karl was perhaps the only child among Beethoven's students. He was only nine years old, but he was already performing in concerts. His first teacher was his father, the famous Czech teacher Wenzel Czerny. When Karl first got into Beethoven’s apartment, where, as always, there was chaos, and saw a man with a dark, unshaven face, wearing a vest made of coarse woolen fabric, he mistook him for Robinson Crusoe.
Beethoven at work at home
Czerny studied with Beethoven for five years, after which the composer gave him a document in which he noted “the exceptional success of the student and his amazing musical memory.” Cherny's memory was truly amazing: he knew by heart all of his teacher's piano works.
Czerny started early pedagogical activity and soon became one of the best teachers in Vienna. Among his students was Theodor Leschetizky, who can be called one of the founders of Russian piano school. From 1858, Leshetitsky lived in St. Petersburg, and from 1862 to 1878 he taught at the newly opened conservatory. Here he studied with A. N. Esipova, later a professor of the same conservatory, V. I. Safonov, professor and director of the Moscow Conservatory, S. M. Maykapar.
In 1822, a father and a boy came to Czerny, who had come from the Hungarian town of Doboryan. The boy had no idea about the correct position or fingering, but the experienced teacher immediately realized that before him was an extraordinary, gifted, perhaps a genius child. The boy's name was Franz Liszt. Liszt studied with Czerny for a year and a half. His success was so great that his teacher allowed him to speak in public. Beethoven was present at the concert. He guessed the boy's talent and kissed him. Liszt kept the memory of this kiss all his life.
It was not Rhys, not Czerny, but Liszt who inherited Beethoven's style of playing. Like Beethoven, Liszt interprets the piano as an orchestra. While touring Europe, he promoted Beethoven's work, performing not only his piano works, but also symphonies that he adapted for the piano. At that time, Beethoven's music, especially symphonic music, was still unknown to a wide audience. In 1839 Liszt arrived in Bonn. They had been planning to erect a monument to the composer here for several years, but progress was slow.
Liszt made up the shortfall with proceeds from his concerts. It was only thanks to these efforts that the monument to the composer was erected.
Causes of death
In cinema
- The films “Beethoven’s Nephew” (directed by Paul Morrissey) and “Immortal Beloved” (starring Gary Oldman) were made about the composer’s fate. In the first, he is presented as a latent homosexual, jealous of everyone's own nephew Karl; in the second, the idea is developed that the composer’s attitude towards Karl was determined by Beethoven’s secret love for his mother.
- The main character of the cult film "A Clockwork Orange" Alex loves to listen to Beethoven's music, so the film is full of it.
- In the film “Remember Me Like This,” filmed in 1987 at Mosfilm by Pavel Chukhrai, Beethoven’s music is heard.
- The comedy film "Beethoven" has nothing in common with the composer, except that a dog was named in his honor.
- In the film Eroica Symphony, Beethoven was played by Ian Hart.
- In the Soviet-German film “Beethoven. Days of the Life" Beethoven was played by Donatas Banionis.
- In the film “The Sign,” the main character loved to listen to Beethoven’s music, and at the end of the film, when the end of the world began, everyone died to the second movement of Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony.
- The film "Rewriting Beethoven" talks about last year the life of a composer (starring Ed Harris).
- The 2-part feature film “The Life of Beethoven” (USSR, 1978, director B. Galanter) is based on the surviving memories of the composer from his close friends.
- Film "Lecture 21" (Italy, 2008), film debut Italian writer and musicologist Alessandro Baricco, dedicated to the Ninth Symphony.
- In the film “Equilibrium” (USA, 2002, directed by Kurt Wimmer), the main character Preston discovers a countless number of gramophone records. He decides to listen to one of them. The film features a fragment of Ludwig van Beethoven's ninth symphony.
- In the film “The Soloist” (USA, France, UK, director Joe Wright) The plot is based on the real life story of musician Nathaniel Ayers. Ayers' career as a young virtuoso cellist is interrupted when he develops schizophrenia. Many years later, a journalist learns about the homeless musician. Los Angeles Times, the result of their communication is a series of articles. Ayers is simply raving about Beethoven, he constantly performs his symphonies on the street.
In non-academic music
- The song "The Moon" from the album Tarot by Spanish power metal band Dark Moor contains significant passages from " Moonlight Sonata"(I part) and the Fifth Symphony (I and IV parts).
- In 2000, the neo-classical metal band Trans-Siberian Orchestra released the rock opera Beethoven’s Last Night, dedicated to the composer’s last night.
- In the song Les Litanies De Satan from the album Bloody Lunatic Asylum ( English) of the Italian gothic-black metal band Theaters des Vampires used Sonata No. 14 as an accompaniment to the poems of Charles Baudelaire.
- “Beethoven Was Deaf” (“Beethoven was deaf”) - that’s what he called his live album Morrissey, singer from Great Britain.
In popular culture
You know a pregnant woman who already has 8 children. Two of them are blind, three are deaf, one is mentally retarded, and she herself has syphilis. Would you advise her to have an abortion?
If you advised an abortion, you just killed Ludwig van Beethoven.
Beethoven's parents married in 1767. In 1769 their first son, Ludwig Maria, was born and died 6 days later, which was quite common for that time. There is no information on whether he was blind, deaf, mentally retarded, etc. In 1770, Ludwig van Beethoven was born. In 1774, a third son was born, Caspar Carl van Beethoven, who died in 1815 from pulmonary tuberculosis. He was neither blind, nor deaf, nor mentally retarded. In 1776, the fourth son, Nikolaus Johann, was born, had enviable health and died in 1848. In 1779, a daughter, Anna Maria Francisca, was born; she died four days later. There is also no information about her about whether she was blind, deaf, mentally retarded, etc. In 1781, Franz Georg was born, who died two years later. Maria Margarita was born in 1786; she died a year later. That same year, Ludwig's mother dies of tuberculosis, a common disease at that time. There is no reason to believe that she suffered from sexually transmitted diseases. Father, Johann van Beethoven, died in 1792.
Case in Teplice
Musical fragments
| Concert 4-1 | |
| Reproduction help | |
see also
Notes
Literature
- Alshwang A. Ludwig van Beethoven. Essay on life and creativity.
- Korganov V.D. Beethoven. Biographical sketch. - M.: Algorithm, 1997.(djvu-book on www.libclassicmusic.ru)
- Boris Kremnev. Beethoven ZhZL
- Kirillina L.V. Beethoven. Life and creativity: In 2 volumes - M.: Moscow Conservatory, 2009.
- Alfred Amenda. Appassionata. A novel from the life of Ludwig van Beethoven.
Links
| Beethoven, Ludwig van in Wikiquote | |
| Category:Ludwig van Beethoven on Wikimedia Commons |
- All Beethoven piano concertos and sonatas performed by masters
- Piano Sonatas n. 22, 27 MP3 Creative Commons Recording
