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 All About Art
Ludwig Van Beethoven
published: December 2006
By Tamar Burris, Contributing Writer
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Ludwig van Beethoven was born in December 1770 in Bonn, Germany. His father was a musician with the royal court at Cologne who used his sons talent to gain fame and money. With his fathers prodding, Beethoven played his first public concert at the age of eight. Because his family was poor, Beethoven left school at the age of 10, and so his music lessons became his most important form of schooling. One of Beethovens first music teachers was Christian-Gottlob Neefe, a renowned musician himself. In addition to music, Neefe taught Beethoven about philosophy, religion and other subjects.
 Before his 13th birthday, Beethoven had already published two musical pieces. By his 16th birthday, the young composer was well known in his hometown. However, no longer satisfied with what Bonn had to offer, Beethoven decided to travel to Vienna to study with Mozart. Unfortunately, his mothers untimely death caused him to return to Bonn to care for his younger siblings for a few years. But in 1792, Beethoven returned to Vienna for good.
Although Mozart had died in 1791, in Vienna Beethoven studied under another musical talent, Franz Joseph Haydn. With support from Haydn and his other teachers, Beethoven was soon known as a piano virtuoso. But life was not without its struggles. At the age of 28, Beethoven began to go deaf. The talented composer also fought bitterly with friends and loved ones and was never married. Despite his personal problems, Beethoven composed numerous important symphonies and pieces in a variety of musical genres, including piano sonatas, string quartets and chamber music. Long after his death on March 26, 1827, Beethoven is still remembered as one of the greatest composers in history. His genius continues to inspire modern composers, musicians and music lovers alike.
Written by Tamar Burris, a former elementary school teacher who now works as a freelance writer and curriculum developer for PBS, the Discovery Channel and other education-related companies. Sources: All About Beethoven, http://www.all-about-beethoven.com/; Ludwig van Beethoven Web site, http://www.lvbeethoven.com/index_En.html; Wikipedia Ludwig van Beethoven, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beethoven
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