Biography
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| Ludwig van Beethoven |
Ludwig
van Beethoven was one of the world's greatest composers. He wrote many
symphonies (music written for orchestra), overtures (music for opera), and
pieces for piano and other instruments. Some of his best-known compositions include 9 symphonies,
5 piano concertos, 1 violin concerto, 32 piano sonatas,
and 16 string quartets.
He
started studying the piano and violin when he was 4 years old. His father who
was a singer was his first teacher. When he was 10 years old, he started taking
lessons from Christian Neefe. He wrote his first song when he was 11. When he
was 12, his teacher let him direct the orchestra part of the time.
He
knew he could play the piano very well and began to play at parties and to give
concerts around Europe. When he needed an orchestra, he used a big orchestra.
He would even use some of the instruments in the orchestra to sound like birds
in the forest.
He
liked taking long walks during the day. During these walks he planned his
music. He would make notes in a notebook. Then in the evening after dinner, he
would write music from about 7:30 to 10:00 p.m. He followed the same routine
every day. If he was eating out and didn't have his notebook with him, he would
write on the back of a menu. He would work on a composition until it was just
right. Sometimes it took years, but it would be perfect when he finished it.
When
he was around 30 years old, Beethoven started going deaf. Even though he could
no longer hear, he was well enough to play piano. Beethoven even composed some
of his best music after he was deaf!
In
1826 he caught a cold. It developed into pneumonia and he died. The world lost
a great composer, but his music lives on today. Beethoven is considered one of
the greatest musical geniuses who ever lived.
References:
www.classicsforkids.com
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