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Happy Birthday Ludwig!

December 16, 2020 marks the 250th celebration of Ludwig van Beethoven's Birthday.

Born in Bonn, Germany on Dec. 16, 1770

As a young man he moved to Vienna in order to study with Mozart. He remained there for 35 years, through his worsening and ultimately total deafness, composing the entire time. He performed throughout the city.

Facts about Beethoven: He loved nature. His best ideas came to him during walks. He had a tough childhood & illness. He even composed on his deathbed. He perfected his negotiating skills & became the first freelance artist. Early on he came into contact with the ideas of French Enlightenment: Liberty, equality, fraternity. In his Ninth Symphony, a choir sings, "All men become brothers." He worked hard- He revised his scores in several steps until he had the best possible version.

In January 2020 the Smithsonian Magazine highlighted Beethoveen in an article "Following Beethoven's Footsteps Through Vienna." SMITHSONIANMAG.COM

Edited to add in reference to Beethoven’s arrival in Vienna- it was “his intention” to work with Mozart, but Mozart did pass away 12/5/1791 prior to Beethoven’s arrival.
Thanks Lane for the correction.

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1743 posts

Has anyone visited Beethoven sites? I've been to his gravesite at the Zentralfriedhof in Vienna, and seen the Beethoven house in Baden (but didn't go in).

A couple of small corrections: We don't know for sure that Beethoven was born on December 16. We know he was baptized on December 17, and it was customary that baptisms were performed within 24 hours of birth, so December 16 is the best guess.

Also, he didn't move to Vienna until 1792. Mozart had died the year before. He did study with Joseph Haydn and with Antonio Salieri (Mozart's rival, made famous in the play and movie Amadeus).

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1936 posts

Bonn, Germany is the place to go for Beethoven travel. You can tour his house, see his life mask and the various instruments he owned and played.

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2165 posts

I made sure to go out to Heiligenstadt when we were in Vienna and enjoyed seeing that area.

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3961 posts

Thanks Heather for the reference to Bonn, Germany for Beethoven travel. Thanks Avi for recommending the book by Nicholas Mathew. Janet, thanks for mentioning Heiligenstadt. We were in Vienna last year, but missed the opportunity to go there. I did read about the Heiligenstadt Testament written by Beethoven that reflects his despair over his increasing deafness. It was written to his brothers. Apparently he kept it hidden among his private papers for the rest of his life, and probably never showed it to anyone. It was discovered in March 1827, after his death by Anton Schindler and Stephen von Breuning, who had it published the following Oct.

What piqued my interest today was an email I received from a tour company that I have traveled with in the past. They are offering several tours starting in Sept. 2021 and 2022 to delve deeper into Beethoven's life. Interesting itineraries for music lovers.

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3586 posts

A footnote to Ludwig’s allegiance to the ideals of the French Enlightenment and those of the French Revolution, “Liberty, Equality, Fraternity.” His 3rd Symphony was originally dedicated to Napoleon. When Beethoven discovered that Bonaparte had declared himself emperor, he renamed it “Eroica, “ and removed the earlier dedication.

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When I was in Stockholm in 2012 (I can't believe it was so long ago!!!), I went to a performance of the first three Beethoven symphonies by the Royal Philharmonic, conducted by Lorin Maazel (who died in 2014). I wrote about it in my blog (link in my profile), but thought I would share the experience here.

The Konserthuset, where the Nobel Prizes are awarded, did not feel
very big or very impressive in the way it’s decorated. It has big
columns that block the view for some seats in the balcony, including
mine. In fact, if I sat back in my seat, all I could see was a few of
the bass players. But it was easy to lean forward (I was in the front
row and the railing was actually contoured to fit forearms very
nicely), and then I could see the entire stage, and it felt as if I
was very close to the action.

A few things were different from going to a concert in the states.
First, when I got there, about 15 minutes before the concert began,
some of the musicians were on stage warming up in street clothes.

Eventually they left, and the stage was empty. The players pretty much
all came on stage within the last five minutes. The men were in white
tie and tails; the women in black dresses (no pants that I could see).
The concertmaster came on stage with all the rest of the musicians and
simply stood up to signal the oboist for A 440.

Then someone came out and made a lengthy announcement. About the only
word I recognized in the speech was “Beethoven.” The audiences laughed
a few times during his talk. Then at the end, he introduced Maestro
Lorin Maazel. I had not picked up a program, figuring it would be in
Swedish, and I didn’t remember from when I booked on line that Maazel
was conducting. Anyway, the audience applauded him very warmly as he
moved slowly onto the stage (he’s 82 years old). He had no music stand
on the podium. He lifted the baton and launched into Beethoven’s first
symphony.

I honestly thought I was beyond this kind of reaction. In fact, I
don’t remember the last time this happened to me, but as they began
playing, tears started streaming down my face. The Beethoven
symphonies are such standard pieces, I know them well, and yet it was
as if I was hearing them for the first time. Maazel used such an
economy of movement, and the orchestra played with so much subtlety
and refinement when that was called for, and bombast and bravura when
appropriate. At times it was like listening to the most intimate
chamber music. I’ve never heard such exquisite pianissimo playing, so
together and so in tune. And Maazel brought out things I’d never heard
before, often giving inner parts unexpected prominence. In all three
symphonies he treated the scherzo movement as prologue to the finale,
so there was no real pause between them. In fact, in the finale to the
Eroica, the fermata between the opening fanfare and the start of the
first variation was significantly longer than the pause before the
movement began.

During the applause after the first symphony, when Maazel asked
certain members of the orchestra to stand for individual bows, the
first person he pointed to was the tympanist. I’ve never seen the
tympanist called out for symphony playing before any other section or
individual. But it was completely justified; he was that good.

Between the tears, I had goose bumps. This was truly the most
extraordinary musical event I’ve ever witnessed. I suspect it was not
just me who heard something magical tonight; the audience stood and
applauded persistently, eventually evolving into rhythmic clapping.
This concert alone makes my entire vacation worthwhile. I will never
forget the experience of hearing this music tonight.

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472 posts

Lane, thank you! That's why we love & revere music. Your writing is a gift. I'm a mostly classical musician, but, like some wise person said, whatever music moves you, that's good music.

In Bonn there's also a huge modern sculpture of Beethoven, in a river-side park: maybe 15' tall, from some angles just a what-is-it 3D assemblage of curved panels, but when you circle round, it resolves into Ludwig's famous scowling face & unruly hair. Masterful. It's outside a small concert hall.

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3961 posts

Rosalyn, thank you for adding the footnote. Lane- thank you for your heartfelt words about your experience. Beautifully written. I always enjoy reading your blog. What an honor & surprise to attend a concert conducted by Maazel. Stewart & Vicki, thank you for mentioning the Beethoven sculpture (famous scowling face & unruly hair!). I have seen photos, but it would be great to see it in person.

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2165 posts

I can't write with Lane's eloquence, but in 2010 we were in Rome and the relatively new Parco della Musica (2002) was on my list of places to visit. When I checked the concert schedule, I found that Kurt Masur was conducting all nine Beethoven symphonies in four concerts during September (two performances of each concert). One date fit our schedule, and it was the performance of the first three symphonies. Oh my - wonderful!

Two years before, we had been fortunate to attend a concert with Masur conducting the Orchestra Giovanile "Luigi Cherubini" in the jewel box Teatro Amilcare Ponchielli in Cremona. What a youth orchestra! They played Bach, Handel and Mendelssohn on that occasion.

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3961 posts

Janet- thanks for sharing your wonderful experiences. What an honor to be in the company of Masur. Also a nice reminder of Cremona- Home of the master luthiers. You’ve inspired me to visit. I read a recent article that discussed how the Pandemic has affected their businesses. Hoping for a brighter future.

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227 posts

Aww, I loved seeing this tribute to Beethoven. My grandson just had his 3rd birthday on Dec. 16th so I celebrated my grandson, Lou, and Ludwig's birthdays. I am a pianist and I accompany professionally since retiring from teaching. I just started learning the Kruetzer Sonata for Violin and Piano to collaborate with a graduate student who will be getting ready to send videos for various competitions, and doctoral applications. I have always loved it and I didn't really think I would ever have an opportunity to learn it, but here it came!
I hope to get to Bonn at some point. We did see several Beethoven sites in Vienna a few years ago including the giant statue near Stadtpark. And I saw several statues/busts when we visited Franz Liszt's final home in Budapest the same year. What a thrill.

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3961 posts

Thanks dpalmier53 for sharing your story. How nice that your grandson shares Ludwig’s birthday. When we were in Vienna last year we also saw Beethoven sites. Like you, we visited Liszt’s home/Museum in Budapest. We were thrilled to find out that Liszt had two Chickering pianos. It was a total surprise. We inherited my husband’s great grandmother’s 1847 Chickering square grand. The two docents we spoke to couldn’t believe we had a piano from that era.

Best wishes as you pursue your collaboration.

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181 posts

Anyone else an alumni from Beethoven House 89 Brougham Street, Wellington New Zealand? Private youth hostel run by Alan Goh, who would play Beethoven's 5th VERY loud on Saturday and Sunday mornings, because we wouldn't quiet down our parties the night before. I was there September 1980-March 1981. Great memories. Even got the pillowcase with Beethoven's picture with the words "I sleep with Beethoven".

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3961 posts

Susie- enjoyed your story at Beethoven House in Wellington, NZ. Sounded like a lot fun and good memories.

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227 posts

Wow, Janis that’s amazing that you inherited a Chickering. I remember playing on one often that had been donated to the music department at the college I attended. And so glad you went to Liszt’s home. I cherish that memory.