Ludwig van Beethoven

"I will seize fate by the throat; it shall certainly never wholly overcome me" (Beethoven). Ludwig van Beethoven lived and breathed these words. The composer Beethoven was born on December 16, 1770, in Bonn Germany ("Beethoven Ludwig van"). His father began teaching him music at a young age. He was a brutal alcoholic and often beaten and starved Beethoven when he made mistakes ("Ludwig van Beethoven"). Later on, Beethoven ventured to Vienna to study with other composers like Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Joseph Haydn. Despite the fact that he grew deaf in his later years, Beethoven went on to compose many musical works of art. His influence over the musical society and his perseverance over the loss of his hearing is what makes Beethoven a hero.

Beethoven is a hero because of his influence in the music world. Beethoven's music was on a whole new level from the common musical compositions of his time."The vastness and imaginative complexity of Beethoven's last works, especially the Quartets, baffled not only his contemporaries but later audiences and even professional musicians for some time after his death" ("Ludwig van Beethoven" ).There are various accounts in letters, diaries, and such that experiencing Beethoven's musical works of art were something of great value. Many listeners claimed it was beyond comparison . Beethoven's music remained popular even after he died, continuing to inspire future generations.Not only did the common man have trouble following  Beethoven's intense melodies, but so did musical scholars.  "Such close musical colleagues as the violinist Schuppanzigh, for instance, were baffled by the great string quartets that Beethoven wrote for the Russian Count Razumovsky in 1806" (Siepmann). A colleague of Beethoven, someone who worked close with him, was awed by his string quartets. Beethoven's music introduced new ideas in the classic era that we still use today. His music is emotionally advanced. Many composers after his time found Beethoven as a tough act follow.The influence Beethoven had on the music world was a great and long lasting effect.

Beethoven is a hero because he persevered over his deafness. In his later years, Beethoven began to lose his hearing. "As he retreated further into his work and as the works themselves became increasingly less comprehensible to his average contemporaries" ("Ludwig van Beethoven.")The quartets mentioned earlier are from the period of time Beethoven became deaf. When he began to venture deeper into his studies his music gradually intensified. Even though Beethoven was deaf, he continued to produce great works of art that excelled the average man's music."Oh how harshly was I flung back by the doubly sad experience of my bad hearing" (Siepmann). Beethoven himself  said the experience of losing his hearing was traumatizing. He struggled with conversing with students and peers. During this time of his life he tried to withdraw himself from social events as much as possible. He desperately tried to hide the deafness, embarrassed by his decreasing quality of hearing. But he did continue to compose and perform. Beethoven, although somewhat defeated, still managed to overcome the struggle and release new musical works of art. Even the loss of hearing will not defeat a truly deserving hero.

Beethoven portrayed the heroic traits influence and perseverance throughout his life. He challenged composers to think outside the box by creating extravagant themes. The posterity of the music world has been challenged to transcend  his compositions. Beethoven also showed us all that we can overcome any obstacle or challenge we may face in our lifetime. Beethoven's perseverance shows me that I can conquer any problem, big or small. "I will seize fate by the throat; it shall certainly never wholly overcome me" (Beethoven). No matter the issue, nothing will take me down.

Works Cited

APPLEGATE, CELIA. "Music." Europe 1789-1914: Encyclopedia of the Age of Industry and Empire. Ed. John Merriman and Jay Winter. Vol. 3. Detroit: Charles Scribner's Sons, 2006. 1565-1573. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 9 May 2014.

"Beethoven, Ludwig van." UXL Encyclopedia of World Biography. Ed. Laura B. Tyle. Vol. 2. Detroit: UXL, 2003.192-194. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 5 May 2014.

Eckley, Wilton, and Eckley Wilton. "Ludwig Van Beethoven." Great Lives From History: The Nineteenth Century (2007): 1.Biography Reference Center. Web. 6 May 2014.

"Ludwig van Beethoven." 2014. The Biography.com website. May 05 2014http://www.biography.com/people/ludwig-van-beethoven-9204862.

"Ludwig van Beethoven." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Detroit: Gale, 1998.Biography in Context. Web. 7 May 2014.

Siepmann, Jeremy. Beethoven: His Life and Music. Welwyn: Naxos, 2005. Print.