Life of Ludwig Van Beethoven - World of Biography

Meeting Haydn

Ludwig van Beethoven Franz Joseph Haydn, the greatest Viennese composer of the time stopped at Bonn on his way back from a successful trip to London in 1790. Beethoven met Haydn and presented a recently composed cantata. Haydn was suitably impressed and he offered to take him in as his student. The Elector permitted Beethoven to go to Vienna to study under Haydn and agreed to keep him on his payroll. Count Waldstein wrote the farewell message: ‘The spirit of Mozart is mourning and weeping over the death of her beloved. With the inexhaustible Haydn she found repose but no occupation. With the help of unremitting labor you shall receive Mozart’s spirit from Haydn’s hands’. Beethoven left for Vienna on November 1792. Napoleon’s army occupied Bonn soon after, and Beethoven never returned to the place of his birth.

Musical Training in Vienna

Beethoven arrived in Vienna as a promising young man of 22. He was short, stocky and dark-complexioned. He had an unattractive pockmarked face with a broad and flat nose, and deep-set eyes. His only weapon to conquer the new city, which had very high standards so far as music was concerned, was his musical talent. But the very next month his father died of dropsy of the heart. The Elector not only agreed to continue his share of the father’s pension, he even doubled it. He also granted three measures of grain for the education of his brothers who had moved in with him.

Ludwig van Beethoven Haydn started teaching Beethoven for a nominal fee. Soon Beethoven started deviating from the orthodox rules of composition as he found the accepted techniques inadequate. Haydn found these innovations unacceptable. Beethoven felt he didn’t have much to learn from Haydn, and therefore quit in 1793. He next went to the organist of St. Stephen’s Cathedral, Johann Georg Albrechtsberger, to learn counterpoint. These

lessons helped him to develop a comprehensive technique. Beethoven’s next teacher was Antonio Salieri, the director of the Vienna Opera. He trained Beethoven in vocal composition. Beethoven’s rebellious attitude towards formal musical theory was something that all his teachers found difficult to handle. A series of concerts in 1795 marked the end of Beethoven’s formal training in music.
The First Phase, 1792-1802

Most of the compositions of Beethoven in the first phase consist is of chamber music, based especially on the piano. Though he attempted to break away from the conventions, the influence of Haydn and Mozart is clearly seen in these early pieces. He always succeeded in surprising the audience by bringing in unexpected elements through techniques derived from improvisation.

Beethoven’s first public performance was held at the Burgtheater on March 29 and 30, 1795 for the benefit of the widows of the Society of Tone Artists. At this first public appearance as a pianist in Vienna, he played his Opus 19, Piano Concerto No.2. He played the piano in a concert organized by Konstantine Mozart. He also wrote some of the dances for the ball of the Society of Fine Artists held on November 22. Beethoven played his own piano concerto at a grand musical concert given by Haydn at the Redoutensaal. Beethoven published his Opus 1, Three Trios for Piano, Violin and Cello on October 17, 1795. The world of music had discovered someone to carry on the legacy of Mozart.

Ludwig van Beethoven The occupation of Bonn by the French Revolutionary forces had resulted in the discontinuance of the financial aid to Beethoven. Beethoven had become famous as a pianist and he came to be regarded highly for his improvisations. He found two patrons in Vienna. Prince Karl Lichnowsky invited him regularly for his Friday musicals and provided him with free boarding and lodging for sometime. Later in 1799, Beethoven dedicated his Opus 13, Piano Sonata No.8 ‘Pathétique’ to him. He had a more enthusiastic patron in Prince Lobkowitz, himself a great violinist. In spite of quarrels, their relationship lasted lifelong.

Beethoven went on concert tours to Berlin and Prague during the next three years. His plans for further tours had to be cancelled when Napoleon’s army neared Vienna in 1797. Beethoven contributed to the war effort by composing music for a war song Ein grosses deutsches Volk sind wir. The French army overran Vienna. But since Beethoven had Republican sympathies, he admired Napoleon. He had no qualms about attending the French ambassador General Bernadotte’s receptions. Beethoven presented his two major piano concerti, the Septet and the First Symphony in 1800, and the Moonlight Sonata in 1801.