{"id":50900,"date":"2024-12-16T11:20:53","date_gmt":"2024-12-16T10:20:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bd69e88d-53eb-4f16-aa31-ae816256e264"},"modified":"2024-12-16T12:09:23","modified_gmt":"2024-12-16T11:09:23","slug":"beethoven-perhaps-the-most-influential-composer-in-classical-music-history","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/rss_feed\/beethoven-perhaps-the-most-influential-composer-in-classical-music-history\/","title":{"rendered":"Beethoven: perhaps the most influential composer in classical music history"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By <\/p>

Published: Monday, 16 December 2024 at 10:20 AM<\/p>

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The music and, indeed, the personality of Ludwig van Beethoven bestrides the story of classical music like a colossus. The whole story of this captivating artform would be profoundly different without his influence. Of course, Beethoven had a huge impact on the story of classical music, helping to usher in the Romantic era. Much more than that, though, he was perhaps without parallel in the art of translating emotion into music.<\/p>

Read on for our guide to the life and music of perhaps the most influential composer in the history of classical music: Ludwig van Beethoven.<\/p>

Who was Beethoven and why was he so crucial?<\/strong><\/h2>
Beethoven was not only one of the greatest composers of all time – but also something of a revolutionary. Not just in the obvious sense that his compositions took music in a new direction.<\/p>

The 50 greatest composers of all time<\/a><\/strong><\/li> <\/ul>
No, much more than this: he was an artist imbued with the idea of revolution. Crucial to a full appreciation of Beethoven\u2019s music is a knowledge of the times in which he lived, an understanding of the tumultuous events sweeping across Europe, bringing with them new orders and new ideas.<\/p>

<\/div> <\/figure> <h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-when-and-where-was-beethoven-born\"><strong>When and where was Beethoven born? <\/strong><\/h2> <p>Bonn, where Beethoven was born in December 1770, was an outpost of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/reviews\/hapsburg-court-nov-14\/\"><strong>Habsburg Empire<\/strong><\/a>. It was small, prosperous and sophisticated due to the fact that it was the seat of the Elector of Cologne and M\u00fcnster. On the surface it was also conservative.<\/p> <p>But Vienna \u2013 capital city of the <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/place\/Holy-Roman-Empire\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Holy Roman Empire<\/a><\/strong>, formal and proper, with a growing network of spies, where dissent was not tolerated \u2013 was 500 miles and several days\u2019 coach ride away. And so the burghers of Bonn, not to mention the elector, were prone to making decisions almost calculated to upset those at the heart of government.<\/p> <h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-where-did-beethoven-grow-up\"><strong>Where did Beethoven grow up?<\/strong><\/h2> <p>The young Beethoven remained in the town of his birth, Bonn, until the age of 21.<\/p> <p>The first of these to have a lasting impact on the young musical prodigy in Bonn was the employment as court organist not only of an outsider, from Saxony, but a man of the wrong religion too. A Protestant, no less, who wasted no time in joining the proscribed organisation of like-minded dissidents, the <em>Illuminati<\/em>.<\/p> <p>No one knows what persuaded the largely incapable and alcoholic Johann van Beethoven to employ Christian Gottlob Neefe<strong> <\/strong>as teacher to his son Ludwig, but it was an inspired choice. It does not take too much imagination to see Neefe, as well as encouraging his young pupil\u2019s first attempts at composition, filling his head with ideas of religion, philosophy and politics. Neefe radicalised Beethoven.<\/p> <h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-an-early-breakthrough\">An early breakthrough<\/h3> <p>Before Beethoven was ten, the old order passed with the death of the <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/biography\/Maria-Theresa\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Empress Maria Theresa<\/a><\/strong>. The new ruler, <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.biography.com\/people\/joseph-ii-9358214\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Emperor Joseph<\/a><\/strong>, put in place immediate reforms, stripping the clergy of much of their power, introducing a measure of freedom of worship, and pushing through emancipation of the peasantry before he died, just 48, in 1790.<\/p> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/6-best-beethovens-overlooked-works\/\">Six of the best: Beethoven’s overlooked works<\/a><\/strong><\/li> <li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/recordings\/best-recordings-beethovens-symphonies\/\"><strong>The best Beethoven symphony sets<\/strong><\/a><\/li> <\/ul> <p>That was when the musical establishment of Bonn took a truly extraordinary decision. They decided to commission a work to commemorate Joseph\u2019s death, which would set to music words by a local poet, which in lauding Joseph\u2019s break with the past were political dynamite, as well as a second piece to mark the accession of the new emperor.<\/p> <p>And instead of choosing one of the several senior and respected musicians at court, they awarded the commission to the 19-year-old Ludwig van Beethoven. No matter that the <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/articles\/what-instruments-make-up-an-orchestra\/\">orchestra<\/a><\/strong> refused to perform the pieces because they considered them unplayable, from these two <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/articles\/what-cantata\/\">Cantatas<\/a><\/strong> on, Beethoven would always be a political composer.<\/p> <figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-spotify wp-block-embed-spotify wp-embed-aspect-21-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"> <div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\"> <iframe title=\"Spotify Embed: Beethoven, L.v\" style=\"border-radius: 12px\" width=\"100%\" height=\"352\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/playlist\/3PFxhvKeodtmvXQ1i0aWkl?utm_source=oembed\"\/> <\/div> <\/figure> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/reviews\/orchestral\/sir-simon-rattle-conducts-beethoven-symphonies\/\">Review: Beethoven symphonies from Simon Rattle and the Berlin Philharmonic<\/a><\/strong><\/li> <\/ul> <h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-when-did-beethoven-arrive-in-vienna\"><strong>When did Beethoven arrive in Vienna?<\/strong><\/h2> <p>The young Beethoven left Bonn for Vienna in November 1792, never to return. At the time, Paris was undergoing the single most cataclysmic event of the age. Three years earlier the people had <a href=\"https:\/\/www.historyextra.com\/article\/international-history\/fighting-freedom-storming-bastille-and-french-revolution\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>stormed the Bastille<\/strong><\/a>, initiating the French Revolution. Louis XVI and his Queen were under arrest. The King would go to the guillotine within two months, Marie Antoinette a matter of months after that.<\/p> <p>It was not long before the French set about exporting their revolution, a task made easier by the fortune that one of their citizens was on his way to becoming the greatest military commander in history. Vienna was steeped in old-world tradition and was therefore most vulnerable to the new French Revolutionary Army. It was a city living in fear.<\/p> <p>While lauding the aims of the French Revolution, Beethoven condemned outright the violence and bloodletting it had led to. He also deplored the French occupation of Bonn and the Rhineland. But this revolutionary young composer had found a hero in the First Consul of France, Napoleon Bonaparte, to whom he dedicated the <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/eroica\"><em>Eroica<\/em> Symphony<\/a><\/strong>, the work that famously propelled music into the 19th century.<\/p> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"\/> <h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-napoleon-and-the-eroica\">Napoleon and the <em>Eroica<\/em><\/h3> <p>When Napoleon appointed himself Emperor, Beethoven withdrew the dedication, declaring him to be nothing more than a tyrant after all. Still, Beethoven could not help admiring Napoleon. The title page of the first edition bore the words: <em>Sinfonia Eroica… per festeggiare il sovvenire di un grand Uomo<\/em> [Heroic Symphony… to celebrate the memory of a great man], and Beethoven wrote to his publisher that \u2018the title of the <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/articles\/what-symphony\/\">symphony<\/a><\/strong> is really <em>Bonaparte<\/em>\u2019.<\/p> <figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"> <div class=\"wp-block-embedwrapper\"> <iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Beethoven - Symphony No. 3 Eroica (complete\/full) \/ Nathalie Stutzmann\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/1JS-sC1h2MI?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/> <\/div> <\/figure> <p>The influence of the Revolution stayed with Beethoven. The French composer Etienne M\u00e9hul, much admired by the revolutionaries, composed five symphonies in this period. All four movements of his First Symphony bear striking stylistic similarities to Beethoven\u2019s <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/beethoven-fifth-symphony\">Fifth<\/a><\/strong> \u2013 regarded as the epitome of revolutionary musical writing \u2013 and both were composed in the same year.<\/p> <h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-beethoven-and-mehul\">Beethoven and M\u00e9hul<\/h3> <p>Who influenced whom? One suspects that if you suggested to Beethoven that he was influenced by M\u00e9hul, he would probably agree, and say that the revolutionary theme of his only opera, <em>Fidelio<\/em>, was also influenced by themes used by M\u00e9hul in his operas.<\/p> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/20-best-operas-all-time\">The 20 greatest operas of all time<\/a><\/strong><\/li> <\/ul> <p>Several times in adult life, Beethoven actively contemplated a move to Paris \u2013 surely a desire to experience revolutionary times at first hand. In fact in 1808, an <em>annus horribilis<\/em> for him, plans for the move were well advanced. It never, of course, happened. After Napoleon\u2019s final defeat and exile, Vienna, with the autocratic Metternich running things, was more or less shut down. There were secret police everywhere.<\/p> <figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"> <div class=\"wp-block-embedwrapper\"> <iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Beethoven - Symphony No. 7 - Iv\u00e1n Fischer | Concertgebouworkest\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/-4788Tmz9Zo?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/> <\/div> <\/figure> <p>Beethoven, by now <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/beethoven-deaf\">profoundly deaf<\/a><\/strong>, had only one outlet for his ideas – and that was music. No wonder his compositions gave a new meaning to the world \u2018revolutionary\u2019. There had never been a <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/musical-terms\/what-is-a-sonata\">piano sonata<\/a><\/strong> like the <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/recordings\/best-recordings-beethovens-hammerklavier-sonata\/\"><em>Hammerklavier<\/em><\/a><\/strong>.<\/p> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"\/> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/recordings\/five-best-recordings-beethovens-sonata-cycles\/\"><strong>Five of the best Beethoven piano sonata cycles on disc<\/strong><\/a><\/li> <\/ul> <p>No composer had ever used voices in a symphony, as Beethoven would in his <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/beethoven-ninth-symphony\">Ninth<\/a><\/strong>. The final Piano Sonata, Op. 111 shows his radical approach to form and his revolutionary brilliance stands out in every movement of his five Late String Quartets, perhaps the greatest body of music ever composed.<\/p> <h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-when-and-why-did-beethoven-go-deaf\">When and why did Beethoven go deaf?<\/h2> <p>It is believed that Beethoven began to lose his hearing in his mid twenties. The cause of his hearing loss remains something of a mystery, though modern analysis of the composer’s DNA has revealed some health issues – including large amounts of lead in his system.<\/p> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"\/> <p>Beethoven later claimed that his deafness had its origins in a quarrel with a singer, back in 1798. In 1801, he wrote to friends describing his symptoms and how they were making life difficult for him, both as a composer and in society.<sup id=\"cite_ref-68\" class=\"reference\"\/><\/p> <p>Then came the famous <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/composers\/heiligenstadt-testament\/\"><strong>Heiligenstadt Testament<\/strong><\/a>. Beethoven spent around six months of the year 1802 in the small Austrian town of Heiligenstadt, just outside Vienna, on the advice of his doctor. This was where he wrote his famous Testament: a letter to his brothers, in which he reveals that his deafness has made him consider suicide, but that he has resolved to continue living through his art. Never sent, the letter was found among the composer’s papers after his death.<\/p> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/articles\/what-drove-beethovens-nephew-to-attempt-suicide\">‘My uncle tormented me too much’: what drove Beethoven’s nephew to attempt suicide?<\/a><\/strong><\/li> <\/ul> <h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-did-beethoven-marry\">Did Beethoven marry?<\/h2> <p>No. He did meet a young countess, Julie Guicciardi, for whom he developed strong feelings: he writes about his love for her in a letter written to a friend in November 1801. Sadly, though, the young Beethoven was from humbler origins than Julie, and this class difference meant that a union would have been out of the question.<\/p> <p>Then there was Antonie Brentano – a philanthropist, arts patron, and close friend of the composer. While he was at the spa resort of Teplitz in 1812, Beethoven wrote a ten-page love letter to his ‘Immortal Beloved’ – but the letter was never sent and the addressee never revealed. The identity of the ‘Immortal Beloved’ has been much discussed, but the musicologist Maynard Solomon has convincingly demonstrated that the intended recipient must have been Antonie Brentano.<\/p> <h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-when-did-beethoven-die\">When did Beethoven die?<\/h2> <p>Beethoven died on 26 March 1827 at the age of 56. Some 10,000 people attended his funeral procession six days later – including a young <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/composers\/franz-schubert\/\"><strong>Franz Schubert<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p> <h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-did-beethoven-die-of\">What did Beethoven die of?<\/h2> <p>The precise cause of Beethoven’s death is not known for certain, although cirrhosis of the liver and infectious hepatitis are among those causes put forward.<\/p> <h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-were-beethoven-s-final-words\">What were Beethoven’s final words?<\/h3> <p>You may hear the story told that Beethoven’s final deathbed words were ‘applaud friends, the comedy is ended’ (spoken in Latin, no less). In fact, however, we believe that his final words came after a publisher had sent the dying composer 12 bottles of wine as a gift. Beethoven’s reaction (and last words)? ‘Pity, pity, too late!’.<\/p> <h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-did-mozart-and-beethoven-meet\"><strong>Did Mozart and Beethoven meet?<\/strong><\/h2> <p>The young Ludwig van Beethoven intended to study with <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/mozart\">Mozart<\/a><\/strong> and, in 1787, when Beethoven was 16 and Mozart was 31, the younger composer travelled to Vienna to meet his would-be mentor, However, shortly after his arrival in Vienna, Beethoven’s mother fell ill, meaning that he had to return to his hometown of Bonn in Germany.<\/p> <p>Beethoven stayed in Bonn for five years, looking after his younger siblings. When he was finally able to undertake the trip to Vienna the great Mozart was, sadly, dead.<\/p> <h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-are-beethoven-s-most-famous-pieces\"><strong>What are Beethoven’s most famous pieces?<\/strong><\/h2> <p>With such an incredible output to his name, this becomes a very thorny question in Beethoven’s case. However, we’d certainly nominate the Third, Fifth, and Ninth Symphonies (although the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/guide-beethovens-symphony-no-6-pastoral\/\"><strong>Sixth<\/strong><\/a>, or ‘Pastoral’, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/guide-beethovens-symphony-no-7\/\"><strong>Seventh<\/strong><\/a> follow close behind, and to be honest all nine are masterpieces).<\/p> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/20-greatest-symphonies-all-time\">The 20 greatest symphonies of all time<\/a><\/strong><\/li> <li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/top-20-beethoven-works\">Best of Beethoven: his 20 greatest works<\/a><\/strong><\/li> <\/ul> <p>On the <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/musical-terms\/what-concerto\">concerto<\/a><\/strong> front, meanwhile, Beethoven’s Violin Concerto and the final two of his five Piano Concertos are probably the best known.<\/p> <figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"> <div class=\"wp-block-embedwrapper\"> <iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Mitsuko Uchida - Beethoven - Piano Concerto No 4 in G major, Op 58\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/6lvBQJjxw4c?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/> <\/div> <\/figure> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/best-violin-concertos\">The greatest violin concertos of all time<\/a><\/strong><\/li> <li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/greatest-piano-concertos-all-time\">The greatest piano concertos of all time<\/a><\/strong><\/li> <\/ul> <p>Among Beethoven’s large and deeply impressive <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/musical-terms\/what-is-chamber-music\">chamber music<\/a><\/strong> output, we’d have to single out the ‘Archduke’ Piano Trio, as well as the late String Quartets mentioned above.<\/p> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/news\/lost-movement-beethoven-string-quartet-reconstructed\/\">Lost movement of a Beethoven string quartet reconstructed<\/a><\/strong><\/li> <\/ul> <h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-most-famous-beethoven-sonatas\"><strong>Most famous Beethoven sonatas<\/strong><\/h2> <p>The best known Beethoven Piano Sonatas include the ‘Hammerklavier’ Sonata, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/recordings\/best-recordings-beethovens-moonlight-sonata\/\"><strong>‘Moonlight’ Sonata<\/strong><\/a>, the ‘Waldstein’ Sonata and the ‘Path\u00e9tique’ Sonata. Scared music lovers, meanwhile, will want to sample Beethoven’s great choral work, the <em>Missa Solemnis<\/em>.<\/p> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"\/> <h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-how-did-beethoven-change-music\"><strong>How did Beethoven change music?<\/strong><\/h2> <p>Like his forebear <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/johann-sebastian-bach\">Johann Sebastian Bach<\/a><\/strong>, and more so than his immediate predecessors <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/joseph-haydn-2\">Haydn<\/a><\/strong> and Mozart, Beethoven had a profound impact on the direction that classical music was taking. Under his influence, some essential classical forms such as the sonata, the concerto, the string quartet and most obviously the symphony became bigger and wider in their ambitions.<\/p> <p>Take Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, for example, which both rearranged the formal structure of a Classical symphony, and features – totally originally – the human voice in its final movement. Innovations such as these make Beethoven one of the earliest and <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/best-romantic-composers\">best Romantic composers<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p> <p>Or take the extraordinary ‘Hammerklavier’ Sonata: no other piano sonata covers such a vast ground, both musical and emotional. The final movement is a vast <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/musical-terms\/fugue\">fugue<\/a><\/strong>, a mindblowingly complex composition that makes huge demands on the performer.<\/p> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/artists\/10-great-beethoven-performers\">Ten great Beethoven performers<\/a><\/strong><\/li> <\/ul> <p>Lastly, Beethoven’s final five String Quartets attain a quality of transcendent beauty and emotional eloquence that was, quite simply, without precedent in the chamber music world.<\/p> <p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/tag\/beethoven-reviews\/\">Read reviews of the latest Beethoven recordings<\/a><\/strong><\/p> <p><em>John Suchet<\/em><\/p> <h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-and-can-t-get-enough-ludwig-van-some-great-lesser-known-beethoven-works-to-discover\"><strong>And…<\/strong> <strong>can’t get enough Ludwig van? Some great lesser-known Beethoven works to discover<\/strong><\/h2> <h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-wellington-s-victory\"><strong>Wellington\u2019s Victory<\/strong><\/h3> <p>Originally written for a panharmonicon, an automatic orchestral organ, the piece marked the victory at the Battle of Vitoria in 1813.<\/p> <h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-cantata-on-the-death-of-emperor-joseph-ii-wo0-87\"><strong>Cantata on the Death of Emperor Joseph II, Wo0 87<\/strong><\/h3> <p>Written for a memorial service by a 19-year-old Beethoven, this cantata was premiered in 1884.<\/p> <figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"> <div class=\"wp-block-embedwrapper\"> <iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Beethoven Cantata for the Death of Joseph \u2161\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/xjGhUaAp69c?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/> <\/div> <\/figure> <h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-king-stephen-op-117\"><strong><em>King Stephen<\/em> Overture, Op. 117<\/strong><\/h3> <p>This 1811 piece was dedicated to the first king of Hungary. The <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/musical-terms\/what-overture\">overture<\/a><\/strong> is still played today, but the vocal movements that follow are forgotten.<\/p> <figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"> <div class=\"wp-block-embedwrapper\"> <iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Beethoven - King Stephen, Op. 117\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/hwe7Nqwo-E8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/> <\/div> <\/figure> <h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-three-equale-for-four-trombones-wo0-30\"><strong>Three Equals for Four Trombones, Wo0 30<\/strong><\/h3> <p>Three short pieces for <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/instruments\/trombone\">trombone<\/a><\/strong>, this work was written for All Soul\u2019s Day in Linz Cathedral, 1812. Vocal arrangements were heard at <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/beethoven-funeral\">Beethoven\u2019s funeral<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/article\/10-beethoven-references-popular-culture\"><strong>Ten Beethoven references in popular culture<\/strong><\/a><\/li> <\/ul> <h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-andante-favori-in-f-wo0-57\"><strong>Andante favori in F, Wo0 57<\/strong><\/h3> <p>This piano work was composed as a musical declaration of love for Countess\u00a0Josephine Brunsvik. The Countess’s family,\u00a0however, pressured her to end the relationship as they could not contemplate a union with a commoner. The piece was then rejected as the <em>Waldstein<\/em> Sonata\u2019s second movement for being overlong. However, it took on its own life when published in 1805.<\/p> <figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"> <div class=\"wp-block-embedwrapper\"> <iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"BRENDEL, Beethoven Andante in F, WoO 57 (Andante Favori)\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/BF84k8KguNY?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/> <\/div> <\/figure> <h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Waldstein Variations<\/strong><\/h3> <p>Written for the same Count Ferdinand von Waldstein of sonata fame, this is one of Beethoven\u2019s earliest work for <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/instruments\/four-hand-piano-when-did-the-fashion-for-piano-four-hands-start\">piano four hands<\/a><\/strong> (piano duets).<\/p> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/10-best-arrangements-beethoven-s-music\/\"><strong>Ten of the best arrangements of Beethoven’s music<\/strong><\/a><\/li> <\/ul> <h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-grosse-fugue-for-piano-duet\"><strong>Grosse Fuge for piano duet<\/strong><\/h3> <p>Demand for a four-hand piano arrangement of this famously complex and demanding work for string quartet led to Beethoven making his own.<\/p> <figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"> <div class=\"wp-block-embedwrapper\"> <iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Beethoven Grosse Fuge op.134 Piano Duo Tsuyuki & Rosenboom\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Tp1DH9--vGo?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/> <\/div> <\/figure> <h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-organ-fugue-wo0-31\"><strong>Organ Fugue, Wo0 31<\/strong><\/h3> <p>Published in the 19th century, Beethoven\u2019s \u2018complete\u2019 works included three organ pieces. This fugue is his earliest.<\/p> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"\/> <h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-british-folk-songs\"><strong>British folk songs<\/strong><\/h3> <p>These 179 arrangements of British <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/best-folk-songs\">folk songs<\/a><\/strong> were a money-spinner for Beethoven, thanks to publisher George Thomson.<\/p> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/best-british-composers\">The greatest British composers of all time<\/a><\/strong><\/li> <\/ul> <figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"> <div class=\"wp-block-embedwrapper\"> <iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Beethoven - Folksongs \/ Songs of various nationalities (WoO 158) Complete\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/YaKiR155BI8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/> <\/div> <\/figure> <h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-sextet-for-horns-and-string-quartet-op-81b\"><strong>Sextet for horns and string quartet, Op. 81b <\/strong><\/h3> <p>Published in 1810, but written in the 1790s, this E flat chamber music piece tests the technique of its two <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/articles\/the-history-of-the-french-horn\">horn<\/a><\/strong> players.<\/p> <\/body><\/html>\n<hr class=\"no-tts wp-block-separator\"\/>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Published: Monday, 16 December 2024 at 10:20 AM The music and, indeed, the personality of Ludwig van Beethoven bestrides the story of classical music like a colossus. The whole story of this captivating artform would be profoundly different without his influence. Of course, Beethoven had a huge impact on the story of classical music, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":50901,"template":"","categories":[1,17],"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"11"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/12\/beethoven-perhaps-the-most-influential-composer-in-classical-music-history.jpg",1200,800,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/12\/beethoven-perhaps-the-most-influential-composer-in-classical-music-history-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/12\/beethoven-perhaps-the-most-influential-composer-in-classical-music-history-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/12\/beethoven-perhaps-the-most-influential-composer-in-classical-music-history-768x512.jpg",768,512,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/12\/beethoven-perhaps-the-most-influential-composer-in-classical-music-history-1024x683.jpg",800,534,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/12\/beethoven-perhaps-the-most-influential-composer-in-classical-music-history.jpg",1200,800,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/12\/beethoven-perhaps-the-most-influential-composer-in-classical-music-history.jpg",1200,800,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By Published: Monday, 16 December 2024 at 10:20 AM The music and, indeed, the personality of Ludwig van Beethoven bestrides the story of classical music like a colossus. The whole story of this captivating artform would be profoundly different without his influence. Of course, Beethoven had a huge impact on the story of classical music,…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/50900"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50901"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50900"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50900"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}