Beethoven

Ludwig Van Beethoven was regarded as one of the greatest musical composers of the 19th century. Beethoven’s compositions are considered to be a watershed moment in western musical history. According to scholar Scott G. Burnham, “The overmastering coherence felt in Beethoven’s music became an imposing measure of the greatness of musical artworks.” Part of Beethoven’s greatness can be linked to the inner turmoil he dealt with throughout his life. Part of this turmoil was caused from his hearing disability which ultimately resulted in his deafness. Beethoven felt isolated due to his illness, but this isolation greatly affected the music he composed. The Fifth Symphony was a testament to that. Out of Beethoven’s nine different symphonies, the Fifth symphony is regarded as one of his greatest compositions. The Fifth Symphony is a total of 4 movements, and has a four-note opening motif in C- minor which is considered to be fate knocking at the door.

Beethoven was born on December 17, 1770 in Bann, Germany. From a young age Beethoven was involved with music because he came from three generations of musicians. He received instruction from his father on the piano and violin. One of his earliest concerts was in front of his father’s peers against his will. Beethoven had a fiery temper and was somewhat introverted in his school years. Beethoven went to school until the age of ten. At this time his family’s finances prevented his family from affording the education that he needed. In July of 1787, Beethoven’s life was further thrown into disarray with the death of his mother. Despite Beethoven’s misfortune he would still achieve monumental amounts of success while in Vienna. His success can be attributed to the fact that he crafted relatio...

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...movement. The most dramatic being the French horn and the violin, which show a dynamic that is loud and deep to Soft and quite. The tempo of the composition is fast throughout the first movement. The First movement of the Fifth Symphony starts of fast from the exposition, it would be too fast for people to dance to. One thing that is unique to the First movement is the 3+1 rhythm. The “short-short-short-long rhythmic motif” Beethoven forum helps create momentum for a transition from exposition to development stage of the First Movement. Beethoven’s First Movement of the Fifth Symphony relies heavily on C- Minor to create the harmony to make the Sonata sound complete. Lewis Kingwood explains that Beethoven ability to seamlessly make his transition from minor key to minor key helps make his Fifth Symphony Movement one sound as it if it is just one flowing composition.