Ludwig van Beethoven

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Some of the most well known composers came to be in the in the classical music period. Ludwig van Beethoven was one of the composers, along with other greats of the time like Haydn and Mozart, which helped to create a new type of music. This new music had full rich sounds created by the new construction of the symphony orchestra.
Ludwig van Beethoven was born in the town of Bonn, Germany on December 16 of 1770. Bonn is located in western Germany on the Rhine River. Beethoven showed an affinity for music at an early age. His father, Johann, taught Ludwig to play the piano as well as the violin. Johann did this in hopes that his son would become a prodigy, and then reach fame like Wolfgang A. Mozart. Unfortunately though Beethoven mother died when he was seventeen. In addition to his mother’s death Beethoven’s father developed an alcohol problem. To escape these problems Beethoven found a job tutoring the two children of the von Breuning family. This relationship proved to be beneficial to Beethoven. The matriarch of the family happened to be well liked in the town of Bonn, so she introduced Beethoven to a few important people.
Beethoven acquired his first post in music when he was just eleven years old. At this age he work as the assistant to the organist in a local court. Later on at the age of thirteen he played keyboard during opera rehearsals. His first real performance came when he was eighteen; Beethoven played the viola in a local theatre orchestra. He played with this orchestra until the age of twenty-two.
At the age of twenty-two Beethoven moved to Vienna; it was there where he would stay the rest of his life. In Vienna Beethoven played for Mozart, and it is believed that Mozart even gave him ...

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...a set up which was bigger and better than the previous arrangement.
Beethoven was a pioneer of his time. During the classical period most composers were at the hands of monarchs. Composers had to create whatever the monarchs wanted, they really did it have a choice in what they wrote. Beethoven on the other hand was not reliant on patrons of the arts. Beethoven created and sold what he made, not what some aristocrat told him to make. These traits of Beethoven make it possible for him to be classified in both the classical and romantic music periods.

Works Cited

Berg, Darrell M. "Beethoven, Ludwig Van." The World Book Encyclopedia 1996. Vol. 2. Chicago, IL: World Book, 1996. 213-14. Print.
"Ludwig Van Beethoven." BBC News. BBC, n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2013.
Willoughby, David. "Chapter 11." The World of Music. 7th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2012. 249-53. Print.

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