Ludwig Van Beethoven
Essay title: Ludwig Van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven
Beethoven was born in Bonn, Germany in 1770 to Johann van Beethoven and his wife, Maria Magdalena. He took his first music lessons from his father, who was tenor in the choir of the archbishop-elector of Cologne. His father was an unstable, yet ambitious man whose excessive drinking, rough temper and anxiety surprisingly did not diminish Beethovens love for music. He studied and performed with great success, despite becoming the breadwinner of his household by the time he was 18 years old. His fathers increasingly serious alcohol problem and the earlier death of his grandfather in 1773 sent his family into deepening poverty.
At first, Beethoven made little impact on the musical society, despite his fathers hopes. When he turned 11, he left school and became an assistant organist to Christian Gottlob Neefe at the court of Bonn, learning