16 December 1770 – 26 March 1827

Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. He was a crucial figure in the transitional period between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western classical music, and remains one of the most acclaimed and influential composers of all time. Born in Bonn, then in the Electorate of Cologne in western Germany, he moved to Vienna in his early twenties and settled there, studying with Joseph Haydn and quickly gaining a reputation as a virtuoso pianist.

Beethoven was one of the three prominent composers of the classical period with Franz Haydn and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. These three composers together are known as the masters of the Viennese School. All three of them studied and composed their music in a time of experimentation. They examined the different uses of the major-minor system and then capitalized on the possibilities.

Beethoven's music is all the more amazing because he wrote so much of it when he was almost or totally deaf.

 

 

Our website "beethoven-radio.com" is dedicated to Beethoven.

sources Wikipedia Beethoven & (essay) Masters Of The Vineese School