CELEBRATING THE GENIUS OF
LUDWIG van BEETHOVEN
Ludwig van Beethoven was born on the 17th December 1770 in Bonn, the capital of the Electoral Cologne. In 2020 we will celebrate the 250th birthday of this musical genius who built solid bridges between classical/baroque music and the newly emerging trends of the romantic music.
Over forty-five years Beethoven wrote some seven hundred and twenty two works. Even with his progressing deafness he continued to compose in the main genres of classical music, including symphonies, concertos, string quartets, piano sonatas and one opera.
Beethoven is considered one of the greatest composers of all times and his music was immortalized in the Voyager Golden Record. That phonograph record was selected for NASA by the astrophysicist Carl Sagan. It contains pictorial and vocal representation of the human history and it was sent into the deep outer space with the two Voyager probes launched in 1977.
Another tribute to Beethoven’s genius is the use of his Ode to Joy (a part of the Ninth Symphony) as the official anthem of the United Europe.
Beethoven died on 26 March 1827 at the age of 56 in Vienna Austria.
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For our operatic cognoscenti it is good to know that Beethoven managed only one opera FIDELIO, which was in two acts (originally in three) with a revised three times libretto. The premiere in Vienna in 1805 achieved only a moderate success. It has been performed in limited numbers since then.
by Wis Jablonski , Pres.
LUDWIG van BEETHOVEN
Ludwig van Beethoven was born on the 17th December 1770 in Bonn, the capital of the Electoral Cologne. In 2020 we will celebrate the 250th birthday of this musical genius who built solid bridges between classical/baroque music and the newly emerging trends of the romantic music.
Over forty-five years Beethoven wrote some seven hundred and twenty two works. Even with his progressing deafness he continued to compose in the main genres of classical music, including symphonies, concertos, string quartets, piano sonatas and one opera.
Beethoven is considered one of the greatest composers of all times and his music was immortalized in the Voyager Golden Record. That phonograph record was selected for NASA by the astrophysicist Carl Sagan. It contains pictorial and vocal representation of the human history and it was sent into the deep outer space with the two Voyager probes launched in 1977.
Another tribute to Beethoven’s genius is the use of his Ode to Joy (a part of the Ninth Symphony) as the official anthem of the United Europe.
Beethoven died on 26 March 1827 at the age of 56 in Vienna Austria.
***
For our operatic cognoscenti it is good to know that Beethoven managed only one opera FIDELIO, which was in two acts (originally in three) with a revised three times libretto. The premiere in Vienna in 1805 achieved only a moderate success. It has been performed in limited numbers since then.
by Wis Jablonski , Pres.
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