Music is a higher revelation than philosophy.
Ludwig van Beethoven was born on 16th December 1770 in Bonn, Germany. The birth date is somewhat controversial as he was baptized within 24 hours after birth on 17th December. For the greater part of his life, he had a misconception that he was born in 1772 instead. Beethoven was born in a family of craftsmen and the only means of living was through music. His father was an ordinary court musician and succumbed to alcoholism. The godfather of Beethoven was his grandfather Kapellmeister Ludwig van Beethoven who was a prominent musician and immense source of inspiration to him. It has been pointed out that Beethoven was physically abused as a child by his father who opted harsher means to educate him in the field of music. At the age of 5, neighbours noticed that instead of following regular rigid exercises of music, he used to spend most of his time alone with a piano, fantasizing about different compositions. On March 26th, 1778, his father scheduled the first public recital titled as, "A Little Son of 6 Years", the same age when Wolfgang Mozart presented his debut. Although Beethoven was at that time 7, his recital didn't get publicity. He was pretty bad in sums and calculations and was considered as an average student in school. He showed no sign of such exemplary talent and charisma back then. Around 1784, his father lost the job at the court due to his excessive alcoholism which forced Beethoven to apply to the court for any suitable job for sustenance. Despite his young age, he was offered an Assistant's job at the court with minimal pay.
Earliest Known Composition:
In 1790 Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II died and the 19 years old Beethoven got a prestigious opportunity to present a musical composition in his memory and honour. But on account of some unknown circumstances, the composition never got the light thereby projecting doubts over his abilities. It was only after a century later, Johannes Brahms discovered that Beethoven had in fact composed a "beautiful and noble" piece of music entitled Cantata on the Death of Emperor Joseph II. It is now considered his earliest masterpiece.
At the age of 22 in 1792, his life completely changes as he leaves home to Vienna where Joseph Haydn is already waiting for his student. Mozart's demise a year earlier proclaimed Haydn as the world's greatest composer alive. Although Haydn had initial influence over Beethoven but he always aimed for something unique, something personal. He knew his creative abilities and despised the music playing in the background while people play card. He demanded attention from others. He wanted a society free of class distinction. A free thinker. Instead of being humble to the Aristocrats, he signed his letters as "Your Friend Beethoven".
French Revolution blurred the class distinction. There was a kind of restlessness around which was incorporated by Beethoven in his music. There's this willpower in his music that one finds extremely attractive. In contrast to Mozart which had a natural flow, a kind of perfection, one-note follows another because it has to, Beethoven had unpredictability as nature of his music and with him, one note follows the other because he wanted to. He gave a personal touch to his music with its improvisation.
Born as a commoner, he always considered himself amongst the Aristocrats and at par as he thought his music as art elevates him to their status. It was only possible to publish his work through the influence of them, hence he often finds himself in a place where he didn't belong. Moreover, over the period he fell in love with aristocratic women who were out of his reach. Countess Josephine von Brunswick was one such woman who was unreachable because of her social status. "There are always countless Counts, but there's only one Beethoven."
Only the pure in heart can make a good soup.
Personal Life & Despair:
Beethoven never married or had children. He was never able to overcome the shyness and inhibitions influenced by his unfortunate physical appearance. Despite his extraordinary sense of music, Beethoven was lonely and frequently miserable throughout his adult life. He was often considered as a short-tempered, absent-minded, greedy and suspicious to the point of paranoia, Beethoven feuded with relatives and patrons. His state of despair reached its pinnacle in the early 1800s as he found out about his deafness and ailments that he preferred to deny in spite of their evidentiary occurrence. He decided to leave Vienna to find a cure and treat its ailments and reached Heiligenstadt where he spent days in spa treatments and other means of cure which he elaborately explained in his letters. He even reached to the point of committing suicide and to give in to his despairs. But like Nietzsche said, "whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger", he came back to Vienna and produced numerous remarkable pieces of music and marked his heroic period between 1803 to 1812.
Heiligenstadt Testament (Existential Crisis):
Often driven by extreme melancholy induced by his affliction, Beethoven described his despair in a long and poignant note that he concealed his entire life.
Dated October 6, 1802, and referred to as "The Heiligenstadt Testament," it reads in part: "O you men who think or say that I am malevolent, stubborn or misanthropic, how greatly do you wrong me. You do not know the secret cause which makes me seem that way to you and I would have ended my life — it was only my art that held me back. Ah, it seemed impossible to leave the world until I had brought forth all that I felt was within me."
Almost miraculously, despite his rapidly progressing deafness, Beethoven continued to compose at a furious pace.
When Napoleon Bonaparte in 1809 conquered Vienna, Beethoven is reported to hide himself in a cellar in order to prevent excruciating pain from the loud noises of bombardment. By 1812, his long term illness became public. By that time he was suffering from acute deafness and inability to articulate any kind of noise, voice or musical note. In a desperate attempt, he also ordered four mechanical tools to enhance his hearing ability but to no avail. Living in agony but with a lust for life, he worked like a maniac, obsessed with his creative mission.
The more devastating the obstacles in his path, the greater is his determination to overcome them. His work symbolizes his urge to fight against his own fate. Then there are moments where he laments about the unfairness of it all. In contrast to his emotional state of being, his music was full of joy and ecstasy.
His last performance as a pianist in 1814 was a disaster as he couldn't able to comprehend his music. The greatest source of sorrow and despair from the inability to experience the most precious possession of his, his music grabbed him into oblivion. From 1819 onwards, he had to use "conversational notes" in order to express himself. He had produced more than 400 of such booklets showcasing Beethoven's desire and longing for companionship. He is finally separated from the world of hearing, freed from all expectations, trapped in the virtual world of his art. Only here does he find the fulfilment of his yearning for ideal love. His later compositions were having an intellectual radical aspect to them. Beethoven's music was of such unique nature that it couldn't be compared with any existing music as it was never created before. Trapped in his own world, he was light years ahead of the people who surrounded him. His deafness allowed him to elevate over the expectations of the others and to only listen to his own inner voice.
In November 1826, Beethoven caught pneumonia while returning back from countryside, travelling in an open milk carriage. In January 1827, after being bedridden for months, his organs began to fail and water started accumulating in his stomach and had to be punctured. Beethoven writes, "Unfortunately until this day, I cannot see the end of my suffering. On the contrary, on February 1827, I will have my fourth operation and if fate commands a fifth and more might come. If this continues what will become of me?" The dreaded surgery never took place. Beethoven died in Vienna on 26th March 1827 at 56 years of age, of post-hepatitic cirrhosis of the liver. Later after his death, notes in his writing suggested that they must be founded and read to the people. "O Men, when some day you read these words, reflect that you did me wrong. Attach this document to the history of my illness so that the world may be reconciled with me."
Beethoven's last words were Plaudite, amici, comoedia finita est, he said.
"Applaud friends, the comedy is over."