Ludwig van Beethoven, was born on December 17, 1770. He was the second child. He became deaf at the age of 29. He studied with his father, Johann, a singer and instrumentalist in the service of the Elector of Cologne at Bonn, but mainly with C.G. Neefe, court organist. At eleven and a half he could deputize for Neefe. At 12 he had some music published. He went to Vienna in 1787, but quickly returned when he heard that his mother was dying. Five years later he went back to Vienna, where he settled. He pursued his studies, first with Haydn, then with three other German men. He died on March 16, 1827. About 30,000 people attended his funeral, on March 26, 1827. He wrote nine symphonies in his life time. On his deathbed he was planning a tenth symphony. The tune, “Hymn of Joy,” comes from the final movement of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, composed from 1817-23, and published in 1826.
Hymns he wrote included:
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Sources
http://w3.rz-berlin.mpg.de/cmp/betthoven.html
http://www.lucare.com/immoral/bio.html
http://www.lucidcafe.com/library/95dec/beethoven.html
