Ludwig Van Beethoven

• 1770-1827. 57 years old
• German
• Grandfather was a music director. Father a musician in a court
• Father was an alcoholic.
• Would wake up Beethoven and make him practice for hours
• By age 12, had several compositions published
• Traveled to Vienna at 16, took lessons with Mozart
• Travels again to Vienna at 22, took more lessons with other composers
• Spends rest of his life in Vienna. Never marries

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Ludwig Van Beethoven

• At 29 years old, started going deaf
• Avoided social gatherings because he couldn’t bring himself to tell people he was deaf
• By age 44, stop playing piano in public. Kept conducting long after his prime
• Wrote 722 pieces compared to Bach (1128) and Mozart (600)

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