In 2020, orchestras around the world had planned celebrations in honor of composer Ludwig van Beethoven’s 250th birthday. Then the pandemic hit and the arts world shut down. Yet, as much as it was possible, orchestras still found ways both big and small to celebrate Beethoven. So, it seems perhaps fitting that in this particular year of celebrating his birthday, Beethoven’s own struggles, determination and resilience are the very traits that are reflected in his music and continue to speak to us today.

Born in Bonn, Germany in December 1770, Ludwig van Beethoven was a child prodigy on piano. Beethoven’s father wanted to capitalize on his child’s musical skills however those plans didn’t progress and Beethoven continued to study piano and composition. In July 1787, Beethoven’s mother died and with his father struggling with alcoholism, at sixteen, Beethoven became responsible for his two younger brothers. But all was not lost, as it was during this time that Beethoven met Count von Waldstein who would become his patron and lifelong friend. Beethoven moved to Vienna in 1792 to study with Joseph Haydn and his reputation as a virtuoso pianist and improviser gained him entry into aristocratic circles.

In 1802, Beethoven moved to the small town of Heiligenstadt whose hot springs were thought to provide relief from a variety of ailments and as Beethoven suffered from intestinal issues as well as encroaching deafness, this seemed a reasonable plan. It was here that Beethoven had his crisis of faith. In what is known as the “Heiligenstadt Testament”, Beethoven wrote to his brothers about his turmoil over losing his hearing. “Born with a passionate and excitable temperament, keenly susceptible to the pleasures of society, I was yet obliged early in life to isolate myself, and to pass my existence in solitude. If I at any time resolved to surmount all this, oh! how cruelly was I again repelled by the experience, sadder than ever, of my defective hearing! – and yet I found it impossible to say to others: Speak louder; shout! for I am deaf! Alas! how could I proclaim the deficiency of a sense which ought to have been more perfect with me than with other men, - a sense which I once possessed in the highest perfection, to an extent, indeed, that few of my profession ever enjoyed! Alas, I cannot do this!”.

Upon his return to Vienna, Beethoven entered the most prolific time in his compositional life. Between 1803 and 1814, he composed symphonies 3 – 8, an opera, string quartets, piano sonatas, an oratorio, piano concertos, a violin concerto, additional chamber music as well as a variety of songs and incidental music. His Symphony No. 5 in C Minor is perhaps one of the best-known works in the orchestral repertoire. After 1814, Beethoven was profoundly deaf and while his compositional output slowed, his Symphony No. 9 in D Minor “Choral” was groundbreaking (it was the first symphony to utilize a full chorus). Using German poet Friedrich Schiller’s An die Freude or Ode to Joy as inspiration, the final movement revels in the ideas of freedom, equality and brotherhood. While there are differing accounts of exactly what happened at the premiere, most agree that Beethoven had to turn around to see the audience wildly clapping and showing their appreciation for his masterpiece.

The lessons we continue to learn from Beethoven are to make art that reflects and feeds your soul, and once in a while, turn around; you may just see how you and your art have impacted the world. This is why orchestras continue to play and celebrate the life and works of Ludwig van Beethoven.

Beethoven and the Art of Resilience