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Example research essay topic: Ludwig Van Beethoven Wikipedia N D - 2,633 words

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University: Lecturer: Course: Date: Napoleon and the 19 th century's influence on Beethoven Outline of content Content Page Abstract 3 Beethoven's Early Years 3 Napoleon Bonaparte 4 Beethoven's loss of hearing 6 From Classicism to Romanticism 7 Beethoven and Romanticism 8 Lord Byron 9 Conclusion 10 Works cited 12 Abstract Beethoven is widely recognized as one of the greatest music composers to ever walk the earth. He lived an exemplary life, left a legend, and still lives on the hearts and minds of music lovers. Many people wish they had had a chance to listen to him in person. His music is that captivating.

In fact, during his life time, he was once offered a yearly income by two princes on the condition that he does not leave their jurisdiction. This paper explores the life of this exemplary person, from his childhood to his old age. It also explains how he got influenced by such historical greats like Napoleon and Lord Byron. It will also discuss Beethoven's personal opinions about the French revolution, and how he contributed to Romanticism. Beethoven's Early Years Ludwig Van Beethoven was born into a family of musicians.

His Grandfather, Louis (Ludwig) Van Beethoven, and his father, Johann Van Beethoven, were both gifted singers with beautiful voices. They used to be court singers, and Johann took it upon himself to teach music to young Ludwig. The fast-learning apprentice gave his first public performance at the age of eight. Later, Ludwig went under the tutorship of C.

G. Neefe, who was the court organist (Lane, 2006). At one time, Ludwig was granted leave to go to Vienna and study further under Mozart. Although he was to soon return home briefly on account of his mothers death, he decided to make Vienna his home. In Vienna, Ludwig Van Beethoven was taken in by a man called Frau Von Breaking. While in his custody, Ludwig developed his social skills, and learnt more about great men of literature and music.

He made some income by training Frau's children on the piano. This period had a profound effect on Beethoven's temperament, although every once in a while, his haughty side would show up. But Frau's family understood and they let the genius develop his own style of music in peace (Raptus, N. D. ).

Some of Beethoven's works show the influence that Frau had on him. While he stayed with Frau's family, Beethoven learnt about classic literature. He incorporated some of this knowledge into his compositions. For example, the set of six string quartets performed around 1798 have a slow, melancholy tone. According to Beethoven, the composition signified the tomb scene depicted in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet (Encyclopedia, N. D. ).

During his time, symphonies of such emotional content were still relatively rare, and many people see him as having been amongst the first people to introduce Romanticism into the mainly Classic atmosphere prevailing at that time. While still in Vienna, Beethoven perfected his music talent. He trained under Albrechtsberger, Haydn, Salieri and Schenck. Under their tutelage, Beethoven soon became renowned for his captivating style. He also caught the eye of such musical greats as Mozart. Ludwig had a unique talent for improvising in his music.

As his fame rose, he came to have a sustainable income from his music, and was soon moving around in circles of nobility. The patronage from his wealthy associates gave him a sustaining annuity from which he could live a comfortable life, which he dedicated to the development of piano (Lane, 2006). Napoleon Bonaparte While still in his heydays, Ludwig Van Beethoven once dedicated a symphony to Napoleon Bonaparte. This was symphony 3, performed in E-major. In it, Ludwig celebrated the national ideals of the French Revolution Fraternity, Equality and Liberty. To Ludwig at that time, Napoleon was the impersonation of those values.

However, with time, Napoleon turned out to be a dictator, and Ludwig changed the symphony and called it Eric (Heroic) (Sph, N. D. ). The action showed his frustration with Napoleons infamous disposition, and the fact that though he ordinarily didnt involve himself with politics, he still followed political occurrences avidly. The fact that Beethoven had composed a symphony for Napoleon is an indication of his sympathy for the French Revolution. In fact, several other pieces that he composed clearly show French influences. The French Revolution march is depicted in several of his symphonic allegros.

Several of his works also have a distinct jigging rhythm an irrefutable product of the French influence on his compositions. Beethoven's connection with the French can be traced back to his childhood, where the National theatre in Bonn used to borrow comic operas from the French (Lane, 2006). Initially, Napoleon had gained Beethoven's admiration due to his exemplary rise to power. Coming from a nondescript background, Napoleon used sheer determination to rise in the military ranks, until he was in a position to influence politics. He then leveraged the position to become a ruler in French. His meteoric rise to power left many people awed, and many historic and legendary books have been written about him.

His initial stance as the ruler in France inspired hope in many people. In all the regions under his rule, he restored law and order, and eradicated all forms of feudalism. He also institutionalized a set of codes that have lived to the present day (Lucid, N. D. ). In a culture turning towards romanticism, Napoleon became the perfect focus for idolized notions. All forms of art came to draw inspiration from him and his achievements.

Beethoven's sixth symphony was but an example of this idolization. Many people in France had their idolized notions destroyed when Napoleon slowly evolved into a dictator. Due to his hunger for power and control, he took over all forms of media communications within the country. Nothing could be broadcast or distributed to the public without his knowledge. The cultural centers were also guided by his invasive army such that no play or presentation with political content could be viewed. By and by, people realized that Napoleon had put in place a government for the people, but not one by the people, by any stretch of the imagination.

The romantic illusions were officially shattered when he declared himself emperor of France (Lucid, N. D. ). Beethoven's loss of hearing Napoleon declared himself an emperor at the same time that Beethoven was battling a series of personal issues. This was happening during what is commonly called Beethoven's middle period. During this period, Beethoven was breaking away from the classical style of music that Hayden and Mozart had trained him in. He was slowly developing his own blend of symphonies (Ocw, N.

D. ). Part of the reason for this was his legendary genius the ability to make immortal symphonies with almost magical ease. However, part of it was caused by a natural, but devastating tragedy: Beethoven was slowly going deaf. The real cause for Ludwig's loss in hearing has never been known. Some people contend that it a side effect of a syphilis infection. Still others say that it was because of Ludwig's strange habit of immersing his head in water in order to stay awake.

Medical analysis of Beethoven's hair samples seem to point at lead poisoning (Wikipedia, N. D. ). Whatever the cause, it affected Beethoven's career profoundly. As a composer, the sense of hearing was one of his greatest assets, and he had to live through the experience of loosing it.

The deterioration in his hearing was mercifully slow, lasting from 1796 to 1814, when he became completely deaf. During those intervening years, Ludwig crafted several hearing aids to help him hear his compositions. Some of these aids can be seen at the Beethoven House Museum, in Bonn, Germany (Wikipedia, N. D. ). It is a testament to his drive that even after he went completely deaf, he still pursued his passion in music, although in a more low key way.

He ceased to perform in public. From Classicism to Romanticism Ludwig Van Beethoven's lifetime spanned the time when the entire nation was undergoing a change in artistic perception from Classicism to Romanticism. Ludwig himself contributed to this change with his unique compositions. His music compositions involved an expansion of the classical compositions, an emphasis on harmony and a strong workout on thematic development (Encyclopedia, N. D. ). His visionary style took time before being accepted, and may not have been accepted as fast if it were not for his already established status in the music scene.

But Beethoven's compositions, constructed with the uttermost attention to painstaking detail, were always assured of capturing the public, ultimately. The theme of romanticism slowly took hold with the coming of the 19 th century. Romanticism was a radical departure from the traditional classicism. It signified an evolving culture whereby people were becoming more intrigued by nature, and by their own internal feelings. People would seek to acquaint themselves with feelings rather than reason. They would also opt for integration with nature rather than with mundane, everyday chaos.

From a certain perspective, this can be seen to have been a form of escapism, but it flourished, nevertheless. All forms of art during this period depict this general mindset. Literature, paintings and drawings, and even music from this era were laced with romantic innuendos (Raptus, N. D. ). But Romanticism went beyond emotions. It also dictated the perceptions of the people, on such areas as the supernatural, role modeling and legend making.

It represented a whole new thought stream in the society, which ultimately dictated popular culture and even the politics of the time (Raptus, N. D. ). People became so infused with the notions of romanticism such that basically every event, every artistic piece, every sort of business, came to have a romantic leaning. The artistic people who were able to go with this flow received wide acclaim.

Ludwig Van Beethoven was a pioneer, and hence his position was assured in the annals of history. Beethoven and Romanticism Ludwig Van Beethoven used to be a voracious reader, with most of his reading tending towards German literature. Regardless, he still formed some unique perception about literature and any other work of art in general. For example, one of his principle stand point was that any piece of art was supposed to be felt in practice just as theory deemed it. This was an extension of the policy of his former tutor, C. G.

Neefe, who used to say that artwork was different from all other spheres of human existence due to its quality of feeling, in theory. While Neefe expounded on his believes in theory form, Beethoven went ahead and created music that could actually provoke feeling among the audience. Like with any other artistic composition, Beethoven's work reflected the society at the time of composition. Some of Beethoven's pieces were especially emotionally charged, and they reflected the evolving ideals amongst the people. The Moonlight sonata is especially remarkable in this context.

Coming from a person with romantic disabilities, it is especially significant for Beethoven lived a single life up to his death. It is evident that Beethoven drew a lot from his own troubled childhood, when he had lost his mother and three siblings. He was also painting an ideal picture of a romantic state as he envisioned it, though in reality, he couldnt sustain a real relationship (Lane, 2006). Beethoven represents a heroic ideal in music, for his unique history. His refusal to be employed on any permanent basis is often romanticized that he was so passionate about his compositions that he couldnt bear to work under the capricious influence of an aristocrat (Raptus, N. D. ).

Beethoven liked to work independently of mainstream mindsets or paradigms, and this was one source of his unique compositions. And up to today, his compositions continue to form the bases for orchestral and chamber music worldwide. Lord Byron Beethoven's romantic leanings bear a similarity to another artist who lived at the same time: Lord Byron. But while Beethoven's life was checked against a background of reservations and social awkwardness, Lord Byron suffered no such problems in his social life.

He lived his life on the fast lane, writing romantic poems, which attracted many women to him, and he had no compunctions about taking advantage of the situations. More than once, Lord Byron was involved in scandalous affairs. He got married twice: the first marriage broke down, while the second ended with the drowning of the wife. His wide exploits came to a grinding halt when he got into an epileptic fit, and died two months later after a bout of chill.

Ironically, his fame grew all the more when after his death (Poetry, N. D. ). Lord Byron's open and non-reserved ways of writing got him wide acclaim. His greatest work, called Don Juan, still receives significant attention to the present day.

In his life time, and immediately after his death, Don Juan's content inspired all forms of reactions, some of which were tailored to restrict it from mass production and distribution. As happens with literature, this only made the work more famous, and more sought after (Poetry, N. D. ). By the mid 19 th century, Lord Byron was a household name, especially amongst women. Lord Byron's rise to fame was not because of his inheritance or status in society.

Rather, it was because of his romantic writings which fit right in with the general atmosphere at the time. Just like Beethoven, Lord Byron was idolized because his work captured the romantic perceptions popular around then. And just like Beethoven, he also sympathized with the better aims of the French Revolution. The difference was that the content of his works was usually a product of his own personal experiences, and thus elicited sharper reactions from all who read it. Beethoven's reserved lifestyle didnt give scope for a similar expression from personal experience, but he still managed to capture the mainstream thoughts and feelings harbored by the populace. Conclusion Thus, from three different personalities, the theme of romanticism is clearly delineated.

Two of these people were into art, but the third was a political and military figure. From all the three people, the extent to which romanticism had become part of the 19 th Century can be seen. Napoleon Bonaparte was idolized for his achievements, although he ended up shattering romantic notions about him. Nevertheless, books were written about him, plays and movies created about him, and through all of them, he ultimately became a legend. Likewise, Ludwig Van Beethoven carved a niche into the music world, and left a precedent that is still unchallenged to the present day. His inspired compositions still stir emotions, almost two centuries after his death.

And finally, Lord Byron inspired the world through his pen, and touched the hearts of many women with his romantic writings. Long after his death, his literature is still discussed, and it still inspires controversy, as well as idolization. Had the three men lived in another era, they probably wouldnt have left such larger-than-life biographies. Works cited Encyclopedia (N.

D. ) Beethoven, Ludwig Van 23 rd March 2009 < web > Lane, William (2006) Beethoven: The Immortal. 23 Mar. 2009 < web > Lucid Cafe (N. D. ) Napoleon Bonaparte: Emperor of the French 23 rd March 2009 < web > Ocw (N. D. ). Ludwig Van Beethoven 23 rd March 2009 < web > Poetry Magic (N. D. ).

Lord Byron 23 rd March 2009 < web > Raptus association (N. D. ) Beethoven biography pages 23 rd March 2009 < web > Sph (N. D. ) Ludwig Van Beethoven 23 rd March 2009 < web > Wikipedia (N. D. ).

Ludwig Van Beethoven 23 rd March 2009 < web >


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Research essay sample on Ludwig Van Beethoven Wikipedia N D

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