Ferdinand Ries (1784-1838) was Beethoven’s pupil, secretary and loyal friend. He was a talented pianist and went on to compose 180 works. Like Beethoven, Ries was also born in Bonn. He journeyed to Vienna at the age of 19 to learn from the great composer. In 1838, Ries and Beethoven’s friend Franz Wegeler published a joint effort biographical text, …
A talented jazz pianist I know, Peter, recently asked this question: Does Beethoven lend itself to being jazzed up? Peter, a lifelong lover of Bach, readily offered up a number of examples of Bach jazzed up, but as for Beethoven, we agreed to do our separate research and get back to each other. We discovered a tremendous display of talent! …
What do the books on your shelf say about you? Thanks to the dedication and hard-work of the Beethoven-Haus Bonn, we know a fair amount about Beethoven’s taste in literature. Amongst the list of fine literature, non-fiction, and reference books, we can find a hidden gem: a spiritual text, containing one essay for every day of the year. This book …
This article will introduce one of Beethoven’s talented piano students, Carl Czerny (1791-1857). Czerny became a teacher himself at the age of 15, played in the premieres of Beethoven’s concertos and became a respected friend for life. He composed a vast library of pieces, numbering over 1000 and a large collection of piano study exercises which are still used today. …
Schuppanzigh (1776-1830) was Beethoven’s violin teacher, friend and lifelong champion from the composer’s arrival in Vienna until his passing. He rehearsed and performed the string quartets and played at the premiere of every symphony Beethoven composed. In this article, you will read about the relationship between Schuppanzigh and Beethoven, how the composer would mercilessly tease his friend about his weight, …
Prince Ferdinand Johann Nepomuk Kinsky (1781 – 1812) was born in Vienna, into the Habsburg monarchy. He was but 11 years old when the great composer, Beethoven, relocated to the city from Bonn in 1792. Despite his young age, Beethoven’s music made a deep and lasting impression upon the royal. As an adult, he became one of the composer’s important …