Ludwig van Beethoven composed his piano sonatas between 1795 and 1822. During this period he wrote 32 piano works. (As a young boy, he had composed 3 piano sonatas that were published when he was 13. After his death one more, but incomplete piano sonata was found among his notes, also from his childhood. These 3+1 juvenile works are not …
As is the case with other composers, the works of Beethoven are classified by genre and more kinds of numbering systems. The most relevant and important numbering is the opus numbering. There are 172 Beethoven compositions numbered in this system and these are listed under 138 opus numbers (one opus number can contain multiple compositions). Apart from opus numbers, there …
In Beethoven’s time infant mortality was still very high. This is before sufficient sanitation, antibiotics or childhood disease vaccines. Beethoven had seven siblings, plus one half brother from his mother’s previous marriage. From the eight children, six boys and two girls. Sadly, only two younger brothers lived through infancy, Karl and Johann. All 8 siblings of Beethoven From the first …
What is a string quartet? A musical composition for sting instruments with the most common setup of two violins, viola and cello. It is often regarded as the most sophisticated form of chamber music. How many string quartets did Beethoven write? Ludwig van Beethoven wrote 16 string quartets. These quartets are grouped into three categories, based on the stage of …
Compared to contemporary Viennese master like Haydn or Mozart, Beethoven was not very prolific in composing symphonies. Haydn, the Father of Symphony, wrote 108 symphonies (one is lost and one is symphonie concertante) and Mozart composed some 50 pieces. Ludwig van Beethoven composed 9 symphonies. This may be a lower number, but not so in quality! Most Beethoven symphonies are …