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 …
The relationship between Archduke Rudolf and Beethoven spanned two decades; he was Beethoven’s most dedicated patron, financial supporter, and piano and composition student. Archduke Rudolf was born in 1788, in Florence. He was the youngest son of Emperor Leopold II and Maria Louisa of Spain. He did not follow a career in the military like most of the men …
Beethoven was talented, but talent alone was not enough to win the heart of Vienna. He was blessed with dedicated patrons and one of them was Baron van Swieten. Who was Gottfried van Swieten? He was born as Godefridus Bernardus “Godfried” van Swieten (29 October 1733 Leiden – 29 March 1803 Vienna) in Leiden, the Dutch Republic. The family lived …
Oppersdorff, who commissioned two of Beethoven’s Symphonies, but ended up with only one dedication. A man, who probably saved Beethoven from jail. Who was this patron? Who was Franz von Oppersdorff? Count Franz von Oppersdorff (1778-1818) was a nobleman from Silesia, a historical region that lies mostly in Poland, partly in Czech Republic and Germany. The family estate was …
Count Razumovsky (Andrey Kirillovich Razumovsky) was a Russian nobleman and ambassador in Vienna who was born in 1752 and died in 1836. He was one of the chief negotiators during the Congress of Vienna (where empires shaped the future of Europe after Napoleon; 1814-1815) representing Russian interests. Apart from his political career he was, more importantly, a music lover and …
Beethoven was seventeen when he met Count Waldstein in Bonn and already had admirers in the city, but no one came close to the influential, generous and musically sophisticated Waldstein. This article reveals how the Count influenced the fate of Beethoven. A short biography of Count Waldstein Count Ferdinand Ernst Gabriel von Waldstein was born in Vienna in 1762 …