Who Was Ludwig van Beethoven?

Ludwig van Beethoven (December 16, 1770 to March 26, 1827) was a
German pianist and composer widely considered to be one of the greatest of all time. His innovative
compositions combined vocals and instruments, widening the scope of sonata, symphony, concerto and
quartet. He is the crucial transitional figure connecting the Classical and Romantic ages of Western
music. Beethoven’s personal life was marked by a struggle against deafness, and some of his most
important works were composed during the last 10 years of his life, when he was quite unable to hear.
He died at the age of 56. Beethoven’s Music Some of Beethoven’s best-known compositions include:
Eroica: Symphony No. 3 In 1804, only weeks after Napoleon Bonaparte proclaimed himself Emperor of
France, Beethoven debuted his Symphony No. 3 in Napoleon's honor. Beethoven, like all of Europe,
watched with a mixture of awe and terror; he admired, abhorred and, to an extent, identified with
Napoleon, a man of seemingly superhuman capabilities, only one year older than himself and also of
obscure birth. Later renamed the Eroica Symphony because Beethoven grew disillusioned with
Napoleon, it was his grandest and most original work to date. Because it was so unlike anything heard
before it, the musicians could not figure out how to play it through weeks of rehearsal. A prominent
reviewer proclaimed "Eroica" as "one of the most original, most sublime, and most profound products
that the entire genre of music has ever exhibited." Symphony No. 5 One of Beethoven’s best-known
works among modern audiences, Symphony No. 5 is known for its ominous first four notes. Beethoven
began composing the piece in 1804, but its completion was delayed a few times for other projects. It
premiered at the same time as Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6, in 1808 in Vienna. Fur Elise In 1810,
Beethoven completed Fur Elise (meaning “For Elise”), although it was not published until 40 years after
his death. In 1867, it was discovered by a German music scholar, however Beethoven’s original
manuscript has since been lost. Some scholars have suggested it was dedicated to his friend, student
and fellow musician, Therese Malfatti, to whom he allegedly proposed around the time of the song’s
composition. Others said it was for the German soprano Elisabeth Rockel, another friend of
Beethoven’s. How Did Beethoven Die? Beethoven died on March 26, 1827, at the age of 56, of post-
hepatitic cirrhosis of the liver. The autopsy also provided clues to the origins of his deafness: While his
quick temper, chronic diarrhea and deafness are consistent with arterial disease, a competing theory
traces Beethoven's deafness to contracting typhus in the summer of 1796. Scientists analyzing a
remaining fragment of Beethoven's skull noticed high levels of lead and hypothesized lead poisoning as
a potential cause of death, but that theory has been largely discredited. Birthday Ludwig Van Beethoven
was born on or about December 16, 1770, in the city of Bonn in the Electorate of Cologne, a principality
of the Holy Roman Empire. Although his exact date of birth is uncertain, Beethoven was baptized on
December 17, 1770. Since as a matter of law and custom, babies were baptized within 24 hours of birth,
December 16 is his most likely birthdate. However, Beethoven himself mistakenly believed that he was
born two years later, in 1772, and he stubbornly insisted on the incorrect date even when presented
with official papers that proved beyond any reasonable doubt that 1770 was his true birth year. Family
and Childhood Beethoven had two younger brothers who survived into adulthood: Caspar, born in 1774,
and Johann, born in 1776. Beethoven's mother, Maria Magdalena van Beethoven, was a slender,
genteel, and deeply moralistic woman. His father, Johann van Beethoven, was a mediocre court singer
better known for his alcoholism than any musical ability. However, Beethoven's grandfather, godfather
and namesake, Kapellmeister Ludwig van Beethoven, was Bonn's most prosperous and eminent
musician, a source of endless pride for young Ludwig. Sometime between the births of his two younger
brothers, Beethoven's father began teaching him music with an extraordinary rigor and brutality that
affected him for the rest of his life. Neighbors provided accounts of the small boy weeping while he
played the clavier, standing atop a footstool to reach the keys, his father beating him for each hesitation
or mistake.

On a near daily basis, Beethoven was flogged, locked in the cellar and deprived of sleep for extra hours
of practice. He studied the violin and clavier with his father as well as taking additional lessons from
organists around town. Whether in spite of or because of his father's draconian methods, Beethoven
was a prodigiously talented musician from his earliest days and displayed flashes of the creative
imagination that would eventually reach farther than any composer's before or since. Hoping that his
young son would be recognized as a musical prodigy à la Wolfgang Mozart, Beethoven's father arranged
his first public recital for March 26, 1778. Billed as a "little son of 6 years," (Mozart's age when he
debuted for Empress Maria Theresia) although he was in fact 7, Beethoven played impressively, but his
recital received no press whatsoever. Meanwhile, the musical prodigy attended a Latin grade school
named Tirocinium, where a classmate said, "Not a sign was to be discovered of that spark of genius
which glowed so brilliantly in him afterwards." Beethoven, who struggled with sums and spelling his
entire life, was at best an average student, and some biographers have hypothesized that he may have
had mild dyslexia. As he put it himself, "Music comes to me more readily than words." In 1781, at the
age of 10, Beethoven withdrew from school to study music full time with Christian Gottlob Neefe, the
newly appointed Court Organist. Neefe introduced Beethoven to Johann Sebastian Bach, and at the age
of 12 Beethoven published his first composition, a set of piano variations on a theme by an obscure
classical composer named Dressler. By 1784, his alcoholism worsening and his voice decaying,
Beethoven's father was no longer able to support his family, and Ludwig van Beethoven formally
requested an official appointment as Assistant Court Organist. Despite his youth, his request was
accepted, and Beethoven was put on the court payroll with a modest annual salary of 150 florins.
Beethoven and Mozart There is only speculation and inconclusive evidence that Beethoven ever met
with Mozart, let alone studied with him. In an effort to facilitate his musical development, in 1787 the
court sent Beethoven to Vienna, Europe’s capital of culture and music, where he hoped to study with
Mozart. Tradition has it that, upon hearing Beethoven, Mozart said, "Keep your eyes on him; some day
he will give the world something to talk about.” In any case, after only a few weeks in Vienna, Beethoven
learned that his mother had fallen ill and he returned home to Bonn. Remaining there, Beethoven
continued to carve out his reputation as the city's most promising young court musician. Early Career as
a Composer When the Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II died in 1790, a 19-year-old Beethoven received
the immense honor of composing a musical memorial in his honor. For reasons that remain unclear,
Beethoven's composition was never performed, and most assumed the young musician had proven
unequal to the task. However, more than a century later, Johannes Brahms discovered that Beethoven
had in fact composed a "beautiful and noble" piece of music entitled Cantata on the Death of Emperor
Joseph II. It is now considered his earliest masterpiece. In 1792, with French revolutionary forces
sweeping across the Rhineland into the Electorate of Cologne, Beethoven decided to leave his
hometown for Vienna once again. Mozart had passed away a year earlier, leaving Joseph Haydn as th
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart A prolific artist, Austrian composer Wolfgang Mozart created a string of
operas, concertos, symphonies and sonatas that profoundly shaped classical music. Synopsis Born on
January 27, 1756, in Salzburg, Austria, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was a musician capable of playing
multiple instruments who started playing in public at the age of 6. Over the years, Mozart aligned
himself with a variety of European venues and patrons, composing hundreds of works that included
sonatas, symphonies, masses, chamber music, concertos and operas, marked by vivid emotion and
sophisticated textures. Early Life Central Europe in the mid-18th century was going through a period of
transition. The remnants of the Holy Roman Empire had divided into small semi-self-governing
principalities. The result was competing rivalries between these municipalities for identity and
recognition. Political leadership of small city-states like Salzburg, Vienna, and Prague was in the hands of
the aristocracy and their wealth would commission artists and musicians to amuse, inspire, and
entertain. The music of the Renaissance and Baroque periods was transitioning toward more full-bodied
compositions with complex instrumentation. The small city-state of Salzburg would be the birthplace of
one of the most talented and prodigious musical composers of all time. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s
was the sole-surviving son of Leopold and Maria Pertl Mozart. Leopold was a successful composer,
violinist, and assistant concert master at the Salzburg court. Wolfgang’s mother, Anna Maria Pertl, was
born to a middle class family of local community leaders. His only sister was Maria Anna (nicknamed
“Nannerl”). With their father’s encouragement and guidance, they both were introduced to music at an
early age. Leopold started Nannerl on keyboard when she was seven, as three-year old Wolfgang looked
on. Mimicking her playing, Wolfgang quickly began to show a strong understanding of chords, tonality,
and tempo. Soon, he too was being tutored by his father. Leopold was a devoted and task-oriented
teacher to both his children. He made the lessons fun, but also insisted on a strong work ethic and
perfection. Fortunately, both children excelled well in these areas. Recognizing their special talents,
Leopold devoted much of his time to their education in music as well as other subjects. Wolfgang soon
showed signs of excelling beyond his father’s teachings with an early composition at age five and
demonstrating outstanding ability on harpsichord and the violin. He would soon go on to play the piano,
organ and viola. In 1762, Wolfgang’s father took Nannerl, now age eleven, and Wolfgang, age six to the
court of Bavaria in Munich in what was to become the first of several European "tours." The siblings
traveled to the courts of Paris, London, The Hague, and Zurich performing as child prodigies. Wolfgang
met a number of accomplished musicians and became familiar with their works. Particularity important
was his meeting with Johann Christian Bach (Johann Sebastian Bach's youngest son) in London who had
a strong influence on Wolfgang. The trips were long and often arduous, traveling in primitive conditions
and waiting for invitations and reimbursements from the nobility. Frequently, Wolfgang and other
members of his family fell seriously ill and had to limit their performance schedule. Budding Young
Composer In December, 1769, Wolfgang, then age 13, and his father departed from Salzburg for Italy,
leaving his mother and sister at home. It seems that by this time Nannerl’s professional music career
was over. She was nearing marriageable age and according to the custom of the time, she was no longer
permitted to show her artistic talent in public. The Italian outing was longer than the others (1769-1771)
as Leopold wanted to display his son’s abilities as a performer and composer to as many new audiences
as possible. While in Rome, Wolfgang heard Gregorio Allegri’s Miserere performed once in the Sistine
Chapel. He wrote out the entire score from memory, returning only to correct a few minor errors.
During this time Wolfgang also wrote a new opera, Mitridate, re di Ponto for the court of Milan. Other
commissions followed and in subsequent trips to Italy, Wolfgang wrote two other operas, Ascanio in
Alba (1771) and Lucio Silla (1772).

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and his father returned from their last stay in Italy in March, 1773. His
father’s benefactor, Archbishop von Schrattenbach had died and was succeeded by Hieronymus von
Colleredo. Upon their return, the new archbishop appointed young Mozart as assistant concertmaster
with a small salary. During this time, young Mozart had the opportunity to work in several different
musical genres composing symphonies, string quartets, sonatas and serenades and a few operas. He
developed a passion for violin concertos producing what came to be the only five he wrote. In 1776, he
turned his efforts toward piano concertos, culminating in the Piano Concerto Number 9 in E flat major in
early 1777. Wolfgang had just turned 21. Despite his success with the compositions, Wolfgang Amadeus
Mozart was growing discontent with his position as assistant concert master and the confining
environment of Salzburg. He was ambitious and believed he could do more somewhere else. Archbishop
von Colloredo was becoming inpatient with the young genius’s complaining and immature attitude. In
August 1777, Mozart set out on a trip to find more prosperous employment. The archbishop wouldn’t
give Leopold permission to travel, so Anna Maria accompanied Wolfgang on his quest to the cities of
Mannheim, Paris and Munich. There were several employment positions that initially proved promising,
but all eventually fell through. He began to run out of funds and had to pawn several valuable personal
items to pay traveling and living expenses. The lowest point of the trip was when his mother fell ill and
died on July 3, 1778. After hearing the news of his wife’s death, Leopold negotiated a better post for his
son as court organist in Salzburg and Wolfgang returned soon after. Making it in Vienna Back in Salzburg
in 1779, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart produced a series of church works, including the Coronation Mass.
He also composed another opera for Munich, Ideomeneo in 1781. In March of that year, Mozart was
summoned to Vienna by Archbishop von Colloredo, who was attending the accession of Joseph II to the
Austrian throne. The Archbishop’s cool reception toward Mozart offended him. He was treated as a
mere servant, quartered with the help, and forbidden from performing before the Emperor for a fee
equal to half his yearly salary in Salzburg. A quarrel ensued and Mozart offered to resign his post. The
Archbishop refused at first, but then relented with an abrupt dismissal and physical removal from the
Archbishop’s presence. Mozart decided to settle in Vienna as a freelance performer and composer and
for a time lived with friends at the home of Fridolin Weber. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart quickly found
work in Vienna, taking on pupils, writing music for publication, and playing in several concerts. He also
began writing an opera Die Entführung aus dem Serail (The Abduction from the Seraglio). In the summer
of 1781, it was rumored that Mozart was contemplating marriage to Fridolin Weber’s daughter,
Constanze. Knowing his father would disapprove of the marriage and the interruption in his career,
young Mozart quickly wrote his father denying any idea of marriage. But by December, he was asking for
his father’s blessings. While it’s known that Leopold disapproved, what is not known is the discussion
between father and son as Leopold’s letters were said to be destroyed by Constanze. However, later
correspondence from Wolfgang indicated that he and his father disagreed considerably on this matter.
He was in love with Constanze and the marriage was being strongly encouraged by her mother, so in
some sense,
Cont amadeus committed. The couple was finally married on August 4, 1782. In the meantime, Leopold
did finally consent to the marriage. Constanze and Wolfgang had six children, though only two survived
infancy, Karl Thomas and Franz Xaver. As 1782 turned to 1783, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart became
enthralled with the work of Johannes Sebastian Bach and George Frederic Handel and this, in turn,
resulted in several compositions in the Baroque style and influenced much of his later compositions,
such as passages in Die Zauberflote (The Magic Flute) and the finale of Symphony Number 41. During
this time, Mozart met Joseph Haydn and the two composers became admiring friends. When Haydn
visited Vienna, they sometimes performed impromptu concerts with string quartets. Between 1782 and
1785 Mozart wrote six quartets dedicated to Haydn. European Fame The opera Die Entführung enjoyed
immediate and continuing success and bolstered Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s name and talent
throughout Europe. With the substantial returns from concerts and publishing, he and Constanze
enjoyed a lavish lifestyle. They lived in one of the more exclusive apartment buildings of Vienna, sent
their son, Karl Thomas, to an expensive boarding school, kept servants, and maintained a busy social life.
In 1783, Mozart and Constanze traveled Salzburg, to visit his father and sister. The visit was somewhat
cool, as Leopold was still a reluctant father-in-law and Nannerl was a dutiful daughter. But the stay
promoted Mozart to begin writing a mass in C Minor, of which only the first two sections, "Kyrie" and
"Gloria," were completed. In 1784, Mozart became a Freemason, a fraternal order focused on charitable
work, moral uprightness, and the development of fraternal friendship. Mozart was well regarded in the
Freemason community, attending meetings and being involved in various functions. Freemasonry also
became a strong influence in Mozart’s music. From 1782 to 1785, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart divided his
time between self-produced concerts as soloist, presenting three to four new piano concertos in each
season. Theater space for rent in Vienna was sometimes hard to come by, so Mozart booked himself in
unconventional venues such as large rooms in apartment buildings and ballrooms of expensive
restaurants. The year 1784, proved the most prolific in Mozart’s performance life. During one five-week
period, he appeared in 22 concerts, including five he produced and performed as the soloist. In a typical
concert, he would play a selection of existing and improvisational pieces and his various piano
concertos. Other times he would conduct performances of his symphonies. The concerts were very well
attended as Mozart enjoyed a unique connection with his audiences who were, in the words of Mozart
biographer Maynard Solomon, “given the opportunity of witnessing the transformation and perfection
of a major musical genre.” During this time, Mozart also began to keep a catalog of his own music,
perhaps indicating an awareness of his place in musical history. By the mid-1780s, Wolfgang and
Constanze Mozart’s extravagant lifestyle was beginning to take its toll. Despite his success as a pianist
and composer, Mozart was falling into serious financial difficulties. Mozart associated himself with
aristocratic Europeans and felt he should live like one. He figured that the best way to attain a more
stable and lucrative income would be through court appointment. However, this wouldn’t be easy with
the court’s musical preference bent toward Italian composers and the influence of Kapellmeister
Antonio Salieri. Mozart’s relationship with Salieri has been the subject of speculation and legend. Letters
written between Mozart and his father, Leopold, indicate that the two felt a rivalry for and mistrust of
the Italian musicians in general and Salieri in particular. Decades after Mozart’s death, rumors spread
that Salieri had poisoned him. This rumor was made famous in 20th century playwright Peter Shaffer’s
Amadeus and in the 1984 film of the same name by director Milos Foreman. But in truth there is no
basis for this speculation. Though both composers were often in contention for the same job and public
attention, there is little evidence that their relationship was anything beyond a typical professional
rivalry. Both admired each other’s work and at one point even collaborated on a cantata for voice and
piano called Per la recuperate salute di Ophelia.

Toward the end of 1785, Mozart met the librettist Lorenzo Da Ponte, a Venetian composer and poet and
together they collaborated on the opera The Marriage of Figaro. It received a successful premier in
Vienna in 1786 and was even more warmly received in Prague later that year. This triumph led to a
second collaboration with Da Ponte on the opera Don Giovanni which premiered in 1787 to high acclaim
in Prague. Noted for their musical complexity, the two operas are among Mozart’s most important
works and are mainstays in operatic repertoire today. Both compositions feature the wicked nobleman,
though Figaro is presented more in comedy and portrays strong social tension. Perhaps the central
achievement of both operas lies in their ensembles with their close link between music and dramatic
meaning. Death and Legacy Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart died on December 5, 1791 at age 35. The cause
of death is uncertain, due to the limits of postmortem diagnosis. Officially, the record lists the cause as
severe miliary fever, referring to a skin rash that looks like millet seeds. Since then, many hypotheses
have circulated regarding Mozart's death. Some have attributed it to rheumatic fever, a disease he
suffered from repeatedly throughout his life. It was reported that his funeral drew few mourners and he
was buried in a common grave. Both actions were the Viennese custom at the time, for only aristocrats
and nobility enjoyed public mourning and were allowed to be buried in marked graves. However, his
memorial services and concerts in Vienna and Prague were well attended. After his death, Constanze
sold many of his unpublished manuscripts to undoubtedly pay off the family’s large debts. She was able
to obtain a pension from the emperor and organized several profitable memorial concerts in Mozart’s
honor. From these efforts, Constanze was able to gain some financial security for herself and allowing
her to send her children to private schools. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s death came at a young age,
even for the time period. Yet his meteoric rise to fame and accomplishment at a very early age is
reminiscent of more contemporary musical artists whose star had burned out way too soon. At the time
of his death, Mozart was considered one of the greatest composers of all time. His music presented a
bold expression, often times complex and dissonant, and required high technical mastery from the
musicians who performed it. His works remained secure and popular throughout the 19th century, as
biographies about him were written and his music enjoyed constant performances and renditions by
other musicians. His work influenced many composers that followed -- most notably Beethoven. Along
with his friend Joseph Haydn, Mozart conceived and perfected the grand forms of symphony, opera,
string ensemble, and concerto that marked the classical period. In particular, his operas display an
uncanny psychological insight, unique to music at the time, and continue to exert a particular fascination
for musicians and music lovers today.

Joseph Haydn QUICK FACTS Joseph Haydn, detail of a portrait by Thomas Hardy, 1791; in the collection
of the Royal College of Music, London. View Media Page BORN March 31, 1732 Rohrau, Austria DIED
May 31, 1809 (aged 77) Vienna, Austria NOTABLE WORKS “Surprise Symphony” “Deutschlandlied”
“Emperor Quartet” “The Creation” “Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser” “Military Symphony” “Paris
Symphonies” “London Symphonies” “The Seasons” “Requiem” FAMILY Brother Michael Haydn Joseph
Haydn, in full Franz Joseph Haydn, (born March 31, 1732, Rohrau, Austria—died May 31, 1809, Vienna),
Austrian composer who was one of the most important figures in the development of the Classical style
in music during the 18th century. He helped establish the forms and styles for the string quartet and the
symphony. Early Years Haydn was the second son of humble parents. His father was a wheelwright, his
mother, before her marriage, a cook for the lords of the village. Haydn early revealed unusual musical
gifts, and a cousin who was a school principal and choirmaster in the nearby city of Hainburg offered to
take him into his home and train him. Haydn, not yet six years old, left home, never to return to the
parental cottage except for rare brief visits. ADVERTISEMENT The young Haydn sang in the church choir,
learned to play various instruments, and obtained a good basic knowledge of music. But his life changed
decisively when he was eight years old. The musical director of St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna had
observed the boy on a visit to Hainburg and invited him to serve as chorister at the Austrian capital’s
most important church. Haydn’s parents accepted the offer, and thus in 1740 Haydn moved to Vienna.
He stayed at the choir school for nine years, acquiring an enormous practical knowledge of music by
constant performances but, to his disappointment, receiving little instruction in music theory. He had to
work hard to fulfill his obligations as a chorister, and when his voice changed, he was expelled from both
the cathedral choir and the choir school.

With no money and few possessions, Haydn at 17 was left to his own devices. He found refuge for a
while in the garret of a fellow musician and supported himself “miserably” with odd musical jobs. He
meanwhile undertook an arduous course of self-instruction through the study of musical works—
notably those of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach—and of leading manuals of musical theory. A fortunate
chance brought him to the attention of the Italian composer and singing teacher Nicola Porpora, who
accepted him as accompanist for voice lessons and corrected Haydn’s compositions. With persistence
and energy, Haydn made progress. He was eventually introduced to the music-loving Austrian nobleman
Karl Joseph von Fürnberg, in whose home he played chamber music. For the instrumentalists there he
wrote his first string quartets. Through the recommendation of Fürnberg, in 1758 Haydn was engaged as
musical director and chamber composer for the Bohemian count Ferdinand Maximilian von Morzin.
Haydn was put in charge of an orchestra of about 16 musicians, and for this ensemble he wrote his first
symphony as well as numerous divertimenti for wind band or for wind instruments and strings. These
early musical compositions were still conventional in character, yet a certain freshness of melodic
invention and sparkle marked them as the work of a future master. Esterházy Patronage Haydn stayed
only briefly with von Morzin, as financial difficulties forced his patron to dismiss the orchestra. Soon
Haydn was invited to enter the service of Prince Pál Antal Esterházy. The Esterházys were one of the
wealthiest and most-influential families of the Austrian empire and boasted a distinguished record of
supporting music. Prince Pál Antal had a well-appointed orchestra performing regularly in his castle at
Eisenstadt, a small town some 30 miles (48 km) from Vienna. Because his aged music director was ailing,
the prince appointed the relatively unknown Haydn to be assistant conductor in 1761. While the music
director oversaw church music, Haydn conducted the orchestra and coached the singers in almost daily
rehearsals, composed most of the music required, and served as chief of the musical personnel. Haydn
carried out his duties extremely well and revealed tact, good nature, and skill in dealing with people.
From his first symphonies written for the Esterházys, Haydn amply displayed his characteristic good
humour and wit, as well as the dependable freshness of his musical ideas, although full maturity would
come much later. His employment by the Esterházy family proved decisive for his career, and he
remained in their service until his death. In 1766 Haydn became musical director at the Esterházy court.
He raised the quality and increased the size of the prince’s musical ensembles by appointing many
choice instrumentalists and singers. His ambitious plans were supported by Prince Miklós, who, on the
death of his brother in 1762, had become head of the Esterházy family. He was able to appreciate
Haydn’s musical contributions and created an atmosphere conducive to the development and maturing
of Haydn’s art. In addition to composing operas for the court, Haydn composed symphonies, string
quartets, and other chamber music. The prince was a passionate performer on the baryton, and Haydn
provided for his patron more than 150 compositions featuring this now-obsolete cellolike instrument.

Haydn served Prince Miklós for nearly 30 years. He frequently visited Vienna in the prince’s retinue, and
on these visits a close friendship developed between himself and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The two
composers felt inspired by each other’s work. Mozart declared that he had learned from Haydn how to
write quartets and dedicated a superb set of six such works to his “beloved friend.” Haydn’s music, too,
shows the impact of his young friend. The mature composer was by no means set in his ways; he was
flexible and receptive to new ideas. During the 1760s Haydn’s fame began to spread throughout Europe.
The Austrian and Czech monasteries did much to disseminate his church music as well as his
symphonies, divertimenti, sonatas, and concertos. Aristocratic patrons in south Germany, Italy, and the
Austrian empire assiduously collected his music, and their libraries would eventually become important
sources for copies of his work. ADVERTISEMENT The period from 1768 to about 1774 marks Haydn’s
maturity as a composer. The music written then, from the Stabat Mater (1767) to the large-scale Missa
Sancti Nicolai (1772), would be sufficient to place him among the chief composers of the era. The many
operas he wrote during these years did much to enhance his own reputation and that of the Esterházy
court. Among his other important works from this period are the string quartets of Opus 20, the Piano
Sonata in C Minor, and the symphonies in minor keys, especially the so-called Trauersymphonie in E
Minor, No. 44 (“Mourning Symphony,” so named because its slow movement, which was a particular
favourite of the composer, was performed at a memorial service for Haydn) and the “Farewell”
Symphony, No. 45. For reasons that have no historical grounding, this has come to be known as Haydn’s
Sturm-und-Drang (“storm and stress”) period, after a literary movement that came somewhat later;
however inapt historically, the term does describe the character of many of these works and in fact has
come to stand for the turgid style they so often exhibit. ADVERTISEMENT The following decade and a
half did even more to enhance Haydn’s fame. His operatic output continued strong until 1785,
notwithstanding the destruction of the Esterházy opera house by fire in 1779. Increasingly, however, his
audience lay outside his employer’s court. In 1775 he composed his first large-scale oratorio, Il ritorno di
Tobia, for the Musicians’ Society in Vienna; for unknown reasons, relations between Haydn and the
Viennese m

Cont joesph hydn musicians cooled considerably a few years later. By the early 1780s, though, things
seemed much improved, and the Viennese firm Artaria published his six Opus 33 quartets. These
important works quickly set a new standard for the genre, putting many of his competitors in this
increasingly lucrative market out of business. (Mozart was a notable exception, but even he took several
years to complete his own set of six quartets.) In 1784 Haydn revised Tobia for another Viennese
performance, adding choral numbers and cutting back on some of the extended da capo structures, a
clear sign that he was well aware of changing sensibilities. In mid-decade as well came a commission
from Paris to compose a set of symphonies, and Haydn’s resulting “Paris” symphonies are a landmark of
the genre. It was also about this time that he received the commission to compose the Seven Last
Words of Our Saviour on the Cross; for the incorrigibly cheerful Haydn, writing seven successive dour
movements was a particularly difficult undertaking, but the effort resulted in one of his most-admired
works. Haydn’s professional success was not matched in his personal life. His marriage to Maria Anna
Keller in 1760 produced neither a pleasant, peaceful home nor any children. Haydn’s wife did not
understand music and showed no interest in her husband’s work. Her disdain went to the extremes of
using his manuscripts for pastry pan linings or curl papers. Haydn was not insensitive to the attractions
of other women, and for years he carried on a love affair with Luigia Polzelli, a young Italian mezzo-
soprano in the prince’s service. When Prince Miklós died in 1790, he was succeeded by his son, Prince
Antal, who did not care for music and dismissed most of the court musicians. Haydn was retained,
however, and continued to receive his salary. No duties were required of him, enabling Haydn to do
whatever he pleased. After such a long time at the Esterházy court, however, the composer was eager to
try a different way of life. At this point a violinist and concert manager, Johann Peter Salomon, arrived
from England and commissioned from Haydn 6 new symphonies and 20 smaller compositions to be
conducted by the composer himself in a series of orchestral concerts in London sponsored by Salomon.
Haydn gladly accepted this offer, and the two men set off for London in December 1790. On New Year’s
Day 1791, Haydn arrived in England, and the following 18 months proved extremely rewarding. The
many novel impressions, the meeting with eminent musicians, and the admiration bestowed on him had
a powerful impact on his creative work. He was feted, lionized, and treated as a genius; Charles Burney
published a poem in his honour. The 12 symphonies he wrote on his first and second visits to London
represent the climax of his orchestral output. Their virtuosity of instrumentation, masterly treatment of
musical forms, and freely flowing melodic inspiration—not to mention their deft wit—endeared the
works to British audiences. Their popularity is reflected in the various nicknames bestowed on them—
e.g., The Surprise (No. 94), Military (No. 100), The Clock (No. 101), and Drumroll (No. 103). In June 1792
Haydn left London for Germany. On his journey he stopped at Bonn, where the 22-year-old Ludwig van
Beethoven was introduced to him, and it was arranged that the tempestuous young composer should
move to Vienna to receive Haydn’s instruction. In a letter of 1793 to Beethoven’s patron, the elector of
Cologne, Haydn stated that “Beethoven will one day be considered one of Europe’s greatest composers,
and I shall be proud to be called his teacher.”

Haydn’s curiously cool reception on his return to Vienna in 1792 may have strengthened his decision to
make a second journey to England in January 1794. The principal compositions of his second visit to
London were the second set of London (or Salomon) symphonies (Nos. 99–104) and the six Apponyi
quartets (Nos. 54–59). While in London, Haydn reached even greater heights of inspiration, particularly
in the last three symphonies he wrote (Nos. 102–104), of which the Symphony No. 102 in B-flat Major is
one of the greatest of all symphonies. The British public no longer regarded him as a sensation but as an
old and well-loved friend. King George III earnestly invited him to stay in England, but Haydn—for
reasons that have never been made clear—preferred to return to his native Austria to serve the new
head of the Esterházy family, Prince Miklós II.
 Joseph haydn 3 But in the 20th century there was a reevaluation of Haydn’s work, and his outstanding
thematic elaborations, his dependably engaging wit, the originality of his modulations, and the artistry
and superb craftsmanship of his orchestration were again appreciated in full measure