B is for Beethoven

 

              I am participating in the Blogging from A to Z Challenge, and my theme this year is classical music. Check out the list of other participants by clicking here! Today, B is for Beethoven. I am sure you have heard of Ludwig van Beethoven. He has a lot of well-known pieces, and some of his most popular works include his Fifth and Ninth Symphonies, the Moonlight Sonata, and Für Elise. I thought I would include a couple pieces that you have probably heard, but maybe not quite as often. The featured selection is the second movement of Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 8 in C minor, Op. 13 , which is also known as the Sonata Pathétique, performed by Yundi Li.

Video Link: https://youtu.be/BuN3yCmHb_U

 

   ·   Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer who lived from 1770 to 1827.

   ·   Much of his earlier work was influenced by his predecessors, Mozart and Haydn. The Sonata Pathétique was composed during that early period.

   ·   He has nine symphonies, one opera, 32 piano sonatas, 16 string quartets, and many other works.

   ·   Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, which includes the famous “Ode to Joy” chorus, was the first major symphony to include choral voices.

   ·   Beethoven began to suffer hearing loss in his late 20s and was almost totally deaf by the age of 44.

   ·   His birthplace in the city of Bonn is now the location of the Beethoven House museum. Bonn also holds an annual music festival called Beethovenfest.

Billy Joel used the melody from today’s selection in the chorus of his song, "This Night." I have attempted to play the 2^nd movement on the piano before, let’s just say that my Pathétique was pathetic.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ludwig_van_Beethoven

http://www.classicfm.com/composers/beethoven/

For this challenge, I’m keeping a playlist of the videos I’m using plus some extras for anyone who wants to hear more. I will update with the latest letter each day. The extra today is Beethoven’s beautiful Symphony No. 7, 2nd Movement: Allegretto played by the Wilfred Symphony Orchestra. I was mesmerized by the way this video was animated and I intended to use it as the featured selection, but I decided to go with something shorter. If you have the time, I recommend it!

 

I chose Beethoven for B, but there are two other composers I’m using with last names that start with B. There are also at least two composers who have first and last names that both start with B, do you know who they are? Answer on Monday.