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  • Published: 16 July 2020
  • ISBN: 9780241990858
  • Imprint: Penguin Audio
  • Format: Audio Download
Categories:

Beethoven

A Life in Nine Pieces





An authoritative and refreshing account of Beethoven's life and music, for the 250th anniversary of his birth

Ludwig van Beethoven: to some, simply the greatest ever composer of Western classical music. Yet his life remains shrouded in myths, and the image persists of him as an eccentric genius shaking his fist at heaven.

Beethoven by Oxford professor Laura Tunbridge cuts through the noise in a refreshing way. Each chapter focuses on a period of his life, a piece of music and a revealing theme, from family to friends, from heroism to liberty. It's a winning combination of rich biographical detail, insight into the music and surprising new angles, all of which can transform how you listen to his works. We discover, for example, Beethoven's oddly modern talent for self-promotion, how he was influenced by factors from European wars to instrument building, and how he was heard by contemporaries.

This tour de force - published for the 250th anniversary of Beethoven's birth - provides a fresh overview and a wealth of material that has never been revealed to the wider public before. It's a compelling, human portrayal of Beethoven and a fascinating journey into one of the world's most amazing creative minds.

  • Published: 16 July 2020
  • ISBN: 9780241990858
  • Imprint: Penguin Audio
  • Format: Audio Download
Categories:

Praise for Beethoven

Beautifully written, warmly-accessible, fascinating

BBC Music Magazine on Singing in the Age of Anxiety

Thought-provoking, superb

Classical Music on Schumann’s Late Style

Subtle and extensive

The New York Review of Books on Singing in the Age of Anxiety

Fascinating

Roger Parker, King's College London on Singing in the Age of Anxiety

Important, beautifully written, fascinating

Susan Youens, University of Notre Dame on The Song Cycle

Consistently perceptive critical acumen

Kenneth Stilwell, Nineteenth-Century Music Review on Schumann’s Late Style

Original, superbly done, beautifully written

Susan Youens, University of Notre Dame on The Song Cycle

Illuminating

Classical Music on The Song Cycle