Time of creation: April 1810.

This piano miniature became one of the most popular works of Beethoven (Donnerwetter! - the author would add). Its formal name is Bagatelle No. 25 in A minor (WoO 59 and B 515), "Für Elise" ("To Elise") is a subtitle. In addition to its artistic merit, the popularity of the piece is due to its widespread use in teaching, as a good exercise in pedal technique.

The work was published only in 1867, 40 years after the death of the composer, by Ludwig Nohl (Neue Briefe Beethovens, Stuttgart 1867), a biographer and researcher of Beethoven's work, who discovered the manuscript in 1865. Zero claimed that it was in the possession of a certain Babette Bradl from Munich, who, according to her, received the manuscript as a gift from Beethoven's friend Teresa von Drossdick, née Malfatti. Zero claimed that it was dated April 27 (no year). Later the manuscript was lost.

It is not known exactly who "Eliza" is, to whom the work is dedicated. There is a version by Max Unger, put forward in 1923, that Zero misinterpreted Beethoven's illegible handwriting, and in fact the play is entitled "To Teresa", and thus is dedicated to the already mentioned Teresa Malfatti, a friend and student of Beethoven. The composer, as it often happened to him, was in love with his student, and even proposed to her in 1810, but was refused.

In 2009, a version of Martin Kopitz was published, who suggested that the play was dedicated to the German singer Elisabeth Röckel (1793-1883), the younger sister of the composer's friend, tenor Josef Röckel, and, subsequently, the wife of the composer Hummel (Johann Nepomuk Hummel) ... "Eliza" - as she was called in Vienna - had been a close friend of Beethoven since 1808.

Martin Kopitz is challenged by Michael Lorenz in his article "Eliza Unveiled."

Also in 2009, Spanish pianist and musicologist Luca Chiantore argued in his doctoral dissertation (and the book that followed it) that Beethoven may not have authored the work as published by Zero and is known today. ... Chiantore based his version on the fact that the manuscript signed by Beethoven, which Ludwig Zero used as the basis for his transcription, never existed. On the other hand, renowned researcher Barry Cooper published an essay in the Musical Times in 1984 claiming that one of the two surviving sketches resembles the published version.

Though usually designated a bagatelle, Für Elise has the form of a compact rondo (ABACA). In spite of its brevity, the work bears the distinctive stamp of its creator. There is a slight hint of brooding in the Slavic-tinged A minor refrain; the B episode, in F major, possesses the yearning, songlike character of so many of Beethoven's slow movements. In the C episode, a very effective modulation from D minor to B flat major is achieved via a simple but very characteristic half- step shift in the bass. Like a tiny cut gem, Für Elise is flawless; even in an effort of such petite proportions, one is reminded of Leonard Bernstein "s observation of the" sense of rightness "which pervades all of Beethoven" s works . (All Music Guide)

Ludwig van Beethoven from childhood showed a talent for music, his first teachers were Father Johann, who served as a tenor in the court chapel, and the composer Christian Gottlob Nefe. A key role in the development of Ludwig's talent was also played by his grandfather, who held the position of Kapellmeister. It was he who first noticed the grandson's craving for music and insisted on the need to give the boy an education.

Ludwig van Beethoven is an outstanding German composer and pianist.

At the age of 21, Ludwig goes to Vienna to take lessons from the famous Austrian composer Joseph Haydn, who speaks with approval of his student. Beethoven quickly masters the skill of playing the piano and willingly improvises. Intuitively, he finds new ways, playing techniques, combinations that will determine the development of music in the 18th century.

Joseph Haydn is a teacher of Mozart and Beethoven.

By the age of 30, Ludwig's hearing began to deteriorate sharply. For a musician, such a diagnosis was worse than death, because the opportunity to play music was under threat. As best he could, he tried to hide the illness from others, but gradually he closed in on himself and became unsociable. Despite the fact that over the years Beethoven was completely deaf, he still continued to write music, many of his most famous works were created at the end of his life.

Portrait of Ludwig van Beethoven, painted in 1820.

Researchers who work with the archives of Ludwig Beethoven note that the composer had a completely illegible handwriting, eyewitnesses noted that he had difficulties with pronunciation. All this gave reason to assume that, perhaps, the great composer suffered from dyslexia (poor mastery of writing and reading skills with a general ability to learn). It is because of the unclear handwriting that the work known today as the play "To Eliza" was published under this name.

It is worth noting that the bagatelle piece was published 40 years after the death of the composer, it was discovered by the musician Ludwig Zero. Interestingly, the manuscript was accidentally found in 1865, published in 1867, but was soon lost without a trace. To date, only a copy of Zero has survived, where the original is located is unknown. Therefore, the information we have today is how he was able to decipher Beethoven's records Zero. The original was almost certainly difficult to read, so Zero focused on getting the notes right. It is unlikely that it was fundamentally important for him to preserve the correctness of the name of the addressee.

Considering that the dedication of the play "To Eliza", for many years it was believed that its addressee was Elizaveta Alekseevna, the wife of the Russian Emperor Alexander I.

Teresa Malfatti is the likely addressee of Ludwig van Beethoven's play * To Elise *.

However, researcher Max Unger disagreed with this statement. In his opinion, it is logical to assume that the addressee could be Teresa Malfatti, a student of Beethoven and his close friend. It is known that the great composer was in love with Teresa and even made her a marriage proposal in 1810 (this was the year the manuscript of the play was supposedly dated). However, Teresa refused.

Portrait of Elisabeth Röckel, another possible but less likely addressee.

There is also a third version, according to which the play could have been written for the singer Elisabeth Röckel and presented to her as parting before her departure from Vienna. However, it is known for certain that the manuscript was at the disposal of Teresa Malfatti, and if the addressee was Röckel, it is not possible to explain this circumstance.

Beethoven.NSdonkeyto Eliza

"My angel, my sune, my "I"! "

The pen squeaked on the paper, ink splashed in all directions, but Ludwig did not notice anything of this. He almost ceased to hear sounds and for a long time did not pay attention to everyday trifles. Only one thing was important: the feeling that arose in his heart and filled his soul with love and passion - the last love in his life, he knew it for sure. "My angel, my everything, my" I "! Can our love withstand only at the cost of sacrifices, by refusing to be full, can you not change the position in which you are not entirely mine and I am not entirely yours? - he feverishly wrote a line by line. - You suffer, my dearest being ... You suffer - ah, wherever I am, you are always with me, with me too. I love you - just like you love me, only much stronger Oh God! What kind of life is this! Without you! So close! So far away! .. Still lying in bed, I was full of thoughts about you, my immortal beloved, now joyful, now again sad. I asked fate, I asked, will she hear our prayers. I can only live entirely with you, otherwise this is not life for me. Be calm - love me - today - yesterday. What longing and tears for you - you - you - my life - my everything! Farewell! Oh, continue to love me - never judge falsely about the most faithful heart of your beloved L. friend ". He threw down his quill and sobbed. The message came out chaotic, abrupt, incomprehensible, but, most importantly, it did not reflect one hundredth of what he wanted to say. Jumping up from the table, Beethoven ran around the room. He caught sight of a volume of Eiteles' poems; Opening the page at random, Ludwig read: I am standing on a hill dreaming, And I look at the crest of rocks, To a distant land, where I, beloved friend, met you. Endless rows, Like a stone wall, Became the mountains between us, Our happiness and longing. “The mountains have become between us, our happiness and longing,” Ludwig repeated aloud, and these simple verses seemed to him the pinnacle of poetic art: they seemed to go to music. He sank into a chair and thought. A strange detachment took possession of him: love, despair, longing seemed to merge into one painful feeling of anticipation. And suddenly chords sounded in his soul; they formed a coherent composition that was beautiful. Beethoven rushed to the table and began to quickly write down the melody he had composed ... no, the melody he had endured! It contained everything that he could not convey in words. Soon the piano piece was ready. All that remained was to come up with a name, and it was possible to give it to the scribe of sheet music. Ludwig inscribed on the first page "Message to ...". Then he stopped. Make the name of your beloved public, give rise to gossip? Never! "A message to ... Eliza," he added and chuckled. So be it!..

Ludwig, grandson of Ludwig

Ludwig van Beethoven was born in Bonn into a family of singer and musician Johann van Beethoven. The exact date of Ludwig's birth has not been established, only the date of his baptism is known - December 17, 1770 (hereinafter, biographical information about Beethoven's life is given from the book by A.K. Konigsberg "Ludwig van Beethoven, (1770-1827): A Brief Outline of Life and Work "). The boy's mother, cook Maria-Magdalena Keverich, after the death of her first husband, a footman, married the musician Johann van Beethoven. Compared to the lackey, the musician was a more respected person, but the trouble was that Johann had an addiction to alcohol. The actual head of the family was the old Ludwig van Beethoven, the grandfather of the future great composer. Little Ludwig inherited many of his character traits from him. Pride, independent disposition, perseverance and hard work - all these qualities were inherent in both the grandfather and his famous grandson. The elder Beethoven settled in Bonn in 1732. The surname "Beethoven" at first aroused the laughter of the inhabitants of the city: it meant "a garden with red beets". The great composer's grandfather came from a respectable family of Flemish burghers - his father traded in lace and paintings in the city of Mecheln, and his son sent him to a church singing school. The elder Ludwig had a good bass, and the young man became a chorister in the ancient center of Flemish musical culture - Liege. Arriving in Bonn, Ludwig van Beethoven received the position of court musician in the elector's chapel, and after working there for 19 years, he became the head of the chapel - bandmaster. Bonn in the middle of the 18th century had only 8 thousand inhabitants. It was a beautiful and welcoming town on the banks of the wide North Rhine, in picturesque, fertile hills. However, this quiet town played the role of the capital of an entire principality, since it was in Bonn that the residence of the prince-bishop, Elector of Cologne, was located. The dwarf state was one of 360 making up the "Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation". Bonn's life was subordinated to the needs of the princely court. And the electors loved luxury, splendor, sought to imitate the customs of the brilliant French court and wanted to turn their capital into a little Versailles. The Bonn Elector's court chapel was considered one of the best in Germany. The musicians took part in church services, performed at the theater, where operas, ballets, dramas and comedies were staged, at balls and feasts in the palace. Therefore, each singer had to be able to sing in Latin (in church), in German, Italian and French (in the theater and at court). Ludwig van Beethoven, for example, often appeared in popular comic operas by French composers Gretry and Monsigny. However, the position of court musician was poorly paid. And the enterprising, energetic Beethoven, having started a family, decided, following the example of his ancestors, to engage in trade. He opened two wine cellars in Bonn, where his wife traded in Rhine wines. The eldest in the Beethoven family was respected by his fellow citizens as an honest, respectable person with a deeply developed sense of duty. The portrait, under which a laurel wreath was hung on family holidays, depicts a typical Flemish burgher: serious, full of dignity, with a determined and firm gaze. This was exactly the character of Beethoven's grandfather: when it turned out that his wife was the best consumer of the wine cellar, in order to end the family troubles that cast a shadow on his good name, he placed his wife in a monastery, from where she did not leave until her death. The elder Ludwig van Beethoven was not happy in his sons either. The mother's pernicious passion especially affected her second son, Johann. His father pinned great hopes on him, since Johann's musical talent was revealed already in childhood: at the age of 10 he acted as an angel in an Italian oratorio, and at 12 he was admitted to the number of court musicians. He not only played the harpsichord and violin, but also taught singing, harpsichord and music theory. He was a handsome, cheerful and charming young man who enjoyed the love of friends and women. However, he did not inherit mental health and strength of character from his father. Johann's disposition was frivolous, inconsistent, he quickly became carried away and just cooled down just as quickly. Intoxicated by easy successes, he forgot that a musician needs to constantly work. His conceit increased as his ignorance was revealed, and frivolity and lack of will prevented him from returning to the right path. Johann constantly disappeared in taverns, was an indispensable participant in violent drinking and scandals that brought him notorious fame in the city. In the chapel, he was drunk or did not appear at all, his character became hysterical and quarrelsome, he lost his voice - and more and more plunged into a quagmire, not realizing the entire horror of his situation. It seemed that the marriage had changed Johann. At the age of 28, he married the 19-year-old widow of a court lackey, Mary Magdalene Keverich. Old Ludwig van Beethoven was against this marriage; he even threatened to leave home, but his harsh objections did not break his son's stubbornness. Then Ludwig really settled separately from the young couple. Mary Magdalene soon managed to win over the old man. Quiet, meek, courteous, she had a wonderful gift to attract hearts. Not distinguished by good health, Mary Magdalene worked tirelessly, trying to keep the household in exemplary order, and this despite the growing family and noisy companies that her husband constantly brought to the house. Old Ludwig supported her in every possible way, peace and prosperity reigned in Johann's family for several years. But now four children die in infancy, and Mary Magdalene falls ill with tuberculosis. Johann again disappears in taverns all day long, not bringing a single guilder to the family, and returning home, he mocks his sick, exhausted wife. At this time, old Ludwig dies. Johann quickly drops his father's inheritance, sells his things, and need reigns in the family. The house in which the Beethovens live is a real dwelling of poverty. Situated near the market square, in an area where no building reminds of the luxurious palace of the Elector, it seems the poorest and most wretched of the surrounding buildings. Three rooms in the attic open onto the courtyard and are dark and damp, like a barn; a narrow dormer almost does not allow the sun and air to pass through; the ceiling beams hang low, supported by a slanting outer wall. It is not surprising that children do not live here for long ... Fortunately, not all children were affected by the sinister heredity. As already mentioned, on December 17, 1770, a baby named Ludwig was baptized - along with the name he inherited indestructible health and mental strength from his grandfather. He was destined to glorify the name of Beethoven for centuries. Little Ludwig showed his musical abilities early, and his father dreamed of improving his material affairs with the help of his talented son. All over Europe then the name of Mozart thundered: everyone could tell many stories about a genius child who amazed kings and musicians with his playing and compositions.

Exemplar:Amadeus

Wolfgang Amadeus ("Amadeus" - "Amadeus" - translated from Latin as "God's favorite") Mozart was born on January 27, 1756 in the city of Salzburg, in the family of a musician. Wolfgang's father, Leopold Mozart, was a violinist, organist, teacher and composer. The violin school published by Leopold Mozart was popular not only in Austria and Germany, but also in other countries, including Russia. He worked as a court musician and valet for the Salzburg nobleman Count Thurn, and then entered the palace orchestra of the Salzburg archbishop as a violinist. (Salzburg, located in the Alps, was at that time the capital of a small principality similar to Bonn, where Beethoven lived. At the head was the Salzburg archbishop, who combined spiritual and secular power). Wolfgang's musical training took place under the guidance of his father. Mozart studied harpsichord, organ and violin. Already at the age of three, he built chords, improvised, reproduced the music he heard. Mozart's memory and hearing amazed those around him. A friend of the Mozart house, the court trumpeter in Salzburg I. A. Shachtner, recalled several facts from Mozart's childhood, which he witnessed. Once Mozart's father came home accompanied by Schachtner. Four-year-old Mozart was sitting at the table, running his pen over the music paper. When his father asked what he was doing, the boy replied that he was writing a concert for the harpsichord. My father took a sheet of music paper and saw the notes written in childish handwriting, smeared with blots. At first, he and Shachtner thought it was a childish prank. But when he began to peer, tears of joy flowed from his eyes. "Look, Mr. Shachtner," he turned to a friend, "how everything is correct and meaningful here." So at the age of four, Mozart composed his first concert. Schachtner goes on to say that Mozart was very fond of his violin for its delicate and juicy sound. Once, when Mozart was 7 years old, he played this violin. After one or two days, he practiced his own violin. When Schachtner caught him doing this, Mozart interrupted his playing and said that his violin was tuned one eighth tone lower than the one he had played two days ago. Schachtner laughed, but his father, knowing Wolfgang's amazing ear and memory, asked Schachtner to bring his violin without rebuilding it. Both were convinced that Wolfgang was right. However, Mozart's sister - Maria Anna (Nannerl, as she was called at home) - was an equally talented performer. Father, daughter and son made up a brilliant trio of musicians. Since 1762 (Mozart was six years old), this trio began performing in various cities and countries of Europe. The children played, however, not only with their father, but also independently. In particular, the concerts given by Wolfgang and Nanerl in Vienna made a splash. The musical family of the Mozarts was invited to the court in Schönbrunn - the summer residence of the Austrian emperor. There, every day Wolfgang and Nannerl played separately, then together in four hands. Wolfgang's phenomenal art caused a storm of delight. He masterly performed his own and other people's compositions, read unfamiliar works from sight with such ease, as if they had been known to him for a long time, improvised on given themes, cleanly and unmistakably played difficult pieces on a keyboard covered with a scarf. But, despite all the triumphs and delights of the public, life in endless travels and concerts was extremely difficult. Wolfgang and Nannerl were brutally exploited, forced to play and improvise for many hours without rest (concerts at that time lasted 4-5 hours). It's amazing how, with such a workload, Wolfgang found time to compose music: already at the beginning of 1764, his four sonatas for violin and harpsichord were published. The title page indicated that they were written by a seven-year-old boy. This big concert tour lasted more than three years. Leopold Mozart achieved his goal: a long concert trip brought significant financial resources. In addition, good money was received after the end of the trip from the Archbishop of Salzburg: knowing about the composer's successes of ten-year-old Wolfgang, he ordered him to compose the first part of the festive oratorio. The second part of the oratorio was written by Michael Haydn, the younger brother of Joseph Haydn. In order to test Wolfgang and deprive him of his father's help, the archbishop kept the boy locked up in his castle for a whole week while composing the oratorio. Mozart fulfilled the task brilliantly - the part of the oratorio written by him in public performance was a great success. And the next year, 1767, at the age of eleven, Mozart wrote his first opera, Apollo and Hyacinth, which was also a success in Salzburg. Soon, the archbishop awarded Wolfgang the title of court accompanist. In December 1769, the Mozarts embarked on a major concert trip to Italy, where Wolfgang had not yet been. Huge success accompanied him throughout this country. Mozart showed his art in all his amazing wealth and skill: sitting at the harpsichord, Wolfgang conducted his symphonies, played the harpsichord and violin, improvised sonatas and fugues, as well as accompaniments to arias. In the biographies of Mozart, a case is told that once again testifies to the amazing ear for music and memory of the young musician. In Rome, during Holy Week, Leopold and Wolfgang Mozart visited the Sistine Chapel, where they performed "Miserere", a large polyphonic work by Gregorio Allegri (an Italian composer who was from 1629 to 1640 a member of the papal chapel in Rome). This spiritual work, written for two choirs, was performed twice a year (during Holy Week) and was the monopoly of St. Peter and the Vatican. It was not permitted to rewrite and redistribute "Miserere". Mozart, who listened to the work once, came home and recorded it in its entirety from memory, without making a single mistake. So Mozart contributed to the dissemination of music, considered the sacred property of the pope. Triumphs in Italy were the last bright page in the fate of Mozart. In Salzburg, unpleasant changes awaited him. The old archbishop died and was replaced by a new one, Count Jerome Coloredo. If the former archbishop did not object to the long absence of the Mozarts, then the new owner in this respect was much more tough and adamant. It became more and more difficult to get a vacation from him. At the same time, the archbishop found fault with every little thing and was annoyed at seeing Wolfgang's desire for independence. Wolfgang could not get rid of the service, and the position of the court musician, who was actually a servant, made himself felt more and more. Mozart was obliged to sit for several hours every day in the hall, waiting for the orders of the archbishop for the given day, to write music pleasing to the owner and his guests. The slightest failure to comply with the requirements aroused the archbishop's rage and humiliating insults. But Mozart did not belong to the people who bowed their heads before the mighty of this world. Mozart's statements testify to his highly developed sense of self-esteem and disdain for those who have reached high social status due to origin, rather than talent. So, in one of his letters he says: "It is easier for me to receive all the orders that you are able to obtain, than for you to become like me, even if you died or were resurrected twice." And in a letter to his father, Mozart wrote: "I hate the archbishop madly" ... When the Austrian empress Maria Theresa died, the Salzburg archbishop went to her funeral in Vienna. Wolfgang also went there by order of the archbishop. However, Mozart's hopes for renewed ties with the higher musical world and for performances in the salons of patrons could not be realized, since the archbishop did not give him the right to perform without permission. In his own house, he still bullied Mozart, during dinner he kept him in the room with the lackeys and cooks. Wolfgang's patience came to an end, nothing could now shake his firm decision to end his service - even at the cost of losing his material well-being. He wrote to his father: "To please you, I was ready to sacrifice my happiness, my health and my life, but my honor - it should be dear to me, and to you as well". The father tried to persuade his son not to take a rash step, but Mozart's decision was firm and adamant. He submitted a written letter of resignation. The archbishop not only refused, but also met Mozart with abuse. Mozart brought the statement a second time; When he came for an answer, the Archbishop's Oberkameger, Count Arco, pushed him out the door. After that, Mozart was close to mental breakdown for several days. Having come to his senses, he decided not to return to Salzburg, but to stay in Vienna. Thus, Mozart became the first among famous composers to break with the dependent position of a court musician. The initial period of his life in Vienna was difficult for Mozart. Having neither constant earnings, nor support from relatives and friends, having lost his former connections, he was forced to work to the point of exhaustion: to compose, give lessons, perform. To this was mingled with concern for his father and sister, whom he was unable to help. Mozart was helped by the spirit of the times: under the influence of the general national upsurge of Austria, the Vienna theater reoriented itself to creating its own Austrian opera art. Emperor Joseph II, who preferred Italian opera, was forced, under pressure from the advanced social movement, to organize in this theater a national "singspiel" - a comic opera with spoken dialogues in German. Mozart received an order for the Abduction from the Seraglio singspiel for this theater. The plot of "The Abduction from the Seraglio" is typical of an 18th century opera: the beautiful Constance languishes in captivity at the Turkish Pasha, who is finally freed by her fiancé Belmonte. But, despite the traditional type of plot, no opera of that time had such a soft and subtle musical characterization of the characters and their feelings, deep penetration into their psychology, such sincerity and poetry in the embodiment of lyrical images and such wit and humor in the embodiment of comic images. like in Mozart's opera. The idea of ​​loyal and selfless love, overcoming all obstacles, was consonant with Mozart's personal experiences. In Vienna, he met with the Weber family, whom he had known earlier. Once Wolfgang loved Aloisia Weber, the soloist of the Vienna Opera, but now Aloisia's younger sister Constance, a cheerful, cheerful, attractive girl, took possession of his feelings. The friendly relationship between Wolfgang and Constance quickly grew into mutual love. Mozart's feeling was fueled by the coincidence of the name of his bride with the name of the main character of the opera, on which he worked during this period. However, the desire of young people to unite was met with an obstacle on the part of Wolfgang's father and Constance's mother. As a result, Wolfgang secretly took Constance out of the house in August 1782, after which he married her. Somewhat earlier, in July 1782, the successful premiere of "The Abduction from the Seraglio" took place. However, the emperor did not like the opera, who accused Mozart's music of being too "learned". "Too good for our ears, and an awful lot of notes, my dear Mozart," said Joseph II. “Exactly as much as you need, your majesty,” the composer objected. Mozart did not have good relations with all composers in Vienna. Some of them considered harmonious audacity to be audacious in a number of his works. Others were jealous of Mozart's genius. Among the envious was Antonio Salieri, who held a high position at the imperial court. It was Salieri who acted against Mozart and, using his influence, prevented him from gaining a prominent position in Vienna and receiving due recognition there. But friendship with Haydn was a great joy for Mozart. The beginning of their personal acquaintance dates back to 1781. Mozart dedicated his remarkable six quartets to Haydn - his highest achievement in the field of quartet music. Wolfgang continues to work tirelessly, create musical works, including writing operas that later entered the golden fund of musical art - "The Marriage of Figaro", "Don Juan", "The Magic Flute". But Mozart is still regarded as a daring innovator and troublemaker, his writings practically do not generate income. A difficult time is coming for the composer. If in the first years of his life in Vienna he was invited by various nobles and patrons, generously paying for his performances, now these invitations (as well as orders for works) became less and less frequent. Mozart was deprived of the most essential means for a bearable existence for his family, wife and children. Taking advantage of Mozart's credulity, gentleness and everyday inexperience, the publishers deceived him, and sometimes simply robbed him. In addition, being in debt, he was harassed by creditors. Only at the end of 1788, after the death of the composer Gluck, who served as a chamber musician at the imperial court, Mozart was offered this place. But the emperor used Mozart only as a composer of dances for court balls and masquerades, for which he paid him a paltry salary. The financial situation of the Mozart family was getting worse. Inhuman tension at work, constant material hardships oppressed, led to despair of the great composer and gradually eaten away his body. To alleviate his situation, Mozart undertook concert trips, but they also brought him little income. It is striking that even under such conditions he created cheerful works: for example, his last opera "The Magic Flute" is generally comic in nature. Even before the end of this opera, Mozart received an order for the Requiem under rather strange circumstances that seemed mysterious for a long time. A man dressed in black came to him, ordered a Requiem and disappeared. Mozart never saw him again. This visit made an overwhelming impression on him: for a long time already feeling unwell, Mozart took the order for the funeral mass as a prophecy of his imminent death. Later, everything was explained: the strange visitor turned out to be a messenger of Count Walseg Stuppach, who had a habit of ordering various works to composers in need, buying them for nothing and then publishing them under his own name. He was going to do the same with Requiem. However, Mozart never knew all this. Sensing the imminent end, he with feverish haste set to work "Requiem", his last work, but still could not finish it: the work was interrupted by death. "Requiem" was completed, using the remaining sketches and rough notes of Mozart, his student Süsmeier. "Requiem" is one of the greatest creations of the brilliant composer. Written in the traditional Latin text of the funeral mass, its music does not meet the requirements of a liturgical cult. In Requiem, Mozart embodies the deepest world of human feelings and experiences: the drama of spiritual conflicts, the grandiose picture of the Last Judgment, great sorrow and grief for the lost loved ones, love and faith in man. ... Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart died on the night of December 4-5, 1791 (at the age of 36). Mozart's cause of death is still a matter of controversy. The famous legend of the poisoning of Mozart by the composer Salieri (who, indeed, envied Mozart's genius), is now supported by some musicologists. But there is no documentary evidence of this version - it is based only on oral data, in particular on the fact that Salieri himself, dying, being already in a state of mental disorder, confessed to the murder of Mozart. However, this still does not provide grounds for confirming the terrible crime, therefore, the fact of Mozart's poisoning is disputed by many researchers. ... Under tragic circumstances, Mozart's funeral took place. On this day, bad weather broke out, and none of the relatives and friends of the deceased reached the cemetery. Even Mozart's grief-stricken widow Constance was unable to go out. Due to the lack of money from his family, the great composer was buried in a common grave, without a coffin. The exact place of his burial is still unknown.

Fathers are not chosen

If Mozart's father cherished and developed his son's talent through thoughtful systematic studies, then Johann Beethoven's carelessness manifested itself in the upbringing of young Ludwig. The father set himself the goal of making Ludwig a virtuoso by all means and made him repeat boring exercises endlessly, often bringing the child to tears. Johann was rude and quick-tempered, although he loved his son in his own way. And the mother, whom Ludwig adored, was deprived of the opportunity to devote time and attention to him: the last strength was taken away from her by the household, and even two babies - Karl and Johann, two and four years younger than Ludwig. Beethoven very quickly mastered musical notation and played freely from sight; almost simultaneously, he showed the gift of an improviser. At the age of eight he already performed in Cologne, and at eleven he made his first overseas tour, visiting the homeland of his ancestors - the Dutch city of Rotterdam. Beethoven was unlucky for a long time with teachers. For 4 years, he changed at least 5 teachers, many of whom did not deserve this name at all. Many years later, having already become a famous composer, Beethoven complained to his student that he could not receive a real musical education in childhood. Beethoven's general education was even more fragmentary and unsystematic. For some time he had the opportunity to attend school, where he taught Latin, German and arithmetic, but at the age of 10 he was forced to quit his studies in order to start working and helping his family. And yet Beethoven persistently, almost without outside help, studied languages, so that already in his youth he read Latin and a little Greek fluently, and even wrote in French and Italian (although not without mistakes). Ludwig grew up as an abandoned child. Difficult living conditions, poverty, drunkenness of his father, illness of his mother made him an early adult, formed character traits. Beethoven had an unusually developed sense of his own dignity and independence. Despite the lively temperament and sense of humor, the boy was distinguished by great concentration and isolation, often plunged into deep thoughtfulness, from which it was impossible to bring him out. Despite his poor education, Beethoven developed a good taste and was well versed in literature - modern and ancient, German and foreign. Ancient authors were his favorite reading. Beethoven was fascinated by the epic heroes of Homer's Odyssey and Iliad, and the exalted images of Plutarch's Comparative Biographies - biographies of the famous heroes of Greece and Rome - were presented as bearers of civic virtues, role models; among them, Beethoven's favorite hero was Brutus. (The cult of antiquity was inherent in all the progressive people of the late 18th century in Germany and especially in France, where the leaders of the revolution resurrected the traditions of ancient festivals and even took ancient Greek and Roman names for themselves.) Along with the ancient, Beethoven was also fond of English literature: however, not only creations Shakespeare, who was his idol all his life (four volumes of Shakespeare, dotted with numerous notes, were kept in Beethoven's personal library), but the novels of the 18th century were his constant reading. The lofty ideals of friendship, loyalty, self-sacrifice, love, glorified by literature, captivated the young Beethoven.

The Importance of Finding a Good Mentor

At the age of eleven, Ludwig finally got a real mentor, who completed his musical education and did a lot to shape tastes and attitudes. It was Christian Gottlob Nefe. One of the most educated musicians of his time, Nefe left many comic operas, piano and orchestral works. Coming from a family of poor people (his father was a tailor), Nefe was distinguished by democracy, which he sometimes expressed quite sharply. He said that he hated princes more than robbers, was an enemy of ceremonial and etiquette, a hater of flatterers. Is it because Nefe in the last years of his life experienced dire need and hunger and died in 1798 in poverty? Starting to study with Beethoven, Nefe immediately introduced him to the theater. On the Bonn stage, both dramatic and operatic performances were staged at the same time, as was customary at the time. There were plays by Lessing and Schiller, Voltaire, Beaumarchais and Moliere, Shakespeare's tragedies King Lear and Richard III. Operas were staged mostly comic - Italian, French and German. The theater orchestra was no less in composition than the elector's chapel. Ludwig not only attended performances, attended rehearsals, but also learned parts with singers. In 1782, Neffe won the position of court organist in the elector's chapel and made Ludwig his assistant - an unpaid candidate awaiting the vacancy of a full-time position. Beethoven worked hard under the leadership of Nefe, often replacing him at the organ, amazing everyone with his improvisations. Nefe wrote an article in one of the music magazines in which he predicted a great future for Beethoven: "This young genius deserves support to be able to travel. He, of course, will become the second Mozart if he goes forward as he began." Nefe not only taught his student composition, but also introduced him to the great creations of the past, to the heights of polyphonic music. Nefe's idols were Johann-Sebastian Bach and Handel; their works accompanied Beethoven all his life. From childhood, he became close to the philosophical motives of the work of Bach, the heroic of Handel, who glorified the struggle and victory of the people. At the age of 13, after the death of the old elector, Beethoven became a court musician and on solemn days appears at the organ in full dress: a tailcoat with cords of the color of sea water, a vest with flowers trimmed with gold lace, a white collar, short pantaloons with buckles, white or black silk stockings, shoes with black buckles and a sword on the side; on her head is a powdered wig with a pigtail. Gradually, Beethoven is gaining recognition in Bonn not only as an excellent improviser - organist and harpsichordist, but also as a composer. At the age of 14, he has already written 3 quartets, piano pieces, songs, and even conceived a piano concert. He is invited to perform in aristocratic houses, where he also gives music lessons. But now this no longer satisfies him - Beethoven dreams of learning from Mozart. Having saved and borrowed money, in the spring of 1787 he went to Vienna.

"He will make everyone talk about himself"

The capital of Austria amazed the 17-year-old provincial youth with the scale of his musical life. In this city, everything sang. Austrian, German, Hungarian, Slavic, Italian, Gypsy songs and dances performed by street singers to the accompaniment of a guitar, harp, violin or a small instrumental ensemble sounded in the streets and squares, in the gardens where crowded folk festivals were held. In the aristocratic salons of the richest Austrian, Hungarian and Czech princes, outstanding musicians performed with concerts, who were also invited to the imperial palace. The Viennese nobility had their own opera troupes, orchestras, and ensembles. Many aristocrats were not only patrons of the arts - patrons of musicians, but were themselves considered composers and performers: they took lessons in composition and playing the harpsichord, violin or some other instrument from famous musicians, and then performed with their own symphonies or quartets. From six to eight in the morning, a symphony orchestra from among the highest nobility played in the hall of the Augarten garden, in which the ladies also took part. Four times a year, open concerts, called "academies", were held for the benefit of the musicians' widows and orphans. At concerts of the Society of Musicians, oratorios were performed, and the number of performers reached several hundred. Two imperial opera houses in the center of Vienna have staged Italian and German operas and ballets. The two folk theaters in the suburbs staged predominantly Austrian "magic" and comic operas. Shortly before Beethoven's arrival in Vienna, one of Mozart's best operas, The Marriage of Figaro, was staged. And soon the composer set to work on Don Juan. However, he found time to listen to the young Beethoven. He improvised on a theme set by Mozart, and Mozart said: "Pay attention to him. He will make everyone talk about himself." Beethoven managed to take several lessons from Mozart, but the sudden news of his mother's serious illness forced him to hastily leave Vienna. Returning to Bonn, Beethoven found his mother dying. Need and grief undermined her health, consumption did the rest. Mary Magdalene died in the arms of her son, who kept her bright image in his soul until the end of his days. Soon after the death of his mother, Beethoven wrote: “I found my mother still alive, but in the most serious condition; she was ill with consumption and finally died about seven weeks ago, after many pains and suffering endured. She was so kind and sweet to me. mother, my best friend. Oh, who was happier than me, while I could still say the sweet name - mother, and it was heard! Who can I tell him now? "The grief that befell Ludwig undermined his strength: he soon fell ill with typhus, complications after which tormented him all his life, then smallpox came. Beethoven was afraid of hereditary tuberculosis. But suffering did not break him. On the contrary, consciousness their responsibility, a sense of duty caused a burst of energy and supported the young man, who at the age of 17 was forced to become the head of the family and the educator of 13- and 15-year-old brothers. By that time, his father had completely drunken, lost his voice and became a laughing stock of the city. Ludwig asked the Elector to evict his father from Bonn and about the transfer of half of his salary, amounting to 200 thalers, to his young brothers. The elector's permission was received, but at the last moment Ludwig took pity on his father, as if anticipating that he had only 5 years to live. Johann continued to live in Bonn and carefully paid the elder son of 100 thalers for the maintenance of his younger sons. Soon Ludwig managed to find a place for them: Karl became a musician by family tradition, Johann n-junior became an apprentice pharmacist. Ludwig's official duties by that time had expanded significantly. In the elector's chapel, he was now not only an organist, but also a violist, and since 1789 - a "chamber musician", a soloist at court. To this was added work as a second violist in the theater, of which Nefe became the director. Numerous performances by Beethoven, his fiery improvisations evoked more and more enthusiastic reception. Music critic Juncker wrote: “I heard him improvising, and I myself was even asked to give him a theme for variations. very special expressive manner of playing, according to the perfection with which he plays. I could not say what he still lacked to be a great artist. I heard Vogler playing the piano ... But Beethoven, regardless of the degree of perfection, more significant, more eloquent, more expressive, in short, this excellent performer of both adagio and allegro gives more to the heart. The excellent musicians of the Capella themselves admire him, and everything turns to the ear when he plays. claims ". Beethoven attracted attention at first sight. He had a distinctive, memorable appearance. The dominant feature is will, plebeian, peasant strength. Short, squat, stocky, strong, even athletic build. A large round head on a short neck, a wide, extremely swarthy, almost brown (and according to others - brick-red) face with large features. A large mouth with a prominent lower lip and powerful jaws capable of crunching nuts, a short square nose, reminiscent of a lion. A comparison with a lion's mane also evokes the hair - a forest of thick, jet-black hair that frames a mighty bulging forehead. Smallpox transferred at the age of 17 left its marks on his face forever and made Beethoven myopic. But, despite this, his gray-blue eyes, small and deep-set, constantly burn with an inner fire, suddenly expanding from passion or anger, and on his swarthy face they seem almost black. The expression on Beethoven's face is often gloomy, concentrated, reflecting the intense work of thought; only sometimes a kind smile illuminates him; and laughter, short and loud, is unpleasant - the laughter of a person who is not used to fun. During the long and long walks that Beethoven loves from his youth, he developed a fast, energetic gait with a characteristic forward tilt of the body. In the fall of 1789, Beethoven entered the recently opened University of Bonn at the Faculty of Philosophy. There is still a lot of medieval scholasticism preserved in it: church law was considered the main subject, the largest number of professors - six - conducted theology. Along with this, lectures were given on German philosophy by Leibniz and Kant. Among the professors of the university, the "German Jacobin", a former monk, a brilliant orator and poet, an expert in ancient literature, Eulogius Schneider, who was constantly attacked by the Catholic clergy, stood out for his radical political views. In 1790, Beethoven met once again with Eulogius Schneider. The composer wrote a cantata for the death of Joseph II, known for his liberal, albeit unfulfilled, intentions. The cantata was to be performed at a meeting in memory of the enlightened monarch, which was organized by the Bonn Society of Reading Lovers. Schneider undertook to read the solemn speech. However, the performance of Beethoven's music did not take place - it was considered too complicated.

"Papa Haydn"

But Beethoven's music was approved by the great Haydn, who, along with Mozart, was then ranked first on the musical Olympus. Franz Joseph Haydn was born on March 31, 1732 in the Austrian village of Rorau, near the border with Hungary, in the family of a coachman and a cook. His parents considered music a noble and lucrative pursuit, and in 1737 they sent Joseph to study music and singing. So, five years old, he ended up in the small town of Hainburg, where he began to live with his cousin, who worked as a choirmaster. He began to teach the boy to sing. Joseph was treated harshly, he later recalled that he was "flogged much more often than fed." Soon G. Reuter, conductor of the Vienna Cathedral of St. Stephen, who was looking for musically gifted children for his chapel, drew attention to seven-year-old Joseph. The wonderful voice and extraordinary musical abilities of the little singer conquered Reiter. He enrolled Haydn in his chapel. However, during the ten years Joseph spent in the chapel, he received only two lessons in composition. When Haydn lost his voice at the age of seventeen, the conductor threw the young man out into the street. For a long time, Josef wandered the roads of Austria as a traveling musician. Once in the famous troupe of the comedian Kurtz, he created the pioneering comic opera "Lame Devil" for those times, which brought him 25 guilders, which were quickly spent. Finally, Joseph was lucky - he tripled as an accompanist with the famous Italian composer N. Porpora. He appreciated Haydn's musical abilities and began to study composition with him. Unexpected luck allowed Haydn to start an independent life. He rented a pitiful attic under the roof of a six-story building in Vienna, which became his first permanent apartment. In 1759, Haydn entered the service of Count Morcin, and two years later - for a long 30 years with the richest Hungarian prince Miklos Esterhazy. Esterhazy's service was difficult. The contract deprived Haydn of the right to leave the possession of the prince, the copyright for his works also belonged to the princely family. Among other things, it was stipulated that Joseph would "refrain from unnecessary conversations, vulgarity, excessive eating and drinking strong drinks." Haydn called himself a serf, which, in essence, he was ... By nature, Joseph Haydn was a kind simple man. The musicians loved him very much. Both old and young colleagues began to affectionately call him "Papa Haydn" when he was not yet 35 years old. He could not give up some of his old habits for a long time: he continued, for example, to wear his white powdered wig even when wigs were out of fashion everywhere. Haydn got to know the intimate side of life rather late. Although the musician lived all his youth surrounded by Viennese bohemia, he did not then have any relations with women. The young composer's innocence manifested itself when, at one of the music lessons he gave to the young countess, she, wanting to better examine the notes, leaned forward strongly, and Haydn saw her breasts. "For the first time in my life I saw such a thing!" Haydn exclaimed later, telling his friend about this incident. "I was very embarrassed and stopped playing." Shy and unsure of himself, Joseph realized that his appearance was not particularly attractive to women: short, his face was covered with smallpox specks, and his large nose was slightly deformed. Haydn considered himself a freak and once remarked that women were attracted "by no means my beauty." When Joseph finally fell in love, his chosen one was the daughter of a wig maker, who by that time had already firmly decided to become a nun. In response to Haydn's advances, the girl categorically stated that the sinful human world was disgusted with her, and the thoughts of marriage caused her horror and disgust. Joseph was shocked and crushed. However, the girl's father reassured the confused musician and persuaded him to marry his other daughter. This marriage was extremely unsuccessful. Anna Maria Keller, Haydn's wife, showed complete disrespect for her husband's profession, for example, by using his manuscripts as papillotes for her hair. Joseph and Anna did not have children, which also affected the relationship between the spouses. After marriage, Haydn was practically a "married bachelor". He, nevertheless, was faithful to his wife for almost twenty years. Then he suddenly fell in love with nineteen-year-old Luigia Polzelli, an Italian opera singer who was also in an unsuccessful marriage. Luigia's voice and manner of performance were not very good, but the appearance and figure were simply excellent. Joseph loved Luigia for several years and even promised to marry her if they were both suddenly free. But by the time Luigia's husband died first, and then Anna Maria died, Haydn's love had cooled. Several factors influenced this at once. Firstly, Luigia began to demand money from Haydn more and more insistently, and secondly, during his trip to England, he met a woman there, who seemed to him much more pleasant and cultured than his Italian mistress. Haydn, however, continued to discreetly send money to Luigia for the rest of his life. Haydn is said to be the father of her second child, although he himself never acknowledged this paternity. The Englishwoman who made such an indelible impression on Haydn was called Rebecca Schroeter. She was a widow and was already in her sixties. The composer sent her passionate letters and was going to marry her. It is still unknown why they suddenly stopped the correspondence. After the death of Anna Maria, parting with Luigia and the end of relations with Rebecca, affairs of the heart played an insignificant role in Haydn's life. Some argue that he began to write his operas precisely because passionate and long love did not happen in his life. For fifty-three years of creativity Haydn has created almost a thousand pieces of music of various genres: 104 symphonies, 83 string quartets, 24 operas, 3 oratorios, 41 piano and 21 string trios, 52 piano sonatas and much, much more: songs, variations, fantasies , marches, dances. Haydn is rightfully considered one of the founders of the Viennese classical school. He completed the formation of the symphony orchestra, establishing its classical composition, the strict laws of which are binding to this day. He brought quartet music to perfection, having achieved the fact that all instruments (two violins, viola and cello) became equal participants in this still popular ensemble. Despite the hardships of his life, Haydn continued to be a sociable, cheerful, resourceful person. And his musical works are filled with love of life, cordiality and good-natured humor, permeated with intonations of Austrian, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak and Croatian songs and dances, reflecting pictures of nature and folk life.

"You will receive the spirit of Mozart from Haydn's hands"

"Moonlight Sonata" for Juliet

The keepers of old, venerable traditions in music rejected Beethoven's works for obvious reasons. Beethoven, taking all the best from his illustrious teachers, moved far ahead in the art of music. Romantic motives were already distinctly heard in his music; to some extent he became the forerunner of romanticism, the first musical "romantic". Romanticism is a trend in the culture of the late 18th - 1st half of the 19th century. At this time, faith in the possibility of restructuring public life for the better was lost, because the Great French Revolution, which tried to establish a just social order based on the ideas of the Enlightenment, led to chaos, lawlessness, cruelty, executions, and a series of despotic rule. The world appeared "lying in evil": it is darkened by the forces of decay, "ancient chaos" is resurrected in man, "world evil" triumphs everywhere. The discord between ideal and reality, which is also characteristic of the previous trends, acquires an extraordinary acuteness and tension in romanticism, which is the essence of the so-called romantic double world. At the same time, the thought of the dominance of incomprehensible and mysterious forces in life, the need to submit to fate prevailed in the work of some romantics, while in the works of others (including Beethoven's music) moods of struggle and protest against the evil reigning in the world prevailed. Genius does not obey the rules, but creates them - this idea of ​​I. Kant has become one of the main slogans of romanticism. Most of all, romanticism manifested itself in Germany. Here, his prerequisites are already taking shape in Beethoven's time, when the turn from classicism to romanticism in music is taking place. Musical romanticism is characterized by a focus on the inner world of a person, on the infinity of his feelings and moods. Hence the special role of the lyrical principle, emotional immediacy, freedom of expression. Expressive means are significantly updated. The melody becomes more individualized, embossed, characteristic, internally changeable, "responsive" to the subtlest shifts of mental states; harmony and instrumentation - richer, brighter, more colorful; in contrast to the balanced and logically ordered structures of the classics, the role of comparisons, free combinations of diverse episodes is increasing. All this was fully possessed by the works of Ludwig van Beethoven, but that is why they were not recognized by all creators and connoisseurs of music. Love as one of the strongest feelings of a person, a feeling based on mystery, touching the hidden strings of the soul, was a favorite motive of romantic works. Moreover, it was often the whole meaning of the life of "romantics" from culture. At the same time, "romantic" love was rarely happy - the tragic denouement gave it a special meaning, made it possible to show a storm of feelings and experiences. It is no coincidence that the legend of Lorelei was one of the favorite subjects of German romantics. This maiden-enchantress, the river fairy, was the central character of romantic poetry. The name "Lorelei" goes back to the name of the steep cliff of Lurlei on the Rhine near Baharach. This name, literally meaning "shale rock", was later rethought twice: first as "watch cliff", and then as "rock of deceit". According to the minnesinger of the 13th century. Marnera, it was at this rock that cunning dwarfs (Luri, Lurli) guarded the treasures of the Nibelungen. Later, the legend of Lorelei acquired a new sound: "In ancient times, at dusk and in the moonlight, a girl appeared on the Lurlei rock who sang so seductively that she captivated everyone who listened to her. Many swimmers crashed on pitfalls or died in the depths, because they forgot about their boat, and the heavenly voice of the singer-sorceress carried them away from life "(Alois Schreiber. A Guide for Travelers on the Rhine. 1818). Literary life to the image of Lorelei, like the literary name itself, was given by the German romantic poet Clemens Brentano in his poetic ballad "Lorelei". Here Lorelei is not just a witch, a mermaid indifferently destroying people, but an unhappy woman burdened by her fatal magic. In the poem by G. Heine "Lorelei" (1823), the tragic seriousness of feelings is preserved, but the tragedy becomes the lot of the swimmer, not Lorelei. The heroine herself appears here as the focus of romantic "anxieties" and "sorrows", as the personification of inexorable fate, disastrous fate. Below is the translation of this poem by A. Maikov: Is it a misfortune, a prophecy ... My soul is so sad, And an old, terrible tale Follows me everywhere ... Everything seems to be a fast-wired Rhine, Fogs are flying above him, And only the rays of the sunset of the Summits the cliffs are burning. And the miraculous beauty maiden Sits there in the glow of the dawn, And she scratches her golden curls with a golden comb. And everything shines and shines, And sings a wonderful song: A mighty, passionate song Is rushing over the mirror of the waters ... Here comes the shuttle ... And suddenly, Engulfed in her song, the Swimmer forgets about the steering wheel And only looks at her ... And swift waters rush ... The swimmer will die amid the swell! Lorelei will destroy him with his wonderful song! .. "Inevitable fate" and "disastrous fate" permeate all the works of romantics - in this regard, Beethoven's music was no exception. Moreover, he knew about the simmering passions firsthand - he himself had to know violent love. Beethoven's first youthful hobby was fifteen-year-old Lorkhen von Breining. Ludwig often visited her mother's house when he was still in Bonn. Lorkhen was, in essence, a sweet child, and Ludwig admired her purity and innocence. The thought of marrying this immaculate creature seemed blasphemous to Beethoven. He secretly idolized Lorkhen, but did not dare to admit it, pretending to visit the Braining house solely because of his friendship with Stefan - Lorkhen's older brother. The girl, in turn, treated Ludwig as a friend of her brother - she was simple and direct in communication with Beethoven, and it was unlikely that the idea came to her mind of tying fate with this man. Beethoven dedicated several pieces of music to Lorchen von Breining, but when the time came for him to leave Bonn, he did not suffer from separation from her. Light sadness and pleasant bright memories remained as a memory of his first love ... A few years after his arrival in Vienna, the composer was accepted into the Brunswick family. This noble Hungarian family descended from one of the heroes of the Crusades and had the title of count, but four children - Teresa, Josephine, Charlotte and Franz - grew up freely and unattended on a huge estate in the countryside. In the spring of 1799, Mother brought Teresa and Josephine to Vienna; the eldest at the time was twenty-four years old, the youngest twenty. Beethoven began giving them lessons. For the Brunswick sisters' album he wrote variations on the theme song to the words of Goethe "You are all in your thoughts." Musical studies lasted more than a year, but no special feelings arose between the teacher and his students then, and soon Beethoven met the cousin of the Brunswick family - sixteen-year-old Juliet Guichardi, "the beautiful Guichardi", as she was immediately called in Vienna. Juliet, indeed, was unusually beautiful - with an angelic face, with huge brown eyes. Thirty-year-old Beethoven fell in love with her at once, at first sight, fell in love passionately and recklessly, fell in love with all his heart - and in another way he was not able to love. What kind of love, in which the feeling is burning brightly, then barely smoldering? What kind of love is it if it obeys the voice of reason? What kind of love is it if it is cold and measured? Ludwig thought so, he told his friends about it. Beethoven gave himself up to love all, without a trace, and - oh, happiness! - his lover seemed to reciprocate. “Now I am more often in society,” Ludwig writes to one of his friends. “This change was made in me by a sweet, charming girl who loves me and whom I love ... years, - Beethoven continues. - I avoided people, seemed like a misanthrope, whom so little resembled. Previously, I was constantly ill, but now - my bodily strength, and at the same time, spiritual strength is getting stronger for some time ... ! I do not recognize any rest but sleep. You should see me happy. Oh, how wonderful it is to live a thousandfold life! " Beethoven was preparing for the wedding; he was sure that it would certainly take place - after all, happiness was so close, so accessible. The summer of 1801, which Beethoven spent at the Brunswick estate with Juliet, was a wonderful idyll ... Everything collapsed overnight. Juliet's parents did not object to the friendship of the famous composer with their daughter, but, of course, they were not going to marry her to him, the son of the singer and the cook. For the Guichardi family, the musician was a second-class man, just an artist, service personnel - and there was no question of becoming related with him! Having received a decisive refusal for his marriage proposal, Beethoven almost went crazy. Later he confessed to his friends that more than once thoughts of suicide occurred to him ... But what about Juliet? She grieved, grieved - and calmed down. Two years later, Juliet Guichardi happily married the twenty-year-old Count Robert Gallenberg. He came from a noble family and, by the way, also studied music. To sweeten the bitter pill presented to Ludwig, Juliet wrote to him that she was going from one genius to another. Gallenberg's overtures, the music of which was almost literally borrowed from Mozart (the newspapers noted that you can always indicate where a particular measure came from), were then performed together with Beethoven's symphonies, and Juliet did not see any difference between them. At the beginning of 1802, a Beethoven sonata dedicated to Countess Guicardi was published. All Beethoven's disappointment, all the storm of passions that raged in his soul, deep thoughts and sorrowful reconciliation were embodied in this work, which received the name "Moonlight Sonata". This is one of the most lyrical and poetic musical creations of world culture. It is no coincidence that "Moonlight Sonata" has always inspired poets to create her poetic images. One of these poems belongs to Konstantin Balmont: The evening hour has gone out. And the shadow grows wider and wider. But like a fairy tale, another obscure light arose in us, It seems to me that we are with you in the starry world, That we are among the dumb planets that have died. I love you so much. But at this hour before the moon, When a wave is agitated by a presentiment, My love grows like a multi-stringed rumble, Like a multi-song deep sea. The world has moved away. Eternity breathes above us, The sea breadth lives by the influence of the Moon, I am yours, my love is bottomlessness, infinity, We are lightly separated from everything with you. And the Lithuanian poetess Mara Griezane composed a lullaby for her little daughter called "Moonlight Sonata": My big blue country is sleeping Above its snows - a blue moon ... As if someone suddenly speaks to us "Moonlight" sonata will light up the heart, - As if Beethoven in the blue of the night will become a moon's shadow Here, in front of me ... "Moonlight" sonata speaks to me. "Moonlight" sonata, blue country ... "Moonlight" sonata, blue moon. This sonata became Beethoven's farewell to Juliet Guicardi. However, a few years later, Juliet came to Beethoven's apartment with repentance, begging for forgiveness. He has not forgiven.

Terrible disease

The tragedy in love coincided for Beethoven with another, no less terrible tragedy: he began to rapidly lose his hearing. "My ears are buzzing and noisy day and night ... I drag out a miserable existence. For almost 2 years now, I have been avoiding any society, because I cannot tell people: I am deaf. If I had any other profession, it was it would still be possible, but with mine - my position is terrible. What would my enemies say about this, of whom there are many! .. In the theater, I have to sit by the orchestra itself in order to understand the artists. It is amazing that there are people who do not notice this in a conversation ... When they speak softly, I can barely hear; yes, I hear sounds, but not words; meanwhile, when they shout, it is unbearable for me .. I often cursed my existence and my creator ... I want, if only possible, I want to fight fate, but there are moments in my life when I become the most pitiful of God's creatures. I beg you not to tell anyone about my condition ... Humility ! What a sad refuge! And yet this is the only thing that remains for me! " - Beethoven wrote to his friend. Deafness became apparent. What to do? .. How to live further, and is it worth living? .. Trying to recover, Beethoven fulfills all the prescriptions of doctors, and on the advice of doctors leaves for the small resort town of Heiligenstadt on the banks of the Danube. Alas, the last hopes for the return of hearing were buried here, since the treatment recommended by the doctors did not give any results! Thoughts about death do not leave Beethoven now. In October 1802, he writes his will: "To my brothers Karl and Johann, read and fulfill after my death. O people who consider or call me hostile, stubborn, misanthrope, how unfair you are to me! You do not know the secret reason why you Since childhood, my heart and mind were inclined to a gentle feeling of kindness. I was ready even for heroic deeds. But just think: for six years I have been suffering from an incurable disease, aggravated by the treatment of ignorant doctors. I am facing a long illness (the cure of which will take years or, it must be completely impossible). From birth, being an ardent, lively temperament, inclined to social entertainment, I had to isolate early, lead a closed life. If at times I wanted to neglect all this, oh how cruelly, with what redoubled force my damaged hearing reminded me of the bitter reality! And yet I didn’t have the spirit to tell people: speak louder, shout, because I am deaf. Oh, how could I make you notice the weakness of that feeling, which I ought to have more perfect than others, a feeling which I possessed the highest degree of perfection - as only a few representatives of my profession possess and possessed. Oh, I can't do that. Forgive me, therefore, if I, in your opinion, keep away from you instead of getting closer, as I would like. My misfortune is doubly painful for me because I have to hide it. For me there is no rest in human society, no intimate conversation, no mutual outpourings. I am almost completely alone and can only appear in society when absolutely necessary. I must live as an exile. When I am in society, I am thrown into a fever with fear that my condition will be revealed. So it was in the six months that I spent in the village. My physician wisely prescribed me to protect my hearing as much as possible, although he met my natural need; But I, carried away by the desire for society, sometimes could not resist the temptation. What, however, humiliation I felt when someone, being next to me, heard a flute from a distance, but I did not hear anything, or he heard the shepherd's singing, and again I did not hear anything! .. Such cases brought me to the despair; a little more, and I would have committed suicide. Only one thing held me back - art. Ah, it seemed inconceivable to me to leave the light before I had fulfilled everything to which I felt called. And I dragged out this miserable existence, truly miserable for me, a creature so sensitive that the slightest surprise could change my mood from the best to the worst! Patience is the name of what should be my leader. I have it. I hope that my resolve to endure will last as long as the inexorable Parks wills to break the thread of my life. Perhaps I will get better, perhaps not; I am ready for anything ... I have to be a philosopher. It is not so easy, and for an artist it is even more difficult than for anyone else. O deity, you see my heart from above, you know it, you know that love for people and a striving for good lives in it. O people, if you ever read this, then remember that you were unjust to me; Let the unfortunate be comforted, seeing a fellow in misfortune, who, despite all the opposition of nature, did everything in his power to become the ranks of worthy artists and people. .. You, my brothers, Karl and Johann, immediately after my death, ask Professor Schmidt on my behalf, if he is still alive, to describe my illness; You will attach the same leaflet to the description of my illness, so that people, even after my death, would be reconciled with me as much as possible. At the same time, I declare both of you the heirs of my little fortune, if I may call it that. Share honestly, live peacefully and help each other. Everything that you did unpleasant to me, as you know, has long been forgiven you. To you, brother Karl, I am especially grateful for the affection you have shown for me lately. I wish you a better, less worried life than mine. Teach virtue in your children. Not money - only money can make a person happy. I say this from experience. She supported me in adversity. To her and to my art I owe the fact that I did not commit suicide. Goodbye, love each other ... So, let it be done. With joy I am in a hurry to meet death. If she arrives before I can develop all my artistic abilities, she will be too early; I wish, in spite of my cruel fate, that she came later. However, even then I would have been glad to her; won't she free me from endless suffering? Come when you want: I will bravely meet you. Farewell and do not forget me completely after death. I deserve this in front of you, because during my life I often thought about how to make you happy. Be happy. Ludwig van Beethoven. Heiligenstadt, October 6, 1802. "The postscript made four days later sounds even more desperate." To my brothers, Karl and Johann, read and fulfill after my death. Heiligenstadt, October 10, 1802. So, I say goodbye to you in deep sadness. Yes, the sweet hope that I brought here, the hope of recovery, at least partially, must leave me forever. As autumn leaves fall and wither, so it withered for me. Almost the same as I came here, I am leaving. Even the lofty courage that often inspired me on beautiful summer days has disappeared. Providence! Let me see a day at least once, one day of pure joy! For so long the echo of real joy has been alien to me! Oh when, oh when, deity, will I be able to feel it again in the temple of nature and people? .. Never? .. No! "Despite his terrible illness, or perhaps spurred on by it, Beethoven continues to compose music. In 1804 "Appassionata" sounded for the first time, filled with passion, suffering and struggle. Just like the Moonlight Sonata, this work of Ludwig van Beethoven inspired not only musicians, but also poets to work. As well as about the "Moonlight Sonata", many poems were written about the "Appassionata". And the gunpowder of silence is blown up. I need to understand everything myself. I don't need an explanation. Comrade lecturer, do not rush to Explain what's what. Let the stars circle at the zenith, Burning through the darkness of the night. Let the openness seized by the winds buzz in your ears, And is it very important - To know where the minor is and where the major is? A powerful explosion of chord swung And under me all the faster the Earth floats light and proudly, Rotating around its axis Comrade lecturer, for once I hear myself, I hear myself, How the rivers call back, How the echo wanders through the forests. I beg you: do not, Do not reveal the secret to me ... Beethoven ... Appassionata ... We are alone with the music. (Mikhail Plyatskovsky. Appassionata) Sounds seethe and boil, As waves they crowd, Grasp each other's hands And fall to rise. And each is strong and faithful in his combination with others; So blood gushes from the arteries In a victorious and stormy hymn. There is either an excess of joy in it Or an excess of sorrow ... Here is a riot of primitive forces, Which are primordial in us. (Justinas Martsinkevichus. Appassionata... NSep. with lit. D. Samoilova) The name Appassionata does not belong to Beethoven, it was given by the Hamburg publisher Krantz. Almost simultaneously with the creation of Appassionata, Beethoven began to develop a majestic concept of a symphony, unlike any that had existed until then. This symphony was named "Heroic"; Beethoven dedicated it to his idol, whom he worshiped then - Napoleon Bonaparte.

Last Hero

During this time, Napoleon became a cult figure for many young people in Europe. The fate of the unknown Corsican, who became a brilliant commander and First Consul of France, who achieved all this with his mind, talent, and will - worried the minds of young people. Napoleon was the personification of the romantic hero, he seemed the very great personality that the young romantics were frantically looking for. ... Napoleon was born on August 15, 1769 in the town of Ajaccio on the island of Corsica, in a poor noble family of Charles and Letizia Buonaparte (in total, the family had 5 sons and 3 daughters). Corsica was a French possession and a remote province politically and culturally. It was impossible to make a career there. Careers were made in France, and ten-year-old Napoleon was sent there to study. But, since the Buonaparte family had neither the means nor connections to hope to get a good place for him in the future in the civil service or in the privileged army units, he was assigned to an artillery school. Service in the artillery was difficult and was considered not as noble occupation for a nobleman as service in the cavalry or even in an infantry regiment - therefore, everyone was accepted into the artillery school, and education in it, unlike other military schools, was free. At the age of sixteen, Napoleon received the rank of lieutenant, and he would have had to pull the army strap for many years before he even reached the rank of captain, but four years later a revolution began in France. The old system of obtaining officer ranks, when they were either bought for money, or obtained by many years of routine service, was eliminated. The revolution needed young talented commanders, and Lieutenant Bonaparte was here at an opportune moment. Already in 1793 he became a captain of the regular artillery, and in addition, he received the rank of lieutenant colonel of volunteers (volunteers). In October of the same year, fate gave Napoleon a chance to show all his brilliant abilities: he was appointed chief of artillery in the detachment that was besieging the city of Toulon. Here the opponents of the revolution raised a mutiny, seized power, and then the British, the worst enemies of revolutionary France, were allowed into the city. If the British and the rebels had managed to accumulate forces in Toulon, they could have launched an offensive from here on the central regions of the country and on Paris. The situation was extremely dangerous for the revolutionary government, given that the Austrian army was already advancing on Paris from the east, the English fleet was blockading the French coast, and whole regions were engulfed in revolts inside the country. Napoleon was ordered to act quickly and decisively. In fact, it was he who led the French corps that approached Toulon; this was due to both the personal qualities of the young officer and the patronage of the authorities. The fact is that Napoleon was an active member of the so-called "Jacobin club". The Jacobins represented the radical wing of the revolutionary movement, their leader was Maximillian Robespierre, the de facto head of state in 1793-1794. They got their name due to the fact that they occupied the former monastery of St. Jacob in Paris under their headquarters. Napoleon often visited there, participated in the political work of the "Jacobin Club" and was on friendly terms with the brother of the all-powerful Robespierre - Augustin. However, it is unlikely that Napoleon became close to the Jacobins solely out of careerist aspirations; for people like him - talented, but not rich and ignorant - in the old days the way up was closed. Only the revolution gave them the opportunity to express themselves fully, so Napoleon was a sincere and convinced adherent of it. Personally, Maximillian Robespierre appointed Napoleon Bonaparte to command the artillery in the troops besieging the rebellious Toulon, and the young captain did not have time to arrive there, as he had already received the rank of major. It was an advance for the future, and Napoleon more than fulfilled it: he carried out a brilliant military operation, Toulon was taken in the shortest possible time, although even the bravest officers of the French army doubted that the assault on this city was at all possible. For the capture of Toulon, Major Bonaparte was immediately promoted to general - the name of this general, who was only twenty-four years old, became known throughout France. It seemed that now the road to even higher peaks, to command, perhaps, of the entire French army, was opening in front of him, but soon he almost died in a whirlwind of revolutionary events. The revolution more and more plunged into a bloody chaos of atrocities, executions, coups. In July 1794, the government of Robespierre was overthrown in Paris. He and his closest assistants were executed, many Jacobins were arrested, including Napoleon Bonaparte. Fortunately, the glory of the victor in the battle of Toulon was so great that they did not dare to subject him to severe punishment. He was released from prison after two weeks in prison. For Napoleon, however, did not come to the best of times: for a year he remained without a position, and then was appointed to a ridiculous post in the topographic committee. It is not known how long the retired general would have had to sit there, sorting out geographical maps, but another rebellion broke out in Paris, this time - a royalist one (it was raised by supporters of the restoration of the monarchy). Napoleon was immediately appointed to lead the suppression of the rebellion, and he suppressed it, brutally and quickly. For this, Bonaparte was promoted to the rank of divisional general and appointed commander of the rear. Less than a year later, he received the post of commander of the Italian army - in Italy, the French fought with the Austrians, who threatened France from here. Thus, a new star rose on the European political horizon, and a new era began in the history of the continent, which was called the "Napoleonic Wars". Contemporaries believed that Napoleon received the post of commander of the Italian army as a wedding gift. On March 9, 1796, General Bonaparte married the widow of the Count of Beauharnais, Josephine Tache de La Pagerie, the former mistress of one of the then rulers of France, P. Barras. "In historical novels about the Napoleonic era, Josephine - Napoleon's first wife - traditionally appears as a woman of a small mind, a wasteful society lady," writes Elena Grigorievna Folina, a candidate of art history. “The question arises: how could such a disorderly and frivolous person conquer this great man, in whose power“ half the world ”was found?” He continues. “However, Napoleon's numerous confessions addressed to Josephine testify to his sincere love for her. inflicted insults and forgiven numerous betrayals. "You alone are the happiness and torment of my life"; "I do not ask you for eternal love or fidelity. The day when you say: "I love you less," will be the last day of my love or the last in my life, "wrote Napoleon. Josephine's life, her path from an uneducated provincial Creole to the first woman in Europe is a lesson in women's entrepreneurship and triumph of sophisticated and She was married at the age of less than sixteen years to the Count of Beauharnais. time, without cunning, admitted that he leads the life of a free man, and reproached the young wife for unattractiveness, impoliteness and ignorance. Josephine herself later admits that he was right in assessing her appearance and development. He will climb the block, she will be released ... Josephine is 32. She looks older than her years, her skin is covered with a net of wrinkles - Creole women mature quickly and grow old very early. In the arms of two young children and - hopeless poverty. She will tell her confidante that a woman's life is ending, but it is worth trying to extend it for several years. In front of her is a noisy and cheerful Paris, the stormy nightlife of which resembles a feast during the plague. Now nothing prevents her from plunging into the whirlwind of light, looking for rich boyfriends. Very quickly, Josephine realizes that she does not have a single trump card: neither beauty, nor intelligence, nor youth. And a period of hard self-education begins in her life. Noble ladies of the salons become "teachers", and the first witnesses of success, "allies in the war against old age" are the innumerable mirrors with which she adorns her wretched dwelling. In the evenings, Josephine watches the aristocrats, and during the day she repeats their gait, the manner of speaking, the ability to coquettishly greet. In the fall of 1795, in the midst of these secret lessons, Josephine met with the future "ruler of the world." The commander-in-chief of the army, General Bonaparte, a young and still unknown to anyone yesterday, gives the order to disarm the Parisians. A boy breaks through to his audience with a request to leave the sword of his deceased father as a keepsake. The next day, the mother of the child, the widow of the commander-in-chief of the Rhine army, Countess Josephine de Beauharnais, arrives with gratitude. Bonaparte is 26 years old, in front of him is a lady who has exchanged her fourth decade. She seems to him graceful and graceful, noble and proud. How intuitively Josephine behaved! She skillfully assigned roles in the scene of gratitude: he is a patron and benefactor, she is a weak supplicant. The vanity of the future emperor is fully satisfied. Realizing that she was interested in Bonaparte, Josephine, nevertheless, is not sure that it is worth continuing the game with this "daring upstart". Bonaparte returns a courtesy call to the widow. Blindly in love, he does not notice that in the house of Beauharnais, which Josephine has on loan, he is treated from clay plates, and the leg of a dilapidated chair can break at any moment. He sees not an aging lady, but a gentle maiden with brown hair and graceful movements, a courageous woman who "pulls" two children and needs help. He makes an offer. She, undoubtedly, is pleased with the love of a savage who does not notice her shortcomings. His passion proves that she is still young and that newfound manners can be successful not only with the young Bonaparte. She "mows" about five years, having registered according to the metrics of her deceased sister, and turns out to be only two years older than the groom. They entered into a marriage alliance at a time when even close associates of Bonaparte did not foresee his dizzying career. The newlyweds in love go on military campaigns for a long time. Josephine, in the absence of her husband, prefers to continue her self-help lessons and follow instincts. Each new man seems to her an "angel", she embarks on love adventures swiftly, without looking back. Later, she admits that she did not know how to love in separation, at a distance. From all over the world, letters of Napoleon fly. Sometimes he doesn’t take off his boots for fifteen days, he sleeps three hours a day without undressing, but every day he sends news to Paris: “If you don’t love me anymore, then I have nothing to do on earth”; "If they ask me if I slept well, then before answering, I need to wait for the mail with a message that you have rested well. Diseases and madness of people frighten me only at the thought that they can be dangerous for you. Let my angel- the guardian, who patronized me in the most dangerous moments, protects you, let me be better off without his protection. " His letters breathe love. On the eve of battles, he prays in front of her portraits. She does not miss a single ball and deftly demonstrates her "skill": she gracefully talks nonsense, says compliments on time, listens attentively. And at home he "works out" the techniques of coquetry: slowed-down laziness of movements, an easy, slightly swaying gait, sliding small steps. She learns to sit on the edge of the chair and settle into it in a lump, like a bird in a nest. She does the almost impossible - changes her natural mimic habits. Suffering from her dark, decayed teeth, she invents a chest laugh with slightly stretched lips. "Not a single person saw me with an open mouth," she admitted. To distract the interlocutor's attention from the mouth, she "works out" fluttering movements with her nostrils, and lengthens her eyelids with a dark line. "I was not a beauty, and I had to play the role of a beauty, and compensate for the shortcomings with femininity," she recalled. Her gaze and voice caress, as if promising special attention, but not guaranteeing it. Nature has generously endowed her with a unique voice, the wondrous melodies of which she enchants everyone. Contemporaries said that even the servants, passing by Josephine's room, stopped to enjoy the "shimmering of the silver bell" of her speech. Thanks to Josephine, a soft manner of speaking is becoming fashionable, uttering hard sounds as if under slug. Napoleon worships everything about this woman. Despair is only caused by absent pregnancy. Napoleon dreams of an heir, she wants to give him a son. Josephine is treated on the waters. Upon arrival, she tells her friends about the methods of treatment. The most powerful regenerating agent is warm mineral baths. Doctors believe that only those baths that bring fatigue and induce sleep are effective. Rejuvenating procedures - hot camphor compresses on the face and masks from boiled potatoes. Doctors advise using klysters to always keep the intestines in a free state. And the morning at the resort begins with a glass of lemonade - that was the name of lemon juice diluted with mineral water. Since then, Josephine loved to give gilded silver lemon juicers. The first lady of the Republic never uses perfume, believing that there is nothing better than the smell of a clean body. Every morning, Josephine washes for a long time and is rubbed with creams and balms. Her cleanliness was outlandish at a time when ladies preferred to wash off dirt with lotions and perfumes. Josephine, who not without reason considered herself a mediator between the emperor and the people, patronizes fashion. Her subjects are equal to her taste. A flexible body, developed by hunting and walking, she does not hinder either a corset or a bra. In times of frivolous permissiveness, she refuses transparent garments, her dresses have only one risky open detail, "emphasizing mystery and mystery." For example, a deep neckline, exposing the top of the chest on one side, the other was chastely covered with a decorative flower, or with a closed bodice - one deep slit on the skirt. Josephine's hairstyle is imitated by all aristocrats: smooth hair, parted, enliven the curls falling on the forehead and shoulders. Josephine swiftly changed headdresses: in the form of a cylinder, a beret, a helmet. "I myself came up with a" ponytail ": a fake tail, reminiscent of a dragoon sultan, which she flirtatiously let out from under a hat-helmet." According to Josephine herself, the third passion of her life, after love and dresses, was flowers. In greenhouses and greenhouses, her gardeners discovered about two hundred new plant species. "Flowers adorn a mature woman better than any outfit," Josephine taught her daughter's thirty-year-old friends. In the mornings, the hairdresser Duplan weaved delicate small flowers into Josephine's hair, in the evenings - her favorite roses, adding pearls and diamonds to them. According to Josephine, a wife should learn to do what is pleasing to her husband. She herself often plays swooning comedies with sighs, rolling eyes and theatrical sliding to the floor - Napoleon loves her weakness and fragility. She blushes like a girl and is embarrassed, greeting the guests. After breakfast, he reads newspapers, does handicrafts, invents incredible stories and even plays music, learning a piece on the harp - "all this amuses my husband." Josephine deliberately does not hide from her husband how she looks after herself: in the morning - a bath and thorough makeup, once a week - a manicure, twice a month - a pedicure. In her performance of life, her husband was assigned the role of the main spectator, and she always showed him creams, lipsticks, balms and elixirs. She made it clear that for his sake she was trying to become a symbol of beauty, an example of a gentle woman. Josephine remained the only one for Napoleon. From the memoirs: "The emperor did not see any flaws in his wife. She did not grow old for him and did not change, and if Josephine could give his wife the heir to his fame and power, he would never be able to leave her. In his dreams, he is with her like that. and never parted. " Having made the decision to break the marriage ties with Josephine, Napoleon wrote: "I demand that she retain the title and rank of crowned empress for life, and most importantly, that she, my dearest man, never doubted my feelings for her" "... Napoleon divorced Josephine on December 16, 1809. By this time he had already proclaimed himself emperor of the French and won a number of victories in battles in the fields of Europe.As a result of the Napoleonic wars, France included the territories of Belgium, Holland, northern Germany, parts of Italy. In Italy, in the center of Europe, in Spain, kingdoms dependent on Napoleon were created, where members of his family ruled. The former revolutionary turned into a conqueror and dictator. Those who saw in Bonaparte the embodiment of the dream of a new type of state, in which they would really be embodied. the ideals of “freedom, equality, brotherhood.” The romantic veil that covered the image of Napoleon disappeared ... Napoleon's divorce from Josephine began the scrap of the end of the Corsican's dizzying career. Bonaparte's second marriage was short-lived and unhappy. In 1810, out of dynastic interests, he married Marie-Louise of Habsburg-Lorraine, Archduchess of Austria. (Austria, defeated by Napoleon, was forced to agree to this marriage). In 1811, Marie-Louise bore him a son, but the Austrian marriage of the emperor was extremely unpopular in France, and Napoleon's wife was cold to him and did not hide that she married him only under duress. In 1812, Napoleon suffered a crushing defeat in Russia, after which the French army began to retreat under the onslaught of the Russians to the West. In European countries, resistance to the French grew, and the anti-Napoleonic coalition was formed again. In the "Battle of the Nations" near Leipzig (October 16-19, 1813), the Russian, Austrian, Prussian and Swedish troops came out against Napoleon. Napoleon was defeated and after the Allies entered Paris in 1814 he abdicated the throne. He took possession of the small island of Elba in the Mediterranean. The Bourbons returned to France (the royal dynasty that ruled in France from 1596 to 1792, from 1814 to 1815, and from 1815 (after the "hundred days of Napoleon") to 1830) and emigrants seeking to return their property and privileges. This caused discontent and fear in French society and in the army. Taking advantage of this, Napoleon fled from Elba and, met with the enthusiastic shouts of the crowd, returned to Paris. The war resumed, but France was no longer able to bear its burden. "One Hundred Days" ended with the final defeat of Napoleon near the Belgian village of Waterloo (June 18, 1815). He became a prisoner of the British and was sent to the distant island of Saint Helena in the Atlantic Ocean. There Napoleon spent the last six years of his life. He died on May 5, 1821; in 1840 his body was transported to France and now rests in Les Invalides in Paris. The Heroic Symphony dedicated to Napoleon became for Ludwig van Beethoven a true take-off of the composer's creative powers. "It is some kind of miracle even among the works of Beethoven. If in his subsequent work he moved on, then he never took such a big step right away. This symphony is one of the great days of music. It opens an era." Romain Rolland wrote about her. The symphony is filled with heroics of struggle, sharp conflicts. To embody such images, Beethoven required not only new forms, but also the gigantic, unprecedented scale of each part, which amazed his contemporaries. The first open performance of the "Heroic Symphony" took place on April 7, 1805 in the house of the bankers Wirth and Fellner. According to one of the newspapers, “the audience and Herr van Beethoven, who acted as conductor, remained dissatisfied with each other that evening. on the contrary, he found the success insufficient. " Some impatient listener shouted from the gallery: "I'll give you a kreutzer to stop all this." And Beethoven, irritated by the attacks on the length of his new symphony, grimly promised: "When I write a symphony lasting an hour, the Heroic will seem short" (he fulfilled his threat 20 years later, in the Ninth Symphony). This non-recognition of the symphony, which Beethoven loved more than anyone else until the end of his life, upset the composer. But a much bigger blow for him was disappointment in the hero to whom he dedicated the work. One of Ludwig's friends recalled: “This symphony was conceived in connection with Bonaparte when he was still the First Consul. Beethoven valued him extremely highly and compared him with the greatest Roman consuls. the score was on his desk; at the top on the title page was the word "Buonaparte", and below "Ludwig van Beethoven" - and not a word more ... I was the first to bring him the news that Bonaparte had declared himself emperor. and exclaimed: "This one is also an ordinary person! Now he will trample underfoot all human rights, follow only his ambition, he will put himself above all others and become a tyrant! "Beethoven went to the table, grabbed the title page, tore it from top to bottom and threw it on the floor." But more than once in Beethoven's conversations with friends the name of Napoleon flashed. Upon learning of the brilliant victory of Napoleon at Jena, Beethoven exclaimed: "What a misfortune that I am not an expert in military affairs as much as in music! I would have smashed him!" And upon the news of Napoleon's death in exile on the island of St. Helena, Beethoven said: "17 years have passed since I wrote music suitable for this sad event ...".

Message to Eliza

From time to time, Beethoven continued to visit the house of Count Franz Brunswick, he was still friends with the Count's daughters - Theresa and Josephine. Although they were sisters, they were sharply different in character. Teresa was an extraordinary nature, with an ardent imagination and a strong will, a serious mind and a constant thirst for activity. Teresa deeply felt music: at the age of three she began to study the piano, at the age of six she already performed with the orchestra, later she was one of the best performers of Beethoven's sonatas. Josephine Brunswick had a different character - fragile and nervous. Her fate was unhappy. As a young girl, she was married against her will to Count Deim, who was almost thirty years older than her; the husband died early, leaving Josephine with four children and a frustrated condition. Only music and meetings with Beethoven comforted her. Beethoven regularly gave Josephine piano lessons. As soon as he had time to write some sonata, he hurried to Josephine to show her his new work. She was the first to whom he played excerpts from his opera "Fidelio" - it was Josephine who became the prototype of the tender and proud, loving and loyal to the duty of the main character of this opera - Leonora. Soon, Beethoven's friendship with Josephine grew into love. While working on "Fidelio" he said: "The main character is in me, in front of me, wherever I go, wherever I am. I have never been at such a peak. Everything is light, purity, clarity. So far, I have been like a child in a fairy tale picking up pebbles without seeing a magnificent flower blooming in its path. " And again he dreams of marriage. The difference in years between Beethoven and Josephine is not that big - ten years: in 1809 he was thirty-nine, she was twenty-nine. Ludwig loves Josephine's children from her first husband, and they managed to become attached to him. What other obstacles remain? Deafness? But can this really alienate a loving woman from him? Estate inequality? But Josephine's father is an admirer of Beethoven's talent and is unlikely to object to Ludwig's marriage to his daughter ... Could Beethoven have imagined that this time the main obstacle to happiness would be his beloved's sister! Teresa had a huge influence on her father, in fact, she had the last and decisive voice in all important family matters. She categorically opposed Josephine marrying Beethoven. Causes? Those that the old count and Josephine herself did not pay attention to: Beethoven is no match for the Brusvik family, moreover, he is seriously ill. The tears of her sister and the attempts of her father to change the decision of his eldest daughter did not touch Teresa. On top of that, fate seems to have intervened here: Baron Stackelberg wooed Josephine - quite a worthy party for the daughter of Count Brunswick. Beethoven was refused, and in 1810 Josephine married the Baron. This marriage did not bring her happiness, like her first marriage; worries about the economy, about money absorbed all the forces; a nervous fever undermined her health. Teresa then reproached herself for interfering with the union of Josephine and Beethoven. Twenty years after the death of the composer, she wrote: "Beethoven, who was so close in spirit to her ... Friend of Josephine's home and heart! They were born for each other and would still be alive if they were united ... How Beethoven was unhappy, despite such a spiritual endowment! And Josephine was unhappy! .. Together they would be happy, perhaps ... ". But was Teresa completely frank, even before herself, destroying the emerging union of Ludwig and Josephine? Probably not; in any case, subsequent events make one strongly doubt the reasons why she opposed this marriage. There is no reason to doubt that Teresa herself secretly loved Beethoven - in any case, having removed her rival sister, she soon achieved reciprocity from him. He avoided her and treated her with dislike, which was quite natural, but Teresa had a powerful means to arouse Beethoven's sympathy, and later love. This means was music. Teresa was one of the best performers of Beethoven's sonatas, which, of course, resonated with the composer's heart. Ludwig and Teresa spent long hours at the piano, studying Beethoven's works, and the time came when he saw a loved one in her. Forgotten her role in the breakdown of her marriage to Josephine; Teresa overshadowed her younger sister. Now that Beethoven and Teresa were playing music together, he touched her hand and looked anxiously at his partner, a beautiful, sympathetic, sweet woman. Finally, he decided on an explanation. Confused and confused in words, Ludwig said: - Teresa! Let's leave the music for now ... I wanted to tell you. There was a time when I hated you, but now ... Now you have become more than just a friend to me. You understand? Teresa, I love you! I love you endlessly ... I will never love anyone more, I know that! All my thoughts are only about you, I suffer when you are not with me ... Do you love me? Be my wife, dear, sweet, beloved Teresa! Do not deny me, because fate has treated me so mercilessly until now, I will not withstand another blow! He gazed painfully into Teresa's face, trying to read from her lips what she would answer - he heard very badly when he was worried. But she did not say anything: she simply hugged his head and pressed it to her chest. “How long have I been waiting for your explanation,” Teresa whispered, “and, lo and behold, he heard her every word! .. Many years after this explanation, Beethoven will say:“ When I think about her, my heart beats just as hard, like the day I confessed my love to her. " Teresa Brunswick was faithful to Beethoven until the end of his days - the last love, the last joy of the great sufferer. They got engaged, but their betrothal was secret: after the story with Josephine, Beethoven's marriage to Teresa would look ambiguous. Immediately after the betrothal, Teresa presented Ludwig with her portrait with the inscription: "A rare genius, a great artist, a kind person" and an allegorical drawing depicting the composer as an eagle looking at the sun. This portrait hung in the composer's office until Beethoven's death. Beethoven loved Teresa madly. When they were apart, he suffered immensely without his secret wife. Friends somehow found Beethoven crying over a portrait of Teresa; kissing him, he repeated: "You are so beautiful, so great, like the angels!" Unfortunately, they often had to part: he was forced to give concerts in different cities of Austria and Germany, in the homes of his wealthy patrons; in addition, at the insistence of the doctors, he periodically underwent treatment at health resorts, although there was little sense in this treatment. Since Teresa was not officially Beethoven's wife, she could not follow him, nor could he follow her; they were very depressed. Once, when Teresa left Vienna, and Beethoven was supposed to stay, he wrote several letters to his beloved, the drafts of which were found much later, after his death. "You are suffering, my dearest being ... You are suffering - ah, wherever I am, you are always with me, with me. And with you, I know that only with you I can live - what a life! !! So !!! I cry at the thought that you probably will not receive the first news from me before Sunday. I love you - as you love me, only much more ... ". "Still lying in bed, I was full of thoughts about you, my immortal beloved, now joyful, then again sad. I asked fate, I asked if she would hear our prayers. I can only live entirely with you, otherwise it is not for me life ... Oh my God, why do you have to part when you love each other? Meanwhile, my life in Vienna is now busy - your love has made me both the happiest and the most unfortunate of people. In my age, I need some monotony and evenness of life - can this be in our relationship? "." My angel, my everything, my "I"! Can our love stand only at the cost of sacrifices, by refusing to be full? Can't you change the position in which you are not entirely mine and I am not entirely yours? .. Oh my God! What a life this is! Without you! So close! So far away! .. Be calm - love me - today - yesterday. What longing and tears for you - you - you - my life - my everything! Goodbye! Oh, continue to love me - never judge falsely about the most faithful heart of your beloved L. Yours forever, forever mine, forever belonging to each other. "Love and sadness gave birth to a tender musical message, which was everything that Beethoven could not tell with words He wrote this piano piece very quickly. All that remained was to come up with a title, and it was possible to give it to the scribe of scores. Ludwig wrote on the first page "Message to ..." Then he stopped. Never! "A message to ... Eliza", - he finished writing and grinned. Let it be so! .. But why "Eliza" became the addressee of Beethoven's play? Since the Middle Ages, this name reminded of a sublime strong love. A famous philosopher, professor at the University of Paris Pierre Abelard lived in France. He fell in love with his young student Eloise (Eliza), and she reciprocated. However, since Abelard was ordained, according to the rules of Catholicism he could not marry Xia. This did not stop the lovers; disdaining the existing norms of morality, they secretly became husband and wife and were happy. Their secret was revealed when Eloise became pregnant. Héloise's uncle, Foubert, who raised her, was furious - he considered that Abelard had disgraced the girl. Foubert hired some villains, and they severely took revenge on Abelard: he was terribly and shamefully disfigured, after which he had no choice but to go to a monastery. Eloise also took monastic vows, becoming a nun. But their love did not fade away. They exchanged tender letters, which were published much later and became a model of high love feelings. When Abelard died, Eloise buried his ashes in the monastery, where she was abbess, and bequeathed to bury herself next to her lover. According to legend, roses grew on their graves: on the grave of Abelard - a white bush, on the grave of Eloise - pink. These bushes were so intertwined with branches that it was impossible to separate them. The love drama of Abelard and Heloise, partially described by the philosopher himself in his book "The Story of My Disasters", and reflected in the correspondence of lovers, has become one of the most popular topics in various literary works over the centuries. The main events of this drama were rethought and interpreted in their own way by famous poets and writers. In the 16th century, for example, the "first lyricist of French poetry" P. Ronsard wrote a poem about Abelard and Héloise; in the 18th century J.J. Rousseau based his novel "New Eloise" based on the "modernized" plot of this story. Note that in the 20th century, the old drama was not forgotten. Certain borrowings of its storyline can be traced in V. Nabokov's novel "Lolita" and in the fate of the main characters of Colleen McClow's novel "The Thorn Birds". Beethoven, like all educated people of the 19th century, knew well the love story of Abelard and Heloise. For him, "Eloise" is a symbol of a distant beautiful beloved, a symbol of parted loving hearts. Naturally, not wanting to show the whole world his true relationship with Teresa, Beethoven encrypted her name in a piece of music addressed to her - this is how the "Message to ... Eliza" appeared. ... Immediately after the first performances, the play "To Eliza" gained a noisy and well-deserved success. Contemporaries said that if Beethoven had written only her, then even then he would have received universal recognition. Everyone, of course, was interested in who "Eliza" was, to whom is this amazing gentle melody dedicated? Beethoven was silent, and none of his contemporaries was able to reveal his secret. A few years later, he wrote a vocal cycle based on the poet Eiteles' favorite poems. There were also such lines: I stand on a hill, dreaming, And I look at the crest of rocks, To a distant land, where I, beloved friend, met you. Endless rows, Like a stone wall, Became the mountains between us, Our happiness and longing. But even this vocal cycle did not reveal to the idle public the name of the woman who became the composer's muse. Beethoven dedicated his vocal works to Distant Beloved ...

"The expression of deepest suffering never left his face."

Meanwhile, Beethoven's life flowed more and more solitary, he was more and more removed from the world. Numerous descriptions of Beethoven's Viennese dwellings have survived. He changed them very often - over 35 years of his life in Vienna over 30 times, but they were all very modest. “A truly amazing disorder reigns in his house,” the conductor Seyfried recalled. “Books and sheet music are scattered in all corners, as are the remains of cold food, uncorked or half-drunk bottles; on the desk is a rough draft of a new quartet and here - the remains of breakfast; on the piano, on scribbled sheets, material for a magnificent symphony still dormant in its embryo and proofreading pleading for salvation ... The search for things lasted for weeks. with Cicero's eloquence to praise their neatness and love of order. " In 1816, the traveler de Burey visited Vienna. He decided to visit Beethoven and went to look for his house, confident that it would not be difficult: “I assumed that Beethoven should live in one of the princely palaces under the patronage of a philanthropist. How surprised I was when the herring seller pointed me to a neighboring house and said : "It seems that Mr. Beethoven lives nearby, I often saw him enter here ..." A pitiful house and the third floor! Stone steps lead directly into the room where Beethoven works ... Beethoven comes out to meet me ... short, dense, his hair combed back with strong graying, a reddish face, fiery eyes, small but deep-seated and full of life ... he said. He asked me to speak loudly, because now he hears especially badly again ... In general, he has long been ill and has not composed anything new ... From embarrassment he speaks very much and very loudly. Poisonous bile boils in him. everyone is not happy flax and especially curses Austria and Vienna. He speaks quickly and very animatedly. He often hits the piano with his fist ... "Circumstances are chaining me here," he said, "but everything is disgusting and filthy here. Everybody from top to bottom is scoundrels. No one can be trusted ... Music here is in complete decline. The Emperor does nothing for art, and the rest of the public is content with what is "... During the silence, his forehead wrinkled, and he looked gloomy, so that one could be afraid of him if it was not known that the soul of this artist is beautiful." Not only creativity, but also Beethoven's performance has noticeably decreased. In 1814 he performed for the last time in public as a pianist. The violinist and composer Spurs had recently listened to Beethoven at a rehearsal: “It was not a pleasure, because, firstly, the piano was very upset, which did not bother Beethoven, because he had not heard anything anyway; secondly, from his the former, such amazing virtuosity, almost nothing remained due to the deafness of the artist.In strong places the poor deaf composer struck so that the strings rang, and with a quiet sonority he played so gently that whole parts could not be heard ... Can a musician endure such a misfortune, without despair? Beethoven's constant darkening of spirit was no longer a mystery to me. " An equally woeful spectacle was presented by Beethoven at the conductor's stand. The same Spur wrote: “Beethoven learned to show the orchestra signs of expressiveness by means of all sorts of strange body movements. With soft sounds, he bent the lower, the weaker the desired audibility was. During the rehearsal, Beethoven got confused because of his deafness and ran ahead 10 - 12 bars. In the right place, as it seemed to him, he showed the forte; the orchestra, playing according to the notes, continued to play the piano. Beethoven looked back at the orchestra in fright and surprise ... and felt good only when the long-awaited sonority was finally heard by him. " And when the production of the opera Fidelio was resumed, the following tragic incident occurred, recounted by Schindler, Beethoven's secretary: “Beethoven wished to conduct the dress rehearsal ... Starting with the duet of the first act, it became clear that he did not hear anything that was happening on the stage. pace; and while the orchestra followed his baton, the singers for their part moved forward. The permanent conductor of the theater, Umlauf, offered to take a short break for rest, without explanation; and after a few words spoken to the singers, they began again. The same mess was repeated. Had to make a second pause. The impossibility of continuing under Beethoven's direction was obvious, but how to make him understand? read the expressions of individuals and understand where the obstacle came from: silence reigned everywhere. ”Suddenly he called me imperiously. When I approached him, he handed me his notebook and asked me to write with a sign. I jotted down the following words: "I beg you not to continue; I will explain the reason at home." In one jump he jumped into the ground, shouting to me: "Let's leave soon!" Without stopping, he ran to the house, entered and fell motionless on the sofa, covering his face with both hands; so he stayed until dinner. At the table it was impossible to extract even one word from him; the expression of oppression and deepest suffering never left his face. After dinner, when I wanted to leave him, he held me back, expressing a desire not to be alone. At the moment of parting, he asked me to accompany him to the doctor who was treating him, who was considered a great specialist in ear diseases ... Throughout my subsequent relationship with Beethoven, I have not found a day that could compare with this fateful November day. He was struck in the heart and until his death he lived under the impression of this terrible scene. "

"People are brothers among themselves!"

However, in spite of everything, Beethoven continues to write music. In the last decade of his life, new features have become stronger in his work. Beethoven's greatest work was the Ninth Symphony. It is unlike any of the symphonies created so far. It seemed to Beethoven that a symphony orchestra was not enough to implement his grandiose idea: he wanted to sing the brotherhood of millions, the brotherhood of all people in the world, united in a single burst of joy and freedom, and for this he introduced the chorus and soloists singing Schiller's Ode to Joy to the finale of the symphony. People are brothers among themselves! Hug, millions! Merge in the joy of one! An amazing impression remains from this symphony! “What conquest is equal to this, what battle of Bonaparte, what sun of Austerlitz achieve the glory of this superhuman effort, this victory, the most brilliant ever won by the spirit?” Says Romain Rolland. the world denies joy, creates joy itself to give it to the world! He forges it out of his misery, as he expressed it in a proud phrase that sums up his life and is the motto of every heroic soul: “Through suffering to joy.” And poets are not passed by Beethoven's brilliant Ninth Symphony. Here is what Nikolai Zabolotsky wrote: On the very day when your accords Overcame the complex world of labor, Light overpowered the light, a cloud passed through the cloud, Thunder moved to thunder, a star entered the star. In the bands of thunderstorms and the thrill of thunder, You climbed the cloudy steps And touched the music of the worlds. in the face of nature itself, thrusting his lion's face through the organ. And in the face of the world space You put such a thought into this cry, That the word with a cry burst out of the word And became music, crowning the lion's face. In the horns of the bull, the lyre sang again, The bone of the eagle became the shepherd's flute, And you understood the living beauty of the world And separated its good from evil. And through the peace of the world space The ninth wave passed to the very stars. Open, thought! Become music, word, Strike the hearts, so that the world triumphs. The first performance of the Ninth Symphony in Vienna on May 7, 1824 turned into a triumph for the composer. There was a fight at the entrance to the hall over tickets - so many people wanted to get to the concert. Beethoven, who gave the tempo at the beginning of each movement, standing at the ramp, did not hear the enthusiastic applause that the audience burst into at the end of the second movement of the symphony, demanding its repetition. Then one of the singers went up to the composer and, taking him by the hands, turned him to face the audience, so that he could see handkerchiefs, hats, and raised hands flashing in the air; many were crying. Beethoven was greeted with five ovations, while the emperor, according to etiquette, was greeted with only three applause. It took police intervention to put an end to this demonstration. However, the fees from the concert were negligible - neither the emperor with his family, nor the courtiers, having received an invitation, not only did not honor the composer with their presence, but also did not send a penny. Beethoven's income was only 420 guilders. And the repetition of the same program on Sunday 23 May did not attract the public at all - the crowns went to the bosom of nature, and the concert brought major losses.

Later confession

Only at the very end of his life did Beethoven receive genuine recognition. Edinburgh-based publisher Thomson wrote in the foreword to the first volume of Irish melodies processed by Beethoven: "Among living composers, as any open-minded musician knows, the only one who is as prominent as the late Haydn is Beethoven." The composer was assured that in England his portraits can be seen literally at every intersection. The famous manufacturer of English grand pianos Bradwood sent Beethoven the last sample of his instrument, the English manufacturer Strumpf - a luxurious edition of the complete works of Handel in 40 volumes, the London Philharmonic Society - 100 pounds sterling. Soon after Beethoven's completion of the Solemn Mass, on April 7, 1824, it was already performed in Russia, in St. Petersburg. The Royal Academy of Music in Sweden made him an honorary member, and the French king sent a gold medal with an engraved Beethoven profile. The Viennese fans of the composer's creativity presented him with a solemn address in which there were the following words: "From you alone, the nation is waiting for a new life, new laurels and a new kingdom of truth and beauty, contrary to the fashion of our days ... Give us hope that we will soon see the performance of our desires ... And may the coming spring bloom doubly for us and for the world thanks to your talent! " Many musicians dreamed of meeting Beethoven and expressing their deep respect to him. In 1823, the creator of the German romantic opera Weber visited it, and the first Austrian romantic Schubert brought him his variations with dedication. Schubert lived his whole life with Beethoven in the same city, but his shyness and admiration for the genius prevented him from getting to know Beethoven; dying, he asked to be buried next to Beethoven. Rossini, the idol of the Viennese public, who made them forget about the great Austrian classics, also sought the honor of acquaintance with Beethoven. Rossini's music was heard everywhere in Vienna. In the salons back in 1816, after the appearance of The Barber of Seville, the following opinion was established: "Mozart and Beethoven are old pedants; they liked the nonsense of the previous era; only thanks to Rossini did we learn what a melody is." Fidelio "is rubbish; it is unclear how you can give yourself the trouble to walk to be bored on it. " However, thirty-year-old Rossini, surrounded by admirers, in the rays of European glory, dreamed of meeting the gloomy, deaf, tormented by poverty and illness, fifty-two-year-old Beethoven. Rossini's admiration was expressed in characteristic statements: "Beethoven is a miracle among people", "What power, what kind of fire this man had!" What treasures his piano sonatas contain! "" I am glad that I could at least see him. "The meeting took place in 1822, when Rossini came to Vienna to stage his opera" Selmira. " They went to the house of Beethoven, and the famous Rossini patiently waited for permission on the street. Finally, Artaria appeared and said that Beethoven was ill, as a result of a cold his eyes were affected, and he did not receive anyone. Then Rossini turned to his compatriot Salieri : "He confirmed that he sometimes meets with Beethoven, but due to his gloomy and capricious nature, it will not be very easy to fulfill my request ... he went to meet me and addressed my request to the Italian poet Carpani, who was an important person under Beethoven, whose mediation promised success. Karpani, indeed, so persistently persuaded Beethoven that he agreed to accept me. ... Climbing the stairs that led to the squalid apartment where the great man lived, I could hardly overcome my excitement. When the door was opened for us, I found myself in a rather dirty little room in which a terrible disorder reigned. I especially remember the ceiling, which was apparently under the roof itself. It was all in wide cracks through which the rain had to pour in a stream. The portraits of Beethoven that we know, in general, fairly accurately convey his appearance. But no chisel can display that inexplicable sadness that permeated his facial features. At the same time, under his bushy eyebrows, as if from a cave, small but seemingly piercing eyes sparkled. His voice was soft and somewhat muffled. When we entered, at first he paid no attention to us, busy finishing the musical proofreading. Then, raising his head, he impulsively addressed me in quite understandable Italian: "Ah, Rossini! Are you the author of The Barber of Seville? I congratulate you, this is a wonderful opera buffa. I read it and enjoyed it. As long as Italian will exist." opera, it will not stop playing. Write only buffa operas, and in another genre you should not tempt fate. " I expressed to him all my admiration for his genius and gratitude for the fact that he gave me the opportunity to express all this to him ... He took a deep breath and said only: "Oh, I'm unhappy! .." a heavy feeling at the thought of the loneliness and complete deprivation of the life of this great man, that he could not hold back his tears. " Despite the resounding fame, poverty stubbornly pursued Beethoven. True, back in 1809, three of the richest nobles of Vienna - Archduke Rudolph, Count Kinsky and Prince Lobkowitz - signed a decree: to pay Beethoven a life pension of 4 thousand florins in order to "protect Ludwig van Beethoven from hardship and thus eliminate pitiful obstacles that might hinder the rise of his genius. " But the pension was paid very inaccurately: in the same year, Kinsky went to the army, creditors seized Lobkowitz's property in mid-1811, and he himself was forced to leave Vienna. The financial reform of 1811 greatly reduced the real value of money. In 1812, Kinsky fell to his death from a horse, and four years later Lobkowitz died. Essays brought little income to Beethoven. For each of the last sonatas, he received no more than 30-40 ducats, and for the three quartets ordered by the Russian prince Golitsyn - nothing: the prince forgot to pay for them. When Beethoven wanted to distribute his "Solemn Mass" by subscription and appointed 50 ducats for each copy, there were only 7 people willing to be found throughout Austria and Germany. Beethoven personally addressed letters to Goethe and Cherubini - the most revered artists by him - but neither one nor the other even answered him. And if earlier Beethoven made fun of the eternal lack of money, now it became more and more difficult for him to treat this humorously. Once Spur asked Beethoven after not seeing him for several days at the inn: “Weren't you sick? “My boot was sick, and since I have only one pair of them, I was under house arrest,” read the reply. In 1818, Beethoven wrote: "I have almost reached begging, but I must pretend that I have everything I need." Sometimes he has nothing to pay even to a copyist of notes. Sending instructions to parts of Sonata No. 29 to Rhys, he asked: “Sorry for the confusion. to work for bread. That's what I've gotten to. " The sad expression almost never left Beethoven's face. Relshtab said in 1825 that it was worth the greatest exertion of strength to refrain from tears at the sight of Beethoven's meek eyes and their grief grabbing at the soul. Braun von Braunthal met Beethoven the following year in one of the pubs: he sat in a corner and smoked a long pipe with his eyes closed, as he did more and more as death approached him. A friend spoke to him. Beethoven smiled sadly, took a notebook out of his pocket and, in a piercing voice, often seen in deaf people, asked to write what he wanted to ask him about. However, in recent years, Beethoven's life was overshadowed not only by poverty and illness, but also by painful relations with his family. He tried more than once to live with his brothers, but all these attempts ended in failure. Brother Karl, who received a musical education, for several years acted as his secretary, negotiated with publishers and even made various transcriptions of his works. At the same time, he did not at all take into account the wishes of the composer, secretly selling his manuscripts. Here is a sample of Karl's negotiations with the publishers: "At the present time we can not offer anything except a symphony and a large piano concerto; for the first 300 florins, for the second the same amount. If you wanted 3 piano sonatas, I could not give them for less than 900 florins, and then not all at once, but with an interval of 5 or 6 weeks, since my brother does not much work on such trifles and writes only oratorios, operas, etc. Then we should receive 8 copies of each thing you engraved ... We also have 2 adagios for violin and full instrumental accompaniment, which cost 135 florins, then 2 small light two-part sonatas, which are at your service for 280 florins. " The outraged publisher Zimrock sarcastically replied: "I have not yet forgotten the German language, but I do not understand what you want to say with the words" our publishers "and" we "... I was of the opinion that Ludwig van Beethoven composes his own works." Not possessing a great mind, Karl inherited from his father a violent temper and arrogance. He was very proud of his position as cashier and signed: "Karl van Beethoven, Imperial Royal Cashier." Despite the persistent persuasion of friends not to do this, Karl married Johanna Reis, whom Beethoven compared with the sinister heroine of Mozart's Magic Flute - the Queen of the Night: she was a depraved and frivolous woman. At the end of his life, Karl was sick a lot, and Beethoven, forgetting the previous strife, was very attentive to his brother, helping him with money. In 1815, Karl died of tuberculosis: "He valued his life as much as I would willingly part with mine," Beethoven wrote. In his will, the brother appointed Beethoven the guardian of his nine-year-old son, also Karl. Beethoven adored the boy and happily undertook to replace his father. Ever in need, he, however, invested in securities for little Karl and vowed not to spend a penny on himself. But this ardent affection brought only grief to Beethoven. Over the course of five years, he continuously sued for custody with the mother of little Karl, the "Queen of the Night", who did not disdain anything to bring her son against Beethoven. Finally, in 1820, the court recognized Beethoven as Charles's only guardian and removed the mother from raising her son. But the boy, intelligent and gifted with the ability to languages ​​and music, was at the same time spoiled to the marrow of his bones: lazy, deceitful, he knew how to deftly play on Beethoven's boundless love for him and did not want to learn anything. Often, having conspired with the maids, he ran away from the boarding school to his mother and refused to return. Beethoven's letters to his nephew are full of love and despair: “Do I really have to receive the lowest ingratitude as a reward? Well, if the connection between us must be broken, so be it! All impartial people who find out about this will hate you ... With your spoiledness, it would not hurt you to try to become at last simple and truthful; my heart has suffered too much from your hypocrisy with me, and it is difficult for me to forget ... God is my witness that I only dream of being far away from you, and from this a pitiful brother, and from this terrible family ... I don't want to trust you anymore ... Unfortunately, your father - or better not your father. " But then Beethoven himself asks for reconciliation: "My dear son! Not a word more - come into my arms; you will not hear a single harsh word ... I will accept you with the same love. We will talk in a friendly manner about what needs to be done. for your future. I give my word of honor, not a single reproach! They would not lead to anything. You should expect from me only the most gentle help and care. Come - come to the faithful heart of your father. " In response to all the reproaches from those around him, Karl answered boldly and coolly: "I became worse because my uncle wanted me to become better." In the summer of 1826, entangled in debt and failing in exams, he tried to commit suicide. This shocked Beethoven so much that he turned into a decrepit old man, broken, without strength, without will. He would have died if Karl had not survived ... Beethoven's relationship with his younger brother Johann, a pharmacist who got rich on speculation, was no better. He, too, sometimes dealt with Beethoven's affairs on behalf of the composer, and his impudence, trickery and greed caused universal indignation. Johann considered his brother half-mad, and his music delusional, but pretended to admire the works of Beethoven. He especially "appreciated" the opera "Fidelio" and persistently persuaded his brother to continue this experience - after all, it was thanks to the operas that Rossini made himself a fortune! Ever since Johann bought the Gneixsendorf estate, he invariably signed: "Johann van Beethoven, owner of the estate." Beethoven parodied him by signing "Ludwig van Beethoven, Master of the Mind".

"Clap, friends, the comedy is over!"

Moving to Vienna, Beethoven, until the end of his life, yearned for the wide banks of the Rhine. He loved to spend the summer in quiet villages in the vicinity of Vienna, took many hours of walks in the forests and meadows, wandered hatless from dawn to dusk, in the rain and sun, and in this communication with nature, the ideas of many works were born. "No one in the world can love the countryside as much as I do," Beethoven said. Once, on a sheet of music, he left a prose poem born of the contemplation of nature: "Almighty! In the forests I am happy, happy in the forests, where every tree says: thank you. God, what splendor! In these forests, on the hills, this is where peace is. ... "Arriving at Johann's estate, Beethoven behaved very modestly there, and when the brothers went to visit their neighbors, Ludwig was mistaken for Johann's servant, and sometimes even for a village idiot and offered him a glass of wine. The agitated gestures of Beethoven walking through the fields and his unexpected screams frightened the peasants. He was often seen stopping abruptly to sketch something in a notebook and then writing while sitting for hours on the side of a wooded hill. And Beethoven is full of new ideas, he dreamed of writing a requiem, oratorios, the Tenth Symphony. According to contemporaries, this symphony existed not only in sketches, but even in its entirety - in the head of the composer, who played it on the piano to friends. At the same time he worked on the Bach overture, assuming that it would be performed in one concert with the new symphony. Staying in the village initially had a beneficial effect on Beethoven's health and mood. However, quarrels with his brother soon began, new diseases. But Beethoven hesitated to return to Vienna - he was held back by his nephew. Karl lounged around in the village, disappeared all day, who knows where, using any pretext to escape to the nearest town, where he indulged in his favorite pastime - playing billiards. When the brothers had another quarrel over their nephew, Beethoven, in a fit of rage, vowed that he would not owe anything to Johann. He did not want to return to Vienna with his brother and his wife, and on December 1, 1826, in frosty weather, without warm clothes, he set off on a milkman's cart. I spent the night in an unheated village tavern with a leaky roof, where it blew from all the cracks. By midnight, Beethoven began to feel chills, cough, pain in his side; he was tormented by thirst, and he drank two or three liters of ice water in one gulp. At dawn, he barely got on a peasant cart and on December 2 reached Vienna barely alive. He had bilateral pneumonia, and he coughed up blood. A week later, the powerful body of the composer coped with the disease, but on the night of December 9-10, there was a sharp deterioration in health. It was suspected that the reason for this was a terrible quarrel with Karl. However, Beethoven forgave his nephew and appointed his only heir. Soon, Beethoven developed dropsy, four operations had to be done in two months. In March he was visited by an old friend Hummel, who specially came from Weimar with his student. Although Hummel had been warned of Beethoven's grave condition, he was so shocked by the composer's appearance that he burst into tears. Beethoven asked him about Goethe's health, and with childish joy showed him a recently received lithograph of the house where Haydn was born. Beethoven felt abandoned in indifferent Vienna. Schindler wrote about this: "No one here thinks about him. Truly, this complete indifference is incomprehensible. Before, at the slightest discomfort, carriages drove up to the house, but now it is complete oblivion, as if he had never lived in Vienna!" But Schindler himself, who called himself Beethoven's closest friend, was tired of caring for the dying and was counting the remaining days. On March 23, 1827, a consultation of doctors took place, after which Beethoven, in his favorite sarcastic and mocking manner, pronounced in Latin: "Clap your hands, friends, the comedy is over!" The next day, from the Mainz publishers came a golden old wine, saturated with the aroma of the native Rhine land. Beethoven looked and said: "It's a pity! .. It's too late." The agony of agony lasted for two days. Came on March 26th. The day was dark. Heavy clouds covered the sky. Snow lay in front of the house. "Around three o'clock, a young poet Anselm Hüttenbrenner, who was passing through Vienna, entered the room quietly. Between four and five o'clock, such clouds came that it became completely dark in the room. Suddenly a terrible storm broke out with a blizzard and hail. A thunderclap shook the room, illuminated with an ominous lightning in the snow. Beethoven opened his eyes, raised his right hand with a clenched fist to the sky with a threatening gesture. His expression was scary. a commander who shouts to his troops: "We will win! .. Forward!" The hand fell. His eyes closed ... He fell in battle. " This is how Romain Rolland described the death of Beethoven. The funeral took place on March 29, 1827. Many hours before the commencement of the funeral ceremony, crowds of people flooded the huge square in front of the house. The orchestra performed the funeral march from Beethoven's Twelfth Sonata. There was also a crowd in front of the cemetery gates. At the last moment, when it became known that a speech was going to be made over Beethoven's grave, the authorities categorically banned even a short eulogy. Therefore, a speech written by the famous poet Grillparzer was read in front of the gate. Forty days after his death, on May 5, a sale of Beethoven's property was arranged. All his manuscripts, books and household items were valued at 1,575 florins. Only 982 florins of 37 kreutzers were rescued for the manuscripts. Conversational notebooks and diaries went for 1 florin 20 kreutzers. Vienna wanted to honor Beethoven's memory with a big concert, the collection from which was to go towards the construction of the monument. However, at first the concert was postponed until autumn, and then they completely forgot about it. The monument was nevertheless unveiled at Beethoven's grave six months later, and then another - in Geiligenstadt, where Beethoven wrote his famous will. Ironically, Beethoven's "beautiful beloved", his secret wife Teresa Brunswick herself was seriously ill in the winter of 1826-1827. She lived on her Hungarian estate under the supervision of her family. She learned about Beethoven's death from a letter from one of her friends, and this news almost took her life. Having recovered from the terrible shock, Teresa arrived in Vienna, came to Beethoven's grave and laid a bunch of the first spring flowers that he loved so much. Teresa lived after Beethoven's death for another twenty years, but never got married, remaining faithful to the memory of her beloved. She devoted the rest of her days to charitable activities, taking care of orphans and setting up children's institutions. Thanks to Teresa, the country's first kindergarten was opened in Hungary. Occasionally she came to Vienna to visit Beethoven's grave and listen to his music at concerts. When they performed "The Message to Eliza", sweet pain pierced Teresa's heart - pain and at the same time pride: there are few women in the world who were so loved and who were told about their love in this way.

Klaus Martin Kopitz, a German musicologist specializing in the works of Ludwig van Beethoven, is confident that he was able to establish to whom the famous play "To Elise" was dedicated. Since the original score of "To Elise" was lost, there are many versions of the origin of the title of the play. For example, there is a hypothesis about the misreading of the name and allegedly in fact there was mentioned Teresa Malfatti, with whom Beethoven was in love.

According to Klaus Kopitz, the mysterious Eliza was the singer Elisabeth Reckel, who was a member of the composer's inner circle and married in 1813 to the composer Johann Nepomuk Hummel, a student of Mozart and a friend of Beethoven. This version is indirectly confirmed by the fact that friends called Elizabeth Rekel Eliza.

The history of the play

"To Elise" - the famous piano piece by Beethoven - for many years has been one of the most famous and beloved masterpieces of world music. It is included in the compulsory program of works in music schools around the world.

In 1865, the composer's biographer, musician Ludwig Zero, discovered the manuscript "To Elise" at Babette Bradl's in Munich. The manuscript consisted of a dedication album sheet and sheet music. On the album sheet, in Beethoven's hand, it was written: “To Eliza for a long memory from L. v. Beethoven, April 27 ". The year was not indicated, but the notes accompanying the dedication also contained sketches for Egmont (opus 84), which appeared in 1810, which made it possible to date the manuscript to the same year.

Versions and guesses

In 1923, Beethoven's researcher Max Unger suggested that Zero misinterpreted the composer's illegible handwriting, and "To Elise" was actually dedicated to the pianist and student of Beethoven, Teresa Malfatti von Rohrenbach zu Dezza, who performed his works masterly. This assumption was based on the fact that Beethoven courted her and even intended to marry, but was refused. In addition, she kept the manuscript for a long time. To Babette Bradl, who also owned other documents from the Beethoven archive, she could get through the composer Rudolf Schachner, a friend of the Malfatti family, who inherited all of Teresa's musical archives.

In October 2009, Beethoven's researcher, the Spanish pianist Luca Chiantore, in his talk at the University of Barcelona, ​​said that he had reason to believe that Beethoven might not have authored Toward Elise in the form of a version published by Ludwig Zero. According to his eight-year research, the theme of the work and almost all the material contained in the play undoubtedly belonged to Beethoven, which was proved by careful checking of the drafts of the manuscript BH116 stored in the Beethoven House-Museum in Bonn, but the autographed score itself, which gave the name to the work, was never existed.

"To Elise" (German: Für Elise) is the famous bagatelle piano piece by Ludwig van Beethoven.

This work has been heard in the homes of all countries of the world for many years. Its simple, soothing melody is loved by both those who take their first steps in music and professionals.

The original score of "To Eliza" has been lost, and for several generations researchers have tried to figure out who this Eliza was.

The public learned about it thanks to the composer's biographer, Mr. Nol, who discovered a manuscript on which was written: "Elise from L. Beethoven"

At first, they just thought that Mr. Zero was mistaken because of poor Beethoven handwriting and mistook a girl named Teresa for Eliza ..

But ... More recently, new information was revealed ... The musicologist Martin Kopitz, an expert on the works of L.V. Beethoven, discovered new information.

According to Kopitz, Beethoven dedicated Bagatelle to the singer Elisabeth Reckel (1793-1883). She was the sister of Joseph August Rekel, the tenor who performed the part of Florestan in the opera Fidelio in 1806 in Vienna. She subsequently married the composer and pianist Johann Nepomuk Hummel, a student of Mozart and a friend of Beethoven.

It is known that Elizabeth knew Beethoven, and in 1810, when a bagatelle dedicated to her was written, the singer and composer were friends.

The composer liked her very much and he courted her very nicely.

Shortly before Beethoven's death in 1827, Elisabeth received from him a lock of hair and a pen with which he wrote down the scores. ... I think that it was with this pen that he wrote the most tender dedication: "To Eliza" ...

Kopitz established from archival documents that Elizabeth called herself Elise. The researcher believes that this circumstance confirms the correctness of his assumption.

"Eliza was!"

"For many years I have been working on the multivolume study" Beethoven in the memoirs of contemporaries, "the musicologist says. A special significance is attached here to the memories of the numerous ladies who surrounded the composer. Again and again during these years I had to come across the name of Elisabeth Röckel. She was very close to the composer for a number of years. "

Frivolity and love

Elizabeth, who was simply called Eliza by her friends, came to Vienna as a 12-year-old girl in 1805. Already in 1806, she met Beethoven: Elise's elder brother, singer Josef Röckel, was the first performer of the Florestan part in the premiere production of Beethoven's only opera "Fidelio" and a close friend of the composer. It is possible that Elizabeth, who was also destined for a musical career, at some stage took piano lessons from Beethoven. In any case, the composer witnessed the maturation of a charming young lady, judging by the surviving portraits, and clearly did not remain indifferent to her.

“Eliza kindly left us a first-hand testimony of this,” says Klaus Kopitz. “Recalling the evening she spent with Beethoven at the famous guitarist Mauro Giuliani, she said:“ With the frivolity inherent in his Rhine nature, he ( Beethoven) spent the whole evening making fun of me and making fun of me. In the end, I did not know how to save myself from him, since he, out of pure disposition towards me, kept pinching my hands. "

Eliza - "adorable child"

By the way, Eliza was present at this evening in the company of her boyfriend, already "almost the groom" and the future spouse of the composer Johan Nepomuk Hummel (a friend, but also a rival of Beethoven). Eliza was then seventeen, Beethoven - 39 years old. Soon after the memorable evening, Elisabeth Röckel went to Bamberg, where her first opera engagement awaited her (and where, by the way, she delighted another composer and poet - Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffmann).

Thus, the date of writing Bagateli - April 27, 1810, and the occasion of the dedication to "Elise in memory" coincide. Eliza was friends with Beethoven until the end of his days, she visited the composer in his dying hours and cut a curl from his head as a keepsake.

The oversight of musicology

The fact that Elisabeth Röckel was not "recognized" as the recipient of a musical masterpiece earlier is considered by Klaus Kopitz to be an oversight of musicologists. He excludes the version with a misreading: although Beethoven really had a bad handwriting, he wrote the names of the ladies with emphasized calligraphy.

Beethoven's bad handwriting is a disaster for contemporaries and researchers

Incidentally, Ludwig Zero, who published the "album sheet" in 1865, also read a dedication to "Eliza" at first. Another thing is that he did not know which Eliza was talking about. Then the manuscript was lost, and later studies attributed a dedication to Teresa, since Batagel was found in the archives of Teresa Malfati.

But how did Teresa get the score? On this score, musicologist Klaus Kopitz has two versions. One commonplace: Teresa and Eliza knew each other well and could just exchange notes. The second version is more sophisticated:

“Suppose Teresa comes to visit Beethoven and finds on his music stand a score with a dedication to Eliza,” Klaus Kopitz fantasizes. for Eliza? You just asked for my hand? "And Beethoven gives her the score. Agree: it's embarrassing to dedicate music to Eliza if you want to marry Teresa!"

The history of the work from Wikipedia:

In 1865, the composer's biographer, musician Ludwig Zero (1831-1885), discovered the manuscript "Toward Elise" with Babette Bradl in Munich. The manuscript consisted of a dedication album sheet and sheet music. On the album sheet, in Beethoven's hand, it was written: Elise in long memory from L.V. Beethoven, April 27. The year was not indicated, but the notes accompanying the dedication also contained sketches for the Egmont (opus 84), which appeared in 1810, which made it possible to date the manuscript to 1810.

In 1923, Beethoven's researcher Max Unger suggested that Zero had misinterpreted the composer's illegible handwriting, and To Elise was in fact dedicated to Beethoven's pianist and student, Teresa Malfatti von Rohrenbach zu Dezza (1792-1851), who performed his works masterly.

Teresa Malfatti

This assumption was based on the fact that Beethoven courted her and even intended to marry, but was refused. In addition, she kept the manuscript for a long time. To Babette Bradl, who also owned other documents from the Beethoven archive, she could get through the composer Rudolf Schachner (1816-1896), a friend of the Malfatti family, who inherited all of Teresa's musical archives.

Elisabeth Röckel

According to another version put forward in 2009 by the Berlin musicologist and Beethoven researcher Martin Kopitz, the author of Beethoven through the Eyes of His Contemporaries, the play To Eliza was dedicated to the German soprano singer Elisabeth Röckel, the younger sister of the composer's friend, tenor Josef Röckel. In a friendly circle, the girl's name was Eliza, and when in 1810 she moved from Vienna to Bamberg, Beethoven gave her a parting gift. However, how the play came to Teresa Malfatti during Elizabeth Röckel's lifetime remains unclear.

Beethoven (Immortal lover)

All my life alone.

Dreams are like tears

Flowed through the music like a river

And she alone

Rose thorns

I tormented all my life with my anguish.

Loved madly, bitterly, passionately

And the world was trembling with terrible pain,

When I played like a curse

Trying to leave yesterday.

Immortal like a sinful angel

Always with you all your life and in death.

I was looking for her in the pitch darkness

And kissed someone else's lips

In a madly racing carriage ...

Oh genius, all your turmoil

They boiled in my soul, tore my body,

Then, so that only one moment

You could play as the heart sang ...

Have you heard in the world of silence

The confusion of sounds, the song of the wind.

And are full of your music

And the noise of the rain and the lapping of the waves ...

And even the blizzard warmed her.

Anna Yurievna Dementieva