Ludwig van Beethoven
The German composer who bridged Classical and Romantic music, went deaf, and kept composing โ the tortured-genius archetype.
Origin
Beethoven (1770โ1827) was born in Bonn, moved to Vienna in his early twenties, and quickly became the city's most sought-after composer-pianist. His hearing began to fail in his late twenties and he was almost completely deaf by his forties โ most of the late string quartets, the Missa Solemnis, and the Ninth Symphony (with its 'Ode to Joy' choral finale, now the EU anthem) were composed without him ever hearing them. The Heiligenstadt Testament of 1802, a letter to his brothers in which he describes contemplating suicide before deciding to live for his art, is the founding document of the suffering-artist archetype.
Modern usage
The opening four notes of the Fifth Symphony ('da-da-da-DUM') are the most recognized musical phrase on Earth. 'Ode to Joy' is the closest thing to a global secular anthem. 'A Beethoven figure' is the canonical reference for any artist who keeps working through devastating loss. The scowling-portrait-with-wild-hair image is universally readable.
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