... told him that the gifts were from the Elector. Seeing the plight of the Beethoven family, he used his influence to get Beethoven's father superannuated and half his pension paid directly to Beethoven. When the Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II died in 1790, Waldstein asked Beethoven to compose the funeral ode. The performance had to be cancelled because the musicians found some of the passages too difficult to play. Beethoven also ... added a piece in honor of Leopold II who became the new emperor. He later dedicated his Piano Sonata No. 21 ... ...

• Word Count: 3354
• Approx Pages: 13
• Grade Level: High School

... of baptismal certificates, he still believed that he was born in 1772. Like his father and his father before him, Beethoven found employment as a musician in the court of Electorate of Cologne. Ludwig van Beethoven, his grandfather, who he was named after and always had a portrait of when he moved around was a ... from his mother and grandfather. Johann was a terrible alcoholic; some nights when his father would come home after an all night drinking binge, he would wake the young boy up from a deep sleep and make him practice. He was a very strict "teacher". Christian Gottlob Neefe was B...

• Word Count: 2908
• Approx Pages: 12
• Grade Level: High School