Book Review
Dec. 24th, 2011 06:13 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kenjariThe Life of Beethoven
by David Wyn Jones
This biography of Beethoven was surprisingly satisfying, despite its brevity and lack of deep analysis. Wyn Jones looked at Beethoven and his life from a different perspective than usual. He concentrated on Beethoven as a working composer and pianist in late 18th and early 19th century Vienna, rather than trying to plumb the depths of his genius and greatness (without at all denying the genius and the greatness), which I found refreshing in both the figurative and literal senses - Beethoven and his work did seem new and fresh when viewed from this perspective. Wyn Jones shows how Beethoven acquired patrons and made a living from his work, how he got his work performed and under what circumstances, and the conditions and situations that gave rise to his compositions. Wyn Jones also looks at how Beethoven acquired his status as the foremost composer of early 19th century Vienna and how that affected his life. It was interesting to get a peek behind the legend.
by David Wyn Jones
This biography of Beethoven was surprisingly satisfying, despite its brevity and lack of deep analysis. Wyn Jones looked at Beethoven and his life from a different perspective than usual. He concentrated on Beethoven as a working composer and pianist in late 18th and early 19th century Vienna, rather than trying to plumb the depths of his genius and greatness (without at all denying the genius and the greatness), which I found refreshing in both the figurative and literal senses - Beethoven and his work did seem new and fresh when viewed from this perspective. Wyn Jones shows how Beethoven acquired patrons and made a living from his work, how he got his work performed and under what circumstances, and the conditions and situations that gave rise to his compositions. Wyn Jones also looks at how Beethoven acquired his status as the foremost composer of early 19th century Vienna and how that affected his life. It was interesting to get a peek behind the legend.
