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 250th Anniversary of the Birth of Ludwig van Beethoven Scott 1752 (2020) December 16 marks the birth date of Ludwig van Beethoven, one of the giants of classical music composition. Born in 1770, the stamp shown above was issued on November 10, 2020 to honor the 250th anniversary of his birth. The stamp was released as a four-stamp mini-sheet, which is shown at the bottom of this article. The stamp shows a portrait of Beethoven against a star- and moon-lit sky, the moon serving as a reference to his famed composition "Moonlight Sonata", which the musical staves in the background represent. This issue is the latest in a series of stamps honoring masters in the field of classical music. Born in Bonn, Beethoven’s musical talents were obvious at an early age. Initially trained by his father, he was later taught by composer and conductor Christian Gottlob Neefe, under whom he published his first work in 1783. At age 21, he moved to Vienna, where he studied musical composition with Joseph Haydn and gained a reputation as a virtuoso pianist. Beethoven’s career has been divided into three periods: early, middle, and late. His early period, starting with his arrival in Vienna and lasting through 1802, marks the time during which he developed his craft. The middle period, considered to date from 1802 to around 1812, has also been labeled his “heroic period”. This is when he separated his style from that of Haydn and Mozart. It is also during this time that he began to grow increasingly deaf. His late period dates from 1812 until he died in 1827. By 1814, Beethoven was almost completely deaf and gave up public appearances and performances. Despite this handicap, he continued to develop innovations in musical form and expression and created some of his most admired symphonies, pieces of chamber music, and his later piano sonatas. Time and space do not permit a full listing of Ludwig van Beethoven’s many works and accomplishments. Suffice it to say that he remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music, and to this day his works rank among the mainstays of classical music.  Mini sheet for the Beethoven issue of 2020 Scott 1752M REFERENCES: |
