Beethovan:Know him by his symphonies

Beethoven's nine great symphonies are widely played and even imitated by the many composers.

early life:

Born in Bonn in 1770, Ludwig van Beethoven began learning music at an early age. He studied with many well know

musicians including Hadyn and Salieri. Beethoven is most famous for his symphonics works.

Symphonies of Beethovan:

Beethoven remains as one of the most well known composers in the modern world. It is, no doubt, made possible by his ground breaking symphonies.

Beethoven’s compose only 9 symphonies; each one unique, each one preparing the way for the next. Beethoven’s most popular symphonies, No's. 3, 5, and 9, have graced the ears of millions of listeners.

beethovan and his symphonies

Beethoven Symphony No. 1, Op. 21, C Major

Beethoven began writing Symphony No. 1 in 1799. It premiered April 2, 1800, in Vienna. Compared to other Beethoven symphonies, this symphony sounds the tamest. However, when it premiered, imagine how the audience reacted. After all, they were used to hearing the purely classical styles of Haydn and Mozart. They must have been shocked to hear the piece begin on a dissonant chord.

Beethoven Symphony No. 2, Op. 36, D Major

Beethoven laid the ground for this symphony at least three years before its completion in 1802. This was a dramatic time for Beethoven as his hearing was quickly diminishing. Some believe the overall “sunny” nature of this symphony is Beethoven’s personal will to overcome his problem. Others believe the opposite: not every composer writes music set to their own inner-struggles; Beethoven was almost suicidal because of his hearing.

Beethoven Symphony No. 3, Op. 55, E flat Major, “Eroica”

The Eroica Symphony was first performed privately in early August, 1804. We know from discovered writings of Lobkowitz, one of Beethoven’s patrons, that the first public performance was on April 7, 1805 at the Theater-an-der-Wien in Vienna, Austria. It is clear that the performance was not as well accepted or understood as the composer would have liked. Harold Schonberg tells us that, “Musical Vienna was divided on the merits of the Eroica. Some called it Beethoven’s masterpiece. Others said that the work merely illustrated a striving for originality that did not come off.”


Beethoven Symphony No. 4, Op. 60, B flat Major

While Beethoven was composing his famous 5th Symphony, he set it aside to work on a symphonic commission he received from the Sicilian Count, Oppersdorff. Much is unknown why he set it aside; perhaps it was too heavy and dramatic for the Count's liking. As a result, Symphony No. 4, composed in 1806, became one of Beethoven’s lighter symphonies.

Beethoven Symphony No. 5, Op. 67, C Minor

Composed during 1804-08, Beethoven premiered Symphony No. 5 in Vienna’s Theater an der Wein on December 22, 1808. Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 is by far the most well known symphony in the world. Its opening four notes are far from being indistinguishable. When Symphony No. 5 premiered, Beethoven also premiered Symphony No. 6, but in the actual concert program, the numbers of the symphonies were switched.

Beethoven Symphony No. 6, Op. 68, F Major, “Pastoral”

In the concert program in which it first premiered, Beethoven labeled Symphony No. 6 with the title “Recollections of Country Life.” Although many believe this symphony to house some of Beethoven’s most beautiful writing, the audience at its first performance was not too happy with it. I would probably agree with them after having heard Symphony No. 5 before it. However, Beethoven’s “Pastoral” Symphony remains popular and is played in symphony halls throughout the world.

Beethoven Symphony No. 7, Op. 92, A Major

Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 was completed in 1812 and conducted its premier on December 8, 1813 in the University of Vienna. Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 is widely viewed as a symphony of dance, where as, Wagner described it as “the apotheosis of the dance.” Its highly enjoyable, haunting 2nd movement was often most encored.

Beethoven Symphony No. 8, Op. 93, F Major

This symphony is Beethoven’s shortest. It is often referred to as “The Little Symphony in F Major.” Its duration is roughly 26 minutes. Amongst a sea of exuberant symphonies, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 8 is often overlooked. Beethoven composed this symphony in 1812 at the age of 42. It premiered two years later on February 27, alongside Symphony No. 7.

Beethoven Symphony No. 9, Op. 125, D Minor “Choral”

Beethoven’s last symphony, Symphony No. 9 marks a triumphant and glorious end. Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 was completed in 1824 when Beethoven was completely deaf, and was premiered on Friday, May 7, 1824 in the Kärntnertortheater in Vienna. Beethoven was the first composer to include the human voice at the same level as the instruments. Its text, “An Die Freude” was written by Schiller. When the piece ended, Beethoven, being deaf, was still conducting. The soprano soloist turned him around to accept his applause.

me with my 'SHISHU SHABHA'

what is life.hmmmm easy ..as well as tough question.i am just 24 and have a bunch of memories most of which are from my childhood.i'm still not a matured guy so i have my chilhood and that's it!!!

i am a creative kind of person from the begining.this is the part of my personality.so i want to tell you a short 'KISSA' of my chilhood.

when i was in SARASWATI SHISHU MANDIR we often participated in shishu shabha.10-15 children,events like..poem,stories,some games etc with a price of tofee,biscut...and i got excited for that .i loved that SHABHA of children.

one day i striked with similer kind of idea.i was just in 4th standard so like every child i got excited about that.i planned to make my own 'SABHA' at my home.after the evening tea i went with my friends CHINTU,MONA,MYSELF,MY SISter.SAARIKA,nd 2 more ...

i planned my sabha and all my very intellgent friends shaked their MUNDIEES(heads) with the answer that..
"hey..what a brilliant idea.i got surprised and thought that why are they sooo surprised?and i got the answer....the reason was...they all are expecting me for prizes(tofee,biscuits..)"

so after the approvel we all decided the place for our 'SABHA' .I select chintu's home for that and chintu was getting so excited that he achieve some gr8 thing.they had 3-4 rooms so 1 room was easily avilable for childrens to play such a creative game.

I gave the name for the SABHA i.e. 'SAURAV SISHU SABHA'

from the very next day after the 4 o clock tea we all gathered at chintu's home and start out first day of SABHA....

firstly i(the owner) came in front of all members and gave my speech.the speech was all about rules regulation ,games but there was not a single word about prize.

all members have to perform in front of all .the games are like Question answer,SONGS,poetry,G.K.all the games and rules were made by me.after the end of all performences i always announced the name of the winner of that perticuler round and the winner of the whole day.

all my friends play that game with all of their interest but after 2 weeks they asked me about prizes and i said "there is no prize..just a winner and that is enough for us"

as they all heard this they leave my SABHA took their ball and went to ground.they all play their all time fvt games "CHUPPAM CHUPAAI,VISH AMRIT" and ...

guess....who was the frontleader of my friends.....I
coz i was also getting bored and want to play my age like games.

it was not possible for me to give prizes i.e. tofee ,biscuit...

so that was all about my 14 days SAURAV SISHU SHABHA..
but i always remember those 14 days coz i did the different things but ha ha ha there was no prizes.all my friends wait for their prizes but after 14 days they say RAAM RAAM to my SABHA...

1. Love Is The Law Of Life: All love is expansion, all selfishness is contraction. Love is therefore the only law of life. He who loves lives, he who is selfish is dying. Therefore, love for love's sake, because it is law of life, just as you breathe to live.

2. It's Your Outlook That Matters: It is our own mental attitude, which makes the world what it is for us. Our thoughts make things beautiful, our thoughts make things ugly. The whole world is in our own minds. Learn to see things in the proper light.

3. Life is Beautiful: First, believe in this world - that there is meaning behind everything. Everything in the world is good, is holy and beautiful. If you see something evil, think that you do not understand it in the right light. Throw the burden on yourselves!

4. It's The Way You Feel: Feel like Christ and you will be a Christ; feel like Buddha and you will be a Buddha. It is feeling that is the life, the strength, the vitality, without which no amount of intellectual activity can reach God.

5. Set Yourself Free: The moment I have realised God sitting in the temple of every human body, the moment I stand in reverence before every human being and see God in him - that moment I am free from bondage, everything that binds vanishes, and I am free.

6. Don't Play The Blame Game: Condemn none: if you can stretch out a helping hand, do so. If you cannot, fold your hands, bless your brothers, and let them go their own way.

7. Help Others: If money helps a man to do good to others, it is of some value; but if not, it is simply a mass of evil, and the sooner it is got rid of, the better.

8. Uphold Your Ideals: Our duty is to encourage every one in his struggle to live up to his own highest idea, and strive at the same time to make the ideal as near as possible to the Truth.

9. Listen To Your Soul: You have to grow from the inside out. None can teach you, none can make you spiritual. There is no other teacher but your own soul.

10. Be Yourself: The greatest religion is to be true to your own nature. Have faith in yourselves!

11. Nothing Is Impossible: Never think there is anything impossible for the soul. It is the greatest heresy to think so. If there is sin, this is the only sin - to say that you are weak, or others are weak.

12. You Have The Power: All the powers in the universe are already ours. It is we who have put our hands before our eyes and cry that it is dark.

13. Learn Everyday: The goal of mankind is knowledge... now this knowledge is inherent in man. No knowledge comes from outside: it is all inside. What we say a man 'knows', should, in strict psychological language, be what he 'discovers' or 'unveils'; what man 'learns' is really what he discovers by taking the cover off his own soul, which is a mine of infinite knowledge.

14. Be Truthful: Everything can be sacrificed for truth, but truth cannot be sacrificed for anything.

15. Think Different: All differences in this world are of degree, and not of kind, because oneness is the secret of everything.

SWAMI VIVEKANANDA'S inspiring personality was well known both in India and in America during the last decade of the nineteenth century and the first decade of the twentieth. The unknown monk of India suddenly leapt into fame at the Parliament of Religions held in Chicago in 1893, at which he represented Hinduism. His vast knowledge of Eastern and Western culture as well as his deep spiritual insight, fervid eloquence, brilliant conversation, broad human sympathy, colourful personality, and handsome figure made an irresistible appeal to the many types of Americans who came in contact with him. People who saw or heard Vivekananda even once still cherish his memory after a lapse of more than half a century.

The Swami's mission was both national and international. A lover of mankind, he strove to promote peace and human brotherhood on the spiritual foundation of the Vedantic Oneness of existence. A mystic of the highest order, Vivekananda had a direct and intuitive experience of Reality. He derived his ideas from that unfailing source of wisdom and often presented them in the soulstirring language of poetry.

In the course of a short life of thirty-nine years (1863-1902), of which only ten were devoted to public activities-and those, too, in the midst of acute physical suffering-he left for posterity his four classics: Jnana-Yoga, Bhakti-Yoga, Karma-Yoga, and Raja-Yoga, all of which are outstanding treatises on Hindu philosophy. In addition, he delivered innumerable lectures, wrote inspired letters in his own hand to his many friends and disciples, composed numerous poems, and acted as spiritual guide to the many seekers, who came to him for instruction. He also organized the Ramakrishna Order of monks, which is the most outstanding religious organization of modern India. It is devoted to the propagation of the Hindu spiritual culture not only in the Swami's native land, but also in America and in other parts of the world.

Swami Vivekananda once spoke of himself as a "condensed India." His life and teachings are of inestimable value to the West for an understanding of the mind of Asia. William James, the Harvard philosopher, called the Swami the "paragon of Vedantists." Max Muller and Paul Deussen, the famous Orientalists of the nineteenth century, held him in genuine respect and affection. "His words," writes Romain Rolland, "are great music, phrases in the style of Beethoven, stirring rhythms like the march of Handel choruses. I cannot touch these sayings of his, scattered as they are through the pages of books, at thirty years' distance, without receiving a thrill through my body like an electric shock. And what shocks, what transports, must have been produced when in burning words they issued from the lips of the hero!''

NIKHILANANDA
Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center
New York
January 5, 1953