User:CubeTurtle12

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) was a German music composer, mostly known for his excellent piano playing.

Beethoven was born in Bonn, Germany on December 16th. Ever since he was seven years old, he was playing piano 8 hours a day. His most famous pieces are Für Elise, Moonlight Sonata, and Ode to Joy. He has completed over 600 in his entire lifetime. He was a splendid piano player, when all the sudden at age 26-28, he began to have hearing problems. His hearing slowly deceased as he got older, and by the time he was 44-45, he was unable to hear at all.  The reason for his hearing loss is unknown to this day. He wrote his 9th Symphony (Ode to Joy) when he was completely deaf. He was able to compose music with his musical memory and physical contact with the instrument to "feel" the sound waves. He still continued to play, even though he was unable to hear. 

Fun Fact: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) actually met Beethoven in 1787 when he was 17 years old. Beethoven traveled to Vienna to go see him.

In 1827, Beethoven died from a liver disease. It could have developed from alcohol consumption or a hepatitis B infection (according to Bing).