Beethoven’s Heroic Symphony
Beethoven’s Heroic Symphony explores the little-known story of Beethoven’s beloved masterwork.
As the best pianist in Vienna, Ludwig van Beethoven had everything: talent, money, fame. But he also had a terrible secret. He was slowly going deaf. Though his hearing deserted him, the maestro never lost his music. Seeking inspiration for his compositions, Beethoven hit upon Napoleon Bonaparte, then considered a liberator and a folk hero.
Soon after Beethoven completed the work, Napoleon declared himself Emperor of France; betrayed and enraged, Beethoven tore his copy of the score to pieces. But his friend Ferdinand rescued a copy, and in time, Beethoven renamed it Eroica: the Heroic Symphony, dedicated to hero in each and every one of us.
- About the author: Anna Harwell Celenza is a musicologist and the author of several books for children. She lives in Baltimore, Maryland, and is a professor of music at Georgetown University.
