Composer

Ludwig van Beethoven

German composer (1770-1827)

1770–1827

6,206 works in the index

Born: 1770
Died: 1827
Birthplace: Bonn
Place of death: Vienna
Citizenship / historical state: Electorate of Cologne; Austrian Empire
Period (estimated from birth year): Classical

Biography

Beethoven sits on the hinge between the Classical style he inherited and the Romantic one he made possible, and the catalogue spans both: thirty-two piano sonatas, sixteen string quartets, nine symphonies, five piano concerti and a large body of songs and chamber music.

The piano sonatas are the most-bought and the most misjudged. The famous ones — the Moonlight, the Pathétique, the Waldstein — are advanced works, and the first movement of the Moonlight being playable early does not make the rest of it so. The genuine starting points are the two sonatas of Op. 49 and the bagatelles, including the one everyone knows as Für Elise.

He revised heavily and his manuscripts are difficult, so editions disagree about specific notes and markings more than you might expect from a composer this recent. If you are working with a teacher, use theirs.

Life and musical career

Occupations: composer
Teachers: Christian Gottlob Neefe; Joseph Haydn; Antonio Salieri; Johann Baptist Schenk; Johann Georg Albrechtsberger; Gilles van der Eeden; Muzio Clementi; Andrea Luchesi
Recorded memberships: Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences
Instruments played: piano; violin
Genres: classical music; art music; opera; symphony; sonata
Movements: Classical period; Romantic music
Notable works: Für Elise; Symphony No. 9; Piano Sonata No. 14; Missa Solemnis; Piano Sonata No. 8; Symphony No. 5; Symphony No. 6; Piano Sonata No. 21; Piano Sonata No. 23; Violin Sonata No. 9; Symphony No. 3; Fidelio
Awards: Bröckemännche Award
Official website: https://beethoven.de
Native languages: German
Languages used: German
VIAF ID: 32182557
ISNI: 0000000121268987
GND ID: 118508288
Library of Congress ID: n79107741
MusicBrainz ID: 1f9df192-a621-4f54-8850-2c5373b7eac9

Recorded in Wikidata. Affiliations may refer to earlier stages of the composer's career.

In this catalogue

Common listed instruments: Piano, violin, Cello, Orchestra, Voice
Genres represented: Classical, pop, Jazz, Pop, Christmas
Works with composition dates: 358 of 6,206

These details describe the indexed sheet music, including arrangements.

Catalogue

Works page 109 of 130

Years are composition dates where known. Instruments describe editions in our catalogue and may include arrangements. A dash means the detail is not recorded.

Works and available sheet music details
Work	Year composed	Catalogue / opus	Key in title	Listed instruments	Genre
Sonata No.36 In C (Easy)	—	—	—	—	Classical
Sonata No.37 In G (Easy)	—	—	—	—	Classical
Sonata No.38 In F (Easy)	—	—	—	—	Classical
Fur Elise (Bagatelle In A Minor WoO 59) [Beethoven, Ludwig Van]	—	WoO 59	A minor	—	—
Moonlight Sonata Op.27 No.2 [Beethoven, Ludwig Van]	—	Op.27 No.2	—	—	—
Andante (Sonata Op.47 'Kreutzer') [Beethoven, Ludwig Van]	—	Op.47	—	Piano	Classical
Theme (Moonlight Sonata Op.27 No.2) [Beethoven, Ludwig Van]	—	Op.27 No.2	—	—	—
Sonata No.26 In E-flat Major Op.81a (Les Adieux),	—	Op.81a	E-flat major	—	Classical
Grand Trio In B-flat Major Op.11	—	Op.11	B-flat major	Piano, violin	Classical
Little Trio In B-flat Major (Woo39)	—	Woo39	B-flat major	Piano, violin	Classical
Trio In G Major Op.121a ,	—	Op.121a	G major	Piano, violin	Classical
Sonata In C Major Op.No.3	—	—	C major	Piano	Classical
Sonata In E Flat Op.27 No.1	—	Op.27 No.1	—	Piano	Classical
Sonata In G Major Op.31 No.1	—	Op.31 No.1	G major	Piano	Classical
Extrait De La Sonate Pathetique	—	—	—	Piano	Classical
Extrait De L'allegretto De La Sonate	—	—	—	Piano	Classical
Extrait De L'allegretto De La Sontae (Op.31 No.2)	—	Op.31 No.2	—	Piano	Classical
Extrait De L'allegretto De La Symphonie	—	—	—	Piano	Classical
Extrait De L'allegro De La Sonate (Op.2 No.1)	—	Op.2 No.1	—	Piano	Classical
Extrait Du 1er Mouvement De La Symphonie No.5	—	—	—	Piano	Classical
Extrait Du Concerto Pour Violon (Op.61 3er Mouvement)	—	Op.61	—	Piano	Classical
Extrait Du Concerto Pour Violon Op.61 1er Mouvement)	—	Op.61	—	Piano	Classical
Extrait Du Minuetto De La Sonate Op.22)	—	Op.22	—	—	—
L'hymne A La Joie De La Symphonie No.9	—	—	—	Piano	Classical
Pour Elise	—	—	—	—	—
Rondu Du Concerto	—	—	—	Piano	Classical
Sonatine En Fa	—	—	—	Piano	Classical
Trois Sonates [Diabelli, Anton]	—	—	—	Piano	Classical
Symphony No.6 In F Op.68 'Pastorale' [Beethoven, Ludwig Van]	—	Op.68	—	Orchestra	Classical
Symphony No.5 In C Minor Op.67 [Beethoven, Ludwig Van]	—	Op.67	C minor	—	Classical
Minuet In G [Beethoven, Ludwig Van]	—	—	—	—	—
Creation's Hymn	—	—	—	Tenor, Alto	Classical
Hallelujah Chorus (Messiah) [Handel, George Frideric]	—	—	—	bass, Tenor, Alto	Classical
No.6	—	—	—	Piano	Classical
Fur Elise Rom Bagatelle Op.173	—	Op.173	—	—	—
Gertrude's Dream Waltz From Twelve Minuets Op.79	—	Op.79	—	—	—
Landler From Twelve German Dances Op.140	—	Op.140	—	Viola	Classical
Ludwig's Famous Minuet From The Twelve Minuets Op.139	—	Op.139	—	—	—
Menuetto Grazioso From Three Sonatas For Piano Op.31	—	Op.31	—	Viola	Classical
Noble Theme From Violin Concerto Op.61	—	Op.61	—	Viola	Classical
Semplice From Sonatina Op.79	—	Op.79	—	Viola	Classical
String Quartet No.7 In F Major Op.59 No.1	—	Op.59 No.1	F major	String Quartet	Classical
String Quartet No.8 In E Minor Op.59 No.2	—	Op.59 No.2	E minor	String Quartet	Classical
String Quartet No.9 In C Major Op.59 No.3	—	Op.59 No.3	C major	String Quartet	Classical
Bagatelle In A Flat Op.33 No.7	—	Op.33 No.7	—	Piano	Classical
Bagatelle In C Op.119 No.8	—	Op.119 No.8	—	Piano	Classical
Contra Dance No. 3	—	—	—	Piano	Classical
Ronda A Capriccio (Opus 129)	—	Opus 129	—	Piano	Classical

Biographical record: Wikidata, matched on name and checked against dates held in the catalogue. The period label is an estimate from birth year. The biography above is our own. Authority record: VIAF 32182557. Portrait: Joseph Karl Stieler, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.