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 92 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	Editions
Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat major, op. 73: Allegro Performed by Ludwig van Beethoven	—	op. 73	E-flat major	—	—	0
Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat major, op. 19: Rondo/Allegro molto Performed by Ludwig van Beethoven	—	op. 19	B-flat major	—	—	0
Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor, op. 37: Largo Performed by Ludwig van Beethoven	—	op. 37	C minor	—	—	0
Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, op. 58: Rondo/Vivace Performed by Ludwig van Beethoven	—	op. 58	G major	—	—	0
Minuet in G major, WoO10/2	—	WoO10/2	G major	—	—	0
Notturno, op. 42	—	op. 42	—	Viola	Classical	0
My Two Friends	—	—	—	violin	Classical	1
Fidelio: 'Hat man nicht auch Gold daneben' Performed by Ludwig van Beethoven	—	—	—	—	Classical	1
Symphony No. 9: 'Ode to Joy'	—	—	—	—	—	2
Little Rondo Performed by Ludwig van Beethoven	—	—	—	Horn	Classical	1
Military March	—	—	—	—	Classical	1
BEETHOVEN - Fur Elise	—	—	—	—	—	0
Brotherly Love	—	—	—	—	Classical	0
Pianco Sonata Theme Op 26	—	Op 26	—	—	Classical	0
Inno Alla Gioia	—	—	—	Piano	Classical	0
Romanza in Fa	—	—	—	Piano	Classical	0
Country Dance [Woo 14, No. 1]	—	Woo 14, No. 1	—	Piano	Classical	1
Ländler	—	—	—	Piano, Organ	Classical	0
Ländler [Woo 17, No. 6]	—	Woo 17, No. 6	—	Piano	Classical	0
Minuet [Woo 10, No. 1]	—	Woo 10, No. 1	—	—	—	1
Minuet [Woo 10, No. 2]	—	Woo 10, No. 2	—	—	—	1
Minuet [Woo 10, No. 4]	—	Woo 10, No. 4	—	—	—	1
Seven Country Dances [Woo 11]	—	Woo 11	—	Piano	Classical	1
Waltz [Anh. 14, No. 2]	—	—	—	Piano	Classical	1
Klavierstück [Woo 60]	—	Woo 60	—	Piano	Classical	0
Polonaise in C [Op. 89]	—	Op. 89	—	Piano	Classical	0
Ten Variations on a Theme of Salieri [Woo 73]	—	Woo 73	—	Piano	Classical	0
Menuetto, op. 10, No. 3, from Sonata in D Major	—	op. 10, No. 3	D major	Piano, Organ	Classical	1
Contradance in C Major	—	—	C major	Piano, Organ	Classical	1
Die Waldhörner und das Echo Additional credits Daniel Gottlob Türk	—	—	—	Piano, Organ	Classical	0
Sonatina in G Additional credits Jiri Antonin Benda, Matthew Camidge	—	—	—	Piano	Classical	0
Bagatelle in F Major [Op. 33, No. 3]	—	Op. 33, No. 3	F major	—	—	3
Bagatelle in G Major [Op. 126, No. 5]	—	Op. 126, No. 5	G major	—	—	1
German Song [Woo 1]	—	Woo 1	—	Piano	Classical	1
Piano Piece in B Minor [Woo 61]	—	Woo 61	B minor	Piano	Classical	0
Piano Piece in G Minor	—	—	G minor	Piano	Classical	0
Seven Variations on the Song God Save the King [Woo 78]	—	Woo 78	—	—	—	0
Four Rustic Dances [Woo 11, No. 1]	—	Woo 11, No. 1	—	Piano	Classical	1
Sonatina in G [Anh. 5, No. 1]	—	—	—	Piano	Classical	1
Three German Dances [Woo 42, No. 1]	—	Woo 42, No. 1	—	Piano	Classical	1
Contradance [Woo 14, No. 1]	—	Woo 14, No. 1	—	Piano, Organ	Classical	1
Six Variations on the Duet "Nel Cor Più Non Mi Sento" [Woo 70]	—	Woo 70	—	Piano	Classical	0
Turkish March from [Op. 113, No. 4]	—	Op. 113, No. 4	—	—	—	1
Bagatelle in G Major [Op. 119, No. 6]	—	Op. 119, No. 6	G major	—	—	1
Valsette [Op. 40, No. 1] Additional credits Jean Sibelius	—	Op. 40, No. 1	—	Piano	Classical	0
Moonlight Sonata Op. 27, No. 2 Performed by Ludwig van Beethoven	—	Op. 27, No. 2	—	—	—	0
Country Dance in D Major [Woo 15, No. 1]	—	Woo 15, No. 1	D major	Piano	Classical	1
Bagatelle, Op. 119, No. 8	—	Op. 119, No. 8	—	—	—	1

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.