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Ludwig van Beethoven - Quiz
Contributed by: Newell
  • 1. In which city was Ludwig van Beethoven born?
A) Berlin
B) Vienna
C) Paris
D) Bonn
  • 2. What instrument did Beethoven primarily play?
A) Piano
B) Violin
C) Flute
D) Cello
  • 3. Which symphony by Beethoven is known as the 'Eroica'?
A) Symphony No. 3
B) Symphony No. 5
C) Symphony No. 7
D) Symphony No. 9
  • 4. Which era of music did Beethoven bridge during his lifetime?
A) Baroque and Classical
B) Medieval and Renaissance
C) Romantic and Modern
D) Classical and Romantic
  • 5. Which of Beethoven's symphonies is famously known for its four-note opening motif?
A) Symphony No. 7
B) Symphony No. 5
C) Symphony No. 9
D) Symphony No. 3
  • 6. Who was Beethoven's famous letter addressed to, in which he revealed his deafness?
A) Immortal Beloved
B) Moonlight Sonata
C) Eroica Symphony
D) Für Elise
  • 7. In which year did Beethoven pass away?
A) 1799
B) 1827
C) 1750
D) 1869
  • 8. What was the title of Beethoven's only opera?
A) Fidelio
B) The Magic Flute
C) Madama Butterfly
D) Carmen
  • 9. What was Beethoven's nationality?
A) Italian
B) German
C) Austrian
D) French
  • 10. Beethoven was often associated with which musical key signature?
A) F sharp major
B) A flat minor
C) D major
D) C minor
  • 11. Which famous French general did Beethoven originally dedicate his third symphony to?
A) Maréchal Ney
B) Louis-Alexandre Berthier
C) Napoleon Bonaparte
D) Joachim Murat
  • 12. Who was Beethoven's first music teacher?
A) Joseph Haydn
B) Johann van Beethoven
C) Christian Gottlob Neefe
D) Franz Rovantini
  • 13. What was the profession of Ludwig van Beethoven's grandfather?
A) Pianist
B) Kapellmeister (music director)
C) Composer
D) Conductor
  • 14. Which city did Beethoven move to at the age of 21?
A) Munich
B) Vienna
C) Bonn
D) Berlin
  • 15. Who was one of Beethoven's patrons in Vienna?
A) Karl Alois, Prince Lichnowsky
B) Clemens August
C) Heinrich Keverich
D) Johann IX Philipp von Walderdorff
  • 16. What was Beethoven's relationship to the Archbishop-Elector of Cologne?
A) Grandson through his father, who worked at the court
B) Nephew
C) Cousin
D) Son
  • 17. Who was Beethoven's mother?
A) Nannerl Mozart
B) Maria Magdalena Keverich
C) Julie Guicciardi
D) Helene von Breuning
  • 18. What was Beethoven's birth date according to the baptism record?
A) 16 December 1770
B) 15 December 1770
C) 18 December 1770
D) 17 December 1770
  • 19. Which Beethoven sonata is dedicated to his pupil Julie Guicciardi?
A) Waldstein Sonata
B) Pathétique Sonata
C) Moonlight Sonata
D) Appassionata Sonata
  • 20. What was Beethoven's age at the time of his death?
A) 65
B) 60
C) 56
D) 50
  • 21. Which of Beethoven's works were published posthumously?
A) Fifth Symphony
B) Bagatelle "Für Elise"
C) Eroica Symphony
D) Ninth Symphony
  • 22. Which period of Beethoven's career is known for his classical style influenced by Haydn and Mozart?
A) First period (up to 1802)
B) Middle period (1802–1812)
C) Romantic period
D) Late period (1812–1827)
  • 23. Which Beethoven work is a pinnacle of the string quartet genre?
A) Große Fuge
B) Fifth Symphony
C) Eroica Symphony
D) Ninth Symphony
  • 24. Who instructed Beethoven on the violin?
A) Christian Gottlob Neefe
B) Court concertmaster Franz Anton Ries
C) Joseph Haydn
D) Johann van Beethoven
  • 25. Which Beethoven work was composed in 1798?
A) Eroica Symphony
B) Moonlight Sonata
C) Pathétique Sonata
D) First Symphony
  • 26. Who was Beethoven's most important teacher in Bonn?
A) Maximilian Franz
B) Count Ferdinand von Waldstein
C) Franz Wegeler
D) Christian Gottlob Neefe
  • 27. What was Beethoven's first published work?
A) Three piano sonatas (WoO 47)
B) Ballet Musik zu einem Ritterballett (WoO 1)
C) A set of keyboard variations (WoO 63)
D) Cantata for the death of Joseph II (WoO 87)
  • 28. What nickname were Beethoven's first three piano sonatas sometimes known by?
A) Kurfürst
B) Waldstein
C) Haydn
D) Breuning
  • 29. Who became a 'second mother' to Beethoven and taught him refined manners?
A) Anna von Schaden
B) Maximilian Franz's wife
C) Johann van Beethoven
D) Helene von Breuning
  • 30. Who commissioned Beethoven's first work for the stage?
A) Maximilian Franz
B) Christian Gottlob Neefe
C) Count Ferdinand von Waldstein
D) Franz Wegeler
  • 31. What ballet did Beethoven compose in 1791?
A) Fidelio
B) Die Geschöpfe des Prometheus
C) Musik zu einem Ritterballett (WoO 1)
D) Leonore
  • 32. When did Beethoven's mother die?
A) 1785
B) 1789
C) July 1787
D) 1792
  • 33. Which composer's spirit did Waldstein hope Beethoven would receive from Haydn?
A) Beethoven
B) Mozart
C) Gluck
D) Paisiello
  • 34. When was Beethoven first introduced to Joseph Haydn?
A) 1792
B) 1789
C) 1785
D) Late 1790
  • 35. In which year did Beethoven leave Bonn for Vienna?
A) 1792
B) 1789
C) 1801
D) 1794
  • 36. Who was the composer that Beethoven studied under to master counterpoint?
A) Salieri
B) Mozart
C) Albrechtsberger
D) Haydn
  • 37. Which instrument did Ignaz Schuppanzigh teach Beethoven?
A) Piano
B) Flute
C) Violin
D) Cello
  • 38. Who was Beethoven's brother that helped him with business dealings?
A) Carl
B) Kaspar
C) Ferdinand
D) Joseph
  • 39. Who did Beethoven have a piano 'duel' with in 1799?
A) Joseph Wölfl
B) Ignaz Moscheles
C) Ferdinand Ries
D) Daniel Steibelt
  • 40. What was the reaction to Beethoven's concert at Burgtheater on April 2, 1800?
A) The players ignored the soloist entirely
B) It was universally praised without criticism
C) Beethoven's works were not well received
D) It was called 'the most interesting concert in a long time' by the Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung
  • 41. Which company's proprietor presented Beethoven with a piano as a testimonial of esteem in England?
A) Steinway & Sons
B) Yamaha
C) Broadwood
D) Bechstein
  • 42. Who did Beethoven propose to in 1810?
A) Josephine Brunsvik
B) Antonie Brentano
C) Therese Malfatti
D) Julie Guicciardi
  • 43. Which building was Beethoven's most enduring residence in Vienna?
A) Beethovenhalle
B) Beethoven House, Bonn
C) Beethoven Museum in Probusgasse
D) Pasqualatihaus (Mölker Bastei 8)
  • 44. Who was the conductor during the first performance of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony?
A) Ludwig van Beethoven
B) Johann Nepomuk Hummel
C) Anton Schindler
D) Michael Umlauf
  • 45. For which play did Beethoven write incidental music commissioned by Goethe in 1810?
A) Meeresstille und glückliche Fahrt
B) Egmont
C) King Stephen
D) The Ruins of Athens
  • 46. Who did Charles Rosen suggest Beethoven's early style was closer to?
A) Haydn and Mozart
B) Hummel or Muzio Clementi
C) Bach and Handel
D) Schubert and Liszt
  • 47. Who did Beethoven have a legal dispute with over custody of his nephew Karl?
A) Kaspar's widow Johanna
B) A local magistrate
C) Therese Obermayer
D) His brother Johann
  • 48. What did a review in Johann Nikolaus Forkel's Musikalischer Almanack compare Beethoven's early efforts to?
A) Rank beginners
B) Contemporary virtuosos
C) Mature composers
D) Classical masters
  • 49. In which year were Beethoven's remains moved to Vienna's Zentralfriedhof?
A) 1827
B) 1863
C) 1900
D) 1888
  • 50. Since what year has the Beethovenfest in Bonn been organized annually?
A) 1880
B) 2007
C) 1845
D) 2001
  • 51. Where did Beethoven move in 1802 to cope with his hearing loss?
A) Heiligenstadt
B) Leipzig
C) Vienna
D) Cassel
  • 52. Whose endorsement did Maelzel seek and obtain for his newly developed metronome in 1817?
A) Beethoven's
B) Schubert's
C) Mozart's
D) Haydn's
  • 53. Which musical period's devices did Beethoven incorporate in his late works?
A) Romantic era
B) Classical era
C) Renaissance era
D) Baroque-era
  • 54. What was particularly popular from the concert on 8 December 1813?
A) Seventh Symphony, Op. 92
B) Battle Symphony
C) Wellington's Victory (Op. 91)
D) The Allegretto movement
  • 55. What did Beethoven write under the introductory slow chords in the last movement of Op. 135?
A) "Muss es sein?"
B) "Von Herzen—Möge es wieder—Zu Herzen gehn!"
C) "Es muss sein!"
D) "Der schwer gefasste Entschluss"
  • 56. What did the Philharmonic Society in London send to Beethoven?
A) A grand piano
B) A portrait of him
C) A lifetime membership
D) £100
  • 57. Who originally suggested the idea of a symphony based on Napoleon?
A) E. T. A. Hoffmann
B) Archduke Rudolf
C) General Bernadotte
D) Czerny
  • 58. Who was the composer that Beethoven studied under for Italian vocal composition style?
A) Antonio Salieri
B) Johann Albrechtsberger
C) Ignaz Schuppanzigh
D) Joseph Haydn
  • 59. What illness did Beethoven attribute part of his reduced output between 1815 and 1819 to?
A) Inflammatory fever
B) Tuberculosis
C) Migraine
D) Rheumatism
  • 60. How much money did Beethoven lend to his brother Kaspar in 1813?
A) 1000 florins
B) 2000 florins
C) 500 florins
D) 1500 florins
  • 61. What did Beethoven call the F minor String Quartet, Op. 95?
A) Heroic Quartet
B) Tragic Quartet
C) Dramatic Quartet
D) Quartetto serioso
  • 62. Which city did Antonie Brentano move to with her husband?
A) Munich
B) Budapest
C) Vienna
D) Berlin
  • 63. What illness did Beethoven suffer from while writing the String Quartet No. 15?
A) Tuberculosis
B) Rheumatism
C) A sudden illness
D) Migraine
  • 64. What was the relationship between Beethoven and Josephine Brunsvik?
A) She rejected his proposal.
B) He had a passionate correspondence with her.
C) They were married.
D) He never wrote to her.
  • 65. What condition is believed to have caused Beethoven's hearing loss?
A) Neural degeneration
B) Auricular infection
C) Tinnitus
D) Otosclerosis
  • 66. In which year did Beethoven begin experiencing hearing loss?
A) 1802
B) 1815
C) 1824
D) 1798
  • 67. In which city is the Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies located?
A) St. Louis
B) San Jose, California
C) Bonn
D) Vienna
  • 68. When did Beethoven's brother Kaspar die?
A) On 15 November 1815
B) In late 1820
C) On 8 November 1812
D) In early 1813
  • 69. How much did Beethoven set the price for each of the three string quartets commissioned by Prince Nikolai Galitzin?
A) 30 ducats per sonata.
B) 75 ducats per quartet.
C) 50 ducats per quartet.
D) 100 ducats per quartet.
  • 70. To whom did Beethoven write that he cherished admiration, love, and esteem since his youth?
A) Rudolph
B) Antonie Brentano
C) Bettina Brentano
D) Goethe
  • 71. In which year did Beethoven regain custody of his nephew Karl?
A) 1818
B) 1816
C) 1822
D) 1820
  • 72. Who read the funeral oration at Beethoven's requiem mass?
A) Joseph Mayseder
B) Franz Schubert
C) Anselm Hüttenbrenner
D) Heinrich Anschütz
  • 73. What do later writers seek to identify within Beethoven's generally accepted structure?
A) Sub-periods
B) A fourth period
C) New compositions
D) The influence of other composers
  • 74. When was the Beethoven Monument in Bonn unveiled?
A) 2001
B) 2007
C) August 1845
D) 1880
  • 75. What illness did Beethoven's brother Kaspar suffer from?
A) Pneumonia
B) Cholera
C) Malaria
D) Tuberculosis
  • 76. Who attended Beethoven until his death in December 1826?
A) Dr. Malfatti
B) Andreas Ignaz Wawruch
C) Karl
D) Schindler
  • 77. Who did Beethoven accuse of cheating or mismanaging ticket receipts?
A) Schindler
B) Karl Holz
C) Michael Umlauf
D) Rudolph
  • 78. To whom did Beethoven present the manuscript of the completed Missa solemnis on 19 March?
A) Louis XVIII
B) Rudolph
C) Michael Umlauf
D) Johann Friedrich Rochlitz
  • 79. Which works are considered Beethoven's 'late' quartets?
A) Composed between 1806–1814
B) Op. 18 quartets
C) Opp. 59, 74 and 95
D) Composed from 1824 onwards
  • 80. What was the name of the cantata Beethoven composed for the Congress of Vienna?
A) Wellington's Victory
B) Der glorreiche Augenblick (The Glorious Moment)
C) Fidelio
D) An die Hoffnung
  • 81. What was the financial outcome of Beethoven's subscription concert in April 1803?
A) It was a financial success
B) The concert was cancelled due to poor ticket sales
C) Beethoven had to refund all the tickets
D) It resulted in significant losses for Beethoven
  • 82. Which work was inscribed to Beethoven's foremost patron, pupil, and friend?
A) Missa solemnis
B) Diabelli Variations
C) Ninth Symphony
D) String Quartet No. 14
  • 83. How did Beethoven's nephew Karl perceive his uncle's involvement in his life?
A) As minimal and uninvolved.
B) As supportive and caring.
C) As indifferent and distant.
D) As an overbearing manner.
  • 84. Who prepared a piano score of Fidelio commissioned by Beethoven's publisher, Artaria?
A) Johann Nepomuk Maelzel
B) Ludwig Spohr
C) Duke of Wellington
D) Moscheles
  • 85. Which of Beethoven's works was dedicated in 1822?
A) Egmont Overture
B) Archduke Trio
C) F minor String Quartet
D) Meeresstille und glückliche Fahrt
  • 86. What did Beethoven add to Moscheles' inscription on the piano score of Fidelio?
A) "To success!"
B) "For art and glory."
C) "O Man, help thyself."
D) "With God's guidance."
  • 87. What device did Beethoven use to communicate due to his deteriorating hearing?
A) Sign language
B) Conversation books
C) Braille
D) Telegraph
  • 88. In which city did Beethoven meet Goethe in 1812?
A) Berlin
B) Teplitz (now Teplice)
C) Vienna
D) Munich
  • 89. Which institution arose largely as a vehicle for performing Beethoven’s symphonies?
A) The art of conducting
B) The modern piano
C) The professional orchestra
D) Recording technology
  • 90. Which composer did Beethoven consider 'the greatest who ever lived'?
A) Johann Sebastian Bach
B) Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
C) Claudio Monteverdi
D) George Frideric Handel
  • 91. Which category of Beethoven's compositions fits the three-period categorization most neatly?
A) Concertos
B) The quartets
C) Piano sonatas
D) Symphonies
  • 92. How many people are estimated to have attended Beethoven's funeral procession?
A) 10,000
B) 50,000
C) 20,000
D) 5,000
  • 93. Which publisher did Beethoven persuade to write a new finale for String Quartet No. 13?
A) Schlesinger
B) Cramer
C) Haslinger
D) Artaria
  • 94. In which year did Ludwig van Beethoven complete the Missa solemnis?
A) 1823
B) 1826
C) 1825
D) 1824
  • 95. Where did Beethoven recuperate after his illness in April 1825?
A) Baden
B) Vienna
C) Berlin
D) Munich
  • 96. Which phrase did Beethoven utter on 24 March 1827, indicating the end of his life?
A) "Carpe diem"
B) "Veni, vidi, vici"
C) "Plaudite, amici, comoedia finita est"
D) "To be or not to be"
  • 97. Which work did Beethoven dedicate to Archduke Rudolf?
A) Mass in C, Op. 86
B) Fidelio
C) Violin Concerto
D) Archduke Trio Op. 97
  • 98. Which French monarch sent Beethoven a heavy gold medallion?
A) François I
B) Louis XVIII
C) Charles X
D) Napoleon Bonaparte
  • 99. Who was the proprietor of the Stein piano workshop that assisted Beethoven during his illness?
A) Maelzel
B) Nannette Streicher
C) Thomas Broadwood
D) Alois Jeitteles
  • 100. When did Beethoven's late period begin?
A) The decade 1790–1800
B) The decade 1810–1819
C) The decade 1820–1830
D) The decade 1780–1790
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