Most people know that Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827) was a German composer, a musical prodigy whose Symphony No. 5 is recognizable the world over from its opening four notes. What, perhaps, they don’t know is that he was almost completely deaf for nearly half his life; that his father would often ...

Most people know that Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827) was a German composer, a musical prodigy whose Symphony No. 5 is recognizable the world over from its opening four notes. What, perhaps, they don’t know is that he was almost completely deaf for nearly half his life; that his father would often lie about when Beethoven was born to make his talents seem even more astonishing; that he wrote a sonata to be played with building implements and called it the "Hammer-Klavier Sonata"; and that he dedicated works to Napoleon and a dead poodle. Biographic Beethoven presents an instant impression of his life, work, and legacy, with an array of irresistible facts and figures converted into infographics to reveal the composer behind the compositions.