opment of preceding methods--Beethoven being no reckless
iconoclast--in individual content they reveal a freedom of utterance
which took its rise in tendencies hitherto unknown. Beethoven's mighty
personality and far-reaching influence can not be stated in a few
formulae. An extensive library covering his life and times is
accessible to the interested layman, and a thorough appreciation of
his masterpieces is a spiritual possession which everyone must gain
individually. Since Beethoven's works compel a man to think for
himself, the constructive power of the creator must be met with an
analogous activity on the part of the receptive hearer. The
symphonies, for example, are more than cunningly contrived works of
musical art; they are human documents of undying power to quicken and
exalt the soul which will submit itself to their influence.
Beethoven's great instrumental compositions are few in number in
comparison with the voluminous and uneven output of his predecessors.
Thus from Haydn we have 125 symphonies, from Mozart about 40, from
Beethoven 9. Of Haydn's symphonies possibly a half dozen have
permanent vitality; of Mozart's four; of Beethoven's all, with the
possible exception of the experimental first. Condensation of subject
matter, conciseness of style, a ceaseless exaltation of quality above
quantity are the prominent features in Beethoven's work. All adipose
tissue is relentlessly excised, and the finished creation resembles a
human being in perfect physical condition--the outward mechanical
organism subservient to the spirit within.

Beethoven's life is of supreme interest and importance, for his music
is the direct expression of himself, of his joys and sorrows. His
ancestry raises many perplexing questions as to the influence of
heredity and the sources of genius. In the first place Beethoven was
not a pure-blooded German, but partly Flemish on his father's side.
His paternal grandfather, Ludwig van[133] Beethoven, was a man of
strong character and of a certain musical aptitude, who had migrated
from the neighborhood of Antwerp to Bonn where he served as court
musician to the Elector of Cologne. The paternal grandmother early
developed a passion for drink and ended her days confined in a
convent. The son of this couple, Johann (the father of the composer)
was a tenor singer in the court chapel at Bonn and soon became a
confirmed drunkard. He seems to be a mere intermediary between
grandfather and grandson.