第2 题：
Ludwig van Beethoven was an unhappy genius. He had deep feelings that he could
not express in words. He found the way to express these feelings in music, and this
led to a new kind of music that is expressive.
Beethoven was born in the German city of Bonn, in 1770. His father was a singer
in the Church choir, and he soon saw that Ludwig had musical ability. The father
thought that Ludwig might be another wonder-child, like Mo zart, and that he would
make the family’s name and fortune. He forced the little boy to practice long hours on
the violin.
Mozart’s father had been kind, but Beethoven’s father was impatient and often
rough with him. Also, Beethoven’s father wa s not reliable in earning a living for his
family. As young Ludwig grew up he had to take a great deal of responsibility. When
he was 15, and was working in the Church as assistance organist, Ludwig was
practically supporti ng the family.
But he had kind teachers and some good friends, and he was lucky enough to get a
position playing the viola in the opera or chestra in Bonn. Ther e he became familiar
with the operas of Mozart and other composer s, and he learned a great deal about the
instruments of the orchestra and how they play ed together. This was to be valuable to
him later in his own composing.
When he decided to go to Vienna to study, the Archbishop at Bonn paid for his
journey and other friends gave him letter s to noblemen in Vienna. Beethoven was a
very fine pianist, besides being able to play the violin and other stringed instruments.
The Viennese music-lovers quickly adopted him as a favorite concert performer. But
they criticized every new work of B eethoven’s because it was too different.
The Viennese soon realized that they ha d an extraordinary genius living among
them, and they made every effort to keep him. When Beethoven had an offer to go to
another city as an orchestra conductor, three noblemen of Vienna banded together to
pay him a regular income every year if he would stay with them. He stayed, and went
on composing his big, powerful symphonies, concertos, piano sonatas and many other
works.
But except for his music, Beethoven was not a happy man. Before he was 30, he
began to grow deaf. This was a terrible misfortune for a musician. His deafness came
slowly and he was able to continue play ing concerts until he was 44. But 10 years
later, when his great Ninth Symphony was pe rformed for the first time, he could not
hear at all. He was sitti ng on the stage at the performance, watching the conductor,
and he had his back to the a udience. One of the singers turned him around so that he
could see the audience enthusiastically applauding this tremendous symphony.
Beethoven was a lonely man. Although he had fallen in love several times, he
never married. His deafness made him still more lonely, for he would not go out in
public at all. But he rose above his loneliness and deafness through his music. Even
when he was totally deaf, he went on creati ng music that he could not hear except in
his mind, expressing all the feelings he could not express to anyone in words.
（责任编辑:秩名）
