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Donald Macleod follows Beethoven as he sets himself up in his new home of Vienna. The palaces that line the streets are in stark contrast to the cramped and stuffy attic room where he finds lodgings.

This week, Donald Macleod’s focus is on Beethoven’s first months and years in Vienna, following his move there from his home town of Bonn. The young composer was still in his early twenties, low on cash, and had only a handful of works to his name. He was going to have to work hard to find success in the imperial capital, where audiences had grown up on the music of Mozart and Haydn.

All through 2020, Donald Macleod takes an unprecedented deep dive into the compelling story and extraordinary music of Ludwig van Beethoven. In this uniquely ambitious series, told across 125 episodes of Composer of the Week, Donald puts us inside Beethoven’s world and explores his hopes, struggles and perseverance in all the colourful detail this amazing narrative deserves. Alongside this in-depth biography, Donald will also be meeting and talking to Beethoven enthusiasts and experts from across the world to discover how his music continues to speak to us in the 21st century. Through story and sound, the series builds into a vivid new portrait of this composer, born 250 years ago this year, who made art that changed how people saw themselves and understood the world.

La Partenza, WoO 124
Ilker Arcayürek, tenor
Simon Lepper, piano

String Quartet in A minor, Op 132 (II. Allegro ma non tanto)
Elias Quartet

Piano Concerto No 2 (III. Rondo)
Academy of St Martin in the Fields
Jan Lisiecki, piano/director

Trio in G major, Op 1 No 2
Atos Trio

Produced by Chris Taylor for ´óÏó´«Ã½ Wales