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The exact date of Ludwig van Beethoven’s birth in not known for certain,
路德维希·范·贝多芬的确切出生日期尚不确定，
however, surviving documents indicate that his baptism occurred on December 17th, 1770 in Bonn, Germany.
然而现存的文件显示，他的洗礼发生在1770年12月17日，德国波恩。
During this time, baptism followed very shortly after birth which may put the composer’s actual day of birth on either the 16th or the 17th.
那段时间，洗礼是在出生后不久进行的，因此这位作曲家的实际出生日期可能在16日或17日。
Argued by many to be one of, if not the greatest composer who has ever lived, the affects of Beethoven’s genius can still be felt to this day.
许多人认为贝多芬是有史以来最伟大的作曲家之一，至今仍能感受到天才贝多芬留下的影响。
Like many great composers, Beethoven was born into a musical family.
像许多伟大的作曲家一样，贝多芬出生于一个音乐世家。
His father Johann van Beethoven, a singer and musician at the Electoral Court in Bonn,
他的父亲约翰·范·贝多芬是波恩选举法庭的歌手和音乐家，
was committed to having Ludwig follow in the footsteps of the young Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart as a child prodigy.
他致力于让路德维希追随年轻的沃尔夫冈·阿马迪斯·莫扎特的脚步，成为一名神童。
However, Johann’s severe alcoholism and bullying,
然而，约翰严重酗酒、恃强凌弱，
abusive personality proved him to be an unsuited and incompetent teacher for the blossoming Ludwig.
他的虐待型人格证明，对于蓬勃发展的路德维希而言，他是一个不适合和不称职的教师。
Beethoven soon went on to study with other Bonn court musicians such as composer and organist Christian Neefe.
贝多芬很快就和其他波恩宫廷音乐家一起学习，比如作曲家和管风琴家克里斯蒂安·尼夫。
In 1787, at the age of 16, Beethoven travelled to Vienna with the hopes of studying under Mozart.
1787年，16岁的贝多芬来到维也纳，希望在莫扎特的指导下学习。
Unfortunately, the trip was cut short when his mother unexpectedly died of tuberculosis leaving the young Beethoven to deal with the families finances and his father’s alcoholism.
不幸的是，他的母亲意外地死于肺结核，留下年轻的贝多芬去处理家庭财务和父亲的酗酒问题，行程因此中断。
By 1797, Beethoven found himself back in Vienna, the city where he would remain for the rest of his days.
到了1797年，贝多芬回到了维也纳，他将在那里度过余生。
It was here where Beethoven studied with the likes of Franz Joseph Haydn and Antonio Salieri.
维也纳也就是贝多芬和弗朗茨·约瑟夫·海顿以及安东尼奥·萨利里一起学习的地方。
Around the turn of the 19th century, Beethoven’s hearing started to diminish.
在19世纪之交，贝多芬的听力开始下降。
Devastated by his impending deafness, he penned the now-famous, “Heiligenstadt Testament”, named after the town in which it was written.
濒临耳聋之时，他写下了著名的《海利根施塔特遗嘱》，以创作时所在的城镇命名。
In this letter to his two younger brothers Kaspar Karl and Nikolaus, Beethoven spoke about his anguish, depression, and contemplation of suicide stating,
在这封写给两个弟弟卡斯帕·卡尔和尼古拉斯的信中，贝多芬谈到了他的痛苦、沮丧和自杀的念头，他说：
“For me, there can be no pleasure in human society, no intelligent conversation, no mutual confidences”.
“对我来说，人类社会不可能有快乐，没有智慧的对话，没有相互的信任。”。
The letter was never sent however and was not found until after his death.
然而，这封信从未寄出，直到他死后才被发现。
By the year 1820, Beethoven was completely deaf.
到1820年，贝多芬完全聋了。
Beethoven’s contribution to the progression of music history cannot be overstated.
贝多芬对音乐史发展的贡献怎么说都不为过。
His stubborn personality, tampering with conventional musical ideals, and lifelong commitment to perfection left such a mark on future composers
他倔强的个性，对传统音乐理想的篡改，以及毕生对完美的追求，给未来的作曲家留下了如此深刻的烙印，
that it even took Johannes Brahms 20 years to publish his first symphony for fear that it would never live up to Beethoven’s greatness.
以至于约翰内斯·勃拉姆斯甚至花了20年才出版了他的第一部交响曲，因为担心它永远达不到贝多芬的伟大。
Some of Beethoven’s chief major works consists of nine symphonies, including the famous 9th Symphony whose 4th movement features the choral adaptation of Schiller’s “Ode To Joy”.
贝多芬的主要作品由九个交响乐组成，包括著名的第九交响曲，其第四乐章以席勒的《欢乐颂》合唱改编而成。
Also five piano concertos, 1 opera titled “Fidelio”, 16 string quartets, 32 piano sonatas, 1 violin concerto, and his Mass in C, “Missa Solemnis”.
还有五首钢琴协奏曲，一部名为“菲德里奥”的歌剧，16首弦乐四重奏，32首钢琴奏鸣曲，1首小提琴协奏曲，以及他的C大调弥撒“庄严弥撒”。
Beethoven lived with ill health for most of his life.
贝多芬的一生大部分时间都是病痛的。
However, after the attempted suicide of his beloved nephew Karl in 1826, his health began to rapidly decline.
然而，1826年他心爱的侄子卡尔自杀未遂后，他的健康状况开始迅速下降。
After months of suffering from liver disease, Beethoven passed away on March 26th, 1827, at the age of 56.
经过数月的肝病折磨，贝多芬于1827年3月26日去世，享年56岁。
It was estimated that 10,000 people attended his funeral.
据估计有一万人参加了他的葬礼。
