Changes: Ludwig van Beethoven

Revision as of 14:27, 31 August 2006

Rowlf-beethoven — "I'm not Beethoven, dummy, I'm a *bust* of Beethoven!"

Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer who helped to bridge what would become known as the Classical and Romantic eras in music. During his lifetime, he enjoyed a certain amount of celebrity for his work. Today, he is highly regarded as one of the most gifted composers in history, and his music continues to appear in "popular" venues, thanks to its exposure in film, television and advertising. The man himself is also widely recognized as a figure of musical importance and has often been portrayed in biographical context as well as parody. His acclaim even outside scholarly circles is often attributed to the fact that he continued to compose in his later years as he slowly lost his hearing. He most famously composed the entirety of his Ninth Symphony ("Ode to Joy" -- one of the first symphonies to incorporate a chorus) while completely deaf. Sawing off the legs of his piano to bring the instrument closer to the floor allowed him to feel its vibrations, since he could not hear the notes played. He died from a long illness three years after the premiere of what would be his last completed symphony.

The Muppets are no exception to the public's recognition of his immense output of work. The Muppet Show's resident pianist, Rowlf the Dog, was a big proponent of his music, having played a number of pieces in concert -- usually to some humorous effect. Sometimes these performances were accompanied by a Bust of Beethoven which often sat upon Rowlf's baby grand piano making disparaging remarks. The character, who would on occasion state clearly that he was not Beethoven, merely a bust of the composer, also appeared in the background in a number of sketches. However, in episode 405, when Victor Borge plays Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata" and Fozzie thinks the pianist made a mistake, the bust assures him, "No, that's the way I wrote it."

On three occasions, Rowlf has also performed a song written about Beethoven, "Eight Little Notes." Its original performance on The Muppet Show has been featured in home video compilations and sparked an album recording released years later.

Works

Für Elise -- The Muppet Show episode 117
Minuet in G Major -- The Muppet Show episode 121
Moonlight Sonata -- The Muppet Show episode 217 and episode 405.
Pathétique -- The Muppet Show episode 221 and episode 313
Symphony No. 5 -- Elmo and the Orchestra; a short statement from M.A.M.M.A. in The Muppet Show episode 407; Cookie Monster hums and the underscore quotes it in a "Letter of the Day" segment for "L"
Symphony No. 9 -- Elmo and the Orchestra

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Ludwig van Beethoven

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 '''Ludwig van Beethoven''' was a German composer who helped to bridge what would become known as the Classical and Romantic eras in music. During his lifetime, he enjoyed a certain amount of celebrity for his work. Today, he is highly regarded as one of the most gifted composers in history, and his music continues to appear in "popular" venues, thanks to its exposure in film, television and advertising. The man himself is also widely recognized as a figure of musical importance and has often been portrayed in biographical context as well as parody. His acclaim even outside scholarly circles is often attributed to the fact that he continued to compose in his later years as he slowly lost his hearing. He most famously composed the entirety of his Ninth Symphony ("Ode to Joy" -- one of the first symphonies to incorporate a chorus) while completely deaf. Sawing off the legs of his piano to bring the instrument closer to the floor allowed him to feel its vibrations, since he could not hear the notes played. He died from a long illness three years after the premiere of what would be his last completed symphony.
-The Muppets are no exception to the public's recognition of his immense output of work. ''[[The Muppet Show|The Muppet Show's]]'' resident pianist, [[Rowlf the Dog]], was a big proponent of his music, having [[Rowlf at the Piano|played a number of pieces in concert]] -- usually to some humorous effect. Sometimes these performances were accompanied by a [[Bust of Beethoven]] which often sat upon Rowlf's baby grand piano making disparaging remarks. The character, who would state clearly that he was '''not''' Beethoven, merely a bust of the composer, also appeared in the background in a number of sketches.
+The Muppets are no exception to the public's recognition of his immense output of work. ''[[The Muppet Show|The Muppet Show's]]'' resident pianist, [[Rowlf the Dog]], was a big proponent of his music, having [[Rowlf at the Piano|played a number of pieces in concert]] -- usually to some humorous effect. Sometimes these performances were accompanied by a [[Bust of Beethoven]] which often sat upon Rowlf's baby grand piano making disparaging remarks. The character, who would on occasion state clearly that he was '''not''' Beethoven, merely a bust of the composer, also appeared in the background in a number of sketches. However, in [[Episode 405: Victor Borge|episode 405]], when [[Victor Borge]] plays Beethoven's "[[Moonlight Sonata]]" and [[Fozzie]] thinks the pianist made a mistake, the bust assures him, "No, that's the way I wrote it."
 On three occasions, Rowlf has also performed a song written about Beethoven, "[[Eight Little Notes]]." Its original performance on ''The Muppet Show'' has been featured in home video compilations and sparked an album recording released years later.
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 * [[Für Elise]] -- ''The Muppet Show'' [[Episode_117:_Ben_Vereen|episode 117]]
 * [[Minuet in G Major (Beethoven)|Minuet in G Major]] -- ''The Muppet Show'' [[Episode_121:_Twiggy|episode 121]]
-* [[Moonlight Sonata]] -- ''The Muppet Show'' [[Episode_217:_Julie_Andrews|episode 217]]
+* [[Moonlight Sonata]] -- ''The Muppet Show'' [[Episode_217:_Julie_Andrews|episode 217]] and [[episode 405: Victor Borge|episode 405]].
 * [[Pathétique]] -- ''The Muppet Show'' [[Episode_221:_Bob_Hope|episode 221]] and [[Episode_313:_Helen_Reddy|episode 313]]
 * Symphony No. 5 -- ''[[Elmo and the Orchestra]]''; a short statement from [[M.A.M.M.A.]] in ''The Muppet Show'' [[Episode 407: Dudley Moore|episode 407]]; [[Cookie Monster]] hums and the underscore quotes it in a "[[Letter of the Day]]" segment for "[[L]]"