If there was a great, great, great, great granddaddy of rock’n roll it would have to be Ludwig Van Beethoven, a man who was musical prodigy by the age of six and the owner of hair that Sid Vicious would have killed for. He was the original bad ass of music. Composing powerful and moving symphonies and operas that give the listener a feeling that they could triumph over anything or that other people have had their dark days as well.

Beethoven was born in 1770 and at an early age started, with the support of his family, by playing as a court musician for the upper class. In his twenties however Beethoven started to lose his hearing.  Historians are not sure as to why; some say it was lead poisoning.  In any case, by 1818 Beethoven had become completely deaf, and started to withdraw from his social life but not from his music.

Beethoven was one of the first composers to become a freelance composer, breaking away from producing solely for royalty, aristocrats or the church. With this he had more creative freedom to make the kind of music that he wanted to put out in the world as well as define how much money he could get for each piece.

Like many musicians Beethoven’s works can have an effect on ones mood, but unlike others this effect is amplified by the lack of lyrics in much of his work. His music can bring to mind images of a beautiful spring day, or images of violent volcanic eruptions.  Whatever you are feeling Beethoven’s music can either sooth it or amplify it. It can make you feel the need to run through a field spinning around looking for shapes in the clouds, or mellow you out to the point where you feel like you are floating away on a chain of stars around the rings of Saturn. 

Listening to his music is not only enjoyable but it can also help you with your studies, because studies show that listening to music like Beethoven’s will help focus your mind on the task at hand. So not only is he an enjoyable artist but he can help you improve your grades! You can also find his work in the Disney film Fantasia which puts powerful images to works of classical music.  If you are looking to kick it really old school get your hands on some of Beethoven’s work or rent the 1940’s Fantasia.