Beethoven's Enigmas | Ryan Ranch

Course Description:

Dec. 2: Medical Enigmas – From Beethoven's Death in 1827 to a Discovery in 2024

The public's fascination with Beethoven's medical history began around 1802 through gradual awareness of his deafness. When he died, an autopsy was conducted to discover the cause of his deafness and his death. That report failed to identify the cause of either. Now, nearly two centuries later, genetic research has yielded a revealing result.

Dec. 3: Musical Enigmas – The Meaning of the Four Movements of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony

This year, we celebrated the 200th anniversary of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9. The work broke important traditions of the day, with the introduction of vocal soloists and a choir in the last movement, and arguably inspired the methodology of musical analysis. Join us as we uncover the meaning of the Ninth's four movements.