What do you want?! I can’t hear you! Either you speak up or write in that book. I’m not fond of people in general, that's just how I am. I was born a peasant to a drunkard father who wanted me to be like Mozart. Actually everyone wanted me to be like Mozart. Well I'm here to tell you I’m not! I’m my own person. Even Haydn, as much as I respect him, can’t make me write his name on my manuscript. I’ve always been deathly sick so don’t expect me to have a constant output of compositions.
Beethoven’s musical style changed a lot throughout his lifetime, partly due to his deafness. It’s typically considered to be split into 3 distinctive periods.
His early works were heavily influenced by Mozart and Haydn, imitating their structural and harmonic styles while adding his flair and expanding the possibilities of what the Classical style is capable of.
By the middle period, he had developed a much more unique style that was grander and forward looking with the use of larger orchestras. During this period, he experimented with extensive variations on themes and motifs, while expertly mixing a variety of keys or harmonic regions that differs vastly from the home key.
In the same period, he was gradually losing his hearing, starting from higher frequencies, which led to him composing on the lower ranges, making his compositions sound much darker compared to Mozart and Haydn.
His late works are defined by a more structural approach, leaning heavily to the use of counterpoints and subtle textures. He was also getting increasingly depressed, which is reflected in his compositions, typically seen to be much more introverted and reserved.
During the late period, he has lost his hearing completely, relying only on sounds he can visualise in his head. Compositions in this period also saw the return of notes in the higher range, although his orchestrations are sometimes criticised as overly loud. Probably because he’s unable to hear how loud a certain instrument is in relation to the rest of the orchestra.
