Beethoven / Deafness Narrative — Investigation

Status: Investigating. Hypothesis: The “completely deaf genius” narrative may have been exaggerated or manufactured — serving to consolidate Beethoven’s legend, obscure collaboration, or control the historical record.

Overview

Beethoven’s deafness is one of the most enduring myths in classical music: the image of a composer creating masterpieces (Ninth Symphony, late quartets) despite total hearing loss. Recent scholarship challenges this.

Supporting Evidence (Deep Dive)

He Was Not Completely Deaf

Theodore Albrecht (Kent State): Examined 139 Conversation Books; Beethoven “retained some hearing in his left ear until shortly before his death” (1827).
1824 Ninth Symphony premiere: He could still hear, “albeit faintly.”
March 1826: String Quartet in B-flat premiered; hearing likely still present.
Beethoven’s own words (1823): “Fairly preserved my left ear” by avoiding ear trumpets.
1824 account: Visitors warned that conducting would “strain your hearing” — implying he had hearing to strain.

Anton Schindler — Document Forger

Beethoven’s secretary and early biographer; possessed many Conversation Books.
Forgery: Falsified entries; added spurious information after Beethoven’s death.
Destruction: “Destroyed more than half of Beethoven’s conversation books”; “removed countless pages from surviving ones.”
Exaggeration: Claimed 11–12 years of close association; likely 5–6.
Beethoven Compendium: “Virtually nothing Schindler wrote about Beethoven can be accepted as fact without corroborating evidence.”
William S. Newman (1984): “Yet Another Major Beethoven Forgery by Schindler” — Journal of Musicology.

Why the Myth Persists

Romantic narrative: “Deaf genius” = triumph over adversity; inspirational.
Cultural memory: “Deeply embedded”; “appeals to our sense of human triumph.”
Medici.tv: “The question may reveal more about us than about the music itself.”
Interpretation: The myth serves a function — consolidating Beethoven as singular hero; difficulty dislodging despite primary-source evidence.

Ferdinand Ries — More Reliable

Beethoven’s pupil and secretary; co-authored 1838 biography with Wegeler.
Covers late period, hearing loss, working methods, compositional genesis.
Contrast with Schindler: Ries is considered reliable; Schindler is not.

Control-Mechanism Thesis

If the deafness was exaggerated by Schindler (or others): Why?
Possible motives: (a) enhance Beethoven’s legend; (b) obscure the possibility of assistance (copyists, pupils); (c) control the narrative of “how genius works.”
No direct evidence of ghostwriters on late works — but Schindler’s tampering raises questions about what was destroyed or altered.

Open Questions

What did Schindler destroy or alter in the Conversation Books?
Did Beethoven receive compositional assistance he did not acknowledge?
To what extent did the “stone deaf” narrative originate with Schindler?

Sources

Keywords: #Beethoven #Deafness #Narrative