John Clubbe has written a thoughtful cultural history that takes into account the times in which Beethoven lived and worked—and they were times of revolution ... Clubbe knows his 19th-century history ... A chapter on the creation of 'Fidelio,' Beethoven’s only opera and an ode to human freedom, is especially comprehensive.
Using a variety of source material, including letters, personal papers, and portraits, Clubbe constructs a richly layered interpretation of the composer’s life and work ... An interesting approach to biography that adds depth to our appreciation of the world’s most famous classical composer.
Clubbe’s biography is a thorough account of Beethoven’s inspirations, collaborators, and his turbulent times. It frames his work with political events and makes a compelling argument for their impact on the man. But it does not explain his genius. His body of work is so huge and forbidding—that 'complex greatness'—that it makes sense to view it through a lens, whether of his deafness or political views. But in doing so we create our own deafness: we see the man rather than hear the music.
I’m sorry to report that I was disappointed. A biographical study of a figure as familiar as Beethoven must demonstrate a strong reason for being published, and while there are a number of fresh perspectives here, I’m not completely convinced by [the] argument that Beethoven’s music is more politically motivated than we had previously assumed, or that [the] ideas about Beethoven’s republican sympathies are especially fresh ... I particularly admire [the] deconstruction of Beethoven’s shifting attitudes toward Napoleon ... I’m less convinced by [the] persistent argument that Beethoven saw himself as a musical Napoleon ... I have to say that I also prefer [a] more engaging, conversational style, which avoids [this] sometimes-stiff academic vocabulary...gushy exclamations...dated diction...and outmoded syntax ... I’m sorry I feel so negative about the whole book.
In advancing his thesis, Mr. Clubbe faces daunting challenges ... Mr. Clubbe, alas, does not overcome these challenges. He does not define the key concepts in his book—revolution, freedom, liberty, equality—or elaborate on Beethoven’s understanding of them ... Beethoven: The Relentless Revolutionary depends too much on speculation ... It seems to me, however, that although, like many of his contemporaries, Beethoven drew on turn-of-the-century humanitarian and progressive ideals and current events, his political philosophy, such as it was, remained sufficiently vague as to be attributable as well (as he once did) to Jesus and Socrates.
Clubbe shuns musicological analysis, so he has to rely on Beethoven’s 'social and political thinking' to make his case. Sadly, Beethoven was not in fact that much of a social and political thinker. He specialized in banal complaint letters, directed mainly at his long-suffering publishers ... Proof comes to us second-hand, from acolytes and groupies, or in observations written decades after his death, when it was fashionable to trumpet the composer’s revolutionary credentials. Clubbe never establishes what exactly he means by 'revolutionary.' Sometimes it relates to the ideals of the French Revolution; sometimes it simply means musically innovative ... conclusions owe more to mind-reading than biography.
... the author's attempt to examine Beethoven's work through the lens of cultural history is overly reliant on speculation and incorporates a great deal of historical summary and description of other artistic developments of the period while failing to make evident implicit or explicit links between these and Beethoven's work ... A disjointed and often frustrating reading experience, with moments of real insight. For devoted Beethoven fans.
In this extensive work, historian Clubbe...expertly links Ludwig van Beethoven’s music with the Enlightenment, the French Revolution, and Napoleon Bonaparte ... This astute biography will appeal most to classical music fans, as well as those interested in the history of Enlightenment and revolutionary thinking in late 18th-century Europe.
