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Galston Daniel Henninger Holman W. Jenkins Andy Kessler William McGurn Walter Russell Mead Peggy Noonan Mary Anastasia O'Grady Jason Riley Joseph Sternberg Kimberley A. Strassel Allysia Finley More Editorials Commentary Future View Houses of Worship Cross Country Letters to the Editor The Weekend Interview Potomac Watch Podcast Foreign Edition Podcast Free Expression Podcast Opinion Video Notable & Quotable * Books & Arts Reviews Film Television Theater Masterpiece Series Music Dance Opera Exhibition Cultural Commentary Art Sections Arts Books More WSJ Puzzles What To Watch Arts Calendar * Real Estate Sections Commercial Real Estate More Real Estate Video * Life & Work Sections Cars Careers Food & Drink Home & Design Ideas Personal Finance Recipes Travel Wellness Columns Your Health Work & Life Carry On Bonds Turning Points On Wine On The Clock More WSJ Puzzles Space & Science * Style Sections Lifestyle Fashion Film Television Music Art & Auctions Columns My Monday Morning Off Brand On Trend * Sports Sections MLB NBA NFL Golf Tennis Soccer Columns Jason Gay Search WSJ Logo 'Why Beethoven' Review: Can a Genius Survive? Share Resize --------------------------------------------------------------------- Listen (3 min) BEST OFBooks & Arts in Review The Best Reading for Spring'An Ordinary Man' ReviewThe Best Books of AprilThe Best Fiction for Spring'Vermeer' Review'Armada' Review This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. Distribution and use of this material are governed by our Subscriber Agreement and by copyright law. For non-personal use or to order multiple copies, please contact Dow Jones Reprints at 1-800-843-0008 or visit www.djreprints.com. https://www.wsj.com/articles/ why-beethoven-review-can-a-genius-survive-a9e1e516 * Books & Arts * Books * Bookshelf 'Why Beethoven' Review: Can a Genius Survive? Reflections on 100 works that are as predictable as the composer's music: which is to say, not at all. By Barton Swaim April 25, 2023 6:03 pm ET Share Resize --------------------------------------------------------------------- Listen (3 min) imageSilhouette of Beethoven. Photo: Bridgeman Images In 2010 the British music critic Norman Lebrecht published "Why Mahler?" The book was an attempt to explain why the symphonies of Gustav Mahler (1860-1911) inspired both hatred and adoration in his lifetime, were forgotten for a half-century after his death, and now dominate the concert repertoire. "Why Beethoven"--no question mark--explains why no such thing happened in the case of that composer. "Johann Sebastian Bach's oratorios lay untouched for a hundred years," Mr. Lebrecht writes. "The operas of Handel were hardly seen for two centuries. Mozart, popular as his operas may have been, had his symphonies and concertos used as kindling. . . . Schubert's piano sonatas gathered dust for generations. Schumann's symphonies were discarded, as were several Verdi operas. Beethoven, alone among classical and romantic composers, was embraced first to last, his time to ours. Why is that?" 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