This image is the cover for the book Beethoven Encyclopedia

Beethoven Encyclopedia

This comprehensive A-to-Z reference is comprised of detailed and authoritative entries on every aspect of the great composer’s life.

Ludwig van Beethoven is one of the most famous and revered composers in classical music. His instantly recognizable concertos and symphonies continue to be among the most performed by symphonies across the globe. In this definitive reference volume, eminent musicologist Paul Nettl provides students and researchers with an in-depth biographical resource organized in alphabetical entries. The Beethoven Encyclopedia covers the German composer’s music, personal life, and patrons, among other topics, such as the forces that inspired his genius.

Paul Nettl

Paul Nettl (1889–1972) was a musicologist and author born in Hohenelbe, Bohemia. Nettl was a lecturer in musicology in Prague from 1919 until 1939, when he immigrated to the United States. He taught in Chicago and at Indiana University until 1960, and had lectureships at Roosevelt University in Chicago and at the Cincinnati Conservatory. His studies and numerous essays, as well as many books in German, won him a reputation as a specialist in every phase of Bohemian and Moravian music. Nettl’s works include The Beethoven Encyclopedia (1956), The Story of Dance Music (1947), The Book of Musical Documents (1948), Forgotten Musicians (1951), and Mozart and Masonry (1957). He even coined the term “utility music.”

Philosophical Library