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Ludwig van Beethoven was born on December 16, 1770 in Bonn, Germany, and baptized on December 17. Bonn was the seat of the Archbishop-Elector of Cologne in the 18th century. Beethoven’s musically talented grandfather, who was also named Ludwig, had come from Flanders to settle in Bonn on the invitation of the Elector. He worked in the Elector’s choir, first as a baritone singer and then as Kapellmeister or bandleader. He married a Bonn girl, Marie Poll. Of the several children they had, only one boy named Johann survived. Beethoven’s father, Johann van Beethoven, also took to music but his abilities were mediocre. He managed to become a tenor singer in the Electoral Choir due to the influence of Ludwig Senior. He married Maria Magdalena Keverich Laym, daughter of the chief cook at the Court of the Elector of Treves, Ehrenbreitstein. They had seven children of whom only three survived — Ludwig, Caspar Karl and Nikolaus Johann. The Beethoven family lived in the poorer part of Bonn. The rough-hewn rebellious streak in Beethoven was the result of this early influence. Beethoven had little formal education. He studied at the Tironicium for four years and had to drop out at the age of 11. He managed to get a sm