A few steps from the pond and fake ruins in the picture I posted yesterday is an ornate octagonal bandstand. It is surrounded by six marble columns topped by busts of composers popular with the people who laid out the park: Wagner, Mozart, Rossini, Gounod, Tchaikovsky and this chap. The busts are a bit crude, possibly made of cement.
While Beethoven had much hardship in his life, by no means was he always gloomy. Listen to the 7th Symphony, Op 92, the triumphant finale of the 5th Symphony, Op. 67, the "Spring" Sonata for violin and piano, Op. 24 or the ecstatic reunion duet of Floristan and Leonora in his only opera, Fidelio.
He was a gift to the world. His music made him immortal.
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