Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827), Serenade in D major op. 41

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 ‑ 1827)
Serenade in D major op. 41

Ludwig van Beethoven was born in Bonn as the son of a tenor player in the prince-elector's chapel. He received his first lessons from his father, who wanted to make a child prodigy out of him. Later his teachers included W. A. Mozart, J. Haydn and A. Salieri. In 1792 he moved to Vienna, which he never left, except for short trips. The Serenade in D major, op. 41, originally composed as a trio for flute, violin and viola, can be traced back to his friendship with Antonín Reicha; Reicha played the flute, Beethoven the viola.

In 1803, a Leipzig publisher published Beethoven's Serenade in an arrangement for flute and piano. Beethoven wrote, and insisted, that these arrangements were "not by me, but they have been reviewed by me and have been completely improved in places, so don't tell me that you are writing that they are by me...I don't even know how to find the time and patience to do so." But nevertheless he cherished a subsequent sympathy for this cheerful music.