Beethoven in Person - (Contributions to the Study of Music and Dance) by Peter J Davies (Hardcover)

About the Book

This critical reevaluation of the causes of many of Beethoven's illnesses offers detailed accounts of the treatments applied by his physicians and a comprehensive rendering of the composer's final illness, death, and burial. Separate chapters discuss the causes of many of Beethoven's illnesses, his autopsy and the exhumations. Following the rediscovery of the original Latin autopsy report in 1970, the author has discovered two faulty translations, which he argues contributed to errors in earlier medical assumptions. New evidence disputes earlier assertions that Beethoven's deafness resulted from syphilis. This fascinating account of Beethoven's ailments should appeal to Beethoven enthusiasts and to both the medical and music communities.

Book Synopsis

This critical reevaluation of the causes of many of Beethoven's illnesses offers detailed accounts of the treatments applied by his physicians and a comprehensive rendering of the composer's final illness, death, and burial. Separate chapters discuss the causes of many of Beethoven's illnesses, his autopsy and the exhumations. Following the rediscovery of the original Latin autopsy report in 1970, the author has discovered two faulty translations, which he argues contributed to errors in earlier medical assumptions. New evidence disputes earlier assertions that Beethoven's deafness resulted from syphilis. This fascinating account of Beethoven's ailments should appeal to Beethoven enthusiasts and to both the medical and music communities.

Review Quotes

.,."not only detailed, technical coverage of all of Beethoven's medical problems but also backgroound on medical practice and prominent physicians of Beethoven's time. the book is thoroughly documented and draws on a wide range of primary and secondary musical and medical sources. Recommended for large collections; all levels."-Choice

?...not only detailed, technical coverage of all of Beethoven's medical problems but also backgroound on medical practice and prominent physicians of Beethoven's time. the book is thoroughly documented and draws on a wide range of primary and secondary musical and medical sources. Recommended for large collections; all levels.?-Choice

?Davies' book contains a great deal of valuable and interesting material, and one suspects that its collection and assembly have been a labour of love carried out with great diligence and devotion over a long period of time...a detailed and thoroughly referenced compilation of facts about Beethoven's health interpreted cautiously and, probably, as correctly as it is possible to do so long after his death.?-Health and History

?Dr. Davies makes a most valuable contribution in this book by helping us to gain a greater understanding of Beethoven, the man and his music- and, at the same time, providing an excellent account of the state of affairs in medicine in Vienna during the composer's lifetime. He also illuminates the interaction between illness and creativity, and the extraordinary progress that medicine has made in the past 150+ years. Medical historians, students in music and medicine, physicians, and music lovers will all enjoy this book.?-Bull. Hist. Med.

?The illnesses and cause of death of the world's great composers have been a favorite subject for the medical sleuth, who usually aims to explain their illnesses on the basis of a multi-system disorder. In 1989 Peter Davies, an Australian gastroenterologist and medical historian, published his authoritative work Mozart in Person. Now he has turned his attention to Beethoven and this new book will undoubtedly take its place as the definitive medical text relating to this musical genius.?-Journal of Medical History

..."not only detailed, technical coverage of all of Beethoven's medical problems but also backgroound on medical practice and prominent physicians of Beethoven's time. the book is thoroughly documented and draws on a wide range of primary and secondary musical and medical sources. Recommended for large collections; all levels."-Choice

"Davies' book contains a great deal of valuable and interesting material, and one suspects that its collection and assembly have been a labour of love carried out with great diligence and devotion over a long period of time...a detailed and thoroughly referenced compilation of facts about Beethoven's health interpreted cautiously and, probably, as correctly as it is possible to do so long after his death."-Health and History

"The illnesses and cause of death of the world's great composers have been a favorite subject for the medical sleuth, who usually aims to explain their illnesses on the basis of a multi-system disorder. In 1989 Peter Davies, an Australian gastroenterologist and medical historian, published his authoritative work Mozart in Person. Now he has turned his attention to Beethoven and this new book will undoubtedly take its place as the definitive medical text relating to this musical genius."-Journal of Medical History

"Dr. Davies makes a most valuable contribution in this book by helping us to gain a greater understanding of Beethoven, the man and his music- and, at the same time, providing an excellent account of the state of affairs in medicine in Vienna during the composer's lifetime. He also illuminates the interaction between illness and creativity, and the extraordinary progress that medicine has made in the past 150+ years. Medical historians, students in music and medicine, physicians, and music lovers will all enjoy this book."-Bull. Hist. Med.

About the Author

PETER J. DAVIES is a retired Consultant Physician in Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology. He is the author of Mozart in Person: His Character and Health (Greenwood, 1989).