Beethoven poems

[AeolianHarp]

http://hellopoetry.com/words/237063/beethovens/poems/

[Harvey]

I must say I am not much into poetry on the written page (though love the sung poetry of Bob Dylan and Neil Young), but I do enjoy a good clean limerick and was pleased to find this one not far down in your linked page:

Good old Ludwig von [sic] Beethoven
Wrote music that was greathoven
His deafness didn’t preclude
The greatness of this dude
But now, alas, he is latehoven

Now I thought up one or two on John Cage, can I do it for Beethoven?

Okay, I did it. I wrote a Beethoven limerick:

Beethoven, a composer of late,
His hearing loss, a terrible fate.
Yet the scores he wrote,
Are perfect to the note,
And thus his music so great.

[AeolianHarp]

I must say I am not much into poetry on the written page (though love the sung poetry of Bob Dylan and Neil Young), but I do enjoy a good clean limerick and was pleased to find this one not far down in your linked page:

Good old Ludwig von [sic] Beethoven
Wrote music that was greathoven
His deafness didn’t preclude
The greatness of this dude
But now, alas, he is latehoven

Now I thought up one or two on John Cage, can I do it for Beethoven?

Okay, I did it. I wrote a Beethoven limerick:

Beethoven, a composer of late,
His hearing loss, a terrible fate.
Yet the scores he wrote,
Are perfect to the note,
And thus his music so great.

I wasn't keen on the first poem- thought it a bit crass- yours is far better Harvey!

[Harvey]

Thank you. I also did not care for the first one, but it gave a start to get me thinking. Not very respectful of the great master, and the rhyming was rather forced.

[AeolianHarp]

Thank you. I also did not care for the first one, but it gave a start to get me thinking. Not very respectful of the great master, and the rhyming was rather forced.

Yes I didn't find it respectful either- his hearing loss is no laughing matter.
I like the poetry of John Keats- now he was a fine poet indeed.

[Harvey]

As I said before, I was never much for poetry on the written page, though I understand Keats is one of the great poets. I should spend some time, but so little of it free to spend. I do recall liking some of the poems of Robert Service and Edgar Guest though.

[Harvey]

The composer Beethoven was,
A remarkable man because,
His music was right,
To hear day and night,
For in it, there are no flaws.

To hear his great sound,
In the air all around,
It fills you with joy,
Every girl and boy,
And lifts you off the ground.

Oh yes! Let the music play,
That is what they'll say,
Come back for more,
Every day, every hour,
Because you like it that way.

[AeolianHarp]

Harvey, for someone who doesn't profess to like poetry much you are not doing too badly!

[Harvey]

Thank you. I had some waves of inspiration. The funny thing is the two poets I mentioned liking are total opposites. Here are some more Beethoven limericks I gleaned from another site:

Beethoven, the great Ludwig van
Was one very handicapped man,
'Cause if you're a chef
You don't mind if you're deaf,
But composers should hear, if they can.
_______________

Beethoven's career reached fruition
With his Ninth, but a weird superstition
Then somehow arose
Saying all who compose
Any more would end up in perdition.
________________

To represent such things as birds
Beethoven; Respighi concur.
One must keep it light
For creatures of flight.
The use of the brass is absurd.

When one's writing music heroic
There's really no need to be stoic.
A trumpeter's aim
Is to overcome pain
If he misses a note, you will know it.

[Harvey]

There was a man, Ludwig,
Who was not all that big,
But his tempi is fast,
And his music so vast,
That it cannot be surpassed.

[AeolianHarp]

Beethoven, the great Ludwig van
Was one very handicapped man,
'Cause if you're a chef
You don't mind if you're deaf,
But composers should hear, if they can.

Not keen on him being called handicapped- this is an offensive word in Britain these days.

[AeolianHarp]

There was a man, Ludwig,
Who was not all that big,
But his tempi is fast,
And his music so vast,
That it cannot be surpassed.

Big as in height? Well he was about an inch taller than me ( he was said to 5 foot 4 inches), and you know what they say- good things come in small packages...

But height? Pffffffttt...Ludwig had enough presence to fill a room- if he was 6 foot tall he could have not been any more powerful!

And you know what? People I mention him to, who don't know much about him always seem to think he was a tall man- so there you go! Even now, his presence is felt...

[Harvey]

Yes, handicapped is not exactly a correct word around here either. I like the one about the Ninth, thinking they are suggesting the lack of any symphonies by major composers for 50 years after LvB's death.

Now I am really reaching for rhymes, but here goes:

Ludwig Beethoven, van,
A musically brilliant man,
To princes he said,
Your nothing but bred,
But Beethoven truely is von.

[Harvey]

Here is one that spawned from my attempts at Beethoven limericks:

If Henry F were still alive,
He'd say, what's this jive?
Electro gizmos, fiddle faddle,
Automatic shift and a paddle.
Nay! Standard shift I'll drive!

I just thought it too much of a stretch to put Beethoven in instead of Henry Ford. Also can't see either of them using the word "jive." But all in fun I guess.

[AeolianHarp]

Yes, handicapped is not exactly a correct word around here either.

I have never ever seen our dear Maestro as handicapped, disabled or whatever else people want to call it...

I like the one about the Ninth, thinking they are suggesting the lack of any symphonies by major composers for 50 years after LvB's death.

Hehe..

Now I am really reaching for rhymes, but here goes:

Ludwig Beethoven, van,
A musically brilliant man,
To princes he said,
Your nothing but bred,
But Beethoven truely is von.

Ha ha ha ha right on!