Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer, conductor, and pianist. Regarded as one of the greatest composers in the history of Western music, he was mentored during the Classical period, and his musical style was a key driver of the transition to Romantic music, and the expansion of instrumental forms such as the symphony, the piano sonata and the string quartet. His compositions have attracted extraordinary casual and scholarly interest, and remain among the most performed in the world. December 16, 1770 – March 26, 1827; died at 56. Alive at the same time as Abraham Lincoln, Charles Darwin, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Immanuel Kant, and Napoleon. Wiki link