Classical music against the odds
Take a look at some of the pieces of music composed and performed in the face of adversity and disability.
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1. Symphony No. 3, Beethoven
Beethoven was not born deaf, but started to lose his hearing at the age of 25 in 1796. Five years later, he struggled with a personal crisis and contemplated suicide, but came through it to write some of his most heroic music – including the ‘Eroica’, Symphony No. 3.
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2. Air and Simple Gifts, John Williams
This beautiful piece was performed by violinist Itzhak Perlman, cellist Yo-Yo Ma, pianist Gabriela Montero and clarinetist Anthony McGill at the inauguration of President Obama. Performing sitting down is not unusual, but Perlman has a personal reason for remaining seated – he contracted polio at the age of four, damaging his legs.
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3. Piano Concerto, Schumann
No one knows exactly how Schumann injured his hand, but he was forced to give up his career as a performance pianist as a result of the injury. He might have damaged his finger using a strengthening device, or it could have been a side affect from his syphilis medication.
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4. Carillon de Westminster, Vierne
It’s a fabulous organ piece, written by a great composer, Louis Vierne. He was almost completely blind after being born with cataracts, and composed in Braille or on large manuscript paper. From an early age he had a gift for music, and was able to pick out notes from a Schubert lullaby on the piano at the age of two.
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5. Piano Concerto for the Left Hand, Ravel
This concerto was written for Paul Wittgenstein, a concert pianist who lost his right arm in the First World War. Wittgenstein performed the concerto frequently and championed a great deal of repertoire specifically for the left hand.
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6. Prelude and Nocturne for the Left Hand, Scriabin
After injuring his right hand, possibly due to stretching his fingers too far, Russian composer Scriabin wrote the beautiful Prelude and Nocturne to be played solely by the left hand.
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7. Concierto de Aranjuez, Rodrigo
Rodrigo contracted diphtheria at the age of three, leaving him almost completely blind. He wrote his compositions in Braille, to be transcribed for publication – his Concierto de Aranjuez is one of the most popular pieces of Spanish guitar music ever written.
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8. Cello Concerto, Elgar, performed by Jacqueline du Pré
Wonder-cellist Jacqueline du Pré is well known for her performance of Elgar's cello concerto. She started to lose sensitivity in her fingers in 1971 due to multiple sclerosis, but continued her performance career in spite of this for a further two years.
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9. Klaviermusik, Hindemith
Hindemith composed his left hand piano concerto in 1923 for Paul Wittgenstein, the pianist who championed left hand piano works. It was never played by Wittgenstein, however: Leon Fleisher first performed the work in 2004.
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10. O Sole Mio, Eduardo di Capua, performed by Andrea Bocelli
Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli has recorded so many fantastic songs, it’s hard to pick just one. He’s the biggest-selling singer in the history of classical music, selling more than 70 million copies. He lost his sight after a football accident at the age of 12.
