You've heard Beethoven's instantly recognizable "Fur Elise" somewhere, if only in a ring tone or a movie. As the New York Times put it in one appreciation, "Even if you don't know 'Fur Elise,' you ...

On April 27, 1810, Ludwig van Beethoven finished a piano bagatelle that he never intended for the public to hear. He scribbled a dedication on the top of the page and tucked it away. The world didn't ...

Performances in N.Y.C. Advertisement Supported by Beethoven at 250 It is overplayed all over pop culture. But the pianist Igor Levit says it is “one of the most beautiful pieces I know.” By Joshua ...

I am about to put the lid down on the piano keyboard in my 6th-grade music class when a particularly animated student runs up to me and says excitedly, “Teacher, I can play ‘Für Elise’!” I encourage ...

Für Elise has become one of the most widely recognizable classical pieces in the world. It has appeared in commercials, movies, and even garbage trucks in Taiwan. So how did it get so popular, and is ...