Beethoven had a great deal of success in his own day with those who appreciated classical music . His funeral was attended by admiring crowds. I don't think his Wellington work was meant to be crowd-pleasing so much as a it was a contribution to the general celebration in his part of Germany since Napoleon -- once Beethoven's hero -- had attacked Prussia but later was defeated by forces commanded by the Duke of Wellington. Given that music was not commercialized in his day to the degree it is in ours, Beethoven probably thought his work would go down through the ages. Little did he know that many in our times would only know him by da da da da or Fur Elise, a paltry piano piece compared to the other works in his opus.
Beethoven had a great deal of success in his own day with those who appreciated classical music . His funeral was attended by admiring crowds. I don't think his Wellington work was meant to be crowd-pleasing so much as a it was a contribution to the general celebration in his part of Germany since Napoleon -- once Beethoven's hero -- had attacked Prussia but later was defeated by forces commanded by the Duke of Wellington. Given that music was not commercialized in his day to the degree it is in ours, Beethoven probably thought his work would go down through the ages. Little did he know that many in our times would only know him by da da da da or Fur Elise, a paltry piano piece compared to the other works in his opus.