For mature readers

136 pages; soft cover; B&W

1806. The great Napoleonic conquests are underway and Austria is now occupied by French troops. Ludwig van Beethoven, by now a towering figure in Austrian culture, resides in the palace of Prince Alois von Lichnowsky, his friend and patron. One fateful night, von Lichnowsky demands Beethoven play for his guests to show "what remains of a prince of Austria." But Beethoven refuses. A striking portrait of the "bear of the salons": a genius sure of his talent, indomitable, and devoted to freedom.