Today is the 234th birthday of Ludwig van Beethoven, who I would have to call my favorite composer, despite all the other wonderful composers I also love, especially Bach. No matter how much I "grow" musically, and how much I enjoy individual pieces by other composers (or epics like Wagner's Ring,) it is the broadest selection of music by Beethoven that I respond to most viscerally. Because of its convenience, I decided to use Rhapsody to select the pieces to play today to celebrate. (Rather than going to my own collection.) I welcome the list to suggest their own ways of celebrating this compser who mastered so many different genres of CM. My choices: The Archduke Trio, Op 97; the 4th Piano Concerto, Op. 58, String Quartet #15, Op 132; the Diabelli Variations, Op 133; The Triple Concerto, Op 56; Piano Sonata #29, "Hammerklavier", Op 106; 3rd Cello Sonata, Op 69; Piano Sonata #32, Op 111. There are many other pieces I could have chosen, of course. The Violin Concerto, the 3rd Symphony, the "Kreutzer" Violin & Piano sonata, the Waldstein piano sonata, other quartets such as #12, #14, #13, #7, 8 or 9; other piano sonatas; Missa Solemnis, etc., etc. But there are other years and other birthdays... As long as you're responding, you might as well mention performances of the particular pieces you name. Dave Wolf [log in to unmask]