The "Notes on . . ." series by distinguished music critic Conrad Wilson illuminates the music of some of history's greatest composers in relation to their private lives. In each "Notes on . . ." volume Wilson selects twenty crucial works of a given composer, discusses these masterpieces with insight and verve, and explains why these particular works are fundamental to understanding the composer.Permeating these pages are Wilson's vast musical expertise and his colorful, succinct, polished prose style. As a bonus Wilson highlights choice recordings of the music he discusses. Meant for any general reader interested in music, these guidebooks are ideal for dipping into as well as reading straight through.In the course of elucidating Beethoven and his music in this volume, Wilson questions the traditional practice of dividing Beethoven's life into three periods, discerns his true attitude toward Napoleon, and probes the "heroic" side of Beethoven's music and its bearing on his work as a whole.