Ludwig van Beethoven komponiert die Pastorale - Aquatintaradierung nach einer Zeichnung von Franz Hegi, Zürich, um 1839

After the successful performance of his "Pastorale", Beethoven's passion for nature and walks through the fields and forests became a well-known habit. Numerous memories prove how strong the interest in the composer's liking for nature was and this subject became a frequent topic for artists and painters in the first half of the 19th century.

The etching of artist Franz Hegis (1774-1850) is an early example for a depiction showing the composing Beethoven in a romantic scenery. In its details the etching closely follows the descriptions of Beethoven's contemporaries. In 1827 Johann Sporschil wrote in the newspaper "Dresdner Abendzeitung" how Beethoven went hiking around Baden or Mödling. According to Sporschil, the composer betook oneself to the shadowy mountain forest and upon meeting a stranger quickly withdrew even deeper into the woods' reclusion.(S.B.)