Google is celebrating famed composer Ludwig van Beethoven’s 245th birthday today, and has created a clever little mini-game in his honour. It’s something for those who think they know Beethoven’s most famous works; and those who want to see if they remember playing the Ode to Joy back in primary school.
The Google Doodle follows the efforts of a cartoon Beethoven as he tries his best to get to the concert hall to conduct an orchestra. Along the way, his sheet music gets mixed up and players will have to arrange it in the proper order. Of course, this only works if you remember how the songs are supposed to go; although the musically inclined can try to play on hard mode with the sound turned off. It features four of Beethoven’s most iconic work, including the 5th Symphony and the für elise.
Beethoven himself lead an interesting life after being dragged out of school by his father to make music. He began losing his hearing during the height of his career, but being unable to hear what he was composing didn’t seem to stop the legendary composer.
Interestingly, nobody actually knows when Beethoven was born. The date celebrated, 17 December 1770, is of his baptism. Historians guess that he was born around this time, since there is little else known about his early life. Google also shared a couple of minor details about Beethoven’s life in its blog post about the Doodle, which includes the fact that his handwriting was so bad that historians have trouble verifying his signature.
Google often celebrates famous people in its Doodles, and has even covered several Malaysian icons like film-maker Yasmin Ahmad and football Mokhtar Dahari.
