Johann van Beethoven

Johann van Beethoven[2][3] (c. 1739 or 1740 [4][5] – 18 December 1792) was a German musician, teacher, and singer who sang in the chapel of the Archbishop of Cologne, whose court was at Bonn.

Johann van Beethoven was the son of Maria Josepha Poll (married 1733) and Lodewijk or Ludwig van Beethoven[6][7] (1712–1773; not to be confused with Johann's famous son of the same name), who was probably born in or near the city of Mechelen, in the Habsburg Netherlands (now in Flanders, Belgium), and had served as a musician in several communities in and around Mechelen before establishing himself in Bonn in 1733, where he served as a musician at the court of Prince-Archbishop-Elector of Cologne Clemens August of Bavaria, rising to the post of Kapellmeister in 1761.

Johann was also aware of Leopold Mozart's success traveling with a talented and young Wolfgang, and wished to duplicate their fame and fortune.

Johann was an alcoholic, a situation that worsened when Maria died in 1787, after which time the family was increasingly dependent on young Ludwig for support.

His employer the Elector wrote sardonically to a friend, "The revenues from the liquor excise [tax] have suffered a loss in the death of Beethoven.

Painting by Benedikt Beckenkamp , allegedly depicting Johann and Maria Magdalena van Beethoven. Whether the portrait is authentic or not is disputed, with Alexander Wheelock Thayer writing that it rests on "uncertain tradition" and it "lacks authoritative attestation". [ 1 ]