Ludwig von Beethoven was a German composer and pianist who is widely regarded as one of the greatest composers of all time. His full name was Ludwig VAN Beethoven, with 'von' being the German word for 'of' and 'VAN' being the Dutch word for 'of'. He was born in Bonn, Germany in 1770 and died in Vienna, Austria in 1827. He composed some of the most iconic pieces of classical music, such as his Symphony No. 5 and his Moonlight Sonata.