We'll look at three classical compsers/ piano players who heavily influenced classical music.
Ludwig Van Beethoven. Famous more for the fact he composed, Beethoven wrote and performed music while being deaf in his later 20s with the use of a sound rod to feel the vibrations. Born at the end of 1770, Beethoven followed in the family tradition of music by working at some point in the court of the Elector of Cologne. The elector financed his move to Vienna in 1792, where we studied the violin and counterpoint. Beethoven started to loss his hearing in 1796 in his twenties, which has been speculated to be the result of lead posioning, due to its high volume of use. The work of Beethoven has been put into three different setions: the early, middle and later periods. His early period work was said to be influenced by mozart (who we'll get to in a minute) and went upto 1806. The middle period went from 1803-1814, and the later period went from 1815 up till his death.