m. He constantly played in the homes of the wealthy
aristocracy. Many who heard him play, engaged lessons and he was
well on the road to social success. Yet his brusque manners often
antagonized his patrons. He made no effort to please or conciliate;
he was obstinate and self-willed. In spite of all this, the innate
nobleness and truth of his character retained the regard of men and
women belonging to the highest ranks of society. With the Prince and
Princess Lichnowsky Beethoven shortly became very intimate, and was
invited to stay at the Palace. The Princess looked after his personal
comfort with as motherly an affection as Madame Breuning had done.
The etiquette of the Palace however, offended Ludwig's love of
Bohemianism, especially the dressing for dinner at a certain time.
He took to dining at a tavern quite frequently, and finally engaged
lodgings. The Prince and his good lady, far from taking offense at
this unmannerly behavior, forgave it and always kept for Beethoven a
warm place in their hearts, while he, on his part was sincere in his
affection for his kind friends.

Beethoven began his lessons with Haydn, but they did not seem to get
on well together. The pupil thought the master did not give him enough
time and attention. When Haydn went to England, about a year after the
lessons began, Beethoven studied with several of the best musicians
of the city, both in playing and composition. Albrechtsberger, one of
these, was a famous contrapuntist of his time, and the student gained
much from his teaching. The young musician was irresistible when he
seated himself at the piano to extemporize. "His improvisating was
most brilliant and striking," wrote Carl Czerny, a pupil of Beethoven.
"In whatever company he might be, he knew how to produce such an
effect upon the listeners that frequently all eyes would be wet,
and some listeners would sob; there was something wonderful in his
expressive style, the beauty and originality of his ideas and his
spirited way of playing." Strange to say the emotion he roused in
his hearers seemed to find no response in Beethoven himself. He would
sometimes laugh at it, at other times he would resent it, saying, "We
artists don't want tears, we want applause." These expressions however
only concealed his inner feelings--for he was very sympathetic
with those friends he loved. His anger, though sharp, was of short
duration, but his suspicions of those whose confidence he had won by
hi