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Speak Out
Column inaccurately attributed Beethoven's deafness to syphilis
I must call your attention to an error in the otherwise fine article by columnist Carl Heintze in the June 27 issue of the Willow Glen Resident. Beethoven's deafness, Heintze writes, "may have been the result of syphilis."
To the contrary, the recent book, Beethoven's Hair by Russell Martin, proves beyond a doubt that the composer's various physical problems were caused not by syphilis, but by lead poisoning. The diagnosis was made by a scientific analysis of strands of a lock of Beethoven's hair owned right here in San Jose--at the Beethoven Center at San Jose State University.
Beethoven's Hair traces the trajectory of the lock of hair clipped from the composer's head by a young musician shortly after Beethoven's death. How the lock ended up at the Beethoven Center and yielded previously unknown facts concerning Beethoven's health is a fascinating story. The dramatic tale includes the lock's role in the rescue of Danish Jews from the Nazis. From the family of a heroic Danish physician, to whom a grateful Jew had given the lock, the hair eventually found its way to San Jose. One result: the Beethoven/syphilis supposition has been put to rest.
Dr. Thomas Wendel
Chair, Executive Board,
American Beethoven Society
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Willow Glen, California Since 1992
