In 1983, Brilliant donated his extensive collection--75 first-edition Beethoven musical compositions--to San José State University.

Today, the Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies is home to the largest collection of the composer's works outside of Europe. It is housed in San Jose's Martin Luther King Jr. Library.

Brilliant, who moved to Willow Glen from Arizona in January, is ecstatic over the center's latest acquisition--nine first editions of Beethoven's string quartet compositions--which were procured from an antique dealer. The center already has the other eight compositions in the collection.

"We've now become the Library of Congress in Beethoven quartets," Brilliant says. "With all 17 quartets, we can think about holding an exhibition or inviting musicians to perform. It opens the vista wide for us."

When it comes to Beethoven, Brilliant gets fired up. Donating his collection, worth thousands of dollars, was not a difficult decision, he says. The first editions, which can cost anywhere from $500 to $10,000 depending on the music's importance, were tucked away in his house.

"Something better had to be done than just piling the first editions up in the alcove of a home like a secret treasure trove just for my own benefit," he says "Beethoven has to be shared."

After discussing his donation ideas with his wife, Irma, the couple approached Arizona State University, but the school turned them down. Three weeks later when the couple was in San Francisco, a friend introduced them to Arlene Okerlund, the former San José State University dean for humanities and the arts, who welcomed the donation.

"I casually mentioned that there was no study center in America and this would be the impetus to create one," says Brilliant, who only requested that the university craft a class using the donated materials. "They insisted that it was university policy to name the center after me, something I didn't require. And so it was."

Strikes a Chord

Brilliant's fascination with Beethoven began in 1938 when a schoolmate at Brooklyn College in New York introduced him to the "wonders of classical music." The more he read and studied Beethoven's life and music, the more intrigued he became.

The thing that strikes people most about Beethoven are all his medical problems, Brilliant says, and the amount of suffering he experienced. Yet through it all he created magnificent music.

"It's like you have a terrible stomachache and your boyfriend or husband wants you to come up with a wonderful meal. It just doesn't come that quickly," Brilliant says. "That's what I admired about him."

While Brilliant spent many hours attending concerts, listening to Beethoven records and devouring Beethoven tomes, it wasn't until 1973 that he seriously considered owning a slice of Beethoven history.

"I developed a strong feeling to own something that Beethoven had touched," he says. "To me, that represents a personal and private connection between Beethoven and me."

Brilliant set his sights on a letter that Beethoven had signed "with meticulous care." He contacted a dealer but mulled it over for a year after he found out that the letter cost $7,500, three times the amount he had set aside.

The letter, penned by Beethoven's secretary Anton Schindler, was addressed to a prince, asking for the use of a concert hall in Vienna, Austria for the opening performance of Symphony No. 9. He was denied the hall for that night, but allowed to use it for the second performance.

"It's still a mystery why he wasn't able to use this hall for the premiere performance," Brilliant says. "There are always stories related to these items. That's what makes them so valuable."

When Brilliant heard the letter was going into the dealer's 1975 Christmas catalogue, he quickly changed his mind about buying the item. He didn't want some "eager beaver" to purchase it.

Brilliant got on the phone and told the dealer, "I am buying and you're selling me this Beethoven letter."

He recalls spending an hour gingerly taking the letter out of the envelope when it arrived 10 days later. "I didn't want to damage anything," he says. "And then I saw it and I dutifully put my finger on his signature, and we made a connection. It was one of those small pleasures in life."

Hooked on Beethoven

Knowing that he couldn't afford to keep buying letters, Brilliant switched to collecting first editions of the composer's compositions. He diligently tracked down first editions and further educated himself on Beethoven ephemera . As he became more knowledgeable about the field, he started to buy them on a regular basis. By 1983, he had accumulated 75 first editions.

This is what distinguishes him from other collectors, said his son, Robert, a video producer who lives in San Mateo.

"My father always felt his collection should serve a higher purpose," says the son, who, like his father, is also a collector--but of rock-and-roll records. "Most people donate their collection only after they die but my father chose to do it while he is still alive. I know he is enjoying it and getting much more in return."

Brilliant has also taken the donation process to the next level by helping the center expand its collection through his relationships with dealers in Europe, London and across the United States. Over the years, he's developed a reputation as the premier collector of Beethoven items who dealers contact before anyone else.

Today, the center owns nearly 300 first editions of Beethoven's music, more than 3,000 books on Beethoven in different languages, several original Beethoven manuscripts and pieces of art that portray Beethoven in Vienna.

Patricia Stroh, curator of the university's center, says Brilliant's help has been invaluable. "He's always there to lend a hand by either supporting us or pulling together funds so we can acquire more pieces," said Stroh, who has been with the center from the start. "Thanks to him, we've been able to build on his previous collection."

Brilliant's eyes light up as he shares stories behind some of the more interesting acquisitions at the center.

One of those items was a letter written by Beethoven to English publisher Robert Birchall. In the correspondence Beethoven is unhappy about Birchall owing him 5 pounds for copying expenses. Three to fours later years a receipt signed by Beethoven for those 5 pounds showed up on the antique market.

"Birchall finally paid and we were able to buy the receipt. So it completes the story," Brilliant says. The letter now sits side-by-side with the receipt at the center.

The center is also home to a lock of Beethoven's hair, a highly publicized acquisition in 1994.

The day after Beethoven's death in 1827, Ferdinand Hiller, a young Viennese musician, snipped a large lock from Beethoven's body, and for a century the hair remained in the Hiller family as a keepsake. During the darkest days of the World War II, the lock mysteriously found its way to the town of Gilleleje, in Nazi-occupied Denmark, where it was given to local doctor Kay Fremming, who was involved in the underground movement to rescue Jews. After Fremming's death, his daughter sold the hair through auction at Sotheby's of London.

"The doctor was a taciturn sort of man," Brilliant says. "He never told his wife anything so no one knows how he ended up with the lock of hair."

Brilliant, along with Alfredo "Che" Guevara, a neurologist in Nogales, Ariz., and other members of the American Beethoven Society, purchased the lock for $7,300. An elated Brilliant called Guevara once the purchase was confirmed.

"I asked Che, 'Have you got your comb ready?' " Brilliant says.

Guevara kept 160 of the 582 strands while the remaining 422 strands are kept locked in a vault at the center. Scientific tests on Beethoven's hair found extraordinarily high levels of lead, which is believed to be the cause of his debilitating illnesses--abdominal problems, depression and hearing loss--and personality disorders.

The unlikely journey of the lock of hair and the mystery of Beethoven's tortured life and death has spawned both a book and a recent documentary. Both items are available at the center.

For Fritz Andrade, who lives at Atria Willow Glen--a retirement community--Brilliant's move into the community has been an enriching experience. Brilliant has shared his encyclopedic knowledge of Beethoven's work and life with Atria residents and has lead a tour at the center.

Andrade gave the tour two thumbs up. He enjoyed the live piano performances of Beethoven's compositions, as well as the informative portion about the composer.

While Brilliant will be forever keen on all things Beethoven, there's one thing Brilliant would never allow--creating a Beethoven clone.

"There can only be one Beethoven," he says.

The Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies is housed at the Martin Luther King Jr. Library on the campus of San José State University. The hours are 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays; 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Wednesdays; 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Fridays; and 1 to 5 p.m. on Saturdays. Call 408.808.2058 or visit http://www2. sjsu.edu/depts/beet hoven/ for more information.