PINE PLAINS, N.Y., Sept. 1, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- Ludwig van Beethoven's sonatas and symphonies are known and loved worldwide, but the details of his affair with a particular woman remain a mystery to this day. Carter J. Gregory's new historical fiction, "My Angel Leonora: Beethoven's Love for Antonie Brentano" (now available through AuthorHouse) creatively fills the gaps in this musician's most enigmatic tale of romance.
After his death, Beethoven's friends found a hidden compartment deep inside his writing desk. It contained a letter professing his love to a woman named only as his "immortal beloved." The elusive subject of his devotion was eventually identified as Antonie Brentano, a married woman and devout Catholic, but the extent of their affair is still unclear.
Gregory begins with a dramatic account of Beethoven's early years, when he suffered at the hands of a drunken violent father and witnessed his parents' miserable marriage. His first romantic interest was equally grim and ended in rejection that left the musical prodigy afraid of marriage and commitment.
From there, Beethoven's volatile adulthood in Vienna comes to life as Gregory blends fact and fiction in an intoxicating story of love and pain. He traces the composer's twisted path of sexual trysts and syphilis, epilepsy and deafness, rage and suicidal thoughts. He draws parallels between Beethoven's famous opera, titled "Leonora," and his deep need for real love. Gregory then takes readers into a fictional account of the musician's relationship with Antonie: his devoted private concerts for her when she is ill and a planned rendezvous that turns out quite differently than expected.
Gregory includes the entire text from the love letter that sparked this rich story and translates Schiller's "Ode to Joy," the emotional apex of Beethoven's "Ninth Symphony" in My Angel Leonora, a riveting portrayal of a composer whose life matched the intensity of his music.
Born in New York, Carter completed graduate work at the University of Pennsylvania's Philadelphia Divinity School and the General Theological Seminary of New York City. He has been certified as a pastoral counselor by the Foundation for Religion and Mental Health. Carter is a psychotherapist and an Episcopal priest. He is also an instructor at the Ulster County Community College in Stone Ridge, N.Y. His work has enabled him to understand the effects of childhood trauma, which he explores in this work. His first published book, The Fourth Watch of the Night (also available through AuthorHouse), examines the spiritual development of some of history's great men.
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