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Beethoven moved out to the Heiligenstadter-Testament-Haus , Probusgasse 6 (Tues-Sun 9am-12.15pm & 1-4.30pm; oS25/?1.82), in 1802 on the advice of his doctor, who hoped the country air would improve his hearing. It was here he wrote his "Heiligenstadt Testament" - a facsimile of which is at the museum - addressed but never sent to his brothers. In it he apologizes for appearing "unfriendly, peevish, or even misanthropic", talks honestly about his deafness - "a sense which in me should be more perfectly developed than in other people" - and the pain and embarrassment it brought him: "I was on the point of putting an end to my life - the only thing that held me back was my art." It reads like a will, though it was more of a confession, the cathartic soliloquy of someone who's reached rock bottom. Despite his personal distress, while resident at Probusgasse Beethoven completed his joyful Second Symphony , "brought home right from the meadows of Heiligenstadt, so full is it of summer air and summer flowers". Beethoven changed addresses more times even than Mozart, and spent a further four summers at various addresses in Heiligenstadt. The house in Probusgasse, however, is one of the best preserved of all his residences, and probably the most rewarding of the city's three memorial museums to the composer. Confusingly, there are, in fact, two museums situated here. The official municipal one, on the far side of the shady, cobbled courtyard, occupies the rooms rented by Beethoven, and contains a lock of the composer's hair and his death mask. On the opposite side of the courtyard is the rival Beethoven Ausstellung (Tues, Thurs & Sat 10am-noon & 1-4.30pm; oS10/?0.73), run by the elderly lady who lives at no. 5, on behalf of the Beethoven Society. There's more of an attempt at recreating some period atmosphere here, and there's an information sheet in English detailing the exhibits. To reach the museum, take bus #38A to Armbrustergasse from U-Bahn Heiligenstadt, or walk five minutes from the tram #37 terminus.
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