Why Beethoven? Charles Schulz said that he chose Beethoven as Schroeder’s favorite composer because
B-words are simply funnier—yet when asked, Schulz replied that Brahms was his favorite composer. Maybe Schulz was remembering when, as a young teenager, he would sit on the porch of best friend Shermy’s home and listen to Shermy’s mother play Beethoven pieces on the piano.

Whatever the impetus, Schulz painstakingly copied musical scores, note by note, for his now-famous Beethoven strips. The music was transcribed with such accuracy that musicians are able to play the pieces directly from the Peanuts strips!

In this exhibition, visitors will be able to view Beethoven-themed strips while listening to the music that Schulz transcribed into his panels. The exhibition will also feature Schulz’s reference books on classical music; personal letters he wrote about his growing appreciation of the genre; original Beethoven manuscripts, scores, and first editions; paintings and a bust of Beethoven; and a fortepiano, the kind that would have been used in the early 19th century.

>> Press release about Schulz's Beethoven: Schroeder's Muse

The exhibition is co-organized by Dr. Bill Meredith of the
Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies, San Jose State University.

Exhibition Information

The exhibit will be mounted at the Center for Beethoven Studies, Martin Luther King, Jr. Library, San Jose State University, from May 1 through July 31, 2009.

Charles Schulz lived through twelve presidential campaigns during his 50 years of creating Peanuts, and the presidential election years of 1960, 1964, and 1968 all found the Peanuts Gang contemplating a run for office or else actively involved in an election of one kind or another in the strip. Although Schulz was opposed to injecting politics into his strip in an overt manner, there were times over the years when he subtly or slyly commented on the process.

Schulz even foresaw the excitement over the first serious female candidate. . .by having Lucy bemoan the fact that another woman would probably beat her to the Presidential slot before she was old enough to run! This exhibition of 25 Peanuts strips highlight the lighter side of political campaigning.

>> Article about Political Peanuts

>> PeanutsRockTheVote.com

Exhibition Information

Schulz commented in an interview that when he created a sports-themed strip, he did not feel that it was dealing with sports. Instead, he said, “I use it as a springboard. Charlie Brown’s problems on the mound are emotional conflicts that everyone deals with.” Indeed, many important life themes—hope, perseverance, humiliation, and leadership —can be found disguised in the Gang’s often ill-fated baseball games. Get beneath the surface of Schulz’s epic baseball strips in this exhibition featuring over 70 original Peanuts strips.

>> Press release about Baseball as Allegory

Exhibition Information