It is possible that you’ve heard one of the world’s most famous piano pieces Für Elise. It was written by the great German composer Ludwig van Beethoven. He is considered by some to be the greatest composer of all time, Sadly, Beethoven didn’t live long enough to enjoy the popularity of this little piece. It wasn’t published until many years after his death.

Though Beethoven composed Für Elise in 1810, it wasn’t discovered until 1865. It was published two years later, and the music became popular right away. However, some details remain a secret, especially the title because Beethoven wasn’t alive to discuss the work.

Ludwig Nohl, the man who discovered the piece, believed the title read Fur Elise. Yet because Beethoven had terrible handwriting, others weren’t sure who it was dedicated (献给) to. Some thought it might have read Fur Therese. The title Fur Elise means For Elise in German. But to this day, no one knows for sure who Elise was.

Some believe Therese Malfatti, Beethoven’s student and friend, is the strongest candidate (候选人) for the piece’s title. It’s believed that he proposed marriage (求婚) to her in 1810, but they never married. After her death, the music, which was signed by Beethoven, was found in her things.

Why is Für Elise still so popular today? It is because many piano students are introduced to it by their teachers. It’s also part of German pop culture. For instance the easily recognizable music can be heard in commercials (商业广告) and in movies. It’s also a popular mobile phone ring. Google has reported millions of searches for the   famous music.   In some places of China, rubbish trucks play the music to remind people to take out their rubbish. At times, the music has confused (使混淆) some foreigners who are used to musical trucks that carry ice cream, not rubbish.

Sirine Jahangir has been singing, writing and playing instruments since she was a little girl. She was badly injured in a traffic accident by the time she turned 5, so now the teen uses her gift “as a way to — not escape, but to help me through”. Not only did her passion get her through some difficult times, but when she was 14 it also brought her to the “Britain’s Got Talent” stage, where she impressed everyone with her performance.

Sirine was totally paralyzed by the time she was 10 years old. While her parents and doctors have tried to find treatments for her, there isn’t much they can do. So her parents focused on helping her adjust to her new life, which was when her dad said she was first introduced to music. “I remember one day, we were driving in the car. This is about when she was getting to the stage where she couldn’t look out the window anymore to see things, and I didn’t know what to do. I just put the music on really loud. She started singing in the car, and she was so happy. And then she just found happiness every time I put music on,” her father said.

It didn’t take long for them to realize Sirine had tremendous talent. When she appeared on “Britain’s Got Talent”, she told everyone just how much her passion means to her. “I guess music heals me,” she said. “That’s just what I live by, and music is my thing.” Then she headed over to the piano, where she played the piano and sang beautifully enough to bring the audience to tears! Unsurprisingly to everyone but Sirine, all four judges voted her into the next round of the competition!

Afterward, she said, “I can’t even say it’s a dream come true, because I didn’t even dream of it at any point... I never thought that would be realistic in my life.”