Beethoven maybe primarily dealt with imperfection in ear (6)
I believe the answer is:
ludwig
'beethoven' is the definition.
(Ludwig van Beethoven is an example)
'primarily dealt with imperfection in ear' is the wordplay.
'primarily' suggests taking the first letters.
'in' means one lot of letters goes inside another.
'ear' becomes 'lug' (informal term for an ear).
The initial letters of 'dealt with imperfection' is 'dwi'.
'dwi' put into 'lug' is 'LUDWIG'.
'maybe' is the link.
(Other definitions for ludwig that I've seen before include "Mad king of Bavaria" , "Wagner's kingly patron" , "Beethoven's given name" , "Presumably a German" , "Great German composer . . . . . . van Beethoven" .)