BEETHOVEN 200 YEARS AGO TODAY: Monday, February 7, 1825
Beethoven makes a note that he still needs to buy blotting sand. Nephew Karl lets him know that the shoemaker is here. He will return twice more in the next few days, so he is probably measuring Beethoven’s feet, perhaps taking into account the corn problems and swelling Ludwig is experiencing.
The maid’s two weeks is up tomorrow, Karl observes. Ludwig, as usual, is concerned that she will gossip about them. Karl is unfazed, and thinks it won’t come to that. “Here, when they walk away silently, people call them blind-worms.”
Karl says that one of these days, Brother Johann wants to go eat at a restaurant, and then persuade the owner to drive with him out to his Gneixendorf estate and buy his wine, for 7 florins per Eimer [a bucket measure.]
Karl observes that Joseph Friedlowsky, who played in the Mozart clarinet quintet yesterday at the Schuppanzigh Quartet concert he attended with Johann, plays very beautifully. “There is a waltz in it, if you remember. He played it very well.”
Beethoven, perhaps expecting Johann and his smelly hair dye, makes a note to buy “fumigating candles, or better, the aromatic variety.” He also makes a note to go to the City administrator tomorrow regarding the bond coupons.
Later today, Johann comes to visit. He asks to see Ludwig’s foot. His diagnosis is that there is rheumatic swelling, but there’s no pus. Instead there’s a corn that has been cut too deeply. Ludwig asks how he should treat it, but Johann says first let it heal, and then one can do something.
Johann says he will come tomorrow with Ignaz Schuppanzigh to discuss the future Akademie benefit concerts. Schuppanzigh will handle everything, so Ludwig doesn’t have to worry about it. Ludwig asks whether they could use Schuppanzigh’s concert subscription list. He has 2,000 subscribers, Johann replies, but only about 1,000 of them actually pay. Johann orders another footbath and steaming water for his brother’s aching foot.
Cats got into the apartment while the maid was gone at the apothecary shop, and they caused some trouble.
Johann administers the footbath to Ludwig and continues. “You should send the Quartet [op.127] to England.” Ludwig, having been burned by the Berlin theater publishing the Consecration of the House Overture, when he had only authorized them to perform it, is hesitant. Johann would insist they give their word of honor not to publish it. Ludwig thinks they would probably want a period of exclusivity. Johann believes they would be happy to get one year exclusive. “They can wait; give them the pretext that a prince has bought them from you with the condition that you will not publish them. In any case, they will have a year to engrave the works.” Ludwig asks how much 100 guineas comes to in Viennese money. By Johann’s reckoning, that’s about 2,500 florins W.W.
There is salad for mid-day dinner, and there is oil in the dressing. This allows Karl to make the multilingual pun, “Today you would have already had much less,” with “much less” in German being “viel weniger,” the last word of which sounds like the English word vinegar, and thus “much vinegar.” Like uncle, like nephew.
Johann goes with Karl to visit his favorite upscale coffee shop. Ludwig, missing his newspapers but unable to go out because of his foot, again commissions Karl to go read the newspapers and then come back and tell him what the latest is. Karl dutifully does so, providing news stories from today’s Beobachter and the Augsburg newspaper from a few days ago.
“Things go well in Spain. The priests preach forgetfulness, forgiveness, and brotherly love. The English have united with Mexico, Peru, and Colombia, which are lost to Spain, France is terribly agitated about it.” Prince Maximilian of Saxony has permission to stay in Spain until September.
Karl continues, “Here in Vienna, a Frau Papayen [Lepayen] has had a letter delivered to the [French] Chamber of Deputies, in which she provides evidence that she spent 10 million francs for the royal princes, which she now demands back. The Duke of Orléans demands 43 million in damages for his father’s estates that were sold [during the Revolution. The Duke of Orléans will in 1830 himself become the French King under the name Louis-Philippe.] So many debtors have applied that they must raise another 2 billion in order to pay them.” Uncle Ludwig asks whether they will all be paid, and Karl responds, “One doesn’t know yet. The Chamber of Deputies has to decide that.”
Conversation Book 84, 14r-18r.
Today, B. Schott’s Sons in Mainz writes to Beethoven, replying to his letter of January 22. The contents of the letter are not known since it does not survive, but its existence and date are known from the notation made on that letter for the date of reply. Brandenburg Letter 1933. Given their impatience to receive the quartet op.127, it may relate to that work, which was not included with the shipment of the Missa Solemnis and Ninth Symphony.
The Pietro Mechetti publishing firm advertises in today’s Wiener Zeitung (Nr.29) at 127 another large set of newly-published dance music for the Carnival season. This set of 50 new German Dances for piano in four volumes is called Terpsichore [the Muse of Dance] and includes contributions from such notables who have appeared in these pages as Leopoldine Blahetka, Leopold Czapek, Beethoven’s former pupil Carl Czerny, Karl’s piano teacher Joseph Czerny, Joseph and Anselm Hüttenbrenner, Conradin Kreutzer, Franz Lachner, Leon de St. Lubin, Johann Pensel, Franz Schubert, Franz Stadler and many more. The set of four volumes can be had for 6 florins.