BEETHOVEN 200 YEARS AGO TODAY: Monday, January 10, 1825
Nephew Karl mentions that violinist Ignaz Schuppanzigh will be coming to the apartment this afternoon, but he is giving lessons until 2 o’clock, so it will be after that. Schuppanzigh, as usual, refers to Beethoven in the third person, which we overlook here.
Schuppanizgh eventually arrives, and Beethoven outlines the offer from Charles Neate in London to travel there at the Philharmonic Society’s expense. Schuppanzigh thinks it would be good for him. “I only wish that you would sometime gather the courage to make a tour; you would not regret it.” Beethoven will continue to think about it.
Beethoven also talks about difficulties he is having keeping servants. His housekeeper is retaining them and he thinks that they are doing things behind his back. Schuppanzigh agrees that her sneaking around is really useless; eventually they will be exposed for what they are: little pitiful people. Beethoven thinks he needs to take control of the situation himself. Schuppanzigh acknowledges that the housekeeper should not be treated equally with the other servants, but also he shouldn’t begrudge her a few little rewards.
Schuppanzigh is eager for Beethoven’s new quartet [op.127 in E-flat], which he has agreed to premiere at one of his subscription concerts. The quartet is nearly finished, though some work remains to be done on the Finale yet. Schuppanzigh asks to see it and Beethoven shows him at least the first few movements. Schuppanzigh is surprised to see the key of E-flat; he thought that Beethoven was writing a quartet in A minor. [The A minor quartet, which will eventually be op.132, was actually started before or about the same time as op.127, but it has not progressed nearly so far. Beethoven continues to work on it, however.]
Beethoven also mentions that Brother Johann has many thoughts about more Akademie concerts. Schuppanzigh makes a little pun, referring to Johann as a Gutbesitzer [estate owner], and says, “Let it be good [gut].” Schuppanzigh says he will talk it over with Johann to arrive at the best course of action.
Conversation Book 80, 16r-15r. [The pages are bound in reverse order here.]
In today’s Wiener Zeitung (Nr.6) at 25, the Lithographic Institute advertises a new publication, Polyhymnnia, pocket book for private theaters and friends of singing for the year 1825, published by Heinrich Marchner in association with Friedrich Kind. This was evidently intended as a New Year’s Gift, since it is neatly bound with gold edges and a slipcase and was meant to be an annual publication. Among the songs included in this volume is Beethoven’s song Trinklied, with chorus and piano accompaniment, better known as, “Come Fill, Fill My Good Fellow,” op.108/13, from the set of 25 Scottish Songs. The book also contains the now quite obscure Romance “Um Rettung bietet ein güld’nes Geschmiede” [A Golden Jewel Offers Salvation] for voice with piano accompaniment by Carl Maria von Weber, on a poem by the late Duke August of Saxe-Gotha (1772-1822).
The Trinklied is here performed by Christian Gerhaher, with accompaniment by Anton Barachovsky, Sebastian Klinger, and Gerold Huber:
https://youtu.be/ZSc820klW7Q?si=39dhcWsCrtrGLlmk
The Leipzig Zeitung für die elegante Welt [Newspaper for the Elegant World] for today (Nr.7) at 51 makes the interesting comparison, “Had Shakespeare received the call of the Genius to represent the richly formed world which his great mind encompassed in musical art instead of in drama, he would be seen as England’s Beethoven, and, like Mozart, had Melpomene chosen him as a priest, as the German Sophocles.”