BEETHOVEN 200 YEARS AGO TODAY: Monday, July 26, 1824

Beethoven today is in Baden and writes again to publisher Heinrich Albert Probst in Leipzig. He mentions that just as he was about to journey to Baden, he wrote to Probst on the 23rd of the month that all the works Probst wanted are ready and have been correctly copied.

So far as he can recall, he has not received Probst’s letters, which may result in their business coming to a standstill. He therefore asks that Probst send his letters directly, simply addressed “To Ludwig van Beethoven in Vienna.” That way he will definitely receive them.

The Overture [Consecration of the House] may be published straight away, as may the other works [Opferlied op.121b, Bundeslied op.122 and Der Kuss, op.128 as well as a set of piano bagatelles].”It is very important to me that they appear soon. Along these lines, I have written the 6 completely new bagatelles [op.126], and they will probably stand along the best of what I have already published. As soon as this matter is closed, I will show you new works. As you will remember, it would be pleasant for me to deal with only one publisher, or at most a few.”

Brandenburg Letter 1853; Albrecht Letter 373. The original as of the writing of Brandenburg’s edition of the letter was held by Mario Valente in Los Angeles, California. Probst will receive the letter on August 2, and will respond on August 9.

Gioacchino Rossini and his wife depart London today for Paris, having spent about seven months in England. While he was celebrated by King George IV, things had not gone well for the couple. His wife, soprano Isabella Colbran, was not up to the vocal requirements of performing there and was involuntarily retired. Rossini’s failure to provide a new opera for England did not help matters. The impresario of the King’s Theatre in the Haymarket defaulted on his contract with the couple, but kept it secret so that the public held Rossini responsible instead. Although he had done well financially (the British press claimed he had earned over 30,000 pounds), Rossini was happy to return to Paris and sign a contract with the French government at the Académie Royale de Musique and the Théâtre-Italien.