BEETHOVEN 200 YEARS AGO TODAY: Tuesday, February 21, 1826

Beethoven writes an undated note in pencil to unpaid assistant Karl Holz, probably sometime about now. “The new housekeeper is not here yet; has she been ordered to come?”

“Yours in haste, Beethoven.”

“I beg to come yourself at once. I am still in the hands of these scoundrels.”

Brandenburg Letter 2126; Anderson Letter 1446. “These scoundrels refers to two servants, possibly Barbara Holzmann and Frau Lindner, or a maid. The original is held by the Bonn Beethovenhaus, H.C. Bodmer Collection Br 152, and can be seen here:

https://www.beethoven.de/de/media/view/4976937562800128/scan/0

Dr. Anton Braunhofer comes to visit Beethoven early this morning. Braunhofer as usual writes in the conversation books; Dr. Staudenheim was usually more circumspect and did not write where others could read his comments. Braunhofer asks Beethoven a long series of questions about his complaints and condition, including diarrhea and a goutlike illness; unfortunately Beethoven’s responses are not recorded, but he was clearly in significant pain in his back, since Braunhofer asks a number of followup questions on that point.

Braunhofer gives Beethoven a restricted diet: “If you want to be healthy quickly, then you must follow the diet that I prescribed last year; otherwise I cannot guarantee how long your illness will last. No wine, no coffee, and eat according to my instructions. You can have as much as you want. For several days at least, the best water that can be had, also almond milk.” Braunhofer prescribes a specific kind of chocolate, which can be purchased at the Sign of the Golden Stag in the Leopoldstadt; it’s under his name and costs 2 florins per pound. “Nothing but yellow turnips and potatoes in the soup. Potatoes or yellow turnips with the beef. Roasted: chicken, veal roast, schnitzel. Potted the same way, with fresh butter, but without parsley, celery, pore, onion garlic, nutmeg, saffron, in short without any spices. Eggs and pastries must be prepared in just the same way.”

“Your diarrhea is connected with the gouty condition.” Beethoven does not have vertigo, but has a bitter taste in his mouth, heart palpitations and rushing in his ears. Braunhofer suggests irrigating them with lukewarm milk two or three times a day. Rice or barley gruel will do him good. He gives Beethoven a small bottle of homeopathic medication, to be taken two hours before breakfast. It’s water, with a single drop of medicine. Beethoven needs to drink it all at once and be patient if the matter isn’t completely resolved by tomorrow.

Braunhofer takes his leave, and says he will give the maid a pinch of chocolate to get Beethoven started. Braunhofer offers to pick up a pound of the chocolate if Beethoven will give him 2 florins. He tells Beethoven to abstain from wine for several days, and he asks that Beethoven give him a report in the morning on the day after tomorrow, when there should hopefully be some improvement. “I vouch that only in this way will you achieve health most quickly, and avoid the use of harmful medications.”

Conversation Book 104, 36v-39v.

Beethoven writes another undated note to unpaid assistant Karl Holz, from context probably later this same morning, since he refers to yesterday’s discussion and his urgent need for matches. He also refers to the barley gruel prescribed earlier today by Dr. Braunhofer, the housekeeper who didn’t show up, and Holz coming to dinner later the same day. “This is for the Magistrate—to be ill among such people, and such street riffraff, what a fate!” [The last part refers to “the old woman” Barbara Holzmann, and Frau Lindner, who were Beethoven’s servants at the time.]

“The woman who was expected didn’t come [Holz had arranged for a housekeeper candidate to interview with Beethoven this morning] perhaps because she was eagerly turned away [by Holzmann and Lindner]. It’s best to have her come see me at the time that you will be around. What a blessing it would be to finally find someone suitable!—Bring with you some sheets of nice letter paper, as well as matches, e.g. from Rospini’s in St. Stephen’s Square. Yours Odoardo!” [A self-pitying reference to Emilia Galotti by Lessing; Emilia’s father was Odoardo, who believed he was abandoned by everybody.]

“The goose [probably Frau Lindner] doesn’t know how to make barley gruel? Holy cow! Such people.”

“Farewell until dinner.”

Brandenburg Letter 2120; Anderson Letter 1516. The original is not known to exist, other than in the transcription by Kalischer, his Letter Nr.1181, when it was then in Berlin. The reference to the magistrate suggests that Beethoven enclosed paperwork necessary to claim the interest on Karl’s investments held at the Magistrate’s office. Holz does not appear to come today, but rather does so about dinnertime tomorrow.