BEETHOVEN 200 YEARS AGO TODAY: Tuesday, February 8, 1825
Nephew Karl comes to Beethoven’s apartment this afternoon, having already read the newspapers for his uncle. “Herr Benjamin Constans [Benjamin Constant (1767-1830)] gave a speech [in the French Chamber of Deputies] in which he provided evidence that one must compensate all those with private incomes who lost their property during the Revolution, just as the estate owners had.”
Brother Johann comes, and administers another footbath to Ludwig’s ailing foot, still swollen with rheumatism and suffering from a painful corn. Ludwig also had developed a bit of a cold from wearing just a night shirt. Johann says the same thing happened to him, and he developed a severe cough within 2 days. Now he always puts a woolen undershirt over it, and everything is fine.
Ludwig is going to be unable to go with Johann today as they had planned to visit the City administrators about the coupons, because of his foot, which prevents him from walking. He has Karl draft a short statement for Johann to take with him: “The undersigned, due to indisposition, is unable to come himself, and so he sends his brother, to whom he asks that the coupons be given.” Brandenburg Letter 1934. This draft meets with Ludwig’s approval and Karl copies out a fair version of the letter for his uncle to sign.
Johann takes this power of attorney to go collect the coupons. [These were coupons for the biannual payments of interest on court chamber bonds that were invested for Karl. In order to be paid, the coupon needed to be presented from special coupon sheets that were part of the securities. The securities and coupon sheets were deposited at the Vienna magistrate’s offices. Ludwig had to sign since he was still Karl’s guardian.]
After Johann leaves, Ludwig makes a short shopping list:
- Wax candles.
- Felt shoes. [Most likely to wear around the apartment while his foot was too swollen for normal shoes.]
Beethoven today receives the letter from Ferdinand Ries asking for a copy of the Ninth Symphony for the Lower Rhenish music festival in May. He ponders how to respond to the letter, but does not show it to Johann for a couple days.
Karl complains that this morning his clothes did not get cleaned until very late, because the maid had to run out and get snuff tobacco for the housekeeper. Ludwig is surprised at this, but Karl tells him the housekeeper has the maid running around the whole day. “Today at 8:30, she sent her to get milk for cooking, although cream had already been gotten earlier; therefore milk could have been gotten with it at the same time.”
Augustin Riedl, a piano maker from Baden comes to pay a call upon Beethoven. Karl writes in the conversation book on his behalf. Riedl also hears very badly, but doesn’t want anyone to make note of it. They really wonder how he manages to tune pianos very accurately. He would like to take Beethoven’s old ear trumpets with him, so that he could have them copied in smaller versions. Riedl is in Vienna for just tonight, at his brother’s place in Breitenfeld. Things are going badly for him in Baden. He has hardly made 20 florins since September. He has a great deal of dried wood, but has not cash to hire a journeyman.
Riedl appears to join them for mid-day dinner. Brother Johann arrives in time for dinner, which he thinks is rather cold. The food was roasted in the casserole pan, and is very good.
Riedl is making a six and one-half octave clavichord. Ludwig asks how that is accomplished. The strings are run cross-wise in the space it occupies. He had been the tuner for Archduke Rudolph for a long time, and would like to apply there again. He even has a testimonial from the Archduke about his satisfaction with Riedl.
After dinner, Johann, Karl and Riedl all appear to depart. Johann heads to the Vienna magistrate’s office with the power of attorney for the coupons on Karl’s investments. Johann returns to the apartment with Ignaz Schuppanzigh. Johann wasn’t able to meet with the man at the magistrate’s office because there were too many people there and he couldn’t speak to him alone. So he was requested to come back on Thursday, February 10.
Beethoven complains to Schuppanzigh that publisher Sigmund Anton Steiner has several works of his that he isn’t publishing. Schuppanzigh agrees and is aware that Steiner has two quite new overtures that he is sitting on. [The Name Day Overture, op.115, and the King Stephan Overture op.117. These works were eventually published by Steiner in 1825 and 1826, respectively.]
Schuppanzigh mentions that at his concert last Sunday they played Beethoven’s Quartet in F minor [op.95] which really pleased everyone. “Several people went completely crazy over it; the Andante in D major especially pleased them.”
Schuppanzigh appears to smoke, but Beethoven does not join in. The violinist asks whether Beethoven doesn’t ever smoke. [Editor Theodore Albrecht notes that Beethoven would sometimes smoke a pipe at the coffeehouse, but may not have smoked at home.]
Schuppanzigh is interested in the new quartet, op.127, and asks how it looks. Beethoven is concerned that the Viennese will not understand it, like most of his new compositions. “Don’t make anything out of it; there is a small number of asses who make themselves ridiculous.”
Beethoven excuses himself to use the chamber pot. Schuppanzigh laughs as he departs and tells Ludwig, “Shit it full!”
[Frequent contributor Birthe Kibsgaard mentions that Schuppanzigh might also be colloquially telling Beethoven that these Viennese are full of shit.]
After Schuppanzigh leaves, Brother Johann returns. He likes the filled pastry, Mehlspeise, made for dinner, which the housekeeper bought since it cannot be made easily at home. The cheese used to fill it can be hard to cut the longer it stands. The Krapfen jam-filled donuts for Fat Tuesday will be made with yeast, which can be difficult to digest, he thinks.
The housekeeper says she has time to go out and get some candles. She will buy 2 pounds of the poured and 1 pound of ordinary candles. Karl doesn’t have any candles either.
Johann mentions that composer Adalbert Gyrowetz (1763-1850) was also at the Schuppanzigh Quartet concert on Sunday. He found Ludwig’s quartet [op.95] to be “very beautiful.” Johann, who does not have a very good grasp of Ludwig’s catalogue of works, asks whether it was part of the set of the first six [op.18] or one of the later three [op.59.]. Ludwig tells him it is neither of these, but stands alone. Johann continues, “The whole thing pleased tremendously, as if it were being heard for the first time.”
Conversation Book 84, 18r-22r.