BEETHOVEN 200 YEARS AGO TODAY: Tuesday, January 11, 1825
The “old woman,” Barbara Holzmann, declares that the new housekeeper has arrived and is ready to take over. Holzmann will be returning to the St. Marx Spital home for the aged poor. She has to go there today, because it’s already the 11th and her leave expires today. She offers, however, if Beethoven will allow it, to come several more times and take care of a few things. For instance, the wood comes tomorrow and she wants to supervise it. Beethoven accepts her proposition, since there is mention tomorrow of her, in connection with the wood delivery. The new housekeeper moves her things in.
Beethoven had wanted to give some copies to Reinhold von Duersterloh, to be taken to Dresden, possibly for Carl Amenda, as Prof. Albrecht suggests. Duesterloh comes to get the copies since he is now traveling back home. He has come to pay his compliments, and to have Beethoven write something in his autograph book. Beethoven asks him to leave it overnight, and he can pick it up again tomorrow.
The locksmith arrives at the apartment. Brother Johann had gone to the locksmith, probably to make arrangements for this visit, a few days ago.
The new housekeeper gets right to work and slaughters a pullet hen for dinner. Johann arrives, probably in time for dinner. The possible trip to England comes up again. Johann observes that it would be good for Ludwig’s health as well, “because traveling is very healthy for everyone.” Karl chimes in that Haydn also went to London in his 50s. But he was not so famous as Uncle Ludwig.
Sometime likely after 2:30 or so, violinist Ignaz Schuppanzigh arrives. Johann’s proposal for three more musical Akademie benefit concerts comes up. Schuppanzigh notes that time is very valuable. They need to make arrangements urgently so they can hold these concerts on Norma Days. [Norma Days are festival days of the Catholic Church, with a solemn mass. Serious concerts could be held, but frivolous plays and the like would be banned. This would help increase attendance since theatergoers would have few options.]
Schuppanzigh thinks the Landständischer Hall would be the best venue. Although both can be had for free, the university’s hall has too many expenses connected with it. There are no chairs provided, and there is no raised stage for the orchestra, which by itself costs 500 florins. All those things are already in place at the Landständischer Hall and would not give a kreutzer in expense. Ludwig asks how many people that hall will hold. Schuppanzigh says 1200 people. [That would be about half the size of the Kärntnertor Theater and less than half of the large Redoutensaal, where the May 1824 Akademie concerts were held.]
Schuppanzigh and Johann depart. Beethoven heads to a coffee house to read the newspapers. He makes note that there will be a dividend paid by the Austrian National Bank in the amount of 32 florins C.M. from January 11th on, which would be welcome income on his seven remaining bank shares. He also writes down an advertisement for Chlorine quick matches. [Both of these matters appear in the January 11 Wiener Zeitung and Intelligenzblatt; though they each appeared on other dates, today is the only time both appeared in the same issue.]
Possibly while still in the coffee house, an idea comes to Beethoven for the Finale of the op.127 string quartet and he writes it out quite carefully on pages 5v and 5r of the conversation book, with the words “Finale” and “Vcello.” [This sketch for a section in 3/2 time is seen here; it ultimately was not used in the quartet.]


Conversation Book 80, 20r-20v, 5v-5r.
Today’s Wiener Zeitung (Nr.7) at 30 also includes an advertisement from Sauer & Leidesdorf for the seventeenth volume in their continuing series of the Complete Operas of Rossini, in piano reduction form, Demetrio e Polibio. The price is 10 florins, or 6 florins for subscribers. The eighteenth volume, Tancred, newly arranged for piano solo, is at press. All the other volumes remain in print.