BEETHOVEN 200 YEARS AGO TODAY: Tuesday, July 11, 1826
This morning, Beethoven writes a short note reminding unpaid assistant Karl Holz to come meet him for dinner today:
“Quite astonishingly best one!”
“At 2 o’clock precisely we go to dinner; I am expecting you will most certainly be there, where it will all be ready for you.”
“Today it can already be read on the Graben about the beer house newly established yesterday.”
“Yours most urgently,”
Brandenburg Letter 2167; Anderson Letter 1250. The original is in the British Library in London (add. Ms.33965, fol.179.) The reference to the “beer house” is probably a joke about the Steiner music publishing firm officially becoming the company Tobias Haslinger yesterday. Although Steiner had given up his trading license around April 4, 1826, the firm continued to operate. Haslinger acquired conditional trading rights on April 20 and full trading rights on June 6. The company was officially registered under his name on July 10. Around the same time, he moved to new premises at Graben Nr.572. Beethoven was still making jokes about the New Years’ Eve celebration at which the beer flowed copiously at the Steiner shop.
Holz meets Beethoven and asks if Karl is joining them. Beethoven tells him yes. Beethoven suggests he might need to contact the Kinsky estate about the proposed change to his pension, so it aligns with that from Archduke Rudolph. Holz tells him that he will talk to the Kinsky’s notary, Johann August Walcha first. Once that is set, Beethoven can get his payments all on September 1 instead of one from the Archduke (1700 florins) in September and one (from Kinsky for 1200 florins) in October.
Beethoven asks when he will get his Broadwood back from piano maker Conrad Graf. Holz tells him that he spoke to Graf and mentioned that Beethoven is getting visitors who asked to see the English piano; “it could be embarrassing for you if it was known abroad that it has not been with you for such a long time; this caused him to promise that from now on he would work diligently on it so that he would soon be able to send it to you; you can keep his [loaner piano] along with it.” Beethoven says he doesn’t need the loaner if he has the Broadwood back. Holz says he told him that.
Nephew Karl joins the pair. He suggests his uncle let Holz read the letter “from the Dutchman.” [This may be a now-lost letter from cellist Samson de Boer from Amsterdam, who visited Beethoven in Baden the previous August.]
Beethoven asks about Mathias Artaria and his delay in answering whether he wants to publish the nearly-completed quartet op.131 in C-sharp minor. Holz tells him that Artaria is aware that it has been offered to Schott’s and that they will take it; his business partner Johann Wolf comes from the area around Mainz and knows them.
Holz came from poet Christoph Kuffner an hour ago. He will soon send the elaborated first part of the oratorio Saul and David to Beethoven. To avoid issues with the censors, Kuffner intends to submit with the text a detailed program explaining the work. “Unfortunately, this is a necessary caution.” Beethoven asks who they could appeal to if there is a censorship issue. Alois Zettler (1778-1828), Holz responds, the court secretary with the censorship court, who they had spoken to about the dispute with Haslinger this spring.
Beethoven is displeased that he isn’t able to get the fish he wants. Klingenbrunner, who is acting as the go-between for Beethoven and fishmonger Therese Jonas, told Holz that sometimes it is not easy currently to get the fish he wants.
Holz mentions that today he heard someone singing Beethoven’s song Der Wachtelschlag [Call of the Quail, WoO 129, written in 1803 on a poem by Samuel Friedrich Sautter.] They also sang the lieder by Klopstock, dedicated to Count Johan Georg von Browne-Camus (1767-1827). “The first one a prayer in E major.” Beethoven corrects Holz; he is referencing the songs, op.48, which were written on poems by Christian Gellert, not Klopstock.
Der Wachtelschlag, WoO 129, is here performed by Peter Schreier, with Norman Shetler on piano:
Holz has not yet received the score for the Ninth Symphony to review.
Beethoven asks about the violins that he asked Holz to have restrung by violin maker Bernhard Stoss. Holz assures him that they will return in good condition.
Holz has to leave soon to go back to work. “The Landmarschall is calling for me again.”
Conversation Book 114, 12r-14r. For unknown reasons, tomorrow Beethoven will start using Conversation Book 115 tomorrow, even though this conversation book is less than half full. Possibly Book 114 was misplaced for around a week.
Beethoven’s patron Archduke Rudolph continues his journey from Leoben to the spa of Bad Ischl via Vordernberg, Eisenerz and Admont. Wiener Zeitung of Wednesday, July 19, 1826 (Nr.163) at 685, quoting the Grätzer Zeitung of July 11. In May of this year, Beethoven had himself considered visiting the baths of Ischl this summer, but did not do so.