BEETHOVEN 200 YEARS AGO TODAY: Wednesday, August 16, 1820 (approximately)

Beethoven, dissatisfied with the first variation for the finale of the sonata op.109, reworks it (sketchbook Artaria 195, p.75). This is followed by a number of ideas for small piano pieces. Beethoven is here trying out various ideas for bagatelles that he has promised to Friedrich Starke for his publication, Vienna Piano School. Among them are what will end up as nrs. 7-11 of the op.119 set of 11 bagatelles, found in early form on pages 76-80 of the sketchbook Artaria 195. Most likely, Beethoven reserves these five pages for these little compositions, and fills them in from time to time as they occur to him.

Here Sviatoslav Richter performs the bagatelle op.119/7 live: