BEETHOVEN 200 YEARS AGO TODAY: Wednesday, January 26, 1825
Beethoven writes letters to two publishers today. First, he delivers the bad news to Heinrich Albert Probst in Leipzig that he will not, after all, be getting the works that had been promised: The Consecration of the House Overture op.124; Opferlied op.121b; Bundeslied op.122; Six Bagatelles op.126; and Der Kuss op.128.
“My dear Herr Probst! How very sorry am I that this first agreement had to fall apart in a certain way; listen to the frank language of an equally frank man – these works all belonged to my brother, who, as my circumstances were less than stellar, advanced me a sum for them, and thus actually became the owner of them – your self-created difficulties, the language which Herr Loidl [Joseph Loydl, the Vienna leather dealer who acted as Probst’s financial agent in Vienna] used here against him, or rather against me, that they wanted to see all the works in question before they paid for them, incensed my blindly enthusiastic brother so much on my behalf that he absolutely did not want to give you the works any more, no matter what I said, even “Nunc dimitte illis, quia Nesciunt, quid faciant.” [“Now forgive them, for they know not what they do,” a slightly garbled reading of the Seven Last Words of Christ set by Haydn Hob.XX, after the Gospel according to Luke, 23:34] But this pleading had no effect.”
“I really used everything possible to persuade him, but since he was very far away from me on his country estate, I finally hoped to be able to sort everything out with him when he returned to the City. But now, when he came here, he had received much more advantageous offers from other publishers. Since he himself is a businessman, he always claimed that these works had been priced too low. It was difficult to make any answer to this, for he always claimed that you would never grant him what he was able to receive elsewhere.”
“He promised me though that he would write to you, and when I told him that I did not know what to do now, in order to settle the matter according to my wishes, I asked him to write to you and say that I would soon suggest some other works for you which you might like even better – this is the true course of this matter.”
“I am just about to write new string quartets. As soon as I have finished 2 or one, I will write to you. I usually get 50 ducats in gold for one, plus the copying costs, which are not so high now, but I still need to be reimbursed. If you want two quartets, then write to me, and as soon as they are finished, I will write you and the works will be delivered in return for the fee, etc.”
“I thought that you would have been enlightened by a letter from my brother, and he has already spoken to Herr Loidl about this matter, as he assured me that he had quite definitely made this known. + I was overly busy and hardly had time to talk to him about it -+- It hurts me greatly that you yourself are partly to blame for my good intentions failing you. I am grateful to you for the kindness you have shown me. If I visit Leipzig, I will certainly call upon you, and you will find in me a person who has been brought up in the school of misfortune. Yours sincerely, Beethoven.”
Brandenburg Letter 1926; Anderson Letter 1347. The original is held by the Pierpont Morgan Library in New York, in the Mary Flagler Cary Music Collection (MFC B4155 P962). Beethoven is being less than honest in this letter by placing the blame on Brother Johann, since Ludwig had himself negotiated the higher price with Schott, though it is true that he was highly offended by Probst asking to see the works before buying them, as Leipzig publisher C.F. Peters had urged. This is Beethoven’s final known letter to Probst, but we have not yet heard the last about this dispute.
Beethoven also writes to the Schott publishing house in Mainz, to which he had sold those works as well as the Missa Solemnis and Ninth Symphony. “Just a quick reminder – the Mass will be best and most clearly engraved if a space is left between the wind and brass instruments, as well as the timpani, then the 2 violins, viola, the 4 solo voices, the 4 choral voices, violoncello voice, contrabass voice, and finally the organ voice follows. This is how the score was divided by my deceased copyist [Wenzel Schlemmer, who died in 1823]. The organ voice could also be different, as you will find there. The old manuscript was too dirty to send to you; the new one has been checked over with the greatest care, which is truly no small effort with a copyist who hardly understands what he is writing.”
“If the Symphony would have been copied out in its entirety, it would have taken too long, and I have not yet been able to find a copyist who understands what he is writing at all. So, I have had new pages produced for the worst written parts – sometimes, the dots behind a note are found somewhere else entirely instead of next to the note, etc. Please indicate to the engraver that he should pay attention to this and place the dots everywhere next to the note, on the same line.”

“Where this passage comes in the first Allegro, first movement [of the Ninth Symphony] in the two violins, namely
[musical passage bars 132-133], they must be indicated “non ligato,” just as in the 2nd part.”
“It remains to be seen whether in the Dona nobis in the allegro assai, the first violin is not missing the flat on the D at this point, namely
[musical passage from the Dona nobis of the Missa Solemnis, first violins bars 168-169]
The tempo of the Benedictus Andante molto cantabile e non troppo mosso is perhaps not indicated.
In the canons that I sent you, and that I copied myself, it must say this in the 3rd and 4th bars thusly:
[excerpt from the canon Schwenke dich ohne Schwänke, WoO 187]
“Write straight away about Paris [referencing the rumors that a pirated edition of the Missa Solemnis had been printed there]. I could also send you a declaration in French from here, but whatever you do, I will agree with you in an unmistakable way.”
“My brother does not yet have the bill of exchange [for the six smaller works sold to Schott]. Hurry up with this matter, because he is a bit thirsty for money, all the more so as the money for it was transferred here, and I had a difficult time with the other publisher. Even a very distant firm wanted these works. Not to be a big talker, but the quartet will be delivered in 8 days at most, since I am very busy with other work.”
“With kind regards and respect, your friend Beethoven.”
Beethoven adds in a postscript other corrections and clarifications for the Missa Solemnis, relating to appogiaturas in a number of places in the 2nd violin and violas, which need to be changed from 8th note appogiaturas to 16th note appogiaturas, as appears in the first oboe and flute parts. “From this you can see, from among the copyists I still have, this knave is a complete Bohemian, a Pandur, who doesn’t understand anything. First, he writes the quarter note, then to the 8th note, and then finally 16th note. I hadn’t noticed this until I was hastily packing up the music.”
Brandenburg 1927; Anderson 1346. The original of this letter is in the Mainz City Library (Hs III 71, Nr.10), and can be seen in its entirety here:
https://www.dilibri.de/dilibri_kalliope/content/pageview/2170001
Nephew Karl discusses the washerwoman. Brother Johann thinks Ludwig overpays her, and next time she washes at his place, she probably will not be satisfied with what he gives her.
Copyist Ferdinand Wolanek is late. Karl says that Wolanek “is horribly afraid of you.” Ludwig wonders what it is he is supposed to be bringing. He only promised to bring the overture today.
Karl asks his uncle whether the agreement is to be drawn up between Uncle Ludwig and Schuppanzigh for him to run three Akademie concerts for Beethoven’s benefit, for one-third of the profits, as Johann had suggested yesterday. [Uncle Ludwig probably says he is still thinking it over since one-third seems too high to him.]
The building superintendent just brought the Wiener Zeitung. He always delivers them below. [Ludwig does not subscribe, but rather reads this newspaper for free at the coffee house in the afternoons.]
Karl asks whether Johann is coming for dinner tomorrow. He remarks that Johann met with Schuppanzigh yesterday for an hour.
They discuss finding a housekeeper through the building superintendent. That way, Karl thinks, they will get on the trail in the best way.
Karl outlines dinner [probably for tomorrow with Johann, rather than for today]:
Broth soup.
Meat with sauce.
Blue cabbage with chestnuts.
Wild duck.
Leg of lamb.
Pastry.
The sausages can only be roasted. If she doesn’t get any wild duck, then some other wild game bird would do. The current housekeeper says they should give something to the butcher in the Tiefer Graben.
Karl says that tomorrow “the mother” will come. [This apparently refers to the new maid, possibly Frau Lamatsch.] She [probably the building superintendent] has made the arrangements for her to come then.
Ludwig suggests a leg of venison rather than lamb. The housekeeper thinks that a leg of venison will be difficult to make, because it had been freshly bought today. She’ll figure out something else.
Copyist Ferdinad Wolanek shows up at last. He asks Beethoven whether he needs to buy extra paper and have it rastrated [marked with the staves and prepared for copying], or whether Ludwig will supply that paper.
Wolanek had spoken to Johann, who thought he would not come today since he has a stitch in his side. Johann told Wolanek that Ludwig would come to the same terms directly with him, as Beethoven had paid Frau Schlemmer, to make another copy of the Missa Solemnis, probably fulfilling the last of the subscription obligations. That was 60 florins for a copy of the Mass, and 10 florins for the horn parts.
Wolanek asks when the score needs to be finished, and whether it all needs to be by one hand, or whether it is acceptable to have multiple people working on it. Beethoven asks whether he has a subcontractor of his own [Wolanek had himself subcontracted through Frau Josepha Schlemmer]. He has a good one, who had also copied a small score for Beethoven. He was a teacher in the country. Beethoven asks whether he is reliable, and Wolanek assures him that he proofreads and checks over everything himself. “I already know your wishes.” He reminds Beethoven that he paid Peter Gläser 30 kreutzers per sheet for copying.
Wolanek says he will come back tomorrow [probably with what has been copied overnight.] Johann had also mentioned that there was another Bagatelle that Ludwig wanted copied very quickly. [This might be the Waltz in E-flat, WoO 84, or possibly Ziemlich lebhaft, WoO 60, both of which had recently appeared in Vienna, and which Beethoven could have wanted to send to Schott. From the following discussion, it is a work for piano, rather than one of the canons Beethoven was promising to send. However, Schott publishes neither composition.] Beethoven asks what type of paper Wolanek would use for it. Wolanek thinks 8-staff paper would be most appropriate, because it would be for clarity. Beethoven, ever looking to save money, suggests a 14-staff paper. Wolanek says no, “one cannot copy piano music so clearly on 14-line.” He could use 10-staff, though it would be somewhat crowded, one above and one below. But he will do it in a way that Beethoven will be satisfied. He asks for the Bagatelle, and then departs.
Later that afternoon, piano maker Johann Baptist Streicher visits Beethoven to discuss the possibility of Beethoven’s trip to London, with Streicher acting as traveling companion. “Your journey to London and back would cost you at most circa 4,000 florins C.M., along with a 4-month stay in London.” Beethoven asks how he came up with that. Streicher estimated one carriage with 2 horses. Beethoven thinks they could travel more inexpensively via postal coach. Streicher says he will check on the estimated cost of both regular and express postal coaches.
The concerts in London will be over in May, but they will begin again in March. While on tour, Streicher suggests, one is seldom sick, and can put up with a great deal. Beethoven asks when he should be there for the maximum profit. Streicher believes mid-February through the beginning of May. Beethoven is not excited about the prospect of traveling in the cold weather. Streicher responds, “In England it is much warmer than here, and already green in April.”
After Streicher departs, Nephew Karl and Ludwig head to a restaurant, but it is so late there is nothing left but roasted meat and potatoes. They talk a bit about Streicher, who Karl mentions has invented a patent octave-coupling device for the piano, and Streicher would like Beethoven to try it out. He could have sold the invention and gotten 50 ducats for it.
They talk about the proposed warning for the musical newspapers about the pirated four-hand piano arrangement of Consecration of the House. Karl jokingly makes fun of Ludwig’s German usage in the French text. “Good fellow! Guard yourself against Germanisms. One says, ‘faire attention,’ not ‘donner.‘”
They eat their roast and potatoes with their right hands. Karl mentions that in England, they use the left hand.
Ludwig, still thinking about the finances of the projected three Akademie concerts, asks what the admission to the opera is these days. Karl says it is 5 florins C.M. Ludwig asks whether it varies by theater, but Karl says it is the same price everywhere. One can easily bring in 12,000 florins C.M. in one evening there.
Reading the newspapers, Beethoven sees that the exchange rate commission for Imperial ducat coins should be 4 and 3/4 percent. [Henikstein had proposed a nearly 20% commission to convert Galitzin’s rubles into florins.]
They talk about Beethoven’s visitor from last fall, Johann Andreas Stumpff, who appears to have written them a letter (which does not survive). He had lost 800 pounds when the banking house of Marsh, Sibbald & Co., run by a man named Henry Fauntleroy, went bankrupt. Fauntleroy had been a partner in the greatest banking house in London, but he embezzled a vast sum of money, and then was hanged for it at the end of November.
Later in the day, Johann comes after all. The banker Henikstein’s son-in-law, Baron Ludwig von Stieglitz, has a note for Beethoven. The ducats from Galitzin have been there for two days already; they just need to provide the quartet op.127 and then they can take the ducats. The Stieglitz banking house is the largest in St. Petersburg. Johann will make sure of the exchange rate, and he won’t take any bad ducats from them.
Johann would like to pack up the quartet tomorrow. The postal coach for St. Petersburg departs on Saturday, January 29, so it has to be packed up by Friday afternoon at the latest. Ludwig seems to be unclear who they are sending the quartet to, and Johann reminds him it’s the copy for Prince Galitzin. The copy of the Consecration of the House Overture for him done by Wolanek is quite good, in Johann’s opinion.
Conversation Book 82, 10r-16v; Conversation Book 83 6r-6v.
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