BEETHOVEN 200 YEARS AGO TODAY: Wednesday, June 29, 1825

Today is Saints Peter and Paul Day, which means Karl has a holiday from classes. He goes out to Baden, as his uncle appears to have requested in his letter yesterday. Consistent with that letter from Uncle Ludwig, Karl today writes a full accounting of the 11 florins that he had received for expenses, covering a tip for the carriage driver on Sunday, breakfast in Neudorf today, coffee, etc., the carriage out, a text on English calligraphy, and a new elastic necktie since his old ones were wool and unbearably warm. Finally, he went to the Burgtheater to see Schiller’s Maria Stuart, which “took place without any detriment to my studies.” As Prof. Theodore Albrecht notes, Karl is here lying to his uncle; Maria Stuart was not performed at the Burgtheater this week, but rather the comedy Stille Wasser sind betrüglich [Still Waters are Deceptive]. Karl seems to have believed that Uncle Ludwig would be less likely to object to classic drama by Schiller than a frivolous comedy. Karl goes on to say that he went to see Maria Stuart because a very good foreign actor played Mortimer, trying to make his story convincing.

[Frequent contributor Birthe Kibsgaard takes a more charitable view of Karl’s statement, since the drama Maria Stuart had in fact been performed at the Burgtheater the previous week, on June 18th, with Ludwig Löwe as Mortimer. Karl may have been truthful, but simply mistaken as to whether that performance was this week or the prior week.]

Karl still has 15 kreutzers left of the 11 florins.

Karl is surprised that no one from the Streichers [piano maker Johann Andreas or his wife and Beethoven’s good friend Nanette, or her brother Matthäus Stein] has come yet to visit his uncle in Baden.

Karl mentions that the meat is good. Uncle Ludwig wonders whether he should have accepted Brother Johann’s invitation to spend the summer out at his estate in Gneixendorf; it would have been much cheaper. Karl doesn’t think so. “I don’t believe you would have been satisfied with the meals there.” Karl also points out that his braggart Uncle Johann would have certainly said that he had taken Ludwig into his house.

Uncle Ludwig asks whether Karl showed the score of the Missa Solemnis to Franz Michael Reisser, the Vice Director of the Polytechnic Institute who is serving as Karl’s co-guardian. Yes, he did. “He immediately looked through it and commented only briefly about the beauties in it. He mentioned only that in the Gloria, and the very end, the words “Gloria in excelsis” return. That really pleased him.”

Ludwig and Karl have a light mid-day dinner; Ludwig has 2 eggs. Karl adds, “I too live very simply now, and it will be like that forever.” [Karl is again saying what he thinks his uncle would like to hear.]

Ludwig asks why Karl came so late in the day. Karl says he tried to come earlier; he got up at 4 in the morning today. But he can’t send the coach forth when he wants to; he had to wait until the other people riding it came.

Karl mentions that the piano tuner from Leschen is coming to Karl’s apartment tomorrow, because the clavichord is very much out of tune, and has been out of tune for more than 4 weeks. “I must also give him something [as a tip].” Uncle Ludwig presumably gives Karl the money for the tuner. Karl returns to Vienna yet this afternoon.

Conversation Book 90, 19v-21v.