 Section 13 of the Life of Ludwig von Beethoven, Volume 1 by Alexander Wheelock there, translated by Henry Edward Krabil. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Chapter 11, Beethoven in Vienna, Personal Details, Death of His Father, Minor Expenditures and Receipts, Studies with Albrechts, Burger and Salieri. Beethoven settles down in Vienna. It would be pleasant to announce the arrival of Ludwig von Beethoven in Vienna with, so to speak, a grand flourish of trumpets and to indulge the fancy in a highly-colored and poetic account of his advent there, but, unlikely, there is none of that lack of data which is favorable to that kind of composition, none of that obscurity which exalts one to write history as he would have it and not as it really was. The facts are too patent, like the multitude of studious youths and young men who came dither annually to find schools and teachers. This small, thin, dark complexioned, pockmarked, dark-eyed, bewigged young musician of twenty-two years had quietly journeyed to the capital to pursue the study of his art with a small, thin, dark complexioned, pockmarked, black-eyed and bewigged veteran composer. In the well-known anecdote related by Carpani of Haydn's introduction to him, Anton Esterhazy, the prince, is made to call the composer a moor. Beethoven had even more of the moor in his looks than his master. His front teeth, owing to the singular flatness of the roof of his mouth, protruded and, of course, thrust out his lips. The nose, too, was rather broad and decidedly flattened, while the forehead was remarkably full and round. In the words of the late court secretary Mahler, who twice painted his portrait, a bullet. Beethoven wrote Janker confessed that in his journeys he had seldom found, in the playing of the most distinguished virtuosos, that excellence which he supposed he had a right to expect. He now had an opportunity to make his observations upon the pianists and composers at the very headquarters, then, of German music, to improve himself by studying under the best of them and by and by to measure his strength with theirs. He found very soon that the words of the poet were here also applicable. Diz distanced Len's enchantment to the view and did not find, now Mozart was gone, what he supposed he had a right to expect. For the present, however, we have to do but with the young stranger in a large city seeking lodgings and making such arrangements for the future as shall not be out of due proportion to the limited pecuniary means of his command. If the minute details which he or follow should seem to be too insignificant in themselves, the bearing they have upon some other future questions must justify their introduction. Turning again to the memorandum book, the first entries which follow the notes of the journey from Bonn to Virgus are merely of necessities to be supplied, wood, wigmaker, coffee, overcoat, boots, shoes, pianoforte desk, seal, writing desk, pianoforte money, and something illegible followed by the remark all beginning with next month. The next page gives a hint as to the day of his arrival. He contains the substance of two advertisements in the Wiener Zeitung of Pianoforte's for sale, one near the Hohenmarkt and two in Kramer-Schen-Breithaus, number 257 in Schlosser-Gassel-Am-Groben. The latter appears for the last time on the 10th of November, Beethoven was there for then in Vienna. But he intends to cultivate the graces as well as the muses. The next page begins with this, Andreas Lindmer, dancing master, lives in the Stass-Am-Himmel, number 415, to which succeeds a note evidently of money received from the elector, possibly in Bonn, but more likely in Vienna. Twenty-five decades received of which to expend it on November half a sovereign for the Pianoforte, or six Florence, forty Crutzer, two Florence were of my own money. This same page also shows him in the matter of his toilet, preparing even them for entrance into society, black silk stockings, one ducket, one pair of winter silk stockings, one Florence, forty Crutzers, boots, six Florence, shoes, one Florence, thirty Crutzers, but these expenses, in addition to his daily necessities, are making a large inroad upon his twenty-five duckets received, and on page seven we read, on Wednesday the 12th of December, I had fifteen duckets, the 12th of December fell upon Wednesday in the year 1792, omitting for the present what else stands upon page seven, here are the interesting contents of page eight, and how suggestive and pregnant they are, in Bonn I counted on receiving one hundred duckets here, but in vain I've got to equip myself completely anew. Several pages which follow contain what upon inspection proves evidently to be his monthly payments, from the time when all was to begin next month of which the first may be given as a specimen, house rent, fourteen Florence, Pianoforte, six Florence, forty nine Crutzers, begging each time twelve Crutzers, meals with wine, six and one half Florence, three Crutzers for BNH, it is not necessary to give the housekeeper more than seven Florence, the rooms are so close to the ground, death of Johann von Beethoven, Beethoven was hardly well settled in his lodgings, the novelty of his position had scarcely begun to wear off, under the effect of habit when startling tidings reached him from Bonn of an event to cloud his Christmas holidays to weaken his ties to his native place to increase his cares for his brothers and make an important change in his pecuniary condition, his father had suddenly died 1792, December 18, obit Johannes Beethoven says the death role of Sam Ramigius perished the Elector Archbishop still a minister heard this news also and consecrated a joke to the dead man's memory on the first of January 1793 he wrote a letter to court Marshall von Shaw in which these words occur the revenues from the liquor excise have suffered a loss in the deaths of Beethoven and Eichhoff for the widow of the latter provision will be made if circumstances allow in view of his 40 years of service in the electoral kitchen. Franz Ries was again to be friend Beethoven and act for him in his absence and the receipt for his first quarter salary, $25 is signed of Ries in the name of Ludwig Beethoven at the usual time, namely the beginning of the second month of the quarter February 4 but the lapse of Johann von Beethoven's pension of $200 was a serious misfortune to his son particularly since the hundred ducats were not forthcoming. The correspondence between Beethoven and Ries not being preserved it can only be conjectured that the letter took the proper steps to obtain that portion of the pension set apart by the electoral decree for the support of the two younger sons but in vain owing to the disappearance of the original document and that receiving information of this fact Beethoven immediately sent from Vienna the petition which follows but which as is mostly the case with that class of papers in the bond archives is without date several years ago your serene electoral highness was graciously pleased to retire my father the tenor singer von Beethoven from service and to set aside $100 of a salary to me that I might close nourish and educate my two younger brothers and also pay the debts of my father. I was about to present this decree to your highness's revenue extrector when my father urgently begged me not to do so in as much as it would have the appearance in the eyes of the public as if he were incapable of caring for his family adding that he would himself pay me the $25 quarterly which he always did. When however on the death of my father in December of last year I wish to make use of your highness's grace by presenting the above mentioned gracious decree I learned to my tear that my father had misapplied unter schlagen that is to embezzle the same in most obedient veneration I therefore pray your electoral highness for the gracious renewal of this decree and that your highness's revenue extrector be directed to pay over to me thus some graciously allowed to me due for the last quarter at the beginning of last February. Your electoral and serene highnesses most obedient and faithful Ludwig von Beethoven court organist the petition was duly considered by the privy council and with the result indicated by the endorsement supe of the court organist L. von Beethoven the 100 Reich's dollar which he is now receiving annually is increased by a further 100 Reich's dollar in quarterly payments beginning with January 1st from the 200 Reich's dollar salary vacated by the death of his father he is further to receive the three measures of grain graciously bestowed upon him for the education of his brothers the electoral court chancellery will make the necessary provisions attest p the order to the extrector followed on May 24th and on June 15th Franz Reese had the satisfaction of signing receipts one for 25 dollars for January February and March and one for 50 dollars for the second quarter of the year but from this time onward no hint has yet been discovered that Beethoven ever received anything from the elector or had any resources but his own earnings and the generosity of newly found friends in Vienna these resources were soon needed the remark that two forms of the payment towards the pianoforte were out of his own money proves that he possessed a small sum saved up by degrees from lesson giving from presence received in the like but it could not have been a large amount while the 25 decades and the above recorded receipts of salary were all too small to have carried him through the summer of 1793 here is the second of his monthly records of necessary and regular expenses and further proof of this 14 thorns house rent six thorns 40 kruzuz pianoforte meals with wine 15 thorns and a half three thorns made one the sum total being as added by himself a labrin duckets and one half thorn and yet at the end of the year there are entries that show that he was not distressed for money for instance the 24th october that is reckoning from november 1st 100 and 12 thorns and 30 kruzer two duckets for a seal one floor and 25 kruzzers copyist tuesday and saturday from seven to eight sunday from 11 to 12 three thorns and the final entry not later in date than 1794 is three carolins and gold four carolins and crown tollers and four duckets make seven carolins and four duckets and a lot of small change in what manner Beethoven was already in 1794 able to remain in vienna without salary until recall to quote the electors words will thereafter appear with some degree of certainty but just now he claims attention as pupil of heiden and albrecht's burger the citations made him a previous chapter from the letters of niefan fish nick prove how strong an impression Beethoven's powers both as virtuoso and composer had made upon joseph heiden immediately after his reaching vienna and no man then living was better able to judge on such points but whether the famous chapel master just returned from his english triumphs himself a daring and successful innovator and now very busy with compositions in preparation for his second visit to london was the man to guide the studies of a headstrong self-willed and still more daring musical revolutionist was a priori a very doubtful question the result proved that he was not Beethoven's studies with heiden the memorandum book has a few entries which relate to heiden on page seven that which contains the 15 duckets on the 12th of october 1792 there's a column of numerals the first of which reads heiden eight grossam the other 12 except a single one all two and on the two pages which happened to have the dates of october 24 and 29 1793 are these two entries 22 grootsers chocolate for heiden and me coffee six grootsers for heiden and me these notes simply confirm what was known from other sources namely that Beethoven began to study with heiden buried soon after reaching vienna and continued to be his pupil until the end of the year 1793 they indicate also that the scholar whatever feelings he may have indulged towards the master in secret kept on good terms with him and that their private intercourse was not confined to the hours devoted to lessons and heiden's room in the hamburger house number 992 on the no longer existing vassar kunstvastar concerning the course of study during that year nothing can be added to the words of natabom alegromusica zeitung 1863 to 1864 founded upon a most thorough examination of all the manuscripts and authorities which bear upon this question of the manuscripts natabom says they are exercises and simple counterpoint on six plain chance and the old modes he must have written more but what on this point there are no indications to be found it may be accepted with considerable certainty that the contrapuntal exercises were preceded by an introductory though probably brief study of the nature of consonances and dissonances for this the last chapter of the first book of fux's gratus ad parnassum might have served but this as natabom would not have suffice to fill the entire period in view of heiden's predilection for fux's system it is not conceivable that there were preliminary exercises say in the freestyle or in the modern keys there remains therefore no alternative but to go back further and opine that the study with heiden began with the theory of harmony and exercises in which the system of belief Emmanuel Bach might have been used it is certain says schindler that Beethoven's knowledge of the signs of harmony at the time when he began his study with heiden did not go beyond thorough base the correctness of this opinion of schindler may be safely left to the judgment of the reader the fact seems to be that Beethoven conscious of the disadvantages attending the want of thorough systematic instruction distrustful of himself and desires of bringing to the test of his novel and cherished ideas had determined to accomplish a complete course of contrapuntal study and thus renew revised and reduced to order and system the great mass of his previous scientific requirements he would at all events thoroughly know and understand the regular that he might with confidence judge for himself how far to indulge in the irregular to this view long since adopted the results of not bombs researchers and credibility it explains also how young men too confident in the soundness of his views to be willing to alter his productions because they contain passages and defects centred by those about him for being other than those of Mozart and Heiden was yet willing with the modesty of true genius to shut them up in his writing desk until through study and observation he could feel himself standing upon the firm basis of sound knowledge and then retain or exclude according to the dictates of an enlightened judgment Beethoven however very soon discovered that also in Heiden as a teacher he had not found that excellence which he supposed he had a right to expect Reese remembered a remark made by him on this point Heiden had wished that Beethoven might put the word pupil of Heiden on the title of his first works Beethoven was unwilling to do so because as he said though he had had some instruction from Heiden he had never learned anything from him still more in point is the oft-repeated story of Johann Schenck's kindness to Beethoven related by Seyfried and Groffers and Schilling's lexica and confirmed by Schindler which when divested of its eras and dates may be related thus among Beethoven's earliest acquaintances in Vienna was the Abe Josef Gilling and Nick one of the first virtuosos then in that city and an amazingly fruitful and popular composer of variations it was upon him that Carl Maria von Weber some years afterwards wrote the epigram kind thema out their belt their shanta dine geni da simpelsta align dick celbest varist duni no theme on earth escaped your genius airy the simplest one of all yourself you never vary kazerni told Otto Jan that his father once met Gellinick tricked out in all his binary wither he inquired i'm asked to measure myself with a young pianist who has just arrived i'll use him up a few days later he met him again well how was it ah he is no man he's a devil he will play me and all of us to death and how he improvises recording kazerni Gellinick remained a sworn enemy to Beethoven it was in Gellinick's lodgings that shank her Beethoven improvised the for the first time a treat which recalled lively recollections of Mozart with many manifestations of displeasure Beethoven always eager to learn complained to Gellinick that he was never able to make any progress in his contrapuntal studies under Haydn since the master too variously occupied wasn't unable to pay the amount of attention which he wanted to the exercises he had given him to work out Gellinick spoke on the subject with shank and asked him if he did not feel disposed to give Beethoven a course in composition shank declared himself willing with ready courtesy but only under two conditions that it should be without compensation of any kind and under the strict seal of secrecy the mutual agreement was made and kept with conscientious fidelity thus far say free we shall now permit shank to tell his own story in 1792 his royal highness archduke next million the electorate of cologne was pleased to send his charge louis von Beethoven to Vienna to study musical composition with Haydn towards the end of july abat Gellinick informed me that he had made the acquaintance of a young man who displayed extraordinary virtuosity on the piano forte such indeed as he had not observed since Mozart in passing he said that Beethoven had been studying counterpoint with Haydn for more than six months and was still at work on the first exercise also that his excellency Baron von Sweden had earnestly recommended the study of counterpoint and frequently inquired of him how far he had advanced in his studies as a result of these frequent incitations and the fact that he was still in the first stages of his instruction Beethoven eager to learn became discontented and often gave expression to his dissatisfaction to his friend Gellinick took the matter much to heart and came to me with the question whether I felt disposed to assist his friend in the study of the counterpoint I now desire to become better acquainted with Beethoven as soon as possible and a day was fixed for me to meet him in Gellinick's lodgings and hear him play on the piano forte Beethoven's improvisations thus I saw the composer now so famous for the first time and heard him play after the customary courtesies he offered to improvise on the piano forte he asked me to sit beside him having struck a few chords and tossed off a few figures as if they were of no significance the creative genius gradually unveiled his profound psychological pictures my ear was continually charmed by the beauty of the many and varied motives which he wove with wonderful clarity and loveliness into each other and I surrendered my heart to the impressions made upon it while he gave himself wholly up to his creative imagination and a non-leaving the field of mere tonal charm boldly stormed the most distant keys in order to give expression to violent passions the first thing that I did the next day was to visit the still unknown artist who had so brilliantly disclosed his mastership on his writing desk I found a few passages from his first lesson and counterpoint a cursory glance disclosed the fact that brief as it was there were mistakes in every key Gelenick's utterances were thus verified feeling sure that my pupil was unfamiliar with the preliminary rules of counterpoint I gave him the familiar textbook of Joseph Fuchs Grados Ad Parnassum and asked him to look at the exercises that followed Joseph Haydn who had returned to Vienna towards the end of the preceding year was intent on utilizing his muse in the composition of large masterworks and thus laudably occupied could not well devote himself to the rules of grammar I was now eagerly desirous to become the helper of the zealous student but before beginning the instruction I made him understand that our cooperation would have to be kept secret in view of this I recommended that he copy every exercise which I corrected in order that Haydn should not recognize the handwriting of a stranger when the exercise was submitted to him after a year Beethoven and Gelenick had it falling out for a reason that has escaped me both it seemed to me were at fault as a result Gelenick got angry and betrayed my secret Beethoven and his brothers made no secret of it longer I began my honorable office with my good Louis in the beginning of august 1792 and filled it uninterruptedly until may 1793 by which time he finished double counterpoint in the octave and went to Eisenstadt if his Royal Highness had sent his charge at once to Albrechtsburg or his studies would never have been interrupted and he would have completed them here follows a passage afterwards stricken out by shank in which he resents the statement that Beethoven had finished his studies with Albrechtsburg this would have been advisable but if it were true Gelenick as well as Beethoven would have told him of the fact on the contrary he admitted to me that he had gone to hair salieri royal imperial chapel master for lessons in the freestyle of composition then shank continues about the middle of May he told me that he would soon go with Haydn to Eisenstadt and stay there until the beginning of winter he did not yet know the date of his departure I went to him at the usual hour in the beginning of June but my good Louis was no longer to be seen he left for me the following little billet which I copy word for word dear shank it was not my desire to set off today for Eisenstadt I should like to have spoken with you again meanwhile rest assured of my gratitude for the favor shown me I shall endeavor with all my might to require them I hope soon to see you again and once more to enjoy the pleasure of your society farewell I do not entirely forget your Beethoven it was my intention only briefly to touch upon my relations with Beethoven but the circumstances under which and the manner in which I became his guide in musical composition constrained me to be somewhat more explicit for my efforts if they can be called efforts I was rewarded by my good Louis without precious gift these affirm bond of friendship which lasted without fading to the day of his death written in the summer of 1830 a chronological difficulty is presented by shank's story of the cessation of the instruction there can be no doubt that it began towards the beginning of august 1793 is confirmed by the distinct utterance of shank who errors in the year however particularly by the statement that the study with Haydn had already endured six months shank's instruction is said to have lasted till the end of may 1794 and the definitive mention of the month makes an error improbable but at this time Haydn was already long in England while shank's narrative represents Beethoven as saying that he intended going to Eisenstadt with Haydn moreover Beethoven was already Albrecht's burgers pupil and as such was no longer in need of secret help nevertheless the continuance of their relations with shank is easily possible and they were not likely to be interrupted so long as Beethoven remained in Vienna this is indicated by the reference to double counterpoint which Beethoven did not study under Haydn but with Albrecht's burger also shank's intimation that if the elector had sent his charge at once to Albrecht's burger shows that instruction with the letter had already begun the letter to shank though cast in friendly terms can nevertheless be interpreted as a declination of further services a breaking off of the relationship between teacher and pupil for which the journey to Eisenstadt was a welcome excuse but we learn only from shank that Beethoven was to make the journey with Haydn and he may have been mistaken in this as he was in the year it is very conceivable that Beethoven had received an invitation to visit him from Prince Esther Hazy who must surely have got acquainted with him in Vienna he who is unwilling to accept this must place the letter and the journey in the last months of 1793 which is in every respect improbable Beethoven's relations with Haydn the relations between Haydn and his pupil did not long continue truly cordial yet Beethoven concealed his dissatisfaction and no break occurred faultless and reckless of consequences as he often in later years unfortunately exhibited himself when indulging his wilfulness he was at this time responsible to the elector for his conduct and Haydn moreover was too valuable and influential a friend to be wantonly alienated so whatever feelings he cherished in secrecy kept them to himself went regularly to his lessons and as noted above occasionally treated his master to chocolate or coffee it was of course Haydn who took the young man to Eisenstadt does need tells us he wished to take him to England why was that plan not carried out did Maximilian forbid it would Beethoven's pride not allow him to go there as Haydn's pupil did zeal for his contrapuntal studies prevented or had his relations to the Austrian nobility already become such as offered him higher hopes of success in Vienna than Haydn could propose in London or finally was it his ambition rather to make himself known as Beethoven the composer than as Beethoven the pianoforte virtuoso pecuniary reasons are insufficient to account for the failure of the plan for Haydn who now knew the London public could easily have removed all difficulty on that score Neve's letter was written near the end of september 1793 when already a number of reports have reached bond that Beethoven had made great progress in his art these reports we know from Fischer nick came in part from Haydn himself and to that the wish to take his people with him to England which was certainly the highest compliment he could possibly have paid him and the utter groundlessness of Beethoven's suspicions at Haydn was not well-minded towards him as Reese says in his notice in page 85 is apparent yet these suspicions added to the reasons above suggested sufficiently explained the departure of the master for London without the company of his pupil who now january 1794 was transferred to Albrecht's burger in the pretty extensive notes copied from the memorandum book already so much cited there about two which came with any degree of certainty be referred to a date later than 1793 one of them is this Schopen Sieg three times a W week Albrecht's burger three times a W week the necessary inference from this is that Beethoven began the year 1794 with three lessons a week in violin playing from Schopen Sieg unless the youth of the letter should forbid such an inference and three in counterpoint from the most famous teacher of that science safe read affirms that the studies with the letter continued two complete years with Tarla's persistency the coming narrative will show that other things took up much of Beethoven's attention in 1795 and that before the close of that year if not already at its beginning his course with Albrecht's burger ended studies with Albrecht's burger the instruction which Beethoven received from Albrecht's burger and which was based chiefly on the master's and vice sang zur composition began again with simple counterpoint in which Beethoven now received more detailed directions than had been given by Haydn Albrecht's burger wrote down rules for him Beethoven did the same and worked out a large number of exercises on two plain song melodies which Albrecht's burger then corrected according to the rules of strict writing they're followed contrapuntal exercises and free writing in imitation in two three and four part feud coral feud double counterpoint in the different intervals double feud triple counterpoint in canon the last was short as here the instruction ceased Beethoven worked frequently in the immediate presence and with the direct cooperation of Albrecht's burger the letter labored with obvious conscientiousness and care and was ever ready to aid his people if he appears at times to have been given over to minute detail and conventional method it must be born in mind that rigid schooling in fixed rules is essential to the development of an independent artist even if he makes no use of them and that it is only in this manner that freedom and workmanship can be achieved of this the youthful Beethoven was aware in every line of his exercises bears witness that he entered into his studies with complete interest and undivided zeal this was particularly the case in his exercises and counterpoint and imitation where he strove to avoid errors and their beneficial results are plainly noticeable in his compositions several of the compositions written after the lessons disclose how he was led from a predominantly figurative to a more contrapuntal manner of writing there's less of this observable in the suffuge in which the instruction itself was not free from deficiencies and the people worked more carelessly the restrictive rules occasionally put him out of conceit with his work he was at the age in which as a rule suggestion and incitation are preferred to instruction and his stubborn nature played an important role in the premises however it ought to be added that he was also at an age when his genial aptness in invention and construction had already found exercise in other directions even though he did not receive thorough education and fugue from Albrecht's burger he nevertheless learned the constituent elements of the form and how to apply them moreover in his later years he made all these things the subjects of earnest and devoted study independent of others and in the compositions of his later years he returned with special manifest threat election to the fugue style nothing could be more incorrect than to emphasize Beethoven's lack of theoretical education if while studying with albrecht's burger but more particularly in his independent compositions Beethoven ignored many of the strict rules it was not because he was not able to apply them but because he purposely set them aside places can be found in his exercises in which the rules are violated but the testimony of the ear acquits the pupil rules are not the objects of themselves they do not exist for their own sake and in despite of all artistic systems it is the reserve privilege of the evolution of art means and prescient forward genius to point out what in them is of permanent value and what must be looked upon as antiquated nature designed that Beethoven should employ music in the depiction of soul states to emancipate melody and express his impulses in the free forms developed by Femme and Bach Mozart Haydn and their contemporaries in this direction he had already disclosed himself as a dowdy warrior before the instruction in Vienna had his beginning and it is very explicable that to be hemmed in by rigid rules was frequently disagreeable to him he gradually reared to creating musical skeletons but all the more worthy of recognition yay of admiration is the fact that the young composer who had already mounted so high should by abnegation of his creative powers surrender himself to the tyranny of the rules and find satisfaction in conscientious practice of them not a bomb summed up his conclusions from the investigation which he made of Beethoven's posthumous papers thus prefacing that after 1785 Beethoven more and more made the manner of Mozart his own he continues the instruction which he received from Haydn and Albrecht's burger enriched him with new forms and media of expression and these affected a change in his mode of writing the voices acquired greater melodic flow and independence a certain opacity took the place of the former transparency in the musical fabric out of a homophonic polyphony of two or more voices there grew a polyphony that was real the earlier obligato accompaniment gave way to an obligato style of writing which rested on a greater extent on counterpoint Beethoven has accepted the principle a polyphony his part writing has become pure and it is noteworthy that the compositions written immediately after the lessons are among the purists that Beethoven ever composed true the Mozart model still shines through the fabric but we seek it less in the art of figuration than in the form and other things which are only indirectly associated with the obligato style similarly we can speak of other influences that of Joseph Haydn for instance this influence is not contrapuntal Beethoven built upon his acquired and inherited possessions he assimilated the traditional forms and means of expression gradually eliminated foreign influences and following the pressure of his subjective nature with its inclination towards the ideal he created his own individual style as is known say freed in his book entitled Ludwig von Beethoven's studio in General Rob Bassa which appeared in 1832 gathered together all that was to be found in the way of exercises excerpts from textbooks etc in Beethoven's posthumous papers and presented them in so confused and arbitrary a manner that only the keenness and patience of a not a bomb could point the way through the maze say freed would have us believe that the entire contents of his book belong to the studies under Albrecht's burger it will require no waste of words says not a bomb to prove the incompatibility of such a claim with the results of our investigations as a matter of fact only the smallest portion of those studies can be traced back to the instruction which Beethoven received from Albrecht's burger the greater part had nothing to do with this instruction and aside from the changes made belongs to the other labors in the smaller portion say freed made things as easy for himself as possible he took only such as he had found cleanly copied or allegedly written and omitted those which were difficult to decipher because of many corrections this is the explanation of the fact that say freed did not include a single exercise and strict simple counterpoint if all the passages bearing on the course followed under Albrecht's burger were brought together and all the errors made in the presentation overlooked we should still have better fragmentary and faulty reflection of that study neither need we enter upon a discussion of the marginal notes attributed to Beethoven which so plentifully besprinkle say freed's book the fact is that in all the manuscripts which belong to the studies under Albrecht's burger not one of the sarcastically thrown out marginal notes is to be found the glosses which do appear as Beethoven's are of a wholly different character from those printed by say freed they show that Beethoven was deeply immersed and interested in the matter it would indeed be inexplicable what could have persuaded Beethoven to continue study with the teacher with whom as say freed would have us believe he was in conflict already at the beginning of simple counterpoint he had it in his power to discontinue studies at any moment a doubt has been hinted above whether Beethoven's studies under Albrecht's burger were continued beyond the beginning of the year 7095 if all these exercises and counterpoint fugue and canon and all those excerpts from fuchs cpe Bach Turk Albrecht's burger and Kern burger at which say freed made the basis of his student and mingled in the confusion inextricable by any one possessing less learning patience sagacity and perseverance than not a bomb had already belonged to the period of his pupilage their quantity alone taken in connection with the writer's other occupations would indeed preclude such a doubt but knowing that perhaps the greater portion of those many scripts belongs to a period many years later and considering the great facility in writing which Beethoven had already acquired before coming to Vienna there seems to be no indication of any course of study which might not easily be completed during the one year with Haydn and Schenck and one year with Albrecht's burger Schoenfeld in the jar Buch der Tonkunst for Vien und Prague supposes that Beethoven was still the people of the latter at the time when he wrote which was in the spring 1795 his words are an eloquent proof of his Beethoven's real level of art is a circumstance that he has placed himself in the hands of our immortal Haydn in order to be initiated into the sacred mysteries of composition this great master has in his absence turned him over to our great albrecht's burger there's nothing decisive in this and yet it is all that appears to confirm the two years of safe read while on the other hand Begler who during all the year 1795 was much with Beethoven has nowhere in his noticing any illusion whatever to his friend is being still a student under a master referring to the number of pages of exercises and the three lessons of week not a bomb calculates the period of instruction to have been about 15 months in as much as among the exercises and double counterpoint in the 10th there is found a sketch belonging to the second movement of the trio opus one number two which trio was advertised as finished on May 9 1795 it follows that the study was at or near its end at that date the conclusion of his instruction from albrecht's burger may therefore be set down at between March and May 1795 the third of Beethoven's teachers in Vienna was the imperial chapel master Anton Salieri but this instruction was neither symptomatic nor confined to regular hours Beethoven took advantage of Salieri's willingness to give gratuitous instruction to musicians of small means he wanted advice and vocal composition and submitted to Salieri some settings of Italian songs which the latter corrected in respect to verbal accent and expression rhythm metrical articulation subdivision of thought mood single boldness and the conduct of the melody which comprehended all these things having himself taken the initiative in this Beethoven devoted himself earnestly and industriously to these exercises and they were notably profitable in his creative work thereafter also in his german songs he treated the text with much greater care than before in respect of its prosodic as also of its contents and the prescribed situation and acquired a good method of declamation the Salieri's influence extended beyond the period in which Beethoven's style developed itself independently cannot be asserted since many other and varied influences made themselves felt later this instruction began soon after Beethoven's arrival in Vienna and lasted in an unconstrained manner at least until 1802 at even a later date he asked council of Salieri in the composition of songs particularly Italian songs according to an anecdote related by Czerny at one of these meetings for instruction Salieri found fault with the melody as not being appropriate to the air the next day he said to Beethoven I can't get your melody out of my head then Hervan Salieri replied Beethoven it kind of had been so utterly bad the story may be placed in the early period but it appears from a statement by mass shells that Beethoven still maintained an association with Salieri in 1809 no shells who was in Vienna at this time found a note on Salieri's table which read the people Beethoven was here re-speaking of the relations between Haydn, Albrecht's burger and Salieri as teachers and Beethoven as people says I knew them all well all three valued Beethoven highly but we're also of one mind touching his habits of study all of them said Beethoven was so headstrong and self-sufficient so of all then that he had to learn much through harsh experience which he had refused to accept when it was presented to him as a subject of study particularly Albrecht's burger and Salieri were of this opinion the dry rules of the former and the comparatively unimportant ones of the latter concerning dramatic composition according to the Italian school of the period cannot appeal to Beethoven it is now known that the dry rules of Albrecht's burger could make a strong appeal to Beethoven as appertaining to theoretical study and that the old method of composition to which he remained true all his life always had a singular charm for him as a subject of study and investigation here as in many other cases the simple statement of the difficulty suggests their explanation Beethoven the people may have honestly and conscientiously followed the precepts of his instructors in whatever he wrote in that character but Beethoven the composer stood upon his own territory followed his own tastes and impulses wrote in wrought subject to no other control he paid Albrecht's burger to teach him counterpoint not to be the center and critic of his compositions and Reese's memory may well have deceived him as to the actual scope of the strictures made by the old master and have transferred to the people what fully 30 years before had been spoken of the composer as has been mentioned Beethoven's relations with Salieri at a later date were still pleasant the composer dedicated to the chapel master the three violin sonatas opus 12 which appeared in 1799 nothing is known of a dedication to Albrecht's burger according to an anecdote related by Albrecht's burger's grandson Hirsch Beethoven called him a musical pedant yet we may see a moment of gratitude toward his old teacher in Beethoven's readiness to take an interest in his young grandson we have now to turn our attention to Beethoven's relations to Viennese society outside of his study in the section 13 section 14 of the life of Ludwig von Beethoven volume one by Alexander Wheelock Thayer translated by Henry Edward Crebel this LibriVox recording is in the public domain chapter 12 music in Vienna in 1793 theater church and concert room a music-loving nobility the Esther Hasis Kinski, Liknowsky, Von Kies and von Svitn, composers Haydn Gaslu, Förster and Eberl opera and concerts in Vienna the musical drama naturally took the first place in the musical life of Vienna at this period the enthusiasm of Joseph II for a national German opera to which the world owed Mozart's exquisite Entfer Rang proved to be but short-lived and the Italian opera Bufa resumed its old place in his affections the new company engaged was however equal to the performance of Don Giovanni and Figaro and Salieri's magnificent Aksua Leopold II reached Vienna on the evening of March 13th 1790 to assume the crown of his deceased brother but no change was for the present made in the court theater indeed as late as July 5 he had not entered a theater and his first appearance at the opera was at the performance of Aksua September 21 in the company of his visitor Dean Ferdinand of Naples for once firmly settled on the imperial throne Joseph's numerous reforms successfully annulled the Turkish war brought to a close and his diverse coronations happily ended the emperor gave his thoughts to the theater Salieri though now but 41 years of age enriched with the observation and experience of more than 20 years in the direction of the opera was according to Mosul graciously allowed but according to other and better authorities compelled to withdraw from the operatic orchestra and confine himself to his duties as director of the sacred music in the court chapel and to the composition of one operatic work annually if required the vener zaitan of January 28 1792 records the appointment of Joseph Weigel Salieri's pupil and assistant now 25 years old as chapel master and composer to the royal imperial national court theater with a salary of 1,000 florans the title composer was rather an empty one though already favorably known to the public he was forbidden to compose new operas for the court stage to this end famous masters were to be invited to vienna at first root of this new order of things was the production of samarosa's il matrimonio segreto february 7 1792 which with good reason so delighted leopold that he gave the performers a supper and ordered them back into the theater and heard the opera again da capo it was among the last of the emperor's theatrical pleasures he died march 1st and his wife on the 15th of may following thus for the greater part of the time from march 1 to may 24 the court theaters were shut and yet during the 13 months ending december 15 1792 Italian opera had been given 180 times 134 times in the berg and 46 times in the carn nerthor theater and ballet 163 times so that as no change for the present was made there was abundance in these branches of the art for a young composer like Beethoven to hear and see all accounts agree that the company then performing was one of uncommon excellence and its performances with those of the superb orchestra prove the value of the long experience exquisite taste and flagging zeal and profound knowledge of their recent head salieri such as Beethoven found the opera in the first week of november 1792 such a continued for the next two years exclusively italian but of the first order a single stroke of extraordinary good fortune a happy accident is perhaps a better term had just now given such prosperity to a minor theatrical enterprise that in 10 years it was to erect and occupy the best playhouse in Vienna and for a time to surpass the court theater in the excellence and splendor of its operatic performances we mean scher kanander's theater auf der bieten but in 1793 its company was mean its house small its performances bad enough schick and eaters chapelmaster and composer was john baptist and in berg the chapelmaster of marinelli head of another german company in the leopold start was benzo moeller who had already began his long list of 227 light and popular compositions to text magical or farcical some two weeks after Beethoven's arrival in vienna on november 23rd schick kaniter announced falsely the 100th performance of d zabber flurte an opera the success of which placed his theater a few years later upon a totally different footing and brought Beethoven into other relations to it than those of an ordinary visitor indulging his comical taste testa safe read for listening to and heartily enjoying very bad music the leading dramatic composers of vienna not yet named must receive a passing notice besides samarossa who left vienna a few months later Beethoven found peter du tillier a frenchman by birth but an italian musician by education and profession engaged as composer for the court theater his ill tree on foe damal ray had been produced there november 14 71 in his non arena a pa dol fina had lately come upon the stage ignaz umlau composer of the sharna shoestring and other not unpopular works had the title of chapelmaster and composer to the german court opera and was salieri substitute as chapelmaster in the sacred music of the court chapel franz avia suce mayor so well known from his connection with motzart was just now writing for schick kaneeter's stage shank for marinelli's and for the private stages of the nobility and paul vrannitsky first violinist and so-called music director in the court theater author of the then popular oberon composed for the beaten stage was employing his very respectable talents for both marinelli and schick kaneeter the church music of vienna seems to have been at a very low point in 1792 and 1793 two composers however whose names are still of importance the musical history were then in that city devoting themselves almost exclusively to this branch of the art obrex burger court organist but in a few months through the death of leopold hoffman march 1773 to become a musical director at st stevens and joseph eibler some five years older than betovin who had just become regens kora in the carmelite church when he was called to a similar and better position in the scottish kirk two years later public concerts as the term is now understood may be said not to have existed and regular subscription concerts were few motzart gave a few series of them but after his death there appears to have been no one of sufficient note in the musical world to make such a speculation remunerative single subscription concerts given by virtuosos and annual ones by some of the leading resident musicians of course took place then as before and since the only real and regular concerts were the four annual performances in the bird theater two at christmas and two at easter for the benefit of the musicians widows and orphans these concerts established mainly by gasman and salieri were never exclusive in their programs or to orio symphony cantata concerto whatever would add to their attraction found place the stage was covered with the best musicians and vocalists of the capital and the suburb orchestra was equally ready to accompany the playing of a motzart organ ephemeral lunter kint risk beck was told ten years before that the number taking part in orchestra and course had even then on some occasions reached 400 a statement however which looks much like exaggeration very uncommon semi-private concerts were still kept up in 1793 the reader of motzart's biography will remember that in 1782 this great composer joined a certain martin in giving a series of concerts during the morning hours in the awe garden hall most of the performers being de la tante and the music being furnished from the library of barn keys these concerts found such favor that they were renewed for several years and generally were 12 in number ladies of even the highest nobility permitted themselves to be heard the auditorium was extremely brilliant and everything was conducted in so orderly and decent a fashion that everybody was glad to support the institute to the best of his energies the receipts from the chief subscription were expended entirely on the cost of the concerts later her rudolf assumed the direction alamanya music aliska zeitung 345 this man still young and a fine violin player was the director when Beethoven came to Vienna and the extraordinary spectacle was stood to be seen of princes and nobles following his lead in the performance of orchestral music to an audience of their own class at the strange hours are from six to eight in the morning from the above it appears that Vienna presented to the young musician no preeminent advantages either in opera church music for its public concerts other cities equal the Austrian capital in the first two London was then far in advance of all in the number variety and magnificence of the last it was in another field at Vienna surpassed every competitor as glued 20 years before had begun the great revolution in operatic music completed by Mozart so heightened building on the foundation of the box and needed by Mozart was affecting a new development of purely instrumental music which was yet to reach as high a stage through the genius and daring of the youth now his people the example said by the Austrian family through so many generations that produced its natural effect and a knowledge of and taste for music were universal among the princes and nobles of the empire some of the more wealthy princes like Esther hazy maintained musical establishments complete even to the Italian opera others were contented with hearing the mass sung in their house chapel to an orchestral accompaniment where this was impossible a small orchestra only was kept up often composed of the officials and servants who were selected with regard to their musical abilities and so down to the band of wind instruments the string quartet and even to a single organ player pianist or violinist what has been said in a former chapter of music as a quasi necessity at the courts of the ecclesiastical princes applies in great measure to the secular nobility at their castles and country seats in the summer amusement was to be provided for many and otherwise tedious hour and in their city residences during the winter they and their guests could not always feast dance or play at cards and here too music became a common and favorite recreation at all events it was the fashion outside the ranks of the nobleborn such as by talents high culture of wealth occupied high social positions followed the example and opened their salon two musicians and lovers of music moved there too for the most part by a reel rarely by a pretended taste for the art in either case feeding and encouraging its progress hence an enormous demand for chamber music both vocal and instrumental especially the latter the demand created the supply by encouraging genius and talent to labor in that direction and thus the austrian school of instrumental music soon led the world as in the previous generation the demand for oratorios in england gave that country the supremacy in that branch of art during certain months of the year Vienna was filled with the greatest nobles not only of the austrian states but of other portions of the german empire those who spent their time mostly in their own small courts came up to the capital but for a short season others reversed this making the city their usual residents and visiting their estates only in summer by the former class many a once if not still famous composer in their service was thus occasionally for short periods brought to the metropolis as Mozart by the brutal archbishop of salt's birth and hidden by prince ester hazy by the latter class many of the distinguished composers and virtuosos resident in the city were taken into the country during the summer to be treated as equals to live the light gentleman among gentlemen another mode of encouraging the art was the ordering or purchasing of compositions and this not only from composers of established reputation as hide Mozart c p e bach but also from young and as yet unknown men thus affording to full benefit pecuniary aid and an opportunity of exhibiting their powers the instrumental virtuosos when not permanently engaged in the service of some prince of theater looked in the main for the reward of their studies and labors to the private concerts of the nobility if at the same time they were composers it was in such concerts that they brought their productions to a hearing the reader of Jan's biography of Mozart will remember how much even he depended upon this resource to gain the means of support for himself and family out of London even so late as 1793 there can hardly be said to have existed a musical public as the term is now understood and in vienna at least with this 200 000 inhabitants a virtuoso rarely ventured to announce a concert to which he had not already a subscription sufficient to ensure him against loss from those at whose residences he had successfully exhibited his skill Beethoven remaining in vienna without salary until recalled by max found in these resources and his pupils in ample income but this topic requires something more than the above general remarks some 12 years previous to Beethoven's coming to vienna rizbeck speaking of the art in that capital had written orchestras of the great nobles musicians are the only ones artists concerning whom the nobility exhibit taste many houses maintain private bands for their own delectation and all the public concerts prove that this field of art stands in high respect it is possible to enlist four or five large orchestras here all of them incomparable the number of real virtuosos is small but as regards the orchestral musicians scarcely anything more beautiful is to be heard in the world titled music lovers in vienna how many such orchestras were still kept up in 1792 to 93 it is probably now impossible to determine those of princes lob kowitz schwarzenberg and ours spurred may safely be named count hymerik van how vitz and doubtless count batiani brought their musicians with them when they came to the capital for the season the aster hazy band dismissed after the death of heidens old master seems not yet to have been renewed prince grasso kovitz or croc salt kovitz had reduced his to a band of eight wind instruments oboes clarinets bassoon horns a kind of organization then much involved baren braun had won to play a dinner as at the supper in don giovanni an accessory to the scene which motzart introduced out of his own frequent experience prince carl lick now ski and others retain their own players of string quartets the grandees of the bohemian and meravian capitals kinsky klam no stits thun bukhoi hartig saum pakta spork flunk kirk and etc emulated the austrian and hungarian nobles as many of them had palaces also in vienna and most if not all spent part of the year there bringing with them a few of the more skillful members of their orchestras to execute chamber music and for the nucleus of a band when symphonies concertors and grand vocal works were to be executed they also added their contingent to the musical as well as to the political and fashionable life of the metropolis the astonishingly fruitful last eight years of motzart's life falling within the period now under contemplation contributed to musical literature compositions wonderfully manifold in character and setting an example that forced other composers to leave the beaten track hyden had just returned from his first day in london enriched with the pregnant experience acquired during that visit bans phyton had gained during his residence in berlin appreciation of and love for the works of handle bach and their schools and since his return to vienna about 1778 had exerted and was still exerting a very powerful and marked influence upon vienna's musical taste thus all the conditions preceded for the elevation of the art were just at this time fulfilled at vienna and in one department that of instrumental music they existed in a degree unknown in any other city the extraordinary results as to the quantity produced in those years may be judged from the sale catalog 1779 about single music dealer yohan tregg which gives of symphonies symphonies concertantes and overtures the last being in a small minority the extraordinary number of 512 the music produced the private concerts given by the nobility range from the grand oratorios operas symphonies down to variations for the piano forte and to simple songs leading musicians and composers whose circumstances admitted of it also gave private concerts at which they made themselves and their works known and to which their colleagues were invited prince luke vitz at the time Beethoven reached vienna was a young man of 20 years he was born on december 7 1772 and had just married on august 2 a daughter of prince sforzenberg he was a violinist of considerable powers and so devoted a lover of music and the drama so profuso squanderer of his income upon them as in 20 years to reduce himself to bankruptcy precisely Beethoven's supposed age the aristocrat of wealth and power and the aristocrat of talent and genius became exceedingly intimate occasionally quarreling and making up their differences as if belonging by birth to the same sphere the reigning prince ester hazy was that paul anton who after the death of his father on february 25 1790 broke up the musical establishment at ester haas and gave heightened relief from his 30 years of service he died on january 22 1794 and was succeeded by his son nicolas a young man just five years older than Beethoven prince nicolas inherited his grandfather's taste for music reengaged an orchestra and soon became known as one of the most zealous promoters of roman catholic church music the best composers of vienna including Beethoven wrote masses for the chapel of ester haas where they were performed with great splendor count yohann nepo muck ester hazy of the middle line zoo fachmo was a man of 45 years a good performer upon the oboe and which is much to his credit had been a firm friend and patron of motzart of count france ester hazy a man of 35 years shernfeld in his yahr buk der tong kunst thus speaks this great friend of music at certain times of the year gives large and splendid concerts at which for the greater part large and elevated compositions are performed particularly the choruses of handle the sanctus of immanuel bach the starbot mater of pergolisi and the like at these concerts there are always a number of the best virtuosos it was not the present prince joseph kinsky who died in 1798 in his 48th year who at a later period became a distinguished patron of Beethoven but his son fernand yohann nepo muck then a bright boy of 11 years born on december 4 1781 upon whose youthful taste the strength beauty and novelty of that composer's works made a deep impression prince carl lick now ski the pupil and friend of motzart had a quartet concert at his dwelling every friday morning the regularly engaged musicians were ignaz shu benzik son of a professor in the real shula and a youth at this time of 16 years if the musical lexica are to be trusted first violin louis sena pupil of first or also a very young man second violin ron's vice who completed his 15th year on january 18 1793 viola and then tom craftor his son nicolas a boy of 14 years born december 18 1778 violon cello it was in fact a quartet a boy virtuosos of whom Beethoven several years older can make what he would the prince's wife was marie christine 20 years of age one of those three graces as georg forster calvin daughters of that countess thune and whose house motzart had found such warm friendship and appreciation and his noble qualities are so celebrated by bernie righart and forster the princess as well as her husband belonged to the better class of amateur performers upon the piano forte court counselor vanquise vice president of the court of appeals of lower osprey was still living he was says gyro vets speaking of a period of a few years earlier recognized as the foremost music lover and de la tante in vienna and twice a week he gave in his house society concerts at which were gathered together the foremost virtuosos of vienna and the first composers such as joseph hyden motzart doris dorth hopmeister albrecht's burger guian novici and so on hyden's symphonies were played there and hyden's letters to madem gen zinger the name of vanquise often occurs the last time in a note of august 4 7092 which mentions that the writer is that day to dine with the court counselor this distinguished man left on his death january 5 7095 a very extensive collection of music godfrey fire her van spyton son of maria teracea's famous dutch physician says schoenfeld is van spyton and his influence as it were looked upon as a patriarch of music he has taste only for the great and exalted he himself many years ago composed well beautiful symphonies stiffed as himself said hyden when he attends a concert our semi connoisseurs never take their eyes off him seeking to read in his features not always intelligible to everyone what ought to be their opinion of the music every year he gives a few large and brilliant concerts at which only music by the old masters is performed his preferences for the handelian manner and he generally has some of handel's great courses performed as late as last christmas 7094 he gave such a concert at prince van pars at which an oratorio by this master was performed new calm told professor yon that in concerts if it chance that a whispered conversation began his excellency who was in the habit of sitting in the first row of seats would rise solemnly draw himself up to his full height turn to the culprits fix along and solemn gaze upon them and slowly resumed his chair he was effective always he had some peculiar notions of composition he was for instance fond of imitations of natural sounds and music and forced upon hiding the imitation of frogs in the seasons hyden himself says this entire passage in imitation of a frog did not flow from my pen i was constrained to write down the french croak at an orchestral performance this wretched conceit soon disappears but he cannot be justified in a pianoforte score let the critics be not too severe on me i am an old man and cannot revise all this again but to van spite surely if is due the credit of having founded in vienna a taste for handel's oratorios unbox organ and piano forte music thus adding a new element to the music there the costs of the oratorio performances were not however defrayed by him as schoenfeld seems to intimate they were met by the association called by him and to be and of which he was perpetual secretary whose members were the princess like lichstenstein ester hazy schwarzenberg ours spurred kinsky taut man's dork sin sin dork and the counts sarnan harrick urdu and frieze that whose palace is as well as in van spiteens house and sometimes in the great hall of the imperial royal library the performances were given at midday to an audience of invited guests fowl line martinez who holds so distinguished a place in bernie's account of his visit to vienna that people of poor poor at whose music lessons the young joseph hidein 40 years before have been employed as an accompanist still flourished in the michael's house and gave a musical party every saturday evening during the season court counselor and chamber pay master van mayer says schoenfeld is so excellent a lover of music that his entire personnel in the chancellery is musical among them being such artists as a rafael and a houseka it will readily be understood therefore that here in the city as well as at his country seat there are many concerts his majesty the emperor himself has attended some of these concerts these details are sufficient to illustrate and confirm the remarks made above upon vienna as a central point of instrumental music of the great number of composers in that branch of the art whom Beethoven found there a few of the more eminent must be named famous composers in vienna of course hidein stood at the head the next in rank longo enter vallo was Mozart's successor in the office of imperial chamber composer the uphold causalluck a bohemian now just 40 years of age though now forgotten and according to Beethoven miser robelis he was renowned throughout europe for his quartets and other chamber music a man of less popular repute but of a solid genius and requirements far beyond those of causalluck whom Beethoven greatly respected in 25 years later called his old master was emmanuel a lois forster a celizian now 45 years of age his quintets quartets and the like ranked very high but at that time were known for the most part only in manuscript anton e burl five years the senior of Beethoven a viennese by birth had composed two operettas in the 16th year of his age which were produced at the carmnerthor theater one of which gained the young author of the favor of guc he seems to have been a favorite of mozart and caught so much of the spirit and style of that masters to produce compositions which were printed by dishonest publishers under mozart's name and as his were sold throughout europe in 1776 he accompanied the widow mozart and her sister madame along the vocalist in the tour through germany gaining that reputation in other cities which he enjoyed at home both as pianist and composer his force was in instrumental composition and we shall hear after see him for a moment as a symphonist bearing away the palm from Beethoven yo han van hall whose name was so well known in paris in london that bernie 20 years before sought it out in his garret in a suburb of vienna was as indefatigable as ever in production gerber says in his first lecture on 1792 that bright cop and hardtail had then 50 of his symphonies and manuscript his fecundity was equal to that of hyden his genius such that all his works are now forgotten it is needless to continue this list one other fact illustrating the musical taste and accomplishments of the higher classes of the capital may be added there were during the winter 1792 to 93 10 private theaters with amateur companies in activity of which the more important were in the residences of the nobles star calmer kinsky sinston dorf and straw saldo and of the bookseller schromble most of these companies produced operas and operettas end of section 14 section 15 of the life of ludwig van Beethoven volume one by alexander wheelock fair translated by henry edward crebel this lever box recording is in the public domain chapter 13 Beethoven in society concerts regulars recollections compositions the first trios sonatas dedicated to hyden variations dances for the redotto rooms plays at hyden's concert however quiet and without observation Beethoven's advent in vienna may have been at that time when men's minds were occupied by movements of armies and ideas of revolution he could hardly have gone there under better auspices he was court organist and pianist to the emperor's uncle his talents in that field were well known to the many austrians of rank who had heard him in bond when visiting there or when paying their respects to the elector in passing to and from the austrian netherlands he was a pupil of joseph hyden a circumstance in itself sufficient to secure him a hearing and he was protected by count ball stein whose family connections were such that he could introduce his favorite into the highest circles the imperial house only accepted ball stein's mother was a lichsten stein his grandmother trot monstor three of his sisters have married respectively into the family's district stein krugenberg and vallis and by the marriages of uncles and aunts he was connected with the great houses of artisan speilberg kevin than huler melish kinsky paul freibahn erdud and ule fell not to mention others less known if the circle be extended by a degree or two it embraces the names countets lob kovitz kohari funk kirkchen gag glavix and crawler reddo mine's field dr bernie in closing his present state of music in germany notes the distinction in the styles of composition and performance in some of the principal cities of that country vienna being most remarkable for fire and animation manheim for need and brilliant execution berlin for counterpoint and brunswick for taste since bernie's tour 1772 vienna had the highest example of all these qualities united in mozart but he had passed away and no great pianist of the first rank remained there were extraordinary dilettante and professional pianists a very need and brilliant execution but none who possessed great fire animation and invention qualities still most valued in vienna and in which the young Beethoven with all the hardness and heaviness of manipulation caused by his devotion to the organ was wholly unrivaled with all the salon in the metropolis open to him his success as a virtuoso was therefore certain all the contemporary authorities and all the traditions of those years agree in the fact of that success and that is playing of box preludes and fuchs especially his reading of the most difficult scores at site and his extemporaneous performance has excited ever new wonder and delight schindler records that van sleighten after musical performances at his house detained Beethoven and persuaded him to add a few fuchs by sebastian bark as an evening blessing and he preserves a note without date though evidently belonging to Beethoven's first years in vienna which proves how high a place the young man had then won in the old gentleman's favor to mr Beethoven in alstergasse number 45 with the prince liknowski if there is nothing to hinder next wednesday i should be glad to see you at my home at half past eight with your nightcap in your bag give me an immediate answer spyton there's also an entry in the office cited man random book belonging in date to october november 1793 which may be given in this connection sucked in the evening at spyton's 17 poor boar to the janitor for cruzers for opening the door the three trios opus one but the instant in striking success of Beethoven as virtuoso by no means filled up the measure of his ambition he aspired to the higher position of composer and to obtain this more was needed than the performance of variations however excellent to this end he selected the three trios afterwards published as opus one and brought them to performance at the house of prince liknowski happily for us Beethoven related to some particulars concerning this first performance of these compositions in vienna to his pupil Reese who gives the substance of the story thus he was planned to introduce the first three trios of Beethoven which were about to be published as opus one to the artistic world at a soiree at prince liknowski's most of the artists and music lovers were invited especially hyden for whose opinion all were eager the trios were played and at once commanded extraordinary attention hyden also said many pretty things about them but advised Beethoven not to publish the third in c minor this astonished Beethoven in as much as he considered the third the best of the trios as it is still the one which gives the greatest pleasure it makes the greatest effect consequently hyden's remark left a bad impression on Beethoven and let him to think that hyden was envious jealous and ill-disposed toward him i confess that when Beethoven told me of this i gave it little credence i therefore took occasion to ask hyden himself about it his answer however confirmed Beethoven's statement he said he had not believed that this trio would so quickly and easily be understood and so favorably received by the public the fish off manuscript says the three trios for a pianoforte violin and vilancela opus one the pearls of all sonatas which are in fact his sixth work just the excited admiration though they were performed in only a few circles wherever this was done however connoisseurs and music lovers bestowed upon them undivided applause which grew with the succeeding works as the hearers not only accustomed themselves to the striking and original qualities of the master but grasped his spirit and strove for the high privilege of understanding him more than two years passed by however before the composer thought that to send these trios to the press perhaps restrained by a feeling of modesty since he was still a student perhaps by a doubt as to the success of compositions so new in style or by prudence choosing to delay their publication until they had been so often performed from the manuscript as to secure their comprehension and appreciation and thus an adequate number of subscribers in the meantime he prepared the way for them by publishing a few sets of variations Beethoven had composed variations on themes from Mozart's Sabre Flirte which he had already sketched in Bonn and Zemmelskall took it upon himself to submit them to a publisher but they had only a small sale the fish off manuscript this refers doubtless to the variations Sir Raul Belare from Mozart the Figaro which having been revised and improved by a new coda came out in July 1793 with a dedication to Eleanor von Brunning it was not until the next year that the 13 variations upon the theme Svar Einmal Ein Altermann from Dittersdorf's Roth Kaptchen appeared and these were followed by those four hands on the Volstein theme first advertised in January 1795 in fact Beethoven evidently was in no haste to publish his compositions it will presently be seen that he sent the Sir Raul Belare variations to press partly at the request of others and partly to entrap the rival pianist Saviena a few years later we shall find him dashing off and immediately publishing variations on popular theatrical melodies but works of greater scope and especially his piano fortec and chertes were for the most part long retained in his exclusive possession thus the piano fortec and chertes and B flat major opus 18 though supposed by don't must check to have been composed at Prague in 1798 certainly if Beethoven's own words in that letter to Breitkopf and Hartel are to be believed preceded in composition that in C major opus 15 and must therefore have been finished at the latest in March 1795 and was doubtless often played by him at private concerts during the period now before us it was not published until 1801 let the reader now recall to mind some of the points previously dwelt upon the fish nick letter of january and nief's letter of october 1793 which records the favor boat reports and to bond of Beethoven's musical progress his studies with Haydn and shank the cares and perplexities caused him temporarily by the death of his father and the unpleasant circumstances attending that event his steady success as a virtuoso his visit in the summer to prince ester hazy and it is obvious with what industry and energy he engaged in his new career with what zeal and unfaltering activity he labored to make the most of his opportunities in one year after leaving bond he felt his success secure and no longer feared hamlets slings and arrows of outrageous fortune this is indicated in the passage of how we shall then rejoice together et cetera of the earliest of his vienna letters which has been preserved that letter in which as regular remarks he has pardoned for much more error than he had committed in which they'll often reprinted from that notice and is too important and characteristic to be here omitted Beethoven sues for pardon Vienna november 293 most decinable leonore my most precious friend not until i have lived almost a year in the capital do you receive a letter from me and yet you were most assuredly perpetually in my liveliest memory often in thought i have conversed with you and your dear family though not with that peace of mind which i could have desired it was then that the wretched misunderstanding hovered before me and my conduct presented itself as most despicable but it was too late but what would i not give could i obliterate from my life those actions so degrading to myself and so contrary to my character true there were many circumstances which tended to astrange us and i suspect that tales whispered in our ears of remarks made one about the other were chiefly that which prevented us from coming to an understanding we both believe that we were speaking from conviction whereas it was only anger and we were both deceived your good and noble character my dear friend is sufficient assurance to me that you forgave me long ago but we are told that the sincerest contrition consists in acknowledgement of our thoughts and to do this has been my desire and now let us drop the curtain on the affair only drawing from it this lesson that when friends quarrel it is much better to have it out face to face than to turn to or go between with this you will receive a dedication for me to you concerning which i only wish that the work were a larger one and more worthy of you i was plagued here to publish the little work and i took advantage of the opportunity my estimable e to show my respect and friendship for you in my enduring memory of your family take this trite form and remember that it comes from a friend who respects you greatly oh if it gives you pleasure my wishes will be completely fulfilled let it be a reminder of the time when i spent so many and such blessed hours at your home perhaps it will keep me in your recollection until i eventually return to you which it is true is not likely to be soon but how we shall rejoice then my dear friend you will then find in your friend a happier man from whose this each time and a kinder your fate shall have smoothed out all the furrows of a hateful past if you should chance to see be cock please say to her that it is not nice of her never once to have written to me i wrote to her twice and three times to malchus but no answer say to her that if she doesn't want to write she might at least urge malchus to do so in conclusion i venture a request it is this i should like once again to be so happy as to own a waistcoat knit of hairs wool by your hands my dear friend pardon the amount of request my dear friend but it proceeds from a great predilection for everything that comes from your hands privately i may also acknowledge that a little vanity is also involved in the request i want to be able to say that i have something that was given me by the best and most estimable girl in bond i still have the waistcoat which you were good enough to give me in bond but it has grown so out of fashion that i can only treasure it in my wardrobe as something very precious because it came from you you would give me much pleasure if you were soon to rejoice me with a due letter from yourself if my letters shouldn't in any way please you i promise and this to be at your command so far as lies in my power as everything is welcome to me which enables me to show how truly i am your admiring true friend lv betovin ps the variations you will find a little difficult to play especially the trills in the coda but don't let that alarm you it is so contrived that you need play only the drill leaving out the other notes because they are also in the violin part i never would have composed a thing of that kind had i not often observed that here in there in vienna there was somebody who after i had improvised of an evening noted down many of my peculiarities and made parade of them next day as his own for seeing that some of these things would soon appear in print i resolved to anticipate them another reason that i had was to embarrass the local pianoforte masters many of them are my deadly enemies and i wanted to revenge myself on them knowing that once in a while somebody would ask them to play the variations and they would make a sorry show with them except betovin's memorandum schupenzei three times each w albrecht's burger three times each w which indicates his change of instructors there is nothing to be recorded until probably in may or june 1794 we come to the fragment of another letter to eleanor von bruning also contained in vegler's notice in page 60 which has particular interest both as showing how bitterly his conscience reproached him for acts inconsistent with the forbearance and command of temper due to friendship but in which he ever remained too apt to indulge in as adding some implied confirmation of the argument previously made in relation to the composition of the bond period in this letter he acknowledges receipt of our cravat embroidered by eleanor and protest that thoughts of her generosity and his unworthiness had brought him to tears he continues to pray believe me that little as i have deserved it my friend let me always call you such i have suffered much and still suffer from the loss of your friendship as a slight return for your kind recollection of me i take the liberty of sending these variations and the ronda with violin accompaniment i have a great deal to do or i should have transcribed the sonata i promised you long ago it is a mere sketch a manuscript and to copy it would be a difficult etc the letter is signed the friend who still reveres you beto win six in january 1794 elector max have paid a short visit to vienna where perhaps it was determined that Beethoven should remain without salary until we call after the declaration of war by the empire against france the electorate as a german state could no longer remain neutral and thus he came to pass then in october the victoria's french army marked in debaune the elector fled to frankfort on the main november 6th thence to moonstre while his court and all such as were obnoxious to the republican authorities dispersed in all directions for safety one of the fugitives a young man of 29 years but already director of the university to save his head hasten the way to vienna dr begler he reached that capital in october and found beto vint not in the room on the ground floor where it was not necessary to pay the housekeeper more than seven forms but living as a guest in the family of prince carl legnowski and this explains sufficiently the cessation of those records of monthly payments before noticed dr begler's reminiscences the reminiscences of begler for the period of his stay in vienna accepting those which may be better introduced chronologically in other connections may well find place here they are interesting and characteristic in themselves and indicate also the great change for the better and beto vint's pecuniary condition for a man who keeps a servant and a horse cannot if honest be a sufferer from poverty carl prince legnowski count verdenberg dynast grand son was a very great patron yes a friend of beto vint so took him into his house as a guest where he remained at least a few years i found him there toward the end of the year 1794 and left him there in the middle of 1796 meanwhile however beto vint had almost always a home in the country the prince was a great lover and connoisseur of music he played the piano forte and by studying beto vint's pieces and playing them more or less well sought to convince him that there was no need of changing anything in his style of composition though the composer's attention was often called to the difficulties of his works they were performances at his house every Friday morning participated in by four higher musicians chupin zig vice craft and another link besides our friend generally also an amateur is a mess school beto vint always listened with pleasure to the observations of these gentlemen thus to cite a single instance the famous violin cellist craft in my presence called his attention to a passage in the finale of the trio opus one number three to the fact that it ought to be marked solid quarter g and the indication four four time which beto vint had marked in the finale of the second trio changed to two four here the new compositions of beto vint so far as was feasible were first performed here there were generally presents several great musicians and music lovers i too as long as i lived in vienna was present if not every time at least most of the time here a hungarian count once placed a difficult composition by bach and manuscript before him which he played avista exactly as bach would have played according to the testimony of the owner here the viennese author firster once brought him a quartet of which he had made a clean copy only that morning in the second portion of the first movement the violon cello got out beto vint stood up and still playing his own part saying the bass accompaniment when i spoke about it to him as a proof of extraordinary requirements he replied with a smile the bass part had to be so else the author would have known nothing about composition to the remark that he had played a presto which he had never seen before so rapidly that it must have been impossible to see the individual notes he answered nor is that necessary if you read rapidly there may be a multitude of typographical errors but you need a seat nor give heed to them so long as the language is a familiar one after the concert the musicians generally stayed to dine here they're gathered in addition artists and savants without regard to social position the princess christianne was the highly cultivated daughter of count france joseph van thun who a very philanthropic and respectable gentleman was disposed to extravagant enthusiasm by his intercourse with labato and believed himself capable of healing diseases through the power of his right hand confession contrition petition the following undated letter also belongs to the years of beto vint's intimate association with veggler in vienna 1794 to 96 it is significant of beto vint's character though easily offended and prone to anger no sooner was the first ebullition of tempera past than he was so reconciliatory and opened explanation that usually his contrition was out of all proportion to his fault for this reason and because it presents the friend in a light which provoked a protest from his modesty veggler was unwilling to make public the entire letter confession contrition petition dearest best and what an odious light you have exhibited me to myself i acknowledge it i do not deserve your friendship you're so noble so considerate and the first time that i range myself alongside of you i fell so far below you for weeks i have displeased my best and noblest friend you think that i have lost some of my goodness of heart but thank heaven it was no intentional or deliberate malice which induced me to act as i did towards you it was my inexcusable thoughtlessness which did not permit me to see the matter in its true light oh how ashamed i am not only for your sake but also my own i can scarcely trust myself to ask for your friendship again oh veggler my only comfort lies in this that you have known me almost from my childhood and yet oh let me say for myself i was always good and always served to be upright and true in my actions otherwise how could you have loved me could i've changed so fearfully for the worst in such a short time impossible these feelings of goodness and love of righteousness cannot have died forever in me in a moment no veggler dearest best oh venture again to throw yourself entirely into the arms of your be trust in the good qualities you used to find in him i will guarantee that the pure temple of sacred friendship which your wreck shall remain firm forever no accident no storm shall ever shake its foundations firm forever our friendship pardon oblivion a new up claiming of the dying sinking friendship of veggler do not reject this hand of reconciliation place yours in mind oh god but no more i'm coming to throw myself in your arms to entreat you to restore to me my lost friend and you will give yourself to me your penitent loving never forgetting betovin again it was only now that i received your letter because i have just returned home in this connection veggler comes to speak of the outward conditions of betovin betovin he says on page 33 brought up under extremely restrictive circumstances and as it were under guardianship though that of his friends did not know the value of money and was anything but economical thus decided single instance the prince's dinner hour was fixed at four o'clock now said betovin it is desired that every day i shall be at home at half past three put on better clothes care for my beard etc i can't stand that so it happened that he frequently went through the taverns since as has been said in this as in all other matters of economy he knew nothing about the value of things or money the prince veggler continues who had a loud metallic voice once directed his serving man that if ever he and betovin should ring at the same time the latter was to be first served betovin heard this and the same day engaged a servant for himself in the same manner once when he took a whim to learn to ride which speedily left him the stable of the prince being offered and he bought a horse concerning his friends affairs of the heart veggler had opportunity to make observations in vienna he relates on page 43 that while he was in the capital betovin was always in love and made many conquests which would have been difficult if not impossible for many and adonis betovin's antipathy to teaching before he left bond has already been noticed in vienna he developed a still stronger repugnance to playing in society when requested to do so he often complained to veggler how grievously this put him out of sorts whereupon the latter sought to entertain him inquired him by conversation when this purpose was reached he continues i dropped the conversation seated myself at the writing table and betovin if he wanted to continue the discourse had to sit down on the chair before the piano forte soon still turned away from the instrument he aimlessly struck a few chords out of which gradually grew the most beautiful melodies though why did i not understand more of music several times i put rule paper upon the desk as if without intention in order to get a manuscript of his he wrote upon it but then folded it up and put it in his pocket concerning his playing i was permitted to say but little and that only passing he would then go away entirely changed in mood and always come back again gladly the antipathy remained however and was frequently the cause of differences between betovin and his friends and well-wishers oh bond friends remember there is still one other reminiscence of veggler in the appendix to the notice in page nine worthy of citation at one time private lectures were given in vienna on count which had been arranged by adam schmitt willhelm schmitt hunk zofsky gopford and others in spite of my urgings betovin refused to attend a single one of them there's no reference in veggler's notice into instruction received by betovin from albrecht's burger with his old colleague in the court orchestra and bonn nicolas simrock though he was a much older man betovin remained in touch after his removal to vienna simrock who was highly esteemed both as man and musician had embarked in business as a music publisher in bond the variations on a theme from ditters dorf's roth copchin were published by him at the latest in the early part of 70 94 as well as those for piano forte four hands on a theme by count valston sometime in the same year it is to the latter composition that the following letter refers vienna august 2 70 94 dear simrock i deserve a little scolding from you for holding back your variation so long but indeed i do not lie when i say that i was hindered from correcting them sooner by an overwhelming amount of business you will note the shortcomings for yourself but i must wish you joy on the appearance of your engraving which is beautiful clear and legible barely if you keep on thus you will become chief among cutters that is no cutters in my former letter i promise to send you something of mine and you interpreted the remark as being in the language of the cavaliers how have i deserved such a title for who would indulge in such languages in these democratic days of hours to free myself from the imputation as soon as i have finished the grand revision of my composition which will be soon you shall have something which you will surely engrave i've also been looking about me for a commissioner and have found a right capable young fellow for the place his name is traig you have not to be able to write to him or me about the conditions which you want to make yes a view one third rub eight the devil take all such bargaining it is very hot here the viennese fear that they will soon be unable to eat ice cream they're having been little cold last winter and ice being scarce many persons of importance have come here and it was said that a revolution was imminent but it is my belief that so long as the austrian has his dark beer and sausage he will not revoke it is said that the suburban gates are to be closed at 10 o'clock at night the soldiers guns are loaded with bullets no one dares speak aloud for fear of arrest by the police are your daughters grown bring one up to be my wife or if i am to remain single and i shall not stay long of our surety you also must be living in fear how is good reason shall write to him soon for he can have only an unfavorable opinion of me but this damned writing i cannot get over my antipathy towards it have you performed my piece yet write to me occasionally please send also a few copies of the first variations your bait of them these first variations obviously are those on the theme from rock captain those referred to in the early part of the letter the ones on count wall stone's theme the piece whose performance here inquires about is the architect and the illusion to it justifies the belief that it was composed for the wind instrument players of bond who found no opportunity to play it while Beethoven was still in his native city the letter like that written to elinor bond running shows that Beethoven was still thinking of the possibility or probability of a return to bond his cheerful tone discloses a comfortable satisfied frame of mind the move from which the first trio is proceeded first concert appearances in Vienna we returned to the chronological record of events the first of these in the year 1795 was Beethoven's first appearance in public as virtuoso and composer the annual concerts in the bird theater established by gasman for the benefit of the widows of the tonkensler gershel schaft were announced for the evenings of march 29 and 30 the vocal work selected for performance was an oratory in two parts gaius re di guida by antonio cartelieri the instrumental of concerto for piano forte and orchestra composed and played by Ludwig von Beethoven cartelieri was a young man of 23 years born in danzig september 27 1772 who a year or two since had come from berlin to study operatic composition with the then greatest living composer in that field salieri as the direction of these widow and orphan concerts was almost exclusively in the hands of salieri one is almost tempted to think that he may on this occasion have indulged a pardonable vanity and bringing forward two of his pupils if we did not know how strong an attraction the name of Beethoven must have been for the public which as yet had had no opportunity to learn his great powers except by report the day of the performance junior but the concerto was not yet written out not until the afternoon of the second day before the concert did he write the rondo and then while suffering from a pretty severe colic which frequently afflicted him i beglar relieved him with simple remedy so far as i could in the ante room sat full copies to whom he had to cheat after sheet as soon as it was finished at the first rehearsal which took place the next day in Beethoven's room the piano forte was found to be half a tone lower than the wind instruments without a moment's delay babe tovin had the wind instruments on the others tuned to be flat instead of a and played his part in c sharp that's beglar in his notice in page 36 but he has confounded two compositions the concerto which Beethoven played on march 29 1795 was not that in c opus 15 which was not finished but in all probability that in b-flat opus 19 for the fact that the concerto and b-flat was composed before that in c we have the testimony of Beethoven himself who wrote to bright cough and heartel on april 22 1801 i simply want to call your attention to the fact that one of my first concertos we've published by half myster which is not among my best works and one also by molo which though composed later etc the concerto and b-flat was published in 181 by half myster and that in c in the same year by molo and company in vienna the latter a little in advance of the format where for there need be no surprise that the earlier opus number Beethoven also took part in the second concert on march 30 the minutes of the tonkensler schacht recording that he improvised on the piano forte and they're basically engaged he also embraced an opportunity to testify to his devotion to the monies of Mozart on march 31 1795 Mozart's widow arranged a performance of la clamenza di tito in the burg theater after the first part says the advertisement mr. Ludwig von Beethoven will play a concerto of Mozart's composition on the piano forte we opined that the concerto was Mozart's indeed minor which Beethoven loved especially and for which he wrote cadenzas the trio's opus one had now become so well known and appreciated in musical circles as to justify their publication and accordingly an advertisement inviting subscriptions for Ludwig von Beethoven's three grand trios appeared in the viner Zeitung on may 16 75 three days later a contract was signed by the author and our ataria and company the printed list of subscribers gives 123 names mostly belonging to the higher circles with subscriptions amounting to 241 copies as Beethoven paid the publisher but one form per copy and the subscription price was one decade he made a handsome profit out of the transaction first piano forte trios and sonatas we must tarry a moment longer with these trios that the author is disposed to place their origin in the bond period has already appeared argument in favor of this you can be found in the fact of their early performance in vienna there can be no reasonable question of the correctness of risa's story for which Beethoven himself was authority that they were played at the house of prince lichnowski in the presence of Haydn this performance must have taken place before january 1974 because on that day Haydn started again for england now Beethoven's sketches show that he was still working on at least the second and third of the trios after 70 94 that they were not ready for the printer before the end of that year further explanation is offered by the following little circumstances since Haydn was present the performance that prince lichnowski's must have been from manuscript in the morning meeting which probably took place only a short time before the soiree Beethoven's attention was called to the desirability of changing in the last movement of the second trio the time signature from four four to two four Beethoven made the change from these facts it may be concluded that after first there was a final revision of these trios and that the former version disappeared or was destroyed after the latter was made it has repeatedly been intimated that the author believes that the rewriting of composition completed in Beethoven's early period is farther reaching than is generally assumed the case therefore seems to present itself as follows Haydn heard the trios that lichnowski's in their first state Beethoven then took them up for revision and in the course of 70 94 and the beginning of 70 95 brought them to the state in which we know them it is not possible to say positively whether or not the first form particularly of the first trio dates back to the bond period an interesting anecdote connected with these trios may well find place here it is contributed by Madame Mary de Foge daughter of Tom Cassin who in the seventh decade of the 19th century was one of the more famous panna forte manufacturers of London in the early days of the century a little society of musicians jb kramer the pianist f kramer the violinist half brother of the preceding jb salomon whose name has so often come up in previous chapters of this work bridge tower and malato and celebrated violinist whose name we shall meet again watts tenor morons also tenor married the great do sex widow domin lindley and crossdale v alone jealous was in the habit of meeting regularly and mr tom cussans to try over and criticize such new music of the german school as came to the london dealers at one of these meetings the new trios of Beethoven outputs one were played through jb kramer at the panna forte this is the man he cried who is to console us for the loss of Mozart according to the recollection of cipriani potter this was after kramer had made their personal acquaintance of Beethoven and Vienna and had heard him play there some other incidents record about begler belonged to this year hide and reach Vienna upon his return from his second visit to england on august 20 Beethoven had now ready the three sonatas opus to it and at one of the friday morning concerts at prince legnowski's he played them to hide into whom they were dedicated here says begler on page 29 of the notizen count apony asked Beethoven to compose a quartet for him for a given compensation Beethoven not having written a piece in this genre the count declared that contrary to custom he did not want to have exclusive possession of the quartet for half a year before publication nor did he ask that it be dedicated to him etc in response to repeated urgings by me Beethoven twice said about the task but the first effort resulted in a grand violin trio opus three the second and a violin quintet opus four how much mistaken begler was in these concluding statements has already been indicated the three pianoforte sonatas dedicated to hide and were therefore the second group of compositions which Beethoven considered illustrative of his artistic ideals and worthy of publication nothing can be said with positive mist touching the time of their origin schoenfeld's words in his jar book der tong kunst von bien und prog we already have several of his sonatas among which his last are particularly noteworthy which were written at least eight months before the sonatas appeared in print lead to the conclusion that the sonatas were known in vienna in manuscript in the spring of 1795 their appearance in print was announced in the vener zeitung of march 9 70 96 still another anecdote recorded by begler refers to another composition of this period Beethoven was seated in the box at the opera with the lady of whom he thought much at a performance of malenara when the familiar nail corp you know me center was reached the lady remarked that she had possessed some variations on the theme but had lost them in the same night Beethoven wrote the sixth variations on the melody and the next morning sent them to the lady with the inscription about razzioni et cetera perdute par la retro vati par luigi band Beethoven they are so easy that it is likely Beethoven wished that she should be able to play them at site by cello's lot malenara composed in 1788 for naples was performed in march in 1794 in the court opera and again on june 24 and 27 1795 in that carn nerther theater in vienna considering the time of the publication of these unpretentious but genial little variations their composition may be set down after the latter performances at the same period Beethoven wrote variations on another theme quanta pu bello from the same opera which were published before the former and dedicated to prince carl lignoski it is likely that a few more sets of variations a form of composition for which Beethoven had a strong better election at the time had their origin in these early years of Beethoven's life in vienna the variations and see on the menu at ala begano from the ballet la nazi disturbate may competently be assigned to the year 1795 the ballet was performed for the first time on may 18 1795 at chic caniders theater the variations are advertised as published on february 27 1796 the guessel schaftere bildenden kunstler had in the year 1792 established an annual ball in the read tin saw in the month of november and hyden just then returned covered with glory from england composed a set of 12 minuets and 12 german dances for the occasion in 1793 the royal imperial composer goes luke followed hyden's example in 1794 didder's dwarf wrote the same number of like dances for the large hall and i blur for the small in view of this array of great names and considering that as yet the trio's opus one were the only works of a higher order than the variations with Beethoven at center press the advertisements for the annual ball to be given upon the 22nd of november 1795 give a vivid proof of the high reputation which the young man had gained as a composer now at the end of his third year in vienna these advertisements conclude us the music for the minuets and german dances for this ball is an entirely new arrangement for the larger room they were written by the royal imperial chapel master sus mayor for the smaller room by the master hand of mr ludwig von Beethoven out of love for the artistic fraternity these dances arranged for pianoforte by Beethoven himself came from the press of artaria a few weeks later as did also sus mayors Beethoven's name in the advertisement being enlarged and can speak you as tight Beethoven pays tribute to hyden as the year began with the first so it closed with Beethoven's second appearance in public as composer and virtuoso and here is the advertisement of the performance from the vener zeitung of december 16 next body the 18th instant mr the chapel master hyden will give a grand musical concert in the small red dot and saw at which madame toman and mr mom belly will sing mr von Beethoven will play a congeritor of his composing on the piano forte and three grand symphonies not yet heard here which the chapel master composed during his last sojourn in london will be performed one would gladly know what congeritor was played but there was little public criticism then outside of london and very rarely in indiana the mere fact of the appearance of Beethoven at his old master's concert is however another proof that too much stress had been laid upon a tasty word spoken by him to reese hyden wanted that Beethoven should put pupil of hyden on the title page of his first words Beethoven was unwilling to do so because as he said though he had taken some lessons from hyden he never learned anything from him nothing can be more natural than for hyden knowing nothing of the studies of his people was shank to express such a wish in relation to the sonatas dedicated to him and equally natural that the author should refuse but to add to the attractions of the concert was a very different matter a graceful and delicate compliment which he could with pleasure make this chapter may appropriately close with the one important family event of this year the father the mother two infant brothers and two infant sisters slept in the church yard at barn but ludwig caspar and yohan were never more to look upon their graves the three brothers were now reunited vienna had become their new home and not one of them beheld the rushing rye again end of section 15