Life of Beethoven Part 29

Je ne pourrai guere venir a Londres durant le printemps, mais qui sait quel accident m'y conduit peut-etre en automne. J'espere que vous vous trouvez bien dans votre famille, et en bonne sante. Quant aux Quatuors, dont vous m'ecrivez dans vos lettres, j'en ai acheve le premier, et je suis a present a composer le second, qui, comme le troisieme, sera acheve dans peu de temps. Vous m'offrez 100 guinees pour 3 Quatuors, je trouve cette proposition bien genereuse. Il se demande seulement, s'il m'est permis de publier ces Quatuors apres un an et demie, ou deux ans.[192] C'est ce qui serait tres avantageux pour mes finances. En ce qui concerne la maniere de simplifier l'envoiement des Quatuors, et de l'argent de votre part, je vous propose de remettre les oeuvres a Messrs. Fries & Co., qui temoigneront a vous meme, ou a quelque banquier de Londres, d'etre possesseurs des Quatuors, et qui vous les remettront aussitot apres l'arrivee de l'argent.

Voici une affaire, par laquelle vous pouvez me prouver votre amitie. Je vous prie seulement de me repondre au plus-tot possible. Je me fie toujours a votre amitie pour moi, et vous a.s.sure que vous pouvez faire de meme a moi.

Je suis, avec la plus grande consideration,

Votre ami,

BEETHOVEN.

29.

BEETHOVEN a MONSIEUR NEATE.

Vienne, le 25 May, 1825.

Mon ami!

Je crois necessaire de vous ecrire encore une fois. Je vois dans la lettre que vous m'avez ecrite il y a deux ans, que l'honoraire des Quatuors est 100 sterling. Je suis content de cette offre, mais il est necessaire de vous avertir, que le 1er Quatuor est si cherche par les plus celebres artistes de Vienne, que je l'ai accorde a quelques uns d'eux pour leur benefice. Je crois tromper votre amitie en ne vous avertissant point de cette circonstance, parceque vous pouvez aussi en faire usage a Londres. Or si vous me repondez que vous etes content des propositions que je vous ai faites dans ma lettre derniere, je vous enverrai aussitot le 1er Quatuor; cependant je vous prie d'accelerer votre resolution, puisque les editeurs desirent vivement de le posseder.

Cependant vous n'avez point de remettre l'honoraire qu'apres avoir recu l'a.s.surance de ma part, que les 2 autres Quatuors sont acheves.

Seulement je vous prie d'ajouter a votre lettre l'a.s.surance de votre contentement en ce qui concerne mes offres. Voila ce que j'ai cru devoir vous dire. Je crois vous avoir fait une complaisance, et je suis certain que vous ferez le meme envers moi. Conservez votre amitie pour moi.

Je suis, avec le plus grand estime,

Votre ami sincere,

LOUIS VAN BEETHOVEN.

30.

BEETHOVEN TO RIES AT BONN.

Vienna, April 9, 1825.

Dear worthy Ries,

The needful in all haste! In the score of the Symphony which I sent you (it is the ninth with choruses), there stands, as far as I remember, in the first oboe in the 242nd bar,--

It should be thus:

[Ill.u.s.tration: musical notation]

instead of

[Ill.u.s.tration: musical notation]

I have looked over the whole of the parts, with the exception of the bra.s.s band--that only in part--and I trust they must be tolerably correct. I would willingly have sent you the score,[193] but I have a concert before me, and the only score I possess is my ma.n.u.script. The concert, however, depends upon my health; for I must soon set off to the country, where alone I can prosper at this time.

You will soon receive the _Opferlied_, copied a second time; and I beg you will mark it as corrected by myself, that it might not be used together with the one you have already by you. This song gives you an idea of the miserable copyist I have had ever since _Schlemmer's_ death.

There is scarcely a note in which I can trust him. As you have already had all the written parts of the finale of the Symphony, I have now sent you the second choral parts. You can easily have these scored from before the beginning of the chorus; and at the commencement of the vocal, it will be quite easy to have the instrumental parts prefixed to the second vocal ones: it will require a little reflection. It was impossible to write all this at once; and, had we hurried such a copyist, there would have been errors upon errors. I have sent you an Overture in C, 6/8 time, not yet published: the printed parts, too, you will receive by the next post. The _Kyrie_ and _Gloria_ (two of the princ.i.p.al pieces of the _Messe Solemnelle_), in D major, are likewise on their way to you, together with an Italian vocal Duet. You will receive, besides these, a grand March with chorusses, well fitted for grand musical performances.[194] Another grand, and as yet unknown, Overture might come forth, but I fancy you have enough of these.

Farewell, in the land of the Rhine, ever dear to me.[195] Every enjoyment of life attend you and your wife. The most friendly remembrances to your father.

From your friend,

BEETHOVEN.

No. III.

ACCOUNT OF A CONCERT GIVEN BY BEETHOVEN AT THE KAERNTHNERTHOR THEATRE, VIENNA.[196]

On the 7th of May, 1824, a grand musical performance took place at the Karnthnerthor Theatre. The leaders of the music were Kapellmeister Umlauf and M. Shuppanzigh, and the great composer himself a.s.sisted on the occasion. He took his place at the side of the princ.i.p.al leader, and, with his original score before him, indicated the different movements and determined the precise manner in which they were to be given; for, unfortunately, the state of his hearing prevented him from doing more. The theatre was crowded to excess, and the sensation caused by the appearance of this great man was of a kind that is more easy to imagine than to describe. The arrangement of the pieces performed was as follows:--1st, Beethoven's Grand Overture in C major; 2nd, Three Grand Hymns, with solo and chorus parts, from his New Ma.s.s, never before performed; 3rd, a Grand New Symphony, with a finale, in which are introduced a solo and chorus part from Schiller's _Lied an die Freude_ (Song of Joy). This also was performed for the first time, and is Beethoven's last composition. We shall offer a few observations on each of these in the order of their performance.

With respect to the Overture, it indisputably belongs to the most finished of his compositions. The introductory _Andante_ is throughout of the most simple, n.o.ble, and masterly kind, and the rather lengthened _Allegro_ that follows is full of brilliant fancy: it is in the free fugue style, in three parts, each of which is sustained with equal power and effect. It is never monotonous, its form is constantly varying without in any manner sacrificing unity of effect; without the smallest rest point, the interest is constantly kept up; it flows along in a stream of harmony always pure and limpid; but it certainly presents an arduous task to the performer. It is thus that Handel would have written, had he had at his disposal the rich orchestra of our times; and it is only a spirit congenial with that of the immortal author of the Messiah that could succeed in treading in the footsteps of this giant of the art. The Three Hymns are princ.i.p.al portions of the New Ma.s.s which Beethoven has lately composed. The first, which was the _Kyrie Eleison_, is in D major, a movement full of fire and deep religious feeling. The _Christe_ that followed is in triple time, and full of happy effects of counterpoint; the return to the first measure of the _Kyrie_ is managed in a masterly manner, and the whole terminates in harmonics of a very singular and touching character. But altogether the effect is not so much that of children supplicating a parent, which is the true intent of the words, in the place in which they stand, as the deep and mournful supplications of a people humbled in the dust.

The treatment of the _Credo_ that follows is in the highest degree original and uncommon. Both the princ.i.p.al key, B flat major, as well as the time, change perhaps too often, so that the ear is scarcely able to comprehend the suddenness of the effects intended to be produced. At the _consubstantialem patri_, a short but very powerful figure commences; the _incarnatus est_ is a movement of very pathetic effect, and the tender and touching pa.s.sage, _pa.s.sus et sepultus est_, with its well placed dissonances in the violin accompaniment, is not to be described.

Well imagined and sustained, the strongly figured movement at the entrance of the contra-theme is somewhat quickened, but the first _moderato_ again returns. The Amen opens with a broad and richly ornamented pa.s.sage; it swells into splendid effect, and terminates in a long dying fall. If it were permitted in a church composition to speak of effect in the same manner as in a secular production, it cannot be denied that this r.e.t.a.r.ding kind of conclusion tends to weaken the powerful impression produced by the preceding bolder results; especially when no reasonable cause can be a.s.signed for such a mode of conclusion, unless it be the determination of a composer to differ from all the rest of the world. Who does not feel himself inspired by those brilliant Fugues with which a Naumann, a Haydn, and a Mozart terminate their compositions of this kind, which seem as if on the wings of seraphs to waft the soul towards heaven? The character of the _Agnus Dei_, in B minor, is solemn and tender, and the introduction of four French horns tends to heighten the effect in an extraordinary degree. The _Dona_ in D major, 6/8 time, pa.s.ses into an _Allegretto_ movement of feeling, and advances in beautiful imitations, till suddenly the pa.s.sage changes, and the kettle-drums, like distant thunder, intone the deep _pacem_.[197] A soprano solo introduces the second _Agnus Dei_ in a kind of recitative, and a chorus, strengthened by trumpets, precedes the tremendous _Miserere n.o.bis_. The effect of the latter is singular in the extreme, and when we reflect upon the sentiments intended to be expressed, we scarcely know whether to praise or blame.

With respect to the new Symphony it may, without fear, stand a compet.i.tion with its eight sister works, by none of which is the fame of its beauty likely to be eclipsed; it is evidently of the same family, though its characteristic features are different--

facies non omnibus una Non diversa tamen, qualem debet esse sororum.--OVID.

The opening pa.s.sage is a bold _Allegro_ in D minor, full of rich invention, and of athletic power; from the first chord till the gradual unfolding of the colossal theme, expectation is constantly kept alive and never disappointed. To give a skeleton of this composition would be scarcely practicable, and, after all, would convey but a very faint idea of the body; we shall therefore only touch upon some of the more prominent features, among which is a _Scherzo_ movement (D minor) full of playful gaiety, and in which all the instruments seem to contend with each other in the whim and sportiveness of the pa.s.sage; and a brilliant March in the vivid major mode, forms a delightful contrast with the pa.s.sages by which it is introduced. Whoever has imagined in hearing the _Andante_ of the 7th Symphony, that nothing could ever equal, not to say surpa.s.s it, has but to hear the movement of the same kind in the present composition in order to change his sentiments. In truth, the movement is altogether divine, the interchanges and combinations of the motives are surprising, the tasteful conduct of the whole is easy and natural, and in the midst of the rich exuberance of the subject, the simplicity that prevails throughout is truly admirable. But it is in the Finale that the genius of this great master s.h.i.+nes forth most conspicuously. We are here, in an ingenious manner, presented with a return of all the subjects in short and brilliant pa.s.sages, and which, as in a mirror, reflect the features of the whole. After this a singular kind of recitative by the contra-ba.s.ses introduces a _crescendo_ pa.s.sage of overwhelming effect, which is answered by a chorus of voices that bursts unexpectedly in, and produces an entirely new and extraordinary result. The pa.s.sages from Schiller's "Song of Joy" are made admirably expressive of the sentiments which the poet intended to convey, and are in perfect keeping with the tone and character of the whole of this wonderful composition. Critics have remarked of the Finale, that it requires to be heard frequently in order to be duly appreciated.

At the conclusion of the concert Beethoven was unanimously called forward. He modestly saluted the audience, and retired amidst the loudest expressions of enthusiasm. Yet the feeling of joy was tempered by a universal regret, to see so gifted an individual labouring under an infliction the most cruel that could befal an artist in that profession for which Nature had destined him. We have no doubt but the master will consider this as one of the proudest days in his existence; and it is to be hoped that the testimony of general feeling which he has witnessed will tend to soothe his spirit, to soften down some of its asperities, and to convince him that he stands upon a pinnacle far above the reach of envy and every malignant pa.s.sion.

Both singers and instrumental performers acquitted themselves on this interesting occasion in a manner that is deserving of the highest praise. Of the worthy Kapellmeister Umlauf, who undertook the conduct of this great work, and M. Shuppanzigh, a master of known abilities, who led the band, it is but justice to say that their zeal, knowledge, and talents deservedly obtained them the most conspicuous place and the merited thanks of their brother artists. The impracticability of devoting sufficient time for the number of rehearsals that were necessary, in order to do justice to music which is at once new and of so lofty a character, made it impossible to give it with that precision, and those delicate shades of forte and piano, which are required to do them justice.

The deep and general feeling which this concert, in honour of the great master of the modern art in Germany, excited, together with the disappointment experienced by many who were unable to obtain admission, induced the Director of the Theatre to make an offer to the composer of a certain consideration if he would condescend once more to appear in public, and a.s.sist at a repet.i.tion of the same music. With this request he complied; and in addition to the pieces before performed, he offered them a ma.n.u.script Terzetto, with Italian words, which was accordingly performed, and considered by the numerous Italian amateurs in Vienna as a kind of compliment paid by the composer to themselves. The performance went off with still greater _eclat_ than on the former occasion, and this new composition was hailed by all with no less enthusiasm than the other works.

No. IV.

CHARACTERISTICS OF BEETHOVEN, FROM WEGELER AND RIES'S "NOTIZEN."

When Beethoven's reputation had attained the highest point at Vienna, his dislike to playing in society was so ungovernable that he used completely to lose his temper in consequence; and would often come to see me in the most melancholy mood, complaining that play he _must_, although he felt the blood tingling in his fingers. By degrees I used to draw him into a conversation of a more cheerful tendency, and always succeeded in ultimately pacifying him. This object attained I used to drop all discourse, sit down to my writing-desk, and thus oblige Beethoven to take the chair next to me, for the purpose of further conversation--that chair being the one used at the piano. The vicinity of the instrument soon led him to strike some chords at random, whence sprung the most beautiful melodies. Oh! why did I not more fully understand him! Wis.h.i.+ng to possess a ma.n.u.script of his, I more than once put before him on the desk some music-paper, seemingly without intention; it was always filled, but when he had done this, he folded it and put it into his pocket, leaving me to laugh at my own miscalculation. He never permitted me to say much, if anything, about his playing on these occasions, and always went away an altered being, ready to come back to me. His antipathy to playing in company, however, remained unshaken, and was frequently the cause of the greatest quarrels between him and his friends and patrons.

Haydn had been anxious that Beethoven should write on the t.i.tles of his early works "_pupil of Haydn_;" to this Beethoven objected, saying, that although he had received some instructions from Haydn, yet _he had never learnt anything of him_. Beethoven during his first stay at Vienna had been Mozart's pupil for a short time, but used to complain of this great master never having played to him. Albrechtsberger gave him instructions in counterpoint, and Salieri in dramatic music. I was well acquainted with these three men; they all agreed in their regard for Beethoven, as well as in their opinion of his mode of learning. Each said Beethoven had always been so obstinate and self-willed, that his own hard earned experience often had to teach him those things the study of which he would not hear of; this was more especially affirmed by Albrechtsberger and Salieri. The dry rules of the former, and the less important ones of the latter on dramatic composition (in the old Italian school), would not excite any interest in Beethoven; we may therefore be allowed to doubt Seyfried's "incontrovertible evidence" as given in his Studies, that "Beethoven devoted his two years' _apprentices.h.i.+p_ with Albrechtsberger with unremitting perseverance to his theoretical studies."