Beethoven's Letters 1790-1826 Volume II Part 6

TO F. RIES,--LONDON.

Vienna, March 5, 1818.

MY DEAR RIES,--

In spite of my wishes it was impossible for me to go to London this year [see No. 236]. I beg you will apprise the Philharmonic Society that my feeble health prevented my coming; I trust, however, I shall be entirely restored this spring, so that in the autumn I may avail myself of their offers and fulfil all their conditions.

Pray request Neate, in my name, to make no public use of the various works of mine that he has in his hands, at least not until I come. Whatever he may have to say for himself, I have cause to complain of him.

Potter[1] called on me several times; he seems to be a worthy man, and to have a talent for composition. My wish and hope for you is that your circ.u.mstances may daily improve. I cannot, alas! say that such is the case with my own.... I cannot bear to see others want, I must give; you may therefore believe what a loser I am by this affair. I do beg that you will write to me soon. If possible I shall try to get away from this earlier, in the hope of escaping utter ruin, in which case I shall arrive in London by the winter at latest. I know that you will a.s.sist an unfortunate friend. If it had only been in my power, and had I not been chained to this place, as I always have been, by circ.u.mstances, I certainly would have done far more for you.

Farewell; remember me to Neate, Smart, and Cramer. Although I hear that the latter is a _counter subject_ both to you and to myself, still I rather understand how to manage people of that kind; so notwithstanding all this we shall yet succeed in producing an agreeable harmony in London. I embrace you from my heart. Your friend,

L. VAN BEETHOVEN.

Many handsome compliments to your charming, (and as I hear) handsome wife.

[Footnote 1: Schindler, in his _Biography_ (Vol. II. 254), states that Cipriani Potter came to Vienna in 1817.]

257.

TO THE RECHNUNGSRATH, VINCENZ HAUSCHKA.[1]

1818.

First and foremost member of our society, and grand cross of the violon--cello! You wish for an _heroic_ subject, whereas I have none but a _spiritual_ one! I am contented; still, I think an infusion of the spiritual would be quite appropriate in such a ma.s.s. I have no objections to H. v. Bernard, but you must pay him; I do not speak of myself. As you call yourselves "Friends of Music," it is only natural that you should expect a great deal to be done on the score of friendship.

Now farewell, my good Hauschka! As for myself, I wander about here with music paper, among the hills and dales and valleys, and scribble a great deal to get my daily bread; for I have brought things to such a pa.s.s in this mighty and ignominious _land of the Goths and Vandals_, that in order to gain time for a great composition, I must always previously _scrawl away_ a good deal for the sake of money, to enable me to complete an important work.

However, my health is much improved, and if the matter is urgent, I can do as you wish now.

In haste, your friend,

BEETHOVEN.

[Footnote 1: Hauschka was at that time on the committee, and agent for the "Friends to Music" who commissioned Beethoven to write an Oratorio in 1815.

Schindler is of opinion that the repeated performance of the Abbe Stadler's heroic Oratorio, _Die Befreiung von Jerusalem_, was the cause of the Society in 1818 bespeaking, through Hauschka, "An oratorio of the heroic order."]

258.

TO THE ARCHDUKE RUDOLPH.

1819.

I have the honor to send the masterly variations[1] of Y.R.H. by the copyist Schlemmer, and to-morrow I shall come in person to wait upon Y.R.H., and much rejoice at being able to serve as a companion to my ill.u.s.trious pupil on the path of fame.

[K.]

[Footnote 1: The letters 258 and 259, allude to the pianoforte variations composed by the Archduke Rudolph and dedicated to his instructor.]

259.

TO THE ARCHDUKE RUDOLPH.

Jan. 1, 1819.

All that can be comprehended in one wish, or individually named,--health, happiness, and prosperity,--all are included in the prayer I offer up for Y.R.H. on this day. May the wish that I also form for myself be graciously accepted by Y.R.H., namely, that I may continue to enjoy the favor of Y.R.H. A dreadful occurrence[1] has lately taken place in my family, which for a long time stunned my senses, and to this must be ascribed my not having waited on Y.R.H., nor taken any notice of the masterly variations of my much-honored and ill.u.s.trious pupil, and favorite of the Muses. The grat.i.tude I feel for the surprise and the honor you have done me, I dare not venture to express either verbally or in writing, for I am _too far beneath you_, even if I _could_ or wished ever so ardently _to return like for like_. May Heaven accept and listen with peculiar favor to my prayers for Y.R.H.'s health. In the course of a few days I trust I shall myself hear the masterpiece Y.R.H. has sent to me, and nothing will rejoice me more than to a.s.sist Y.R.H. as early as possible, in taking the place already prepared for you on Parna.s.sus.

[K.]

[Footnote 1: The "dreadful occurrence" which took place in the end of 1818 in Beethoven's family cannot be discovered.]

260.

TO RIES.

Vienna, April [March?] 30, 1819.

DEAR RIES,--

I am only now able to answer your letter of December 18th. Your sympathy does me good. It is impossible for me to go to London at present, being involved here in various ways; but G.o.d will, I trust, aid me, and enable me to visit London next winter, when I shall bring the new symphonies with me.

I every day expect the text for a new _oratorio_, which I am to write for our Musical Society here, and no doubt it will be of use to us in London also. Do what you can on my behalf, for I greatly need it. I should have been glad to receive any commission from the Philharmonic, but Neate's report of the all but failure of the three overtures vexed me much. Each in its own style not only pleased here, but those in E flat major and C major made a profound impression, so that the fate of those works at the Philharmonic is quite incomprehensible to me.

You have no doubt received the arrangement of the Quintet [Op. 104, see No.

238] and the Sonata [Op. 106]. See that both, especially the Quintet, be engraved without loss of time. There is no such hurry about the Sonata, though I should like it to appear within two or three months. Never having received the previous letter to which you allude, I had no scruple in disposing of both works here; but for Germany only. It will be at any rate three months before the Sonata appears here, but you must make haste with the Quintet. As soon as you forward me a check for the money, I will send an authority to the publisher, securing him the exclusive right to these works for England, Scotland, Ireland, France, &c., &c.

You shall receive by the next post the _Tempi_ of the Sonata marked in accordance with Maelzel's metronome. Prince Paul Esterhazy's courier, De Smidt, took the Quintet and the Sonata with him. You shall also have my portrait by the next opportunity, as I understand that you really wish for it.

Farewell! Continue your regard for me,

Your friend,

BEETHOVEN.

All sorts of pretty compliments to your pretty wife!!! From me!!!!

261.

TO RIES.

Vienna, April 16, 1819.

DEAR RIES,--