^' V RB.M J-= BOUGHT WITH THE INCOME) , FROM THE SAGE ENDOWMENT. FUND THE GIET OF Menrs W. Sage 1S91 AMMf> Vv/^6 ML 410.B41R91'"""""* '""'"'^ Beethoven / 3 1924 022 170 751 Cornell University Library The original of tliis book is in tine Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924022170751 BEETHOVEN . Uniform with this voVwme, price 3s. each, THE GREAT MUSICIANS. A Series of Biographies of tlie Great Musicians. Edited by the LiiB DE. FRANCIS HUBFFER. MENDSIiSSOHN. ByW. S. EooisTEO. MOZABT. By Dr. F. Geheino. HAM'DEjXj. By Mrs. JULii.N Maeshaxii. ■WAGNEB. By the Ebitos. "WEBEB. By Sir JCLins Bekedict. SCHTJBEBT. By H. F. Fbost. . BOSSini, and the Modem Italian School. By H. Sutheblaits Edwaedb. PTJBCELIi. By W. H. CunMivas. EBTGLISH. CHTJBCH COMPOSEBS. By Wm. Aiex. Bareett, Mus. Bac. Oxon. JOHN SEBASTIAU BACH. By EEaisALD Lane Poole. SCHUMAM'M'. By J. A. FtrLLEE Maiilamd. HATDIT. By Miss TowjrsHEiTD. BEETHOVEW. By H. A. Rdbah. In prepapation, GOUNOD and BERLIOZ. "In these dainty volumes, ander the able superintendence of Mr. HuefEer, musical authorities of note describe the lives and criticize the masterpieces of the Great -Musicians, conveying just such information' as is most required, and thereby satisfying a desire which has lately been making itself more and more felt." Timee, Iiondon ! Sahpboit Low, Maestobt, Seable t RivuroTOir, Ld„ St. Dunstan'a House, Fetter Lane, Fleet Street, E.G. Eije ffireat ilusicians BEETHOVEN By H. a. RUDALL LONDON SAMPSON LOW, MARSTON, SEARLE, & RIVINGTOJT, Ld., St. Bunstan's 1|ouse Fettee Lane, Fleet Street, E.G. 1890 [All Sights reserved.] '■ RiCHABD Glav & Sons, Limttep, London & Bunoat. CONTENTS. PAGE Beethoven's Ancestors 1 The Elector- Aichhishops of Cologne . . . ... 2 Liidvig van Beethoven therElder 3 His son Johann. Birth of the Composer .... 4 Brothers and Sisters. Death of Grandfather ...."> Early Training • . . . .6 PfeifFer 7 Van den Eeden 8 Christian Gottlob Neefe 9 Youthful Compositions 10 Tour in Holland . . .11 The National Opera-House. Ludvig appointed Cembalist . 12 Family Troubles. The new Elector Max Franz. Lndvig Second Organist 13 Practical Joke during Passion Week 14 First Visit to Vienna 15 Introduction to Mozart 16 Bad News from Home. Return to Bonn .... 17 Death of Mother 18 Ludvig's aversion to teaching 19 The Breuning Family 20 Madame von Breuning 21 Ludvig appointed Head of his Family. Count Waldstein . 22 Wegeler. Ferdinand Ries 23 Excursion to Mergentheim 24 The Abbd Sterkel 25 Description of Beethoven's Playing, by Carl Ludvig Junker 26 Return of the Electdr's Band to Bonn 27 Early Love Affairs .28 Eleanore von Breuning 29 VI CONTENTS. The Zehrgarten and Babette Koch 30 Haydn's Visit to Bonn 31 Departure to Vienna. Pension from the Elector . . .32 Political Changes 33 Close of the Bonn Period 34 First Lodgings in Vienna. Studies under Haydn . . 36 Abb6 Dobbeler and Mrs. Bowater 37 Distaste for Playing in Society '38 Death of Johann Beefhoven. Early Patrons in Vienna . 39 Beethoven a "difficult" Pupil . . . . . .40 Johann Schenk 41 A Meeting of Old Friends 42 Letter to Eleanore von Breuning 44 With Haydn at Eisenstadt 45 Change of Master. Albrechtsberger 46 Baron van Swieten 47 Prince Lichnowsky. The Schuppanzigh Quartet . . 49 Abode at the Lichnowsky Palace 50 Eestive under Patronage . . . ' . . . .51 Princess Lichnowsky 52 The Archduke Rudolph 53 Biographical Significance of Dedications . . . .64 Life in Vienna 55 Neglect of Conventionalities 56 First Appearance in Public 58 A Eehearsal under Difficulties 59 Visit to Berlin 60 Fasch and Zelter . • 61 Himmel 62 An Illness 63 Adelaide. "Woelff and Steibelt 64 Count Wetzlar 65 At Unter-Dobling 67 Love of Country Life. The Prometheus Ballet . . .68 Quits the Lichnowsky Palace for Lodgings in the Tiefen- Qrdhen 69 Charles Czerny. Hetzendorf . . . . ■ . .70 Giulietta Quicoiardi. The Moonlight Sonata . . .71 CONTENTS. Vll PAOB The "Immortal Loved One" 73 Beginning of Deafness . . i ..... 76 Letters to Wegeler 77 Brothers Johann and Caspar 79 At Heiligenstadt. Beethoven's " Will " .... 80 Correspondence with Zmeskall 84 Difficulties with Proofs. Publishers' " Improvements " . 85 Aloys Forster 85 A Memorable Concert. The Kreutzer Sonata. Abbd Vogler 86 Operatic Projects. Origin of the Eroica Symphony . . 87 ' Schikaneder. Lodgings- in the Eothe Haus . . . .88 Quarrel with Stephan Breuning 89 The "Finale of a Sonata," A Country Walk with Eies at Dobling 90 Beethoven as a Teacher 91 . Lodgings at Baron Pasqualati's House 92 Fidelio. Entry of the French into Vienna . . . .93 Friends in Council 94 The Rasoumoffsky Quartets 96 Fracas at Lichnowsky's Seat in SUesia 96 Beethoven and Hummel 98 Offer from the King of Westphalia. The Kinsky Lawsuit . 99 Ignaz Moscheles 100 Second Entry of the French into Vienna. Death of Haydn 102 "Goethe's Child" 103 Beethoven's Letters to her 104 Further Matrimonial Projects 106 Amalie Sebalde. , The Countess Erdody. Madame von Ertmann 107 Deafness Increases. Spohr in Vienna 108 Acquaintance with Goethe • 109 Dr. Malfatti and his Daughters 110 Domestic Perplexities Ill Fran Babette Streicher 112 Maelzel. The Battle of VHtoria 113 Beethoven as a Conductor 114 Quarrel with Maelzel 115 viii CONTENTS. PAGE Anton Schindler 116 Revival of -FideKo 117 Friedrich Treitschke 118 Death of Prince Lichnowsky 119 The Congress of Vienna. Interview with the Empress of Bussia. Honours from Foreign Academies . . . 120 Napoleon's Escape from Elba. Another Quarrel with Stephaa Breuning 121 Beethoven's Brothers. Death of Caspar .... 122 Carl Beethoven 123 Lawsuit with "The Queen of Night" 124 Death of Prince Lobkowitz .... . . 125 Archduke Rudolph and the Missa Solennis . . . .126 Schroder Devrient 127 The Last Pianoforte Sonatas 128 The Ninth Symphony 129 Beethoven's "Three Styles" 130 Meeting with Weber ' . . . 132 Rossini enters the Field. Difficulties with the Mass and New Symphony. Their Production in Berlin contem- plated . . . 133 Concert at the Karnthnerthor Theatre 135 Mdlle. Ungher . ' . . .' 136 Failure of the Second Concert, and its result , . .137 Beethoven's Religion 138 A Glimpse of Beethoven in the last years of his Life . . 139 The Galitzin Quartets ........ 140 Troubles with Carl 142 Visit to Gneixendorf . 144 Testimony of Michael Kren 145 A Disastrous Journey 146 Visitors during the Last Illness 147 Strange Apathy of Friends. Poverty and Neglect. The London PhUharmonio Society comes to the rescue . . 148 Hiittenbrenner's Account of the Final Scene " . . .150 Funeral Honours 151 NOTE. It would have been impossible to enumerate system- atically year by year the works of so prolific a composer as Beethoven without turning this little biography into something like an extended catalogue. Instead, there- fore, of crowding the pages with titles, dedications, and opus numbers, it has been thought well in most cases to mention such compositions only as were connected with external events of more or less importance in the composer's career, and to refer the reader to the end of the book for a complete list of Beethoven's printed works. The ample materials for such a compilation, which exist ift Nottebohm's catalogue and elsewhere, have been already turned to the best possible account in the Appendix to the Dictionary of Music and Musicians; and the writer offers his cordial thanks to Sir George Grove for kindly permitting this to be used as a basis for the Catalogue here given. London, February 1890. BEETHOVEN. CHAPTER I. Attempts to trace the ancestry of Ludvig van Beethoven have been successful so far back as the middle of the seventeenth century, when a family bear- ing that name, and related to the composer, lived in a small village near Louvain, in Belgium ; and it was at about that time that one of the members quitted his village home and settled in Antwerp. Documentary evidence no less authoritative than the parish register shows that in 1685 the Beethovens were residing in the ancient city; the migration having, as a matter of fact, taken place some thirty-five years before that date. There the composer's grandfather — also named Ludvig Beethoven — was born. In the qualities of energy, independence, and musical ability early mani- fested by this progenitor, persons fond of tracing the influence of heredity in the lives of the world's greatest men — a subject very frequently illustrated in the pages of musical biography — will find material ready to hand, "Whether or not Ludvig quarrelled with bis family, 2 BEETHOVEN. as has been supposed, it is known that he quitted Antwerp at an early age, that^when about eighteen he was among his Louvain connections, and that for about three months he occupied a post as singer in one of the churches there. On the expiration of this temporary engagement he sallied forth once more to fight his battle with the world. Whither to turn his footsteps was a question there can have been but little difficulty in deciding. Naturally and irresistibly he was drawn to Bonn — at that time the centre of attraction for all young and ambitious musicians, and the seat of the great art-patron Clement Augustus, Elector Archbishop - of Cologne. The position filled by these ecclesiastical princes was in some respects a peculiar one, involving important privileges, but not the title of majesty. Their principal function is explained by the word "Elector." With them rested the right of electing the emperor or king during the period .when Germany was an elective monarchy. They were nearly always connected with the reigning family, and the splendour of their courts, ' the munificence of their patronage, which on the whole was intelligently directed, drew within their circle most of the leading spirits in art, science, and letters. Their priestly vows seem to have sat rather lightly upon them ; and some notion of the relative importance attached by them to ecclesiastical and social duties may be derived from certain items in the budgets of Clement Augustus, where, on one occasion, by the side of 4716 thalers devoted ad jaias causas figured 50,966 thalers for Plaisiranschaffiongm, or various kinds of pleasures. BEETHOVEN. These pleasures, however, in many cases subserved indirectly a more useful purpose than that of merely contributing to the amusement of the illustrious pre- late, whose post in the Church was nearly a sinecure, and the gay courtiers around him. Fortunately both for the art itself, and for the young musicians whose sole hope of encouragement and advancement rested in the private patron — long since supplanted by that new and stiU more powerful patron, the public — musical performances entered largely into the scheme of these Plaisiratischdffungen. To Bonn, therefore, Beethoven's grandfather, with the energy and hopefulness of youth, a good voice, and musical capacity for stock-in-trade, made his way almost as a matter of course. Arrived there, his foot was soon on the first rung of the ladder; and after ■passing the customary year of probation, Ludvig found himself permanently installed among the court musi- cians, with an assured yearly income of four hundred gulden ; already in a position, therefore, to face fortune .with moderate equanimity. The successive steps by which, between the years 1732 and 1761, Ludvig rose from the post of ordinary musician to that of Capell- meister, and to a place third in the list of twenty-eight - Hommes de Chambr.e Honoraires in the court, sufficiently testify to "the favourable opinion of his abilities and character entertained by those about him. But for one dark shadow in his domestic life, the elder Ludvig's career might have been a happy as well as a successful one,- This shadow was caused by an unfortunate pro- pensity for drink manifested a few years, after their 4 BEETHOVEN. marriage by his wife Josepha, and no doubt transmitted through her to their son Johann. The career of Johann ^ Beethoven, father of the great composer, appears as a sombre interleaf between the unsullied page that preceded it and the glorious page that followed. It was marred rather by weakness and indecision of character than by actual badness. It began in mediocrity and ended in hopeless degeneracy and failure, his intemperate habits maintaining, as time went on, ever firmer hold of their 'victim. In 1767, possessing no other resources, apparently, than the miserable £30 a year his tenor voice enabled him to earn in the Electoral chapel, Johann plunged into matrimony, with consequences to himself and to others that might have been expected. He chose for wife a young widow, twelve years Tiis junior, Marie Mag- delena, daughter of the head-cook at the castle of Ehrenbreitstein ; an honest, kindly woman, whose memory was cherished throughout his life by her son Ludvig with the tenderest affection. Ludvig van Beethoven, the subject of this memoir, was baptized on the 1 7th December, 1770, an event commemorated a hundred years after by a tablet affixed to the house. No. 515, in the Bonngasse, where he was born. The date has been pretty geiierally quoted as that of the composer's birth, which, however, there is good reason for supposing occurred on the previous 1 The name appears in early documents with various spellings — such as Biethofen, Biethoven, Bethoven, Betthoven and Bethof. It has been pointed out that whereas the dissipated Johann availed himself without stint of this latitude, his father, the elder Ludvig, an honourable man and citizen, was invariably consistent in the matter. BEETHOVEN. 5 day. All elder brother, Ludvig Maria, born the year before, lived only six days. After Ludvig came Caspar Anton Carl (1774); Nickolaus Johann (1776); and August Franz Georg (1781). The latter died in early childhood, but Caspar and Johann lived to exercise an important and in some cases a sinister influence over the career of their distinguished brother. Besides a girl, who died four days after birth, another sister, Maria Margaretha Josepha, saw the light in 1786. It would have fared hard with the little household from the outset but for the help contributed to the general expenses by Ludvig the elder. The worthy old Capellmeister continued the even course of his useful life, conducting at church, in the theatre, and at the Elector's private concerts, testing the qualifications of candidates for admission into the choir and orchestra, and supervising the musical arrangements at the court, with uniform industry and efficiency; a hale, bright- eyed man, the mainstay of the family while he lived, whose venerated figure often recurred to the composer's memory in after years. All too soon the day arrived — before Ludvig was three- years old-^when that figure was removed from the scene. The grandfather died, and with his death ended the only happy days Ludvig can be said to 'have known in his childhood. While family sorrows thick- ened, and the pinch of poverty began to be felt in earnest, troubles- of another kind, connected with that art which afterwards became the chief joy of his life, were in store for young Ludvig. The signs of musical genius early manifested in 6 BEETHOVEN. his boy set the needy Johann a-thinking. What direction his thoughts took, while he watched the small fingers struggling to pick out tunes upon the tinkling instrument that in those times supplied the place of pianoforte, may be inferred from his subsequent procedure. The pecuniary help long contributed" by the most aged member of the family had ceased : was it not possible that this might now be. replaced by judiciously exploiting the talents of the youngest ? Naturally, perhaps, under the circumstances, his mind reverted to Handel's early successes, and to the still more recent successes of Mozart; and so, from that time forward, the process of " prodigy " forcing began in earnest. From his fourth year the hours not spent by Ludvig at the public school, where he received a second-rate education, were devoted remorselessly to an endless round of violin and clavier practice. Recrea- tion and healthy exercise, such as usually fell to the lot of less gifted boys of his own age, were henceforth unknown to him. Tears and weariness, and, at length, something like hatred of the art he would otherwise have delighted in, were the natural consequence. For- tunately for Ludvig, Johann was sufficiently alive to his own interests, and sufiiciently! conscious of his own shortcomings as a teacher, to see the necessity of pro- curing further help; and with this view the services were called in of a tenor singer in the Bonn opera-houge> named Pfeiffer, to whose hands the lad's musical education was transferred in 1779. From all accounts this Pfeiffer seems to have been a helpful, capable, and withal kindly man ; not altogether BEETHOVEN. 7 free, however, from the prodigy mania, nor unwilling to risk the young student's health, in his efforts to further the father's ambitious views. Pfeiffer, it is supposed, was lodging at that time in the same house as the Beethotens, and henceforth young Ludvig had two task'masters. The feeling of mingled gratitude and resentment with which in after life the composer looked back upon the severe training of these early years, is not without parallel in the lives of other men of genius, whose precocious powers raised hopes in others that cost them dear. No doubt Johann and Pfeiffer, in their eagerness for immediate results, pursued the forcing system — ^on some occasions at any rate — to the verge of inhumanity. We read of the pair coming home late at night from a drinking bout, and dragging the lad from his bed ; of pianoforte practice prolonged till daybreak ; of threats and pimishments, and a general recklessness of treatment such as might easily have defeated its own object. Before passing unmitigated censure, it is only fair to look to results. They appear, at any rate, to have devoted immense pains in de- veloping the powers of their pupil. At an age when other lads destined for a musical career were struggling with technical difficulties, young Beethoven was already sufficiently master of his art to begin to attempt, the expression of what was in him; the period of pre- liminary discipline, inevitable for him as for, aU others, was already over. Judging too from the kindly feel- ings towards Pfeiffer, retained throughout his life by Beethoven himself, from a declaration he once made that " he had learned more from him than from anybody / » BEETHOVEN. else," from the fact that many years afterwards he sent money for the relief of his necessities through Simrock the music publisher, it is clear that the name of this, his first master, was not associated exclusively with memories of severity and unkindness. To the pianoforte studies were added also lessons on the violin, and Ludvig's early initiation into the difficul- ties of the latter instrument proved still'less to his taste : its necessity, however, will hardly be disputed. Mean- while the lad was assisted by one Zambona in acquiring snatches of Latin, French, and Italian; and another indispensable part of his musical education was sup- plied by lessons on the organ from the court organist, Van den Eeden, an old friend of his late grandfather. Thus it will be seen that with all his faults and fail- ings, Johann did honestly bestir himself to procure for his son such educational advantages as he was able to command by the help of family and professional con- nections ; and that these advantages were considerable. In the following year (1781), Van den Eeden retired, and Christian Gottlob Neefe, succeeding to his post of organist to the court, undertook the further musical guidance of Van den Eeden's former pupil. This was an event of no small importance to Beethoven. Hence- forth his organ studies brought him into daily contact with a musician of amiable disposition and undoubted ability, a conscientious teacher on old-fashioned lines, who enjoyed considerable influence in his day. The relations between Neefe and his pupil continued for several years; not without some friction, but on the whole with friendly feeling on both sides, and with BEETHOVEN. 9 undoubted profit to Beethoven himself. This much was freely acknowledged by the latter, years after, in a letter addressed from Vienna to his old teacher. The differences which undoubtedly did occur from time to time to ruffle their intercourse are open to more than one explanation. Beethoven was always a " difficult " pupil to deal with; and the discipline of these early years must have been exasperating to one vaguely conscious of gifts destined hereafter to lead him whither his present Mentor would have neither the power nor probably the will to follow. Nevertheless, that he made rapid progress, is evident from the fact that Neefe, when compelled, with other members of the court band, to quit Bonn for the Elector's Palace at Munster, did not hesitate to appoint young Ludvig, then no more than eleven and a half years old, as his deputy at the chapel organ; a post of honour, but without emolu- ment. In further explanation of the occasional frictioa that arose between them, is it uncharitable to suggest, while human nature remains what it is, that Neefe's admiration for his pupil's talents may have been, accompanied with a vague misgiving lest some day they might prejudice his own position ? If any such appre- hensions really crossed his mind, he would have found some excuse for them in subsequent events; for the appointment enjoyed by Neefe was actually divided two years afterwards by order of Max Franz, the new Elector who succeeded on the death, in 1784!, of Max Friedrich ; and henceforth, out of a reduced salary of 350 florins, 150 florins went to the share of his pupil. Whatever may have been his feelings, Neefe was too worthy and 10 BEETHOVEN. too just a man to allow them to influence his acts ; and he always showed himself ready to bear frank testi- mony to young Beethoven's abilities, whenever that testimony was likely to be useful to him. One instance of this genial appreciation is found in a letter from his pen published in Cramer's Magazine : — " Louis Van Beethoven, a youth of eleven years, son of the aforesaid tenor, displays talent of considerable promise. He plays with power and finish, reads well at sight, and is able to execute the greater part of Sebas- tian Bach's Wohl-tempenrte Clavier. Any one ac- quainted with this collection of preludes and fugues through all the keys (which might almost be called the non plus ultra) will know what this means. Herr Neefe has also given him, so far as other occupations will admit, some preliminary study of Thorough Bass. He is now exercising him in composition, and for his en- couragement has had printed in Mannheim nine Variations on a March written by him for the piano- forte. This young genius deserves some assistance to enable him to travel. If he goes on as he has begun, he will certainly be a second Wolfgang Armadeus Mozart." The variations above referred to were on a March of Dressier in C minor, to be found in Breitkopf and Hartel's edition of Beethoven's works. Originally the title-page contained one of those mystifications with which the world has since become familiar in questions pertaining to the age of prodigies. It is there stated that the piece was composed " par un jeune amateur, Ludvig von Beethoven, ag6 de dix ans".; whereas the "young amateur" was already twelve years old. BEETHOVEN. 11 Among Beethoven's earliest compositions were three Sonatas for the pianoforte, published in 1781 and 1782, and dedicated to the Elector Max Friedrich in terms of flattery and servility — no doubt supplied to him by others — characteristic of such productions in that age of patronage. We also hear of a Funeral Cantata, which has unfortunately been lost. This was written and performed in memory of Mr. Cressener, for some years the English chargi d'affaires at Bonn, a gentleman of cultivated tastes, who appears to have quickly discerned the phenomenal character of the boy's genius, and whose appreciation took the practical and welcome form of a gift of four hundred florins. There is no record of public appearances at this time, nor indeed until many years afterwards. The nearest approach to the kind of musical baby-farming so familiar in our ' modem concert-rooms was a tour in Holland, supposed to have been made by Ludvig and his mother in the winter of 1781. Some such step may well have been unavoidable, considering the desperate straits into which the family had fallen since the grandfather's death. The youthful virtuoso, probably, teaped a two- fold advantage from this journey, in presents received from well-to-do persons whose houses he visited, and in the increased self-confidence he cannot have failed to acquire by thus continually playing before strangers. In 1783 the Elector was much occupied with a project for establishing at Bonn a National Opera Company, in imitation of that at Vienna. He en- gaged, with this view, a body of vocalists, named after their manageress, "The Grossmann Company," and 12 BEETHOVEN. Neefe, who had formerly been connected with the troupe, was appointed director. The event brought with it yet another advancement for Ludvig. There can be no stronger proof of the high estimation in which his talents were already held by those above him than the fact that at the age of twelve years and four months young Beethoven was formally installed as cembalist in the orchestra. The duties attached to this post were by no means light, and required both skill and know- ledge for their proper fulfilment. When presiding at the piano during rehearsals, the cembalist was expected to play all accompaniments from score ; and, seeing that the performances given between 1783 and 1785 included operas by Gluck, Salieri, Sarti, Paisiello, and many others, this connection with the theatre must have afforded him important opportunities for self-improvement. He had to be contented, however, with the honour of the appointment, as no remuneration was at first attached to it. The death, in April 1784, of the Elector Max Fried- rich brought many changes and some disappointments ; among them the abandonment of the scheme for National Opera-house, and the consequent dismissal ot the theatrical company. Once released from the burden of duties which had weighed very heavily upon him, Neefe returned to the organ, and no longer needed a deputy. For a time, therefore, Ludvig's connection with the court chapel ceased, and his engagements as organist dwindled down to the playing of early morning mass in the Minorite church. The pay, if any, received for this service must have been a mere pittance ; and BEETHOVEN. 13 though Ludvig managed to earn a little money by teaching — always an irksome and hateful task for him — that year was no doubt remembered as one of the dai-kest for the never very prosperous Beethoven family; especially when it is considered that to money per- plexities were added others arising from the father's ever-increasing intemperance. But in June, when the new Elector began to re- organize his establishment, the outlook again brightened. Among the changes in his musical arrangements was one which must have proved more palatable to young Beethoven than to his master ; for it was then that the division of duties and emoluments took place, as already related, according to which Ludvig became henceforth organist jointly with Neefe. There had been, indeed, some idea of dismissing Neefe altogether, and installing Beethoven in his place. In the list issued by Max Franz in 1784 of the various members of his band and their respective salaries, Ludvig figures for the first time as " second organist," with a yearly stipend of about fifteen pounds, while that of his father was about thirty pounds. An era of increased musical activity commenced with the reign of Max Franz, a prince who surpassed even his predecessors in the splendour of his court, and the discriminate exercise of patronage in all matters con- nected with art. No doubt young Beethoven's ardent and sensitive temperament was favourably influenced by the prevailing enthusiasm. That he was in better spirits may be inferred from the little practical joke recorded against him during the Holy Week of 1785, brief 14 BEETHOVEN. mentiou of which, familiar as it is, demands a place here. At the services held in Passion Week organ-playing was prohibited ; but it was customary for the accompanist to improvise short interludes upon the pianoforte between the selected phrases from the Lamentations of Jeremiah sung upon such occasions. A singer in the Electoral chapel named Heller, over-confident in his own powers, made a bet with Beethoven that the latter would be unable to confuse his ear in the course of these volun- taries by any legitimate modulation, however foreign to the original key. This challenge resulted in a signal victory of composer over vocalist. \yhether or not Beethoven's harmonies were of a kind that would be called " license " in the present day — and probably by a less tolerant name by the more strait-laced musicians of those times — he succeeded to his heart's content in throwing the soloist out of tune and out of temper. The singer's discomfiture gave rise to an insignificant professional squabble, in which even Max Franz himself was asked to interfere. The year 1786 was uneventful in an artistic, or at any rate in an artistically productive sense; but in those lively times at Bonn, when each day brought some new excitement, some court festivity, notable arrival, long rehearsal, or important performance, the young musician cannot have been idle. The year that followed, on the other hand, was destined to be an important landmark in his career. Aii^id the life and bustle of the little court in Bonn, it is easy to imagine with what fervent longing the thoughts of a young and ambitious composer must have turned towards that still BEETHOVEN. 15 more important centre of musical life — Vienna. How long a project of visiting the brilliant capital had been dimly shaping itself in his mind, or by what means the apparently unsurmountable diffibulties to its realiz- ation were eventually overcome, there is no evidence to show. The contrast between the gay scenes amid which his professional duties were performed and his meagre home — where, since the birth of a sister, Marie Margaretha Josepha, in 1786, the pressure of poverty weighed ever more heavily — must have been a source of daily and hourly pain to him. Such informa- tion as the world possesses of his resources, and of the financial condition of the family at that time, by, no means favours the suggestion that he was able out of his salary and some few poorly paid music-lessons to save sufficient money to cover the expenses of such a journey. Whatever the quarter from which help for this purpose was obtained, to Vienna he went, in the year ever memorable for him, 1787. Shortly after Beethoven's arrival at that capital, yet another of his cherished dreams was realized — he was introduced to Mozart. Viewed in the light of after events, this meeting between the composer with whose fame the whole musical world was then ringing, and the young " musician of the future," destined hereafter to eclipse, by the daring and grandeur of his achievements, even the great maestro himself, has a peculiar interest. The interview occurred at a musical gathering, and took a course, in the first instance, that might easily have been foreseen. As may be supposed, Mozart in his time had had no small experience of "boy-wonders," 1 6 BEETHOVEN. and what he had hitherto seen of the phenomenon was not likely to cause him to be over-sanguine in the present case. When Beethoven, therefore, commenced with^what he suspected to be the regulation show-piece, the master contented himself with a few words of con- ventional praise. But afterwards, when the new player asked to be allowed to extemporize upon a given theme, and, warming to his subject, gave full rein to his imagin- ation, Mozart quickly changed his tone, and expressed admiration in sufficiently generous terms. Passing quietly into the adjoining room, he said to the friends about him — "Pay heed to this youth; one of these days he will make a noise in the world." In spite of his many pre-occupations, artistic and social, Mozart found time to give Beethoven a few lessons ; but these do not appear to have left a very favourable impression upon the mind of the critical scholar. Another event, long remembered in connection with these halcyon days — to be cut short, all too soon, by bad news from home — was his introduction to the Emperor Francis Joseph; the precise date of which has not been conclusively fixed. We know that in July Beethoven had already returned to Bonn; and, as Thayer with his customary minuteness points out, seeing that the emperor accompanied Catherine of Russia on a visit to the Crimea between April 11th and June 30th of the same year, the meeting must have taken place either before the first or after the second of these dates. The summer, which had commenced so hopefully, and had brought with it so much unwonted excitement BEETHOVEN. 1 7 for Ludvig, was suddenly darkened by a grave domestic sorrow. News reached him from home that his mother was dying of consumption, and an immediate return to Bonn became necessary. The journey was not accom- plished without difficulty; and it will be seen from the following letter addressed to Dr. Von Schaden of Augsburg, that he was compelled to borrow a sum equivalent to about £3 to help him on his way : — "Bonn, 1787. Autumn. "Esteemed and worthy Friend, " What you must think of me I can easily imagine; that you have good reason not to think favourably of me I am unable to deny ; but I will not excuse myself until I have explained my reasons for hoping that you will accept my apologies. " I must tell you in the first place that since I left Augsburg, my cheerfulness and with it my health began to fail me. The nearer I came to my native city, the more letters did I receive from my father, urging me to travel as fast as possible, in view of my mother's pre- carious state of health ; so, though far from well myself, I hurried on as fast as possible. The longing to see my dying mother once again helped me to overcome all obstacles. I found my mother still alive, but in a terrible condition. Her malady was consumption, and about seven weeks ago after much intense suffering she died. So good, so amiable a mother as she was ! My best friend ! Ah,- who was happier than I, so long as I was able to utter the sweet name of mother, and to know that I was heard ! And to whom can I now say it 1 To the silent images of her that my imagination conjures 18 BEETHOVEN. up for me ? Since my return here I have had but few happy hours. I have suffered from asthma the whole time, and fear that it will eventually result in consump- tion. In addition to this, I am a prey to melancholy, for me an evil as serious as illness itself. Imagine yourself in my place, and I may then hope to obtain your forgiveness. With regard to your extreme good- ness and kindness in lending me three Carolines in Augsburg, I am compelled to ask your indulgence for a little longer. My journey has been very expensive, and here I have not the slightest hope of earning any- thing. Fate does not favour me here in Bonn. " Pardon me for troubling you with this long statement about myself. It was necessary to make it in my own extenuation. " Do not, I pray you, withdraw from me your much- prized friendship. There is nothing I so ardently wish as to make myself worthy of it. " I am, with all esteem, " Your most obedient servant and friend, "L. V. Beethoven, " Cologne Gowt Organist." " To Monsieur de Schaden, " Counsellor at Augsburg." His mother died on the I7th July. During her last illness she was tended by her old friend Franz Ries with an affectionate devotion that Beethoven never forgot. In November his little sister Margaretha also passed away ; and thus the year 1787 ended in sorrow and despondency. One result of these changes was to burden the young BEETHOVEN, 19 musician with new responsibilities, and after the bustle and excitement of his Vienna trip,, and the reaction following upon its mournful termination, he must have resumed his daily round of duties in the little town of Bonn with a heavy heart. The stipend of about £30 a year, earned by his father as one of the musicians of the court, represented that worthy's sole contribution towards general expenses; and seeing that Johann's voice was already considerably impaired by long-con- tinued excesses, the sum, small as it was, probably represented not an unfair equivalent for his services according to the scale of remuneration in those days. Young Ludvig added a little by his music teaching, and the absolute necessity of increased exertions in that direction, if the household was to be kept together, soon became evident. For the sake of those at home higher ambitions had to be postponed, and hour after hour snatched from composition and the pursuits he loved, to help the halting steps of learners in various stages of inefficiency. The days of guinea music-lessons were not then within measurable distance ; but however small may have been the pay, rich compensation for his self-sacrifice was in store for Ludvig ; for it was while engaged in this weary and imcongenial occupation that he formed the most valuable and lasting friendship of his life. Among the families with which Beethoven was brought into contact was one occupying a high social position at Bonn, named Von Breuning. He first made their acquaintance as music-master to the youngest son Lenz and his sister; but soon this acquaintance 20 BEETHOVEN. ripened into an intimacy, the benign influence of which over Beethoven's future can hardly be over-estimated. This charming home, brightened by genuine enthusiaspi for all matters pertaining to art and literature, and made doubly fair by refinement of manners and mutual affec- tion, must have been a veritable haven of rest for the young and struggling musician. The circle consisted of Madame Von Breuning, a woman of cultivated tastes and kindly heart, widow of a councillor of State who had perished in a fire at the Electoral Palace; her three sons,'Christoph, Stephan, and Lenz; and their sister Eleanore. There was also living at the house, Madame Von Breuning's brother, the Canon Abraham V. Keferich, who superintended the children's education. Fresh hopes, new and cheerier views of life and its possibilities, came to Beethoven amid these surroundings, and whatever taste for -general culture he possessed in addition to his musical gifts, may fairly be attributed to this happy period. The young men wrote poetry, and studied the ancient classical writers in the original under their uncle's guidance. Ludvig did not, appar- ently, go so far as this; but the Odyssey in Voss's translation was a constant source of delight to him, and he read with avidity not only the works of Lessing and Klopstock and Gleim, and the early productions of Goethe, but also certain German versions of Shakespere and Milton and Sterne — desultory studies which but imperfectly supplied the place of that general education his father, eager and exacting as he was in the matter of musical training, had so culpably neglected. Valuable above all was the friendship extended to BEETHOVEN. 21 him by Madame Von Breuning. In her Beethoven at last found the encouragement and moral support he had so long needed. The affection which sprung up between the two, indeed, resembled that of mother and son. Madame Von Breuning thoroughly appre- ciated both his genius and his strong, sterling character. Even when Beethoven was in one of his least tract- able moods, a word from her would sufiSce to restore the lost balance, and it was .to her he would turn as a matter of course in the first instance for sympathy and counsel. His aversion to teaching has already been referred to; and here again, when he was in- clined to be more than unusually restive, Madame Breuning would interfere with the most salutary results.. " Beethoven has had a 'raptus'" was her favourite expression in explanation of any exceptional eccentricity on the part of the young musician; and this word came to be a standing, joke between them for years afterwards. In those days the need of such sympathy was often felt by Ludvig, for his life, in spite of its more congenial surroundings, was still far from a happy one. Troubles at home increased as Johann's intemperate habits became ever more confirmed and were followed by their inevitable consequences. Thanks to the forhearance of the Elector, his salary still con- tinued, but the services rendered by him in exchange had for some time past been merely nominal. We hear of an escapade on one occasion with the police, in which Stephan Breuning had to come to the rescue. In short, it became evident that the unfortunate tenor was no longer fit to be intrusted with the administration of 22 BEETHOVEN. the slender resources of the household, or with the fate of- his children; and by an arrangement concluded, with the Elector's sanction, in November 1789, part of Johann's salary was henceforth paid over to Ludvig, who thus, under the age of nineteen, found himself saddled with the cares and responsibilities of a family. At about this time Count Waldstein, an enthusiastic and cultivated amateur of music, was staying at Bonn, previous to his admission into the Teutonic order of which Max Franz was Grand-Master. In this accom- plished nobleman Beethoven found another valuable friend, who not only brightened existence by his genial companionship, but found opportunities to assist him in other ways. His services were as generous as they were delicately rendered. He presented him with a piano ; he caused money to be conveyed to him under the guise of allowances from the Elector, and spared neither time, trouble, nor influence in his efforts to pro- mote the advancement of his proUg4, His name will be handed down to generations, by whom, probably, it would otherwise be forgotten, ia association with the famous Sonata, Op. 53, which some fifteen years later Beethoven dedicated to him in token of his gratitude. Scarcely less valuable than pecuniary' aid was the artistic stimulus obtained by the musician during this intercourse with his warm-hearted and. sympathetic admirer. Waldstein would often pay a visit to his shabby room, and while Ludvig, seated at the piano, played and improvised under conditions likely to display his powers at their best, the aristocratic amateur would throw in words of encouragement and advice. For on such occasions Wald- BEETHOVEN. 23 stein often played the part of more than a mere listener. Towards the end of 1790, Beethoven undertook to com- pose music for a brilliant bal masqui, which Waldstein intended to give early in the following year. The plan bore fruit in the Bitter Ballet. This was duly per- formed, and for some time the authorship of .the music was attributed to Waldstein himself; the truth being that Waldstein made suggestions and Beethoven carried them into effect. Among those who always found a friendly welcome at the Breunings' were Franz Ries, and Beethoven's old chum and future biographer, Wegeler — attracted there, we may suppose, by considerations not altogether unconnected with the daughter of the house — Eleanore — whom he afterwards married. How frequently Lud- vig's extempore powers were brought into requisition during those happy social evenings can be easily imagined. All sorts of fanciful subjects were suggested to him. He would invent on the spur of the moment little tone- pictures of various persons of their acquaintance, and on one occasion Ries on his violoncello and Beethoven on the piano gave a joint improvisation. Often in the days to come, when Beethoven found himself the central figure of attraction in the courtly drawing-rooms of Vienna, must his thoughts have wandered back regret- fully to these peaceful evenings that passed all too quickly in harmless merriment, music, art-talk, and the purest social enjoyment. The scheme for establishing a national theatre was revived by the new Elector, but Beethoven no longer acted as cembalist. For four years he played the 24 BEETHOVEN. violia in the orchestra — sometimes by the side of Stephan Breuning, himself a capable amateur — and thus had an opportunity of further acquainting himself with the characteristics of stringe^d instruments. His connection with the court band also brought with it many a little festive incident to relieve the monotony of professional duties. One such was associated with a specially happy time, and made a lasting impression upon him. When the Elector visited Mergentheim in his capacity of Grand-Master of the Teutonic Order at Bonn, an excursion by water to accompany him was undertaken by the chief members of the orchestra. Two vessels were chartered, and the occasion served as an excuse for a sort of masquerade, into the spirit of wliich the whole company threw themselves with the. utmost enthusiasm. The first comedian, Lux,. was elected, king; and a distribution of other offices and state dignities followed in due course. To Beethoven was allotted, in the first instance, the post of king's scullion, and in this he acquitted himself to the general satis- faction. He was afterwards promoted; and Wegeler mentions having found among Beethoven's papers, a formidable document, sealed, tied, and stamped with pitch, which represented the letters patent. Amid song and laughter and good-natured fooling the merry crew floated up the river through some of the most beautiful parts of Rhineland. The charm of the scenery, viewed at its best from the boats as they glided leisurely aloiig, the sunlit hills, the pure air, the absence of constraint — all coinbined to make this holiday BEETHOVEN. 25 a memorable one for the light-hearted youths who took part in it. The event has since been celebrated in song by the poet. KaufFman, and Beethoven used to refer to it as " a fruitful source of beautiful images." Their journey was broken at AschafFenburg, where lived the Abbe Sterkel, the eminent pianist and prolific composer; and a plan was formed by some of the holiday-makers to pay him a visit. Thanks to the good offices of Ries and Simrock, Beethoven was included among the party, and introduced to the distinguished amateur, whose name, of course, had long been familiar to him. They met with a kindly and hospitable recep- tion ; the Abbe little dreaming that the part he played as host that day would hereafter be recorded in history. He gave them, by general request, a specimen of the refined and graceful style of playing for which he was famous. Beethoven was then persuaded by his conj- panions — not without difficulty and the aid of a little diplomacy — to seat himself at the piano. A sly remark in connecti6myith his recently published twenty-four variations on Righini's Venni Amore, coupled with a declaration from the Abb6 that in his belief not even the composer himself would be able to cope with their difficulties, -served its purpose. For not only did the composer surmount those difficulties, but he invented, on the spur of the moment, others still more formidable, "adopting for the nonce, either in a freak or in unconscious imitation, something of the refinement and elegance of the Abba's playing. Beethoven's performance on that occasion made a deep impression upon all who heard it, and his visit to the learned Abbe was a decided 26 BEETHOVEN. success. So far as is known, the two never came together again. On their arrival at Mergentheim the company gave a series of immensely successful representations, and they remained there about a month. The effect produced upon his hearers by Beethoven's playing at that time — rough as it is said to have been in technique — may be seen from an interesting description of it furnished by Carl Ludvvig Junker, chaplain to Prince Hohenlohe. His notice, which appeared in a contemporary paper, also gives pleasant testimony to the high personal regard entertained towards the young composer by those who were brought into contact with him. "I have also heard," says Junker, "one of the greatest pianists — the dear good Beethoven, some of whose compositions, written at eleven years of age, appeared in 1783. He declined to play at a public concert, perhaps because he did not like to perform on one of Spath's pianos, being accustomed at Bonn to Stein's instruments. But what was infinitely better, I heard him improvise; in fact I was myself asked to give him a theme. The greatness of this gentle and amiable man as a virtuoso may, I think, be esti- mated by the inexhaustible wealth of his imagination, the skill of his execution, and the thorough originality of his expression. I did not find him deficient in any of the attributes of a great artist. I have frequently heard Vogler play the piano for hour after hour (of his organ playing I express no opinion, for I never heard it), and always admired his extraordinary dexterity; but Beethoven, in addition to his fluent execution, is BEETHOVEN. 27 more telling, suggestive, expressive — in a word, he touches the heart, and he is as good in adagio as in allegro. The clever artists of this band are his admirers one and all, and listen intently when he plays. But he is modest and quite unassuming. Yet he acknowledged that on the tours which he undertook by order of the Elector, he rarely found in the most celebrated pianists what he had thought himself justified in expecting. His playing differs also so widely from the ordinary mode, that he appears to have obtained his present high profession by altogether original means." As will be seen hereafter, it was the magic of the Rhenish musician's pianoforte playing, above all his wonderful gift of improvisation, that in the first instance roused the enthusiasm of Viennese amateurs. Haydn, we are told, went so far as to prophesy greater things of Beethoven as a virtuoso than as a composer. With reference to the comparison above quoted between the playing of Vogler and of Beethoven, it should be remembered that the former — a native of Salzburg, as was also the other musical Abb6 met by Beethoven at Aschaffenburg — was one of the most remarkable composers, theorists, and organists of his age. The Elector's band returned to Bonn in time for Christmas, and resumed their work-a-day life. This continued to be brightened for Beethoven by his inter- course with the Breuning family, in whose house a new attraction presently appeared in the young and charming Jeannette d'Honrath, a friend and occasional visitor of Eleanore von Breuning. Beethoven soOn lost his heart 28 BEETHOYEN. to the Cologne beauty, who during her stay seems to have enlivened the time by flirting indiscriminately with both Stephan and. Ludvig, though the wounds she inflicted were neither very deep nor lasting — for- tunately as it afterwards turned out ; for her affections had already been bestowed upon a young Austrian officer, whom she ultimately married. The charms of another of the Breunings' visitors, the beautiful Miss Westerholz, also brought him under the thraldom of a hopeless affection, and for a season made him duly miserable. This was the Wertherliehe about which his friend Bernhard Eomberg used to tell anecdotes twenty years later. Beethoven never married ; but his love affairs through- out life were very mimerous. Such tender episodes varied in. degrees of seriousness from the passing fancy to those passionate attachments that alternately raised him to the seventh heaven of happiness, and plunged him into the depths of despair. The very fact that his intense longing for a home and for female companionship was never satisfied, that his affections never passed beyond the early stage during which life for him was surrounded by a glamour of romance and poetry and feverish hopes never to be realized, exercised a powerful and inevitable influence over the artistic side of his nature, and gave to his music in many cases a special character. Had he been fortunate enough, like Mozart, to find a Constance, the effect of this happier life would no doubt have made itself felt in his works; might even have improved them ; but those works could never have been exactly what they were. " So long at any rate as I BEETHOVEN. 29 knew him," says Wegeler, " Beethoven was never with- out a love, and he achieved conquest where many an Adonis had failed before him." Similar testimony has been given by his friends, Breuning, Ries, and Romberg ; and Wegeler adds the remark, that the objects of Beethoven's affections were nearly always ladies occupy- ing a position in life superior to his own — a fact that goes far towards explaining his many disappointments. As far as his interesting young pupil Eleanore von Breuning was concerned, the susceptible young musician appears to have escaped scot free. She was indeed engaged, or on the eve of engagement, to his friend Wegeler, whose wife she afterwards became. Between her and Ludvig a sincere affection existed, but it was that of brother and sister ; an affection which, with but one interruption, was preserved by both to the end of their lives. This interruption was caused by a difference that arose between them, for some unascer- tained reason, shortly before Beethoven's departure from Bonn. Among the few relics of youthful days, discovered among his papers, was the following greet- • ing, accompanied with a wreath of flowers, sent him by Eleanore on his twentieth birthday — "ZU B.'S GEBURTSTAG VON SEINER SCHULERIN. " Gliick und langes Leben Wiinsch' ich heute Dir, Aber aueh daneben. Wiinsch' ich etwas mir ! 30 BEETHOVEN. " Mir in Kucksiclit Deiner, Wiinsch.' ich Deine Huld. Dir in Eiicksicht meiner, Nachsiclit und Geduld ! "Von Ilirer Freundin und,Schulerin, "LOECHEN V. BrBUNINO." An air of innocent romance also surrounds Ludvig's frequent visits to the ' Zehrgarten,' a tavern greatly favoured at that time by the professors and students of the university, and by others connected with literary and scientific pursuits. The house of entertainment offered other inducements to Lxidvig besides those of good-fellowship and intellectual -converse ; for here was to be found the pretty Babette Koch, daughter of the proprietress. Babette was a girl of considerable attain- ments, and a just estimate of the position she occupied in the Bonn community is scarcely to be formed by reference to modern social prejudices. That she was good as well as pretty, may be safely inferred from the fact that she was able to reckon among her friends Eleanore von Breuning. She afterwards undertook the post of governess to the children of Count Belderbusch, and ended by marrying the father of her charges, and thus becoming a countess. In a letter written to Eleanore by Beethoven, a year after he kad settled in Vienna, it will be seen that he had by no means forgotten the beauty of Bonn. Meanwhile, Beethoven's two brothers, who figure with such unfortunate prominency in the story of his later life, had chosen their vocations ; Carl studying music, while Johann served an apprenticeship under the court apothecary. BEETHOVEN. 31 In 1790, Haydn, accompanied ,by Saloman, had passed through Bonn on his way to London. Again in 1792 the music-loving inhabitants were stirred to enthusiasm by the presence among them, on his return journey, of the famous Austrian composer. The visit was a memorable one for Beethoven ; and certain inci- dents connected with it bore an important part in the shaping of his future career. At Godesberg a dinner^ was given to the .traveller by the Elector's band ; and on that occasion Ludvig had an opportunity of submit- ting to him an unpublished cantata, now known to have been that composed on the death of the Emperor Joseph II. Until lately the work in question was supposed to have been lost. It is written for solo, chorus and orchestra, and was published for the first time in Breitkopt and Hartel's last volume. Haydn was wairm in his praises of the work, and encouraged the young musician to continue his studies. Though little is known of the conversation that ensued between the two, it is not unreasonable to connect this episode with events that followed closely upon it. The eyes of the Elector Max Franz seem at last to have been opened to the fact, that among the musicians at his court was one, at least, who was endowed with exceptional qualities. He had witnessed the steady advances in his art made by the young Beethoven ; the ready efficiency he showed in every new post that was assigned to him ; the admiration he commanded among his musical associates. The high esteem in which the young musician was held by Neefe, the Breunings, and Count Waldstein cannot have been unknown to 32 BEETHOVEN. him. No doubt, too, Haydn's favourable verdict upon his work was not long in reaching the Elector's ears, and the impression thus produced upon his mind was probably strengthened by many a good word from Waldstein, fever on the alert to promote the advance- ment of his friend and proUg4. The outcome of all this was a change of the happiest kind in Beethoven's prospects, bringing to a close the first stage of his artistic career. For some time past fate- had been drawing Beethoven with invisible threads in the direction of Vienna. His dream of returning once more to that capital, of making there a prolonged sojourn, of receiving lessons from Haydn, of obtaining admission into the charmed circle of a society that had become famous throughout Europe for intellectual culture and liberal patronage, had seemed doubly hopeless since the death of his mother, and in view of the additional responsibilities thrown upon his shoulders by his father's incapacity. But this dream was now to be realized. The money difficulty, which alone stood in the way, was removed by a pension from the Elector, atid by other small sums given him to start with, either by the Elector or some one else. Some sadness must have mingled with Beethoven's natural exultation, at the prospect of severance from the home of his childhood, where, in spite of trials and privations, he had passed many a happy hour, and formed many a lifelong friendship. But this severance could not have been long delayed. Soon revolutionary events changed all the old conditions, and brought to an end any hopes he might have entertained of further BEETHOVEN. 83 advancement in his native place. When Beethoven left Bonn, if he did not "hum his ships," it may be said, at any rate, that they were burnt for him. An- unexpected turn of Fortune's wheel was in store also for many of those he left behind ; for his noble patron among the number. Political troubles filled the air; within a short time Elector, courtiers, musiciails, and actors were all to be swept away, by the tide of the French Eevolution ; and when, in October, the French troops threatened the Rhine, all the Rhenish towns, in- cluding Cologne itself, were thrown into a state of panic ; most members of the upper classes packed up their valu- ables and took flight ; and following the general example, the Elector Max Franz withdrew to Mergentheim. The many hands that were outstretched in farewell greeting as soon as Ludvig's impending departiire became known, the Godspeeds and affectionate con- gratulations showered upon him from all sides, suffi- ciently testify to the young musician's popularity with his companions. Waldstein's parting words have come to possess almost historic interest — "Dear Beethoven, '' You are now going to Vienna in fulfilment of your wish so long frustrated. The genius of Mozart still weeps and mourns the death of his pupil. He found an asylum but no employment in the inexhaust- ible genius of Haydn. Through him he now wishes to be united to some one else. Receive, through un- broken industry, from the hands of Haydn the spirit of Mozart. " Your true friend, "Bonn, 29th October, 1792." " WalDSTEIN." 34 BEETHOVEN, Needless to say that the Breunings, Wegeler, Franz Ries, Neefe, Reicha, Degenhart, and many others, were not behindhand in good wishes. Their names/ with a few valedictory words from each, were inscribed, together with the above letter from Wald stein, in an album which Beethoven preserved as one of the most precious mementoes of his youthful days, and which is still in existence. Early in November he set forth on his journey, and the old familiar streets of his native Bonn knew him no more. ' Beethoven was now approaching his twenty-second year. A comparison has often been instituted between the paucity of his written compositions up to that time and the phenomenal productiveness shown during their youth by many other great musicians. Especially will such a comparison suggest itself in view of the vast amount of work achieved by Mozart during a similar period. Before the age of twenty-three, the latter had already established his fame as a prolific writer of symphonies, of operas, of cantatas, and masses ; including juvenile productions, he was able to point to some three hundred works from his pen. By the side of this astonishing record, that of Beethoven, as far as quantity is concerned, is altogether insignificant — the single orchestral piece belonging to the Bonn period being the Bitter Ballet. But of the activity of Beethoven's inventive powers during youth we should have ample proof — if proof were needed — in the extraordinary merit and fluency of his extempore playing. A partial explanation of BEETHOVEN. 35 the sort of reserve which seems hitherto to have held him back, when it came to putting pen to paper, may perhaps be found in his known methods of composition, and in his favourite habit of leaving notions to lie fallow — developing, altering, and slowly perfecting them with a patient self-criticism, of which some very interesting examples appear in the celebrated " Sketch-Books " given to the world by Mr. Nottebohin. During those years of comparative unproductiveness he had no doubt written much and destroyed much, and formed many projects the world knew nothing of A letter addressed to Schiller's sister Charlotte by a friend from Bonn, in January 1793, encloses for her opinion a setting of the Feuer-farbe, and then goes on to say — " It is the work of a young man of this place, whose musical talent has been universally recognized, and whom the Elector has now sent to Vienna, to Haydn. He means to set to work upon Schiller's Freude, verse by verse. I expect something perfect ; for, so far as I know him, he is all for the grand and elevated. Haydn states he intends to set him to grand operas, as he himself will shortly have to leave off composing. He does not usually devote himself to trifles like the enclosed, which was composed at the request of a lady." In a letter to Eleanore von Breuning, written not later than the spring of 1794, Beethoven excuses him- self for not sending the " long-promised sonata." Thayer interprets this to refer to a certain sonata he had played at her house in the old Bonn days, and promised to copy out from the rough sketch still in his possession. Casual mention also is made, in a Vienna musical paper 36 ' BEETHO.VEN. of 1796, of " several beautiful sonatas " by the new virtuoso, the existence of which in MS. appears to have been well known while he was pursuing his studies under Haydn and Albrechtsberger. Unobtrusively and without flourish of trumpets the future king of symphonists made his entry into that capital which was henceforth to be the scene of his struggles and triumphs ; selecting for his first lodging a garret — presently exchanged for a room on the ground- floor — at a printer's house in the Alservorstadt, there to commence a term of student-life which lasted about three years. In accordance with arrangements made beforehand, his lessons under Haydn commenced almost immediately, and were received at~the master's house. These included the usual curriculum of " strict counter- point" according to Fux, whose Gradus ad Parnassum was used. The Elector's allowance — not a very large one, and not long continued — with the addition, perhaps, of further help from other quarters, enabled him to pur- chase a few articles required for his personal comfort, and student's paraphernalia. Untidy as Beethoven often was from a housewife's point of view, he had acquired at least some methodical habits, and he kept periodical record not only of musical ideas, but of daily expenses. From one of these niemoranda we learn that during his first month in Vienna he invested in stick, wig, boots, shoes, overcoat, seal, desk, and the hire of a piano. It is interesting to think that during the time Beethoven was working modestly in Vienna, under the guidance of two famous masters, his name as a composer had already come to be known and honoured BKETHOVEN. 37 among at, least one little musical coterie in an English provincial town. When most of the well-to-do inhabit- ants of Bonn were hastily packing up their belongings and preparing for flight, a certain Abb^ Dobbeler, having occasion to go to Hamburg, offered. his escort thus far to an old English lady who was on her way home. This was the Hon. Mrs. Bowater, a cosmopolitan traveller, of cultivated musical taste, who had lived on the Continent for many years. Business afterwards called the Abb4 to England, whence the two went together, and eventually they took up their residence at Leicester. As the ecclesiastic was an excellent violinist, music became one of the favourite consolations of his exile. A friend of both living in the same town relates how, on a rainy day, he would often receive from the Abb^ some such missive as the following — " As the day is good for nothing but dinner and music, Mrs. Bowater hopes for your company at four, and a quartet in the evening." The interest of these cosy meetings consists in the fact that among the music played, and always with the greatest enthusiasm, was a trio, brought over from Bonn by Abb4 Dobbeler, the work of a then new composer — Ludvig van Beethoven. In London also, it should be added, the three pianoforte trios. Op. 1 — composed 1791-92, and dedicated to Prince Lichnowsky — were greeted with acclamation by Cramer, Watts the tenor, and other musicians. In Vienna, as in England a hundred years ago, the pur- suit of music in any serious or elevated sense was restricted to the aristocratic and privileged classes ; but in those circles it had reached a degree of dignity, refinement, 38 BEETHOVEN. and importance which would have been impossible, during those times at any rate, under other conditions. The conditions, it is true, were those of patronage, and patronage in its most unqualified and undisguised form Representatives of noble houses had their own private orchestras and quartets ; a fashion, and in many cases a sincere love, for chamber music stimulated the industry of composers in that pure and beautiful form of art, which then reached its highest point of development, and has since for the most part been strangely neglected. Among the great families he visited, Beethoven found many true friends, well able to appreciate his character and his genius; but that his proud spirit sometimes rebelled against this patronage, and would have been happier to follow an artistic career under those more independent conditions now possible to great composers and virtuosi, is sufficiently proved by his distaste for playing before company, and by his occasional outbreaks of downright rudeness when asked to do so. Wegeler has told us that all gaiety forsook Beethoven whenever he was asked to play in society. " He would come to me moody and depressed, and would say they forced him to play till the blood tingled to the very tips of his fingers. Gradually I would draw him into a friendly conversation, and try to quiet him and divert his thoughts. This accomplished, I let the conversation drop. I went to my desk; and if Beethoven wanted to say anything more he was obliged to take a chair just in front of the pianoforte. Soon, without turning round, he would strike one or two chords of an -undecided character, and out of these the most beautiful melodies BEETHOVEN. 39 gradually arose. I did not venture to make any remark about his playing, or only referred to it casually." This aversion to public display always remained, and was often the cause of unpleasantness with his best friends. Thayer has given a list of some of the principal houses at which Beethoven attended private musical entertain- ments, and was on a more or less friendly footing during hi§ second winter in Vienna. Among such were the houses of Princes Lobkowitz, Lichnowsky, Lichtenstein, Esterhazy, Schwarzenberg, Auersperg, Kinsky, Traut- mannsdorff, and Eisendorf; of the Counts Appony Browne, Ballassa, Franz and Johann Esterhazy, Czern in, Erdody, Fries, Strassaldo, and Zichy; the Countesses Hatzfeld and Thun ; Barons Lang," Partenstein, van Swieten, and von Eees; Counsellors Meyer^ Greiner, Paradies ; Fraulein Martinez ; the banker Henikstein, and others — an extensive visiting list for which the young student was indebted to introductions given him by his influential friend Waldstein, and to the connections which grew out of them. In the course of this round of musical reunions Beethoven was naturally brought into contact with many of the best-known pianists of the time, and had an opportunity of confirm- ing his opinion, formerly confided to Junker, that closer acquaintance with the performances of famous virtuosi often brought with it a measure of disappointment. He had not been more than a month at Vienna before news reached him from home of the death of his father. This event rendered necessary immediate steps for the protection of his two younger -brothers, whose sole 40 BEETHOVEN. natural guardian he now became. As the pension of one hundred thalers, upon which they had depended for support, now ceased, Beethoven petitioned the Elector for its continuance. His request was granted, and Ries undertook to receive and administer the money. This assistance, however, together with the allowance granted to Beethoven himself, ceased altogether after 1794, when the Elector and his court were forced to fly from Bonn before the insurgent troops. The feeling of disillusion already experienced by Beethoven when brought to close quarters with certain celebrities of the day, was - repeated in the case of Haydn as soon as he became his regular pupil. Per- fect sympathy between two such natures was indeed scarcely to be expected : one self-willed, rough in manner, and impatient of etiquette; the other well- trained in the. school of patronage, ceremonious, and deferent to his social superiors — ^one full of fire, and daring, and premonitions of future greatness; the other living and working industriously within that calmer sphere of art in which he reigned supreme, a thorough master of his resources, with settled powers and settled convictions. What were the exact relations at this time between master and pupil, and how far some of the disparaging remarks recorded of Beethoven may be^ attributed to momentary fits of anger, are questions that have never been clearly answered. Those relations, however, are well known to have been not altogether satisfactory, and although there were no open hostilities, they lived on terms of intimacy, if not of very warm friendship. The minute diary kept by BEETHOVEN. 41 Beethoven of current expenses, shows that he occasion- ally paid for his master's coffee and chocolate. Besides being disappointed with his hero, Beethoven considered he had specific cause for dissatisfaction at the perfunctory manner in. which Haydn's duties towards him as a teacher were fulfilled ; and a circumstance presently occurred which went far to confirm his mis- givings. Among the new acquaintances contracted by Beethoven since his arrival at Vienna was that of an excellent musician and thoroughly worthy man, Johann Sohenk, himself a composer, who afterwards attained to some reputation as a writer of operas. As Beethoven was returning home one day from Haydn's house, the two met in the street, and fell into conversation. The young student was downcast at what he considered his small progress, and glad enough of any opportunity that might offer itself of confiding his grievances to a sym- pathetic ear. He carried in his portfolio the exercises that had just been submitted to his master, and Schenk looked over them there and then. To Beethoven's in- dignation and Schenk's astonishment, the pages were found to contain many a fault to which Haydn had omitted to draw his pupil's attention. Beethoven's first impulse was to throw up his lessons and cease all further connection with Haydn ; but calmer and more politic counsels prevailed. An arrangement was finally concluded, in accordance with which Schenk was to supplement the tuition of Ludvig's ostensible master, correct the corrections, and generally , help him along the thorny path of contrapuntal study. Beethoven's eager desire to bfecome thoroughly grounded in the 42 BEETHOVEN. technicalities of his art shows that, masterful and " diflS- cult" as he often was, he had no high-flown notions concerning the irresponsibility of pre-eminent talent, and realized to its full extent, even if he had never heard it, the significance of Buffon's dictum — La g4iiie n'est souvent qu'une longue 'patience. The plan worked well, and a cordial friendship grew up between Beethoven and Schenk. Subsequently, when Beethoven's hands and brain were full, they lost sight of one another. Although, both continued to live in Vienna, each went his own way, and lived his own life; and the life that lay before Beethoven was one of too great self-absorption to leave much room for good-fellowship, or for the seeking out of old friends who for some reason or other failed to put in an appearance. Fickleness or forgetfulness .of benefits received were not in his nature, however his actions may sometimes have been miscon- strued. They did meet — once only, many years after — a"nd by accident, as on that former occasion when Beethoven, on his way from Haydn's house, found the very mentor needed to help him out of his perplexities. At the sight of his old friend the heai't of the now world-famous composer bounded with joy. Imme- diate adjournment to a neighbouring tavern was pro- posed and carried with alacrity. There, in a snug corner, forgetful of the busy world outside, the two passed several hours in half merry, half regretful con- verse, exchanging confidences, counting successes and failures, and reviving memories of those old days since which so many important events had occurred to change BEETHOVEN. 43 the complexion of both their lives. But more than ever those lives led in different directions. The old friends parted at the doors of the ' Jagerhorn,' never to meet again. Absent-minded as he was, Beethoven forgot neither friends nor the kindnesses received from friends ; and if at any time he had done them any real or fancied wrong, he continued to be tormented long afterwards by an exaggerated notion of the heinousaess of his offence, and was unstinted in his expressions of con- trition. This trait is illustrated in an affectionate, true- hearted, altogether charming letter written in 1793 to his old companion and almost sister, Eleanore von Breuning : — " Often have I indulged in pleasant thoughts of you and your dear family ;oftener still have I missed that peaceful feeling I should wish to experience whilst thus thinking of you. At such moments the memory of that fatal misunderstanding has risen before me, and my conduct in connection with it appeared to me more hateful than ever. But all that belongs to the past. What would I not give to be able to wipe out for ever the recollection of my conduct at that time 1 — so discredit- able to me, and so opposed to the general tenor of my charact0r ! But many circumstances at that time con- tributed to our estrangement; and the main obstacles to our reconciliation^ I suspect, were those persons who repeated to one remarks made by the other." Nor does he forget to send a message to the pretty Barbara Koch. " Tell her she is unkind not to have written to me even once. Twice -have I written to her, and three 44 BEETHOVEN. times to Malchus — but no answer. Tell her that if she will not write to me herself, she might at least get Malchus to do so." On another occasion, wheii sending Eleanore some variations, and a rondo with violin accompaniment, he again alludes to the old misunderstanding, the thought of which still weighed upon his mind — " The pretty cravat worked by your hands caused me the greatest surprise. Pleased as I was, it aroused in me a feeling of melancholy. It reminded me of the past, and caused me to feel ashamed as I thought of your generous conduct. Indeed, I did not think you still considered me to be worthy of a place in your remembrance." Several explanations have been attempted of the easy-going fashion in which Haydn, sometimes at any rate, directed the studies of his pupil. Beethoven, suspicious by nature, was often inclined to attribute this to intentional neglect, and never thoroughly for- gave him. But Haydn was a busy man just then; possibly, too, as has been suggested, he may have been influenced by a vague feeling that in Beethoven he had an exceptional pupil, and one who, to a great extent, might be safely left to himself. Thayer fixes the period during which Beethoven received supplementary, lessons from Schenk between January 1793 and about the end of the year. In the summer of 1794 Haydn was in England, and Schenk staying at the seat of Count Auerspurg, busy with the composition and production of operas for the private BEETHOVEN. 45 theatre of his patron. According to Neefe, Haydn made Beethoven a definite proposal that he should accompany him on his English tour ; ■ but the latter, persisting in his notion that " he did not mean well towards him," did not take kindly to the plan. From a " diploniatic " letter — not dated, but believed to have been written in 1793 — which Schenk found awaiting him at his lodgings, it will be seen that relations were not sufficiently straiaed to prevent Ludvig from accompanying his master on a visit to Eisenstadt, the country residence of Haydn's patron, Prince Esterhazy. Schenk was left in ignorance, of this expedition until, calling at Beethoven's house, he found the following note — "Dear Schenk, — I had no idea that I should be off to Eisenstadt to-day. I should have much hked to have one more chat with you. Meanwhile, count upon my gratitude for all the kindness you have shown to me. I will do all , that lies in my power to requite it. I hope soon to see you again, and to enjoy the pleasure of your society. Farewell. Do not quite forget your " Beethoven." Haydn's subsequent visit to England, and the absence of Schenk from Vienna on business of his own, removed any feeling of delicacy that may have prevented Beet- hoven hitherto from seeking further assistance in his studies. His choice fell upon Albrechtsberger. Under this learned, dry, but thorough teacher he submitted, for a period of about eighteen months, to a course of severe discipline in strict counterpoint, simple and 46 BEETHOVEN. double, free counterpoint, imitation, and all the in- tricacies of fugal composition. The painstaking manner in which Beethoven devoted himself to these tasks sufficiently shows that while, on occasions, he was not slow to manifest the independence of genius, the humility of genius was by no means wanting. His instructors may not have appreciated his declaration that " it was a good thing to learn occasionally what is according to rule, that hereafter one may come to what is contrary to'rule " ; but, at any rate, they must have seen clearly that in this speech there was no specious excuse for shirking the ordeal of study. Proofs of his industry at that time are still in existence, in the shape of some 263 exercises which were written on the above-named subjects, and which reflect equal credit upon the con- scientiousness of master and pupil. Besides these theo- retical studies, Beethoven sought the help of Salieri, director of the opera, and later on, court Capellmeister, in the art of writing for the voice. Ten of Beethoven's compositions, containing Salieri's corrections, have been published by Nottebohm. Till late in life Beethoven preserved the habit of referring many a question to his old adviser, and was never too proud to call himself " Salieri's pupil." He also took lessons — ^^first on the viola, and then on the violin — from Schuppanzigh; from Kraft and Linke on the violoncello ; from Friedlowsky on the clarionet ; and Punto oii the horn. It has to be confessed that Beethoven's mode of receiving instruction was of a kind likely to cause many of his teachers to eye him askance. As for Albrechtsberger the solid, whose susceptibilities must have suffered many a shock, he disposed of the BEETHOVEN. 47 matter summarily enough — '' Don't have anything to do with him. He has learnt nothing, and will never do anything in decent style." In further confirmation of Beethoven's unpopularity with his masters — to which, however, there' were several pleasant exceptions — Ries writes : " I know them all well. AH three had a high regard for Beethoven, but only one opinion concerning his studies. They agreed that Beethoven was so obsti- nate and self-willed that he had to learn afterwards, through hard experience, many a truth he refused to accept from his teachers. This was especially the opinion of Albrechtsberger and Salieri." Haydn had dubbed Beethoven " the Great Mogul " ; and this young student's now historic " I say it is iight," in answer to Ries, when the latter cited distinguished authority against certain consecutive fifths in an early quartet, no doubt seemed to afford some justification of the nickname. A few words now become necessary concerning some among the many persons in high places who speedily recognized Beethoven's worth and genius, opened their houses to him, placed him on the footing of personal friendship, tolerated his whims and even his occasional rudeness, and by their encouragement assisted — so far as such outside circumstances can be said to have influenced it — in making his career in Vienna what it was. Among the, first to come forward was the good- hearted, pompous Baron van Swieten, son of Maria Theresa's favourite physician — a very conspicuous figure indeed among the aristocratic amateurs of the day. Van Swieten had formerly been appointed ambassador to the Prussian Court. On his return to Vienna he succeeded 48 BEETHOVEN. his father as Prefect of the Public Library, and later became President of the Educational Commission. A musician of the old school, with tastes in the direction of the " grand and massive," he organized at his house, with the co-operation of Mozart, Sunday morning per- formances of classical music, including the choral works of Handel and Bach. He was also the founder of the MusikaliscTie Gesellschaft, an association formed by twenty-five aristocratic amateurs for promoting a taste for music of the highest class. The Baron also turned his hand to composition, and produced, besides some songs, six symphonies, upon which Haydn's verdict was summed up in the words, " stiff as himself." His grand airs of patronage went down probably better with Haydn than with Haydn's pupil. It was by van Swieten's persuasion that the former was induced to introduce a realistic croaking of frogs in The Seasons — an ill turn that he never forgot or forgave. To Beet- hoven van Swieten proved a sincere and serviceable friend ; and in spite of class distinctions, and his per- petual consciousness of them, relations of considerable intimacy appear to have gradually arisen between them. Musical meetings were held regularly at van Swieten's rooms, and often, after the guests had left, the young proUgd was kept up, far into the small hours,' to regale his host with half a dozen or so of Bach's fugues by way of Abendsegen — a fate of which he had fair warning in the wording of at least one of his invitations — " If nothing stands in the way, I should be glad to see you here next Wednesday at half-past eight o'clock,' with your nightcap in your pocket.'' BEETHOVEN. 49 In another influential house, where the early death of Mozart had left a bknk not easy to fill, the young musician found two of his most faithful and generous supporters. These were the Prince Lichnowsky and his accomplished wife, formerly the beautiful Countess of Thun. Both had been the devoted friends of that great composer, the mantle of whose genius, accord- ing to Waldstein's prophecy, was destined to fall upon Beethoven's shoulders. Whether or not Beet- hoven may be said to have received this inheritance through the hands of Haydn, no doubt it was as Haydn's pupil that he first attracted the attention of the childless couple, and quickly succeeded to the place in their affection occupied by Mozart during his life- time. Lichnowsky held quartet parties at his house, every Friday ; the regular performers being Schuppan- zigh, Sina, Weiss, and Kraft, all of whom subsequently made their mark in the world. His entertainments were frequented by the chief notables in the world of music and fashion — in Viennese society of those days the two terms were synonymous — and even royalty was attracted to the house by the princess's charm of manner and intellectual conversation. An amateur pianist of some merit, she has been described by Schonfeld, a Viennese writer, as "a strong musician, who plays the pianoforte with feeling and expres- sion." For Beethoven the princess became in time a second Madame von Breuning. Quickly recognizing his nobility of soul beneath the rugged exterior, she tolerated his foibles, his hatred of etiquette, his occa- sional outbursts of temper. She reproved his faults 50 BEETHOVEN. with mingled firmness and kindness ; on occasions, also, played the part of mediator between her husband and his froUgd, when, as was not infrequently the case, differences arose between them. In 1794 the Lichnowskys offered Beethoven a home in their palace, and for ten years he, lived there as one of the family, his only complaint being that they took too much care of him. " They wanted," he playfully observed, " to train me there with grandmotherly love ; and the princess would have liked to put me in a glass case that no evil might come nigh me." Certainly the task of keeping withinbounds a young genius so impatient of trammels, and so sensitively alive to any fancied interference with his independence, must have required no small tact and forbearance. Many hitches occurred at first, which were only to be sur- mounted by good-natured submission on the side of the patrons to the demands of their sometimes overbearing gXiest. Even the fixed dinner-hour of four o'clock was a grievance. Rather than be tied to this every day, Beethoven often forsook the princely table in favour of independence and the coarser fare of some neighbouring restaurant. When he wished to learn riding the prince's horses were placed at his disposal ; but he would have none of them, and forthwith purchased a horse for himself. Little acts of courtesy, which were meant to appease rather than ruffle his sense of dignity, threw Beethoven into a fever of irritation. Whenever he and the prince happened to ring their bells at the same time, the latter would order the Jager in his stentorian voice to attend first to the summons of his BEETHOVEN. 51 gu€st. Remarking this, Beethoven insisted upon en- gaging a servant for himself. Other misunderstandings, of a more serious kind, arose later, and threatened at one time to cause a permanent breach. In musical matters Beethoven had a high opinion of Lichnowsky's judgment, and this went even to the length of submitting to his criticism. The prince was an efficient pianist, and took pleasure in tackling the executive difficulties presented by Beethoven's novel style of composition for .that instrument, so that their artistic intercourse was mutually beneficial. For the rest, Lichnowsky may have been pardoned a feeling of legitimate pride in retaining, as a permanent guest in his house, the most remarkable pianist of the day. Among various anecdotes illustrative of the princess's , readiness to administer good-natured reproof when she thought it deserved, is oee related by Ferdinand, son of the Beethovens' faithful old friend, Franz Ries. The incident occured some years later than the period we are now concerned with. Ferdinand, in miserable circum- stances enough, had arrived in Vienna from Paris, bear- ing a letter of introduction from his father. He could have brought no better credentials. Beethoven con- sented to give him pianoforte lessons ; but passed him over to Albrechtsberger for composition. He also helped him on occasions with money, and used influence to procure him sundry modest appointments that yielded sufficient at any rate to keep him from want. One evening, while playing before a large company, Ries had the misfortune to strike a wrong note, and his master visited the offence with a tap on the head 52 BEETHOVEN. with one finger. The young pupil's vexation — aroused by the publicity of the reproof rather than by its severity — did not escape the observant eye of the princess. It was now Beethoven's turn to play ; and, as often happened, he began one of his own compositions rather carelessly. Standing immediately behind the player the princess, equal to the occasion, avenged this indignity inflicted by the strong upon the weak with a succession of smart blows, exclaiming at the same time — " If a pupil is to be punished with one finger for a single false note, the master, for worse faults, deserves the whole hand ! " " Everybody laughed," says Ries, "and Beethoven first of all. He began again, and played admirably." Installed in the Lichnowsky Palace, and left, in all essential matters, to his own devices, Beethoven must have found life not only tolerable, but on many occasions enjoyable. Free to come and go, and to dress as he liked, he passed the day in study, com- position, and music teaching; the evenings either in the company of his patrons and their friends, or at one or other of the many aristocratic houses now open to him. A great source of artistic pleasure as well as improvement was his association with the cele- brated Quartet — then called the Schuppanzigh, but known later as the Rasoumofisky Quartet. In drilling the young performers, who were hereafter to be the interpreters of some of the grandest emanations of his genius in this department of music, Beethoven, in con- junction with Prince Lichnowsky, spared neither time nor trouble. For both it was a labour of love, and the BEETHOVEN. 53 result was an ensemble such, perhaps, as could have been obtained only under the guidance and inspiration of the composer himself. The Archduke Rudolph may be said to be the single amateur among all his aristocratic acquaintance whom Beethoven consented to take seriously in hand as a pupU; and in making an exception in this case the composer, besides showing his discernment, laid the foundation of a lifelong friendship, productive of much pleasurable intercourse for both, and, on many an occasion, of incalculable value to himself. This amiable and accomplished nobleman — the grandchild of Maria Theresa, and nephew of the Elector, Max Franz — came of a musical stock, and himself possessed musical gifts of no mean order. He first commenced his studies under Beethoven in about 1804, when still a youth in his teens. The fact that in later life he was said to surmount successfully the difficulties of even the great Bb Sonata, gives some idea of the proficiency he acquired as a pianist ; while two published works show that he possessed talent also, for composition. The pianoforte concertos in G and Et>, the great Sonata Op, 106, the pianoforte trio in BP, and, above all, the colossal Missa Solennis, to be hereafter referred to, are among the important works dedicated to this friend and patron. The biographical significance of the dedications affixed in so many instances to Beethoven's compositions will be appreciated when it is remembered that only by such means was it possible in those days for an artist to pub- licly express his gratitude for the friendship extended 64 BEETHOVEN. to him by influential patrons. A glance at these dedi- cations is sufficient to recall many an important and stiiTing event in Beethoven's career, in connection not only with the aristocratic amateurs, the electors, princes, and courts, who rendered him more or less substantial services, but also with more romantic episodes. « Similarly, a fair idea can be obtained of the social surroundings acquired by Beethoven after he had lived a short time in Vienna, by passing in review some of the principal names attached to his works during the last decade of the eighteenth century, or shortly after. To mentioa a few of these, Prince' Lobkowitz received the dedication of the first Quartets, Op. 18; Count, Fries^— another of his wealthy supporters with whom he was very intimate for a time— was associated with the Violin Sonatas, Op. 23 and 24, and the String Quintet, Op. 29. The Russian Count Browne (le premier Mecene de sa Muse, as Beethoven called him), and his wife; Prince Schwarzenberg ; the Countess von Keglevics, and the Countess von Thun ; Princess Esterhazy, and various others, also figure in the list. The three pianoforte trios. Op. 1, dedicated to the prince, were performed for the first time at the Lich- nowsky Palace in the presence of a brilliant gathering. The occasion was marked by one of those awkward incidents so frequently brought about by the total want of sympathy between Beethoven and his master. Amid the chorus of congratulations that followed the perform- ance, Haydn stepped forward and warmly praised the two first trios, but recommended that the last (in C minor) should not be published. It was Beethoven's BEETHOVEN. 65 favourite of the three, and his feelings on .hearing this advice are not diflScult to imagine. Yet Haydn's verdict was no doubt sincere. The older composer had already reached the summit of his artistic aspirations, and was little disposed to believe in anything beyond. As for -the sinister- motives sometimes imputed to him by Beethoven, all that need be said is that there is no evidence of them. In a half-hearted way, Beethoven dedicated to the master his three pianoforte Sonatas, Op. 2, but he flatly refused to insert " Pupil of Haydn " on the title-page, declaring that " he had never learnt ^anything from him." The high-born beauties of Vienna vied with each other in showering attention^ upon their favourite, often to the detriment of his peace of inind. They paid visits to his lodgings, made him free of their houses, and tolerated bursts of ill-temper such as would have insured for ordinary men the ostracism of the polite world. Though his manners. were never conventional, and sometimes outrageous, Beethoven's sterling charac- ter and commanding genius, together with a certain indescribable fascination peculiar to himself, atoned for all. His society friends did more than tolerate him; they esteemed and loved him. Nevertheless, his roughness of bearing, his shabby dress ("quite a contrast to the elegant attire customary ' in our circles," says a young lady who met him. at the Lichnowskys' in those days) must have caused him to present a strangely incongruous figure in the brilliant drawing-rooms he frequented ; and when at his worst, his . obstinacy and ill-humour, especially in later life, 56 BEETHOVEN. must have been hard to bear. " He was very proud," ' says, the same eye-witness. " I have known him refuse to play even when the Countess Thun, the mother of Princess Lichnowsky, fell on her knees,- as he lay on the sofa, to entreat him. The countess was a very eccentric woman." Worse than this, however,. is the account given by Eies of his proceedings on one occasion, when the two were playing a duet at the house of Count Browne. The performance was disturbed by a conversation between a nobleman and a young lady at the other end of the room. After several vain attempts had been made to still the disturbance, Beethoven became enraged, lifted his pupil's hands from the key-board, and said in a loud voice, "I play no longer for such hogs!" To storm at his young lady -pupils, tear their music into shreds, and scatter it about the room in the mannej described by the Countess Gallen- berg — all this, it will be pretty generally admitted, was carrying, the prerogatives of genius to startling lengths. With his brother professionals in Vienna — excepting, of course, those who were intimately associated with him — Beethoven was not on equally satisfactory terms. Many were annoyed by his masterful ways, or jealous of his social successes; rriany more were unable to understand his music. In the case of Beethoven the age of professional dandyism was of short duration, and his provincial dialect, his neglected attire and eccentric habits, made him the easy butt of a class of musicians who were not worthy to brush his shoes. In such BEETHOVEN. 57 company, however, Beethoven generally showed himself ready to give as good as he took. In fact while music the art, was, for Beethoven, the breath of life, music the profession, as generally understood, was actually distasteful to him. " I wish," he once said at Prince Lobkowitz's house, "I could rid myself of all necessity for bargaining with pub- lishers, and meet with some one to pay me a settled income for life, on the understanding that the right of publishing evei-ything I wrote should be his. I should not be idle. Terms of this sort, I believe, were made between Goethe and Cotta, and also between Handel and his London publishers." By this speech the "young musician from the- Rhine" laid him- self open to a cheap sarcasm, and one of his hearers promptly profited by the opportunity. "My dear young man," he replied, " what right have you to com- plain, seeing that you are neither a Goethe nor a Handel? It is not to be expected that masters like these will be born again." The host, Prince Lobkowitz, witnessed Beethoven's rage at this retort, and, later in the evening, tried to bring him to a calmer state of mind. "My dear Beethoven, the gentleman intended no offence. Every one admits that the present genera- tion cannot reproduce the mighty spirits of the past." " I hold no intercourse with men who mistrust me because I am as yet unknown," was the reply: at which our informant says " there was much shaking of heads," and the young composer was generally voted presumptuous and overbearing. Beethoven's personal appearance has-been described 58 BEETHOVEN. by his contemporaries with a minute particularity that makes it possible to arrive at a fairly clear conception of it. A rather short, strong figure; dark, abundant hair ; face broad, and always shaven — not called hand- some by his warmest admirers, but indicating power in every line, and capable of a remarkable play of expression ; a face illumined by eyes that in moments of animation flashed from beneath the dome-like fore- head; a face that could be gloomy, and at times forbidding, but that impressed those who learned to read it aright with a sense of childlike and lovable simplicity. His manner was often abrupt, and even aggressive. Perhaps he sometimes appeared so when nothing was further from his intention. A man with a minor Symphony ringing in his head might well be excused some forgetfulness of the smaller convention- alities of life. Hitherto Beethoven's playing in Vienna had been restricted to the drawing-rooms of his private friends. It was not till the year 1795 that the public, whose curiosity must have already been considerably excited by reports of the achievements of the young pianist from Bonn, had an opportunity of witnessing his powers. At the annual concert given at the Burg Theatre, for the benefit of the widows and orphans of musicians, the composer made his first public appearance. Salieri, as usual, conducted, and the programme included, be- sides an Operetta composed by one of his pupils, "a Pianoforte Concerto, in C major, by L. van Beethoven." On this, as on several other occasions, Beethoven caused something like a panic among his friends by BEETHOVEN. 59 postponing the completion of his composition till the last moment. TwcJ days before the date of perform- ance the Concerto was still in an unfinished state ; one cause of the delay being an attack of colic, a malady to which the composer was subject. Wegeler was at hand to doctor him as well as he could; and while Beethoven, working at high pressure, filled sheet after sheet of music-paper, they were passed over to four copyists who attended in the , next room. Next day ■ at rehearsal a fres^ contretemps arose. There was found to be a difference of half a tone between the pitch of pianoforte and that of the other instruments. To save a general retuning, Beethoven seated himself at the piano without hesitation, and played the whole Con- certo in C .sharp — not an entirely unprecedented feat, but nevertheless one that gives an idea of his thorough mastery over technical difficulties. Much of Beethoven's MS. was undecipherable to everybody but himself. Once during a public performance, when Seyfried was turning over for him, he noticed that the pages contained nothing but an inextricable j umble of notes, with an occasional bar filled in. Other opportunities of playing before mixed audi- ences speedily presented themselves in entertainments organized for benevolent purposes — the chief raison d'itre of public concerts held at Vienna in those days. At a performance for the benefit of Mozart's widow, held at the Burg Theatre a few days after his ddhut, he played a concerto of the deceased master between the acts of Clemenza di Tito. Towards the end of the year, also, Beethoven co-operated in a public 60 BEETHOVEir. concert given by Haydn, and composed a series of minuets and waltzes to be played at a ball given by the " Society of Artists," Although the flight of the. Elector from Bonn, now in the hands of the French Revolutionary troops, had brought to an end once for all any designs Beethoven might have entertained of resuming his musical career in that place, a certain restlessness in his movements during 1796 would seem to indicate that he had not yet fully realized the fact that for the rest of his life Vienna was destined to be the scene of his labours and triumphs. That year was marked by an important event-r— a journey to Berlin, through Dresden and Leip- zig. It was the only occasion on which he visited the northern capital, or indeed wandered any considerable distance from his head-quarters. In Berlin he obtained a gracious reception from Frederick William 11. ; played his. two Sonatas for piano and violoncello before the court, and was presented by the king — himself a vio- loncellist — with a snuff-box full of Friedrichs d'or. " Not an ordinary snuff-box," he would explain when showing it to his friends, as he was rather fond of doing ; " but one like those usually presented to ambassadors." Great as was the enthusiasm excited in various circles by Beethoven's appearance in Berlin, and successful, on the whole, as was his visit there, it nevertheless brought with it some disappointments. One such arose from what he observed of the tone of music prevailing in circles he had been wont to look upon as the stronghold of classicism, but in which, with much talk about' Bach • and Handel, the Italian style reigned supreme. He BEETHOVEN. 61 greatly esteemed, however, the chivalric, art-loving Prince Louis Ferdinand, of whose playing he remarked : " It was not tingly nor princely, but only that of a good pianist." In Berlin, as elsewhere, it was by his brilliant im- provisation that Beethoven ousted all competitors — that improvisation of which Czerny said : " No matter in what society he was thrown, he made such an impres- sion on all his hearers that frequently not a dry eye was to be seen, and many broke into sobs. There was some- thing wonderful in his expression, besides the beauty and originality of his ideas." But according to the unanimous testimony of contemporaries, the effect of Beethoven's playing — ^whether extempore or in set com- positions — depended less upon its technical merits than upon its inspirational character. When seated at the piano he seemed gradually to lose consciousness of all around him, and in the sounds he drew from it every shade'of musical emotion obtained expression. Whether he was heard at his best or at his worst, the subtle charm of what a late eminent critic used to be fond of calling " the composer's touch," was never absent from his performance. At the Berlin Academy, where he played twice with immense success, Beethoven was brought into contact with the conductor Fasch, and also with his successor Zelter, the friend of Goethe. The impression made upon him by the two leading representatives of high- class music in Berlin, confirmed his suspicion that here was not a place ■ in which his genius could thrive or find worthy development; and he was quite content to 62 BEETHOVEir. leave, the reigning favourites, Himmel and R'lghini, in undisturbed possession of the field. Before leaving the capital, however, he had the misfortune to give mortal offence to one of the pair. Himmel was also an extempore performer, and nothing loth to comply with . Beethoven's request that he would give a specimen of his powers. Runs, progressions, arpeggios, endless pre- ludizing — all the phenomena in fact of conventional improvisation^ — were turned off with the usual facility ; but when he had nearly come to the end of his inspira- tion, Beethoven grew impatient, a"nd brought matters to a crisis by exclaiming — " Do begin now." The sting of these words, which may well have fallen from his lips without any malicious intent, rankled ever afterwards in the soul of Himmel. With plans for the future more clearly defined than they had been before his departure, Beethoven returned to Vienna; and, except to fulfil concert engagements or to recruit his health in the country, never again left it. The capital was full of excitement and alarm caused by the victories of Napoleon in Northern and Southern Italy; and Beethoven wrote a patriotic song of Farewell to the volunteers before their departure. His old Bonn companions, Bernhard Rom- berg and his cousin Andreas, driven home by the dis- turbed state of Italy, passed through Vienna at the end of the j'ear, and gave a concert at which Beethoven played for them. In return for twelve variations on -a Russian dance, Count Browne presented the composer with a horse, which hei rode for a few times and then completely BEETHOVEN. 63 forgot, until a reminder of its existence in the shape of a formidable bill for provender was presented. Mean- while his servant had turned the master's absence of mind to profitable account by hiring out the animal for his own benefit. Thayer gives reasons for fixing the year of 1797 as the date of a serious illness which overtook Beethoven, notwithstanding that Baron van Zmeskall's account of it, or rather of its supposed cause, relegates it to the year before. ■ Zmeskall relates how Beethoven came home one summer day almost overpowered by the heat, threw open the doors and windows, took off his coat and vest, arid sat at the window to cool himself ; and how, as a consequence of this imprudence, he contracted a dangerous illness which " eventually . settled on the organs of hearing''; but the full particulars of this occurrence have not been recorded. Among the publications of this year figures the world-famous setting of Matthison's words Adelaide, It was not until the summer of 1800 that Beethoven sent a copy to the poet, accompanied "by the following letter — "Most Esteemed Feiend, " With this you will receive a composition of mine which was printed several years ago, though to my shame you may possibly be unaware of its existence. ■ " In order to exculpate myself, and at the same time to explain how it happened that I dedicated something to you which came so entirely from my heart, without informing you of it, I may perhaps say, first, that I did not know where you were living, and then that I began 64 BEETHOVEN.' to think, in my modesty, that I had acted over hastily in dedicating anything to you without first submitting it to your approval. Even now, indeed, it is with some diffidence that I send you Adelaide. You will well know what changes are brought about in an artist who is ever advancing; the more one achieves in art the less contented is he with former works. "My most ardent desires will be fulfilled should you not be wholly dissatisfied with the music wedded to your heavenly Adelaide: and if this should impel you soon to write another poem of the same kind, and (if my request be not too bold) to send it to me at once, I will exert my best powers to approach the merit of your exquisite verse. " Regard this dedication as a tribute of esteem and thankfulness for the intense pleasure I have found and always shall find in your poetry. " When playing Adelaide think sometimes of " Your sincere admirer, " Beethoven." As was to be expected, Beethoven did not step into the foremost place among the virtuosi of Vienna without opposition; but at this distance of time, the attempts that were made to pit against him in serious rivalry two musicians of the calibre of Woelff and Steibelt seem almost incredible. The competition would have been more intelligible had the question at issue been one of mere executive skill ; for WoelflF, with his long fingers and dashing style, possessed powers of bravura well calculated to dazzle amateurs of a certain class. As in the somewhat parallel cases — always inevitably referred to — of Gluck and Piccini in Paris,, and of Handel and BEETHOVEN. 65 Buononcini in London, the little war was carried on by adherents on either side with a bitterness altogether incommensurate with its importance. A contest, if it may be so called, took place at the villa of Woelff's patron, Connt Wetzlar, when their pianos were placed side by side ; the mere virtuoso surpassing himself in the display of his immense tech- nique ; while the composer speedily brought the audi- ence under the speU of his poetical imagination. WoelfiP, however, in the opinion of his supporters, could still fairly claim superiority as an executant. On the whole this trial- of skill between them appears to have been conducted in a friendly spirit, and al- though Woelff came off second best as far as the higher qualities of musicianship were concerned, he accepted the position with a grace that compares favour- ably with the jealous rage and overweening, conceit exhibited by Steibelt under somewhat similar circum- stances. The two met on other occasions at Count Wetzlar's house, and extemporized together. In com- memoration of these times Woelff dedicated to Beet- hoven one of his sonatas; but the compliment was never returned. The competition between Beethoven and Steibelt some years later (in 1800) occurred under less formal conditions, but was equally decisive in result — much to the astonishment of the new rival, fresh from his triumphs in Paris and Prague, who looked forward to an easy victory; and did not even take the trouble to call upon Beethoven after his arrival at the capital. They met by accident at the house of Count Fries, when 66 BEETHOVEN. Beethoven played for the first time his Trio in B flat major, Op. 11, for piano, clarinet, and violoncello. The work does not offer much opportunity. for display, "and Steibelt," says Ferdinand Ries, " listened condescend- ingly, and sure of gaining the day, paid several compli- ments to Beethoven. After playing in a quintet of his own composition he proceeded to improvise, and caused some sensatioii with his free shake — a novelty in those days. To ask Beethoven to play once more was out of the question." A week afterwards a second concert was given at the house of Count Fries, when Steibelt repeated his suc- cess in another quintet. He had, also, carefully prepared a showy impromptu, upon a theme lu the last move- ment of Beethoven's trio, much to the disgust of both the composer and his admirers. The turn of Beethoven came next; and he seated himself at the instrument in his accustomed manner — " rather pettishly, if one might say so, as if some one had pushed him there." On his way he snatched up the violoncello part of Stei- belt's quintet; placed it at the piano upside down (" purposely ? " asks Ries), and drummed away at the theme of the opening bars with one finge'r. " Growing excited, Beethoven extemporized with such power that, before he had finished, Steibelt left the room. Since that incident whenever Steibelt was asked anywhere', one of his stipidations before accepting was that Beethoven should not be present." There was evidently a good deal of human nature in Steibelt — especially of the kind so often attributed to the musical fraternity. Disgusted with the com- BEETHOVEN. • 67 parative coldness of his reception in Vienna, he returned to Paris in August of the same year. In 1800 Beethoven commenced the habit, henceforth systematically adhered to, of transferring his quarters during the autumn from Vienna to the country. He chose lodgings in the village of Unter-Dobling, a few miles from the capital, where, in the same house, lived an advocate named Grillparzer (father of the dramatic poet), and his wife and children. ' Even there the soli- tude so dear to composers — and to Beethoven more than others — was not always to be depended upon. Frau Grillparzer, a woman of cultivated musical taste, was caught outside the room listening to confidences meant for his piano alone. It was not the first time she and her son had stepped stealthily up-stairs with this nefarious intent; but it was the last. In vain was a message sent, through the servant, that she and her family would make a point of going for a walk whenever the master began to play. From that date no more music issued from the room. In fact listeners, on either side of the door, were Beethoven's pet aver- sion, and- he often asserted the fact in characteristically unceremonious fashion. Even his young pupil Ries was debarred presently from the privilege of hearing him play at home in consequence of a joke perpetrated upon the. master by Lichnowsky. Beethoven happened to play the theme of the An- dante in E when Ries and Krupipholz were in his room. It made a vivid impression upon both, and shortly after- wards Ries, when on a visit to Lichnowsky, could not resist the temptation of playing it to him from memory. 68 BEETHOVEN. Lichnowsky, equally taken with the music, also worked it out upon the piano for himself, and the next day when he saw Beethoven, waggishly asked .him to listen to " something he had just composed." Far from enter- ing into the spirit of the joke, Beethoven flew into a violent passion, and from that time, or shortly after, refused to play before his patron's friends. Beethoven's periodical escapes from the bustle of town to the green fields and fresh air of the country, must have been the chosen times for his purest and noblest inspirations. How he revelled in the beauties •of nature, and to what imaginative uses he applied them is amply shown, not only in the well-known Pastoral Symphony, and in the Pastoral Sonata — aptly so called by the publishers, though Beethoven himself did not furnish that title — but in many another work of priceless beauty. During his stay at Unter-Dobling, one among other matters that occupied his attention was the shaping and development of his ideas for the Prometheus Ballet — produced with immense success at the Burg Theatre in March of the following year. On the day following its performance we read of yet another of those little skirmishes between Beethoven and Haydn, in which they seemed to indulge with a sort of zest on every convenient opportunity. The two hap- pen to meet in the street ; and this time, as the dialogue is recorded, Beethoven appears to fire the first shot; for Haydn .commences, innocently enough, with congratulations and an assurance that the Prome- theus Ballet pleased him very much. Beethoven's reply is enigmatical and slightly irritating — " lieber Papa, BEETHOVEN, 69 you are too good ! But its no ' creation,' " To which . Papa Haydn retorts — "No. It is na ' creation/ and I don't think it ever will be." And with this exchange of amenities they part. The title of the ballet in question, it will be remembered, was Die Geschopfe des Prometheus. In 1800 Beethoven had already quitted the hospit- able, shelter of the Lichnowsky Palace for lodgings in a house im tiefen Graben, where, with less luxury but greater freedom, he could follow his career under con- ditions evidently felt by him to be more suitable. Here Charles Czemy, the future teacher of Liszt, but then about ten years old, was taken to see Beethoven in pursuance of a long-standing promise ; and in an ac- count of the interview written by him years after, he has given a picture of Beethoven as he appears at that time in his work-a-day garb, " I was about ten years old when Krumpholz took me to see Beethoven. What a day of mingled joy and trepidation for me was that on which I was to see the renowned master ! Even now the excitement" of that moment comes back to me. On a winter day we sallied forth — my father, Krumpholz, and I — from the Leopold- stadt, where we were still living, to the street called ' Tiefen Graben,' and mounted to the fifth or sixth story, where a somewhat slatternly servant announced u«, and then disappeared. We entered a veritable desert of a room— papers and clothes scattered about^ some trunks — bare walls, scarcely a chair except the rickety one before the Walter piano (at that time considered the best). Six or eight persons were in the room. Among them the two brothers Wranitzky, 70 BEETHOVEN. Siissmayer, Schuppanzigh, and one of Beethoven's brothers. "Beethoven was dressed in a dark gray jacket and trousers of some long-haired material, which reminded me of the description of Robinson Crusoe I had just been reading. The jet black hair (d la Titus) stood upright on his head. A beard, unshaven for several days, made still darker his naturally swarthy face. I noticed also, with a child's quick perception, that be had cotton wool which seemed to have been dipped in some yellow fluid in both ears. . . . His hands were covered with hair, and the fingers very broad, especially at the tips." For a time Czerny became Beethoven's pupil, and he has given some interesting recollections of the master's mode of tfeaching : — " Beethoven," he says, " devoted the first few lessons to scales in all the keys, and showed me (what at that time most players were ignorant. of) the only good position of the hands and fingers* and especially the use of the thumb — rules whose full purport I only understood in after years. Then -he took me through the exercises in Bach's book, making me pay particular attention to the legato, of which he was so unrivalled a master, but which at that time — the Mozart period, when the short staccato touch was in fashion — all other pianists thought impossible. Beethoven told me afterwards that he had often heard Mozart, whose style, from his use of the clavecin — the piano being in his time in its infancy — was not at all adapted to the newer instrument." In 1801 Beethoven moved from the tiefen-Grahen to higher ground in the Sailer-stdtte, whence his lodgings commanded a good view over the ramparts; and that and several other summers were spent at the picturesque village of Hetzeiidorf, near the Imperial summer palace BEETHOVEN. 71 of Schonbrunh, where his first patron, the Elector, had found quiet retreat after the turmoil and fever of the latter part of his reign at Bonn. There, also, wandering among the avenues and glades of the park, note-book ever in hand, the composer forgot his deafness, his worries, his ill-fated loves, in that other world of sound to which his true life belonged. Years afterwards he revisited with Schindler the scene hallowed to his memory by many an association, and pointed out his favourite seat between two leafy boughs of an old oak tree. The Mount of Olives (not produced till 1803) was in progress at about this time. This first and only oratorio achieved a notable success, in spite of Huber's some- what theatrical treatment of the purely religious ideas to which the work was devoted. Among the dedications with a " history " attached to them is that of the Sonata in Cfi minor — ipopularly known as the Moonlight Sonata. Concerning the beau- tiful Countess Giulietta Guicciardi, and the romance which novelists and biographers have delighted to weave around Beethoven's intercourse with her, the ever minute and painstaking Thayer has much to say. After making due allowance for exaggeration, and for some inaccuracies of detail in the currently accepted account of the dedication, this must still be regarded as one of the most serious of Beethoven's many romantic attach- ments. The wife of the Imperial Counsellor, Count Guicciardi, was connected with the Hungarian family of the Brunswicks — always staunch friends of the cor|i- poser. When their daughter Giulietta first took music lessons of Beethoven, she was in her seventeenth year F 72 BEETHOVEN. — rather a dangerous state of things, it will be admitted, considering, the susceptibility of the master and the attractive qualities of his enthusiastic pupil. Matters ■were further complicated by the fact that Giulietta was already as good as affianced to Count Gallenberg, an " impresario, and composer of ballet music, al- though the financial position of this nobleman was so unsatisfactory, that for some time Giulietta's father refused consent to the match. -At least on one occasion we hear of Beethoven coming forward to help his rival . out of a money difficulty. For a season,, at any. rate, Beethoven's star was in the ascendant in the affections of this charming girl ; and, despite the disparity of their social position, the possibility of marriage must at one time have crossed his mind. Such hopes, however, were quickly disturbed, as will be seen from a passage in a letter written to Wegeler this year, in which refer- ence is evidently made to Giulietta. In the opinion of many persons, some light has been thrown upon this love episode by the contents of two sheets of note-paper which were found in a secret drawer, together with some bank shares, after Beet- hoven's death. They bore no name, nor any indication of the year in which they were written, but only the dates, " July 6, morning," and " Monday, July 6, evening," and they began as follows — " Mt Angel, my All, Myself, — A few words only to-day in pencil — thy pencil. My lodging will not be definitely fixed before to-morrow. What miserable waste of time ! Why this deep grief when necessity speaks ? Can our love exist except by sacrifice, by not BEETHOVEN. 73 demanding all ; can you help not being quite mine, I not quite thine ? Ah, God ! Look into beautiful nature, and calm, thy mind over what must be. Love demands all, and justly; so it is from me to thee and from thee to me ; only thou forgettest that I must live for myself and for thee. Were we quite united thou wouldest feel this grief no more than I . . . . My journey was terrible. I did not arrive till four in the morning ; for want of sufficient horses the mail-coach chose a different route, and what a terrible road ! At the last station they warned me not to travel at night, and frightened me with a wood ; but that only tempted me, and I was wrong. The carriage could not but col- lapse in the terrible road, bottomless, a mere country road ; but for my postilions I should have stuck there. " Esterhazy with eight horses on the usual route had the same fate that I had with four ; and yet I felt a certain sensation of pleasure, as I always do when successfully battling with a difficulty — now quickly, from the external to the internal. We shall probably see one another soon, and to-day I cannot tell you the thoughts I had regarding my life during these few days. Were our hearts but always close together I should have none -such. My heart is full ; I have much to say to thee. Oh ! there are moments when I find that language is nothing. Be cheeirful ; remain my faithful sole treasure, my all, as I am thine ; the rest the gods must send, what shall be and must be. " Thy faithful " LUDVIG." The rest is equally full of endearing epithets, vehe- ment protestations, and passionate appeals; repeated 74 BEETHOVEN. again on the sheet dated 7th July, which has a postscript — "Ever mine ! " Ever thine ! "Ever each other's!" Whoever may have been the intended recipient of this impassioned, at times incoherent, effusion (in which are used throughout the more intimate "Du" and " Deinem "), it was manifestly penned under the influ- ence of unwonted emotion. Schindler does not hesitate to connect it with the beautiful Giulietta; Thayer,. on the other hand, makes havoc with some but not all the reasons that might seem to favour this conjecture. He shows, for example, that, of all 'the years that need be taken into the calculation, 1807 is the only one contain- ing a ''Monday, 6 July" ; and after giving other argu- ments why this cannot have been the year, he goes on to assume that Beethoven, in his letter, made a mistake of one day, and settles upon 1806 (when Giulietta, then Countess of Gallenberg, was away at Naples) as the real date ; thus strengthening the case for his own pretender, the Countess" Theresa of Brunswick. But, as a more recent commentator has pointed out, once admit this latitude and the whole chronological argument falls to the ground. There is really no conclusive reason why the letter should not have been written in 1802, before Giulietta had become Countess of Gallen- berg and left Naples. With regard to the C| minor Sonata, however, all the pretty legends attached to it are destroyed, as far as Giulietta is concerned, by her BEETHOVEN. 75 own account of the dedication, and this has been ruth- lessly applied to his argument by Thayer. " Beethoven gave me the Rondo in G," she said years afterwards to Otto Jahn, " but wishing to dedicate something to Princess Lichnowsky, he gave me the Sonata instead." Whether or not the ".immortal loved one " and Giu- lietta Guicciardi were one and the same person, there is ample evidence of the reality and intensity of Beet- hoven's passion; and little cause for surprise at his revulsion of feeling when she subsequently married Count Gallenberg. Once, many years afterwards when all this sorrow belonged to past history, Beethoven when talking to his friend Schindler revived the subject of the long-lost Giulietta. Their conversation occurred in a public place, and was carried on in writing ; for Beethoven, like many other deaf persons, " did not like to trust his own voice." His communications, by way of further precaution, were couched in the curious and not very lucid French peculiar to him : — " J'etais bien aim^ d'elle,"he writes, " et plus que jamais, son ^poux. II 4tait plus son amant que moi, mais par elle j'apprenais de son misere, et je trouvais un homme de bien, qui me donnait la somme de 500 florins pour le soulager. II ^tait toujours mon enemi c'dtait justement la raison que je fusse (sic) tout le bien que possible. . . . Elle ^tait n^e Guicciardi. Elle ^tait r^pouse de lui avant son voyage en Italic — arriv^ k Vienne elle cherchait moi pleurant, mais je la m^prisois." Already in 1801 apprehensions of that terrible malady 76 BEETHOVEN. ■which cast a gloom over the latter part of Beethoven's career, and turned it into a veritable life-tragedy, began to take ominous shape. The dreaded symptoms grew ever more unmistakable. Beethoven, to whom the faculty of hearing was more precious than, perhaps, to any other man in the world, was gradually becoming deaf. The dark thoughts which beset him when first he realized the full extent of this calamity, and the fortitude with which he struggled against them ; his noble resolve that even when dead to the world he would live for his art, — all this is touchingly set forth in two deeply interesting letters addressed to his friend Wegeler. Wegeler has placed the first of these letters in 1800 ; the fact has been clearly established that both were written in the year 1801. The first, dated 29th June, abounds in assurances of unabated friendship, and affec- tionate references to the companions he had left behind. '' It will be for me one of the happiest days of my life when I am once more able to see you, and to greet our Father Rhine." Of his worldly prospects at that time he writes in a cheerful strain. " They are, after all, not so bad. Lichnowsky still remains my warmest friend, difficult as it may be for you to believe it. As for those little squa.bbles, did they not serve rather to bring us closer together ? Since last year he has secured me a pension of six hundred guldens, which I am to draw until I can obtain a suitable appointment. I make much money by my compositions ; indeed, I may say that more demands are made upon me than I am able to attend to; and that for each of my works there are BEETHOVEN. 77 six or seven publishers; and if I liked I could have more. They no longer bargain with me ; I demand, and they pay. This you see is a capital thing. For instance, if I see a friend in distress, and have no money at hand to help him, all I have to do is to sit down and write, and he is soon relieved." But when he approaches the subject of health his tone changes to one of deep despondency. Various doctors, among them the army-surgeon Vering, have ordered strengthening medicine, oil of almonds, tepid Danube baths, — buf all have been tried in vain, or with but temporary success. "^ My life, I may say, passes miserably ; for nearly two years I have shunned society, because I cannot bring myself to say to people, ' / am deaf.' In other pro- fessions this would not be so much matter; for a musician it is terrible. Besides, what would my ene- mies say of this ? — and I have not a few ! That you may better realize the nature of this extraordinary deafness, I must tell you that when in the theatre I have to lean forward close to the orchestra before I can understand what the actors are^ saying. A little way off I cannot distinguish the high tones of musical instruments and voices. Strangely enoUgh, in conversa- tion people do not observe it ; they attribute all to my frequent fits of absence. Often 1 can hear the tones but not the words of some one who speaks in a low voice ; yet as soon as he begins to shout it is unbearable. How it will all end God alone knows. . . I am resolved, if it be possible, to defy my fate ; although a time may come when I shall be the most wretched of God's creatures ! " In the same letter he begs Wegeler to 78 BEETHOVEN. send him the portrait of his grandfather, the good old Capellmeister. In the second, written three months later, Beethoven, after again describing his deafness and the treatment recommended by various doctors, touches upon another matter. " Just now my life is somewhat pleasanter, and I mix more with other people. . ■. . This transformation has been wrought by a beautiful, fascinating girl who loves me, and is loved by me. Again, now that two years have passed away, have I experienced some joyful moments, and I begin for the first time to realize the happiness that marriage can bestow. But, alas.! ■ she moves in a circle far above me. At -present, therefore, marriage for me is out of the question." The "fascinating girl" here alluded to was, un- doubtedly, Giulietta Guicciardi. Carl and Johann Beethoven, naturally attracted by the success of their brother, soon followed him to Vienna. Schindler has described these two as the " evil principles " of the composer's life, and certainly the powerful ascendancy they managed to obtain over him had already wrought much trouble, and was ■fated in the future to cause mor6. From a purely mercantile view the help they afforded in negotiating with publishers was, no doubt, often valuable ; but even in this respect their anxiety to convert everything into cash led to many transactions the reverse of beneficial to Beethoven's own interest as an artist. The composer's one serious quarrel with his brothers, of which any BEETHOVEN. 79 record exists, arose from their causing early pieces to be published which it was his intention to keep bact as unworthy of his name. But what was. even worse, they stood between Beethoven and his friends, meddled in his quarrels, fanned his anger when they ought to have allayed it, and often goaded him into doing and saying things he afterwards bitterly repented. Fre- quent attempts were made by the more sagacious of Beethoven's friends to withdraw him from this sinister influence, but always without success. "After all," he would say, " they are my brothers." A certain sly amusement at their vanity and dfficious- ness mingled with this forbearance, and he enjoyed giving them an occasional home-thrust. Later in life, when Brother Johann, the apothecary, a niggardly man by nature, had blossomed into a " country gentleman," as far as money could "make him one, he sent Beethoven a card by way of New Year's greeting, on which he was unable to resist the temptation of inscribing himself — "Johann van Beethoven — LaTid Proprietor." Schindler says of the composer's laugh that it was " too loud, and distorted his strongly-marked features." It is not difficult to imagine the uproarious mirth with which he turned over this missive, and after writing on the other -side — " LtTDViG VAN Beethoven — Brain Proprietor " — returned it to his brother Johann. As the deafness grew worse, Beethoven consulted many doctors, passing successively under the care of his 80 BEETHOVEN. r friend Wegeler, Vering, and others, and from them to Schmidt, professor of medicine at the Acad^mie Jose- phine. In 1802 he again changed his summer residence,- this tinie for the secluded village of Heiligenstadt, farther away than Unter-Dobling, and ^ in the same direction. He remained there till October, abandoning himself to the calm influences of nature, to his music, and also, unfortunately, to his own melancholy thoughts ; but busy at the same time with composition, and not altogether unhappy in that other world of imagination in which his harassed spirit never sought refuge and consolation in vain. There, also, and in that year, Beethoven wrote the ineffably touching letter generally known as his " Will." It was addressed — " To MY Brothers Carl and . " Tole read and acted upon afier my death. " To my brothers Carl and Beethoven. " ye who think or say that I am rancorous, obstinate, or misanthropical, what an injustice you dp me! You little know the hidden cause of niy appearing so. From childhood my heart and mind have been devoted to benevolent feelings, and to thoughts of great deeds to be achieved in the future. But only remember that for six years I have been the victim of a terrible calamity, aggravated by incompetent doctors; led on from year to year by hopes of cure, and at last brought face to face with the prospect of a lingering malady, the cure of which may last for years, or may be altogether impossible. Born with an ardent, lively temperament fond of social pleasures, I Was early compelled to with- draw myself, and live a life of isolation from all men BEETHOVEN. 81 At times whea I made an effort to overcome the diffi- culty; oh how cruelly was I frustrated by the doubly painful experience of my defective hearing ! And yet it was impossible for me. to say to people, ' Speak louder ; shout, for I am deaf.' Ah, how was it possible I could acknowledge weakness in the veiy sense which ought to be more acute in my case than in that of others ! — a sense which at one time I possessed in a perfection to which few others in my profession have attained, or are likely to attain. Oh, this I can never do ! Forgive me, then, if you see me turn away when I would gladly mix with you. Doubly painful is my misfortune, seeing that it is the cause of my being misunderstood. For me there can be no recreation in ' human intercourse, no conversation, no exchange of thoughts with my fellow-men. In solitary exile I am compelled to live. Whenever I approach strangers I am overcome by a feverish dread of betraying my con- dition. Thus has it been with me throughout- the past six months I have just passed in the country. The injunction of my intelligent physician, that I should spare my seiise of hearing, as much as possible, well accorded with my actual state of mind ; although my longing for society has often teihpted me into it. " But how humbled have I felt when some one near me has heard the distant sounds of a flute, and I have heard nothing ; when some one has heard a shepherd singing, and again 1 have heard nothing! Such occurrences brought me to the border of despair, and I came very near to putting an end to my own life. Art alone restrained me ! Ah ! it seemed impossible for me to quit this world for ever before! had done all I felt I was destined to accomplish. And so I clave to .this distressful life ; a life so truly miserable that any sudden change is capable of throwing me out of the happiest 82 BEETHOVEN. condition of mind into the Worst. Patience ! I must now choose her for my guide ! This I have done. I hope to remain firm in my resolve, until it shall please the relentless Fates to cut the thread of life. Perhaps I shall get better; perhaps not. I am prepared. To have to turn philosopher in my twenty-eighth year ! It is no easy task — harder for the artist than for any one else. God, Thou lookest down upon my ifiward soul ; Thou knowest, Thou seest that love for my fellow-men, and all kindly feelings have their abode there ! " O ye who may one day read this, remember that you did me an injustice; and let the unhappy take heart when he finds one like himself who, in spite of all natural impediments, has done all that was in his power to secure for himself a place in the ranks of worthy artists and men. My brothers, Carl and , as soon as I am dead request Dr. Schmidt in my name, if he be still alive, to describe my disease, and to add to these pages the history of my ailments, in order that the world, so far at least as is possible, may be reconciled to me after my death. " Hereby I declare you both to be heirs of my little fortune (if it may so be called). Divide it honestly; bear with and help one another. The injuries you have done me I have, as you know, long since forgiven. You, brother Carl, I thank specially for the attachment you have shown towards me in these latter days. My wish is that your life may be more free, from care than mine has been. Eecommend Virtue to. your children. She alone, not money, can give happiness. I speak from experience. It was she alone who raised me in the time of trouble ; and I thank her, as well as my art, that I did not seek to end my life by suicide. Farewell, and love one. another. I thank all friends, especially Prince Lichnowsky and Professor Schmidt, BEETHOVEN. 83 The instruments from Prince L 1 should like to bo kept by one" of you; but let there be no quarrelling between you in regard to this. As soon as you can turn them to more useful purpose, sell them. How "happy stall I be if even when in my grave I can be useful to you ! " And thus it has happened. Joyfully I hasten to meet death. Should he come before I have had the oppor- tunity -of developing the whole of my artistic capacity, he will have come toosoon in spite of my hard fate, and I shall wish he had come a little later. But even in that case I shall be content. Will he not release me from a state of endless misery? Come when thou will'st ! I go to meet thee with a brave heart. Fare- well, and do not quite forget me even in death ! I have deserved this, since during my lifetime I have often thought of you, and tried to make you happy. So be it. "LuDviG vAiT Beethoven, " jSeiligengtadt, 6ih October, 1802." " Seiligenstadt, IQth October, 1802. — So I take leave of thee, sorrowfully enough. Even the cherished hope, which I brought here with me of being cured, at least to a certain extent, has now utterly forsaken me. It has faded like the. fallen leaves of autumn. Almost as I came here so do I depart. Even the lofty hope that upheld me during the beautiful summer days has vanished. • Providence ! let one more day of pure joy be vouchsafed to me ! The echo of true happiness has so long been a stranger to my heart ! — When, when, O God T shall I again be able to feel it in the temple of nature and of man ? Never ? — no ! — 0. that were too hard ! " ^ ' It will be remarked that the name of his brother Johann does not appear in th;? document. The omission has been explained in more than one way, but has probably some connection with the unpleasant- ness referred to. 84 BEETHOVEN. One is glad to believe that many of the painful passages in this " Promemoria " were written in a moment of unusual depression, and do not fairly repre- sent Beethoven's general condition of miad at the time. Some warrant for this supposition seems afforded by the activity with which composition was still carried on, by the absence of anything like a sorrowful tone in much of the music belonging to the same year, and by other indications^such as the humorous letters to his quaint friend, the Baron Zmeskall, between whom and himself an interchange of harmless chaff was habitually carried on. One specimen of this correspondence may be given. Though short, and belonging to a later date, it fairly represents the rest. From their style we may infer that the man addressed was an oddity — and a good-natured one — at whom Beethoven, when in good spirits, felt free to poke his fun without fear of offence. " Most high-boen of men ! " We beg of you to favour us with some goose- quills ; and in return we will send you a whole bunch of the same kind, that you niay not be obliged to pluck out your own. It is just possible that you may receive the Grand Cross of the Order of the Violoncello. " We remain, your gracious and most gracious of all friends, " Beethoven." Back in Vienna among his old friends, from whom it se.ems a pity he should have been so long isolated, Beethoven was soon, among other things, busy with the correction of publishers' proofs — no light labour in those BEETHOVEN. 85 days, when, to use his own expression, " errors swarmed in them like fish in the sea." But besides mistakes pure and simple, Beethoven had to deal also with still more irritating " improvements " of publishers. One offender of this sort, Nageli of Zurich, incurred the composer's just resentment by supplying four bars of his own to the Sonata in G, Op. 31 ; and other works at different times suffered similar outrage. In the same autumn Beethoven again changed his lodging, choosing this time an \ipper story in the Peters- platzj one of the busiest quarters of Vienna. He may have been influenced in this choice by the fact that his old friend and instructor in quartet- writing, Aloys Forster, occupied the floor above him. Forster's son, then a boy six years old, retained in after life a vivid and not altogether agreeable recollection of dreary winter mornings, when he had to descend to the master's room at six o'clock, shivering with cold, for a pianoforte lesson. Lovers of music living in Vienna in April 1803 enjoyed the privilege of attending what may be called indeed an important concert. The programme contained no less than three new works — the Mount of Olives already referred to, the Symphony in D, and the Piano- forte Concerto in C minor, with Beethoven himself for pianist ! The last rehearsal took place in the theatre at eight o'clock in the morning — " A terrible rehearsal," says Ries, " and by half-past two everybody was tired out and more or less discontented." But the genial Lichnowsky, who was present from the beginning, had brought some huge baskets laden with meat, wine, and bread-and-butter, and he was soon hard at work, pressing 86 BEETHOVEN, the good things upon each tired musician with both his friendly hands. After this all went well." Among other important compositions introduced to the Viennese public this year was the well-known Kreutzer Sonata, originally written for a violinist with the English-sounding name of Bridgetower, the son of a negro and a Polish lady. His father lived in London, and was known there as the, " Abyssinian Prince." In Vienna the young violinist generally passed as an Eng- lishman — in itself, no doubt, a recommendation in Beethoven's eyes. According to his own testimony, Bridgetower had rendered the work to the composer's, entire satisfaction, but from another witness we have a different account. " Bridgetower," he says, " was a mulatto, and played in a very extravagant style. When he perforined the Sonata with Beethoven it was received with* fits of laughter." However this may be^ a quarrel arose between the two — according to the violinist "about a girl" — and the dedication was transferred to E.. Kreutzer, a violinist who had been attached to the establishment of Bemadotte the French ambassador. Active work, and numerous social engagements during this winter, may' be supposed to have had the salutary effect of diverting Beethoven's mind from gloomy fore- bodings. Besides making acquaintance with Breuning's friend Gleichenstein, and with Mahler, and the artist Macco, he associated a good deal with the Abb4 Vogler (then on a visit to Vienna with his pupil, Carl von Weber), the two exchanging subjects for improvisation, or playing together in friendly rivalry. BEETHOVEN. 87 In the early part of 1803 Beethoven entered into negotiations with Schikaneder, then manager of the .Theatre An der Wien, with regard to a new opera; but although the agreemeM was so far completed that he quitted his lodgings in the Petersplatz, and installed himself with his brother Caspar on the premises of the theatre, the project subsequently had to be abandoned. While in the country, and after his return to Vienna, the great Eroica Symphony this year occupied much of his attention, and progressed far towards completion. The idea of this work was first suggested so far back as 1798, when Beethoven made the acquaintance of Bema- dotte the French ambassador, and a musical amateur of some consideration. In the first instance, as is well known, Beethoven, fired with generous enthusiasm by the early, exploits of the First Consul, inscribed the name of Napoleon upon the title-page^— a name associ- ated in his mind, at the time, with that republican cause to which (much to the prejudice of his interest at court) he was known to be so ardently devoted. As soon, however, as the news reached Vienna that his favourite had donned the Imperial purple, the composer tore up his title-page and stamped upon it in a frenzy of rage. His idol had fallen ; but not the hero of his imagination, whose struggles, triumph, and death are celebrated in this most heroic of tone poems. By the magic of genius, the external event first selected for his subject matter had been gradually idealised and enlarged, and as the scope of his original intention widened, the theme, from being individual, grew to be representative of a type. The name of no single hero, 88 BKETHOVEN. therefore, appeared upon the new title-page — only Bmfonia Eroiea per feateggiare il sowenire d'un grand' 'uovto. As compared with its two predecessors— produced in 1800 and 1803 respectively — this third Symphony was a hew departure, and may be justly described as epoch-making, marking, as it did, the final abandon- ' ment by Beethoven "of the influence of Mozart and Haydn which pervade, though always with a difference, his earlier works, and the more confident assertion of his own individuality. The Eroiea was performed first in private during the winter of 1804 at the house of Prince Lobkowitz, to whom it was dedicated, but was not published before 1806. Owing to a change in the administration of the Theatre A% der Wien, and the transfer of the ijianage- ment from Schikaneder to Baron von Braun, the operatic scheme for the present fell through, and Beet- hoven once moreshifted his quarters, this time to rooms in the Eothe Haus. In this new undertaking he was joined, most unfortunately, as the event proved, by his friend, Stephan Breuning ; and the arrangement led to a painful episode in Beethoven's life — a quarrel with the old companion of his boyhood, who had so long stood towards him almost in the relation of a brother. In the first instance the young men arranged to occupy two sets of rooms. in the Rothe Haus, each with a separate domestic establishment. ■ Eventually the idea — well described by Thayer as an " unfortunate economy " — occurred to, them, that still closer comradeship, besides saving of money, might be attained by abandoning one BEETHOVEN. 89 suite and living together in the other. By omitting to give timely notice to the landlord, Beethoven found himself liable for both rooms. This led to hot words between himself and Breuning, and the rupture — thanks, evidently, in a great measure to the mischievous influence of Caspar — bid fair at one time to be per- manent. Two letters written by Beethoven at the time to his friend Ries show how bitter were the feelings aroused by this affair. Angry, and ill in body and mind, Beethoven sought refuge first in Baden, and afterwards in his old quarters at Dobling. Breuning's conduct throughout was in keeping with his general habit of self-command and kindliness of character. Forgettingf all grievances in his sympathy for the calamity which had befallen his sorely-tried friend, this is how he wrote to Wegeler, 13th November — " You can form no idea how indescribable, how terrible, is the impression made upon him by his loss of hearing. Picture to yourself what must be his misery, with his excitable temperament, his habit of distrusting his best friends, and his frequent indecision. To sustain con- versation with him is a positive exertion, and one can never be at ease ; rarely indeed does his old true nature now allow itself to be seen." It is satisfactory to know that before long a recon- ciliation was effected, and their old friendship re-estab- lished. Later on, another unhappy breach between Beethoven and Breuning, again brought about by Beet- hoven's hasty and suspicious temper, will have to be recorded. 90 BEETHOVKN. While at Dobling this year, Beethoven was busy with the Grand Sonata in C, dedicated to Count Waldstein, and the smaller Sonata, Op. 54, in F. In connection with the last-named work, Ries, in a characteristic anecdote, describes a long country walk they took together, during which Beethoven uttered never a word, but was by no means silent ; for he continued to hum to himself, and to beat the air with an accompaniment of extraordinary vocal sounds, representing, as he" ex- plained in answer to his companion's anxious inquiries, " the finale of a sonata." Arrived home, Beethoven, without stopping to take off his hat, ran immediately to the piano, and let loose the music with which his brain was teemifig. He played for an hour ; his pupil, the while, seated in a corner, listening and wondering. Concerning his experiences of Beethoven as a teacher Ries has left somewhat conflicting accounts ; sometimes describing him as seated at one end of the room while his pupil played at the other, and complaining thtlt Beethoven seldom sat beside him at the piano for half an hour together ; whereas on another occasion he testi- fies to the immense trouble the master would take to make him repeat over and over again passages that were not executed to his satisfaction ; adding that '' on such occasions the lesson would sometimes extend over two hours." In any case, Ferdinand, throughout his intimate association with the great composer, must have enjoyed opportunities for self-improvement of a kind to make him the envy of all young music students of* that time. A plan was mooted for a concert tour, to be undertaken jointly by master and pupil, according to BEETHOVEN. -91 which Ries was to act as a sort of manager, attend to business details, and play his master's concertos and other works; Beethoven to conduct and extemporize. But this was never carried into effect. Before his departure from Vienna, which took place the following year, Ries made his first appearance in public as Beethoven's acknowledged pupil, at the Au- garten. On this occasion the Concerto in C minor was performed, and Ries introduced a cadence of his own. " Beethoven," he says in his Notizen, " conducted and turned the pages for me. I had urged him to compose a cadenza, but he told me to write one for myself. On the whole he was content with my composition, and made but few alterations. At the same time he told me to change one showy and exceedingly difficult passage, which he considered too risky. The more simple passage substituted was not to my taste, and I could not bring myself to play it in public. The crucial moment arrived. Beethoven seated him- self quietly beside me ; but as soon' as I plunged boldly into the more difficult cadence, he gave his chair a violent push. The cadence, however, was a success, and Beethoven gave vent to his satisfaction by a ' Bravo ! ' which astonished the house." The return of Schikaneder to the Theatre An der Wien, as manager under Baron von Braun, caused iBeethoven again to give his -attention to dramatic music ; and 1.805 was made memorable by the produc- tion of his first and only opera, Fidelia. The now weU-known story of Leonora was founded upon a French libretto. It had been twice set to music in 92 BEETHOVEN. long-forgotten operas of Gaveaux and Paer ; and Leonora ■ ossia I'amore conjugale, by the last-named, had been performed at Dresden as recently as October in the previous year. Beethoven's noble conception of true womanhood finds expression in many passages of his letters, and it has been further proved by the honour- able nature of his many attachments from youth upwards. To this feeling may be traced his selection of faithful wedded love for the theme of his first opera, and of the brave, devoted, self-sacrificing Leonora for his heroine. The prayer he once uttered — " God !" let me at last find her who was destined to be mine, and who shall strengthen me in virtue" — was never granted. But if, throughout his earthly pilgrimage, this ideal companionship was denied him, at least it shone upon him, radiant and etherealized, in the realm of his own poetical imaginings. • Beethoven had again taken up his lodging at the theatre. Some rooms also in Baron Pasqualati's house on the Molk Bastion were kept at his disposal, and there he took refuge when specially anxious to pursue his work without fear of interruption from patrons, publishers, or friends. Amid the meadows and groves of Hetzendorf, whither he went in the month of June, he surrendered himself to the work of Fidelio, elaborat- ing, extending, curtailing, and changing his musical ideas with that wonderful industry and incessant self- criticism to which his sketch-books bear testimony. Busy as he was, Beethoven found time to pay flying visits to Vienna, where Cherubini and his wife had lately arrived. Beethoven held the works of this com- BEETHOVEN. 93 poser in high esteem, and appreciated his companion- ship. Record exists of one visit to Sonnleithner's ■ rooms, where he met both Cherubini and Vogler, " and they all played." On Beethoven's return to the capital, the Worries of rehearsal commenced with unusual severity. Com- poser a,nd vocalists came into conflict^not an altogether unprecedented occurrence — and complaints of impossible passages and impossible high notes had to be frowned down or otherwise dealt with. The orchestra showed itself equally restive ; and , Beethoven, in those days, declared this opera of Fidelio to be " the most distressful business in the world." Unfortunately, distressful as it may have been -in rehearsal, it proved still more so in performance. A less propitious time for the production of an opera like Fidelio could hardly have been chosen. Vienna was then in a state of political ferment. On the 13th November the French army made their entry into the capital ; the streets swarmed with troops, and Beet- hoven's former idol, Napoleon, was at Schonbrunn. All the leading members of Viennese society — rthe men of wealth and culture, to whose' taste Fidelio oder die eheliche Hebe would be likely to appeal — all Beet- hoven's patrons except the few among them who were also his intimate associates, had departed to their country seats or elsewhere. But less surprising than the failure of Fidelio was the fact that Beethoven's supporters should have consented to the production of such' a work at such a time. And perhaps the most surprising thing of all was the acceptance as final of a 94 BEETHOVEN. verdict obtained under such conditions, after no more than four performances. After the first, which took place on the 20th November, a council of war was held at the house of Prince Lichnowsky, and, during a dis- cussion of six hours' duration, various proposals for the curtailment of the work were made, and hotly opposed by the composer. Roeckel has given an interesting account of the scene. Far from joining in the general stampede, Lichnowsky was at his post, seated at the piano, score in hand. In a corner of the room, Clement accompanied on the violin ; while Meyer and Roeckel did their best with the voice parts. And last, but by Ho means least, there was present the good, kindly princess, without whose intercession, as the narrator remarks, the labour of all the others would probably have been in vain. As it was, the opera was rehearsed to the end, and the composer's consent obtained to the withdrawal of three of the numbers. One little charac- teristic touch in Roeckel's recital is eminently in keeping with the impression one derives from other sources of Beethoven's impetuous but forgiving disposition. While the fight lasted, he tells us, the composer, according to his wont when any opposition was offered to his wishes, was ill-tempered and disagreeable. As soon, however, as all questions under discussion were settled, he was brimful of good-humour, and cracked jokes in his boisterous fashion, although the general verdict ran counter to his own opinion. Nevertheless, the time was one of severe disappoint- ment and annoyance for Beethoven. As usual in such cases, many of the minor critics, before covertly hostile, BEETHOVEN. 95 readily seized so tempting an opportunity for breaking into open abuse ; and the composer, unfortunately, was then in no mood to treat their shafts with indifference. After three representations before audiences chiefly composed of French officers and soldiers^ Fidelia was withdrawn. When the libretto had been improved by Stephan Breuning, and reduced from three to two acts, the opera was again performed, with a new overture, on March 29th, 1806. One more performance, on April IQth, brought its career to a close, as far as Vienna was concerned, for seven or eight years. The fact that Beethoven wrote in all four different overtures for this single opera is one proof among many of his inexhaustible fancy and his immense capacity for work. It will be useful to set them forth in the order 6f their performance, without regard to the sequence of numbers by which they are generally known. No. 2. — Played at the three first performances in Vienna, 20th, 21st, and 22nd November, 1805. No. 3.— Played at Vienna, 29th March and 10th April, 1806. No. 1. — Written for a proposed production of the opera at Prague, early in 1807, which did not take place. No. 4.— Played at Vienna, 26th May, 1814. There are more reasons than one for regretting the coldness with which the earlier performances of -Beethoven's first opera were received in Vierina. At that time he showed a decided inclination for dramatic composition, abd would very likely have pushed further in the same direction had not his ardour been damped 96 BEETHOVEN. at the very outset. But even while engrossed in this theatrical venture, he was at work also in other direc- tions ; and part of the Pianoforte Concerto in G and of the. C minor Symphony, besides the two last of the famous String Quartets, Op. -59, dedicated to Count Rasoumofifsky, were composed in that year of excite- ment. During the summer of 1806, the country, over-run by foreign troops, no longer offered the tranquil resting- place to which Beethoven had been accustomed. In- vitations, therefore, from aristocratic friends were' readily accepted ; and he passed some months at the country seat of Count Brunswick — the brother of that Theresa of Brunswick whom some biographers have claimed to be the origin of the posthumous love-letters more generally supposed to have been addressed to Giulietta Guicciardi. Later in the year, Beethoven paid a visit to Prince Lichnowsky in Silesia ; and here occurred another of those regrettable scenes which were too often brought about by his irritability and offensive display of inde- pendence. Some French officers happened at the time to be quartered upon the prince, and the presence in the house of so eminent a virtuoso naturally whetted their curiosity. Beethoven was asked to play — always a dangerous request, as we know, to make in his case — and when, either for a freak, . or incited by political animosity, he refused, the host pressed him, and jocu- larly threatened to lock him up. A turbulent scene ensued. The irate composer posted back to Vienna that same night, and on his return home seized a bust BEETHOVEN. 97 of his old friend the prince, and relieved his feelings by shivering it to atoms. The comparative failure of Fidelia proved a severe disappointment to Beethoven in a pecuniary as well as in an artistic sense ; but a liberally supported benefit concert in .1807, at which the new Symphony, No. 4, in B flat, was performed ; a sale of copyrights made to Clementi, now head partner of a London music pub- lishing firm, together with other profits resulting from an exceptionally productive period, removed, for the, moment, all anxiety. As far as money matters were concerned, Beethoven at that time was inclined to : re- gard the outlook as decidedly cheerful, and in May he wrote to Brunswick — " I can now hope, in a few years, to be in a position to maintain the true dignity of an artist." It is believed that during this year Beethoven was occupied with both the Pastoral Symphony and the Symphony in C minor. In September, also, the Mass in C was produced at the chapel of Eisenstadt, under the auspices of Prince Esterhazy. From Beethoven's own words, when writing to the prince, there seems reason to suppose that the composer himself was not altogether content with this excursion into- the field of ecclesiastial music. " Shall I tell you," he says, " that it is not without many misgivings that I shall send the Mass to you, who, I know, have been accustomed to hear the inimitable works of the great Haydn?" After the performance^ something like a quarrel- occuiTed between Beethoven and his old rival Hummel, who at that time filled the post of Capellmeister to Esterhazy. . 98 BEETHOVEN. Beethoven's "misgivings" were so far realized that Haydn's former patron was taken aback by'a style of composition so different from what he had been accus- tomed to associate with Church music. His criticism was expressed in a form which might be freely trans- lated into the vernacular by — " What on earth have you been doing now ? " Unfortxmately, the courtly Capell- meister happened to be within hearing, and made matters worse by what the composer, rightly or wrongly, sup- posed to be an approving laugh. Mortally offended, Beethoven left the palace, and for some time all intercourse ceased between him and Hummel. The two court theatres were managed, during -1807, by an association. of noblemen, with Lobkowitz at their head. We have further evidence of Beethoven's. inclin- ation at that time to pursue dramatic work, in his offer to contract for the supply of one grand opera and one operetta yearly, at a salary of 2400 florins, with benefit performances — a proposal, however, which was not accepted. Meanwhile each year brought with it some memorable musical eyent — some work or works that would have sufficed to place their composer upon a pinnacle never before reached in the domain of instrumental music, even had they stood alone instead of being, as they were, but units in a stupendous catalogue of great achievements. Among such belonging to 1808 are the titanic C minor Symphony, which some persons are fond of regarding as a sort of musical apotheosis of will made victorious over fate by submission to its decrees, and the Choral Fantasia, interesting as a. new departure BEETHOVEN. 99 destined hereafter to culminate in the Ninth Sym- phony. And now musical amateurs of Vienna, who had long lived in the reflected glory of Beethoven's achievements, were startled into a sudden sense of indebtedness to their great tone-poet when it became known that Jerome Bonaparte, King of Westphalia, anxious to attach Beethoven to his court, had offered him the post of Maitre de Chapelle at Cassel, with an annual salary^ in addition to travelling expenses, of about £300. It was probably quite as far from Beethoven's own wish as from that of his friends, that the liberality of a foreign potentate should be allowed thus to eclipse his Austrian patrons. But the pension from the Elector had long since ceased, and with the exception of a small allow- ance from Prince Lichnowsky, Beethoven relied for support solely upon the money earned by his works. The moment, therefore, was in every sense a favourable one for urging his claim to some further allowance ; and this opportune pressure from without was exploited to such good effect by Beethoven's friends, that in March 1809 the Archduke Eudolph, Prince Lobkowitz, and Prince Kinsky. gave a joint undertaking to secure him 4000 florins, payable half-yearly — an allowance, it is true, of uncertain and fluctuating value ; worth at the time it was granted a little over £200 (nominally £400), and unlikely to remain even at that figure in the immediate future. Eventually, indeed, owing to the rapid depreciation of the Austrian paper-money, the death and bankruptcy a few years afterwards of Prince Kinsky, and to other troubles connected with the affair, 1 00 BEETHOVEN. this well-meant arrangement resulted in more worry and disappointment for the composer than material benefit. Among the minor annoyances connected with it, was the necessity of sending to the executors of Prince Kiiisky a certificate of his continued existence, which greatly exasperated Beethoven. He generally sent such documents through his friend Schindler; and one of them was couched in the following terms — " Certificate. — The fish is alive. "Vidi. "Pastor Romualdtjs." Ignaz Moscheles, who had recently lost his father, came to Vienna in 1809 to continue his musical studies ; and no sooner had he arrived there than he was con- sumed with an ardent desire to see and become ac- quainted with Beethoven. This proved no easy matter ; for except young Ries, Beethoven took no pupils, and his increasing deafness, and his frequent fits of despondency, rendered him ever more difficult of approach. At length fortune favoured the young student. One morning Moscheles happened to be standing in the shop of Artaria the publisher, when " some one," he writes, "entered with short, hasty steps; and with downcast eyes, as if wishing to pass unnoticed, walked straight through the circle of ladies and gentlemen, who were discussing business and musical matters, into the private office behind the shop. Artaria afterwards called me in and said, ' This is Beethoven ' ; and to the composer, ' This is the young man I was speaking to you about.' Beethoven nodded kindly, and said he had had a good BEETHOVEN. 101 account of me. He did not reply to a few stammered words of admiration, and seemed to wish to cut short the interview." Moscheles's connection with Salieri, first as his pupil, and for three years as his deputy-assistant at the opera, gradually brought him into closer contact with the master ; and later, at the suggestion of Artaria, the task was confided to him of preparing the pianoforte arrange- ment of Fidelia. His delight at this proposal was doubled by the conditions attached to it by' Beethoven ' — ^viz. that he should see every number before it went to press. The long-sought chance of placing himself on terms of intimacy with the great man was thus put within his reach. But, owing to Beethoven's deafness, Moscheles did not derive from this intercourse all the pleasure and profit he had expected. In 1809^-a remarkable year in respect both of music composed and of music published — Beethoven first com- menced his relations with the eminent publishing firm of Breitkopf and Hartel; Another publisher — a certain Thomson of Edinburgh — renewed a prpposal which had remained in abeyance since 1806, that he should har- monize a number of national melodies. For Beethoven this must have been a mere matter of business; and again- we have an instance of his untiring industry in the fact that, undeterred by his numerous more impor- tant occupations, he arranged over a course of years one hundred and sixty-four tunes, for which he was paid £200 in all. This was a year also of immense political excitement in consequence of Napoleon^s aggressive movements in 102 BEETHOVEN. "Italy, where his raids upon Tuscany and the States of the Church aroused general indignation. ' War was renewed in the spring, but with no happier results for Austria than had followed her previous efforts to arrest the progress of the French invader. . The splendid Ger- man army, commanded "by the Archduke Charles, was routed at Eckmiihl on the 22nd of April ; and on the 12th of May the French forces made a second e'ntry into Vienna. During the bombardment the noise had a terror for the deaf musician, far removed from that personal cowardice vaguely insinuated in an account of the affair written, not by one of his enemies, but by a friend. Like many others among the non-fighting inhabitants, Beethoven took refuge in a cellar while the firing continued, and, dreading the effects of the explo- sions upon his sense of hearing — a dread which will be easily understood by those similarly afflicted — he en- deavoured to lessen the effect of the vibrations with the aid of cushions. Two days later the Archduke left Vienna; and the first movement of the Sonata, Op.. 81a, afterwards dedicated to him, contains the well- known Les Adieux, L' Absence, et le Estour. This title, therefore, unlike that of the Moonlight Sonata and some others, is not a publisher's addition, but a real title of occasion, furnished by the composer himself. While the French, for the second time, were in posses- sion of Vienna, the venerable Haydn lay on his deathbed, and on the 31st May he breathed his last. There were' to be no more chance meetings, no more half-comical passages-of-arms between Haydn and his former pupil, In spite of such occasional friction, Beethoven, let it be BEETHOVEN, 103 said, held the master in sincere esteem, both as man and musician, to the end of his life; In the May time of 1810, that strange, sprightly being, Bettina Brentano, came like a gleam of sunshine across Beethoven's path. Full of enthusiasm for the master's music, and eager to become personally ac- quainted with him, she went straight to his house one morning accompanied by her sister ; and there and then made conquest of his heart. The sudden appearance in his lodgings of " Goethe's child," and the intimacy that was forthwith struck up between them, proved a source of new-found joy for that strange compound of roughness and sensibility. Beethoven sang for her, in his way, Kennst du das Land ? walked home with her to Bren- tano's ; arranged fiirther meetings, — once more, in short, gave signs of that blissful predicament generally known as " love at first sight," Seeing, however, that Bettina was already betrothed to Count Amim, this affection, in spite of the high-flown correspondence that passed between them, must have been recognized by him as hopeless from the very first. A description of Bettina, left by one of her contemporaries, renders intelligible the deep feeling she inspired in the inflammatory heart of the composer. " There was a strangeness," we are told, "about her whole appearance. With a small, delicatfe, aiid most symmetrical figure, pale clear com- plexion, interesting rather than strikingly handsoibe features, and a profusion 9f long black hair, she seemed the incarnation or indeed the original of Mignon. And her ways were as unconventional as her appearance When singing, one of her favourite seats was a writing- 104 BEETHOVEN. "table, perched upon which ' she warbled like a cherub from the clouds.' "• In marked contrast to the generality of German girls, she seldom condescended to feminine work ; and visitors generally found her " comfortably squatting on a low footstool, or near the window, with a volume of Goethe in her lap." Impulsive and generous to a fault, she once, it is said, seized a roll of notes and gave half away without counting them to a person in distress. The three famous letters from Beethoven, published years afterwards by Bettina, have long^been a bone of contention for biographers. It is more than probable that the account given by the fascinating little woman herself of her interviews with the composer owe some- thing to the colouring of a too vivid imagination. Such objection, indeed, amounts simply to a reasonable doubt whether the diary of a clever, highly-strung girl like Bettina would, in any case, be likely to be distinguished by strict historical accuracy. All unconsciously she revealed somewhat of the method adopted in her re- miniscences, when she admitted that Beethoven, one morning, looking over her description of the previous day's proceedings, asked with an astonished air, " Did I really talk like this ? I must have had a raptus." Though the three letters written by Beethoven may also have received embellishment at the hand of their romantic recipient, they may reasonably be credited with, a substratum of truth. The last, dated from Toeplitz, 15th August, 1812, commences with an interesting reference to Goethe — "It is indeed in the power of kings and princes to' create professors and piivy counsellors, and to bestow BEETHOVEN. 105 titles and decorations, but they cannot create great men. Spirits that assert their ascendancy over the common herd they cannot pretend to make ; and thus they are compelled to respect them. When two such men as Goethe and myself come together, these fine people must he left to discover the meaning of the word ' great,' as this is understood by such as we. " When returning home yesterday we met the whole Imperial family; we saw them coming in the distance. Goethe immediately dropped my arm, and stood aside. Say what I would to him, I could not. get him to move a single step. I drew my hat lower down upon my head, buttoned up my greatcoat, and with arms folded pressed forward through the thickest of the crowd. A line was formed by princes and courtiers. Duke Rudolph raised his hat, the Empress bowing first. The great ones of the earth know me ! To my inexpressible amusement, •I noticed, when the procession passed, Goethe stood at the side, hat in hand, bending low. I took him to task for it pretty severely, and did not spare him. I brought up against him all his sins, especially • those against you, dearest friend ; for we had just been talking about you. Heavens ! had I been permitted the inter- course that he has enjoyed, I should have produced far more great works." Anything like a complete enumeration of the noble compositions that emanated from Beethoven's pen during the period of wonderful productiveness between 1804 and 181 4, when his powers were at their height, together with an account of their characteristic features, would require a volume to itself. Besides many Piano- forte Sonatas of pre-eminent beauty — " Symphonies in miniature," as they have been called — including the D 106 BEETHOVEN. minor and the ^^^asiomato, the. record would embrace the opera of Fidelia, with its four overtures; the two Pianoforte Concertos in G and E flat ; the one Violin Concerto ; the First Mass ; the overtures to Goriolanus (Gollins's tragedy), to King Stephen, and the JRuins of Athens; the music to Egrruont ; the Choral Fantasia; the Rasoumoffshy Quartets ; and many another notable work; lastly, those six Symphonies ranging from the third {Eroica) to the eighth, each of which has been rightly described as a musical event — a revelation of new possibilities in the realm of tone-poetry, possessing in some respects features unlike any to be found in works that had gone before, or in those that came after, even from the same pen. The illustration of Goethe's poem, Galm Sea and Prosperous Voyage, although not the earliest example of programme music, may be said, together with the Pastoral Symphony and other works, to have directed the attention of modern composers to the class of composition now known by that name. The year 1810 is associated with another matrimonial projects the mysterious ITierathspartie, concerning which, and the object of it, there has been so much •speculation. The fact that matters became sufficiently serious to cause Beethoven to write urgently for his baptismal certificate encourages a supposition that, who- ever may have been the object of his choice, he was this time brought nearer to the brink of matrimony than on many similar occasions. Theresa of Brunswick has been mentioned as the possible heroine of the romance ; but the whole affair remains enshrouded in mystery. Giulietta, as we know, had for some time been Countess BEETHOVEN. 107 Gallenberg. According to Breuning the engagement was broken off three months afterwards. But in this, as in similar experiences, Beethoven escaped at least one of the consequences to which those who have passed through the fire of blighted love are not infre- quently exposed. He never turned woman-hater. Two years later, when at Toeplitz, on the contrary, he be- came warmly enamoured of a charming, intellectual girl from Berlin — Amalie Sebalde ; and a lock of hair cut by her from Beethoven's head is still in pos- session of the family. "Press the countess's hands for me," he wrote to Tiedge, "tenderly but respect- fully. Give Amalie a loving kiss when no one is looking." A great favourite with Beethoven — although the two had their quarrels — was the " fine pretty little woman," the Countess Erdody ; so described by Reichardt during her early married life, although she afterwards became a confirmed invalid. Another valued friend was " his dear Dorothea Csecilia" — the talented Madame von Ertmann, who, again according to the testimony of Reichardt, ranked among the ablest contemporary exponents of Beethoven's music — a lady worthy of remembrance if only in association with a charming and pathetic anec- dote. Visiting her a short time after the death of her son, Beethoven, conscious, as so many others have been, of the utter insufficiency of language to console on such occasions, went to the piajio and said, " Let us talk only in tones!" "And he told me ALL," exclaimed Madame Ertmann, years afterwards when relating the occurrence. Here at least, it may be contended, music lost nothing 108 BEETHOVEN. in power and intensity by dissociation from the " spoken word." A loan of 2300 florins obtained from his friends, the Brentanos.in 1812, suggests a far from satisfactory state of finances, and no doubt the depreciation of the Austrian paper-money, together with other difficulties connected with the pension from which at one time he had anticipated permanent and substantial assistance, was beginning to cause him considerable perplexity. Spohr was at Vienna in 1812, and had the , privilege of hearing Beethoven play during a rehearsal at the composer's house. But considering that the piano was very much out of tune — " which was of very little con- sequence to Beethoven, for he could not hear it " — and that the artist's deafness had left little trace of his once . famous powers as a virtuoso, it is not surprising to learn that the experience afforded him no pleasure. As his infirmity increased, Beethoven's pianoforte playing, both in public and private, became ever rarer. We find him still able, however, to extemporize at a concert given at Carlsbad for the benefit of sufferers in a fire at Baden. Another example of this willingness to co-operate in good works occurred at the beginning of the same year. In response to an application for assistance at a concert to be held at Gratz for the poor, he supplied four out of the eight numbers in the pro- gramme with compositions of his own, and declined to receive any payment. Beethoven's intirnacy with " Goethe's child " led, in due course, to an acquaintance with Goethe himself. This occurred at Toeplitz. Sooner or later such an BEETHOVEN. 109 approach would have been, in any case, inevitable. Evidences abound in Beethoven's letters and recorded conversation of the powerful influence exercised over his mind by the works of Goethe ; and on Goethe's side there was a sincere recognition of the musician's sur- passing genius and nobility of soul. But although the two strong natures had much in common, they had not everything ; and on both sides there seems to have been a critical disposition which prevented the relations of mutual esteem at any time from ripening into brotherly friendship. Goethe's own description of the composer addressed to his friend Zelter gives us some idea of th© nature of that limit. " I made acquaintance," he says, " with Beethoven in Toeplitz. His marvellous talent astounded me. But unfortunately he is an utterly untamed character. He is not indeed wrong in finding the world detestable. Still his finding it detestable does not make it any more enjoyable either to himself or to others." Perhaps, too, the poet did not retain a very gratifying recollection of a walk he once took with Beethoven in Vienna. He had been highly gratified by the frequent and respectful salutations of the passers- by, and these at length became so marked that he exclaimed, " B«ally I had no idea the people here knew me so well." " Oh ! " the composer replied, with more regard for the truth than for his companion's feelings, "they are bowing to me, not to you." Beethoven's own account, in a letter to Bettina, of the two" men's marked difference of demeanour when Duke Rudolph and the Empress passed by, and of the way in which Goethe was taken to task, has already been quoted. 110 BEETHOVEN. As a matter of fact the composer seems to have soon passed out of Goethe's mind. Later, when Beethoven begged him in an humble letter to use • his influence ■with Karl August in connection with the Mass, the poet did not even trouble himself to send a reply. Of the many doctors consulted by Beethoven in these years, hone inspired him with greater confidence than Dr. Malfatti ; although with him, as with most of the others; a quarrel presently ensued. The physician's two charming daughters, Theresa and Anna, were im- mense favourites with him. In one of his letters to Gleichenstein, who married the younger sister in 1811, he says, " My greetings t-o all who are dear to you and to me. How gladly would I add — to whom 'we . are dear ? ? ? ? These marks of interrogation at least become me." Of the society telle, Theresa, he writes, she is " volatile, and takes everything in life lightly, but with keen perception of all that is beautiful and good, and a great talent for music." By Malfatti' s advice Beethoven tried the baths of Bohemia jn 1812, before making his excursion to Toe- plitz. Later in the same year he was back in his old rooms at Vienna, in Pasqualati's house on the Molk Bastion. Beethoven's frequent changes of lodgings may be attributed partly to that restless sensitiveness to ex- ternal influences which turned inconveniences, more or less trivial in themselves, into serious obstacles to work ; partly, also, to his longing for privacy, and the ever- increasing difficulty of obtaining it. Sometimes there was not enough sunshine in his room; sometimes the BEETHOVEN. Ill quality of the drinking water was unsatisfactory, or he did not like the landlord. Schindler says it was no uncommon thing for Beethoven to have three or four lodgings on his hands — and thus three or four rents to pay — at the same time. Once, when some rooms were placed at his disposal in the residence of Baron Pojiay, a novel grievance awaited him. The ceremonious greetings of his host, each timei they met in the fine park by which the villa was surrounded, and the neces- sity of returning them, so greatly tried his patience that his stay in those seemingly desirable quarters was limited to a few days. Of the hopeless disorder of the rooms themselves — before a good-natured friend came to the rescue — both Ouli"bischeff and Seyfried have given graphic descrip- tions. "Books and music were scattered all about the room ; in one place the remains of a cold snack ; in another a wine-bottle ; on the desk a hasty sketch of a new quartet ; near it the fragment of breakfast ; on the piano some scrawled pages containing a glorious symphony in embryo ; proofs waiting for correction and business letters strewing the floor. Once an important paper was not to be found — iiot a sketch nor a loose sheet — nothing less than a thick, clearly copied score from the Mass in D. It was found at last, but where do you think ? In the kitchen, wrapped round something to eaf." Beethoven made one desperate attempt to settle the "servant question" by dismissing them all, house- keeper included, and taking the household duties upon his own shoulders. According to one account he even 112 BEETHOVEN. invited some friends to a dinner cooked by himself ; "but the maegtro soon discovered that composing and cooting were different things, and the injured cook was speedily reinstated." The story, it should be addedy has been contradicted by Schindler. Something like order was at last introduced into this chaotic domicile by good Frau Babette Streicher, the wife of a well-known instrument-maker. lo the absence of a mistress of the household, this helpful, kindly woman set to work with much needed energy and with highly satisfactory results ; engaging and keeping a watch over servants, rehabilitating the wardrobe, and standing generally between the composer and the minor domestic worries of life. Winter and summer Beethcven rose at daybreak, when he immediately seated himself at his writing-table, and continued writing until his usual dinner-time of two or three o'clock. His labours were broken by occasional excursions into the open air, but never without a note* book in which to jot down whatever fresh ideas might, occur during his rambles. The habit of going out suddenly, and as unexpectedly returning, was practised at all seasons of the year, just as the whim happened to seize him. " Cold or heat," says Schindler, " rain or sunshine, were all alike to him. In the autumn he used to return to -town as though he had been sharing the daily toil of the reapers and gleaners. Winter restored his somewhat yellow complexion." In connection with Beethoven's fondness for water, the same biographer has described how, during moments of inspiration, he would rush to the washing-basin and BEETHOVEN. 113 empty several jugs over his hands, singing and shouting the while according to his favourite custom ; and how at length the neighbours below were compelled tcJ complain of the wet that trickled through their ceiling. He loved the twilight. Generally he chose that hour for improvising — sometimes on the piano, sometimes on the violin or viola, which were always kept ready for him. Later in life, when his deafness had become serious, there was. a wide difference betweep the inten- tion and the sounds he actually produced upon bow instruments, and the effect was described as painful to hear. Besides consulting numerous doctors Beethoven made several attempts to alleviate his deafness, if it could not be cured ; and at one time his hopes were greatly raised by the promise from Maelzel — best known as the inventor of the metronomfe — of a new sound-conductor and sundry similar appliances to be manufactured ex- pressly for him. These instruments, when finished, proved of doubtful value, and in the following year the connection led to many troubles. Meanwhile, in recognition of his services, Beethoven composed for Maelzel a military piece to be performed on a sort of mechanical trumpet, which was about to be introduced into England, called the "Panharmonicon." This work, which was admittedly unworthy of Beet- hoven's powers, was called The Battle of Vittoria, iu commemoration of the great defeat sustained by the French at that place ; and it was afterwards arranged for orchestra, and played at a concert in December 1813, for the benefit of the soldiers wounded at Hanau. 114 BEETHOVEN. Thanks to political enthusiasm and to a good perform- ance of the seventh Symphony — also included in the programme — the concert was an immense success. Beet- hoven himself conducted in spite of his deafness ; adapting his heat to the movements of Schuppanzigh's bow. In a letter of thanks afterwards addressed to the performers, he described this concert as " an unprece- dented assembly of eminent artists, each inspired by the desire to achieve something by his art for the good of the Fatherland, and all working together unani- mously, accepting subordinate positions regardless of precedent, for the sake of the general success. The direction of the whole," he goes on to say, " was under- taken by me simply because the music happened to be my composition. Had it been another's I would will- ingly, like Herr Hummel, have placed myself at the great drum. For our only feelings were those of pure love to the Fatherland, and the joyful dedication of our powers to the cause of those who have sacrificed so much for us." On this occasion- Spohr, for the first time, had an opportunity of seeing Beethoven conduct in public. "Although I had been warned beforehand," he says, " the whole thing greatly astonished me. Beethoven had accustomed himself to indicate to the orchestra the marks of expression by all sorts of extraordinary move- inents. Whenever a sforsando occurred he would vehe- mently open both arms,- which had before been folded. For a piano he bent down, and the softer it was to be the lower he stooped. For a crescendo he drew himself ever higher and higher, till at the arrival of the forte he BEETHOVEN. .115 gave a leap into the air ; he would also scream out, ■without knowing it, in order to emphasize an increase ofthe/o?-i!e." In spite of its inferiority as a composition, the Ba,ttle Symphony was equally successful with the English pub- lie, when produced at Drury Lane in the following year. Some time before the performance a copy of the work had been sent to the Prince Regent ; but, greatly to the composer's chagrin, it was never even acknowledged. Later a serious qiiarrel arose between Beethoven and Maelzel ; and although different complexions have been put upon the affair by the partisans of either side, it does not. seem to have been disputed that Maelzel was travelling about with a garbled version of the piece ; so that whether or not he had actually purchased it, as he asserted, the indignation of the composer is not very surprising. Matters were further complicated and ill- feeling intensified by a misunderstanding with regard to a certain money transaction ; Maelzel declaring that be had paid £25 to Beethoven for the copyright of the work, while Beethoven, on the other hand, maintaine that this was only a loan. So hot did the controversy grow that Beethoven commenced an action at law. A partial reconciliation -was afterwards effected, but not before many hard words had been exchanged and much distress of mind entailed upon the composer. Early in 1814 a young man called upon Beethoven with a letter from the violinist Schuppanzigh. The name of the visitor was Anton Schindler. Soon this casual acquaintance ripened into close intimacy; and,- five years later, Schindler was established in the master's 116 BEETHOVEN. house as a kind of secretary and general assistant. Thi^ friendship was hroken by a quarrel in which Beet- hoven's temper did not, it must be confessed, show itself to advantage, and the separation continued until a short time before his death, when the devoted secre- tary resumed his old position, and remained with the master till the end. When Breuning died Beethoven's papers came into the hands of Schindler, and with the aid of these and of his own personal recollections, the latter was enabled to give to the world the well-known biographical work with which his name is chiefly associ- ated. The appearance of the book was greeted with plentiful abuse in some quarters, but time has brought with it a juster estimate of Schindler's labours, and the verdict of later and less biased criticism has been favour- able, on the whole, to his accuracy of statement and soundness of judgment. The memorable revival in 1814 of the opera Fidelio has an interesting chronicler in Friedrich Treitschke, who was manager and librettist of the two Imperial theatres in Vienna, and in that dual capacity rendered much valuable assistance towards the revision of the book. According to Treitschke's account, the attention of the then superintendents of the two opera-houses, Saal, Vogl, and Weinmiilleir, was first drawn to the long-neglected work in consequence of. an absolute lack of worthy new compositions of the German school — a fact scarcely to be wondered at in view of the sort of encouragement that had been accorded to Beethoven's operatic masterpiece for years past ; and ' meanwhile the latest French operas had so deteriorated in quality BEETHOVEN. 117 and declined in popularity, that "the actors had not the courage to throw themselves into the Italian works as mere singers, as they suicidally did a few years later." In these circumstances Beethoven was applied to .for the loan of Fidelia, to which he disinterestedly con- sented, on the understanding that certain alterations should be made, and for this purpose the services of Treitschke were called in. During their conference on the subject of the libretto, Treitschke showed proof of true dramatic feeling by objecting to an aria it was proposed to give to Florestan. " I pointed out that a man almost dead with hunger could not possibly sing bravura. The difficulty, however, was satisfactorily evaded by some ajppropriate lines of the poet, descrip- tive of the last flickering of the vital flame before it is extinguished, beginning — " Und spjir' ich nioht linde, sanft sauselnde Luft." " "What I am about to relate," wrote Treitschke in the musical annual Orpheus, " will ever live in. my memory* Beethoven came to me at about seven in the evening. After we had discussed other matters, he asked how was the aria getting on ? It was just ready. I handed it to him. He read it, walked up and down the room, murmuring and humming, which were his usual substi- tute for singing, and then threw open the piano. My wife had often vainly asked him to play ; but now, he placed the text before him, and began a wonderful fantasia, which, unfortunately, there was no magic pen to rescue from oblivion. He seemed to conjure from it 118 BEETHOVEN. the motive of the aria. Hours passed, but still Beet- hoven played on. Our supper, which he was to share, was brought in ; but he would not be disturbed. When quite late he embraced me, and, excusing himself from the meal, hurried home. The next day the music was ready." The book was finished towards the end of March, and Beethoven thus acknowledged the copy that was sent to him. " Dear good Treitschke, — I have read your im- proved version with great pleasure. It has determined me to rebuild the ruins of an old castle. " Your friend, " Beethoven." The work, however, progressed slowly, andj as the composer remarked to his useful friend, there was a great deal of difference between working from cool reflection and abandoning one's self to inspiration. The performance took place at the Karnthnerthor on the 23rd of May. A new overture had been promised for the grand rehearsal on the day before ; but Beet- hoven did not put in an appearance. " After waiting , a long time," says Treitschke, " I went to fetch him. He was in bed fast asleep, ,a goblet of wine with a biscuit in it beside him, and the sheets of the overture scattered over the bed and floor. The exhausted lamp showed that he had been working far into the night." In fact it was not until the 26th May that this new over- ture (in E), now distinguished from the others by the title of Overture to Fidelio,-wa,s included in the performance. BEETHOVEN. 119 The preparation of the pianoforte score of this opera by Moscheles, under Beethoven's direction, was the means of bringing the two into' frequent communica- tion, and Moscheles, who visited his rooms at all hours, has illustrated the composer's absence of mind by a characteristic anecdote. "I went early to Beethoven one morning, and found him still in bed. As it hap- pened, he was in remarkably good spirits ; jumped up and placed himself close to the window, so that he might be better able to examine the pieces. Of course a crowd of boys collected in the street underneath. 'What do the confounded youngsters want?' he ex- claimed at last. I pointed smiling to his own figure. ' Yes, yes ; you are right,' he cried, and quickly threw on a dressing-gown." On another occasion Moscheles, not finding Beet- hoven in his lodgings, left his instalment of work upon the table, and wrote under it, " Finis, with God's help." Shortly afterwards he received it back from Beethoven with the additional words, "0 man,, help thyself!" Beethoven's old friend. Prince Lichhowsky, was not spared to witness the successful revival of the opera in the first production of which he had so actively inter- . ested himself. One of the sorrowful events for Beet- hoven in 1814 was the death of his kind and generous patron. Lichnowsky died shortly before what may be called the culminating social triumph of Beethoven's life, when Vienna, crowded with kings, princes, and ambassadors, drawn thither by the great Congress, took pride in doing honour to the gifted musician whose principal life-work had been carried on in her midst. 120 BEETHOVEN. The occasion, both socially and politically, was a favour- able one for such a purpose. At the invitation of the municipality Beethoven composed specially a Cantata in celebration of the event, entitled Ber Glorreiche AugenUicJc, which, like his previous work deriving its inspiration from a political motive, was altogether un- worthy of his fame. Like its predecessor, also, it proved immensely successful ; and its production was made the occasion of a concert which has become historical. The two halls of the Redouten-Saal, placed at his disposal by the Government, were crowded with an audience of some six thousand persons, including a galaxy of royal and distinguished visitors, and the enthusiasm was immense. After this, honours crowded thickly upon him. London, Paris, Stockholm, and Amsterdam created him honorary members of their respective Academies; and — a distinction he prized above all — Vienna presented him with the freedom of the city. During this year Beethoven, in better health and spirits than he had known for some time, threw off for a time his habits of a recluse, and allowed himself to be lionized and f^ted in the drawing-rooms of the greatest in the land. In the house of his illustrious pupil the Arch- duke Rudolph, he was presented to the Empress Eliza- beth of Russia. Their conversation was unconstrained and cordial ; and before leaving Vienna the Empress pre- sented him with two thousand ducats, the composer, in return, dedicating to her the Polonaise, in C, Op. 89. Other presents, it may be inferred, were made to him by various great personages ; for his financial position was so far improved by the year's transactions that, from BEETHOVEN. 121 being a borrower, be became an investor in sbares of the Bank of Austria. These gay times for Vienna were brought to a sudden termination when the news arrived of Napoleon's escape from Elba, and of his landing near Frejus on the 1st of March, 1815. Amid the general consternation Beet- hoven had anxieties on his own account. The Kinsky lawsuit dragged ■ its course slowly along, much to the hindrance of composition, as is evident from letters to his lawyer written during that period. Soon too the sky, which had brightened for a season, was clouded in another quarter ; and those domestic and business worries, which were fated to increase as. time went- on, already began to throw their shadows before them. The mischievous influence of his two brothers, in whom, despite frequent warnings from observant outsiders, Beethoven continued to repose unbounded confidence, at least contributed to another misfortune — a second quarrel with the good, faithful Stephan Breuuing. The original cause of this untoward event was one of the warnings referred to. Breuning, at the instigation of some person who had observed with not unnatural suspicion the almost unlimited control assumed over Beethoven's affairs by his money-loving brother Carl, had under- taken the delicate duty of dropping a timely hint. Ever combative where the good faith of his relations was called in question, Beethoven, instead of appreci- ating Breuning's friendly intention, reported to Caspar not only the conversation, but also the informant's name. A quarrel with Caspar, as Breuning soon discovered, meant also a quarrel with Beethoven himself. High 122 BEETHOVEN. words ensued all round, and Caspar, as usual, fanned the flame. The affair ended in a separation between Beethoven and Breuning which lasted for several years. Thus two painful blanks were left in Beethoven's life by the removal of two of his truest friends, in one case by death, and in the other by estrangement. How much he suffered during this estrangement, and how sincerely he repented his hasty conduct, when his eyes were at length opened to the true state of the case — all this -is feelingly expressed in a letter to Stephan, undated, but placed by Schindler in 1826, in which he encloses a miniature of himself by Horneman. Attempts have been made to, soften the many un- favourable comments that have been provoked by the conduct of Johann and Caspar Beethoven towards their brother. Though the evil they ^vrought may have been exaggerated, there is ample evidence that they inter- fered,, in many cases, between him and his friends with most unfortunate results. And in another matter, also, their character does not come out quite clear. Beet- hoven, though careless, was the reverse of an extravagant inanj and it is difficult to believe that the payments he obtained for his compositions — respectable prices for those days — together with the numerous presents of wealthy patrohs received from first to last, would not have sufficed, if fairly dealt with, to preserve him during his last years from sordid care. The fact that Johann, the whilom apothecary, was living, meanwhile, in com- parative affluence on a landed estate of his own, is also not without its significance. In November 1815 Caspar died. He left to Ludvig BEETHOVEN. 123 a legacy- so disastrous in its consequences, that it throws into shade whatever evil he may have done him during life. From the day when Beethoven ac- cepted the guardianship of young Carl — Caspar's son — a new sorrow was imported into his life. Henceforth the wealth of affection which dwelt in the heart of this rugged, single-hearted man — ever yearning for home ties and ever disappointed — was centred upon his new and, as he unhappily proved, unworthy charge. Scamp as Carl undoubtedly was, one is almost inclined to com- miserate the terribly severe retribution which has been meted out to him by posterity. The irreparable evil wrought by him in the life of a great man has caused his insignificant personality to be singled out for op- probium from among other young men as bad or worse than himself, and has_ conferred upon him a place in history it is impossible to ignore ; so that " Beethoven's worthless nephew " must ever figure prominently in any record of this last and saddest period of Beethoven's career. The troubles connected with this ill-starred guardian- ship commenced immediately. Carl was between eight and nine years old when his father died ; and Beet- hoven's first anxiety was to separate the- boy from his mother, whom he believed to be a person of objection- able character. Not unnaturally, " The Queen of Night," . as Beethoven used to call his sister-in-law, resented this attempt to ignore her maternal rights, and much bitter- ness and recrimination, and a lawsuit of four years' standing, followed. When Beethoven carried his cause to the Landrechts' Court — a Couirt open to norie bijt 124 BEETHOVEN. appellants of noble family — his advocate made the singular mistake of citing the Dutch prefix of Van to his name, as a proof of aristocratic lineage. The com- poser's argument was of a less technical kind. " My nobility is here and here," he said, pointing alternately to head and heart. To his disgust this plea was not admitted as conclusive, and the case was retried in the Lower Court, and decided against him. But there still remained the High Court of Appeal ; and from this tribunal Beethoven succeeded in obtaining a reversal of the former verdict. It was not until January 1820 that Carl v/as finally removed from surroundings which could not fail — as was still more clearly shown in the course of these legal proceedings — to be injurious to his future. The purely benevolent motives by which Beet- hoven was actuated in thus leaving no stone unturned to gain his end, stand out clearly in one of the earlier appeals, and were sufficiently proved by his subsequent conduct. Unhappy as were the consequences of Beethoven's intense longing for a home of his own, and of his at- tempt to establish one for his adopted nephew — in default of those closer ties which were never to be his — the spectacle, nevertheless, of a composer, so utterly unfitted for practical affairs, seriously setting himself to master the mysteries of domestic economy, is not without its humorous side. Before embarking in this venturesome enterprise, and in order to fortify him- self with at least some elementary khowledge of the subject, he formulated his perplexities in the follow- ing queries, addressed to a friend whom he may be BEETHOVEN, 125 supposed to have regarded as an expert in such matters : — " 1. What is the proper allowance, both in regard to quality and quantity, for the dinner and supper of two servants ? " 2. How often ought one to give them meat ? Should they have it both at dinner and supper ? "3. Do the servants take their meals off the food cooked for their master, or should some be cooked especially for them? " 4. How many pounds of butcher's meat are allowed for three persons ? " In 1816 yet another blank was left in the circle of Beethoven's friends by the death of Prince Lobkowitz ; this event still further reduced the yearly pension, and an unsuccessful attempt to enforce by legal proceedings a continuance of the share contributed by Lobkowitz during his lifetime added to the worries which now gathered around the composer. For now the financial outlook again became gloomy. Some small relief was forthcoming from the sale to the Philharmonic Society, through Mr. Neate, of the MS. Overtures, The Buins of Athens, and King Stephen; and early the following year a gratifying incident awaited him in the present- ation of a grand pianoforte, forwarded from London by the well-known firm of Broadwood — a gift which has sometimes, but without confirmatory evidence, been attributed to the London Philharmonic Society. A proposal that Beethoven should pay a visit to London with two MS. Symphonies to be' purchased by the Society, was also the subject of negotiations through 126 BEETHOVEN. Eies at about this time, but owing to various causes came to nothing. To the appointment in 1818 of his friend and pupil, the Archduke Rudolph, to the Archbishopric of Olmiitz, the world owes a work characterized by Beethoven as the crowning achievement of his life. The work in question — the sublime Missa Solennis — was undertaken with a view to its performance on the Archduke's instal- ment, fixed for 20th March, 1820, but was not completed until two years after. It was composed under con- ditions of such excitement and utter self-absorption as may be well believed to have shut out, for the time, all consciousness of external troubles. As his companion Schindler tells us, Beethoven was as one actually " pos- sessed " ; and from the moment he threw his energies into this colossal undertaking his whole nature seemed to change — meals forgotten, appointments disregarded, long silent wanderings through the still fir forests of Baden, utter neglect of household matters ; in short, a raptus transcending any "similar condition witnessed by his old friend, Madame Breuning, in the early days. Once, when Schindler and a companion called upon him, they found the door closed, and from the room within an uproar reached their ears of " singing, howling, stamping." The " almost horrible " scene was enacted at four o'clock in the afternoon ; and when Beethoven at length opened the door to his astonished visitors, his face bore traces of some strange and terrible struggle. "A pretty state of affairs here," he said; " everybody has left. I have not eaten a morsel since niidday yesterday " — the fact being that he had worked BEETHOVEN. 127 the evening before until after midnight, and left his food untouched ; while the servants, finding their atten- tions unnoticed, and regarding the proceedings, perhaps, as somewhat " uncanny," had forsaken the house. The composer's pale and famished appearance, and the dis- ordered state of the room, must have presented an appearance of abject misery. Nevertheless, it is easy to believe that in the joy of artistic creation he was ready at such moments to pity the wealthiest and most illustrious of his patrons. But amid all this work, what had now come to be the dominant purpose of his life — the accumulation of money for his scapegrace nephew — was never lost sight of. The Mass was completed, and a copy offered to all the principal courts of Europe for the sum of fifty ducats. When the King of Prussia suggested, through his ambassador, that perhaps a decoration might be more welcome than money, the composer promptly replied, "Fifty ducats." In 1822 a young actress, then only seventeen, and presenting, according to Weber's description, " a miser- able appearance," made her dihut at Vienna in the opera of Fidelia. Friends had openly expressed their opinion that her slightness of physique would prove an insurmountable barrier to success — and she was rendered additionally nervous by the presence in the orchestra, sitting behind the bandmaster Umlauf, of Beethoven himself, " so closely enveloped in his cloak that his eyes alone were visible." The young hdnd- ficiaire's heart may well have quaked as she stepped 128 BEETHOVEN. upon the stage to challenge so critical an audience ; but she left it that night the acknowledged ideal Leonora. This was the celebrated Wilhelmine Schroder Devrient, who threw into the part of the devoted wife a dramatic intensity that afterwards gained for her European reput- ation. After the' fall of the curtain the formidable Beethoven advanced with smiles and thanks, and pro- mises to compose a new opera expressly for her. But the promise was never to be fulfilled. The wonderful list of Pianoforte Sonatas was brought to a worthy close by that in E major, Op. 109 — written while the composer was still immersed in the great Mass — and by the Sonatas in A flat major and minor, bearing the dates, respectively, of 25th Dec. 1821, and 13th Jan. 1822. And now followed also a crowning achievement in the department of orchestral music. So far back as 1812, vague projects of the Ninth Sym- phony had existed in the composer's mind, and fore- shadowings of it, as has been seen, had already appeared in the Choral Fantasia. Traces of the gradual process by which the scheme grew and was elaborated until it took its final shape, are found in the sketch-books, which show, among other things, that the adoption of the Ode to Joy as a text for the vocal part , in the finale was a later thought, although mention of an intention to treat musically Schiller's Freude, " and that verse by verse," occurred, as we have seen in a letter from Bonn to the poet's sister, dated so far back as 1793. Many attempts have been made to describe the pro- found impression invariably produced by an adequate performance of this wondrous Ninth Symphony — to BEETHOVEN. . 129 convey in words some notion of its power, its beauty, and its mystery. Attempts of this kind can never be more than partially successful, for the simple reason that much in the work is untranslatable outside the musical language to which it belongs. Here, however, if anywhere, the claim put forward for music as a moral and spiritualizing influence will have to be conceded. Beethoven had travelled far. Erom a height never attained before or since in the domain of symphonic music, his voice reached the world, charged with a message not comprehended by all, though all were able to recognize in it the utterances of a soul that had known how " to suffer and" be strong." An assumption has been favoured in some quarters that Beethoven, when he introduced the Ode to Joy in the last move- ment, intended to mark certain limits beyond which musical expression, unaided by the spoken word, was unable to go. The writer, for one, is unable to discern in so simple an innovation any such announcement — or, indeed, any announcement at all; and the fact is worthy of remark that Beethoven immediately after- wards is seen engaged at his favourite work of quartet writing. For the rest, it is easy enough, without in- dulging in fanciful theory, to believe that the greatest of musico-dramatists who came after, found suggestion and inspiration in the heritage bequeathed by the greatest of . symphonists ; for of the works of Beet- hoven, as of all works of true genius, it may be said, in the words of an eloquent writer,^ " they have an assimilative power, and as man changes they disclose 1 Guesses at Truth,, 130 BEETHOVEN. new features and aspects, and ever look him in the face with the reflection of his own image, and speak to him with the voice of his own heart." Much has been said and written on the subject of Beethoven's "three manners." When comparing the earhest with the latest works of a creative artist who once wrote, " the boundary -line does not exist of which it can be said to talent when united to industry, ' thus far shalt thou go, and no farther,'" a wide gulf in respect of style would be naturally looked for. Such marked difference, in fact, is found to exist between Beethoven's Ninth and last Symphony and bis first produced more than twenty years before. As with all changes brought about by a process of natural growth, it is no more possible to fix the exact boundary lines separating the Trois Styles discussed in Herr von Lenz's well-known book, than it would be to indicate the precise points of departure of those seven ages of man so graphically depicted by the " melancholy Jacques.'' The form, the very dialect, employed by composers with whose fame the world was ringing in the days of Beethoven's youth, naturally supplied models for those earlier works that have been grouped together as representing the " first style " — works often redolent of Haydn and Mozart, but showing evidence in nearly every case of an originality that was destined soon to lead instead of follow. Even here, therefore, anticipations of that splendid array of compositions conveniently assigned to the "second style" are not infrequently to be found. To the second period — a period of matured power BEETHOVEN. - 131 aud comparative prosperity — the world owes a succes- sion of masterpieces, each revealing in some new light the richness of an imagination as inexhaustible as it was many-sided. It was during this period that the forms transmitted to Beethoven by his predecessors soon ceased to be trammels ; that while extending and ennobling them, he showed how possible it is to be original, to be intense, to be startling even, without violating, in any essential particulars, the comely shape- liness of the sonata form. While doing this he had, of course, to run the gauntlet, at each successive step, of that class of critics with whom the word " romantic- ism " was a term of reproach ; and who forgot, like many of their successors, that the "romanticism" of one generation is often the "classicism" of the next. Fetis has made some pertinent remarks upon one inno- vation in Beethoven's music, which at once gave to it a distinctive character — the spontaneity of the episodes " by means of which he suspends - the interest excited, while substituting another as striking as it is unexpected. This is an art peculiar to himself. In appearance foreign to the idea which precedes them, these episodes in the first place arrest attention by their originality. After- wards, when the effect of surprise begins to wear off, he knows how to treat them as an integral portion of his plan, thus showing variety to be dependent upon unity." But, as we have seen, there was still more to follow — the deep poetry, the almost mystic. utterances of that Third Style, among which are included the later Piano- forte Sonatas and Quartets (to be hereafter referred to), the Mass, and the Ninth Symphony. A tenth symphony 132 BEETHOVEN. still more choral in character was also in contemplation, the first movement of which was to be an andante cantique, in the old modes, standing either by itself or leading into a fugue, and in which the voices were either to enter early, or else in the last movement after the repetition of the adagio. In 1823 we read of further operatic projects; of the acceptance of Melusina by Grillparzer, and of a request from Count Bruhl that he would write a German opera for the Berlin theatre ; but owing to the difficulty of find- ing a plot exactly suited to the composer's fancy, and to various other obstacles, all these intentions remained unfulfilled. In the same year he had a cordial inter- view with Weber, who had come to "Vienna for the production of EuryantJie. And now, musical taste in Vienna underwent a change that not only militated against Beethoven's material interests, but also deeply wounded his feelings as an artist. Rossini entered upon the field, and with his graceful Italian melodies fairly won over the ear of the public. There is nothing very surprising in the fact that amateurs in Vienna, like the rest of the world, should have yielded to the charm of tuneful gifts which, be it remembered, came upon them, at that time, as something fresh and in its way original. Less easy is it to understand how a society, supposed to have been thoroughly imbued with the spirit of Beethoven's masterpieces, should have shown itself so wholly satis- fied with the comparatively trivial school represented by the southern singer as to turn away with sudden BEETHOVEN. 133 indifiference from the higher fare upon which it had been nurtured for years. True, the old personal affection borne by the Viennese for their great composer still remained. The well-known figure of the deaf man as he paced the streets, or stood, as he was fond of doing, before shop- windows, double eyeglass in hand, taking stock of their contents, was still an object of mingled curiosity and reverence for the passers-by. The fact nevertheless remains, that the public, who had hitherto followed his achievements with enthusiasm, were now, so to say, left behind — wondering at rather than intelli- gently appreciating the onward advance of his profound and original genius; so that Beethoven now began to experience, at least in some measure, the disappointments and humiliations incidental to the lot of a " musician of the future." Not only the old friends who still remained among the faithful, but many others occupying a more or less conspicuous position in the musical community, were roused to something like alarm, when it became known that Beethoven, in his chagrin at finding himself thus supplanted by "a mere scene-painter," as he called Rossini, entertained serious thoughts of producing the Mass and the new Symphony. in Berlin. To slight Beethoven's music was one thing ; but the bare thought of surrendering him to another capital both jarred upon their feelings and hurt their pride. An earnest re- monstrance was drawn out, bearing signatures that could hardly fail to have weight with the composer, and arrangements were at length concluded for the performance of the two works at a grand concert, for 134 BEETHOVEN. winch the Theatre.^??, der Wien, in the first instance, was selected. But soon fresh difficulties arose. Beethoven, more than ever suspicious of the machinations of " enemies," by whom he believed himself to be surrounded, firmly resisted the high terms demanded for the use of the house ; and there seemed every chance, at one time, of the scheme falling through. In accordance with a little plot, suggested by Schindler to Count Moritz Lichnow- sky and Schuppanzigh, the three friends met, as if by accident, at Beethoven's rooms, and after much trouble persuaded him to sign the required agreement Their success, however, was of short duration ; for no sooner had the three conspirators left his house than suspicions of foul play flashed anew into Beethoven's mind. The result was the early -receipt of the three following missives : — . " To Count Moritz Lichnowsky, — I despise du- plicity. Let me have no more of your visits. The Academy 1 will not take place. " Beethoven." "To Here Schuppanzigh,'— Let me see you no more. I shall give no concert. " Beethoven." " To Herr Schindler, — Do not come near me again until I send for you. " Beethoven." The concert nevertheless took place on 7th May, 1824, 1 Concert. BEETHOVEN. 135 at the Karnthnerthor Theatre — the house ultimately de- cided upon — and parts of the Mass and the overture Weihe des Sauses weTe performed, together with the Ninth Symphony. Already, during the production of Fidelio, Beethoven had shown but scant mercy to the singers ; and now a similar disposition to over-rate the capacities of the human voice, often observable among habitual composers for the orchestra, brought him into conflict with Sontag and Mademoiselle Ungher. When Mademoiselle tJngher called him the tyrant of singers, . he retorted, with equal justness on his side, that they had all been spoilt for music such as his by the modem Italian style of singing. "But this passage," pleaded Sontag, pointing to some high notes in the vocal quartet of the Symphony — "could it not possibly be altered?" Mademoiselle TJngher chimed in with a similar appeal in regard to her own part ; but the only answer was an emphatic refusal. " For heaven's sake, then," said Sontag, like the true artist and amiable creature she was, " let us work away at it again ! " Artistically the concert was a great success, but financially — in spite of a house crowded in every part by an audience eager to catch a sight of the world- famous musician, and to hear the two newest works from his pen — a great disappointment. One man alone was unconscious of the thunders of applause which followed the performance. This was Beethoven himself. " He continued standing with his back to the audience and leafing time till Fraulein Ungher, who had sung the contralto part, turned him, or induced him to turn round and face the people, who were clapping their E 136 BEETHOVEN. hands and giving way to the greatest demonstration of applause." ^ It is easy to believe the statement of one who was present on that occasion — that when the deaf musician bent his head in acknowledgment, many an eye among the faces he so calmly confponted was dim with tears. - It was his last public triumph. Expenses had been heavy, and receipts the reverse of satisfactory; for regular box-holders had entered free, arid the payment usually contributed by the court on the occasion of a benefit was, for some reason, withheld. After deducting all disbursements, the net profit resulting from one of the most memorable concerts on record was under £40. Schindler describes the paiaful efi^ect produced upon the already overstrung nerves of Beethoven when the news of this comparative disaster was first communicated to him. " He broke down altogether. We took him and laid him upon the sofa. He asked neither for food nor for anything else. He uttered no word. At length, when we noticed his eyes gently close in sleep, we left him. In this position, and still -dressed in the green dress-coat he wore at the concert, his servant found him the next morning." As for the concert that followed, it was a total failure ; and, what was worse, it led to a painful scene, little creditable, it must be confessed, to Beethoven, ' The accounts given of this incident vary slightly. It was described exactly as above to' Sir George Grove by the lady herself — Mme. Sabatier Ungher — during her visit to London in 1869, . and the anecdote will be found in Grove's Analytical Essays on Beethoven's Nine Symphonies — a book which every lover of • Beethoven's music should endeavour to possess. BEETHOVEN. 137 although the effect of all these worries and disappoint- ments upon a naturally irritable and sensitive brain suggests a plea in mitigation of his conduct which few will be disinclined to admit. He invited Schindler, Schuppanzigh, and Umlaut to dinner, and before the festivities commenced, suddenly burst into a volley of abuse, and accused them all in round terms of conspir- ing to defraud him. Needless to add, the party broke up in confusion ; the guests lost a dinner, and their host — for a time, at any rate — three of his trustiest comrades. In his new-born anxiety to make and save money for the benefit of his nephew, Beethoven now negotiated personally with courts, patrons, and publishers for the sale of various works. An advantageous offer, made at this time by the Philharmonic Society, would have enriched him by £800 had he consented to pay a visit to London; but after the fracas with his three friends this project fell through ; and meanwhile the Mass was subscribed for but slowly. In his desire to recover lost ground, Beethoven supplemented the labours of composition with others of a more prosaic kind, for which he was proverbially unfitted. Abortive schemes for bringing out "collected editions" of his works, sales at unfavourable prices, and innumerable misunderstand- ings and complications speedily followed this ill-judged excursion into the domain of business. After offering the Mass and the Symphony in various quarters, he sold them to Schott, the publisher of Mayence, with whom he had just established relations. But in spite of all other occupations, composition was still continued 138 BEETHOVEN. with vigour. "Apollo and the Muses "will not deliver me over to the hand of death. There are yet many things the spirit inspires me . with, that I must finish. I feel as if I had written scarcely a note." The religious element in Beethoven's character, traces of which are so frequently seen in his letters, strength- ened and deepened as age and troubles increased. A noble ideal of duty and of self-denial was constantly before him, and how profound was his sense of responsi- bility to the art he loved, as well as to his fellow-men, we have the record of his life-work to prove. Theo- logical talk, however, was little to his taste; and of external religious observances we hear almost nothing. Laborare est orare seems to have been his motto through life. A line of a hymn, Gott allein ist unser Eerr, found by Mr. Nottebohm, scribbled in the sketch-book of the year 1818, furnishes one evidence, among many others, of the devotional spirit which pervaded Beet- hoven's character. A few years before his death he copied out, and kept constantly before him on his writing-table, the following sentences, said to be taken from the Temple of Isis : — " I am that wliicli is ; " I am all that is, that was, and that shall be. No mortal man has lifted my veil. " He proceeds from Himself alone, and to Him alone do all things owe their existence." Nominally — but only nominally — Beethoven was a Roman Catholic, and he received the last sacraments of the Church on his death-bed. BEETHOVEN. 139 We may pause a moment before a picture — furnished by one who often frequented his favourite tavern — of the composer in those later days when his deafness had become confirmed beyond all hope of recovery ; a picture full of pathos and sad premonition of the last scene of all. " A sturdy-looking man of middle height, gray hair like a mane flowing from his lion-like head; with a wandering look in his gray eyes ; unsteady in his" movements as one moving in a dream." Every one showed him the greatest respect whenever he entered the room. He would sit apart at a table with a glass of beer and a long pipe, and close his eyes. If a friend spoke — or rather bawled to . him — he would look up, draw a pocket-book and pencil from his breast, and in the shrill voice peculiar to deaf people, bid his visitor write down what he had to say. " He replied sometimes verbally, sometimes in writing ; but always readily and kindly." Schubert — the young strong-winged genius whose career of song has just begun — is present on one of those evenings. When the old man takes from his simple gray overcoat another and larger note-book, and traces something with half-closed eyes, a companion asks : " What is he writing ? " — " He is composing." — " But he writes words, not notes ? " — " That is his way ; he usually indicates the course of his ideas for a piece -of music by words,^ with a few notes here and there " — not a very accurate account, by the way, of Beethoven's usual method. And thus — alone in the midst of com- pany — he pursues his work, and the younger men, sinking 140 BEETHOVEN. their voices to a needless whisper, glance from time to time pitifully and reverentially in the direction of the great cloud-compeller. The last symphony and the last pianoforte sonatas had been written — for the projected tenth symphony, like the Requiem, the opera for Naples; and the overture on B-A-C-H, was destined never to be accomplished — and now Beethoven was at work upon three Quartets, written in a language as far ahead of his time as was the Ninth Symphony. They were composed at the instigation of Prince Galitzin, a. Russian nobleman, who opened the subject by correspondence in 1824. The fame of the friend of Count Browne, of the com- poser of the Basoumoffsky Quartets, and works dedi- cated to the-Emperor and Empress of Russia, had long since extended to St. Petersburg, so that the remuner- ation offered by the prince was sufficiently hand- some; but though the Quartets were written, the promised money was never paid. The circumstance has been variously accounted for, and if all the facts were known, it is possible that reasons might be found for modifying the harsh construction generally placed upon Galitzin's conduct. For Beethoven's way of deal- ing with his compositions at this time was, to say the least, singular, the object uppermost in his mind being, apparently, to turn them into ready money as quickly as possible. Schott bought the first of the Quartets — that in Eb — for fifty ducats in advance, at about the same time he bought the overture Weihe des Hauses.the Opferlied, for solo, chorus, and orchestra, 7m Allen guten SEETHOVEN. 141 Stwtden, a setting for solo, chorus, and wind instruments, of Goethe's words, and sundry smaller pieces. For the first performance of the Quartet in Eb, the services were engaged of the doughty four, Schuppanzigh, Weiss, Linke, and Holtz — the latter, a clever young violinist and violoncellist, of convivial tastes, who obtained con- siderable ascendancy over Beethoven in these days. That neither anxiety nor growing infirmity had been sufficient to crush the composer's sense of humour, is clear from a whimsical note, to which he exacted each executant's signature, by way of reminder of former triumphs, and of the old adage, "noblesse oblige." "Mt good Friends, " Each will herewith receive his part ; but he must promise obedience, and vow to exert his utmost to distinguish himself and to emulate the zeal of his companions. " Every one who wishes to join in the performance must sign this paper." [The four signatures follow.] The second Quartet (known as the third), in A minor, published in 1827 by Schlesinger, contains a noteworthy feature in the beautiful adagio, in modo lidico, entitled, Song of Thanksgiving offered to the Deity hy a Conva- lescent, written' to commemorate the composer's recovery from a severe illness that occurred during, the winter of 1824, just as he had completed the first of the series. In the month of October 1826, painful events con- nected with that never-ending source of misery, his nephew Carl, induced Beethoven to take up his abode 142 BEETHOtM. in quarters which, for several reasons, were distasteful to him — the country house of his brother Johann at Gneixendorf, near Krems, on the Danube. The former apothecary of Linz had turned his com- mercial instincts to profitable account, and acquired a fortune, or the basis of a fortune, by undertaking army contracts during the war-time of 1809. Pompous, vulgar-minded, and niggardly, and married to a woman whom Beethoven for long had refused to acknowledge as a sister-in-law, Johann was utterly insensible to the honour conferred upon him by the presence of such a guest. It may be questioned, indeed, whether the " land proprietor " did not consider the honour to be on the other side. As for Carl, the story of his youth was a common- place story of continuous mishap, failure, and disgrace, brought about by bad counsel and selfish indulgence ; and these evils were aggravated by the unsettled life he had led. During the lawsuit, he was passed back- wards and forwards from one guardian to another, the mother meanwhile losing no opportunity of poisoning his mind against his long-suffering relative. Many careers were tried, but he succeeded in none. He was expelled from the University after attending a philo- sophical course, and duly forgiven. Commerce was then suggested, and with this view he was placed in the school of the Polytechnic Institute, of which Herr Reisser, joint guardian with Beethoven over Carl, was the vice- president. The letters addressed to the youth by his uncle during this period — there were no fewer than twenty- nine in the summer of 1825 — full of solicitude and SEEXaoVEN. 143 kindly counsel, are painful reading. But the inevitable end came. Carl submitted himself to an examination without sufficient preparatory study, failed, and in his despair attempted suicide; in consequence of which escapade, he was ordered by the police to quit Vienna within twenty-four hours. Self-denying and beautiful as was Beethoven's con- duct towards this wrong-headed nephew, it is very likely that his habitual roughness of manner when irritated caused his admonitions to take at times a form particularly unpalatable to the young man. " It's done now. Torment me no more with reproofs and complaints," wrote Carl ; and on one occasion the singu- lar remark escaped him — " I have grown worse, because my uncle wanted me to be better." Thus quarrels, reconciliations, reproaches, and pro- raises followed one upon the other; and throughout, with all a father's care and devotion, Beethoven con- tinued working and saving for the benefit of the youth upon whom his affections were now centred. At length, thanks to the interposition of Stephan Breuning, a cadetship was obtained for him in the regiment of Baron von Stutterheim, in gratitude to whom the com- poser dedicated the String Quartet completed in that year. Op. 131, in C sharp minor. In October 1826, while arrangements connected with the appointment were still pending, both uncle and nephew took refuge in the house at Gneixendorf. One of Beethoven's motives for undertaking this visit was a hope that his brother might be induced to make his will in favour of the family ne'er-do-well — a question 144 BEETHOVEN. that had already caused some bickering between the two uncles. Dreary and inhospitable as were his sur- roundings, Beethoven was probably too much engrossed in his music, and too long accustomed to the isolation caused by his deafness, to be greatly troubled by them. For an onlooker the situation was one that could hardly fail to inspire a feeling of deep sadness. Glad enough of an opportunity to. display his own importance, Johann took his brother with him on his rounds ; but was little concerned, apparently, to introduce him to his friends. Even in -that out-of-the-way district, however, there was a magic in the name of Beethoven. Many of the good people thereabouts, when they discovered the identity of the careworn, reserved old man who accom- panied the " land proprietor," eyed him with silent reverence. At one house the hostess glanced towards the bench, on which a- strangei: sat apart from the rest, modestly and mournfully, whilst Johann talked with her. She thought he was a servant, and good-naturedly handed him wine in an earthenware jug. Later, when her husband returned, he- told her who that stranger was. It was Beethoven. Another day the brothers went to talk over business with the clerk of the Syndic, Sterz, at Langenlois. " Who, think you, was that old man who came just now with the Squire ? " The clerk did not know — thought he was " an imbecile." It was Beethoven. Toilers in the chill autumn fields stopped to follow with their eyes the lonely musician, as he wandered about waving his hands and singing. Some- times he would slacken his pace, and, coming to a stand- still, jot down something in the inevitable note-book BEETHOVEN. 145 — for the music went on, in spite of all troubles and discomforts, and it was here that he completed the String Quartet in F, and the new finale to the Bb sonata. Michael Kren, the servant deputed by the mistress of the household to wait upon their guest, has described the way in which Beethoven usually passed a day at Gneixendorf. He occupied a parlour and bedrooni at the corner of the house commanding a view of the garden and courtyard. The economical sister-in-law refused him a fire. At half-past four in the morning Michael would find him at his table writing, beating time with his hands and feet, and singing and humming. Break- fast was served to the family at half-past seven, after which he would immediately hurry out of the house into the fields. The dinner hour was half-past twelve ; and this over he would retire to his fireless room until about three o'clock, and then once again sally forth ; but he was never out of doors after, sunset. After supper, which took place at half-past seven, he re- turned to his room to work till ten, and then retired to bed. As time went on the discomfort increased. The parsimonious Johann informed his brother he would be charged for board and lodging; Johann's wife by no means improved on acquaintance ; and Carl, under her influence, grew ever more insulting and unmanageable. On a cold day, in an open chaise — for no close carriage wasio be had — Beethoven, accompanied by his nephew, took his departure. The visit, unpropitious from the beginning, had a tragic end. During the drive the cpmposer caught a severe cold jwhich attacked the 146 BEETHOVEN. stomach, and, arrived at his lodgings, which were now in the Schwarzspanierhaus, took to his bed. The result of that fatal journey was a severe attack of inflammation of the lungs and dropsy. Two eminent doctors, Staudenheim and Braunhofer, who attended him during his former illness, had been dismissed in the unceremonious manner so frequently shown by Beethoven towards his medical advisers, and when sent for, at first refused their services. The assistance so urgently needed in. Beethoven's case was further delayed by his nephew's neglect; for once back in Vienna, that worthy made haste to return to his old haunts, and, leaving his uncle "to the care of servants, sought consolation at the billiard-table. Thus two days were allowed to- pass before a doctor was summoned. Through the good offices of a billiard-marker, one at last was found in Dr. Wawruch, a man far inferior in ability to those who had attended Beethoven on the former occasion, and quite unfit, according to Breuning, to be intrusted with so important a life. Malfatti, to whom also the composer had given serious offence some years before, was now applied to. At first he refused ; but after considerable difficulty was persuaded to bury old grievances, on the understanding that he should act jointly with Wawruch. As soon as Malfatti entered upon the scene a total change of treatment was adopted ; and for the enervating herb decoctions, iced punch was now substituted. With his wonted shrewd perception of a doctor's weak points, the patient quickly detected Wawruch's incompetence, and expressed his sense of it in the usual uncompromising manner, turning BEETHOVEN. 147 to. the wall and exclaiming, " Ach der Esel !" whenever that person entered the room. In Malfatti, on the other hand, Beethoven showed the greatest confidence ; and the temporary relief that followed upon the new treatment rendered him again hopeful and eager for work. This, however, was for- bidden. As the dropsical symptoms became more serious, the operation of tapping was resorted to, and even during this process Beethoven's grim sense of humour did not desert him. The surgeon who operated, caused him to think of Moses striking the rock ; and when the water flowed he exclaimed, " Better water from the stomach than from the pen ! " Among the first to hasten to the composer's bedside were his old friend Schindler — full ready to forget old scores — and Stephan Breuning ; the latter accompanied by his son Gerhard, a boy of eleven, who greatly con- tributed to the sick man's comfort by many a little service. Brother Johann, Tobias and Carl Haslinger, Diabelli, Holtz, and some four or five others also came, and in March Hummel, accompanied by his young pupil Ferdinand Hiller, sought and obtained an interview. The list of visitors seems a strangely meagre one. Even when allowance is made for the possible absence from town of many society friends who courted and worshipped the great musician in his palmy days, and for the cir- cumstance that for some time the fatal nature of this illness was not generally realized, the sad fact still, remains, that when Beethoven lay, poor and dying, in Vienna, all his former aristocratic friends, except 148 BEETHOVEN. Breuning, seem for the moment to have forgotten his existence ; that his brother musicians for the most part were conspicuous by their absence; that even his old pupil, the Archduke Rudolph, made no sign, no inquiries, as far as we know, and no attempt to supply bis necessities. This privilege was reserved for the English Phil- harmonic Society, to which body belongs the credit of having come to the assistance of Beethoven at a time when he was so strangely neglected by his countrymen. The remittance promised by Prince Galitzin was never received ; the proceeds of recent works had been devoted to an investment set aside rigidly for his nephew ; and the later concerts, as we know, had been pecuniarily unsuccessful. At this juncture Beethoven's thoughts turned to that English Society whose good-will he had always so dearly prized. In February 1827 he wrote to Moscheies and Sir George Smart, describing his plight, and begging them to hasten on a benefit concert that had been promised him in London. After Beet- hoven's death the discovery of seven bank shares, of one thousand florins each, came as a surprise to many who had witnessed these straits and who were aware of the appeal to the Philharmonic Society. But Beethoven, it should be remembered, had always regarded the property in question as held in trust for Carl, so that not even the most desperate monetary pressure would have induced him to touch it. The privation, therefore, referred to by him in his letters to London was very real. The Philharmonic promptly responded by sending through Moscheies £100 on account of the impending BEETHOVEN. 149- concert, with the promise of more should it be needed. Beethoven's joyful emotion, when he received Moscheles's letter, is described by one as " heart-breaking," and the excitement of that moment, causing his wound to break out afresh, no doubt hastened the final catastrophe. Debarred from composition by order of his medical attendants, Beethoven turned to reading, and commenced with a translation of Sir Walter Scott'.s Kenilworth; but before he had gone far in the book he flung it down impatiently, with the exclamation, "The man writes only for money." More satisfaction awaited him in the examination of some of Schubert's songs, which were then brought under his notice for the first time. "Assuredly Schubert has in him the divine fire," was his verdict. During the earlier stages of his illness his imagination was full lof schemes for future work — the tenth symphony, the Faust music, and other great projects, which were fated to be cut short by death. Besides dictating numerous letters to friends, he occu- pied himself with the dedications of the Quartets in C sharp minor and F, and with the arrangement of his worldly affairs ; and he derived special pleasure from a complete edition of Handel's works sent to him by Strumpff. About a year before Beethoven had written to Dr. Bach, his confidential lawyer, committing Carl to his care, and declaring the youth to be his sole heir. One of his last acts, indeed, was to add a codicil to his will to this eiFect; though, in deference to the urgent representations of Breuning and other friends, the capital was placed beyond his nephew's control. Soon it be- came evident to himself and to those about him that 150 BEETHOVEN. the time for work- had passed away for ever. Plaudite amici commdicc finita est, he said to his old friends Breiining and Schindler. Among the latest callers was Schubert, who, however, arrived too late to hold converse with the sufferer ; and Dr. Wawruch said, "He is rapidly dying." On the morning of the 24th March, Schindler found Beethoven much changed, and so weak that it cost him an effort to utter even one or two words. It was he who first suggested to the dying master that he should receive the last sacraments of the Roman Church. To this Beethoven calmly and composedly assented. According to Frau Johann van Beethoven, after the rites had, been administered, he said, "Reverend Sir, I thank you. You have brought me consolation." Schott, the publisher, had sent him a present of wine, but it came too late. For our knowledge of what occurred on the last day of all we are dependent upon an account given by Anselm Hiittenbrenner, the composer, and the friend of Schubert. Immediately on hearing of the master's serious illness, Hiittenbrenner hurried from his native place, Gratz, and at about three o'clock in the after- noon of March 26th, 1827, entered the sick-room. He found there, besides Frau Johann, Breuning and his son, Schindler, and Joseph Tellschter, the portrait painter, all of whom, except Johann Beethoven's wife, presently left; Stephan Breuning and Schindler going together to the Wahring Cemetery i to select a grave. 1 The remains of Beethoven have been twice disturbed. In consequence of the neglected condition of the grave, they were exhumed and re-buried on October 13, 1863; and on June 21, . BEETHOVEN. 151 Outside the ground gleamed white with snow ; and from three till past five o'clock the ma.ster lay uncon- scious. Suddenly the room was lit up by a vivid flash of lightning, followed by a clap of thunder. " At the sound," says the narrator, " Beethoven opened his eyes, raised his right hand, and gazed fixedly upwards for some.seconds,with clenched fist and a solemn, threaten- ing expression. . . . His hand dropped and his eyes were half-closed. My right hand supported his head; my left lay on his breast. Not another breath ! not another heart-beat ! The spirit of the great master had passed from this false world to the kingdom of truth. I closed his half-shut eyes and kissed his brow, mouth, hand, and eyes. At my request Frau van Beethoven cut a lock of his hair, and gave it me as a sacred memento of Beethoven's dying hour." On the day of the funeral, the 29th March, 1827, the . streets of Vienna presented an unwonted appearance. ' No sooner were the words passed from mouth to mouth, "Beethoven is dead ! " than the Viennese, strangely apathetic until now, suddenly awoke to the magnitude of their loss. Universal sorrow prevailed, and all classes of society, from the highest to the lowest, flocked out of doors, to honour the memory of their greatest musician. The morning was fine, and towards three o'clock — the time fixed for the ceremony — the crowd 1888, they were removed altogether from the Wahring Cemetery Tinder circumstances which to many seemed very like desecration^ and transferred to the central cemetery of Vienna at Simmering, where they now lie close to the graves of Mozart and Schubert. 152 BEETHOVEN. increased, it is estimated, to the number of twenty thousand. " So great," says Sehindler, " was the pres- sure round the house that it was found necessary to close the courtyard gates, within which, under an awn- ing, stood the coflSn raised upon a bier and surrounded by the mourners." As the procession, accompanied by fifteen friends of the deceased holding torches, was carried from the Schwarzspannierhaus to the church of the Minorites, the throng became so dense that the help of soldiers was required to -clear the way. The bearers were eight members of the opera, and Breuning, Johann van Beethoven, and Mosel were the chief mourners. During the service a melody by the composer, arranged for the occasion as a miserere, was sung by a male choir and played by four trombones. Afterwards, at the cemetery gates, Anschiitz, the actor, recited a funeral oration written by Grillparzer. Three laurel wreaths were placed upon the coffin by Hummel before it was lowered. Among the vast crowd assembled at the funeral, many who had known Beethoven by sight only, returned home with saddened hearts. Never again wei'e they to see the figure once so familiar to their streets. The voice that had grown prophetic in those latter days was now silent for ever. CATALOGUE BEETHOVEN'S PRINTED WORKS. Abbreviations : PF. = Pianoforte. V. = Violin. ■ Va. = Viola. C. = 'cello. C. bass = Contrabass. Clav. == Clavecin. Clar. = Clari- net. Ob. = Oboe. Fl. = Flute. Orch. = Orchestra. Aut. = Autograph, ann. ^ announced, arrt. = arrangement, L -works' WITH OPUS NUMBEES. Op. Deseripiion, Composed. Dedicated to Three Trios, PF. V. C. (In Ei), G, C minor). Three Sonatas, Clav. or PP. (P minor, A, anrt C). 3 Grand Trio, V. Va. C (Efr). 4 Grand Quintet, -V. V. ¥a. Va; C. (Eb). 8 Two Grand Sonatas. PP. C. (P, G minor). Sonata, 4 hands, Clav. or PF. (D). Grand Sonata, Clav. or PF. (El7). 8 Serenade, V. Va. C. <1>) 9 Three Trios, V. Va. C. (G, D, C minor). 10 Three Sonatas, Clav. or PF. (C minor, F, D). 11 Grand Trio, PF. Clav. (or V.) 0. (Bb). 12 Three Sonata^, Clav. or PP. V- 13 Grand. Sonata PatWtique, Clav. or PF. (C minor). 14 Two Sonatas, PF. (E, G). 15 Grand Concerto, PF. and Orch. (C). (Reallj the second.) 16 Grand Quintet, PP. Ob. Clar. Bassoon, Horn or V. Va. C. (Eb). Arrd. by Beethoven as,a-quartet for PF.-V. Va. 0. iClso arrd. as string quar- tet and.marked Op. 75. Before April 1795. 1792, at Bonn. Before July 7, -17-98. At latest 1796. Prince Carl von Lichnowsky, Joseph Haydn. Frederick William II. of Prussia. Coimtess Bahette von Keglevics. Count V. Browne. Countess Browne. Countess V. Thun. A. Salieri. Prince Carl von Lichnowsky. Baroness v. Braun. • .Princess Odeschal- chi,' ftee Kegle- vics. 1 The materials for this list have been extracted, by kind permission, from.the Appendix to Vol. IV. of Sir George Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians, to which readers may be referred for further interesting details. 154 Beethoven's feinted works. Desmption. Sonata, PF. Horn or C. (F). Six Quartets, V. V. Va. C. (P, G, D, C minor. A, B5). Concerto PF. and Orch. (W). (Really the first:) See No. 161. Septet, V. Va. Horn, Clar. Bassoon, . C. C bass. (BiJ). Grand Symphony (C). The first. Grand Sonata, PF, [B'o). Two Sonatas, PF. V. (A minor, F). Sonata in F, PF. V. (Op. 23), Op. 24, was originally PF. score of Pro- metheus, now Op. 43. Serenade, Fl. V. Va. (see Op. 41). Grand Sonata, Clav. or PF. (Ab). No. 1 Sonata quasi una Fantasia, Clav. or PF. (Eb). No. 2 Sonata quasi' una Fantasia, Clav. or PF. (CJ minor), (' Moon- light'). Grand Sonata, PF. (P), (' Pastoral '). Quintet, V.V. Va. Va. C. (C). Three Sonatas, PF. V. (A, C minor, G). Three Sonatas, Clav. or PP. (G, D minor, EP). Song, 'An die Hoffnung,' Tiedge's 'Urania '(ED). Seven Bagatelles, PP. (Eh, C, F, A, C, D, F minor). Six Variations on an original theme, PF. (F). [15] Variations with a fugue, on theme - from Prometheus, PF. (ED). Symphony No. 2. Orch. (D). Grand Concerto, PF. and Orch. (C minor). Trio, PP. Clar. V. or C. , G, Eb, C, A, D, B7, G, E*, C, F. 140 12 Deutsche Tanze, C, A, F, Bb, &, G, C, A, F, D, G. C. 141 12 Contretanze, C, A, D, Bb, E!», C, E», C, A, C, G, B». N.B. No. 7 is the dance used in the Finale of Prometheus, the Froica, etc. No. 11 also used in Finale of Prometheus. 142 Minuet of congratulation (Eb), for Hensler, Director of New Joseph- stadt Theatre. 143 Triumphal March, for Kuffner's • Tar- peia ' or ' Hersilla ' (C). 144 Military March (D). 145 Military March (F), (Zapfenstreich). For- the Carrousel on Aug. 25, 1310. Rondino (Eb), 2 Ob. 2 Olar. 2 Cors. 2 Fags. 147 3 Duos, Clar. and Fag. (C, F, Bb). 148 Allegro con Brio, V. Orch. (C). Frag- ment of 1st movement of a V. Concerto. Completed by Jos. Hellmesberger. Musik zu einera Ritterballet. Before Nov. 22, ■ 1795.— RiV. MS. PartSj Artaria, Vienna. Before Nov. 22, 1795. N»s; 2, 9, 10, 1802. Nov. 1822. Before Mar. 26, 1813. Revised Parts, C. Has- linger, Vienna. Before -Juno 4, IS 16. 1809. Very early. — Ant. C. A. Spina, Vienna. 1800? — ^tt(. Li- brary of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde, Vienna. 1791 (?). Dr. G. von Breun- ing. 2. FOR PIANOFORTE, WITH AND WITHOUT ACCOMPANIMENT. 150 151 Sonatina for the Mandoline and Cem- balo (C minor). Rondo, PF. and Orch. (Bb). Probably finished by Czevny. Perhaps in- tended for Op. 19. Aut. British Mu- seum Add.MSS. 29,801. Aut. Diabelli. BEETHOVEN S PRINTED WORKS. icr Description. Composed. Dedicated to 152 3 Quartets, PF. V. Va. C. (El), D, C). 1785. — Aut. N.B. Adagio of No. 3 is omplo;ea taria. in Op. 2, No. 1. 103 Xrio, PF. V. C. (EO). 154 Trio in one movement, PF. V. C. (Bb). Rondo, Allegro, PF. and V. (G). Ar- 1785 (r).—Aut. yfe- geler. June 2, 1812. —/lilt. ^rentanos at Frankfort.' Proljably sent to Eleouora von Breuning in 17il4. 12 Variations on ' Si vuol ballare,' PF. ■ and V. (F). 157 12 Variations on ' See the eoniluering hero,' PF. and C. (G). 158 7 Vacations on * Bei Mannem,' PF. Jan. 1, 1802. and C. (E9). Variations on a theme by Count Wald- stein, PF. 4 hands (C). 160 Air vifith [6] Variations on Goethe's ISOO. 'Ich denke dein,' PF. 4 hands (D). 161 3 Sonatas, PF. (,&, F minor, 6). 168 169 170 102 Sonata [called Easy], PF. (C), two movements only, the second com^ pleted by F. Ries. 163 2 Sonatinas, PF. (G, F). Not oei-talnly Beethoven's. 164 Eondo, Allegretto, PP. (A). 165 Minuet, PF. (H»). 166 Prelude, PF. (F minor). , 167 6 Minuets, PF. (C, G, Eb, Bb, D, C). Perhaps written for Orch. 7 Landler dances (all in D). 6 Lftndler dances (all in D but No. 4 in D minor), also for VV. and C. Andante [favori] PF. (F), said to have been intended for Op. 53. 6 AUemandes, PF. and V., No. 6, in G, for PF. * Ziemlioh lebhaf t, PF. (0 minor). 173 174 175 Bagatelle, PP. (A minor). Andante maestoso (0), arranged from the sketch for a Quintet and called ' Beethovens letzter musik alische Gsdanke.' 10 Cadences to Beethoven's PF. Con- certos in C,Bb, C minor, G and D (arrt. of Violili doncerto, see Op. 61). Also 2 to Mozai-f s PF. Con- certo in D minor. ' These Sonatas and the Dressier Variations my first work,' L, V. B. 1783 (?). 1785 (?). Eleonorayon Bre- uning. ' Princess Lichnow- sky. Count von Browne. Countess Jose- phine Deym and Countess There- sa Brunsvrick. Elector Maximil- ian Frederic of Cologne. Eleouora von Breuning. 1302. 1804 (?). Aug. 14, ISIS, written by re^ quest. Nov. 1826 (?). 162 Beethoven's printed works. Desc7'iptio7i. Cmn2yosed, Dedicated to 178 179 ISO ISl 183, 1S4 1S5 186 187 ISS 189 190 191 192 [9j Variation.s and a March by Dress- ier, Harpsichord (Clavecin), (C minor). 24 Variations on Righini's air ' Vicni {sic. i. e. "Vemii")amore,* Hai*p- sicliord (Clavecin) (D). tl3] Variations on Dittersdorf s air • Es war einmal/ PF. (A). [9] Variations on Paisiello's air ' Quant' §piCi hello,' PF. (A). [6] Variations on Paisiollo's duet * Nel cor pift,' PF. (G). 12 Variations on minuet [k la Vigani] from Eaibel's ballet *Le no'zze disturbate,' PF. (C), 12 Variations on the Russian dance from Paul Wranizky's ' Waldmad- chen,' for Clavecin or Pianoforte. 6 «a8y Variations on a Swiss air, ,Hai-psichord or Harp (F). 8 Variations onGr6try's air ' Une fifevre brfilante,' PF. ' 10 Variations on Salieri's air ' La Stessa, la Stessissima,' Clavecin orPF, 7 Variations on "Winter's quartet ' Kind willst du,' PF. (F). 8 Variations on SUssmayer's trio ' Tan- deln und scherzcn,' PF. (F). G very easy Variations on an original theme, PP. (G). f7] VariiVtions on ' God save the King,' PF. (C). [.^] Variations on 'Rule Britannia,' PF. (D). 32 Variations, PF. {C miijor). rsj Variations on ' Ich liab' ein kleines HUttchen nur,' PF. [B>]. 1780 (?) said by B. to be his first work, with the Sonatas, No. 161. 1700. 1792 (?). 1795. 1795 (?) * Perdute per la— ritrovate par L. -V. B.' 1795 (?). 1796 or 1797. 179t). 1799. 1800 (?). 1806 (?). 1794 (?). Countess Wolf- Metternich. Prince C. von Lichnowsky. Countess von Browne. Countess Eabette de lieglevics. Countess von ■ Browne. 8. WORKS FOR VOICES. 194 195 Bass Solo, Chorus, Orch. * Germania ! ' Finale for Treitschke's Singspiel ' Gute Nachricht.' Bass solo,, Chorus, Orch. ' Es ist voU- bracht.' Finale to Treitschke's Singspiel ' Die Ehrenpforten.' 'Miserere' and 'Amplius.' Dirge at B.'s funeral. Chorus of 4 eq. voices and 4 trombones. Adapted by Seyfried from two of 3 MS. Equali for trombones, written at Linz, Nov. 2, 1812. First performance April 11, 1814. First performance July 15, 1815. Nov. 2, 1812. BEETHOVEN S PRINTED WORKS. 163 No. 2)esci'iption, Composed. Dedicated to 196 Cantata on the deatli of the Einpe'ror Joseph II. (Feb. 20, 1790), for- Solos, Chorus and Orchestra (C minor). Another Cantata (Sept. 30, 1790), ' Er aehlummert,' on the accession of Leopold II. 197 Song of the monks from Schiller's William Tell— 'Easch tritt der Tod.'. ' In recollection of the sud- den and unexpected death of our Krumpholz, May 3, 1817.'. T. T. B. (C minor). 198 Chorus, 'O Hoffnung' (4 liars); for the Archduke Rudolph (G). 199 Cantata, S. A. B. and FF. (Eb). Bonn, 1791. May 3, 1817. Spring, 1818.' ■ Evening of April 12, 1823,'for the birthday of Prince Lobko- ■witz. Cantata, 'Graf, Graf, lieber Graf. .Voices and PF. (B9). To Count Moritz Lichnowsky. Cantata, 'Seiner kaiserlicher Hoheit' Jan. 12, 1820. (C). To the Archduke Rudolph. Cantata (4 bars), on the arrival of Herr Sept. 21, 1819. Schlesingev of Berlin — 'Glaube und hoile ' (EJ). Comp. No. 22. Melodram , for speaking voice and Barmonica, ' Du dem sie gewun- -den,' written for * Duncker's Leo- nora Prohaska' (D). Canon a 3 to Heltzen's ' Im Arm der Liebe,' comp. Op. 52, No. 3. ' Canon a 4, ' Ta, ta, ta. lieber Mmzel (Bb). Canon a 3 to Schiller's 'Kurzistder .Schmerz' (F minor), for Herr Kaue. 207 Canon a 3 ' Kurz ist der Schmerz '(F); for Spohr. Canon (Rathsel Canon) to Herder's ' L«me Schweigen o Freund' (F), for Neate, Jan 16, 1316. Canon a 3 'Eede, rede, rede,' for 210 Canon a 3, GUick, Glilok, zum neuen Jahr' (F), for Countess Erdody, comp. No. 220. Canon a 4, -'AUcs Gute! Alles SchSne I ' (0), for the Archduke ■ Rudolph. Canon a 2, ' HSffmann I Hoffmann ! sei ja kein Hofmann' (C). 213 Canon 3 in 1, ' O Tobias I ' (D minor), for Tobias Hasliuger. 214 Canon a 6, to Goethe s 'Edel sei der • Mensch-" (E). 1814. 1795 (?). Spring of 1812. Vienna, Nov. 23, 1813. Vienna, March 3, 1816. End of 1815 (?). Vienna, Jan. 24, 1810. Vienna, Dec. 31, 1819. Jan. 1, 1820. 1820 (?). Baden, 1821. 1823 (?). Sept. 10, 164 BEETHOVEN S PRINTED WORKS. Jfo. JDescriptum. Dedicated to 216 217 218 219 221 Canon 4 in 1, *S<^wenke dich ohne Sch,wanke/ for Schwenke of Hamburg. Canon a 3, 'KUhl, nicht lau' (Bb), referring to Fr. Kuhlau. Canon a 3, * Signer Abate ! ' (G minor), on Abb6 Stadler. Canon a 3, * Ewig dein ' (C), perhaps for Baron Fasqualati. Canon 3 "in 1, 'Ich bitt' dieh/ontHe scale of my J for Hsfaschka. Canon (free) 4 in 1 to Goethe's GlUck zum :neuen Jahr,' (E!7). "Comp. No. 210. Canon (Rilthsel canon) 'Si non per portas' (E),.to M. Sdilesinger. Canon in 8va (A), 'Souvenir pour Mon^eur p. de M. Boyer, par Louis van Beethoven. 25 Irish Songs, for Voices with PF. V. C. , 20 Irish Songs. Vienna, Nov. 1824. 17, Baden, ,1825. Sept. S, Dedicate al signer© illustrissimo Huus'chka dal suo servo L. v.B. 225 12 Irish Songs. 226 2a Welsh Songs. 227 12 Scottish Songs, 12 Songs of various nationality, for Voice, PP. V. C. Song, * Schilderung eines Mildchens.' 230 Song to Wirth's * An einen Saugling.' 231 Seng, ' Farewell to Vienna's citizens,' to Friedelberg's words, solo. War Song of the Austrians, to Friedel- berg's words. Solo and Chorus, with PF. ■Song to Pfeffel's 'Der freie Mann.' Qpferlied, to Matthisson's * Die Flamme lodert/ comp. ov. 121 b. Song, ' Zartliche Liebe ' to Herrosen's ' Ich liebe dich,' Voice and PP. (G). N.B. begins with second stanza. 23e|Song, *La Partenza,' to Metast sio's * Ecee quel fiero istante ' (A). Song,* Der Wachtelschlag ' (the Quail), to Sauter's ' tlorch ! wie schulfs." g, 'Ala die Geliebte sich treiinen woUte,' words translatfid by B. von Breuning from-th.. Fiejicli of G. Bernard (EP). Arietta, to Carmni's ' In qucsta tomba oscui'a '. (A&). Vienna, Sept. 26, 1825. Baden, Aug. 3, 1825. May(?)1815.— ^M(. of Nos. 6, T, 8, 9, 11, 16, 17, 18, 20, Artaria, Vienna. 233 234 235 237 238 239 Aut. Ko. 6, Arta- ria, Vienna. Nqs. 2, 6, 7, 8, 11, May 1815. 1781 (?). Nov. 15, 1796. 1795 (?). 1795 (?). Obristwacht- meister von Kovesdy. 1807 (?). BEETHOVEN S FEINTED WORKS. 165 J)istn'ipti(m^ Composeth Dedicated to 210 Songp 'Andenken* to Matthisson's * Ich denke dein ' (D). 241 Four settings of Uoetbe's ' Sthnsucht.' Soprano and PF. Nos. 1, 2, 4, G minor ; No. 3; KH. 242 SongL to Reissig's 'Lied aus dei Feme' — 'Als mir nouh.' Voice and PF. (Bl). -243 Song, to Reissig's 'Der Liebende' — * Weldli ein wunderbares Leben.' Voice and PF. (D). 244 Song, to Reissig's ' Der Jilngling in der Fremde ' — ' Der Frtihling ent- bluhet ' (W). 245 Song, to Reissig's 'Des Krieger's Ab- schied'CEibJ 246 Song, to Reissig's 'Sehnsuoht' — 'Die stille Nacht.' 247 Song, to Stoll's ' An die Geliebte '-:-' O dass ich dir.* 2 -versions in N. 248 Song (Bass), to F. R. Herrmann's ' Der Bardengeist '— ' Dort auf dem' hohen Felsen ' (G). 249 Song, to Treitschke's - ' Ruf vom Berge * — ' Wenn icb ein VSglein war '(A). 250 Song, to Wessenberg's ' Das Geheim- niss' — "Wo blUht das BlUmchen. 251 Song, to Carl Lappe's 'S6^oder so' — 'NordoderSud?'(F).^ 252 Song, to Ton Haugwitz's 'Resigna- tion ' — ' Liscb aus, mein Licht I ' (D). . ■ 253 Song, to Goethe's ' Abendlied unter'm gestimtem Himmel ' — ' Wenn die Sonne nieder sinket ' (B). 254 Two songs to Bttrger's words, ' Seufzer eines Uugeliebten,' and ' Gegen- Kebe.' For ' Gegenliebe,' see Op. 80. 255 Song, to Herder's 'Die laute Klage — 'Turteltaube' (C minor). 258 Song, 'Gedenke mein! ich denke dein'(E)). 1809. 1814. 1816 or 1816. Dec. 1811. Nov. 3, 1813. Dec. 3, 1816, 1815. 1817. End of 181T. March 4, 1820. 1795 (?). 1809 (?). Ri'cBABD Clay it Sosa, Limited, London & Bungay.