Beethoven's Conversation Books

[Peter]

And now for a great passage (same volume, page 137, Wednesday April 12, 1820) where Beethoven jots down the opening theme of the Piano Sonata in E major, Op. 109.
Beethoven and Oliva have rented a fiacre (a small four-wheeled carriage for public hire) to go to Modling for the day to sort out a rental property for the coming summer. The conversation book at this point has the banter between the two men as the carriage goes along the road, sometimes bumpy (with irregular handwriting) and sometimes smoother. Beethoven makes a note to himself to check out the shutters and wood storage once they get to the property and then jots down the opening of the sonata with that distinctive da-daa, da-daa, da-daa, da-daa rhythm (semiquaver-dotted quaver). I know this is pure speculation on my part but it strikes me that the rhythm might reflect the carriage as it bounces - irregularly - along the road.

Interesting how he has the crotchet tail on the da, yet I always think the melody as B B G# G# E E F# G#.

The return journey must have been frightening if it inspired the Prestissimo movement!

[Sorrano]

Interesting how he has the crotchet tail on the da, yet I always think the melody as B B G# G# E E F# G#.

The return journey must have been frightening if it inspired the Prestissimo movement!

Or irritating. That reminds me of Wagner and the Flying Dutchman overture how his experience on a stormy sea influenced the music.

[Quijote]

Interesting how he has the crotchet tail on the da, yet I always think the melody as B B G# G# E E F# G#.

The return journey must have been frightening if it inspired the Prestissimo movement!

Hah! Anyway, reading these conversation books shows me that our dear Beethoven truly loved his food and drink, good man! I've said this before but I'll say it again: I've never known a musician who doesn't like his nosh and booze.

[Peter]

Hah! Anyway, reading these conversation books shows me that our dear Beethoven truly loved his food and drink, good man! I've said this before but I'll say it again: I've never known a musician who doesn't like his nosh and booze.

Some more than others - 4 very heavy drinkers come to mind, Liszt, Brahms, Tchaikovsky and Sibelius - incredible what you can produce totally sozzled! Sibelius's violin concerto emerged after a month's binge. Honestly I can't manage chopsticks after a glass of wine (and I don't mean with at a Chinese restaurant!)

[Zevy]

Of course, I welcome your opinion and understand it's a completely subjective one I've made. But how quickly people reach for the cancel culture lever when an opinion doesn't accord with their own - when the topic IS about Mozart and Beethoven meeting him - is just so representative of the zeitgeist. I never got a sense from any biography about Beethoven that he was over-awed his whole life about Mozart, though certainly he was a huge influence earlier on. And neither was Schubert. Haydn seemed to have shifted his allegiance from (Mozart) 'the greatest composer known to me" to "the great mogul" about Beethoven! Schubert wanted to be buried alongside Beethoven and seldom mentioned Mozart.

But, there being no further correspondence to be entered into, I'll leave it there. Bye now.

Schubert has a long, drawn-out letter about his respect for Mozart. And he couldn't ask to be buried next to Mozart as we have no real grave site for Mozart.

[Quijote]

So, I finally finished reading Volume 2 of the Conversation Books, which cover the period March-September 1820. The latter part of this volume contains many entries about Beethoven's stay in Modling (and frequent returns to Vienna for various errands) during the summer and arrangements for his Broadwood piano to be shipped out there where he very probably continued work on his Piano Sonata No. 30 in E major, Op. 109. See above for the first sketch of the 1st movement melody during a drive out to Modling.

On the subject of Beethoven's Broadwood, here is a superb article (A Brit in Vienna: Beethoven’s Broadwood Piano) by TILMAN SKOWRONECK (2012) that gives fascinating details and anecdotes about it. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

https://ecommons.cornell.edu/bitstre...=2&isAllowed=y

[Chris]

This thread is dedicated to its author, Fidelio, who has passed away. May he rest in peace. We are grateful for all the years of wonderful conversation he brought to our forum.

[Quijote]

This thread is dedicated to its author, Fidelio, who has passed away. May he rest in peace. We are grateful for all the years of wonderful conversation he brought to our forum.

RIP Fidelio, thanks for giving us a heads up to the Beethoven Conversation Books.