(Ignaz von Seyfried, Leichenbegängniß, separate article within the annex to the 1831 print version to “Ludwig van Beethoven – Studien im Generalbasse … Aus dessen handschriftlichem Nachlasse gesammelt und herausgegeben von … Seyfried”).

Richly honeycombed with all those

much  demanded  fascinating  proofs  of  manuscripts

as strike-throughs, changings, and rearrangements within the text itself, and, isolated and also by another hand and in pencil, too, on the half pages intentionally kept free for this purpose, which mostly are corrected in print accordingly. Among the highlights the manuscript is interspersed with not less before and ahead

moving Beethoven on his deathbed beyond words as he believed to be impoverished.

March 14^th, 1827, twelve days before his death, Beethoven had written to his friend Moscheles :

“ … Truly, a very harsh fate has met me! But I resign to the findings of fate and only ask the Lord to direct his divine decree in a way that as long as I have to endure death in life I am kept from penury. This would give me enough strength to endure my fate in submission to the will of God as hard and horrible it ever might be.

Thus my dear Moscheles I recommend my cause to you again … ” .

On this literature states :

“ Beethoven … had asked both the Philharmonic Society in London and Moscheles who was in England then to arrange a concert on his behalf. The Society was generous enough to send 100 (Pound Sterling) immediately what moved Beethoven deeply. His friend Rau tells:

‘ It was heart-rending to see him, folding his hands,
being all tears of joy and gratefulness. ’

“ Caused by his joyful emotion one of his wounds opened during the night. He intended to dictate a letter to the ‘magnanimous Englishmen’ participating at his sad fate. He promised a work to the Philharmonic Society, his thenth symphony, an overture, or what else they might wish.

‘ I commit myself to extend my warmest thanks to the Society …
May  heaven give me back my health quite soon. ’

This letter is dated March 18^th, 1827, March 26^th he passed away ”

(Rolland 1918, pp. 128 ff.).

thus not before in “Caecilia” in 1828, too, that Stefan von Breuning as old friend and executor of Beethoven’s will had returned this gift :

“ The whole estate by the way amounted to 20000 fl. – in print specified as 9000 fl. Conv. silver coins plus 125 St. Duc. outstanding debts – by what the rumour Beethoven was near to suffer penury is refuted.

For  this  reason  the  aid  of  (not  mentioned  100)  Pound  Sterling
generously  sent  from  England
has  been  returned  with  thanks
by  the  executor  Mr.  Privy  Councillor  von  Breuning. ”

This

connected to

one  of  the  most  moving  moments  in  the  life  of  Beethoven ,

even not changed in the manuscript,

is  missing  in  print .

As equally fascinating research and the general public furthermore highlighted

–  also  for  the  first  time  –

the report on Beethoven’s legendary capabilities to improvise, concerning literature until today. Correspondingly generations later von Dommer recapitulated in ADB:

“ Especially the breath-taking power of his improvisations hardly anyone could resist as

reports  from  his  biographies  state . ”

And yet in our time Reclam’s Konzertführer states :

About this Seyfried’s own memory (Nohl:

thus also at the soirées in the house of Baron von Wetzlar, where Beethoven and Joseph Wölfl (1772-1812, “pianist of most extraordinary kind”, ADB) rivaled with each other.

– also in regard of physiognomical observations not mentioned in “Biographische Notitzen” Seyfried served as such – he is, too, for the

disastrous  first  performances  of  Fidelio

on which he reports in the “Biographische Notitzen” here …

THUS  INTO  THIS  MOST  EXTRAORDINARY  CREATIVE  PERIOD

– for which von Dommer in the ADB sees the period from 1800 till 1812/13 while Rolland stays closer to the master himself :

“ The Eroica and the Appassionata were in Beethoven’s eyes the culminating peaks of his genius. Speaking generally, the works of this period of three years (1803-1806) remain his favourites until near his death … Among these privileged works Leonore occupies a special position. He placed it on the same height as the others, and he loved it more because it had suffered more … It is one of the Great Days of music. It inaugurates an era ” (Beethoven the Creator, 1929, pp. 207 + 101) –

which is sketched in the “Biographische Notitzen” here.

And what a rank von Seyfried held at his time is proven by the 1700 performances of his own works placing him “ahead of all by far, followed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart with 400”. Nevertheless in the Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie 100 years ago Schletterer saw his lasting compositional achievement in his religious compositions, concluding with the words:

His own burial accordingly “with an immense crush of all classes”. And the “Österreichische Morgenblatt” of Sep. 1^st, 1841, classified him

Thus this is the man we owe to this

The writing of which mirroring at least partly the personal affection wielding the pen. Striking chords by this as only an autograph manuscript can strike. Since

( Stefan Zweig ) .

See the complete description.
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“ Sir, yes, (the Rubens) is closer to the one in London (recte Dresden), but the one we have is on copper. Thank you for your time. Highest regards, D… A… (and yes America could use a blessing about now) ”

(Mr. D. A., November 4, 2003)