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Ludwig van Beethoven, Skizzenbuch "Bonn BH 108" zur Messe op. 123, Autograph

Beethoven-Haus Bonn, BH 108

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How newspaper advertisements help with dating

"The Mass will soon be completed", Beethoven wrote to Archduke Rudolph in October 1819 on the progress of his work on the Missa solemnis op. 123. He could not have known at the time to what extent he was mistaken (the autograph score was only completed around the New Year 1822/23). The optimism of this remark is, however, mirrored in the sketchbooks. The Beethoven-Haus owns three pocket sketchbooks (thus named as Beethoven carried them around in his coat pocket) containing sketches for the Missa solemnis. The second one shown here mainly contains sketches for the Credo and Agnus Dei and dates from April to June 1820. The date can be ascertained quite easily. Above the third page Beethoven wrote the year "1820". The months can be fixed thanks to other information: on the first two pages Beethoven made two copies from the "Intelligenzblatt" in the Wiener Zeitung. On page 1 (image 1) he makes a note of an advertisement for lodgings "nahe Vorstadt wohnung von 5 Zimmer in Auskunfts Komtoir mit oder ohne Garten", ("lodgings near the Vorstadt with 5 rooms in the information office with or without garden"). On page 2 (image 2) he makes a note of a book advertisement "Die Kunst in 2 Monathen Griechisch zu lernen von C.A.L. Kästner Leipzig 1820 2 fl: 30 kr W.W. bej Gerold am Stephansplatz" ("The art of learning Greek in 2 months by C.A.L. Kästner Leipzig 1820 2 fl: 30 kr. W.W. bej Gerold at Stephansplatz") Both of these advertisements appeared several times in June 1820, but they only appeared in the same edition on 16 June.

Although Beethoven made his copies of the advertisements on the first page of the sketchbook, most of the sketches had already been made before June 1820. What is now the first leaf was originally the last in the book, the one which was later turned to the front. Thus the copied advertisements were actually at the end of the book. This would mean that the last sketches were made in June 1820. On page 3 (image 2), originally the first page and the one on which the date is written, there is a note on the bottom half of the leaf, "noch von der stadt an" ("still while in town"). At the end of April Beethoven left for his summer sojourn in Mödling. If he therefore begun the sketches in this book when he was in town, in Vienna, then these first sketches would probably have been made in April 1820. (J.R.)

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