To: Breitkopf & Härtel, Leipzig
Vienna, October 15, 1810
My Very Dear Sir!
I am letting you know my objection relating to the quartet. You see, it is merely the trifling point that whereas the Minore is repeated at once for the first time after the Maggiore, the first part of the Minore must be played twice, but the second part only once, i.e. without a repeat – It is difficult to help you with the song from Faust, for I have not a single copy of it – The main thing is that all the verses must be written out and not be left in the shortened versions which I sent you. The safest method is for you to send me the song on a little sheet on which only the treble of the pianoforte and the vocal part are written, showing me how you are engraving it. Then I shall soon see whether it’s all right –
In connextion with the second Adagio of the quartet I added a remark about the tempo.. Are you sure that that remark too was taken to heart? – Do be careful and do comply with the request I have often made to you, i.e. to send me not only a proof copy but the manuscripts as well. I hear complaints about the inaccuracy of the engraving; and I have noticed that even the clearest handwriting can be misread – Only recently we went through your engraved edition of the four-part songs and others by Haydn and found some incredible mistakes and, what is more, a great many of them – Have you altered what I noted about the symphony, i.e. two bars too many in the third movement? [Anderson footnote: “Beethoven had removed two redundant bars from the third movement of his fifth symphony, Op. 67.”]. I have a vague recollection that you asked me about this. But perhaps I forgot to send you a reply about it at once; and the bars may be there still –
The reason why I ask you to send me the manuscripts together with the proof copy is that I hardly possess any manuscripts, no doubt because some good friends here and there asks me for them. For instance, the Archduke has the score of the concerto and refuses to let me have it back [[Opus 73] – Although I am convinced that this time the manuscripts are certainly as correct as it is humanly possible for them to be, please do not again take the same risk as you did with the trios [Opus 70] and other works. Moreover it is unpleasant for a composer not to feel sure that his work is correct – NB. If the last movement of the music to Egmont does not contain the title ‘Siegessymphonie’, please have it inserted [Opus 84 #9] – Make haste and kindly send me word as soon as you no longer need the original score, because I shall then ask you to send it from Leipzig to Goethe whom I have already informed of this arrangement. I trust that you will have no objection to raise, since presumably you are as great an admirer of Goethe as I am – I would have sent him from here a copy of my music for Egmont, but as I have not yet found a copyist competent enough for me to rely on him and as I can only be certain of having to face the torture of checking, I thought that the other arrangement would be better and would waste less of my time – As for the variations, the title should be: ‘Variations dedicated to his friend Oliva by, and so forth. In a few days you will receive the organ part of the Mass [Opus 86] and the trombones for the oratorio [Opus 85].. Are you going to have a suitable German text, fitting the music completely, printed in the Mass?
The opera ‘Leonore’ is dedicated to my friend Herr Stefan von Breuning, Imperial and Royal Court Secretary to the Court War Council, by the composer Ludwig, and so forth. The Mass [Opus 86] is dedicated to Herr von Zmeskall. NB. Here there ought to be a few more addenda which at the moment I can’t remember. The songs [Opus 75] are dedicated to Her Excellency the Princess Kinsky, née Baroness von Kerpen. You ought to include the song ‘Ich denke dein’ in this collection [Opus 74]. I have seen it engraved separately, and in Vienna too, where a mordent has been inserted somewhere or other where there ought not to be one – Since I don’t possess a copy, I can’t remember where it is – Another point: if you have not already done so, you ought now to publish at once the ‘Gesang aus der Ferne’ [WoO 137], which I once sent you. The poem is by that rascal Reissig. At that time it had not yet been published; and it was almost half a year before that rascal had it engraved by Artaria ‘just for his friends’, as he said – I sent it to you by letter post and instead of thanks I received spanks. –
The 50 ducats have arrived. But I have not yet returned to Vienna and the postman would not entrust the money to anyone else –– I will make enquiries at once ––all the other compositions which I still have to send you will be despatched to you by the next post. So you can let me have the remaining 100 ducats and the additional 30 thalers A.C. seeing that in that your first letter you offered me forthwith 80 thalers in scores and that according to the draft sent to Traeg you yourself have now caught the sum down to only 50, well, I am prepared to except 50 thalers in scores; but please remit to me here a draft for 30 in cash –– Furthermore, as I have already given you several trifles free of charge, for which you offered me the Musikzeitung and, some time ago, a few scores, surely you could arrange for me to receive once and for all the Musikzeitung which according to your letter had been sent off several times. In addition, I should like to have all the works of Carl Philip Emanuel Bach, all of which, of course, have been published by you, had also a Mass composed by J. Sebastian Bach in which there is said to be the following Crucifixus with a basso ostinato, which is supposed to resemble you:
Again, you are said to have the best copy of Bach’s Temperiertes Klavier. Please have it sent to me as well – So now you have my ultimatum from which, however, I will not remove one jot or title. I shall then let you have at once the certificate of ownership – In any case I must not disclose what I have received – As for the publication of all my works, this question merits, first of all, more mature consideration; after which I shall let you have a more detailed statement about it –– Satis est. I trust that you will pay attention to all the matters I have raised and about which I have written –– All good wishes; and please cheer me soon with the a few lines ––
Your most devoted servant and friend
Beethoven
