[43] Beethoven here alludes to a small sum which he had to expect from abroad.
[44] I must claim for my friend Meyerbeer the place here assigned to Hummel, who had to act in the cannonade; and this I may the more firmly assert, as, the cymbals having been intrusted to me, Meyerbeer and I had to play from one and the same part.—ED.
[45] I witnessed the origin and progress of this work, and remember that not only did Maelzel decidedly induce Beethoven to write it, but even laid before him the whole design of it; himself wrote all the drum-marches and the trumpet-flourishes of the French and English armies; gave the composer some hints, how he should herald the English army by the tune of "Rule Britannia;" how he should introduce "Malbrook" in a dismal strain; how he should depict the horrors of the battle, and arrange "God save the King" with effects representing the hurrahs of a multitude. Even the unhappy idea of converting the melody of "God save the King" into a subject of a fugue in quick movement, emanates from Maelzel. All this I saw in sketches and score, brought by Beethoven to Maelzel's workshop, then the only suitable place of reception he was provided with.—ED.
[46] I am proud to say that I am four years in advance of my friend Schindler, having made Beethoven's much-desired acquaintance four years sooner—in 1810.—ED.
[47] This work may not, perhaps, rank equally high with some of Beethoven's most sublime productions; yet it speaks his language, and has all the charms so peculiar to himself, particularly in the choral parts. It consists of—
No. 1. Chorus.
2. Recitativo and Chorus.
3. Grand Scena, Soprano, with Violin obligato and Chorus.
4. Solo, Soprano and Chorus.
5. Recitativo and Quartett, two Soprani, Tenor, and Bass.
6. Chorus and Fugue.
The original score of this work, with copies of both texts, has been intrusted to me by M. Haslinger, of Vienna; and I am still in possession of it, in case a suitable opportunity for its performance should present itself.—ED.
[48] It was M. Carl Maria von Weber, who, after the failure{***} (see p. 164) of his Opera Euryanthe (1823), brought the score of that work, with the most profound humility, to Beethoven, requesting him to make what alterations he pleased in it, and promising to submit entirely to his opinion. Beethoven, well knowing what acrimonious reviews of some of his works M. von Weber had sent from Prague to German journals, received him in the most friendly manner; and, after looking over the score, said to him, in my presence, that he ought to have made this application before the performance of his Opera, but that now he thought it too late, unless M. von Weber would undertake such a reform with it as he (Beethoven) did with his Fidelio.
It is interesting to see, for example, in the first version of the Opera Fidelio, how the master has composed several numbers twice and even four times. These casts, always of the same text, frequently differ very essentially from one another. Upon the whole, the first score of Fidelio, with the numerous variations, frequent improvements in the rhythm, in the instrumentation, and in the invention of the melody, affords a manifest truth of the extreme severity which the great master was accustomed to exercise in the correction of all his works; hence it would form an admirable study for young composers, and would deserve a place in a public library, where it would be accessible to everybody.
{***}It is with reluctance that I comment upon the word "failure" applied by M. Schindler to the "Euryanthe" of Weber, which was performed in November, 1823. But I was present at the first performance of this Opera, which the composer conducted, and the following pieces were encored:—The Overture—the 1st Tenor air sung by Adolar (Haitzinger)—the Finale to the 1st Act, sung by Euryanthe (Mlle. Sontag)—the principal pieces sung by Mad. Grünbaum (Eglantine) and Forti (Lysiard). The Huntsmen's, as well as several other Choruses, were most enthusiastically received, and the composer was called for at the end of the Opera, with every testimony of approbation. The evening was wound up by a convivial supper, given by a literary and artistical society called the Ludlam's Höhle, at which, together with Weber's pupil, M. Benedict, I had the pleasure of assisting, in conclusion of a triumphant success.