New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1912-11-03
The Melody of a Song Re-
covered in New York
Memoranda as Compan-
ions of a Composer.

Al the recital given in Carnegie nan
Yesterday afternoon Nine. Alma GlucK
was announced TO sing a song by BeethoV-
en-. entitled "Haidenr6slein.' No doubt
many students familiar with the great
composers songs were nonplussed because
a setting of Goethe's dainty poem, Tor
which Schubert provided the most popu-
lar and ingratiating music, was not to be
found in any Of the collections. TO them
and 10 other music lovers the story OF
"Sah Elm Knab" as composed by Beethov-
on will be welcome; so it will TO many
Others, il for no other reason than that
The melody Of the song was rescued from
Oblivion by two biographeTs Of Beethoven.
one Of whom was on the editorial stan
of The Tribune sixty years ago, ana the
other is still on the staff Of this journal
after service Of over thirty years.
Nothing has shed greater lustre on the
limited states throughout musical Europe
than the labors Of Alexander w. Thayer
in unearthing and presenting the facts
concerning the life Of Beethoven. To those
ilabors he devoted more than half CEN
ltury. and when death compelled him TO
leave the task uncompleted 1t was taken
men, though belonging to different gener-
atoms, came 10 be connected with the story
! of the new Beethoven song. Thayer DIED
on July Is, 1897, and all his effects were
brought by his niece and heir Mrs.
Jabez Fox. Of Cambridge, Mass 10 ms
native home. There his posthumous
,napers were examined by the writer for
The purpose of putting aside all that were
ipf value in the completion of the bl-
jography (Which at the time OF the au-
lthors death had proceeded TO the ehd ol
THE year 1870 and the revision oil the
volumes which had appeared in German
/ 1t is now hoped that the entire work with
The story Of the last ten years OF the com
,posers life written by Mr.. Krehbiel and
the entire biography revised by him on
the basis of the original manuscript ana
/ the notes Of DR.. Deiters, Thayer's trans
lator. and DR.. Hugo Riemann. Deiterss
coEtinuator. will be published In English
by Charles Scrbners sons within lie"
months.
Among the relics of Beethoven which
Mr.. Thayer had collected were several
valuable and interesting autograph manu-
scripts Of which the writer made study
the results Of which were published IN TINS
journal i'm 1895 These manuscripts, be-
sides letters, were afterward sent 10 Lon
don and dissipated at a sale OF auto
graphs. On two of the sheets the writer
recognized sketches for a setting or
Goethe's poem. which the composer never
carried out. though he REQUIRED to II
several times. Gustav Nottebohm, the
most industrious and successful of the
investigators Of Beethoven's sketchTbooks'
had found some sketches for the song, but
the melodic idea underlying them was
not that found on the isolated leaves
which fell into Thayer's hands, and
thence into those Of the writer. Inasmuch
as the sketches showed a completed form
of the melody, the writer placed them
i'm the hands of Mr.. Henry Holden
Huss, who gave the melodic setting Of
the words a defnitive shape, harmonized
il and wrote pianoforte accompaniment.
in this shape it was published by
Schirmer, and was once sung In public,
we believe. by Mr. Bispham.
Original manuscripts by Beethoven are
not plentiful in the United States though
a few of peculiar interest and value are
in the hands of American collectors. Mr.
Dwight Newman. OF Chicago, is the pos
SCISSOR Of one Of the first letters ever pub
lished and also one of the most interest
ing-a letter of thanks to Able Stadler
for having defended the authenticity Of
MoZart's Requiem" against the attacks
OF Gottfried Weber, the theoretician. Mrs.
Christian Herter, Of this city, owns an
other famous letter, one that has figured
quite extensively in the controversy
touching the identity of the Immortal
Beloved" II is a playful note to Amalia
Sebald, and was written in Teplitz in 1872.
The same lady also owns several sheets
of a book containing sketches for the
great trio for pianoforte, violin and
Violoncello in fiat, OPP. 81.
Thayers papers are now i'm the hands
of the writer again. and The Tribune's
readers may expect to be entertained with
frequent excerpts from them during the
next few months. especially from the
transcripts laboriously and painstakingly
made by Thayer Of the so-called CONVEX
sation Books. which are piously preserved
lin the Royal Library at Berlin. In con-
nection with the story of the song just
told il may be interesting TO learn the
meaning Of the words "Beethoven's
Sketch Books" They are the progressive
records OF Beethoven's labors I'm compost
tion, the memory-helps which he used I'm
the early history OF his compositions
There are large numbers Of these books
still in existence. though perhaps as many
more have been lost Some Of the most
important OF them were made the basis
Of analytical study by Gustav Nottebohm
who presented the results in two volumes
entitled, respectively "Beethoveniana"
and "Neue Beethoveniana." Some OF the
books were carried about by the com
poser. especially in his rural promenades
in the summer. so that he might record
new themes or suggestions for the de-
velopment OF the works which were in his
mind. They are an invaluable aid in the
study not only of the chronology OF Bee
thoven's compositions, but also Of his Gre
alive processes. Nottebohm's description
Of one volume will serve. with n few
notifications, for all.
Before u.s." says Nottebohm, Ties a
volume in oblong folio OF 1872 pages and
bearing sixteen slaves on each page, and,
save a few empty places, containing
throughout notes of sketches in Bee
thovens handwriting for compositions OF
various sorts. The volume is bound in
craftsman's style, trimmed, and has a
stout pasteboard cover. 1t was bound thus
before II was used or received the notes -
excepting the number OF pages this de-
scription applies TO most of the true
sketchbooks) THE sketches are, for the