Libretto with entries by Beethoven
In 1814 Beethoven decided to undertake another thorough revision of his opera, Fidelio. The revision not only took musical aspects into account; the libretto was also rewritten. The work on the text, which was based on the French play Lénore ou l'amour conjugal by Jean Nicolas Bouilly (1763-1842), was undertaken by the Viennese librettist and director Georg Friedrich Treitschke (1776-1842). Treitschke's revision mainly covered the dramaturgy. He altered scenes and cut whole arias - certainly in consultation with the composer, partly even due to the latter's instigation. In particular he restructured the finali. This book contains Treitschke's version of the text. It was the copy Beethoven used for his revision of the music. The type and amount of changes to the text can be clearly seen: Beethoven made notes in pencil and even musical sketches in the libretto. The composer's comments increasingly occur wherever the text has been greatly changed or there is new text. (J.R.)
