"This whole opera business is the most tiresome affair in the world"
The premiere of Beethoven's only opera, "Fidelio" was given in 1805. He revised it for a second performance in 1806. A further performance was supposed to follow in 1814, which once again occasioned the composer to make revisions. This last revision was successful and the opera was performed many times in 1814 and became famous. The changes required much time and effort. Beethoven kept making changes to the work down to the finest details and he was often not happy with the result. "Let me add that this whole opera business is the most tiresome affair in the world, for I am dissatisfied with most of it - and - there is hardly a number in it which my present dissatisfaction would not have to patch up here and there with some satisfaction", he wrote at the end of March/beginning of April 1814 to the librettist of the third version, Friedrich Treitschke, in Vienna (from the translation by Emily Anderson, 1961).
Here you can see one of the corrected numbers: the Finale of Act 1 in a vocal score. The copy was corrected by Beethoven - his changes are in pencil. (J.R.)
