Ludwig van Beethoven, Skizzenblätter zu den Bagatellen op. 126, zum Streichquartett op. 127 und anderen Werken, Autograph

Results of a happy hour

"Bagatelles? Indeed! But Bagatelles by the master, Beethoven. It might be better to call them sketches: inventions and results of a happy hour, easily dashed off and without anything more being done for their elaboration than necessary, to fix the ideas, to hint at what they want and to supply each piece, as it is, with harmony, poise and thus effect."

The critic who wrote this article in the Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung in Leipzig continues to revel in the Bagatelles op. 126. Even Beethoven himself considered the little piano pieces to be the best that he had written for this genre. Sketches for these pieces are on the first two pages of the bifolium shown here. Page 3 contains sketches for the String Quartet op. 127, which was completed later than the Bagatelles. (J.R.)