Ludwig van Beethoven, Skizzenblatt zum Streichquartett op. 131, Partiturskizze, Autograph

Surprisingly high number

Beethoven worked on hardly any other composition as intensively as he did on the String Quartet op. 131. Even the surviving sketch material for the Ninth Symphony or the Missa solemnis is not as extensive as that for the Quartet in C sharp minor. Over 200 leaves with just score sketches have survived, including the one shown here with sketches for the last movement. Although this is an impressive number in itself, we can safely say that other leaves have gone missing. There are simply too few drafts for some particularly challenging compositional parts of the quartet. Beethoven must have made more attempts on these passages, such as for the fugue in the first movement, than have survived today. (J.R.)