Ludwig van Beethoven, Skizzenblatt zum Streichquartett op. 127, 4. Satz, Partiturskizze, Autograph

One of a great many sketch leaves

Masses of sketches for the first of the late String Quartets, op. 127, have survived. Desk sketchbooks, pocket sketchbooks, single leaves - the string quartet encompasses the complete range of Beethoven's sketches. Score sketches appear for the first time in significant numbers in connection with this work. The single leaf shown here was probably not part of a book and was always a single leaf. The staff-ruling is printed, which was rather unusual at this time (the paper was normally ruled using a machine with fixed ink pen points). It is not, however, a score sketch. The leaf shows the last movement of the string quartet at an early stage in its composition. (J.R.)