Beethoven gives his permission for the title page of the original edition of the Piano Sonata op. 106 to be printed. He graciously not only gives his consent for Gutenbrunn but also for Tahiti, India, Greenland and North America.
Beethoven's only correction is that "Grosse" Sonata should be written with "ß" (i.e. "Große", the spelling "ss" is an "Austrian provincialism"). However, this could not be carried out as the words GROSSE SONATE were written in capital letters ("ß" is replaced by "ss" when capital letters are used).
Beethoven refers to the publishers as "Hochgeleerte" ("Hochgelehrte" = academics) amongst other things. The "leer" (= empty) is underlined to show that it is not a mistake. The composer often used "inventive" titles such as this for his publishers and their employees, as he considered them humorous.
