Ludwig van Beethoven, "Der Mann von Wort", Lied für Singstimme und Klavier op. 99, Autograph

A field piece for Steiner

In August/September 1816 Beethoven wrote the following in a letter to Sigmund Anton Steiner, "I am sending you herewith - (as a present) - a little field piece which should be put into the armoury at once." (from the translation by Emily Anderson, 1961). The "field piece" he is referring to is probably the lied "Der Mann vom Wort" op. 99, which Beethoven's publisher Sigmund Anton Steiner published in November 1816. Although it is only a short lied, Steiner printed it with an opus number. The autograph score of the lied is written so neatly that it was possibly the engraver's model for the edition. The title of the original edition was "Der Mann von Wort". This seems to have gone against Beethoven's direct intention, as he had underlined the word "vom" several times in the title and in the first line of music in the autograph score. (J.R.)