Ludwig van Beethoven, Skizzenblatt zu einem unvollendeten Streichquintett C-Dur, Finale, Partiturskizze, Autograph

Expensive fragments

"Now I promise to be able to hand over the quintet in a little over six weeks – I will consider your wishes without compromising my artistic freedom." (Beethoven to Anton Diabelli, Vienna, 26 September 1826). The quintet to which Beethoven is referring in this letter is one of his unfinished works, despite what he claimed in the letter. Only sketches remain. This does not necessarily mean that Beethoven did not at least finish parts of the string quintet.

At the auction of Beethoven's estate Anton Spina, a partner at the music publishers Diabelli & Comp, bought the manuscript, which was described in the catalogue as "Fragment of a violin quintet from November 1826. Last work of the composer". The price was unusually high – 30 florins, six times as expensive as the complete score for the Fifth Symphony! All of the sketchbooks offered at the auction were sold for very little money. Thus it can be assumed that the manuscript of the quintet contained rather more than just sketches. In 1838 Anton Diabelli published the slow introduction to the quintet's first movement in an arrangement for piano (today WoO 62) under the title "Ludwig van Beethoven's last musical idea, from the original manuscript, November 1826" in the collection "Viennese popular pieces". Even if Diabelli had owned at least one finished movement from the unfinished string quintet, today we are only left with sketches.

Here you can see the only remaining score sketch for the string quintet. It was completed at the end of 1826 or the beginning of 1827. The leaf contains sketches for the last, fast movement. (J.R.)