There was a rumor in Vienna in 1811 that Beethoven thought of moving to
Naples in response to advantageous offers. His income was lowered by
the depreciation in the value of the Austrian paper money. He suffered
from headaches, his feet were swollen, and he hoped that the climate
of Italy would bring relief. His physician did not favor the plan. In
1812 the Brentanos lent Beethoven about $920, and he tried the baths at
Carlsbad, Franzensbrunn, and Töplitz. At the latter place he fell in love
with Amalie Sebald, a soprano from Berlin, about thirty years of age,
handsome and intellectual. The affection was deep and mutual; why the
intimate relations did not lead to marriage, is an insoluble problem.
And here Beethoven met Goethe, whom he reverenced; but the poet saw in
him "an utterly untamed character." The acquaintance did not ripen into
friendship, although Goethe recognized the "marvellous talent" of the
composer; Mendelssohn declared, however, in a letter to Zelter, that the
antipathy of the poet to Beethoven's music was poorly disguised. Nor on
the other hand did the composer relish the self-effacement of Goethe when
he was in the presence of royalty. In October he visited his brother
Johann at Linz and found him entangled with a woman; he forced him to
marry her by threats of arresting her and sending her to Vienna. 1812 was
the year of the composition of the Seventh and Eight symphonies. Beethoven
returned to Vienna in gloomy spirits; he was sick in body; he squabbled
with his servants; Amalie Sebald was ever in his mind.
The defeat of the French at Vittoria in 1813 provoked the vulgar
program-music, "Wellington's Victory," which was suggested also by
Maelzel, the famous mechanician; it enjoyed great popularity, although
Beethoven himself regarded it as "a stupid affair." Spohr was in Vienna
when Beethoven conducted an orchestral concert, the program of which
included the 7th symphony in MS. and this Battle Symphony. He and
Mayseder, Salieri, Hummel, Moscheles, Romberg and Meyerbeer were in the
orchestra. According to Spohr, Beethoven at this time had only one pair of
boots, and when they were repaired he was obliged to stay at home. In 1816
the composer recorded in a note-book that he had seven pairs.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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