Prev | Current Page 291 | Next

Fischer, George Alexander

"Beethoven"

This would go
on until noon, when he would return to the house for dinner. This was
served at half-past twelve, after which he would go to his room for
about two hours, then again to the fields until sunset. He was never out
in the evening as night air was considered bad for him. Supper was
served at half-past seven. His evenings were spent in his room, and at
ten o'clock he went to bed.
This simple, regular life, with the healthful country air, should have
restored Beethoven's health in some measure could it have been continued
longer. His letters from here indicate that he expected some improvement
in this respect. Had not some untoward circumstances intervened, the
master's life might have been spared long enough to enable him to carry
to completion the list of works outlined above.
That Johann had an ulterior object in asking his brother to visit him is
quite probable. The growing fame of the composer and the ever-increasing
value of his copyrights was well known to him. He had made money in his
dealings between composer and publisher in the past, and could have
made still more had he possessed his brother's confidence in a greater
degree.


Pages:
279 280 281 282 283 284 285 286 287 288 289 290 291 292 293 294 295 296 297 298 299 300 301 302 303