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Ludwig van Beethoven – Six String Quartets, Anhang 2

The world premiere of the Six String Quartets Anhang 2 at San Siro di Struppa, Genoa, on 8 May 2010

The Church of San Siro di Struppa: Origins and Ancient Testimonies

The church of San Siro di Struppa is considered one of the oldest parish churches in the Genoese territory. Tradition—taken up and supported by Giovanni Cambiaso—places its foundation in a remarkably early period: he had no doubt that the origin of the parish must date back to the fifth century, that is, to the first century following the death of its patron saint. Saint Sirus, bishop of Genoa, died on 29 June between 370 and 375, and the memory of his episcopate remained vivid throughout the region, giving rise to an early and enduring veneration.

Thanks to the discovery of the funerary epigraphs of the earliest bishops of Genoa, Cambiaso decisively refuted the theory of Luigi Grassi and, consequently, that of the Remondini family, who placed Saint Sirus in the sixth century and the parish church even in the seventh. The new epigraphic evidence instead brings the presence of the cult and the earliest ecclesiastical structures back to a much earlier period.

Ferretto likewise confirms the existence of a small church in Struppa as early as the fourth century, while noting that the oldest historical document making explicit reference to it is a livello dated July 955—a precious testimony that attests to the continuity of ecclesiastical presence in the area.

A further step in the history of the sacred building is documented in the diploma of Bishop Landolfo, dated 1025. In this document, the construction of a new church in the eleventh century is recorded, assigned to Benedictine monks and described as built “moderno tempore angelica revelatione constructa.” This formula, typical of medieval ecclesiastical rhetoric, underscores the sacred nature of the initiative and the particular importance attributed to the reconstruction of the building, placing it within a broader context of spiritual and institutional renewal.

A Long and Complex Research

The six string quartets known in various catalogues as Kinsky‑Halm Anhang 2, Hess Anhang 7, Bruers 300, Biamonti Nota aggiunta II‑44, and Köchel Anhang 291a – C.20‑05, represent one of the most intricate and fascinating cases in the history of chamber music between the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. For more than a century they remained unknown, unperformed, and enveloped in a complex story marked by shifting attributions and fragmentary documentation. The last official reference available before modern research dates back to 1968, in Giovanni Biamonti’s catalogue, which notes: “These quartets are preserved at the Deutsche Staatsbibliothek in Berlin. First attributed to Mozart, then by De Saint‑Foix to Beethoven. Authenticity doubtful.” For decades, this remained the only known information.

The Origins of the Story: Artaria, 1893

The documented history of the quartets begins in 1893, when the renowned Italian publisher in Vienna, Augusto Artaria, just months before his death, decided to compile a complete inventory of the manuscripts preserved in his publishing house. The earlier catalogue prepared by Guido Adler in 1890 was considered too brief. In the new inventory, entry 92i lists as a work by Mozart: “6 quatours pour violon, il est douteux qu’ils aient été composés par Mozart. Inédites.” Upon Artaria’s death, his son sold the entire collection to the highest bidder, and the six sets of quartets were acquired by Professor Koster.

The Intervention of Wyzewa and Saint‑Foix

In 1913, responding to a request from French musicologists Théodore de Wyzewa and Georges de Saint‑Foix, Koster made four of the six quartets available in score form. The outbreak of the First World War halted further study, and in the meantime the manuscripts were purchased by the Deutsche Staatsbibliothek in Berlin. Wyzewa died in 1917, but Saint‑Foix continued the monumental Mozart biography alone, eventually gaining access to all six sets of quartets. His findings appeared, surprisingly, in La Rivista Musicale Italiana in 1923, in the article “Nouvelle contribution à l’étude des œuvres inconnues de la jeunesse de Beethoven.”

The Attribution to Beethoven

In 1923, Saint‑Foix concluded that the quartets were not by Mozart but by Ludwig van Beethoven. According to the scholar, they were composed between 1790 and 1792, during Beethoven’s final years in Bonn, when he played the viola in the orchestra of the Electoral Chapel.

Wollheim’s Revision (1926)

In the centenary year of Beethoven’s death, violist Heinrich Wollheim, a member of the Berlin Chamber Orchestra and Opera, prepared a new score of the quartets in 1926. Despite his efforts, he was unable to secure any public performance.

New Studies and Comparisons (1927)

In 1927, the manuscripts returned to Saint‑Foix, who described them again in La Revue Musicale. For the first time, thematic similarities with other works by Mozart and Beethoven were examined:

  • a theme in the first movement of Anhang 2 No. 5 is identical to a theme in the first of the three Piano Quartets WoO 36;
  • another similar theme appears in the quartets attributed to Mozart, Köchel Anhang 20.07.

These comparisons opened a new chapter in the complex history of the quartets, highlighting their unique position within the landscape of Beethoven’s and Mozart’s youthful works.

After 1927: Silence, Dispersal, and a Slow Rebirth

After 1927, the history of the six quartets seems to fade into silence. The scores prepared by Koster were lost, while the copies made by Heinrich Wollheim disappeared without leaving any trace. The Second World War further complicated matters: the collections of the Deutsche Staatsbibliothek in Berlin were transferred and fragmented across numerous small towns in Germany to protect them from bombing. Despite the severe losses suffered by the library, the score of the six quartets miraculously returned to Berlin in the immediate postwar period, preserving at least the essential core of the documentation.

The 2006 Request and the Modern Reconstruction

In 2006, French musicologist Michel Rouch, who had long been engaged in studying spurious and doubtful works of the Master of Bonn, requested copies of the quartets from the Berlin library. The photocopies arrived in the same disorder in which they had been catalogued: unnumbered pages, mixed sets, misaligned movements. Reconstructing the entire corpus, analysing each movement, and preparing the material for a first modern performance required several months of meticulous, almost archaeological work.

The False Catalogue Entry and the Case of the “Six Capricious Quartets”

During this phase of research, another element of complexity emerged: the six quartets, listed in Mozart’s catalogue as Köchel Anhang 20‑06, shared a false catalogue entry with another group of works, the so‑called “six capricious quartets.” These latter works, long attributed to Mozart, were eventually shown to be by Georg Anton Mederitsch, known as Gallus, a solid Viennese composer born before Mozart and deceased after Beethoven, author of no fewer than 44 quartets.

This catalogue overlap confused scholars for decades, making it even more difficult to reconstruct the true identity of the Anhang 2 quartets. Only thanks to modern research has it been possible to separate the two groups definitively and restore to the Anhang 2 quartets their correct historical placement.

The First Public Performance (2010)

The first public performance of the quartets belonging to the Anhang 2 series took place in the basilica of San Siro di Struppa, near Genoa, on 8 May 2010. The event, of great historical and musicological significance, marked the return to life of works that had remained in obscurity for more than a century.

Among those present were:

  • Michel Rouch, the French musicologist whose work made the modern reconstruction of the quartets possible;
  • Graziano Denini, editor of the scores and curator of the critical edition;
  • the present author, involved in the research and historical presentation of the corpus.

On this occasion, the first, second, and fourth quartets of the series were performed, chosen to represent the stylistic variety and technical complexity of the entire cycle.

The “Arconauti” Quartet

The world‑premiere performance was entrusted to the Arconauti Quartet, a Genoese chamber ensemble of remarkable interpretative sensitivity:

  • Barbara Bosio, first violin
  • Igor Biagini, second violin
  • Maddalena Vitali, viola
  • Felicina Pillosu, cello

Their careful and rigorous work allowed the public to rediscover a repertoire that had remained silent for more than a hundred years, offering an interpretation respectful of the sources and faithful to the performance practice of the period.

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