Biamonti 380 – “Zur Erde sank die Ruh’ vom Himmel nieder”

(Peace descended from Heaven to Earth) – Song fragment, circa 1803. Mentioned by Gustav Nottebohm in his book Ein Skizzenbuch von Beethoven, aus dem Jahre 1803, page 6, without reproducing the music: “Es beginnt (Seite 1) mit unbekannten Entwürfen, darunter der Anfang eines Liedes (»Zur Erde sank die Ruh’ vom Himmel nieder«)” [“It begins (page 1) with unknown sketches, including the beginning of a song (‘Zur Erde sank die Ruh’ vom Himmel nieder’).”] According to the website Unheard Beethoven, this sketch—catalogued as Biamonti 380—is in E major and consists of only 4 measures. It is the second entry on the first page of the famous Eroica Sketchbook (also known as Landsberg 6), dating to 1803.

It was apparently intended as a setting for an unidentified poem, whose first line reads: “Zur Erde sank die Ruh’ vom Himmel nieder” (“Peace descended from Heaven to Earth”). The song was never completed. Beethoven must have been well aware of the hidden treasures within his sketchbooks. This is likely the main reason he kept them throughout his life, despite the considerable burden they must have represented during his many relocations and changes of residence.

Manuscript Details:

• Found on page 1, staff 2 of the Eroica Sketchbook.
• Written in C major (not E major as previously suggested).
• Consists of only 4 measures.
• The rest of the text is unknown, and the author of the poem remains unidentified.
• The handwriting is very clear, penned in ink.
• Notably, the barline between the upbeat and measure 1 is missing.

Editorial Note: In the final measure, transcribers Lewis Lockwood and Alan Gosman, who edited the complete transcription of Landsberg 6 in their volume Beethoven’s “Eroica” Sketchbook (University of Illinois Press), read the final two quarter notes as A–G. However, upon examining the manuscript, Graziano Denini reads them as G–F. Therefore, both versions are presented.