Biamonti 756 – Sketch for a sonata movement, 1819–1822 Notebook II*, page 63. (Nottebohm, II page 466). *Notebook II: Artaria 197.

Note some resemblance to the Lacrymosa from Mozart’s Requiem. The following sketch, on the same page, bears the indication “3tes Stück” presto, that is, “third movement presto,” and reprises the theme of the first movement of the Sonata Opus 111. This notebook is the second of three from the years 1819–1822, described by Nottebohm, who dedicates the entire chapter (pages 460–475) to them.

Beyond these unused sketches, the notebooks also contain drafts for the following works:

• Missa Solemnis Opus 123
• Opus 109
• Bagatelle Opus 119
• Opus 107 No. 8
• Sonatas Opus 110 and 111
• And some sketches that may be related to the Ninth Symphony

The sketch is found in the Artaria 197 notebook on page 63, lines 17–18. Contrary to what Biamonti writes, this fragment is the last on the page. I do not agree with Nottebohm’s definition: “Inmitten dieser Entwürfe finden sich Entwürfe zu andern Sonatensätzen” [Among these drafts are found sketches for other sonata movements]. Considering the fragment(s) immediately preceding this one, with texts such as “Judicare[…] amen,” and the fact that the first measure of this fragment audibly mirrors the beginning of the chorus of the Lacrymosa from Mozart’s Requiem, we might also consider that in these pages Beethoven was seeking inspiration for the Missa Solemnis rather than for a new movement of a new Sonata. From a graphic standpoint, interpretation is difficult. There is a symbol found in the fifth measure before the D; in the sixth measure, we find a cancellation of the initial melody, replaced with other notes. Had Beethoven continued the harmonization, it would have been interesting to determine whether the development would have followed or diverged from Mozart’s model.