Hess 96 – Piano Transcription of the Opening 46 Measures of the First Movement, Symphony No. 7, Op. 92
Hess 096 – Piano Transcription of the Opening 46 Measures of the First Movement, Symphony No. 7, Op. 92
This work represents an unpublished piano transcription of the first 46 bars of the opening movement (Poco sostenuto – Vivace) of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 in A major, Op. 92. While a facsimile of this transcription was previously made available by Willy Hess as the frontispiece of Volume VIII of the Supplemente zur Gesamtausgabe (SBG) in 1964, a complete edition had never been published—until now. The first full edition, prepared by Mark Zimmer, appears in the updated Hess catalog, beginning on page 207.
The autograph manuscript itself is preserved at the Paris Conservatory, catalogued as W. 7, 1, and is currently held within the collection of the Bibliothèque nationale de France. Its existence was noted by Max Unger in his study “Die Beethovenhandschriften der Pariser Konservatoriumsbibliothek”, published in Neues Beethoven-Jahrbuch, Volume VI, by Beethovenhaus Verlag, Braunschweig, in 1935 (pp. 114–115). It is worth noting that references to page 119 in some sources are erroneous: the discussion of this transcription actually begins on page 114 and continues through page 115, with page 119 containing no mention of the work.
Autograph found at the Paris Conservatory (W. 7, 1). [Now at the BN.] – section 1
Autograph found at the Paris Conservatory (W. 7, 1). [Now at the BN.] – section 2
Autograph found at the Paris Conservatory (W. 7, 1). [Now at the BN.] – section 3