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The Enigma of Minona von Stackelberg: Was She the Illegitimate Daughter of Ludwig van Beethoven?

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The Enigma of Minona von Stackelberg: Was She the Illegitimate Daughter of Ludwig van Beethoven?

ew version of the article that originally appeared in French in the A.B.F. journal, and earlier on the website www.lvbeethoven.com

Therese Brunsvik de Korompa (1775–1861)

A life shaped by music, pedagogy, and silent devotion

The eldest daughter of Count Anton Brunsvik and Anna von Seeberg, Therese was born in 1775 into one of Hungary’s most influential noble families. Raised between the estates of Martonvásár and Korompa, she received a refined education and soon distinguished herself for intelligence, sensitivity, and a strong reformist spirit.

In 1799, together with her mother and her sister Josephine, she entered the Viennese salons where she met Ludwig van Beethoven. A deep friendship grew between them, nourished by mutual esteem and a shared educational ideal. Therese was briefly his pupil, and in 1810 Beethoven dedicated to her the Sonata in F‑sharp major, Op. 78.

Her correspondence and diaries — invaluable historical sources — reveal not only her bond with Beethoven but also the central role she played in protecting and supporting her sister Josephine, especially during the most difficult years of her life.

A passionate advocate of Pestalozzi’s educational principles, Therese devoted herself to early childhood education and to the promotion of women’s rights. She founded the first kindergartens in Hungary and fought for social equality in Budapest. She never married, but became a spiritual mother to many children, including the mysterious Minona, Josephine’s daughter, whom she raised with love and discretion.

Therese died in 1861, leaving behind a legacy of pedagogical innovation and a unique testimony to the inner world of Beethoven and his circle.

Josephine Brunsvik de Korompa (1779–1821)

The countess who loved Beethoven — and paid the price of her nobility

Born in 1779, the second daughter of Count Anton Brunsvik and Anna von Seeberg, Josephine grew up amid the splendor of Hungarian aristocracy and the constraints of a strict upbringing. Gifted with grace, intelligence, and deep musical sensitivity, she entered the Viennese salons in 1799 with her mother and sister Therese, where she met Ludwig van Beethoven.

Between them arose a bond that was profound, passionate, and tormented. Josephine was his pupil, muse, and confidante. After her marriage in 1800 to Count Joseph Deym — a union of convenience rather than affection — the correspondence with Beethoven ceased, only to resume intensely after Deym’s death in 1804. Their letters, filled with longing and sorrow, reveal a relationship that challenged social conventions and the rigid boundaries of class.

Widowed and mother of four, Josephine found herself torn between her love for Beethoven and the legal and familial pressures that prevented her from marrying a man of non‑noble birth. Her life was marked by imposed choices, including a second, unhappy marriage to Baron Christoph von Stackelberg, with whom she had additional children.

In 1813, Minona was born — a mysterious child never officially acknowledged. Therese, ever devoted, took her in and raised her. The circumstances of Minona’s birth — and even her name, an anagram of “Anonim” — have long fueled the belief that Beethoven was the father.

Josephine died in 1821, worn down by illness and a life of renunciation. Today she emerges as a woman divided between duty and passion, nobility and freedom, motherhood and an impossible love.

Adam (Ádám) von Stackelberg (1787–1841)

The Baltic baron who became Josephine’s second husband

Adam von Stackelberg, born in 1787 into a Baltic noble family, belonged to the cosmopolitan world of the imperial aristocracy that moved between Vienna, Livonia, and the courts of Central Europe. Young, polished, and ambitious, he quickly entered diplomatic and military circles, where he distinguished himself for elegant manners and a taste for social life.

In 1810 he met Josephine Brunsvik, already widowed from Count Deym and mother of four. Their marriage, celebrated the same year, was welcomed by both families: a “suitable” union that promised Josephine renewed social stability and offered Stackelberg a stronger position in Viennese and Hungarian society. Reality, however, proved very different.

Often absent due to travels and appointments, Stackelberg soon revealed an unsettled character and little inclination toward family responsibilities. His relationship with Josephine’s children was strained, and the couple’s financial situation deteriorated rapidly. Letters and diaries by Therese Brunsvik describe growing tensions, misunderstandings, and an emotional estrangement that became irreversible.

In 1813, Minona was born — the most enigmatic child of the Brunsvik family. Stackelberg never recognized her as his own, and shortly thereafter abandoned Josephine entirely, relinquishing any role in the household. The separation left Josephine in a state of material and emotional fragility, while Therese assumed responsibility for the children.

After leaving the family, Stackelberg continued his career through various administrative posts and travels in Eastern Europe. He died in 1841, far from the Brunsvik circle — an elegant yet elusive figure, more spectator than protagonist, but nonetheless decisive in shaping Josephine’s fate and the still‑debated story of Minona’s birth.

Therese Brunsvik and the Birth of Minona

In her memoir Mein halbes Jahrhundert, Therese von Brunsvik declared not only that she was the “godmother” of the child, but wrote quite literally: “Das Kind wurde mir förmlich geschenkt” (“the child was literally given to me”). The reason for this statement is clear: since Josephine was not yet legally divorced, Therese wished to prevent Count Christoph von Stackelberg from claiming any rights over this child of love. She also wanted to protect the newborn from the constant conflicts between Josephine and her husband, quarrels that had already deeply affected the other children.

Josephine never kept the secret from her sister. Therese was informed of the pregnancy from the very beginning. In her diary entry of 22 September 1812, she wrote:

“Josephines Kind will ich nicht als das meinige ansehen, sondern es für seine Eltern mit der größten Verleugnung und wie es Pflicht ist, erziehen…” (“Josephine’s child will not be as if it were my own, but I shall raise her for her parents, with the greatest self-denial, as duty requires…”)

As for von Stackelberg, he respected a tacit agreement to stay away from his wife. Therese later noted in her diary: “Wir sahen ihn sechs Monate nicht” (“We did not see him for six months”).

Yet on 4 December 1812, without warning, the count returned briefly to Vienna. His attitude toward Josephine remained unchanged: cold, distant, and devoid of any marital relationship.

Josephine’s Flight and the Birth of Her Child

Josephine, pregnant during this turbulent period, made a drastic decision: as Therese recounts, she “packed clothes and linen and decided to leave the house.” It is unclear whether von Stackelberg remained in Vienna in the following months; however, on 20 March 1813 — shortly before the birth — he drafted a new marital contract. Its final sentence was stark:

“Du bist frey – wie Du selbst mit Dir rechnen willst.” (“You are free — but you must rely solely on yourself.”)

A few days later, Stackelberg apparently left Vienna for good. No one in the Brunsvik household knew where he had gone. He considered himself so far removed from his family obligations that he no longer fulfilled even his duties toward his two elder children, nor did he assist his wife, who was close to giving birth.

On 9 April 1813, Josephine’s presumed natural daughter by Beethoven was born. She was given the name Maria Theresia Minona Selma Arria Cornelia. The name “Minona,” taken from Goethe’s Werther, is unusual; even more striking is its anagram, “Anonim,” suggesting a deliberately concealed identity.

Mystery Within Mystery

Anyone who speculates about Beethoven’s possible paternity can only add mystery to mystery. It must be remembered that the child was born in absolute secrecy, and that only Therese von Brunsvik stood by Josephine during those sorrowful hours.

At the beginning of 1814, Christoph von Stackelberg suddenly returned to Vienna and immediately went to the police to denounce his wife, alleging a “danger to the morality of their children.” His likely intention was to force Josephine to follow him to Estonia. She refused, choosing to remain in Vienna. The authorities, believing his accusations, entrusted the couple’s three daughters to Stackelberg.

Josephine’s Collapse

It is undeniable that the severe nervous breakdown that struck Josephine was directly linked to these painful events. With a broken and powerless heart, she watched as Stackelberg took away her three young daughters. She might have wished to fight for them, but she no longer had the physical or emotional strength to resist.

While Therese cared for the children from Josephine’s first marriage to Count Joseph Deym at the Deym castle in Hacking Zinzendorf, Josephine remained in the Deym residence in Vienna, ill and devastated. In this state of profound sorrow and isolation, she refused to see anyone — not even Beethoven, one of the dearest presences in her life.

Josephine’s Death and Minona’s Fate

This tragedy shattered Josephine completely. Her suffering was indescribable, and already weakened by grief for her daughters, she died on 31 March 1821 at the age of forty‑two, officially of “exhaustion.” At that very time Beethoven was suffering from a severe attack of jaundice that brought him close to death; all work on the symphony that would become the Ninth was halted. While little Minona found refuge with her aunt Therese at the Hacking‑Hütteldorf estate, the composer entered a period marked by worsening health and the painful legal struggle over his nephew Karl — a conflict that began in 1817 and culminated in the boy’s suicide attempt in 1826.

Taken to Estonia at eighteen months, Minona saw her mother again only years later, when she was brought to Josephine’s bedside as her condition deteriorated rapidly. She was six years old when Stackelberg returned her and her siblings, Theophile and Maria Laura, to Vienna. They had barely fulfilled their filial duties before their father forced them all back to Estonia.

When Therese saw Minona again — now six years old — she immediately noticed how unlike she was to the other children Josephine had had with Stackelberg. She could not fail to see it: Minona was, after all, her “secret.” Therese wrote in her diary:

“Merkwürdig hatte sich das Kind entwickelt. Ohne schön zu sein, war sie stark und imponierte dermaßen ihren älteren Schwestern, daß wir sie immer die Gouvernante nannten. Es zeigte sich auch später, daß sie das meiste Genie unter den Schwestern hatte.” (“The child had developed in a remarkable way. Though not beautiful, she was strong and impressed her older sisters so much that we always called her the Governess. It later became clear that she had the greatest talent among the sisters.”)

Minona, Music, and the Unspoken Secret

Minona lived for some time in Tallinn, where she studied music. She became an excellent pianist and also studied composition; many of her works were published during her lifetime.

It is said that Therese von Brunsvik eventually confided the truth of the story to a nephew — long after Beethoven’s death. The nephew later reported that in 1870 Minona appealed in vain to a distant relative of her mother’s family, asking him to hand over the correspondence between Josephine and Beethoven.

Author’s Note

I have been able to locate only two works attributed to a “Mlle. Stackelberg.” A more thorough investigation is needed to determine the true extent of Minona von Stackelberg’s musical output.

The two surviving Ecossaises are conventional pieces. The first, for solo piano in E‑flat major, is a lively, typical example of the genre. The second, in the unusual key of B‑flat minor, also bears the title Ecossaise and was published by Kühnel in Leipzig. It appears, however, to have been arranged by Friedrich Heinrich Himmel (1765–1814).

Thus, although attributed to a “Mlle. Stackelberg,” this work cannot be by Minona, born in 1813 — unless one assumes an extraordinarily precocious genius.

The Lost Letters and Minona’s Legacy

The letters Minona sought throughout her life remain untraceable. They seem to lie buried in a vast family archive, only recently made partially accessible to scholars. Lacking direct documents, Minona had to rely on vague recollections and on her aunt Therese’s diary when trying to uncover her origins.

From the few portraits and rare photographs that survive, Minona appears as a strong‑willed woman, bearing — especially in old age — a striking resemblance to the master from Bonn. Like her presumed father, she lived her entire life alone. The same fate befell her Deym half‑sisters Victoire and Sophie, and her Stackelberg half‑siblings Theophile and Laura Marie.

After the death of her stepfather in 1841, Minona returned to Vienna, settling in the still‑standing Palais Cavriani in the former Oberen Bräunergasse, now Habsburgergasse No. 5. She formed a close friendship with the owner, Count Luigi Cavriani (1758–1839), and his wife, both passionate music lovers, as were the Count and Countess de Bánffy, their intimate friends.

Minona’s proud temperament — perhaps inherited from her illustrious parent — manifested itself throughout her life. When the family’s financial situation later became precarious, she would often say:

“Das bin ich meiner Herkunft schuldig!” (“My only fault is what I have inherited.”)

The protagonists of this story, reinterpreted with the help of AI

The protagonists of this story, reinterpreted with the help of artificial intelligence, are not meant to replace history, but simply to bring these figures closer to us.


Stackelberg Minona von (1813-1897)


Brunswick Thérèse (1775-1861)


Brunswick Josephine e Charlotte (1782-1843)


Brunswick Josephine (1779-1821)


Stackelberg Adam Christoph Freiherr von (1777-1841)

Further information

Bibliography

  • Beahrs, Virginia (1986): “The Immortal Beloved Revisited.” The Beethoven Newsletter 1/2 (Summer), pp. 22–24.
  • Beahrs, Virginia Oakley (1988): “The Immortal Beloved Riddle Reconsidered.” Musical Times, Vol. 129, No. 1740 (Feb.), pp. 64–70.
  • Beahrs, Virginia (1993): “Beethoven’s Only Beloved? New Perspectives on the Love Story of the Great Composer.” Music Review 54, no. 3/4, pp. 183–197.
  • Brandenburg, Sieghard (1996, ed.): Ludwig van Beethoven: Briefwechsel. Gesamtausgabe. 8 vols. Munich: Henle.
  • Czeke, Marianne (1938): Brunszvik Teréz grófnő naplói és feljegyzései, vol. 1. [Countess Therese Brunsvik’s Diaries and Notes.] Budapest.
  • Dahlhaus, Carl (1991): Ludwig van Beethoven: Approaches to his Music. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  • Goldschmidt, Harry (1977): Um die Unsterbliche Geliebte. Ein Beethoven-Buch. Leipzig: Deutscher Verlag für Musik.
  • Kaznelson, Siegmund (1954): Beethovens Ferne und Unsterbliche Geliebte. Zürich: Standard.
  • La Mara (Ida Marie Lipsius) (1909): Beethovens Unsterbliche Geliebte. Das Geheimnis der Gräfin Brunsvik und ihre Memoiren. Leipzig: Breitkopf & Härtel.
  • La Mara (1920): Beethoven und die Brunsviks. Nach Familienpapieren aus Therese Brunsviks Nachlaß. Leipzig: Siegel.
  • Massin, Jean & Brigitte (1970): Recherche de Beethoven. Paris: Fayard.
  • Schmidt-Görg, Joseph (1957, ed.): Beethoven: Dreizehn unbekannte Briefe an Josephine Gräfin Deym geb. v. Brunsvik. Bonn: Beethoven-Haus.
  • Skwara, Dagmar / Steblin, Rita (2007): “Ein Brief Christoph Freiherr von Stackelbergs an Josephine Brunsvik-Deym-Stackelberg.” Bonner Beethoven-Studien, vol. 6, pp. 181–187.
  • Solomon, Maynard (2005, ed.): Beethovens Tagebuch 1812–1818. Bonn: Beethoven-Haus.
  • Steblin, Rita (2002): “Josephine Gräfin Brunswick-Deyms Geheimnis enthüllt: Neue Ergebnisse zu ihrer Beziehung zu Beethoven.” Österreichische Musikzeitschrift 57/6 (June), pp. 23–31.
  • Steblin, Rita (2002): A History of Key Characteristics in the 18th and Early 19th Centuries. 2nd ed. University of Rochester Press.
  • Steblin, Rita (2007): “‘Auf diese Art mit A geht alles zugrunde.’” Bonner Beethoven-Studien, vol. 6, pp. 147–180.
  • Steblin, Rita (2009): “Beethovens ‘Unsterbliche Geliebte’: des Rätsels Lösung.” Österreichische Musikzeitschrift 64/2, pp. 4–17.
  • Tellenbach, Marie-Elisabeth (1983): Beethoven und seine ‘Unsterbliche Geliebte’ Josephine Brunswick. Ihr Schicksal und der Einfluß auf Beethovens Werk. Zürich: Atlantis.
  • Tellenbach, Marie-Elisabeth (1987): “Beethoven and the Countess Josephine Brunswick.” The Beethoven Newsletter 2/3, pp. 41–51.
  • Tellenbach, Marie-Elisabeth (1988): “Künstler und Ständegesellschaft um 1800: die Rolle der Vormundschaftsgesetze in Beethovens Beziehung zu Josephine Gräfin Deym.” Vierteljahrschrift für Sozial- und Wirtschaftsgeschichte 2/2, pp. 253–263.
  • Tellenbach, Marie-Elisabeth (1992): “Beethovens Schülerin Josephine Brunswick, oder warum seine ‘Unsterbliche Geliebte’ ihn nicht geheiratet hat.” In: Hoffmann, Freia & Rieger, Eva (eds.): Von der Spielfrau zur Performance-Künstlerin: Auf der Suche nach einer Musikgeschichte der Frauen. Kassel: Furore, pp. 61–75.
  • Tellenbach, Marie-Elisabeth (1993/1994): “Psychoanalysis and the Historiocritical Method: On Maynard Solomon’s Image of Beethoven.” The Beethoven Newsletter 8/3, pp. 84–92; 9/3, pp. 119–127.
  • Tellenbach, Marie-Elisabeth (1996): “Noch eine Geliebte Beethovens gefunden – oder erfunden?” Musica Germany 50/2, pp. 78–83.
  • Tellenbach, Marie-Elisabeth (1998): “Psychoanalyse und historisch-philologische Methode. Zu Maynard Solomons Beethoven- und Schubert-Deutungen.” Analecta Musicologica 30/II, pp. 661–719.
  • Tellenbach, Marie-Elisabeth (1999): “Die Bedeutung des Adler-Gleichnisses in Beethovens Brief an Therese Gräfin Brunswick.” Die Musikforschung.

Willy Hess: The Scholar Who Rediscovered Many Lost Works by Beethoven

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Willy Hess, le chercheur qui découvrit beaucoup d’œuvres de Beethoven

Par Miriam Allemand

Willy Hess est un musicologue et compositeur suisse et l’un des plus importants spécialistes de Beethoven. Il est né le 12 octobre 1906 à Winterthur, dans le canton de Zürich, en Suisse.

Ses deux parents étaient doués pour les arts. Son père était propriétaire d’une marbrerie et fabrique de pierres tombales. Sa mère lui a fait donner des cours de violon quand il a eu onze ans. En ce temps-là, Willy Hess a commencé à apprendre le piano en autodidacte et à composer. Plus tard, il a retravaillé quelques-unes de ses premières œuvres et les a publiées en leur donnant le titre “Klavierstücke op. 25”.[1]

Peu après son entrée au Gymnasium (collège et lycée) de Winterthur, ses parents l’ont inscrit à l’école de musique de cette ville. Là, il a suivi des cours de violon auprès du chef d’orchestre Ernst Wolters et de piano auprès d’Otto Uhlmann. Ce dernier lui a aussi enseigné l’harmonie, la forme et le jeu avec partition.

Willy Hess aurait voulu étudier uniquement au conservatoire de musique, mais sa mère l’a poussé à étudier au Gymnasium (collège et lycée) pour passer sa Matura, un diplôme qui ouvre l’accès à l’université. S’il avait étudié uniquement au conservatoire de musique, il ne serait pas allé étudier un semestre à Berlin. Or, ce séjour a été à « la base de ce qui est devenu la tâche de ma vie et m’a apporté une reconnaissance internationale : la recherche sur Beethoven. »[2]

C’est au Gymnasium qu’il a décidé de ne jamais boire d’alcool et de ne jamais fumer. Il n’allait pas dans les locaux enfumés, même si cela l’a tenu éloigné de certains cercles qui auraient pu contribuer à son succès professionnel. De plus, il a mangé végétarien pendant de nombreuses années. Mais il haïssait toute forme de fanatisme et pouvait être ami avec des personnes qui n’étaient pas de son avis.

Son premier contact avec la musique de Beethoven a eu lieu quand il avait 16 ans, dans un foyer pour les jeunes qu’il fréquentait pendant ses vacances. Une personne qui est venue travailler dans ce foyer, Selma Heim, jouait bien du piano. Elle lui a fait connaitre les symphonies de Beethoven pour piano à quatre mains, qu’ils jouaient ensemble.

Il a étudié la théorie de la musique, la composition et le piano au Conservatoire de musique de Zürich et la musicologie aux Universités de Zürich et de Berlin. En 1927, il a obtenu son diplôme d’enseignement du piano. Depuis cette année, il a assisté à des représentations d’opéras de Wagner à Bayreuth, mises en scène par Siegfried Wagner, qu’il admirait beaucoup.

Il a passé un semestre à Berlin, où il a étudié la musicologie et a suivi des cours de basson. À la Preussische Staatsbibliothek (Bibliothèque d’État prussienne) de Berlin, il a découvert des manuscrits inédits de Beethoven, dont beaucoup d’œuvres que l’on croyait disparues. Cette activité l’a passionné, c’est pourquoi il a décidé de se mettre au service de Beethoven.

Il a choisi le métier de musicien d’orchestre parce que cela lui permettait de devenir indépendant financièrement tout en lui laissant le temps de composer et rechercher librement. Il n’aimait pas l’académisme de la musicologie telle qu’elle était pratiquée de son temps. Il trouvait qu’elle était « sans contact avec la vie vivante. »[3] C’est pourquoi il n’a pas voulu entreprendre une carrière universitaire. L’alliance du musicien d’orchestre et du théoricien s’est révélée riche de bénédictions pour son travail de compositeur et de chercheur sur les œuvres de Beethoven, d’autant plus que certaines d’entre elles étaient à compléter.

Après son séjour à Berlin, il a enseigné le piano et joué du basson dans des orchestres, composé de la musique et a écrit sur elle. De l’automne 1942 à la fin de la saison 1970-71, il était engagé dans l’orchestre de la ville de Winterthur comme deuxième basson. Avec cet orchestre, il a joué entre autres sous la direction d’Andreae, Schoeck, Ansermet et Scherchen.

Willy Hess ne s’est pas seulement intéressé à la musique. Il était très intéressé par Sven Hedin, un chercheur suédois, dont il a cité la pensée dans son autobiographie : « Je préfère un opposant sincère à un faux ami. »[4] Il s’est aussi passionné pour les régions polaires. C’est pourquoi il a appris à lire le suédois et plus tard le norvégien et le danois. Cela l’a aidé quand il a réuni les chants populaires suédois et danois mis en musique par Beethoven. Il a écrit des articles, entre autres des récits de voyage en Suède, Norvège et Groenland.

Son amour de la nature est un des points communs qu’il avait avec Beethoven. Willy Hess était persuadé que la technique mènerait l’humanité à son anéantissement. Il était préoccupé par la pollution, la « mise en esclavage et le traitement inhumain de nos animaux »[5]. Toute sa vie, il a aimé les œuvres de Johanna Spyri (qui est l’auteur du livre « Heidi »), car ils correspondaient à l’idée qu’il avait sur l’industrialisation et la nature.

Il a écrit des Lieder. Les poèmes de Mina Salm et de Dora Haller en dialecte alémanique lui ont « ouvert le chemin de la composition de chants, mais aussi celui de mon style personnel »[6]. Il a aussi mis en musique des poèmes d’Erika Stiffeler, de Manfred Kyber, Joseph von Eichendorff et Hermann Hesse. Presque tous ses cycles de Lieder ont été édités par lui, car : « Qui nage contre le courant de son temps ne peut pas compter avec de grands succès extérieurs. »[7] Toutes ses œuvres sont tonales. Il était convaincu que la tonalité était une nécessité pour la musique et l’a défendu par ses écrits. Dans une préface à un recueil de Lieder (Aus Flur und Wald, sur des poèmes en dialecte suisse alémanique de Dora Haller), il critique le jazz. Il n’aimait pas non plus la musique rock.


Zentral Bibliothek Zürich – Lieu où sont déposées les archives de Willy Hess

Un jour, après un concert à Uster, Bernard Päuler s’est présenté à lui. Il était le propriétaire de la maison d’édition Amadeus à Winterthur. Il lui a passé commande d’une sonate en solo pour alto. Depuis ce jour, Bernard Päuler a publié beaucoup d’œuvres de Willy Hess, ainsi que sa biographie de Beethoven et des œuvres inédites de ce dernier complétées par Willy Hess. Il lui a aussi demandé d’écrire la basse continue (la partie de la main droite pour l’instrument d’accompagnement) de certaines œuvres baroques, dont “Die kleine Kammermusik” de Telemann. De toutes les œuvres contemporaines éditées par l’éditeur Amadeus, les siennes étaient celles qui se vendaient le mieux. Le public appréciait ses œuvres, mais pas les critiques, qui préféraient les compositeurs d’avant-garde.

Voici ce qu’il pensait des carnets d’esquisses beethovéniens :

« Je voudrais également corriger une idée fausse, ou plutôt une déformation de la réalité, dont se rendent coupables les théoriciens modernes à propos des carnets de croquis de Beethoven. Les esquisses compositionnelles de Beethoven, en particulier, montrent que le maître cherchait et essayait avec le sentiment et non avec le calcul, rejetait et rejetait encore avec le sentiment jusqu’à ce qu’il trouve sa véritable idée intérieure. »[8]

En 1931, le début de son « Index des œuvres de Beethoven manquantes dans l’édition complète » (“Verzeichnis der in der Gesamtausgabe fehlenden Werke Beethovens”) a été publié dans le 5e volume de la Revue annuelle suisse de musicologie (“Schweizerischen Jahrbuches für Musikwissenschaft”). Cet index a pris la forme d’un livre édité en 1957 chez Breitkopf & Härtel.

Le 12 février 1935 a eu lieu la première exécution d’un aria de Marcelline (opéra Fidelio), qui n’avait encore jamais été imprimé. Le 10 février 1937, Margrit Vaterlaus et Erwin Tüller ont chanté la première exécution du duo “Ne’ giorni tuoi felici”. Willy Hess a mis en partition le concerto pour piano de Beethoven de 1784 et le pianiste Edwin Fischer l’a joué.

Willy Hess a publié son livre « L’opéra Fidelio de Beethoven et ses trois versions » chez l’éditeur Atlantis. Il a ensuite trouvé de nouveaux manuscrits de Beethoven à Vienne. Laissons-lui la parole pour décrire une partie de son travail au service de Beethoven :

« En 1955, la guilde du livre Gutenberg m’a chargé d’écrire une biographie de Beethoven, parue en 1956 et épuisée en quelques années. En 1959, j’ai donné cinq conférences sur les œuvres scéniques de Beethoven à la haute école des adultes de Zürich, qui ont été publiées sous forme de livre en 1962. La même année 1959, j’ai pu présenter le premier volume de mes suppléments à l’édition complète de Beethoven.[9]

Cette série de publications a sa préhistoire ! Breitkopf & Härtel avait initialement l’intention de réviser et de réimprimer leur propre édition complète. J’ai élaboré des directives à ce sujet et plusieurs réunions ont eu lieu à Wiesbaden. Mais alors l’annonce d’une nouvelle édition complète lancée par la Beethoven-Haus de Bonn a fait irruption dans nos préparatifs comme une bombe. Cela rendait nos plans illusoires, et au lieu de réviser et d’ajouter à l’ancienne édition, la société m’a chargé de publier des volumes supplémentaires censés rassembler tout ce qui manquait à l’ancienne édition. Il a été publié de 1959 à 1971 :

1er volume : Chants italiens à plusieurs voix sans accompagnement (1959).

2e volume : Chants avec orchestre (1960).

3e volume : Pour instrument soliste avec orchestre 1 (1960).

4e volume : Œuvres orchestrales (1961).

5e volume : Lieder et chants avec accompagnement de piano. Canons et plaisanteries musicales (1962).

6e volume : Musique de chambre pour cordes (1963).

7e volume : Musique de chambre pour vents, pour vents et cordes. Œuvres pour une horloge musicale (petites orgues mécaniques associés à une horloge qui jouent automatiquement toutes les heures ou demi-heures[10]) (1963).

8e volume : Arrangements originaux pour piano de ses propres œuvres (1964).

9e volume : Œuvres pour piano, œuvres de musique de chambre avec piano (1965).

10e volume : Pour instrument soliste avec orchestre 2 (1969).

11e et 12e volume : Œuvres dramatiques 1, 2 (Opéra Fidelio dans la version originale avec toutes les variantes) (1967).

13e volume : Œuvres dramatiques 3 (Fidelio 1806, plus petites œuvres) (1970).

14e volume : Arrangements de chants populaires, suppléments et rectifications (1971). »[11]

Durant ces années de recherches et de publications, Willy Hess arrêta peu à peu d’enseigner et composa peu, car il n’avait pas beaucoup de temps. En effet, il était principalement à ce moment-là musicien dans l’Orchestre de la Ville de Winterthur.

Pendant cette période, il a travaillé aux Archives de Bonn, où le Prof. Joseph Schmidt-Görg, son fils le Dr Hans Schmidt et la Dr Dagmar von Busch-Weise l’ont aidé. Parmi ses relations, citons aussi son ami le Prof. Giovanni Biamonti (Rome), un autre important spécialiste de Beethoven.

Le volume des chants populaires que Beethoven a arrangé lui a demandé un énorme travail. Par chance, Willy Hess a reçu de l’aide de Copenhague, Stockholm, Moscou (Prof. Nathaniel Fischmann), Varsovie (Dr Zofia Lissa), Budapest (Dr Benjamin Rajecky) et Londres (Dr J. A. Parkinson).

Après avoir publié le dernier volume des œuvres inédites de Beethoven, Willy Hess a continué à consacrer du temps à l’œuvre du Maître : il a notamment prêté beaucoup d’attention au respect absolu de la volonté de Beethoven. Il l’a aussi défendu énergiquement « contre tout dénigrement puéril du Génie par une certaine sorte d’avant-gardistes. »[12] Un de ses articles, qui a paru en 1970 dans la Revue musicale suisse à ce sujet lui a valu des lettres enthousiastes. Dans ses “Beethoven-Studien” (études sur Beethoven), Willy Hess a donné en 32 articles un aperçu de son travail au service de Beethoven.

Willy Hess a écrit plusieurs ouvrages sur la musique. “Die Dynamik der musikalischen Formbildung” (La dynamique de la forme musicale) en deux volumes (Vienne 1960, 1964) est le résultat d’une synthèse du praticien créateur et du théoricien avisé qu’il était. Il a aussi publié de nombreux articles, entre autres dans les Annales suisses de musicologie.

À propos de la forme musicale, il était d’accord avec « la phrase merveilleuse d’Hindemith : « La musique est parente avec la mathématique, mais elle n’est pas une mathématique. » »[13] Selon Willy Hess, « Ce que chaque vrai maître ressentait et savait (…) : Le processus de création artistique est un mélange mystérieux de forces mesurables et non mesurables, de réflexion et d’intuition. »[14]

Willy Hess a défendu par ses écrits le droit de composer de la musique tonale, même au 20e siècle, contre l’Avant-garde qui voulait imposer son style à tous. À ce sujet, il a écrit entre autres “Parteilose Kunst, parteilose Wissenschaft. Eine Auseinandersetzung mit dem Zeitgeist in der Musik” (Art sans partis, science sans partis. Une explication avec l’esprit du temps dans la musique) éditions Hans Schneider, Tutzing, 1967, et “Vom Doppelantlitz des Bösen in der Kunst, dargestellt am Beispiel der Musik” (le double visage du mal dans l’art, illustré par l’exemple de la musique) éditions F. J. Lehmanns, Munich, 1963.

Ses archives se trouvent à la Zentralbibliothek (bibliothèque centrale) de Zürich.

Willy Hess a toujours composé des œuvres tonales. Ses compositions comprennent environ 150 Lieder avec piano, plusieurs cycles de chants avec orchestre, deux opéras, une symphonie, des concertos pour soliste, un double concerto pour violon, alto et orchestre ainsi que de nombreuses œuvres de musique de chambre. Il a écrit des sonates, entre autres pour basson et petit orchestre, alto et piano, alto et basson, alto solo, flûte et violoncelle ainsi que flûte et piano.

L’année de son 70e anniversaire, à 69 ans, il a écrit son autobiographie “Aus meinem Leben” (De ma vie). Dans la conclusion de celle-ci, il a écrit qu’il regrette de ne pas avoir pu entendre beaucoup de ses œuvres, mais qu’il est reconnaissant et content d’avoir vécu beaucoup de belles choses positives et qu’il est heureux d’avoir été choisi par le destin pour accomplir son travail.

En conclusion, voici un conseil de Willy Hess: «Mes chers amis, si jamais le découragement ou le pessimisme vous envahit, cherchez alors des tâches, qui requièrent tout votre dévouement. »[15]


Photo de Willy Hess


Photo de Willy Hess dans sa biographie de Beethoven « Aus meinem Leben ».


Photo de Willy Hess dans sa biographie de Beethoven


Villa Rychenberg siège du Musikkollegium Winterthur Nord


Villa Rychenberg siège du Musikkollegium Winterthur Ouest


Villa Rychenberg siège du Musikkollegium Winterthur Sud 1


Villa Rychenberg siège du Musikkollegium Winterthur Sud 2

Quelques publications de Willy Hess sur la musique et sur l’art (en allemand)


  • Verzeichnis der nicht in der Gesamtausgabe veröffentlichten Werke Ludwig van Beethovens. Zusammengestellt für die Ergänzung der Beethoven-Gesamtausgabe, Wiesbaden, Breitkopf & Härtel, 1957.
  • Parteilose Kunst – Parteilose Wissenschaft. Eine Auseinandersetzung mit dem Zeitgeist in der Musik, Tutzing, Schneider, 1967.
  • Beethoven-Studien, Bonn, Beethoven-Haus, 1972 (Schriften zur Beethoven-Forschung, Reihe IV, Band 7).
  • Studien zu seinem Werk, Winterthur, Amadeus-Verlag, 1981
  • Das Fidelio-Buch, Winterthur, Amadeus-Verlag, 1986.
  • Hinter den Kulissen. Momentbilder und Anekdoten aus dem Leben eines Orchestermusikers, Winterthur, Ed. Swiss Music, 1992
  • Vom Doppelantlitz des Bösen in der Kunst, J. F. Lehmann, München, 1963

Sources


Willy Hess, Aus meinem Leben, éditions Werner Classen, Zürich 1976

Willy Hess : Beethoven, éditions Amadeus, Winterthur 1976

Zur Erinnerung an Willy Hess 12. Oktober 1906 bis 9. Mai 1997

Willy Hess (Komponist) – Wikipedia

Œuvres pour orgue de Beethoven — Wikipédia (wikipedia.org)

Cet article a été écrit par Miriam Allemand pour lvbeethoven.org.

[1] Chris Walton “Laudatio auf Willy Hess” in “Zur Erinnerung an Willy Hess 12. Oktober 1906 bis 9. Mai 1997” (“Discours à la louange de Willy Hess” dans “En souvenir de Willy Hess 12 octobre 1906 au 9 mai 1997”) p. 18.

[2] Willy Hess, Aus meinem Leben (De ma vie) éditions Werner Classen, Zürich 1976, p. 20.

[3] Willy Hess, Aus meinem Leben, p. 57.

[4] Willy Hess, Aus meinem Leben, p. 78.

[5] Willy Hess, Aus meinem Leben, p. 140.

[6] Willy Hess, Aus meinem Leben, p. 116.

[7] Willy Hess, Aus meinem Lelben, p. 122.

[8] Willy Hess, Aus meinem Leben, p. 117.

[9] Willy Hess, Aus meinem Leben, p. 128.

[10] https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Œuvres_pour_orgue_de_Beethoven#Œuvres_pour_orgue_mécanique

[11] Willy Hess, Aus meinem Leben, p. 128 et 129.

[12] Willy Hess, Aus meinem Leben, p. 130-131.

[13] Willy Hess, Aus meinem Leben, p. 133.

[14] Willy Hess, Aus meinem Leben, p. 133.

[15] Willy Hess “Mein Abschiedsgruss” in “Zur Erinnerung an Willy Hess 12. Oktober 1906 bis 9. Mai 1997” (“Mes salutations d’adieu” dans “En souvenir de Willy Hess 12 octobre 1906 au 9 mai 1997”) p. 13.

Alcune risorse su Willy Hess: autografi, composizioni, prime edizioni

Di proprietà del Centro Ricerche Musicali www.lvbeethoven.org (estratti)

Beethoven’s Only Uncle: Johann Peter Keverich (1734–1807) in a Study by James F. Green

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Johann Peter Keverich (1734-1807) Beethoven’s Only Uncle

Presented at “Musicology after Beethoven. XVII International Congress of the German Musicological Society (GfM)” by James F. Green

We know very little about some of Beethoven’s relatives, records are scant and while Beethoven himself was a busy letter writer it seems none of his relatives were. Beethoven had only one Uncle, his mother’s brother who, because he became a celibate priest, had no children. Beethoven never had a single first cousin. Johann Peter Kewerich was born in Ehrenbreitstein on 31 May 1734. The third child and second son of Johann Heinrich Kewerich and his wife Anna Klara Westorff. Beethoven’s mother, Maria Magdalena, born in 1746, would be their sixth and last child. The house in which they grew up still stands in Ehrenbreitstein.

I should like to mention something about Johann Peter Kewerich’s name. His father was named Johann and he had two brothers who were also named Johan, that is: Johann Jakob and Johann Balthasar. His paternal grandfather was also named Johann and he had an uncle named Johann Moritz Westorff and many cousins named Johann..  After his sister married, he got a brother-in-law named Johann, first it was Johann Leym and after his death a second brother-in-law named Johann van Beethoven. Essentially the name Johann was treated like as a prefix like Mister. It seems very probable to me that to avoid confusion and keep everyone straight within the family, he must have been called by his middle name, Peter. His sister and parents would have called him Peter and Beethoven would have called him Uncle Peter.

After settling in Bonn when she married Johann van Beethoven, Maria Magdalena made multiple visits to her relatives in Ehrenbreitstein and Koblenz, trips on which her son Ludwig often accompanied her. By then her mother and father were dead and her brother Peter would have been her closest relative there. Unfortunately, written records are missing for the connection between the nephew Ludwig and his uncle Peter.

Sappiamo molto poco sui parenti di Beethoven; i documenti sono scarsi e mentre Beethoven fu un assiduo scrittore di lettere, sembra che nessuno dei suoi parenti lo fosse. Beethoven ebbe un solo zio, il fratello di sua madre che, essendo diventato sacerdote e quindi celibe, non ebbe figli. Beethoven non ebbe mai un cugino di primo grado. Johann Peter Kewerich nacque a Ehrenbreitstein il 31 maggio 1734. Terzo figlio e secondogenito di Johann Heinrich Kewerich e di sua moglie Anna Klara Westorff. La madre di Beethoven, Maria Magdalena, nata nel 1746, sarebbe stata la loro sesta e ultima figlia. La casa in cui sono cresciuti esiste ancora e si trova a Ehrenbreitstein.

Vorrei fare una precisazione sul nome di Johann Peter Kewerich. Suo padre si chiamava Johann e aveva due fratelli che si chiamavano anch’ essi Johan, ovvero Johann Jakob e Johann Balthasar. Anche il nonno paterno si chiamava Johann che aveva uno zio di nome Johann Moritz Westorff, nonché  molti cugini di nome…. Johann!. Dopo che la sorella si sposò, acquisì un cognato di nome Johann, prima Johann Leym e dopo la morte un secondo cognato di nome Johann van Beethoven. A farla breve, il nome Johann era usato  comunemente come un nomignolo, come dire “Mister” (Signor). Sembrerebbe molto probabile che, per evitare confusione e riuscire a fare ordine all’interno della famiglia sia stato semplicemente chiamato con il suo secondo nome, Peter. Sua sorella e i genitori lo avrebbero chiamato Peter e Beethoven lo avrebbero chiamato “zio Peter”.

Maria Magdalena, quando sposò Johann van Beethoven si stabilì a Bonn e  fece molte visite ai suoi parenti a Ehrenbreitstein e Coblenza. Durante questi viaggi fu spesso accompagnata dai figli, Ludwig compreso. A quell’ epoca la madre e il padre erano già morti e suo fratello Peter sarebbe stato il parente più stretto. Sfortunatamente, mancano documenti scritti per connettere il nipote Ludwig e lo zio Peter.


This house which you see here is now a house-museum and contains an interesting display of things relating to its occupancy by the Kewerich family and their famous grandson.

La casa natale dei Kewerich è adesso una casa-museo e contiene un’interessante esposizione di oggetti relativi alla sua occupazione da parte della famiglia Kewerich e del loro famoso pronipote.


This illustration shows the typical garments of a Carmelite priest in the 1790s. They wore a heavy coarse brown tunics while indoors and over that when they ventured out they wore natural colored or off-white linen hooded cloaks over the tunics.

Questa illustrazione mostra gli abiti tipici di un sacerdote carmelitano attorno al 1790. Indossavano una pesante e ruvida tunica marrone mentre erano all’interno del convento. Quando si avventuravano fuori indossavano mantelli con cappuccio di lino color naturale o bianco sporco sopra le tuniche.

Nothing is known about why Johann Peter would have chosen to the religious life for himself. It has been reported that his mother was a very pious woman who came from a religious family, the Westorffs. Many members of the Westorff family chose the spiritual life and entered religious orders including her own brother Johann Moritz Westorff. He became a Carmelite priest known as Father Beda. Priests, monks and nuns of the various Carmelite orders take new names upon entering the religious life as a way of forsaking their former secular life and connections. It was probably this uncle that influenced Johann Peter to enter the Carmelite order.  Father Beda would have been Beethoven’s great uncle.

After ordination Johann Peter took the name of Father Hubertus. The Carmelite Order is still regarded as an extremely strict order today also suggests the religiosity of his Kewerich parents.  The cloister at Koblenz to which Johann Peter seems to have been connected for a very long time followed the more relaxed rules of the Discalced order of Carmelites and not the harsher form of the Ancient Observance of Carmelites. He would have been permitted to wear shoes while the stricter order did not.

We don’t know exactly when Peter Kewerich was ordained, but by the 1790s he was so well regarded that he was elected Prior of the Carmelite Cloister in Koblenz. The Carmelites elected their leaders for three year terms and he seems to have had several terms as Prior.  He would become the last Prior of the Cloister until it was dissolved in 1802. The invading French army took control of Koblenz and the surrounding area in 1794.  At first they turned the monastery into a barracks and began to strengthen and fortify it with battlements. Its strategic usefulness along the edge of the Rhine just below the confluence of the Mosel river made it important. The Cloister in Koblenz was once very reputable and very much liked by the more elegant families; and because of the favorable situation, their church was highly spoken of.

The Monastery was located along the Rhine somewhere between the Electoral Palace and the point of land now called Deutsches Eck. You can see the Palace on the left with its circular enclosing wings and on the far right you can see the point of land where the Rhine and Mosel rivers meet.

Dr. Helmut Prößler relates a story about the French occupation of the Cloister, “After the French had seized the Cloister for the first time and had taken away the valuables, they killed the pigeons and rang the church bells for each pigeon killed with the saber. In the middle of the church they made a fire at which the pigeons roasted and consumed.” Although they were not always considerate of the Cloister they did pay rent for its use By 1802 its benefits as a barracks and a defensive fortification had faded and the priests and others living at the cloister were pensioned off and sent away. As Prior Father Hubertus signed the documents agreeing to the dissolution. At the time of its dissolution it was a very small cloister consisting of 5 priests, 4 lay-brothers and a person listed as a “Josephsman” which was probably some sort of carpenter or handyman.  At the time of the dissolution the priests and brothers were so poor that they had to petition the Mayor of Koblenz for money enough to purchase civilian clothes so that they could leave the cloister.

As support, Father Hubertus got a pension from the State of Nassau that was disbursed to him at a rate of a little more than  37 Gulden per year, paid quarterly. The payment of the two last quarters of the year 1803 on the 9th of September 1803 and on the 10th of January 1804 is verifiable in old records. He stayed in the Ehrenbreitstein area. Where he lived exactly, or with whom, we do not know; both his parents and his only sister had by then been dead many years by 1802. He had other relatives in the area, but they were not close relatives; all of his close relatives were gone. He spent his last years of life  in Ehrenbreitstein, where he died on the 24th of September 1807. Father Hubertus was buried in the old Ehrenbreitstein graveyard behind the Church of the Holy Cross.

Non si sa perché Johann Peter avesse scelto la vita religiosa. Ci è stato tramandato che sua madre fu donna molto pia, proveniente da una famiglia religiosa, i Westorff. Molti membri della famiglia Westorff scelsero la vita spirituale ed entrarono negli ordini religiosi, tra cui il fratello Johann Moritz Westorff. Divenne sacerdote carmelitano con il nome Padre Beda. Come d’ uso ancor oggi, sacerdoti, monaci e monache dei vari ordini carmelitani prendono nuovi nomi quando entrano nella vita religiosa, quasi a sottolineare l’ abbandono della precedente vita secolare. Fu probabilmente questo zio che influenzò Johann Peter facendolo entrare nell’ordine carmelitano. Padre Beda sarebbe stato quindi  prozio di Beethoven.

Dopo l’ordinazione, Johann Peter prese il nome di padre Hubertus. L’Ordine Carmelitano è ancor oggi considerato come un ordine estremamente severo, il che suggerisce anche la religiosità osservante dei Kewerich. Il chiostro di Coblenza, cui Johann Peter sembra essere stato collegato per molto tempo, seguiva le regole più elastiche dell’ordine dei Carmelitani Scalzi e non la forma più ortodossa dell’Antica Osservanza dei Carmelitani. Gli sarebbe stato permesso, ad esempio,  di indossare scarpe.

Non sappiamo esattamente quando Peter Kewerich fu ordinato sacerdote, ma nel 1790 era già così ben inserito che fu eletto priore del chiostro carmelitano a Coblenza. I Carmelitani eleggono i loro capi per tre anni e sembra che abbia avuto diversi mandati come Priore. Sarebbe diventato l’ultimo priore del chiostro, fino a quando l’ ordine non fu sciolto nel 1802. L’esercito francese prese il controllo di Coblenza e dell’area circostante nel 1794.  All’inizio i francesi trasformarono il monastero in una caserma e iniziarono a rafforzarlo e fortificarlo con mura. La sua utilità strategica lungo il  Reno, appena sotto la confluenza con la Mosella, rese questo luogo strategicamente importante. Il Chiostro di Coblenza un tempo era molto rinomato e molto apprezzato dalle famiglie più in vista della regione; e conseguentemente la chiesa molto frequentata.

Il monastero si trovava lungo il Reno, vicino al palazzo elettorale ed un luogo chiamato Deutsches Eck. Si può vedere nell’ illustrazione il palazzo con le sue due ali circolari che lo circondano e all’estrema destra il punto summenzionato, dove si incontrano i fiumi Reno e Mosella.

Il Dr. Helmut Prößler racconta una storia sull’occupazione francese del chiostro: “Dopo che i francesi si impadronirono del chiostro e dopo che rubarono tutti gli oggetti di valore, cominciarono ad uccidere i piccioni, suonando le campane della chiesa per ogni piccione ucciso con la sciabola. . In mezzo alla chiesa fecero un fuoco, su cui misero ad arrostire questi piccioni mangiandoli in quel luogo sacro». Sebbene non fossero sempre rispettosi del chiostro, pagarono l’affitto per il suo utilizzo. Nel 1802 la sua importanza come  come caserma e fortilizio difensiva cessò e i sacerdoti e tutti coloro che vivevano nel chiostro furono mandati in pensione ed allontanati. Come Priore Padre Hubertus firmò i documenti di accettazione allo scioglimento. Al momento della soppressione  il chiostro era composto da 5 sacerdoti, 4 fratelli laici e una persona indicata come “Giuseppino” che probabilmente era una sorta di falegname o tuttofare. In quel momento i sacerdoti e i fratelli erano così poveri che dovettero chiedere al sindaco di Coblenza denaro sufficiente per acquistare abiti civili in modo da poter lasciare il chiostro.

Per sostenersi, padre Hubertus ottenne una pensione dallo Stato di Nassau, che gli fu erogata in ragione di poco più di 37 Gulden all’anno, pagati trimestralmente. Il pagamento degli ultimi due trimestri dell’anno 1803 il 9 settembre 1803 e il 10 gennaio 1804 è ancora rintracciabile in vecchi atti sopravvissuti. Hubertus rimase nella zona di Ehrenbreitstein. Dove abitasse esattamente, o con chi, non lo sappiamo; entrambi i suoi genitori e la sua unica sorella erano ormai morti da molti anni. Aveva certo altri parenti nella zona, ma non erano parenti stretti; tutti i suoi consanguinei deceduti. Trascorse i suoi ultimi anni di vita a Ehrenbreitstein, dove morì il 24 settembre 1807. Padre Hubertus fu sepolto nel vecchio cimitero di Ehrenbreitstein, dietro la chiesa della Santa Croce.


Kolbenz – Colbenza


This illustration shows the location of the Electoral Palace in Koblenz in the lower right. The Carmelite Cloister would have been located along the Rhine just north of the Palace near the bridge across the Rhine.

Questa illustrazione mostra la posizione del palazzo elettorale di Coblenza, in basso a destra. Il Chiostro dei Carmelitani sarebbe stato situato lungo il Reno, appena a nord del Palazzo, vicino al ponte sul Reno.


This part of the inventory made by the French for the contents of the Carmelite Cloister in Koblenz. Father Hubertus’ signature is clearly seen in the middle near the bottom. This catalog signed father Hubertus as Prior on the 19th of August 1802.

Questo l’inventario che fecero i francesi circa il contenuto del chiostro carmelitano di Coblenza. La firma di Padre Hubertus è chiaramente visibile al centro, vicino al fondo. Padre Hubertus firmò come Priore il 19 agosto 1802.


Alte Heilig Kreuz Kirche Koblenz Ehrenbreitstein 1890


Unfortunately, the church which saton the side of a hill just a couple of blocks from the house where he grew up, was destroyed in a bombing raid during World War II. Also destroyed was the little church yard where he was buried.

Sfortunatamente la chiesa, che si trovava sul fianco di una collina a un paio di isolati dalla casa in cui crebbe, fu distrutta in un bombardamento durante la seconda guerra mondiale. Distrutto anche il piccolo cortile della chiesa dove fu sepolto.


A modern building replaces the original old church. It was deconsecrated in 2017 and today it is unused while local officials decide how the building should be used.

Un edificio moderno (Di ben dubbio gusto, N.d.A.) sostituì lì antica chiesa. È stato sconsacrato nel 2017 ed oggi è inutilizzato in attesa di trovare una nuova destinazione.

James F. Green was born in Michigan, where he studied fine art and history. He has a post graduate degree in Interior Design from the New York School of Interior Design. Mr. Green has been active in Beethoven research for nearly 50 years. Founder of the Michigan Beethoven Society, he presently serves on the Executive Board of the Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies in California. He is the author of the New Hess Catalog of Beethoven’s Works, which was awarded the Adele Mellen Prize. He has written several articles for European scholarly journals. Besides his Beethoven activities, Mr. Green is an International Award winning Interior Designer and President of Monument Records.

James F. Green è nato nel Michigan, dove ha studiato Belle Arti e storia. Ha una laurea post-laurea in Interior Design presso la New York School of Interior Design. Green si dedica alla  ricerca su Beethoveniana da quasi 50 anni. Fondatore della Michigan Beethoven Society, attualmente fa parte del comitato esecutivo dell’Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies in California. È autore del Nuovo catalogo Hess delle opere di Beethoven, vincitore del Premio Adele Mellen. Ha scritto diversi articoli per riviste scientifiche ed europee. Oltre alle sue attività Beethoveniane, Green è un interior designer vincitore di un premio internazionale e presidente dell’ etichetta discografica Monument Records.

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