Weber, Carl Maria von

the full score of the complete work in four movements, notated in brown and dark brown ink on up to eleven staves per page, with extensive revisions, alterations, deletions and corrections, including additional revised passages written on different paper, tipped into the score (the earlier replaced music now legible), one on a slip of paper laid down, dated by the composer at the end of each movement, including on the autograph title page ("Sinfonia in C (No.1) composta di Carl Maria B di Weber Op:1 delle Sinfonie....cominciata il 14 Dec: 1806 Carlsruh, e Finita il 2do gennaio 1807") and at the end "Finita il 2do Gennaio 1807 alle mezza not[t]e"), the title page including an autograph list of the instrumentation and incipit

48 pages, oblong folio (c.22.5 x 35.5cms), foliated by the composer (1-24), the movements stitched separately, discreet attestations of authenticity by F.W. Jähns at the head of each movement, Karlsruhe, December 1806-January 1807 (with the composer's autograph revisions summer 1810), dark green folder with gilt titles (overall size: c.27 x 41cm), some wear and surface loss to first and last pages, including title, some browning and dust marking, small hole to margins

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate
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THIS IS A COMPLETE SYMPHONY BY THE FIRST GREAT GERMAN ROMANTIC COMPOSER.

This is the only autograph manuscript of this work, written when Weber was twenty years of age. There are two other contemporary sources: a contemporary copy (incomplete and lacking the composer's revisions of 1810) and a very inaccurate first edition of the parts in 1813.  The composer's father, Franz Anton, stated in a letter of 7 February 1807, that the symphony was to be dedicated to Joseph Haydn.

The manuscript contains Weber's revisions of 1810, which are written on completely different paper and pasted into the score.  Some of these contain new passages of up to ten bars in full score, extending beyond the margins of the original page. This paper evidently belonged to Weber's former teacher, the Abbé Vogler, since they contain music in his hand on the versos of the pastedowns. These pastedowns have now been carefully lifted so that Weber's original versions of these passages (together with Vogler's rejected scraps) can now be read. Vogler's rejected pieces of paper contain fragments of music for violin and piano, an "Agnus Dei" and studies in music theory. Weber's revisions can thus be dated to his stay with Vogler at Darmstadt from 18 August until 19 or 20 September 1810.

Weber wrote this work while resident at Karlsruhe, working as "Intendant of Music" to Duke Eugen of Württemburg. The Duke maintained a fine, large orchestra and was himself an enthusiastic oboist. Weber's symphony contains prominent parts for the oboe and the horns, but none for clarinets. Because of the Duke's military duties and the disruption of court life due to the Napoleonic Wars, the symphony was probably not performed at Karlsruhe. The premiere seems to have been at Mannheim on 9 March 1810.