Haydn, Joseph, (1732-1809)

informing him that he had the pleasure the previous evening of a visit from his Prince, who asked him to come to Eisenstadt in order to attend the rehearsal of various new pieces of music, including two Vespers and a Mass by Albrechtsberger and a Vesper by [Johann Nepomuk] Fuchs, adding that, as he is also expecting the installation of an assistant Kapellmeister, as yet unknown to him, in place of his brother, he will not be able to come to Baden and stay with him, but thanking him all the same for his invitation; and in a postscript noting that Albrechtsberger received a princely reward for his composition, something which pleased him very much ("...nebst dem erwarte ich auch eine Installirung eines Vice-Capellmeisters stat[t] meinem Bruder. Der Nahme desselben ist mir noch unbekannt...")

1 page, 4to (23 x 18.5cm), integral autograph address-panel, traces of seal, seal tear, together with a later manuscript English translation, Vienna, 30 July 1802, light browning to address-panel, traces of mount and a few tiny holes to integral

V.A. Heck, catalogue XXVI (1926), no. 45; Alfred C. Meyer (Chicago), his sale Parke-Bernet, New York, 30 November 1943, Lot 149 ($170); Galerie St Etienne; acquired 26 September 1945

Dénes Bartha, Joseph Haydn. Gesammelte Briefe und Aufzeichnungen (1965) 311 (NB: the location given is incorrect); CCLN 206; H.C. Robbins Landon, Haydn. Chronicle and Works, v (1977), pp. 228-29; Peter Clive, Mozart and his Circle. A Biographical Dictionary (1993), p. 146; Theodore Albrecht (ed.), Letters to Beethoven and Other Correspondence 1824-1828, i (1996), p. 193

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

A FINE LATE LETTER FROM THE YEAR OF HAYDN'S LAST MAJOR WORK, THE "HARMONIEMESSE".

Haydn's correspondent was the Baden choirmaster and schoolteacher Anton Stoll (1747-1805), for whom Mozart eleven years earlier had written the sublime motet Ave verum corpus, K. 618. Stoll was a good friend to Haydn, and had been of great help to the composer's wife, Maria Anna, towards the end of her life. It was in Stoll's house in Baden that she died on 20 March 1800.

Three notable musicians are referred to by Haydn in the letter: Georg Albrechtsberger (1736-1809), who had been appointed Kapellmeister to Stephen's in Vienna in 1792 (the post Mozart would have secured but for his death the previous year); Haydn's brother Michael (1737-1806), the celebrated Salzburg composer and, like Joseph, friend of Mozart; and Johann Nepomuk Fuchs (1766-1839), who had joined the Esterházy orchestra as a violinist by 1788. Michael Haydn had been approached the previous year with the offer of the post of vice-Kapellmeister at Esterházy, but had been too attached to Salzburg to leave. In the end, it was Fuchs, who received the call to Esterházy, succeeding later to Haydn's title of Kapellmeister in 1809.  This lot is also illustrated on page 4.