Adolf Martin Schlesinger (German music publisher, 1769-1838) The Schlesinger Letter Books and Correspondence (c.1825-1870) The retained copies of approximately five thousand letters sent by the Berlin music publisher Adolph Martin Schlesinger (1769-1838) and his successor Heinrich Schlesinger (1810-1879), covering the period 1803-1864, plus around 750 letters, including receipts and contracts, sent to Schlesinger by composers, musicians, publishers, instrumentalists, musical arrangers between c.1825-1870, INCLUDING TWO LETTERS AND THE SUMMARY OF A THIRD TO BEETHOVEN, THE LAST APPARENTLY UNKNOWN AND UNPUBLISHED The letter books include hundreds of letters from the early years, before 1810 when Schlesinger worked as a book dealer specialising in music, selling printed and manuscript music in Berlin; the later letters deal, amongst other matters, with the publication of Beethoven’s late string quartets, a projected complete edition of Beethoven’s music, the music of J.S. Bach, especially the first edition of the St. Matthew Passion, edited by A.B. Marx; the operas of Spontini, Meyerbeer and Weber, including documents relating to a proposed complete edition of Weber’s works, the posthumous publications of Chopin (opp.66-73); including copies of contracts, with letters to other publishers, instrument makers, intendants and impresarios of theatres, concert-halls and opera houses throughout Europe and also a few in America, containing three letters to Beethoven (15 April and 11 November 1826, about Grillparzer’s Melusine and the performance of Weber’s Oberon in London, and 2 December 1826 ("wegen Aufführung seiner Symphonie in Moscheles Conzert"), in summary form, about the performance of his symphonies in a concert), Mendelssohn (about the publication of his symphonies), Liszt (2, enclosing proofs of the Don Juan fantasy); agreeing to publish the his collected songs, discussing the terms), Meyerbeer (5, about Robert le Diable), Spontini (8), Spohr (26), Moniuszko, Ignaz von Seyfried, Tomaschek (1), Madame Chopin [Justyna Krzyzanowska] 1782-1861, the composer’s mother, Julian Fontana, Chopin’s copyist and assistant, about the publication of his late works; Tytus Woyciechowsky, Chopin’s friend (about the manuscripts of Chopin’s songs), Weber, the King of Prussia (about Weber), Czerny, Hummel (3), A.B. Marx, Schindler (about Beethoven), Schlegel; also including many to publishers, such as André, Schott and Zulehner, Breitkopf und Härtel, Hoffmeister and Kühnel; Naegeli, Simrock, Aibl, the Kunst und Industrie Comptoir, Diabelli, Artaria, Mollo, Mechetti, Cappi, Czerny, Sauer und Leidesdorf, Haslinger, Meser, Clementi and Collard, Ewer and Co. Wessel, Stoddart, Cocks, Boosey, Ricordi (about the publication of Rossini), Cranz, Leuckardt, Moritz Schlesinger (about the publication of Beethoven’s late string quartets), Panseron, Brandus, Pancouke, Lederkus in New York; about the business of publishing and distribution of music, including by Beethoven, Mozart, Mendelssohn, J.S.Bach, Berlioz, Chopin, in German, French and English In 4 large volumes: 1) Correspondence 1803-1804, 484 pages plus indexes, two pages torn, with paper-loss affecting text, “Copier-Buch Junij 1803.”, c.33.5 x 22cm 2) Correspondence 1807-1808, 300 pages, plus 13 pages of invoices, c.33.5 x 20.5cm 3) Correspondence 1826-1833, with invoices sent to booksellers, 703pp, plus indexes, c.32 x 20cm 4) Correspondence 1833-1864, 846 pages, plus indexes, 37 x 22cms, with contemporary label marked “Copie-Buch” In addition, approximately 750 unbound letters and contracts sent to Schlesinger, including from publishers such as Haslinger (Tobias and Carl) (about Beethoven, Weber, Henselt, Johann Strauss I and Meyerbeer, amongst others); Simrock, Brandus (about Halévy, Bach, Meyerbeer, Scribe), Fürstenau, Mechetti, Lienau (including a series of cheques and details of the sale of Schlesinger to Lienau in a small manuscript booklet)), Hoffmeister and Kühnel, Whistling, Schott, C.F. Peters, Richard Franck, Naegeli, Trautwein, Wierling, and composers alphabetically including Meyerbeer (3 copies of a contract), Reissiger (extensive series), Stern (long series, about the publication of Meyerbeer’s operas and Mendelssohn’s music), Zeller, Zellner (about Meyerbeer) and many others …Herrn v. Beethoven. Sehr erfreute mich Ihre geehrte Zuschrift von 13 Oct worin Sie Ihre Zufriedenheit jetzt zurückgezogen auf das Band, ganz der Muhe wieder leben zu können ausdrückten, wie begierig bin ich, Ihre neuen Meisterwerke bald an den Tag befördert zu sehen.…Die Conc. & Sinfon. von Beethoven sind noch nicht da, sollen Ihnen aber gleich nach Eingang mitgetheilt werden… Hr. Sim[rock] Stich ist im forigen [sic] Winter erscheinen Beethov[en]: Son[aten]. p[er].P[iano].F[orte]. op.23,24,26,27,28, No.1 u 2. Die Verlangten Variati[onen] von Beethov[en]…Mein Sohn schreibt mir wie folgt: Herr v. Weber erschien Mittwoch der 8te…zum ersten Male öffentlich in Covent Garden...ein überaus zahlreiches Publikum angezogen hatte, ein viermaliges Vivat schallte dem hochgefeinten Meister entgegen, die Damen winkten mit den Tuchern, die Männer schwankten die Hüte und ein Enthusiasmus hatte sich des ganzen Publikums bemeistert… Binnen weniger Wochen erscheint in meinem Verlage zum erstenmale herausgegeben: Joh Seb: Bach’s Passionsmusik nach dem Evangelium Matthäi, 1. In vollstandiger Partitur 2. In Klavierauszuge von A.B. Marx welches nach dem Urtheil die Kenner das grösste und wichtigste Werk der Kirchenmusik ist… THIS IS AN EXTRAORDINARY, LARGELY UNKNOWN, AND ALMOST COMPLETELY UNTAPPED ARCHIVE OF MATERIAL RELATING TO THE PUBLISHING, DISTRIBUTION, MARKETING AND SELLING OF MUSIC IN THE FIRST HALF OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY AND BEYOND. It has never been explored in any detail and it contains highly important primary information and evidence about the publication history of J.S. Bach, Beethoven, Haydn, Mozart, Mendelssohn, Chopin, Weber, Berlioz, Moscheles, Meyerbeer, Scribe and hundreds of other composers, publishers, printers and purchasers from Moscow to New York, Riga to Lisbon and Dublin to Odessa. They not only relate to publishing matters, but also to the performance of music in Berlin, London, Paris and elsewhere and the problems of performers and their instruments. It is difficult to imagine a more significant archive, dealing as it does with the publication of seminal works of Western music---Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, Beethoven’s late string quartets and the piano works of Chopin, to name but a few. Although these are naturally of the highest importance, a significant aspect of the correspondence relates to the warp and weft of daily musical life: the interaction of music publishers at the zenith of the art; the relationship between publishers and musical performance; the messy everyday details of the relationships between artists, composers, musicians, singers, impresarios and performing venues. All this, and more, is present. There are of course gaps in the material here. Some of the letters were indeed never sent (often marked as such and crossed through). Not all the letters despatched by Schlesinger were noted down and some, especially to his son Moritz/Maurice in Paris are very sketchily drafted and are the only examples in the entire correspondence where the “Du” form is used. Each volume has an index prepared at the time. These are often not all-inclusive and there are many omissions. The 750 letters written to Schlesinger are often replies to letters in the copy books. Schlesinger’s replies are often there too. One of the three letters to Beethoven found here (the one in summary form of 2 December 1826) is not recorded in Sieghard Brandenburg's magisterial collected edition of the composer's letters; and the remaining two were not edited there from the relevant copy book, being known only from a 1921 publication by Max Unger. Practically all the subscribers to the first edition of the St. Matthew Passion are represented in the letter books. These remarkable volumes and letters will change our knowledge of Adolph Martin Schlesinger and the reception-history of many of his composers. For example, it is generally believed that Schlesinger only turned to music publishing around 1810 and had been a general book seller before that time. The letters from 1803 reveal that Schlesinger was primarily a music seller who also sold books, rather than the other way round. He was in touch with all the major European music publishers and bought and sold music from them, his distribution network being worldwide. Conversely, after 1811 when he was primarily a printer and publisher of music, he still remained a seller of books on non-musical subjects. The information in the letters will also provide new evidence for the publication dates of major works by Beethoven, including the early violin sonatas, the piano sonatas and variations. Most interesting of all are the drafts of letters (more sketchy than any of the other letters here) from Schlesinger to his son Moritz in Paris, dealing with the publication of Beethoven’s late string quartets shortly before and just after the death of the composer. LITERATURE: Max Unger, Ludwig van Beethoven und seine Verleger S.A. Steiner und Tobias Haslinger in Wien, Ad. Mart. Schlesinger in Berlin (Berlin and Vienna, 1921), nos.124-125; Sieghard Brandenburg (ed.), Ludwig van Beethoven. Briefwechsel Gesamtausgabe, vi (Munich, 1996), pp.238-239, 308-309, and 395-396
Schlesinger, Adolf (1817-1870) "Mother with Child" 1869, oil/canvas, l.l. sign./dat., 99x74,5cm (w.f. 110x87,5cm), rest., craquelé, min. defects of the painting surface
Adolf Schlesinger, Herrenportrait Brustbildnis eines älteren grauhaarigen Mannes im Halbprofil, vornehm in Anzug und Krawatte mit Krawattennadel gekleidet, laut ungeprüfter Vorbesitzerangabe Portrait eines Schauspielers, hochovale, lasierende Bildnismalerei, Öl auf Leinwand, links unten teils vom Falz verdeckt signiert und datiert "A. Schlesinger 1860", Craquelure, im prächtigen hochovalen Rahmen mit Schleifenbekrönung (etwas restaurierungsbedürftig) gerahmt, Falzmaße ca. 60 x 52,5 cm. Künstlerinfo: auch Adolph Schlesinger, dt. Portraitmaler (1817 Mainz bis 1870? Köln?), Sohn des Bildnismalers Johann Georg Schlesinger (1775-1841), studierte 1832-34 Malerei und Baukunst an der Akademie Düsseldorf bei Carl Ferdinand Sohn und Carl Friedrich Schäffer, 1834 kurzzeitig in der Landschaftsklasse bei Johann Wilhelm Schirmer, Quelle: Thieme-Becker, Saur "Bio-Bibliographisches Künstlerlexikon", Bruckmann "Düsseldorfer Künstlerlexikon" und Schülerlisten der Düsseldorfer Akademie. [Silver&Metals] [Fine]
Adolf Schlesinger, Herrenportrait Brustbildnis eines älteren grauhaarigen Mannes im Halbprofil, vornehm in Anzug und Krawatte mit Krawattennadel gekleidet, laut ungeprüfter Vorbesitzerangabe Portrait eines Schauspielers, hochovale, lasierende Bildnismalerei, Öl auf Leinwand, links unten teils vom Falz verdeckt signiert und datiert "A. Schlesinger 1860", Craquelure, im prächtigen hochovalen Rahmen mit Schleifenbekrönung (etwas restaurierungsbedürftig) gerahmt, Falzmaße ca. 60 x 52,5 cm. Künstlerinfo: auch Adolph Schlesinger, dt. Portraitmaler (1817 Mainz bis 1870? Köln?), Sohn des Bildnismalers Johann Georg Schlesinger (1775–1841), studierte 1832–34 Malerei und Baukunst an der Akademie Düsseldorf bei Carl Ferdinand Sohn und Carl Friedrich Schäffer, 1834 kurzzeitig in der Landschaftsklasse bei Johann Wilhelm Schirmer, Quelle: Thieme-Becker, Saur "Bio-Bibliographisches Künstlerlexikon", Bruckmann "Düsseldorfer Künstlerlexikon" und Schülerlisten der Düsseldorfer Akademie. RefScu120220
Brustbildnis eines älteren grauhaarigen Mannes im Halbprofil, vornehm in Anzug und Krawatte mit Krawattennadel gekleidet, laut ungeprüfter Vorbesitzerangabe Portrait eines Schauspielers, hochovale, lasierende Bildnismalerei, Öl auf Leinwand, links unten teils vom Falz verdeckt signiert und datiert "A. Schlesinger 1860", Craquelure, im prächtigen hochovalen Rahmen mit Schleifenbekrönung (etwas restaurierungsbedürftig) gerahmt, Falzmaße ca. 60 x 52,5 cm. Künstlerinfo: auch Adolph Schlessinger, dt. Portraitmaler (1817 Mainz bis 1870? Köln?), Sohn des Bildnismalers Johann Georg Schlesinger (1775–1841), studierte 1832–34 Malerei und Baukunst an der Akademie Düsseldorf bei Carl Ferdinand Sohn und Carl Friedrich Schäffer, 1834 kurzzeitig in der Landschaftsklasse bei Johann Wilhelm Schirmer, Quelle: Thieme-Becker, Saur "Bio-Bibliographisches Künstlerlexikon", Bruckmann "Düsseldorfer Künstlerlexikon" und Schülerlisten der Düsseldorfer Akademie.
