Sunday, May 23, 1824: The Second Akademie

Up to now, we have known very little that is authentic about Sunday, May 23, the day of Beethoven's “repeat” concert featuring the Ninth Symphony. The performance at the Grosser Redoutensaal was to begin at 12:30 p.m., and there are conversation book entries—possibly falsified—in Schindler's hand indicating that the amanuensis was still urging Beethoven to leave his apartment at 12:15: “Umlauf and Schuppanzigh ask you to hurry, otherwise they will be forced to begin [the Akademie] without you.” A carriage drive from Beethoven's apartment in suburban Landstrasse to the Josephsplatz in the City would have taken only 10 or 15 minutes, so the composer presumably arrived on time, in any case.

The program reflected the modifications and accommodations to the Italian-opera-loving public that theater manager Duport had demanded if he was to share in the profits or losses from this concert:

• 1) Beethoven, Grand Overture [Consecration of the House].

• 2) Beethoven, New Trio [Tremate, empi, tremate], with soloists Mad. Dardanelli, Herren Donzelli and Botticelli.

• 3) Beethoven, Grand Hymn [Kyrie from the Missa solemnis], with soloists Henriette Sontag, Caroline Unger, Anton Haitzinger, Joseph Seipelt, and Chorus.

• 4) [Rossini], Aria “Di tanti palpiti” [from Tancredi], sung by Herr David.

5) Beethoven, Grand Symphony, with a … Finale … on Schiller's Ode, An die Freude.

Commentators through the present day have repeated or paraphrased Schindler's statement that “the hall was not even half full, for the bright sun had lured the music lovers out of doors.”3 In fact, the morning had started out “cloudy,” and the rest of the day was “overcast,” though it might have included periods of sunshine. The winds were light in the morning but heavy by 3 p.m., and the temperature ranged between 58 and 64 degrees Fahrenheit.

Two days later, on Tuesday, May 25, nephew Karl gave Beethoven a point-by-point explanation for the poor attendance that seems more logical than Schindler's rationalizations of nearly four decades later. According to Karl,

“I was in the hall, in part also to hear opinions.

“It was not full, primarily because many people are already out in the country.

“The high price of the galleries may also have frightened many off; therefore these were quite empty.