Yet, contrary to what one might assume, Dragonetti DID NOT participate in the London premiere! How could this possibly be? We need to put this incident in context to better understand.
Excerpt from one of Beethoven’s Conversation Books In 1825 in Vienna,Beethoven and his friends are chatting about the upcoming British premiere of the 9th.
(from the conversation books-in yellow highlight)
Herr Holz: “Haben Sie bei den Rezitativen ihr D moll Sinfonie an Dragonetti gedacht?” (Were you thinking of Dragonetti when you composed the recitatives from the 9th Symphony?) Beethoven’s response is not written down. Then, the great composer likely asked Holz whether Dragonetti was participating in the British premiere. This was the answer he got: “Dragonetti war nicht bei der Sinfonie, weil er zu viel für seine Mitwirkung verlangte denn er behauptete, Beethoven habe die ganze Symphonie für ihn geschrieben.” (Dragonetti was not at the British premiere of the Symphony because he demanded too much money for his participation. He justified the monetary request because he claimed that Beethoven had written the entire Symphony for him!)
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