presents:

Beethoven’s manuscript for his Violin and Piano Sonata, op. 96 in G major, purchased by Pierpont Morgan in 1907

The goal of the Music Manuscripts Online project has been to create and to provide online access to high-quality images and descriptions of music manuscripts owned by The Morgan Library & Museum.

Since the project began in 2007, more than 900 manuscripts containing approximately 42,000 pages have been digitized and described. These include works by J. S. Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Chopin, Debussy, Fauré, Haydn, Liszt, Mahler, Massenet, Mendelssohn, Mozart, Puccini, Schubert, and Schumann, among many others.

Images and descriptions of these manuscripts will be available on the Morgan’s Web site for study by scholars, musicians, and the general public. Over time, enhancements will be added, such as images of watermarks (see, for example, Mozart’s autograph manuscript of Der Schauspieldirektor, Cary 331) and essays about the manuscripts by leading scholars.

The initial release of the Music Manuscripts Online Web pages provides access to digitized versions of more than forty music manuscripts, selected as a representative sample of the Morgan’s holdings. Additional images and descriptions will be added as the reviewing process continues. Please note that images of works still under copyright will be accessible only on-site until copyright restrictions on these works expire.

Below two of the precious manuscripts.

Album leaf, recto (1 of 2)
Verdi, Giuseppe, 1813-1901. Traviata. Atto 1o (Album leaf) . La traviata, act 1 (album leaf) : manuscript in the hand of Désirée Artôt , 1861 Dec.
Accession Number: Cary 84 (Record ID: 114159)