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PAN PIPES • SPRING 2018 • sai-national.org 26 A WORLD OF MUSIC put an end to my life — only art it was that withheld me, as it seemed impossible to leave the world until I had produced all that I felt called upon to produce, and so I endured this wretched existence — truly wretched…" It was necessary to make special arrangements to have someone unlock the Beethoven Eroicahaus, our next stop. is summerhouse has no original furniture, but the huge tree from Beethoven's time is still there by the cobblestones in the back yard. What a special feeling to be in the residence where he wrote his third symphony in 1803, for a short time dedicated to Napoleon. Smiling, I hummed its familiar melodies. Back in the city, Franz drove past the 1861 Musikverein (home of the Vienna Philharmonic's New Year's Concert that is rebroadcast on PBS stations) and the Vienna Konzerthaus, heading to Stadtpark's well-known golden statue of Johann Strauss II. Not far away in Beethovenplatz is Casper Zumbusch's bronze statue of Beethoven enhanced by its green patina. Onward to the final morning stop: Beethoven's Pasqualatihaus. We climbed more than 100 steps to the spacious apartment. Pasqualati, a patron of Beethoven, gave him a residence (though maybe not these exact rooms) from 1804-1808 and 1810-1814. Here he wrote the popular piano piece Für Elise, his only opera Leonore (renamed Fidelio), three of his symphonies, and the Archduke Trio. On display is a famous portrait by Willibrord Joseph Mähler and a well-preserved Beethoven piano with five pedals. An informational sheet explained the specific function of each: uno corda for a delicate etherial sound, bassoon for a rasping bass line, moderator for a muted harp sound, pianissimo- stop for an even soer sound, and damper li or sostenuto to enable notes to resonate for longer periods. Today the sostenuto pedal on grand pianos is the middle pedal of the three. (To avoid tripping while descending on your way out, be sure the lights are on by the stairway!) Between 1-2 p.m., when all but one museum was closed, we whizzed to the locations where Mozart performed for Queen Maria eresa in 1762 and in 1768. Aer stopping at St. Marx Cemetery (more of a park now) to see Mozart's monument near his former grave, we proceeded to Central Cemetery to pay our respects at the impressive graves of Beethoven, Brahms, Schubert, and Strauss. en Franz drove to another composer home, Haydnhaus, redesigned in 2009 for the 200th anniversary of Haydn's death. Haydn lived here for the last twelve years of his life. ere were more extensive displays than in the previous four museums. My favorite object was a clavier with the colors of its keys reversed: today's usual black keys were white, and usual white keys were black. Plan to spend quite a bit of time in this fascinating museum. Oen a composer museum has a time line of events in the composer's life. In addition at the Haydnhaus, however, there was an intriguing time line of Papa Haydn's daily schedule, including awaking at 6:30 a.m. and shaving, composing beginning at 8 a.m., a walk or visitors at 11:30 a.m., and lunch between 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. Surprisingly, tucked away in the Haydnhaus is one room devoted to Brahms, even though he never stayed there. A poster explained: "Today Johannes Brahms is a 'permanent guest' in the Haydnhaus. ere are two reasons for this: first, Brahms, born in 1833, was a great admirer of Haydn, and secondly his flat in Karlsgasse 4 no Above, Strauss's writing desk. At right, a clavier display in the Haydnhaus.

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