Für Elise*

von Ludwig van Beethoven

Of course this manuscript is very faded; it's over two hundred years old! This scribbling is from the hand of Beethoven as
he was composing one of his most famous piano pieces. Apparently, he worked on a couple different versions of this
bagatelle, but we'll never know which was his preference, because the manuscripts were not discovered until after his death.

Aspiring pianists seem to be fascinated with what they've heard of this piece.
Often, their young fingers pick out the first nine notes, then they wonder what to
do next. In most cases, they've only heard the relatively easy opening section.

So, many publishers have given us versions consisting only of that part.

That way, the student avoids the really challenging parts. . .

. . . including this fun run.

This edition was published by Beethoven-Haus in Bonn.

There are six pages of informative commentary.
(Es gibt sechs Seiten informativen Kommentar.)

There are also three pages comparing the transcriptions of the two versions. Sehr interessant!

There are various theories as to the identity of this piece's dedicatee. Here are some examples:

  1. Elise Barensfeld.   She was a child prodigy, a soprano who performed from ages 12 through 24 and then disappeared from the scene. There were vocal pieces dedicated to her, but it seems unlikely that that would happen with an advanced piano piece.
  2. Therese Malfatti.   She was a baroness, not by birth nor marriage, but because her father was ennobled when she was fourteen. Apparently, Beethoven was very fond of her, maybe in love with her. However, her name was not "Elise" (but it rhymes).
  3. Elisabeth Röckel.   She did go by "Elis" and "Elise." She was also an opera singer, but she certainly had someone who could play a piano piece written for her. The problem is that that person was her husband, not poor Ludwig who did not win her hand!
The curator has done his own research, and has not reached a definitive conclusion. He has, however, ruled out Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Bess Truman, and Liza Minelli.

~ *FURTHER READING ~

א ל י ש ב צ

Elise is a derivative of the name Elisabeth.
The original Hebrew means "my God is a promise"
(or one of several other similar interpretations).

Other derivations, linguistic variations, and nicknames:
  1. Ailsa
  2. Bella
  3. Belle
  4. Bess
  5. Bessie
  6. Bessy
  7. Beth
  8. Betsy
  9. Bette
  10. Bettie
  11. Bettina
  12. Elisa
  13. Eliska
  14. Elixane
  15. Eliza
  16. Elka
  17. Ellie
  18. Eloise
  19. Elsa
  20. Elsie
  21. Elspeth
  22. Ilsa
  23. Isa
  24. Isabel
  25. Isabella
  26. Liesel
  27. Lisa
  28. Lisbeth
  29. Lisette
  30. Liz
  31. Liza
  32. Lizzie
  33. Lizzy
  1. Et Cetera Ad Infinitum
(But my favorite is Lizard.)