Musicologist believes piano piece Beethoven's last

Peter McCallam, associate professor of musicology at the University of Sydney, found the 32 bars of handwritten musical notation while looking at the sketchbook at Berlin's state library. Most of Beethoven's sketchbooks have been studied in detail but the final one has attracted less attention.

McCallum told Reuters that he didn't know it was a piano piece instantly because Beethoven often used a chaotic sort of shorthand.

"The sketchbooks are very rich sources but they are very difficult to read and need a bit of deciphering, but you can work it out if you look at it for long enough," he added.

"He does use a key signature that gives us a hint, so you've got to guess."

McCallum said he believed the piece was written in October 1826, a few months before Beethoven died in March 1827.

He said the piece was quite melancholy but "rather charming and quite simple. It's also got a rather nice quality and it's not difficult to play so it would suit young children."

"It's got a few little unusual harmonic features which we don't normally associate with Beethoven," he added.

McCallum's pianist wife Stephanie used her husband's transcription to make the first recording of the piece -- Bagatelle in F minor -- which is just 54 seconds.

McCallum said he believed the piece, although brief, was complete.

"It doesn't end in mid-sentence so to speak, but I suspect if Beethoven had come to it as he very often did with these things he would have added more because it's not very long," he added.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                           Â