Pleyel, Marie. (1811-1875). Seven Autograph Letters Signed. An interesting collection of seven autograph letters signed by the distinguished Belgian pianist. Her concert career, which spanned approximately forty years, was one of the most brilliant of the century. She blazed through France, Belgium, Austria, Russia, Germany and England, leaving a trail of rave reviews and delirious fans. Heine evidently included Pleyel in the mighty ensemble of the reigning European piano virtuosos when he called “Thalberg a king, Liszt a prophet, Chopin a poet, Herz an advocate, Kalkbrenner a minstrel, Mme Pleyel a sibyl, and Döhler a pianist.” François-Joseph Fétis, who eventually invited Pleyel to become the first head of the piano department at the Brussels Conservatory, wrote: "I have heard all the celebrated pianists from Hullmandel and Clementi up to the famous ones of today [ca. 1870] but I say that none of them has given me, as has Mme. Pleyel, the feeling of perfection." Associated with some of the most renowned and influential figures of her time, she was a friend of Alexandre Dumas père and Victor Hugo, and her talent and magnetism compelled Robert Schumann, Mendelssohn, and Liszt to sing praises, Berlioz and Gérard de Nerval to lose their hearts (both later wrote short stories based on their turbulent experiences with Pleyel), and numerous prominent composers to dedicate their works to her. She was married to, albeit briefly, Camille Pleyel, who owned one of the most successful piano firms in Europe. Peter Bloom has written that Pleyel “may be the real key to understanding the inner workings of musical Paris in and around 1830.” This remarkable collection of letters, all in French, is described in detail as follows:
1. To an unidentified male recipient (note in pencil in unknown hand, "à M. Steveniers"). 1 p. Bifolium with blind stamp "Angoulieme." Date "Wednesday morning." Describes an encounter of the writer with Belgian composer and musicologist François-Joseph Fétis (1784-1871), in which the recipient's prospective employment at the conservatory in Brussels was discussed. "It will be easy for you to discuss this matter with him [Fétis] because he gave me orders to tell you that he will expect you tomorrow, Thursday, at 10 AM." 8.5 x 5.25 inches (21.4 x 13.4 cm).
2. To an unidentified male recipient. 2 p. Single leaf. Date "Saturday." About the journalist L[ouis] Desnoyers (1802-1868), identified as a friend of the recipient. "You will easily understand how indispensable it is for my second concert that the newspapers review my first. Would you please press Mr. Desnoyers to occupy himself with me, and Messrs. Achard and Hyppolite [sic] Lucas as well?" 6.75 x 4.25 inches (17 x 11 cm)
3. To the same (?). 1 p. Single leaf. Date "Sunday morning." "I have read with great pleasure, Monsieur, the great article in Le Siècle, and I have written some words of thanks to Mr. L. Demoyens and sent him two tickets for my concert..." 6.75 x 4.25 inches (17 x 11 cm).
4. To an unidentified male recipient. 1 p. Bifolium with blind stamp "Bath." Date "Sunday, 9 o'clock." Pleyel thanks the recipient for a souvenir and begs him to visit her: "Every day, from 4 to 6, I am at home, and I sincerely desire that you will have some moments to spend as soon as possible. I have been told that tomorrow you would go to the evening event at Mr. Pape's. I would be enchanted to see you there..." 8.5 x 5.25 inches (21.4 x 13.4 cm).
5. To the music publisher, Maurice Schlesinger, Paris. 2 pp. Bifolium. Dated Brussels, February 10, 1845. Address to final page (identifies recipient, who is not named in the letter itself). Pleyel refers to a letter she sent Schlesinger the week before, when her mother was ill and she was not able to make any commitments. Now, as her mother is recovering, she asks Schlesinger to arrange for the rental of the hall of the Theâtre Italien for her concert in April as he had proposed and, if possible, for one more concert one week later: "You will surely remember that I was then concerned that these concerts will take place in the evening, that you will rent the hall for me at 1500 francs per night including ushers, fire fighters, and illumination, that I will have to pay the fees for the orchestra and the pauper relief tax only, and that all revenue from these concerts will be mine." 7.25 x 4.75 in (18 x 11.7 cm).
6. To an unidentified recipient. 3 pp. Bifolium, 8.5 x 5.25 in (21.4 x 13.4 cm), with blind stamp "Bath." Date "Tuesday morning 6 o'clock." Pleyel reports the death of her mother and complains about the emptiness of her life: "In Brussels, as anywhere else, I am free, completely free. Nobody has the right to oppose any of my actions, nobody opposes them. I hardly see anybody, my life is somber and monotonous, but my daughter, whom I will not leave alone, keeps me quite busy, and in my unfortunate situation, she is a great comfort. My dear sister-in-law, who likes you very much and asks me to tell you so, has lost her baby two days ago. You see how grief surrounds us. She returns to Ghent today. The man you call her fiancé was quite rudely treated by her on Sunday. We all wish for a breakup, and we will get there..."
7. To a count ("Monsieur le Comte"). 4 pp. Bifolium. Brussels, Friday, March 16, [1866]. Letter refers to François-Joseph Fétis as "83 years old," allowing to date it precisely (Fétis turned 83 on March 25 only, but March 16, 1867, would be a Saturday). A very affectionate letter raising the question whether Pleyel was in love with the recipient (if not necessarily vice versa): "Since your departure, Monsieur le Comte, I have been feeling completely forsaken, all alone at home, somber, and it seems to me as if even Coucou did not sing as well as before." There is a postscript in which Pleyel asks the recipient to burn this letter, which he obviously ignored. 7.25 x 4.5 inches (18 x 11 cm).
Pleyel, Marie. (1811-1875). Seven Autograph Letters Signed. An interesting collection of seven autograph letters signed by the distinguished Belgian pianist. Her concert career, which spanned approximately forty years, was one of the most brilliant of the century. She blazed through France, Belgium, Austria, Russia, Germany and England, leaving a trail of rave reviews and delirious fans. Heine evidently included Pleyel in the mighty ensemble of the reigning European piano virtuosos when he called “Thalberg a king, Liszt a prophet, Chopin a poet, Herz an advocate, Kalkbrenner a minstrel, Mme Pleyel a sibyl, and Döhler a pianist.” François-Joseph Fétis, who eventually invited Pleyel to become the first head of the piano department at the Brussels Conservatory, wrote: "I have heard all the celebrated pianists from Hullmandel and Clementi up to the famous ones of today [ca. 1870] but I say that none of them has given me, as has Mme. Pleyel, the feeling of perfection." Associated with some of the most renowned and influential figures of her time, she was a friend of Alexandre Dumas père and Victor Hugo, and her talent and magnetism compelled Robert Schumann, Mendelssohn, and Liszt to sing praises, Berlioz and Gérard de Nerval to lose their hearts (both later wrote short stories based on their turbulent experiences with Pleyel), and numerous prominent composers to dedicate their works to her. She was married to, albeit briefly, Camille Pleyel, who owned one of the most successful piano firms in Europe. Peter Bloom has written that Pleyel “may be the real key to understanding the inner workings of musical Paris in and around 1830.” This remarkable collection of letters, all in French, is described in detail as follows:
1. To an unidentified male recipient (note in pencil in unknown hand, "à M. Steveniers"). 1 p. Bifolium with blind stamp "Angoulieme." Date "Wednesday morning." Describes an encounter of the writer with Belgian composer and musicologist François-Joseph Fétis (1784-1871), in which the recipient's prospective employment at the conservatory in Brussels was discussed. "It will be easy for you to discuss this matter with him [Fétis] because he gave me orders to tell you that he will expect you tomorrow, Thursday, at 10 AM." 8.5 x 5.25 inches (21.4 x 13.4 cm).
2. To an unidentified male recipient. 2 p. Single leaf. Date "Saturday." About the journalist L[ouis] Desnoyers (1802-1868), identified as a friend of the recipient. "You will easily understand how indispensable it is for my second concert that the newspapers review my first. Would you please press Mr. Desnoyers to occupy himself with me, and Messrs. Achard and Hyppolite [sic] Lucas as well?" 6.75 x 4.25 inches (17 x 11 cm)
3. To the same (?). 1 p. Single leaf. Date "Sunday morning." "I have read with great pleasure, Monsieur, the great article in Le Siècle, and I have written some words of thanks to Mr. L. Demoyens and sent him two tickets for my concert..." 6.75 x 4.25 inches (17 x 11 cm).
4. To an unidentified male recipient. 1 p. Bifolium with blind stamp "Bath." Date "Sunday, 9 o'clock." Pleyel thanks the recipient for a souvenir and begs him to visit her: "Every day, from 4 to 6, I am at home, and I sincerely desire that you will have some moments to spend as soon as possible. I have been told that tomorrow you would go to the evening event at Mr. Pape's. I would be enchanted to see you there..." 8.5 x 5.25 inches (21.4 x 13.4 cm).
5. To the music publisher, Maurice Schlesinger, Paris. 2 pp. Bifolium. Dated Brussels, February 10, 1845. Address to final page (identifies recipient, who is not named in the letter itself). Pleyel refers to a letter she sent Schlesinger the week before, when her mother was ill and she was not able to make any commitments. Now, as her mother is recovering, she asks Schlesinger to arrange for the rental of the hall of the Theâtre Italien for her concert in April as he had proposed and, if possible, for one more concert one week later: "You will surely remember that I was then concerned that these concerts will take place in the evening, that you will rent the hall for me at 1500 francs per night including ushers, fire fighters, and illumination, that I will have to pay the fees for the orchestra and the pauper relief tax only, and that all revenue from these concerts will be mine." 7.25 x 4.75 in (18 x 11.7 cm).
6. To an unidentified recipient. 3 pp. Bifolium, 8.5 x 5.25 in (21.4 x 13.4 cm), with blind stamp "Bath." Date "Tuesday morning 6 o'clock." Pleyel reports the death of her mother and complains about the emptiness of her life: "In Brussels, as anywhere else, I am free, completely free. Nobody has the right to oppose any of my actions, nobody opposes them. I hardly see anybody, my life is somber and monotonous, but my daughter, whom I will not leave alone, keeps me quite busy, and in my unfortunate situation, she is a great comfort. My dear sister-in-law, who likes you very much and asks me to tell you so, has lost her baby two days ago. You see how grief surrounds us. She returns to Ghent today. The man you call her fiancé was quite rudely treated by her on Sunday. We all wish for a breakup, and we will get there..."
7. To a count ("Monsieur le Comte"). 4 pp. Bifolium. Brussels, Friday, March 16, [1866]. Letter refers to François-Joseph Fétis as "83 years old," allowing to date it precisely (Fétis turned 83 on March 25 only, but March 16, 1867, would be a Saturday). A very affectionate letter raising the question whether Pleyel was in love with the recipient (if not necessarily vice versa): "Since your departure, Monsieur le Comte, I have been feeling completely forsaken, all alone at home, somber, and it seems to me as if even Coucou did not sing as well as before." There is a postscript in which Pleyel asks the recipient to burn this letter, which he obviously ignored. 7.25 x 4.5 inches (18 x 11 cm).