Zweig MS 60

Autograph full score. Written in ink on systems of five staves. Movement I (ff. 1r-6v), ‘All[egr]o di molto’; movement II (ff. 7r-10v) ‘Andante’; movement III (ff. 11r-12v) ‘Menuetto: Allegretto’ and ‘Trio’; movement IV (ff. 13r-18v) ‘All[egr]o’. Headed by Mozart ‘Quintetto:’ (f. 1r) and with his description of the work and signature, ‘Quintetto / à / 2 Violini / 2 Viole / e / Violoncello. / di Wolfgango Amadeo Mozart’, at the end (f. 18v). Bar counts in ink or pencil at the end of most systems seem not to be in Mozart’s hand. Later annotations to f. 1r include ownership inscription of J.A. Stumpff, with his note ‘at the end is Mozarts Name’ (bottom left), and in the top margin ‘N. 26’ (struck through) followed by ‘N. 27’ [in the hand of G.N. Nissen].

Entered in Mozart’s own Verzeichnüss (Zweig MS 63) under date of 12 April 1791. Johann Andreas Stumpff (1769-1846), earlier a friend of Beethoven, was a harp maker resident in London. He purchased a number of Mozart chamber music autographs from J.A. André in 1811 or 1814. Reportedly André later enlisted Stumpff’s help in an attempt to sell the main group of his Mozart autographs to the English crown. Stumpff’s collection, which also included Beethoven manuscripts and a lock of Goethe’s hair, was auctioned the year after his death. In addition to Zweig MS 60 he owned the autograph manuscripts of the last ten Mozart string quartets, now Add. MSS 37763-5 and of the C minor string quintet K 406/516b, now in Add. MS 31748. As a collector Stumpff was one of Zweig’s true predecessors: his was ‘one of the best collections of Mozart autographs ever owned privately in England’ (King, Collectors).