Chopin, Frédéric.

the working manuscript, hitherto lost, of the complete study for piano, written in dark brown  ink on five two-stave systems per page, apparently the first complete draft of the Etude, with deletions, alterations and revisions, including rejected drafts of bars and revised ending, which has been extended by two bars, comprising sixty-seven bars in all 



3 pages, including the title-page written by Julian Fontana, "3ia Etude, i Méthode des Méthodes", oblong 4to (c.20 x 27.5cms), 14-stave paper, the music on the inner pages of a bifolium, stitched to modern card wrappers,  [probably Nohant, 1839], cleaned and repaired, scorch-marks to upper margins (paper restored) with slight loss

Julian Fontana  (1810-1865), by descent

K. Kobylanska Rekopisy utworów Chopina, Katalog. Manuscripts of Chopin's Works, Catalogue (1977),  no. 906 ("lost"); Chominski & Turlo (1990) 38 (this manuscript is not listed).  

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
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This is a Chopin discovery:  the composing manuscript of Chopin's well-known Étude, described by Kobylanska as "Zaginiony" ("lost").  There is also another autograph manuscript by Chopin in Valldemosa (Majorca), which served as the Stichvorlage, a fair copy containing all three of the Trois nouvelles Études.  The present manuscript is the composer's working draft of the complete first study and is unrecorded.

The F minor Étude is a subtle exercise in contrasting rhythms and two-part counterpoint: the texture is strongly reminiscent of Chopin's Étude Op.25 no.2, also in F minor.  He composed the Trois nouvelles Études for Moscheles's didactic Méthode des Méthodes, a three-volume collection, in which Chopin's pieces sit along-side elaborate virtuoso concert studies by Liszt, Thalberg,  Henselt and Moscheles himself.  This subtle Étude encapsulates the artistic distance between Chopin and all his contemporaries as a pianist composer; "or, to put it another way, his debt to Bach, his indifference to Liszt, and his decisive influence on Debussy" (J. Samson, Chopin, 1996, p.212).

The manuscript was originally in the possession of Chopin's friend and assistant Julian Fontana, who added the title on the first page. It has come to the current owners by descent, suffering some scorch damage from a bombing raid in 1941, but has been carefully repaired.