comprising the solo for Flamand, beginning "Diese Liebe plötzlich geboren", a short-score manuscript, written in black ink on three four-stave systems per page, some systems extended by Strauss into the right-hand margin, without indications of scoring, with some alterations and additions in pencil, the first page cancelled with a single diagonal stroke in blue crayon, 41 bars in all

2 numbered pages ("47" and "48"), oblong folio (27 x 34cm), 14-stave paper, no place or date [1941 or 1942], some splitting along one fold

Not recorded in Trenner

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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Capriccio was Strauss's final opera, a "Conversation piece" in which the musician, Flamand, and the poet, Olivier, compete for the attentions of the Countess in a discussion over the priority of music and drama in opera. This draft manuscript corresponds to Figures 94-98 of the published score, where Flamand declares his love for the Countess, describing having seen her reading in her library. In the present manuscript, which diverges notably from the final version, Strauss employs throughout a series of descending arpeggios and scalic passages which he obviously felt unnecessarily complex for the scene at hand, later rewriting the whole passage in a simpler vein. In places, subtleties on a smaller scale can also be seen: the words "plötzlich geboren" in the sketch are doubled at the octave, whereas Strauss later changed this to parallel tenths, creating the more sonorous effect so characteristic of the composer at his best.