Previously unknown Bartók manuscript discovered

A previously unknown composition of Béla Bartók has been discovered by music antiquarian Ádám Bősze. The composer wrote the short piece on October 1, 1907, in response to a question from his lover, violinist Stefi Geyer, which she had sent him in a letter. On September 29, Geyer sent a melody to the composer with the question, “How would you harmonize this?”, which essentially means how he would embellish the standalone melody with additional notes.

At the top of the manuscript, Bartók succinctly wrote, “Like this!”, followed by the piece, marked Adagio molto, meaning very slowly. Beneath the first line, however, for the continuation, he wrote: con molto espressione, amoroso—that is, with deep expression, lovingly. There is no doubt that the young composer was not merely sending a reply, but a musical love letter to Stefi Geyer. This is evidenced by the four sections that Bartók specifically marked, in which the so-called “Stefi Geyer motif” appears. Just as in the early violin concerto dedicated to the artist, this is clearly the main theme which also carries a message of love.

This exceptionally valuable document surfaced at an auction in Spain, albeit incorrectly labeled as a simple musical album sheet. The antiquarian purchased it in 2024 and has not publicly revealed it until now. According to László Vikárius, director of the Bartók Archive in Budapest, there is no doubt as to the authenticity of the unsigned manuscript, which—in his opinion—is an irreplaceable piece of Hungarian cultural heritage.