
Max Unger suggested that Ludwig Nohl may have transcribed the title incorrectly and the original work may have been named "Für Therese", a reference to Therese Malfatti von Rohrenbach zu Dezza (1792–1851).

Therese Malfatti Therese Malfatti, widely believed to have been the dedicatee of "Für Elise" Evidence suggests that "Elise" was a close friend of Beethoven and probably an important figure in his life. It is not certain who "Elise" was, although a list of possible dedicatees have been suggested by various scholars over the years. On the other hand, Barry Cooper wrote, in a 1984 essay in The Musical Times, that one of two surviving sketches closely resembles the published version. Chiantore suggested that the original signed manuscript, upon which Ludwig Nohl claimed to base his transcription, may never have existed. The pianist and musicologist Luca Chiantore argued in his thesis and his 2010 book Beethoven al piano (new Italian edition: Beethoven al pianoforte, 2014) that Beethoven might not have been the person who gave the piece the form that we know today. Another point in favor of the D4 is that the ascending seventh of the motive in this form is repeated in sequence in bars 9 to 11 that begin the second section of the principal theme. However, the use of the note D4 in bar 7 can be traced back to a draft Beethoven wrote for the piece that is today housed in the Beethoven-Haus Bonn. Many editions change all the figures to beginning with E4 until the final bars, where D4 is used and resolved by adding a C to the final A octave. Nohl's score gives E4 in bar 7, but D4 thereafter in all parallel passages. Whatever the validity of Nohl's edition, an editorial peculiarity contained in it involves whether the second right-hand note in bar 7, that is, the first note of the three-note upbeat figure that characterizes the main melody, is an E4 or a D4. It is believed that Beethoven intended to add the piece to a cycle of bagatelles. The later version includes the marking Molto grazioso. The tempo marking Poco moto is believed to have been on the manuscript that Ludwig Nohl transcribed (now lost). There are a few extra bars in the transitional section into the B section and finally, the rising A minor arpeggio figure is moved later into the piece.

The most notable difference is in the first theme, the left-hand arpeggios are delayed by a 16th note. There is a later version, with drastic changes to the accompaniment which was transcribed from a later manuscript by the Beethoven scholar Barry Cooper. The version of "Für Elise" heard today is an earlier version that was transcribed by Ludwig Nohl. The music was published as part of Nohl's Neue Briefe Beethovens (New letters by Beethoven) on pages 28 to 33, printed in Stuttgart by Johann Friedrich Cotta. Bthvn" ("For Elise on April 27 in memory by L. The discoverer of the piece, Ludwig Nohl, affirmed that the original autograph manuscript, now lost, had the title: "Für Elise am 27 April zur Erinnerung von L. The score was not published until 1867, forty years after the composer's death in 1827.

The identity of "Elise" is unknown researchers have suggested Therese Malfatti, Elisabeth Röckel, or Elise Barensfeld. It was not published during his lifetime, only being discovered (by Ludwig Nohl) 40 years after his death, and may be termed either a Bagatelle or an Albumblatt. For Elise), is one of Ludwig van Beethoven's most popular compositions.

25 in A minor ( WoO 59, Bia 515) for solo piano, commonly known as " Für Elise" ( German:, transl.
