This catalogue lists 1,303 items of Beethoven' s early printed editions (hereinafter generally referred to as "the collection"), that belong to Kunitachi College of Music Library. The collection primarily consists of items that the library has collected. It also includes editions donated in 1983 by the globally acknowledged Beethoven researcher, the late professor Shin Kojima, and numerous early editions that were purchased during a period of few years beginning in 1989 from several antique bookstores in Germany. The volume and quality of this catalogue probably place the collection as the third in the world, following Beethoven Archiv in Bonn, Germany, and the Hoboken collection in Austrian National Library (Die Musiksammlung der Österreichischen Nationalbibliothek)

The collection mainly comprises published items for the period of 1794 through 1900 but also contains some that are dated after 1900 as well as few manuscripts. Approximately 500 editions in the collection belong to Beethoven's lifetime. Of the total collection, only 107 items are original editions. Remaining of the collection contains re-issues of the original editions (changes only to titles), later editions (published by different publishers from the original editions), and numerous arrangement editions.

The collection was not initially intended for specific purposes or principles; accordingly, some items may appear to be in duplicate. However, when carefully reviewed, they often represent different descriptions and states. Considering such differences, the catalogue is compiled for purposes of accurately describing features of each copy of the collection, by carefully recording in detail descriptions that are not limited to title pages, but include color and decoration of a title page, paper type, and watermarks. It should be noted that such detailed descriptions are generally applicable to copies dated prior to 1830, since original editions, their re-issues, and majority of crucial later editions have been published before 1830. However, if later copies contain data necessary to approximate time periods or to compare with other information, similar details are also provided.