Schenker Correspondence Project

Handwritten letter from Schenker to Hertzka (UE), dated October 18, 1909

[ overwritten at top: ] Händel. Orgel Concerto-Partitur soll herausgesucht werden
[ UE receipt stamp: ] 6515

Sehr geehrter Herr Direktor!

Soeben erfahre ich durch H. Prof. Violin,¹ daß H. Dir. Bopp|² von langer Hand für Jänner, spätestens Februar dieser Saison einen Abend in der Akademie sozusagen “historischen” Charakters vorbereiten möchte. Das Programm besteht aus Stücken meiner eigenen Bearbeitung:

1) Klavierkonzert mit ^kl. Orch. von Ph.Em.Bach
2) dr[Klavierkonzert] für 2 Klaviere mit Strchorch. von Ph. [ corr ] Em.Bach
3) Kantate von J.S.Bach.

[ vertically, in right margin beside the above three lines: ]
ungedruckte Werke Bachs!

[ continues: ]
u. dazu käme, über meinen Vorschlag, als 4. Stück ein Konzert von Händel für Harfe m. Orch.³

Die letzte Nummer, zu der sich H. Dir. Bopp freundlichst — [ich] bedauere, daß der H. Direktor nicht einmal noch persönlich kennen gelernt zu haben — einverstanden erklärt hat, veranlaßt mich zu einer Bitte an Sie. Eben dieses Werk ist nämlich unter den Orgelkonzerten Händels, die ich 4-händig für Ihre “U.E.” seinerzeit herausgegeben habe. Nach Fertigstellung der Arbeit für die “U.E.” habe ich die Partitur der Orgelkonz. an die Direktion retourniert,⁴ u. nun frage ich Sie an, ob ich sie — leihweise — {verso} für kurze Zeit haben könnte, da sie vermutlich in Ihren Archiven augenblicklich nur schläft. Oder hat sie mein Nachfolger in der Arbeit, H. Brandts Buys,⁵ bei sich behalten?

Schade, daß ich Ihnen nicht auch noch einen Aufsatz in der “Musik” vom 1. Oktober d.J., betreffens die CoriolanOuvertüre von Beethoven,⁶ zeigen kann, da würden Sie wohl eingesehen haben, wie dringend u. aktuell, ja mit jedem Tag u. Dirigenten immer aktueller, die Frage ist, wie Beethovene [ sic ] ja für Horn gesetzt hat; Sie würden die Kritik jener Stelle, die auf Klarstellung dieses Punktes in Tabelle u. Erklärung ^zielte,⁷ wohl selbst als unberechtigt empfunden haben. Doch, es sei !

Darf ich um gef. Orientierung bezüglich Händels bitten?

Mit besten Dank im Vorhinein⁸ zeichne
Ihr hochachtungsvoll ergeb.
[ sign’d: ] H Schenker
18. 10. 09

© In the public domain.
© Transcription Ian D. Bent 2005.

Handwritten letter from Schenker to Hertzka (UE), dated October 18, 1909

[ overwritten at top: ] Handel. Organ Concerto score must be searched for
[ UE receipt stamp: ] 6515

Dear Director,

I have just learned from Professor Violin¹ that Director Bopp² has long wished to prepare an evening so to speak “historical” in character at the Academy for January or at the latest February of this season. The programme consists of pieces in editions by me:

1: Keyboard concerto with ^small orchestra by C. P. E. Bach;
2) Keyboard concerto for two keyboards with string orchestra by C. P. E. Bach;
3) Cantata by J. S. Bach.

[ vertically, in right margin against above three lines: ]
unpublished works of Bach!

—and there might in addition, at my suggestion, be as a 4th work a concerto by Handel for harp and orchestra.³

This last item, to which Director Bopp has kindly—[I] regret that the Director has still never once introduced himself [to me]—given his assent, prompts me to make you a request. This very work is in fact one of the Handel organ concertos of which I made a 4-hand edition for UE some time ago. After completing my work for UE, I returned the score of the organ concerto to your administration,⁴ and I now ask you if I could have it—on a loan basis—{verso} for a short time, since it is presumably currently languishing in your archives. Or did my successor in the project, Mr. Brandts-Buys,⁵ hold on to it?

It is a pity that I still cannot show you an article in Die Musik for October 1 of this year on the Coriolanus Overture of Beethoven,⁶ for you would really have appreciated how pressing and topical—growing ever more topical each day and with every conductor—the question is as to how Beethoven wrote for the horn. You yourself would surely have found unjustified its criticism of the passage that aimed to clarify this point in the table and commentary.⁷ But that is how it is!

Please may I ask the state-of-play regarding the Handel?

With grateful thanks in advance,⁸ I remain,
With kind regards,
[ sign’d: ] H. Schenker
October 18, 1909
© Translation Ian D. Bent 2005.

COMMENTARY:
Format: 2-p letter, recto/verso, holograph message and signature
Sender address: --
Recipient address: --

FOOTNOTES:

¹ Click on: Moriz Violin.

² Wilhelm Bopp [create biogfile]

³ Presumably Op.4, no.6, in Bb, which Handel originally wrote for harp, 2 recorders, 2 violins, and continuo, and subsequently published as an organ concerto. [ NGDM ]

⁴ See OC 52/396, September 28, 1906.

⁵ Brandts-Buys: S refused to complete vol.2 of the Handel Organ Concertos, as a result of a dispute over the honorarium. Vol.1 was published in 1904 as UE 936; UE 937 was reserved for vol.2, and announced, but never produced; Brandts-Buys took the project over, and his volume was scheduled as vol.3, UE 1555, and published in 1908.

⁶ [locate]

⁷ i.e. in Niloff, Instrumentations-Tabelle and S's additional text, as yet unpublished. The natural horn appears at Nos. 27–30, 32–36, and the cited passages in Beethoven are the Horn Sonata, op.17, the Quintet, Op.16, the Sextet, Op.91b (E-flat horn), Symphonies III/1 and VII (horns in A, E), IX/3 (E-flat horn), Fidelio, Act I Leonora Aria (horn in E), with no reference to the Coriolanus Overture.

⁸ im Vorhinein: Austrian dialect.

SUMMARY:
Historical concert planned by Wilhelm Bopp at the Vienna Conservatory, with music by J. S. Bach, C. P. E. Bach, and possibly Handel, in editions by S. Requests H to lend UE's copy of the orchestral score of the Handel. —Article in Die Musik reveals ignorance on Beethoven's use of horns.

© Commentary, Footnotes, Summary Ian D. Bent 2006.

Bent, Ian
Schenker, Heinrich
Historical concert planned by Wilhelm Bopp at the Vienna Conservatory, with music by J. S. Bach, C. P. E. Bach, and possibly Handel, in editions by S. Requests H to lend UE's copy of the orchestral score of the Handel. —Article in Die Musik reveals ignorance on Beethoven's use of horns.
DE
Cambridge University Faculty of Music-Ian Bent
IPR: in public domain; Transcription, Translation, Commentary, Footnotes, and Summary: Ian D. Bent 2006.
Schenker, Heinrich; Hertzka, Emil; UE; Violin, Moriz; Bopp, Wilhelm; Vienna Conservatory; Akademie für Musik und darstellende Kunst; historical concert; Bach, J. S.; Bach, C. P. E.; Handel; concerto; cantata; orchestral score; loan; Brandts-Buys; Die Musik; article; Beethoven; Coriolanus Overture; horns
Handwritten letter from Schenker to Hertzka (UE), dated October 18, 1909
letter
academic; musicology; music theory
WSLB 44
1909-10-18
2006-02-15
UE
Hertzka
This document is deemed to be in the public domain as of January 1, 2006. Any claim to intellectual rights should be addressed to the Schenker Correspondence Project, Faculty of Music, University of Cambridge, at schenkercorrespondence@mus.cam.ac.uk.
letter; holograph message and signature
Universal Edition Archive (1909-1976)—on permanent loan to the Stadt- und Landesbibliothek Wien (1976-)
IPR: Heirs of Heinrich Schenker; Image: Universal Edition, A.G.; Transcription, Translation, Commentary, Footnotes, and Summary: Ian D. Bent.
Vienna
1909