Preface to Volume 6, 2 B

The present volume contains the Critical Notes to the score and piano arrangement of the monodrama Erwartung, which are published in Series A, Vol. 6 and in Series B, Vol. 6, 1. In addition, sketches and several versions of the libretto are presented together with a commentary. The account of the genesis and history of the work, composed within a few weeks in the late Summer of 1909, concentrate on Schoenberg’s, for a long time unsuccessful, efforts to get the work published (finally achieved in 1914) and moreover performed by an operahouse. Schoenberg only achieved this several years after the First World War. The first performance finally took place in June 1924 in Prague with Alexander Zemlinsky conducting and Marie Gutheil-Schoder as the vocalist soloist. Although this first performance was an undisputed success, there were only sporadic productions of the work in the subsequent years.

This volume concludes with the operatic fragment Und Pippa tanzt! based on Gerhart Hauptmann’s play of the same title, composed between Autumn 1906 and Spring 1907. This work, of which only some sketches and a two-part draft have survived, is presented in the complete edition for the first time.

The editor wishes to express his thanks to the many individuals and institutions whose support was invaluable, particularly whilst searching for sources and documents. First to be mentioned are the archivists of the Arnold Schoenberg Center in Vienna, Therese Muxeneder, Iris Pfeiffer and Eike Feß who answered countless questions and helped with the transcription of many sources. Additional thanks go to F. Werner Schembera-Teufenbach (Historical Archive of the Universal Edition, Vienna) as well as to Wayne D. Shirley (Library of Congress, Washington, D. C.), Rigbie Turner (The Pierpont Morgan Library, New York), Wayne Shoaf (Arnold Schoenberg Institute, Los Angeles), Joseph Gmeiner (Österreichische Nationalbibliothek, Vienna), Norbert Rubey and Thomas Aigner (Wiener Stadt- und Landesbibliothek), Liselotte Homering (Reiss-Museum, Mannheim), Barbara Becker (Stadtarchiv Mannheim) and Werner Grünzweig (Akademie der Künste, Berlin). Final thanks go to all those individuals who helped with detailed queries, this pertains particularly to the colleagues at the Berlin Forschungsstelle and also Andreas Meyer and Simone Hohmaier (Fachredaktion Briefwechsel der Wiener Schule, Staatliches Institut für Musikforschung, Berlin), Tobias Faßhauer (Hanns Eisler Gesamtausgabe, Berlin), Ilse Heinisch and Regina Kampersky (Universal Edition, Vienna),Thomas Ertelt and Felix Wörner (Staatliches Institut fur Musikforschung, Berlin), Regina Busch (Alban Berg Gesamtausgabe, Wien), Marion Thorpe (London), Dorothee Schubel (Arlington, Virginia), Volker Helbing (Berlin) and James Dack (London).

Berlin, December 2003
Ulrich Scheideler
(translated by David Sargeant)