Preface to Volume 7, 1 B

The first part of this volume consists of the critical edition of the text of Schoenberg’s opera “Von heute auf morgen” with an account of the sources and variants, while the second part contains the compositional sketches described and commented upon in Volume III B 7, 2. The editor’s additions (accidentals, notes, row signs, bar numbers etc.) are printed in small italic type, and annotations are enclosed in square brackets
[ ]. The annotations include remarks about the staves on the music sheets, as hardly any empty lines were left in the copying process, and supplementary row signs; the structures of the rows have been made clear partly by means of numbers above and below the staves and partly by means of individual music examples (in small italic type). The libretto, printed in full in a separate commentary, has been omitted from the music examples in those places where such a procedure does not lead to a misunderstanding of the music; the omission is signified thus *. The musical content of the sketch sheets has been reproduced as faithfully as possible, and deleted passages have been marked in such a way as to make them legible. The facsimile sheets of sketches show to what extent Schoenberg’s conception of the work already in the first draft determined – outlining the scenic topos – the overall sound pattern of the short score; the second sheet reveals in particular his attempts to go beyond his first, simpler use of dodecaphonic technique by means of the permutation of groups of notes.

Gösta Neuwirth
Berlin, August 1972