Preface to Volume 15 B

The present volume contains, in addition to the Critical Commentaries for the Violin Concerto and Piano Concerto (cf. Volume 15 of Series A), all the sketches for these works as well as some fragments which can be seen, from headings or from the manner of notation, to belong to compositions for a solo instrument with orchestral accompaniment.

The considerable delay in the publication of this volume has been caused by the emergence of a hitherto unknown source for the Violin Concerto that provides vital new information, notably as regards dynamics and articulation. This is source Ca, a photocopy of the missing fair copy which was made by the composer’s son on transparencies and which served as the basis for the original printed edition, D. This photocopy contains numerous autograph corrections and additions made by Schönberg. Notice is drawn in particular to the fact that on pages 85 f. and 165 a list of derivations from the series is to be found.

The editor is grateful to the late Mrs Else C. Kraus, the late Mrs Clara Steuermann, Dr Hans Heinsheimer (New York), Professor Richard Hoffmann (Oberlin), Wayne D. Shirley (The Library of Congress) and Professor Dr Rudolf Stephan (Berlin) for their help in the assembly of the sources and documents. Special thanks are due to Professor Dr Jürgen Thym (Rochester) for conveying descriptions of sources and for clearing up numerous problems, to Ms Regina Busch (Wien) and Professor Dr Christian Martin Schmidt (Amsterdam) for their generous help, and to my collegue at the Schönberg-Forschungsstelle Berlin, Ms Martina Sichardt, who wrote the opening chapter “Zur Werkgeschichte/Dokumente”.

Berlin, October 1987
Tadeusz Okuljar