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OJ 14/45, [6] - Handwritten letter from Moriz Violin to Schenker[?], dated September 14, 1903
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Im Principe wollte ich nie u. hatte es nie nöthig mein Schicksal von irgend einer Persönlichkeit abhängig zu machen. Sie waren mir, als von mir hochgeschätzter Musiker höchst willkommen u. diese Verbin unsere Verbindung brachte es mit sich, daß ein Austritt Ihrerseits aus der Gemeinschaft, für meine Lebenswege von großer Gefahr ist. Deshalb bin ich in jeder Form nicht in der Lage auf Ihre Mitwirkung zu verzichten u. würde Sie, falls mir Consequenzen as Ihrem Austritte erwachsen würden, für dieselben verantwortlich machen. Ich hoffe noch immer auf friedliche Lösung u. bemühe mich deshalb, Ersatz für Sie zu finden. © Transcription Ian Bent, 2022 |
In principle, I never wanted and never needed to place my fate in the hands of any other person. To me you were, as a musician highly prized by me, most welcome, and our alliance meant that a withdrawal on your part from our comradeship carries great danger for my way of life. For that reason, I am not in any way in a position to dispense with your collaboration, and would hold you answerable were any consequences to me to arise out of your withdrawal. I continue to hope for a peaceable solution, and am at pains therefore to find a substitute for you. © Translation Ian Bent, 2022 |
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Im Principe wollte ich nie u. hatte es nie nöthig mein Schicksal von irgend einer Persönlichkeit abhängig zu machen. Sie waren mir, als von mir hochgeschätzter Musiker höchst willkommen u. diese Verbin unsere Verbindung brachte es mit sich, daß ein Austritt Ihrerseits aus der Gemeinschaft, für meine Lebenswege von großer Gefahr ist. Deshalb bin ich in jeder Form nicht in der Lage auf Ihre Mitwirkung zu verzichten u. würde Sie, falls mir Consequenzen as Ihrem Austritte erwachsen würden, für dieselben verantwortlich machen. Ich hoffe noch immer auf friedliche Lösung u. bemühe mich deshalb, Ersatz für Sie zu finden. © Transcription Ian Bent, 2022 |
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In principle, I never wanted and never needed to place my fate in the hands of any other person. To me you were, as a musician highly prized by me, most welcome, and our alliance meant that a withdrawal on your part from our comradeship carries great danger for my way of life. For that reason, I am not in any way in a position to dispense with your collaboration, and would hold you answerable were any consequences to me to arise out of your withdrawal. I continue to hope for a peaceable solution, and am at pains therefore to find a substitute for you. © Translation Ian Bent, 2022 |
Footnotes1 Either there has been some drastic discord between Violin and Schenker (the letters of August 27 and 29, 1903 from Schenker to Violin betray nothing from which Violin might have taken such great offense), or this letter is addressed to some other person (though it is hard to think of anyone else in Violin’s professional life as close as this letter implies, and how in that case did it end up in Schenker’s hands?). The use of the formal “Sie” is particularly jarring if Schenker is indeed the recipient. The letter is perhaps only explicable when considering the highly nervous condition from which Violin was suffering for part of 1903. — The two men must have been on good terms by November 4, when they travelled to Berlin together for the performance of Schenker’s Syrian Dances in Schoenberg’s orchestration. |
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Digital version created: 2022-09-27 |