Schenker Documents Online: Engelbert Humperdinck

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Profiles Person Place Organization Work by Schenker Journal Musical Composition Downloads temporarily removed for testing purposes	Engelbert Humperdinck born Siegburg, Sept 1, 1854; died Neustrelitz, Sept 27, 1921 Documents associated with this person: Correspondence Diaries German composer. Career Summary Humperdinck studied at the Cologne Conservatory 1872‒76, then the Royal Music School in Munich, studying counterpoint with Rheinberger. In 1881‒82, at Wagner's request he assisted in preparing the first performance of Parsifal at Bayreuth. In 1889‒90 he was private music teacher to Siegfried Wagner. Thereafter he taught at the Hoch Conservatory in Frankfurt am Main, in 1896 becoming professor there. He composed operas, notably Hänsel und Gretel (1893) and Die Königskinder (1897), also choral music, songs, orchestral and chamber works. Humperdinck and Schenker Schenker apparently wrote an article on Humperdinck for Die Zukunft, which was rejected by the editor, Maximiliam Harden, and is now not known to survive. Schenker did, however, in his early writings as a reviewer, discuss the composer several times. There is no known correspondence between the two. Sources: New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians Federhofer, Hellmut, ed., Heinrich Schenker als Essayist und Kritiker (Hildesheim: Georg Olms Verlag, 1990), pp. 133‒34, 185, 339, 352, 356‒57 Downloads temporarily removed for testing purposes Correspondence OJ 11/42, [18] Handwritten postcard from Maximilian Harden to Schenker, dated October 4, 1894 Harden urges Schenker to press Brahms [for material on Bülow]; he thinks that d'Albert will benefit from Schenker's article about him in Die Zukunft; he reports cordial impressions of Humperdinck from Cosima and Siegfried Wagner; and he asks whether an article he wrote was any good. OJ 11/42, [19] Handwritten letter from Maximilian Harden to Schenker, dated October 11, 1894 Harden rebuffs accusations by Schenker that seem to involve a delay in Harden's response to a submission that Schenker hopes to move to another publication, and he accuses Schenker of reneging on a promise to write about [Johann] Strauss's operetta Jabuka. OJ 11/42, [21] Handwritten letter from Maximilian Harden to Schenker, dated November 24, 1894 Harden encourages Schenker to write articles on the string quartet and on [Johann] Strauß and Humperdinck, but not on Brahms. — He explains why he lost his temper with Schenker in an earlier letter (see OJ 11/42, [19]). — He urges Schenker to procure some corresondence between Rosenthal and Rubenstein for publication in Die Zukunft; and he casts aspersion on Die Zeit. WSLB 133 Handwritten letter from Schenker to Hertzka (UE), undated [August 26, 1912] Recounting the backstory of the move to found an [Austrian] organization of musicians, and painting it as a rearguard action by performers against the dominance of Neue freie Presse chief critic Julius Korngold and certain concert agents, Schenker reports an approach from Hugo Heller in Germany, and presses Hertzka to reveal how committed he is to the cause. — Remarking on the lack of coverage of music in [Austrian] newspapers, he complains at the timid tone of Universal Edition's advertising of his own works. Diaries Diary entry by Schenker for 28 November 1915 Diary entry by Schenker for 5 November 1922