Barnet, Miguel: Brief an Henze, Hans Werner. Sonntag, 11. Dezember 1983
author: Barnet, Miguel
language: en
availability: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

December 11, 1983
Querido Hans

Finally I have settled down in the address that I will give you right away: M.B. Charles St. No. 12 apt. 5C N.Y. 10014, it is a nice place, near NYU and Washington Square Park.[^1] So as you can imagine I have to b e very car ef ull with drug adcits that walk around here, but, howev e r my place is charming, quiet and very secure beca us e I even have a doorman and many locks on my door. You know N.Y. is dangerous and for me, with the Cuban gangs of antirevolutionaries I have to take more security measures. [Here, Barnet is probably referring to the Marielitos, the criminal Cuban gangs known for drug trafficking that spread in the United States from the 1980s onwards.]

[^1: Between autumn 1983 and spring 1984 Barnet lived in New York as recipient of a Fellowship of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. There, he researched the Cuban emigrant experience for writing his fourth testimonial novel La vida real (1986). See Martin Franzbach, Die mehrfache Lehre der »novela testimonio«: Miguel Barnet .]

Hans, I was in g G ermany during the month of October. It was wonderful because I travelled all through the country– 13 cities in 30 days– My people at Surkham are happy with the success of my books there so they wanted me to talk everywhere.[^2] You know that helps promotion and at the same time m a de it beautiful for me to go ag a in to places like Hamburg, Cologne and Nuremberg that I love so much. Especially Dürer’s house and the overwhelming wall of the city. Whenever I go to Germany I remember you verymmuch, because although we are more t h an friends I a l ways say with pride that you are my most beloved German friend. So going to your country is like entering your secrets and your childhood.

[^2: Barnet's publisher had evidently invited him to Germany, probably to present Der Cimarrón, published by Suhrkamp in 1976, Alle träumten von Kuba, published in 1981 and Das Lied der Rachel, published in 1983.]

I will be in New York until April because I am a recipient of a Guggenhein Fellowship. I think I wrote to you about that, didn’t I? [In the letters located to date, Barnet had yet to tell Henze about the scholarship.] Anyway this letter is to offer you my h u mble house in N.Y. And to remind you that you are always pres e nt in my projects. I, finally, cou l d not go to Europe last year, as I had planned. [This sentence confirms that Barnet was not able to return to Europe in 1982 after his spring trip. See Barnet's letter and Henze's letter of reply of 19 July 1982.] The relations between my government and West Berlin are tough and I did not want to create more trouble.[^3] I should explain this to you when I see you. I hope it could be soon. Please if you can, come to N.Y. I wi l l love to see you and talk to you. Hans, I left Rogelio very disappointed because he was planning to go to Libya to work and by chance come with a special permission to see you in Marino. [From Barnet's letter of 15 December 1984, it is inferred that Rodríguez was in Libya. There is no evidence to suggest that Rodríguez went to visit Henze in Marino.] But I left Havana in October the 1st [Barnet appears to have arrived in New York directly from Europe, without passing through Cuba again.] and up to then he has no news about such trip. He is and admirable person with the most solid principles and the most constant love to you. Hans, brother, give a kiss to Fausto and to the rest of the family, including your marvelous perritos .

[^3: An earlier letter already showed how Barnet's destinations and participations were authorised by the Cuban government, which were strictly evaluated according to alliance or antagonism according to Cold War relations.]

And for all my deep and permanent love.
Miguelito