Introduction to the correspondence of Hans Werner Henze and Paul Sacher

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The Hans Werner Henze (1926-2012) and Paul Sacher (1906–1999) Correspondence

The correspondence between Paul Sacher and Hans Werner Henze comprises 357 postal documents, of which 179 were written by Sacher and 178 by Henze, with secretaries and other people also occasionally writing on their behalf. The postal documents span the years 1952 to 1998. Additionally there 9 documents preserved. The correspondence language is German, the only exception being a few telegrams written in Italian.

Both parts of the correspondence are preserved at the Paul Sacher Foundation in Basel, Henze’s letters in the Paul Sacher Collection and Sacher’s letters in the Hans Werner Henze Collection.

As this correspondence was mainly “business” correspondence, it was mostly typewritten. Sacher also stored carbon copies of the letters to Henze in his files from the very beginning, so that the correspondence has been preserved almost in its entirety (and to a large extent both the original and the carbon copy).

However, Henze’s early letters were handwritten, as Henze avoided using a typewriter and was not very good at it. It was only later, when he had secretaries assisting him with his correspondence, that his letters were also predominantly typewritten.

As the correspondence is very complete, references to the immediately preceding and following letters are not always explicitly stated.

Paul Sacher

From the beginning of his correspondence with Henze, Paul Sacher used his own stationery , which was designed by Jan Tschichold, who also worked for the Basel Music Academy (see Jan Tschichold’s estate in the German National Library DBSM.StSlg.NL.Tschichold ). The carbon copies were made on a thin yellow paper.

The typewriter Sacher and his secretaries used did not have a “1” for a long time, which is why this was replaced by an “l”. As a rule, double spaces were inserted after sentence-ending characters such as periods, question marks and exclamation marks. As was customary in Switzerland, no “ß” was used.

On typewritten letters, and therefore also on carbon copies, the address to which the letter was sent is always noted at the bottom of the page.

Only Sacher’s very “private” letters are handwritten. They were written with a fountain pen in his rather large and characteristic but legible handwriting. Sacher always used an “&” for “and”. The ink used is blue with a clear hint of purple.

Hans Werner Henze

The evolution of Henze’s handwriting can be easily traced over the long period covered by the correspondence. As described in the introductions to other sets of his correspondence, this includes the progression from a normal cursive script to often unconnected letters (that look like block letters) and wide spacing between the words that characterized his later hand writing. In the early years, Henze used a capital “I” as a “J” (incidentally, he also did this in his typewritten letters), the “I” later becoming a Roman “1”. He also went from using standard upper/lower case letters to a uniform lower case, in which only the salutations and names were capitalized. In his late years (1990s), Henze returned to normal spelling and grammar rules.

In the beginning, Henze often wrote with a fountain pen, later also using a ballpoint pen and then for many years a felt-tip pen, often a so-called fineliner. But at the end of March 1997 he lamented:

„ich komme mit diesen modernen Schreibgeräten nicht gut zurecht, bald werde ich wieder mit Feder und Tinte schreiben, habe die Werkzeuge schon im März letzten Jahres in Basel erworben, hatte aber noch keine Zeit, sie auszuprobieren – es braucht Zeit & Ruhe.“

When Henze himself used the typewriter in the early years, there are quite a lot of corrections (typewritten or handwritten) and usually no spaces after punctuation marks.

Henze did not use personal stationery until 1962, after he had taken up permanent residence in Castelgandolfo. In Marino, the address printed on the paper changed over the years, but the mostly thin, light-blue colored paper remained constant. However, Henze also owned a different light-colored paper (both papers in at least two sizes), as well as simple and folded cards with his address print on them. Henze occasionally wrote crosswise on his stationary (see the material description), resulting in unusually long lines of text.

In contrast to the other sets of correspondence published on the “Henze digital” portal to date, the Henze-Sacher correspondence was not triggered by work on joint projects, but the result of Sacher’s patronage. For this reason, different headings are listed below compared to the other correspondence. The dates given in brackets indicate the period in which the event is mentioned in the correspondence rather than, in the case of compositions, when a particular work was written.

Henze as Conductor

Henze as guest conductor of the Collegium Musicum Zürich and Basel Chamber Orchestra

  • Zurich: December 7, 1956 (1955 – December 1956)
  • Zurich: December 14, 1962 (April 1962 – December 1962)
  • Zurich: October 17, 1975 (with Concerto for Contrabasso) (December 1967, February 1975 – October 1975)
  • [Basel: planned concerto with “Eroica” und Heliogabalus (Nov. 1975)]
  • [concertos at the beginning of Januar 1981: Zurich (January 2–7, Tonhalle-Orchester), Basel (January 7–10) correspondence: December 1980]
  • Zurich: January 30, 1983 (canceled) (Mid of December 1981– September 08, 1982)
  • Zurich: January 14, 1984 (= „replacement“ for January 1983) (October 1982 – January 1984)
  • Basel: October 25, 1985 (BKO + Basler Sinfonie-Orchester) (December 22, 1982 – Oktober 1985 )
  • Zurich: March 23, 1987 (not carried out) (December 20, 1985)

Henze as composer

Commissioned compositions and compositions dedicated to Paul Sacher

Planned commissioned compositions, never finally performed

Compositions written for Paul Sacher’s birthdays

  • Capriccio (1st version) (1976), last version 1981 (only mentioned November 1976, May 1981)
  • Abendmusik für einen alten Freund (1996)

Other commissioned compositions with Paul Sacher as intermediary

People and organizations that Henze supported or asked Paul Sacher to support

In-person meetings independent of concerts and premieres in Basel or Zurich

Paul Sacher’s visits to Marino

  • June 30 to July 2, 1991: 65th birthday of Henze
  • October 1995: with friends unexpected
  • July 1, 1996: for lunch

Since this category is very extensive due to the very long time span of the correspondence, please see the correspondence’s general index of works.

The correspondence between Paul Sacher and Hans Werner Henze was initiated by Paul Sacher, who invited Hans Werner Henze to conduct a concert with the Collegium Musicum Zürich in August 1955. (The invitation card to the premiere of “Boulevard Solitude” at the beginning of the correspondence, which was probably sent to Sacher at Henze’s request, shows that Henze already had Sacher in mind very early on as an “important” personality). The two had met at the Darmstadt Summer Courses for New Music in 1955 at the latest, where Henze was active in the "International Working Group of Young Composers" and Sacher conducted an orchestral concert with the Hessian Radio Symphony Orchestra as part of the “Week for New Music” in Frankfurt. Sacher repeatedly invited Henze to conduct, and the correspondence in this context is determined not only by the scheduling of appointments, but above all by the program planning of the concerts.

A second focus of the correspondence concerns the commissioning of compositions for Paul Sacher’s ensembles – in addition to the Collegium Musicum Zürich (CMZ), primarily the Basler Kammerorchester (with the Basler Kammerchor) and later the Basler Schlagzeug-Ensemble. As Sacher gave the composer a free hand after initial agreements on the instrumentation, the correspondence then mainly turned to the fixing of premiere dates and questions about execution, with Paul Sacher conducting.

From 1981, the transfer of Henze’s manuscripts to the Paul Sacher Foundation was also an important topic.

While in the early years the correspondence was mostly initiated by Sacher, this changed in the later period (especially from the mid-1980s), when Henze frequently invited Sacher to performances and thus also tried to maintain and intensify their personal contact. During this time, Henze repeatedly wrote to Sacher as a patron for his activities in Montepulciano and Munich (Biennale).

From the very beginning, the correspondence was characterized by mutual esteem and trust, whereby it is not surprising that Sacher’s letters were generally very factual and brief, as Henze complains in the letter of October 20, 1967:

„Von Paul bekomme ich, und auch nur sehr gelegentlich, knallharte, knappe, kurzangebundene Kostproben, statt blühender bildreicher verbindlicher billets doux – Lebenszeichen, nit mehr“

The relationship between Paul Sacher and Hans Werner Henze developed from a “business” relationship into a genuine friendship, whereby it should be noted that Sacher often succeeded in establishing friendly relationships with “his” composers (see bibliography).

In addition to Sacher’s generosity in terms of paying for travel and hotel expenses, these included above all the personal meetings, at which he was often accompanied by his wife Maja Sacher-Stehlin, and above all the “famous” invitations to Schönenberg, his villa above Basel. After his first visit to Schönenberg1, which lasted several days, Henze wrote on December 11, 1966:

„Es waren schöne Tage, ich habe sie sehr genossen, die Ruhe, die Möglichkeit, sich zu konzentrieren, aber vor allen Dingen Ihr beide, so gut zu mir (und geduldig im Zuhören) und so perfekte Gastgeber, so lieb. Bin sehr glücklich darüber, dass wir uns nun so viel besser kennen und verstehen. Bisher konnte ich Eure Art und Euer Wesen zwar spüren und vermuten und gelegentlich etwas davon mitgeteilt bekommen: Nun haben sich aber Gespür und Vermutung konkretisiert und nun weiss ich dass Ihr zauberhaft seid, und witzig und humorvoll und so voller Kultur und menschlicher Wärme und hoher Massstäbe –“

And Sacher replies (with one of his few handwritten letters):

„Ich bin froh, Dich näher zu kennen (dadurch verstehe ich auch Deine Musik noch besser!), & Du weisst nun Bescheid über den Schönenberg & das arbeitsreiche Leben seiner Bewohner. […] Oft denke ich an Dich, seit Du uns verlassen hast. Wirst Du wohl immer ein vielfach verstrickter, aber einsamer Mensch bleiben?“

From this time onwards, Henze and Sacher were on a first-name basis and even Sacher’s letters occasionally became more private in tone. While Henze had always included Maja Sacher in his very warm greetings before, these now became more detailed and sometimes very affectionate: “Please greet Maja many thousands of times!” (letter January 12, 1967), “Please greet Maja many times and with a hundred thousand hugs from me” (letter March 20, 1967), “Please tell Maja all my love” (letter November 29, 1967). The greetings to Maja Sacher ended around 1984, after Henze had learned of her serious illness. In the following years, Henze added greetings to people close to Sacher.

Henze’s visits to Schönenberg were always worthy of special mention and extensive gratitude. Henze soon issued a return invitation to Marino, but Sacher was only able to accept it much later: his first visit to Marino took place on Hans Werner Henze’s 65th birthday on July 1, 1991, and was followed by two further visits in 1995 and 1996. On October 18, 1991, Sacher wrote:

„Ich habe eine wunderbare Erinnerung an den Besuch und die Tage, die ich gemeinsam mit meinem Sohn in Deinem zauberhaften Hause verbringen durfte. Deine liebe Gastfreundschaft ist mir unvergesslich.“

The deep bond between the two is particularly evident in their late letters.

On September 15, 1992, Henze wrote after another visit to Schönenberg:

„Ich hatte eine schöne Zeit bei Dir und danke Dir herzlich für die grosszügige Gastfreundschaft und die schönen, wohltuenden Gespräche. Du bist ein ganz besonderer, mit niemand zu vergleichender Mensch.“

And in May 1996, Paul Sacher thanked Henze for his composition on his 90th birthday: “„Du bist ein guter Mensch, da Du mir eine so innige Musik schenkst.“”

This is not to say that there were no disagreements between the two: some agreements on concert programs dragged on (cf. above all the agreements on the concert on October 17, 1975) and it is not known what Paul Sacher really thought about some of Henze’s demands for money: his responses were factually unambiguous and Henze always accepted them without any opposition or disgruntlement.

Henze as conductor

As already mentioned, the collaboration between Sacher and Henze began with Henze’s engagement as conductor of the Collegium Musicum Zürich (hereinafter CMZ ) on December 7, 1956. It is not known whether and where Sacher had already seen Henze conduct, but Sacher must have believed him capable of doing so. Henze had conducted from early in his career, especially during his first positions as ballet conductor in Constance and Wiesbaden (cf. the correspondence with Weil/Jockisch ). However, he was an amateur conductor. Klaus Geitel reports that Henze received his first conducting lessons in connection with this first concert with the CMZ: (Geitel, p. 47)

"Sacher and Hans Rosbaud, who was currently in Zurich, helped Henze to catch up on what he had failed to learn until then. Hans Rosbaud in particular took great pains with the pupil who had surprisingly grown on him. He appeared at the hotel every morning at seven o’clock and gave him conducting lessons in the hall, the first of his life. Rosbaud pointed to a passage in ROSA SILBER with many changes of meter and asked: “How do you beat 7/8 time in this passage?” Henze excitedly demonstrated how he had imagined conducting his piece, but Rosbaud immediately interrupted him: ‘No, no, that’s completely wrong. The movements are too big. They heat you up. You have to get very cold in these difficult passages, cold to the core’."

Henze also mentions this first lesson in his autobiography, p. 148f.2 According to his description, he had asked for help:

"I had difficulties with my stick technique, especially in the Schubert, and turned for advice to Hans Rosbaud, who was living in Zurich at that time. Throughout the whole week of the rehearsals he would come to my hotel first thing in the morning and give me lessons. He also came with me to a number of the rehearsals, when Sacher also offered his support. I think this is the only real training I have ever had in conducting; in everything else I have had to rely upon trial and error."

Even around 1963, Henze still wrote:

"As a conductor I was, and remain, an amateur, which is why I needed the very best orchestras, orchestras that were interested not in my stick technique but in the works that I asked to conduct." (Autobiography, p. 185)

The first concert with the CMZ was a success. Henze noted:

"es war wunderbar in zürich, ich muss immerzu daran denken und möchte Jhnen noch einmal herzlichst danken, dass Sie mir die möglichkeit gegeben haben, mit dem collegium musicum zu musizieren. es war eine schöne erfahrung, sehr wichtig und ermutigend für mich.“

And Sacher responded: “Ihr Konzert mit dem Collegium Musicum Zürich hat mir grosse Freude bereitet, und ich bin froh, dass Sie damit so viel Erfolg hatten.”

The immediate consequence of this concert was Henze’s first commission from Sacher (see below). The next concert did not take place until six years later on December 14, 1962. This concert included Henze’s “Kammermusik 1958”, and again, as in the first concert “Apollo and Hyacinthus”, both works with many solo instruments and without chorally scored strings – a circumstance that repeatedly caused discussion, as they were the basis of the CMZ, and Sacher preferred to use his Zurich strings for his performances.

The discussion about the program for Henze’s next concert with the CMZ on October 17, 1975 was somewhat more heated, especially as Henze wanted to change one of the pieces at very short notice, after the program had already been approved by the committee and the general program for the 1975/1976 season had been printed. In this case, Henze prevailed. The concert was also successful and Henze was delighted with the work with the CMZ (letter November 7, 1975)

A concert with Henze’s “Heliogabalus” and Beethoven’s “Eroica”, which was probably vaguely planned at this meeting, never took place (Nov. 1975), and neither the CMZ nor the BKO were involved in a series of concerts conducted by Henze in January 1981, first in Zurich and subsequently in Basel.

The next concert with the CMZ was then planned for January 30, 1983 – the program arrangements were very straightforward – but Henze had to cancel on September 8, 1982 in order to complete his opera “The English Cat” on time. The concert was then postponed by a year to January 14, 1984, with Henze also changing the program, but retaining the plan to include a Mozart piano concerto that Sacher had specified for 1983. Again, Henze thanked Sacher very much afterwards (letter January 16, 1984) and expressly praised the CMZ:

„Ich danke Dir für eine schöne Woche in Zürich und für Deine Grosszügigkeit. Es war ein wahres Vergnügen, mit dem Collegium Musicum zu arbeiten. Es herrscht dort eine echte Musikbegeisterung und wirklich spürbares intellektuelles Interesse. So etwas kommt selten vor, dass die Proben eine Freude sind und keine Strapaze – so müsste es immer sein.”

And Sacher responded immediately (letter January 18, 1984): “Dein Konzert mit dem Collegium war wunderbar, die Zusammenarbeit mit den Collegianten ausgezeichnet!”

After wondering why Sacher did not invite him to join the Basel Chamber Orchestra, Sacher offered Henze a concert date with both the former and Basel Symphony Orchestra in October 1984, which eventually took place on October 25, 1985. Sacher had requested an all-Henze program – a wish that Henze was naturally happy to fulfill. As always, the letters immediately after the concert show that these meetings were very important for both of them, both artistically and personally.

This was also Henze’s last concert with one of Paul Sacher’s ensembles. Plans for a concert on March 23, 1987 seem to have come to nothing (the concert was conducted by Cristóbal Halffter), the reason being unclear from the correspondence.

Henze as composer

There are recurring themes in the correspondence about the works that Henze composed on commission from Paul Sacher (listed below): instrumentation, premiere date, completion, advance payments on fees, sending a copy of the recording. In addition, when announcing the completion of a composition, Henze usually provides interesting insights into the “idea” of the work; some of these remarks were later included in the introductions that Sacher requested for the performances.

Henze took part in the premieres of all of his own works, something which is also discussed in varying detail in the correspondence, and he always thanked Sacher in writing immediately after the event.

Commissioned compositions and compositions dedicated to Paul Sacher

“Sonata per archi” (1957/1958)

Henze received the commission for this composition for the CMZ after his successful concert with this ensemble on December 7, 1956. Henze composed the work in the fall of 1957 and wrote to Sacher on July 7, 1957:

„es draengt mich,Jhnen zu sagen,wie gluecklich und dankbar ich bin,fuer Sie dieses stueck zu schreiben,und ich hoffe es ist der beginn einer schoenen kuenstlerischen verbundenheit.“

Right at the beginning of the collaboration, Henze tested Sacher’s generosity by requesting the fee and travel expenses in advance and only completing the composition two months before the premiere date (March 21, 1958). However, the work, dedicated to Maja and Paul Sacher, was a great success and was played again and again by the CMZ.

Immediately after the premiere, Henze wrote:

„mein erster brief nach meiner rueckkehr gilt Jhnen,und mein erstes wort soll noch einmal dank sein fuer Jhr schoenes dirigieren meines werks,fuer das verstehen,das da heraus sprach,fuer die wiedergabe aller dieser monologe und der kalten einsamen winde die durch den zweiten teil wehen.daran muss ich immer denken,und ich bin froh,dass alles so schoen war,auch dass das publikum nicht in rasenden beifall ausgebrochen ist,denn das waere nicht richtig gewesen bei diesem stueck.die perplexitaet (die eine wiede[r]holung vielleicht etwas verringert haette) war genau richtig als reaktion.”
“Cantata della fiaba estrema” (1963)

This cantata is a special case: it had already been composed before Sacher became interested in it – at least, this is what the surviving correspondence suggests. It was first mentioned in January 1964, but may have been discussed before this, as no letters between August 1962 and January 1964 have survived. Henze also dedicated this cantata to Maja and Paul Sacher.

The correspondence on the cantata is extensive, as after the premiere in Zurich on February 26, 1965, there was a second performance on May 12/13, 1966 in Basel with a different cast.

Henze wrote on March 5, 1965:

„Das war ein wunderschöner Abend für mich, ich war ganz ruhig und sicher und voller Freude (natürlich auch darüber, dass es ein gelungenes Werk zu sein scheint –) über die Aufführung, so sauber, klar, zart und einfühlsam.“

And Sacher responded on March, 15, 1965:

„Aber ich möchte nicht nur dafür danken, sondern vor allem für Ihr Werk, das ich in Zürich uraufführen durfte. Die ‚Cantata della fiaba estrema‘ ist so anziehend und geheimnisvoll, dass sich keine empfindsame Seele dem Zauber Ihrer Musik entziehen kann. Ich bin stolz, dass die Partitur mir gewidmet ist und froh und dankbar für das reibungslose und schöne Zusammenwirken in den Proben.“

(See also the photo after the premiere in “Fünfzig Jahre Collegium Musicum Zürich”, after p. 192).

A short time later, Henze tried to persuade Paul Sacher to perform the “Choral Fantasy”, but Sacher refused after learning the score because the Basel Chamber Choir was not suitable for performing this composition (September to November 1965).

“Doppio Concerto” (1966)

The commission for the Double Concerto for oboe and harp goes back to a request from Heinz Holliger, as reflected in the first letter of the correspondence to mention this work on November 2, 1964: Holliger wanted Henze to compose a concerto for either oboe or oboe and harp, and Sacher was prepared to encourage this, which is why he took over the correspondence.

Following Sacher’s concerns about whether the concerto would be finished in time for the premiere, Henze announced its completion on July 24, 1966 (shortly before the premiere of the “Bassarids” in Salzburg on August 8, 1966).

The premiere took place as part of the festive concert to mark the 25th anniversary of the CMZ on December 2, 1966. After some disagreement between Henze and Sacher due to the latter’s late arrival for the rehearsals for the premiere, once again the premiere was very successful, and Sacher wrote on December 27, 1966: “Maja & ich sind beglückt vom Doppelkonzert & danken Dir von Herzen für diese herrliche Gabe.”

The reason Henze did not write about the performance on this occasion is due to the fact that Henze stayed with Sacher at Schönenberg for five days afterwards and his letter of December 11, 1966 refers entirely to this event (see above).

The correspondence on this work continued because, like the “Cantata”, it was also performed in Basel (February 22/23, 1968) and because it was recorded – together with the “Fantasia for Strings” and the “Sonata per archi” – by Deutsche Grammophon-Gesellschaft.

There was also a slight disagreement between Sacher and Henze regarding the recording sessions from July 2 to 8, 1968 in Winterthur, as it initially looked as if Henze would not be able to be present, but this was also resolved. In connection with the recording, Sacher’s and Henze’s roles were also somewhat “swapped” for the first time, as Sacher had to ask the composer for support, because Deutsche Grammophon was initially planning to make the recording with a different orchestra.

“Compases para preguntas ensimismadas” (1969/70)

The correspondence on the Viola Concerto is fairly straightforward, but it begins with a very open letter to Sacher dated November 27, 1968, in which Henze addresses his political commitment for the first time and the restrictions it imposes on him:

„Die andere Sache ist, daß mein politisches Engagement sich so entwickelt hat, daß ich unmöglich von der öffentlichen Hand in der Bundesrepublik weiterhin Geld annehmen würde, also daß ich auf private Unterstützung angewiesen sein werde, und das ausschließlich.“

As the following letters show, Sacher did not share Henze’s political commitment (cf. the correspondence at the time of Henze’s letter of October 11, 1969), but this did not mean that he stopped commissioning Henze: their professional collaboration not only continued to be successful, but was also characterized by their friendship.

After the premiere of the work, Henze wrote on February 14, 1971:

„es war sehr schön in basel, ich war so glücklich über die aufführung, so sauber und wohldurchdacht und kultiviert, und über Deine treue und freundschaft! noch einmal dank für alles –„
Second Violin Concerto (1971/1972)

Immediately after the premiere of “Compases”, Henze began composing his Second Violin Concerto for his friend and first concertmaster of the CMZ, Brenton Langbein:

"When Sacher asked me after the final rehearsal what we should do next, I suggested a violin concerto, not least because his utterly delightful leader, Brenton Langbein, happened to be sitting next to us with his glass of whisky and I had always wanted to write something for him." (Autobiography, p. 303f.)

From the beginning, Henze planned to use electronics, text and the soloist’s actions for this concerto, although Sacher was not enthusiastic about this, especially with regard to the electronics (cf. also Henze’s description of his first ideas to Enzensberger on February 15, 1971). He completed this work at the end of June 1971 because he had time due to Enzensberger’s delays with the text for “La Cubana”.

Sacher remained skeptical about the electronic means until the end, especially when he heard the tape (cf. the letter of October 24, 1972), but he trusted Henze in this case as well, and following the premiere Sacher wrote on November 15, 1972:

„Es war schön, Dich hier zu haben, und für mich ein Vergnügen, Dein zweites Violinkonzert mit Brenton aufzuführen. Ich hoffe, dass sein Name im definitiven Druck der Partitur auch genannt wird.

Die Aufnahme Deines Stückes fand ich sehr erfreulich. Sowohl die religiöse Andacht am Donnerstag, wie die lautstarken Aeusserungen am Freitag liessen auf eine echte Reaktion der Zuhörer schliessen.“

This work is dedicated “to Paul, Maja and Brenton”. It was also recorded (together with “Compases”), this time not under Sacher and one of his orchestras, but the London Sinfonietta under the direction of Henze himself (with the soloists from the premieres), which is why this recording is not discussed in the correspondence.

Comission January 1984 (“Ode an eine Äolsharfe”)

After Henze’s concert on January 14, 1984 in Zurich, Henze and Sacher again spoke about another commissioned work. From the outset, Henze had a guitar concerto in mind, but Paul Sacher was not very pleased with this for his CMZ. Henze ultimately composed this work for the Lucerne International Music Festival, but the letter of October 24, 1986 proves that Sacher nevertheless supported it:

„Ja, in Luzern war es schön, und das neue Stück hat den Leuten (ich glaube, auch den Journalisten) und auch mir gut gefallen. (Man kann es noch besser musizieren, als es bisher der Fall war). […]

Aber Du warst nicht dabei, lieber Paul! Ich habe das und Dich sehr vermisst, muss ich schon sagen. Ich wusste natürlich, dass Du nicht kommen konntest und warum, aber es war doch ein seltsames Gefühl. Ich hoffe, Du kannst das Stück selbst bald einmal hören, es ist ja zu 50 % Dein eigenes immerhin. Und so darf ich Dir jetzt noch einmal ganz herzlich danken für die Freundlichkeit, die Du mit der Kofinanzierung des Luzerner Auftrags mir erwiesen hast.“

10th Symphony (February 1998–2000)

In September 1997, Paul Sacher attended the premiere of Henze’s 9th Symphony in Berlin and on September 15, 1997 he wrote:

„Der Besuch in Berlin war in jeder Beziehung ein Ereignis. Zunächst ist es eine ganz besondere Freude, Dich geistig und physisch in so hervorragender Weise wiederzufinden. Dann ist Deine 9. Symphonie, deren Uraufführung ich beiwohnen durfte, ein Meisterwerk, das mich sehr ergriffen hat.”

Following this personal encounter with Henze, probably their last, Paul Sacher and the Paul Sacher Foundation commissioned him to compose a 10th symphony, which was to be premiered in Lucerne. Sacher’s words are striking: “Ich bin sehr stolz, dass Du uns die Erlaubnis zu diesem Auftrag gibst und wir werden Deine Arbeit mit grösster Anteilnahme verfolgen.” (letter February 10, 1998).

Henze confirmed this contract on February 23, 1998 with the words: “Ich bin stolz auf meinen Auftrag, und zufrieden, und von der Dankbarkeit erfüllt, die Du kennst und von deren Echtheit Du weisst.”

Compositions written for Paul Sacher’s birthdays

“Capriccio” (1976, 1981)

For Paul Sacher’s 70th birthday on April 28, 1976, the cellist Mistlav Rostropovich had asked 12 composers to write a piece on the name eS-A-C-H-E-Re, which he wanted to perform in a birthday concert. Henze was also asked to contribute, but he only delivered a draft, which was not performed in the concert.

Henze did not complete this composition until Sacher’s 75th birthday, for which Sacher thanked him on May 11, 1981: “Dein Gruss & das Manuskript der vollendeten Capriccio haben mir das grösste Vergnügen bereitet.”

Abendmusik für einen alten Freund (Premiere: May 7, 1996)

Henze wrote “Abendmusik für einen alten Freund” for another concert, in this case to celebrate Sacher’s 90th birthday, and on March 30, 1996 the composer wrote: “Mein Stück, im Januar unter den Sternen des Aequators geschrieben, soll Dir den Ausdruck meiner Freude, Liebe und Dankbarkeit vermitteln.”

Sacher thanked him for the gift, writing, as quoted above: “Du bist ein guter Mensch, da Du mir eine so innige Musik schenkst.” (letter May 1996)

Other commissioned compositions from Paul Sacher not carried out

Egyptian poems for Ingeborg Hallstein: Work with Solo Soprano (May/June 1966)

In connection with the second performance of the “Cantata della fiaba estrema”, in which Ingeborg Hallstein performed the solo part, Sacher sent Henze some Egyptian poems that Hallstein had requested be set to music for solo soprano. Henze reacted cautiously to this suggestion and did not take up the request.

Shakespeare Sonnets for Fischer-Dieskau (1966, 1968)

One of the compositional ideas that Henze had in mind for a long time was a plan for a full-length setting of Shakespeare sonnets in Paul Celan’s translation for the baritone Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. Henze first mentioned this plan on December 27, 1966 and again referred to it in 1968. Sacher was definitely interested in this cycle, but formulated his own wishes in his letter of March 27, 1969:

„Daraus ersiehst Du, dass mich ein Liederzyklus für Fischer-Dieskau nicht interessiert, sofern nur wenige Instrumente vorgesehen sind. Dagegen bin ich von diesem Plan sehr entzückt, wenn als Begleitkörper ein Kammerorchester in Frage kommt.”

The idea was never realized, perhaps because Henze decided to compose the cycle “Voices” as a result of his political activities (cf. the letter of May 5, 1969), which he also offered Sacher several times for performance.

1975: Work for percussion and orchestra

On February 5, 1975 Sacher asked Henze directly:

„Hättest Du Lust, ein Konzert für Schlagzeug und kleines Orchester für mich zu schreiben, entweder für einen Solospieler oder eine kleine Gruppe von drei bis höchstens vier Musikern? Es muss nicht unbedingt laut sein. Dauer etwa 20’.”

Henze agreed to this suggestion and tried to combine it with the composition of the ballet “Orpheus”, but then canceled the commission on November 7, 1975 and recommended his student Henning Brauel to Sacher instead. Sacher does not seem to have followed this recommendation (cf. the letter of November 18, 1975).

Commissioned compositions conveyed by Paul Sacher

“Six Absences” (for Antoinette Vischer) 1961

On November 16, 1960, Sacher asked Henze whether he would be prepared to write a harpsichord piece for the harpsichordist Antoinette Vischer. Henze accepted this commission and seems to have completed the composition in April 1961 (cf. the letter of April 19, 1961 ).

Commission for Donaueschingen 1963

On July 23, 1962 Sacher wrote to Henze:

„Wie beurteilen Sie die Aussichten für eine Auftragskomposition in Donaueschingen 1963, und wann könnten Sie die Partitur theoretisch abliefern? Ferner bitte ich Sie, mir zu sagen, in welcher Grössenordnung das Honorar sein müsste, das Ihren Entschluss stimulieren könnte?”

There is no response from Henze to this request in the correspondence. Moreover, according to the archive of events in Donaueschingen none of Henze’s compositions were performed at this festival after 1957.

Paul Sacher Foundation

During the fee negotiations for the double concerto, Sacher wrote to Henze for the first time on April 26, 1965: “Bei solche Preisen sollte eigentlich das Manuskript eingeschlossen sein!” and Henze promptly answered on May 18, 1965:

Selbstverständlich gehört Ihnen das Manuskript. Auch im Falle der ‘Fiaba Estrema’ hätte das Manuskript eigentlich Ihnen zugestanden, und ich werde mich jetzt bemühen, es Ihnen zukommen zu lassen.

If it was not already clear to him, by now Henze had realized that Paul Sacher not only promoted the creation of new works and performed them in exemplary fashion, but also collected their manuscripts.

Knowing how important this commitment was to Paul Sacher, Henze not only gave him all the original manuscripts of subsequent commissioned works, but also, for example, all the sketches and the parts of the 2nd Violin Concerto. Sacher thanked him for this on July 6, 1971: “Du verwöhnst mich! Die prachtvoll eingebundenen Skizzen zu Deinem zweiten Violinkonzert sind soeben eingetroffen und bereiten mir eine Riesenfreude; tausend Dank für diese liebe Aufmerksamkeit.”

In 1973, Sacher established the Paul Sacher Foundation (see Erni, pp. 47-50) and on his 80th birthday he made the foundation public after buying and converting the house "Auf Burg" on Münsterplatz in Basel for this purpose.

Sacher had acquired the Stravinsky estate in 1983 and thus probably “decided” to expand his important private collection through targeted purchases. Sacher seems to have discussed this with Henze at the concert on January 14, 1984 in Zurich, as Henze wrote on January 16, 1984: “Sollten wir uns vorher nicht mehr sehen oder sprechen, möchte ich Dir doch auch noch sagen, dass Deine Idee meine Manuskripte betreffend, mir sehr gut gefällt.”

Intensive, concrete negotiations began after Henze’s concert in Basel on October 25, 1985, which finally led to the signing of the contract for the acquisition of all of Henze’s manuscripts and letters on December 8, 1987. Henze wrote on December 31, 1987:

„Seit ich weiss, dass meine Manuskripte und Korrespondenzen bei Dir in Basel sein werden, fühle ich mich ruhig und stolz. Es ist ein wichtiger Schritt gewesen, der mein ganzes Leben – und wohl auch mein Schreiben – beeinflusst. Ich kann Dir gar nicht genug danken.“

And on April 8, 1989 Henze described the situation after the contract was signed:

„Es hat sich ein Gefühl von Sicherheit eingestellt, von Ruhe, die sozusagen von Aussen nach Innen geht und die es bewirkt, dass man weniger hektisch lebt und schreibt, dass man sich Zeit nimmt zum Nachdenken und dass man nicht immerzu mit einer Existenz-Sorge herum laufen muss.

Sicher geht es den anderen Komponisten ähnlich.“

Sacher responded on April 18, 1989:

“Deinem Brief vom 8. April entnehme ich mit besonderem Vergnügen, dass Du über den Vertrag mit der Stiftung zufrieden bist. Er bringt offensichtlich, was der Stifter in Gedanken an Dich anstrebte. Die Befreiung von Sorgen ist etwas gutes wie auch die materielle Sicherheit.“

Bibliography

  • Musikhandschriften aus der Sammlung Paul Sacher. Festschrift zu Paul Sachers siebzigstem Geburtstag. In Verbindung mit Ernst Lichtenhahn und Tilmann Seebass hrsg. von F. Hoffmann-La Roche & Co. A. G., Basel 1976.
  • Jürg Erni, Paul Sacher Musiker und Mäzen. Aufzeichnungen und Notizen zu Leben und Werk, Basel 1999.
  • Fünfzig Jahre Collegium Musicum Zürich. Leitung Paul Sacher. Die Konzerte des Kammerorchesters Collegium Musicum Zürich 1941/42–1991/92, Zürich 1994.
  • Veronika Gutmann im Auftrag des Schweizerischen Tonkünstlervereins (Hg.), Paul Sacher als Gastdirigent. Dokumentation und Beiträge zum 80. Geburtstag, Zürich 1986.
  • Alte und neue Musik. Das Basler Kammerorchester (Kammerchor und Kammerorchester) unter Leitung von Paul Sacher 1926–1951, Zürich 1952.
  • Alte und neue Musik II. Das Basler Kammerorchester (Kammerchor und Kammerorchester) unter Leitung von Paul Sacher 1926–1976, Zürich 1977.
  • Alte und neue Musik III. 60 Jahre Basler Kammerorchester. Kammerchor und Kammerorchester unter Leitung von Paul Sacher 1976–1987. Registerteil 1926–1987, Zürich 1988.

The editing of this extensive correspondence was in the hands of Irmlind Capelle and Dennis Ried (telegrams). However, the work on this correspondence was significantly supported by

  • Elena Minetti (transcription of text, source description, translation from Italian, verification of register records)
  • Joachim Veit (source description)
  • Sophie Stremel (semantic markup, creating and enriching of register records)
  • Dr. Yolanda Acker (Proofreading the English version of the “Introduction to Correspondence”)

We would like to express our sincere thanks to all of them for their commitment, without which this correspondence could not have been finalised in time.

Finally, we would also like to thank the Hans Werner Henze Foundation, in particular Dr. Michael Kerstan and the Paul Sacher Foundation in Basel, for providing documents and permission to publish them.

Irmlind Capelle
Detmold, August 2024

Endnotes

  1. 1When Henze writes in his autobiography (p. 222): “Immediately after the first performance of my Doppio Concerto in Zurich on 2 December, I spent a fortnight with Paul and Maja Sacher on the Schönenberg outside Basle, as I had often done in the past. Here, at last, I was able to rest a little.” Written from memory, there are several errors in this passage: Henze’s visit only lasted about five days and, according to the correspondence now available, he had only been to Schönenberg once (on December 9, 1955), but both Henze and Sacher seem to have forgotten this by 1966.
  2. 2This passage in his autobiography also shows that Henze’s memories of his early years were not always entirely reliable: Henze writes that Sacher premiered his string sonata and then invited him to conduct. The letters prove that it was the other way around.

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