Letter from W. H. Auden/C. Kallman to H. W. Henze, January 25, 1960

Writing styles

• 1.

  Handwriting, Henze, Hans Werner, pencil (dark).
• 2.

  Handwriting, Auden, Wystan Hugh, ball pen (blue).
• 3.

  Handwriting, Kallman, Chester, ball pen (blue).
• 4.

  Handwriting, Kallman, Chester, ball pen (blue).

Text Constitution

• 1.

  " 60 (?) "added below, handwritten, pencil (dark), supposedly by Henze, Hans Werner
• 2.

  "… 60 (?)"This handwritten date was probably added by Hans Werner Henze.
• 3.

  "te"added inline, handwritten, ball pen (blue), Auden, Wystan Hugh
• 4.

  "a"added inline, handwritten, ball pen (blue), Auden, Wystan Hugh
• 5.

  "It"sic
• 6.

  "’"added above, handwritten, ball pen (blue), Auden, Wystan Hugh
• 7.

  ",whi"deleted by overtyping
• 8.

  "so"added inline, handwritten, ball pen (blue), Auden, Wystan Hugh
• 9.

  "(ideally"sic
• 10.

  "f""d" replaced with "f"
• 11.

  "D"added inline, handwritten, ball pen (blue), Auden, Wystan Hugh
• 12.

  "t""e" replaced with "t"
• 13.

  Following: handwritten, ball pen (blue), Auden, Wystan Hugh
• 14.

  Following: handwritten, ball pen (blue), Kallman, Chester
• 15.

  Following: handwritten, ball pen (blue), Kallman, Chester

Commentary

• 1.

  "… d to get your letter"The letter has so far not been located.
• 2.

  "… hear you a re satisfied"Henze was most probably satisfied with Auden and Kallmans’ libretto for Elegy for Young Lovers.
• 3.

  "… of the libretto right away."It is very likely that the texts on the synopsis of the opera and the genesis of the libretto were written for the programme notes of the premiere of Elegy for Young Lovers. The text on the conception of the libretto was later printed in the libretto published by Schott under the title Genesis of a libretto.
• 4.

  "… I) The Doctor – Gräfin"“Gräfin” means Countess in German and refers to Mittenhofer’s secretary Carolina Gräfin von Kirchstetten.
• 5.

  "… were delivered without taking breath."In this duet, Doctor Reischmann and Countess Carolina von Kirchstetten sing about the recognition they should receive for having kept the poet in good health with their care, despite the scant consideration they received. Musically, Henze follows the advice of the two librettists by writing a duet that recalls Rossini’s syllabic way of singing in a progressive crescendo with a comic effect.
• 6.

  "… Since this occasion is Hinter's"“Hinter” is the Nickname for Hinterhofer, who is called Mittenhofer in the final version of the opera.
• 7.

  "… the most practical and fitting."This epilogue in Act III, Scene IX (Elegy for Young Lovers) features the appearance of Mittenhofer (at the time of this letter still known as Hinterhofer), who on the occasion of his sixtieth birthday in a Viennese theater presents his poem inspired by the tragic story of the two lovers who died during the snowstorm. Henze would not follow Kallman’s musical suggestion. He does not compose a “birthday serenade” for organ or winds, but rather a “largo” for winds, piano and strings. See the study score of Elegy for young Lovers, pp. 521-524.
• 8.

  "whom"recte "who".
• 9.

  "… list of whom wrote what."The librettists attached a document specifying which parts were written by Auden and which by Kallman, but this document has not been located to date.
• 10.

  "… ten in the summer ."In his Autobiography, p. 166, Henze writes that in 1960 he left Naples to move to West Berlin for a few months and that during the trip by car he spent a weekend visiting his librettists in Kirchstetten. In this letter, Auden is probably referring to this meeting.