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This set of orchestral parts, used by Mahler and others for
early partial and complete performances of the work, has not
been located and probably no longer exists. Nevertheless quite a
lot of its history and content can be uncovered.
Precisely when Strauss offered to include the first three
movements of the Second Symphony in one of his spring
Philharmonic Concerts in Berlin is not clear, not least because
there is a gap of five months in the sequence of Mahler's
letters to Strauss between August and December 1894. At this
time Mahler had a busy conducting schedule at the Hamburg
Stadttheater, was also conducting a concert series in Hamburg
and completing the preparation of the fair copy of the Second
Symphony (AF2). In his letter to Strauss of 19 July 1894
(GMRSB, 39–40;
GMRSBE, 37–8)
Mahler announced the completion of the work (it seems unlikely
that the partial performance would have been discussed before
that date), but by 4 January 1895 he could report that the orchestral parts for the three
movements were finished (GMRSB, 41;
GMRSBE, 38), and were to be used in a
run-through in Hamburg the following week; although it is not mentioned, the copy
of the score of the first three movements (ACF1)
must also have been ready by this date. On 27 January Mahler
reported that the run-through had taken place, and that the
material for the Symphony was ready (GMRSB, 42;
GMRSBE, 39). At this stage it was
expected that the performance would take place on 18 February,
but Mahler had to ask for a postponement, as he was due to
conduct a subscription concert in Hamburg (Martner No. 59;
BSGMOH, 331–2).
In the absence of [CO] there is no direct way to infer which
score –
AF2 or
CF2 (as it then was) – was the source
used as the copy text for the parts. However there is
evidence that
PO1
was engraved from [CO]
so a detailed collation of the first three movements in
AF, the
original layer of
ACF1 and
PO1 might offer
significant clues. A cursory examination suggests that (as one would suspect on practical and economic
grounds) once plans for the first complete performance were
under way, the parts copied in 1894 and subsequently revised in
connection with the partial premiere, were simply expanded by the
addition of the fourth and fifth movements to provide a complete
set.¹
The account given by J.B. Foerster
of the preliminary run-through, in Hamburg in early January
1895, contains some fascinating details of the revision process
(JBFDP, 406–7; for the complete description of
the event, see the notes to
ACF1):
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Mahler erschien mit dem Orchestermitglied Weidich
[recte: Weidig], einem älteren Herrn, der die Aufgabe hatte, die von Mahler
während der Probe bezeichneten Abänderungen und Ergänzungen
vorzumerken. Unser Zuhörerkreis vernahm zuerst nur kurze
Bruchstücke der Musik, denn Mahler unterbracht das Spiel immer
wieder durch seine Bemerkungen: „Weidlich, das Violoncello
unisono mit dem Fagott – die Oboen streichen – Flöten verdoppeln
– die Harmonie in die Posaunen.”
Weidichs Vormerkbuch war bald vollgeschrieben.
Manche Abänderungen und die dynamische Details wurden gleich an
Ort und Stelle in die Partiturstimmen eingetragen, das Übrige
wurde in der Pause berichtigt. Nach dieser Vorbereitung spielte
das Orchester Satz um Satz ohne Unterbrechung durch und belohnte
zum Schluß den Komponisten mit herzlichem Applaus. |
Mahler appeared with a member of the
orchestra, Weidich [recte: Weidig], an old man whose
task it was to record the revisions and additions
specified by Mahler during the rehearsal. At first
our group of listeners heard only short fragments of
music, as Mahler constantly interrupted the playing
with his comments: Weidlich, the cello in unison
with the bassoon – delete the oboes – double the
flutes – the harmony in the trombones.
Weidich's notebook was soon full.
Many alterations and details of dynamics were
entered into the parts there and then, and the rest
were corrected during the interval. After this
preparation the orchestra played through movement by
movement without interruption and at the end awarded
the composer enthusiastic applause. |
So both
ACF1 and and the original three-movement
state of [CO] contained a layer of revisions and corrections
before they were used for the rehearsals in Berlin for the
concert in March 1895, though how accurately the score and parts
were collated is a matter for conjecture. A further layer of
revisions may have been added by Mahler during rehearsals and
after the March performance of the first three movements; again
the thoroughness of any collation of score and parts is open to
speculation.
Sometime in the spring or summer of 1895 Mahler started planning
the first complete performance of the work at his own expense.
In August, on his way back to Hamburg, he passed through Berlin and had discussions with
the concert agent Hermann Wolff about the project (HLG1, 327, 332), and
while there was told by Hermann Behn that he and Wilhelm Berkhan
would pay for the performance (GMLJ,
503;
GMLJE, 369). The nature and extent of this support is
not clear, but in is his
annotations in
his copy for the full score, Mengelberg noted that Behn had
paid for the printing costs of the parts: since Mahler's
other comments seem to have been concerned with preparations for
the first performance, one might wonder whether he was referring
to the copying of the orchestral parts, and/or the production of
chorus material (lithographed copies from writing). Whichever
costs this financial support defrayed, as late as 10 September
matters were still undecided (GMB,
141;
GMSL, 167),
but it seems very likely that despite this, the production of a complete copyist's score and performing
material was begun rather earlier, chorus material being a
priority. The last two movements were presumably added to the
original orchestral parts during the late summer/autumn of 1895, Between the autumn of 1895 and the appearance of the
printed parts (perhaps in 1898/9 or as late as 1903), the
resulting set of
manuscript parts was the only orchestral material available.
The interrelationships between the various sources is
graphically summarized in a provisional
stemma. |
