June 2014 The exhibition In 2014 we celebrate the 150th birthday of Richard Strauss. Much acclaimed and extremely successful during his lifetime, he continues to be celebrated for his work, and more than six decades after his death his pivotal role in musical history is secure. Although he lived in Garmisch in Bavaria, he had many ties to Vienna. He was particularly close to the poet and librettist Hugo von Hofmannsthal, the stage designer Alfred Roller, and his last librettist Joseph Gregor, all of whom were in Vienna. And between 1919 and 1924 Strauss was director of the Vienna Opera with Franz Schalk. The Theatre Museum is celebrating this anniversary with an important exhibition that showcases objects from our extensive Strauss holdings, which have never been on show. We owe our comprehensive holdings of documents on or by Strauss to some of the period s leading representatives of music and the arts, among them Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Hermann Bahr and Alfred Roller. The Theater Museum owns an impressive total of 525 autograph letters, musical notations and scores by, or connected to Strauss. Most autograph documents were bequeathed by the writer Hermann Bahr and his wife, the celebrated soprano Anna Bahr-Mildenburg, by Joseph Gregor and, last but not least, by Alfred Roller; they illustrate and document different periods in the composer s life and work. Additional objects related to Strauss such as Hofmannsthal s letters to Roller, or the correspondence between Stefan Zweig and Joseph Gregor help to round out the picture. Among the highlights of Strauss autographs on show in the exhibition are musical autographs such as his setting of Heinrich Heine s poem Mit deinen blauen Augen, a sketch book for Elektra, handwritten drafts for Elektra and Intermezzo, as well as a number of letters addressed to Alfred Roller, Hermann Bahr and Joseph Gregor. Of particular interest is Stefan Zweig s autograph libretto for the only opera on which the two collaborated, Die schweigsame Frau. The estate of Alfred Roller (1864-1935), the celebrated Austrian graphic artist and stage designer, forms one of the seminal holdings of the Theatre Museum. Acquired in 1986 from the Roller family, it comprises 3.000 stage designs, costume figurines and technical sketches that form a unique document of the history of Austrian theatre and opera. With the exception of Salome, Ariadne auf Naxos and the ballet Schlagobers, Roller created the designs for all the world premieres and first performances of works by Richard Strauss in Vienna.
The holdings of the Theatre Museum therefore comprise a wealth of visual material on the operas by Richard Strauss. Strauss greatly appreciated working with Roller in him Strauss felt he had found an artist congenial to his own visions and able to bring his works to life on the stage. The core themes of the exhibition and its gaps - are the result of the content and origin of the holdings of the Theatre Museum: its focal points are the operas Salome (Austrian premiere Graz 1906), Elektra (premiere Vienna 1909), Der Rosenkavalier (premiere Vienna 1911) and Die Frau ohne Schatten (world premiere Vienna 1919), each of which marks a different point in the composer s development and work. Hugo von Hofmannsthal wrote the libretto for the last three operas listed here, and Alfred Roller designed the sets. We are privileged because the extensive extant correspondence between Richard Strauss and these two artists allows us to follow the gradual evolution of the work and the collaboration of composer, librettist and stage designer. Alfred Roller realised the creations of Strauss and Hofmannsthal on stage; his powerful, highly symbolic design for the Lion Gate at Mycenae in Elektra long informed the work of other artists. Roller s scenography for Der Rosenkavalier, which premiered in Dresden before moving to Vienna soon afterwards, became equally famous and influential. But the exhibition also showcase less well-known works: Strauss two ballets Schlagobers and Josephs Legende, for which the Museum owns stage- and costume designs that have never been shown before. One gallery focuses on Richard Strauss years as director of the Vienna Opera (1919-1924), another on the librettists of his operas: in addition to his congenial collaborator, Hugo van Hofmannsthal, who is omnipresent in the exhibition, we look at his almost librettist Hermann Bahr (1863-1934), whose extensive estate in also now in the Theatre Museum. After completing Die Frau ohne Schatten Strauss was looking for a contrary subject, a realistic domestic comedy. Hofmannsthal suggested Hermann Bahr, with whom he eventually developed the idea for Intermezzo. However, their letters show that their collaboration progressed but slowly so that eventually Bahr advised Strauss to write the text for Intermezzo himself, which he did. For Strauss the death of Hugo von Hofmannsthal in 1929 seemed to mark the end of his operatic works. But in 1931 he met Stefan Zweig (1881-1942) for the first time, who suggested Ben Johnson s Die schweigsame Frau as a possible libretto for a new opera. But the fact that Zweig was Jewish almost prevented its world premiere, and the opera was performed only three more times. We also look at Strauss role during the Nazi era, his work as President of the Reichsmusikkammer, and his personal difficulties and entanglements.
Political developments forced Stefan Zweig to abandon his collaboration with Strauss, but he suggested the theatre historian Joseph Gregor (1888-1960), the head of the Theatre Collection of the Austrian national Library; although also a writer, Gregor was not in the same league as either Hofmannsthal or Zweig. But he collaborated with Strauss on the latter s late masterpieces Daphne and Die Liebe der Danae. At the end of the exhibition visitors are invited to delve even deeper into the musical world of Richard Strauss: a film featuring historical and contemporary recordings of the composer s bestknown works offers yet more insights into the operatic works of one of the leading and most successful composers of the 20 th century. Catalogue TRägT Die SpRaChe SChon gesang in SiCh RiChaRD STRauSS und Die oper Herausgegeben von Christiane Mühlegger-Henhapel und Alexandra Steiner-Strauss Der Katalog ist im Theatermuseum zum Preis von 34,90 erhältlich. ISBN-Nummer: 978-3-7017-3335-4 Residenz Verlag Wir danken der Familie Strauss für die gute Zusammenarbeit und der Ernst von Siemens Kunststiftung für die großzügige Unterstützung. Contact Andreas Kugler Direktorstellvertreter, Marketing und Presse T + 43 1 525 24 5315
Pressefotos Die Bilder sind für die Berichterstattung über die Ausstellung frei. Die Bilder stehen zum Download bereit unter www.theatermuseum.at/presse/ 1_ Richard Strauss, um 1920 2_Richard Strauss in London, 1914 3_ Alfred Roller, Kostümentwurf Octavian für Der Rosenkavalier 4_ Alfred Roller, Bühnenbildentwurf zu Der Rosenkavalier, 2. Akt 5_ Die Leitung der Rosenkavalier- Uraufführung, Dresden 1911, Postkarte Hugo von Hofmannsthal an Alfred Roller 6_ Richard Strauss, Skizze zu Elektra
Pressefotos Die Bilder sind für die Berichterstattung über die Ausstellung frei. Die Bilder stehen zum Download bereit unter www.theatermuseum.at/presse/ 7_ Alfred Roller, Bühnenbildentwurf zu Elektra 8_ Alfred Roller, Kostümentwurf Klytämnestra für Elektra 9_Hans Pühringer, Kostümentwurf Salome 10_Maria Jeritza als Salome 11_ Richard Strauss, Mit deinen blauen Augen, op. 56 No. IV 12_ Anton Kolig, Marie Gutheil-Schoder als Frau Potiphar in der Josephs Legende, 1923
Pressefotos Die Bilder sind für die Berichterstattung über die Ausstellung frei. Die Bilder stehen zum Download bereit unter www.theatermuseum.at/presse/ 13_ Ada Nigrin, Kostümentwurf Kandierte Früchte für das Ballett Schlagobers 14_ Szenenfoto Kandierte Früchte aus dem Ballett Schlagobers 15_ Stefan Zweig, Libretto zu Die schweigsame Frau