Alban Berg, Wilhelm Fliess and the Secret Programme of the Violin Concerto

Author(s): Douglas Jarman

Source: The Musical Times, Vol. 124, No. 1682 (Apr., 1983), pp. 218-223
Published by: Musical Times Publications Ltd.
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AlbanBerg,WilhelmFliessandtheSecret
ProgrammeoftheViolinConcerto
DouglasJarman

Berg'sinterest in numerology and hisbeliefin thefateful numerology). It was, as StefanZweig observedof the
significance of the number23 are well known,as is his inter-waryears,a periodinwhich'occultism, spiritualism,
fondness forusingthisand other'significant' numbersas somnambulism,anthroposophy, palm-reading,graph-
a means of determining certainaspectsof his musical ology,yogaandParacelism... everyextravagant ideathat
structures.Althoughin usingnumbersin thiswayBerg was notsubjectto regulations reapeda goldenharvest'.4
was workingwithin a long-established artisticand Although spreadthroughout Europe,interest intheoccult
especiallymusicaltradition,' his intentions in usingsuch wasparticularly strongin Germany andAustriaandseems
numbersymbolism oftenseemquitedifferent fromthose to have attracted manypeoplein thecirclesof Viennese
ofotherartistsand composers whohaveindulgedin such societywithinwhichBergmoved.Schoenberg mayhave
conceits.In a worksuchas Die Zauberfl'te thesignificance beenacquaintedwiththeideasofMadameBlavatsky and
ofthenumber3 wouldhavebeenclear(andwas intended certainlybelievedin numerology to the extentof regar-
to be clear)to thoseofMozart'sfellow-masons whonotic- ding 13 as his own fatefulnumber.5Helene Berg,we
ed its occurrence; similarly,in the musicof the Renais- know,was interested in spiritualismand theoccult6and
sanceand theMiddle Ages,symbolicarithmology had a thereis evidenceto suggestthatBerg'sowninterest may
meaningand madereference to a bodyofknowledge that, havebeenmorefar-reaching thanhas beenthought.
ifnotgenerally wellknown,wasat leastfamiliar to cogno- In a passagethatis said to have been writtenforhis
scenti.2The numbersin Berg'smusic,on theotherhand, 1968 bookon Berg,thoughnotpublishedin it,Adorno,
haveno suchgenerally understood significance.Whatever whoadvisedThomasMann on themusicalportions ofDr
Berg'snumberssymbolize, it is something purelyperson- Faustus,remarked on theextentto whichthecomposerin
al; and evenwhentheprivatesignificance ofa numberis Mann's book was modelledon Bergand describedhow
knownBerg'sreasonsforchoosingthatnumberoftenre- 'theanalogousfeatures ofLeverkiihn's musicwerecopied
mainobscure.For example,thesignificance of 10 in the fromsuchgamesas Berg'splayon theinitialsAB and HF
LyricSuiteremaineduntilrecently a secret.Althoughwe in thethirdmovement oftheLyricSuiteand touchedon
now knowof its associationwithHanna Fuchs-Robettin his likingforboth numbermysticism and astrology'.7
we can only guess as to why Berg chose to represent Berg'sinterest in astrologymaywellhavebeenstimulated
Hannabythisparticular number.3 by his acquaintancewith Schoenberg'sfriendOskar
In practiceBerg'snumerical schemeshavetheeffect of Adler,whosechambermusiceveningsBergattended.A
actingas an abstract,objectivemeans of determining doctorand a professional Adlerwas also deeply
violinist,
musicalproportions. However,it is clearfromBerg'san- interested in astrology and publishedfourbookson the
notationsin the scoreof the LyricSuite and fromthe subject.Louis Krasnerhas describedAdleras a 'quietbut
'Open Letter'on theChamberConcertothatthenumbers deep influence'upon the Schoenbergcircle. Louis
uponwhichhe basedtheseschemeshad,forBerg,a deep- Krasnerhas written:8
lysubjectiveand almostmystical significance. Amongst theactive,creativeartists in the
andintellectuals
Berg's apparentbeliefin the mysticalsignificance of Viennaofthe1930s,[Adler's role]wasnotunlikethatofKarl
numberswas not,at the time,idiosyncratic. The early Kraus.Theywereall conscious ofhispresence andofthe
yearsof the 20th centurysaw an enormousgrowthof vibrationsthatemanated fromhim... andhisastrological
interestin numerology, chartsweresought byall thetwelve-tonecircle.I haveno
astrology,the occult and in doubtthatBergwasfamiliar withall ofAdler'swork.
mysticaland quasi-mystical religionssuch as Madame
Blavatsky's Theosophy(whichitselfemphasizedsymbolic
1 Berg could hardly have been aware of this tradition, however, for although 4 The Worldof Yesterday(London, 1943), 301
cyphers and cryptogramscontinued to be sporadically employed in the music of 5 see H.H. Stuckenschmidt: Arnold Schoenberg(London, 1977), 243-4
the 19th-centurycomposers, number symbolism fell into disrepute and almost dis- 6 Her interestis confirmedby her words in a letterto Alma Mahler (2 Aug 1930)
appeared fromEuropean music during the Baroque. The extent to which number in which she says that she is deeply involved in her occult books; see G. Perle:
symbolism was an inherentpart of the artisticthought of the Middle Ages and the 'Mein geliebtes Almschi.. .', InternationalAlbanBerg SocietyNewsletter[IABSN],
Renaissance has become clear only in the years following Berg's death. no.7 (1978), 6.
2 We may, however, agree with Peter Stadlen that 'even the cognoscenti only just 7 Quoted in Metzger and Riehn: 'Statt eines Nachworts zur Kontroverse', Alban
knew that this desirable sort of thing was going on, but by no means exactly what Berg Kammermusik II, Musik-Konzepte, ix (1979), 10. It will be noted that
and how in any given case': 'Berg's cryptography',Alban Berg Studien, ii (1981), Leverkfihn(who according to Adorno had 'more of Berg than Schoenberg in him')
173 was supposed to have been born 'in the blossom time of 1885', the year of Berg's
birth.
3 see George Perle: 'The Secret Programme of the Lyric Suite', MT, cxviii
(1977), 629, 709, 809 8 letterto the author

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 In theGermanyand AustriaofBerg'sdaytheexistence playedan important rolein his life.Whatever theorigins
ofparanormal phenomena wastakenseriously byeventhe of his beliefin the number'spersonalsignificance, his
most eminentscientists.The distinguishedViennese discovery ofFliess'swork- containing whatappearedto
biologistPaul Kammerer,forexample,whose research be scientific evidence- confirmed himin it.Bergbroach-
was concerned withtheinheritance ofacquiredcharacter- ed thetopicin a letterto Schoenberg dated20 June1914.
isticsin the salamanderand the midwifetoad, devoted Clearlyhe had alreadydiscussedhis beliefin a 'fateful'
muchofhistimetothestudyof'meaningful coincidences' numberwithSchoenberg, who had toldhimto takehim-
in an attemptto discoverthenumerological ruleswhich, selfin handandmakehimself independent ofsuch'lucky'
he believed,governedthe occurrenceof such chance and 'unlucky'numbers.In replying and declaringhis in-
events.WhentheresultsofKammerer'sinvestigations of tentionof followingSchoenberg'sadvice ('Your advice
coincidencewere publishedin 1919 in his book Das makesme realizethatit is possibleto unravelone's own
GesetzderSerie('The Law of Seriality')no less a figure fate;as a resultI nowbelievethatI canandwillmanageto
thanAlbertEinsteinwas preparedto declarethe work do so'), Bergwasunableto resistthetemptation oftelling
'originaland by no meansabsurd'.9Berg,who was five his teacherthattherewas,nonetheless, scientificsupport
yearsyoungerthanKammerer,was acquaintedwiththe forhisbeliefin thenumber23:
biologist(eitherthroughPeterAltenberg, ofwhosecircle In thisconnection,Mr Schoenberg, I mustnevertheless tell
Kammerer wasa habitue,orthrough AlmaMahler,Kam- youbriefly abouta book,whichI hadneverheardofbefore
merer'sassistantfora periodin 1911) and was certainly andcameacrossbychance lastsummer, andwhich seemed to
awareofhis research, thoughhad a low opinionofit.1? confirm myoldbelief inthenumber 23. VomLebenundTod
In hisattempts to establishtheexistence ofsomeuniver- isbythewellknown Berlinscholar Wilhelm Fliessandisbas-
sal principlegoverning the occurrence of chanceevents, ed onbiologicalexperiments inwhichheshowsthatlifeand
allphasesinthelivesofallliving creaturesruninperiods and
Kammererdevoteda chapterofDas GesetzderSerieto a
giverisetocycleswhicharealwaysdivisible by28 and23.
studyoftheoriesdealingwiththeexistenceofsignificant
As evidenceBerg then cited two of the examplesin
recurring periods- amongthemthoseofWilhelmFliess,
a writerwhoseworksseemtohavehadan enormous influ- Fliess's book which show how such cyclesaffectthe
ence on Berg's own numerologicalbeliefs. Fliess's developmentof plants and animals (referring to the
theorieswere expoundedin two books,Der Ablaufdes flowering of the clivia'andthe broodingof an ostrich).
Lebens('The RhythmofLife', 1906)and VomLebenund Fliess,observedBerg,had demonstrated thatsuchcycles
Tod('Of Lifeand Death', 1909),whichcreatedsomething apply equally to human beings,
ofa stirin Viennaand Berlinwhentheywerepublished. andnotonlytoindividual human beingsbutalsotothedates
ofbirthanddeath,periodof life,stagesin theillnesses of
It was Fliess'scontention that, as he declaresat thebegin- wholefamilies, andevenstates. Fromthebirth
generations
ningof VomLebenund Tod, 'all lifeis controlledby a anddeathdatesofmenandwomen, familiesandcountries
periodicrhythm througha mechanism thatexistsin the etc,Fliessconcludes thatthewoman'snumber is 28, the
livingsubstanceitself- a mechanism thatis exactlythe man's23.
same forhumanbeings,foranimalsand forplants;a Despite the bizarreand oftenabsurdconclusionsto
mechanismthatinforms the hourof our birthwiththe whichFliess'snumerological theorieslead himin these-
samecertainty as thatofourdeath'.Life,claimedFliess, cond halfof VomLebenund Tod,Bergwas notalone in
wasgoverned bylawsas strict as thoseofplanetary motion takingthesetheoriesseriously. Justas Einsteinregarded
and,through hisanalysisofthedatesofthemenstrual and Kammerer'slaw of seriality as 'by no meansabsurd',so
otherperiodiccycles,he hadbeenabletodiscoverthatthe did Freud for manyyearsshare Fliess's beliefin the
wholeoflifewas governed bytwoconstants: thenumbers significance of 28 and 23. Only in the early1920s did
28, associatedwith women,and 23 withmen. 'These Freudbeginto entertain doubts;beforethenhe was fully
numbers',Fliess wrote,'were not inventedby me but preparedto declarethatFliesshad madea 'fundamental
werediscovered byme in nature.Theyare,therefore, not biologicaldiscovery'12 in unravelling thenumeralswhich
theproductsoffantasy butoftheexperience ofthedirect governedtheperiodiccycles.
observation ofnature'.11 KnowledgeofBerg'sinterest in Fliess'stheories raisesa
Berg seems to have becomeacquaintedwith Fliess's numberof questionsabout Berg'smusicand about the
workin the summerof 1914, by whichtime he had ViolinConcertoin particular.
alreadynoted'the strangecoincidencessurrounding the
number23' and had persuadedhimselfthatthe number

It is wellknownthatBergconceivedtheViolinConcerto
9 quoted in A. Koestler: The Case of the Midwife Toad (London, 1974), 138 (a as a memorialto Manon Gropius,thedaughterofAlma
summary of Kammerer's book appears as Appendix I)
10 see Berg's letter to Helene, 18 July 1909, Alban Berg: Briefe an seine Frau
(Munich and Vienna, 1965), 72-4 (all the passages in which Berg refersto Kam-
merer are omitted from the English edition)
11 Vom Leben und Tod, p.1 12 Paul Roazen: Freud and his Followers(London, 1976), 108

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Mahlerand WalterGropiusand a closeand muchloved movementthat depicts the tragic death of Manon
friendoftheBergs',whodiedofpolioin April1935.All Gropius,should the inaudiblenumerological elements
commentators on theViolinConcertohavedrawnatten- suggestthatthemovement is also aboutBerghimself?
tionto therequiem-like characterofthepiece,established Two othersignificant numbersplayan important role
verballyby the dedication'To the memoryof an angel' in thestructure oftheViolinConcerto:10 and 28. 10,of
and musicallyby theuse oftheBach choraleEs istgenug course, is the numberassociatedwith Hanna Fuchs-
in thefinalpages.Most commentators haverepeatedthe Robettinin theLyricSuite.Its importance in theViolin
descriptionof the work's programmegiven by Willi Concertois signalledfromtheoutsetby Berg'sownindi-
Reich,based on information providedby the composer cationwhichstandsat theheadoftheopeningbarsofthe
himself, according towhichthefirstpartoftheworkseeks work:'Introduction (10 bars)'.In viewoftheassociations
'to translatefeaturesof the younggirl's characterinto in theLyricSuiteand theobliquereferences to Hanna in
musicalterms'13 andtocapturethevisionofthelovelygirl Der Weinand Lulu,18the 10-barstructure of thisIntro-
in a gracefuldance 'whichalternates betweena delicate ductionmay withcertainty be interpreted as a further
and dreamycharacter and therusticcharacterofa Carin- allusionto Hanna Fuchs-Robettin.
thian folk tune', while the second part depicts the 28 is the second,the 'female',of Fliess's two periodic
catastrophe of her deathin which'groansand strident numbers.It appearsconstantly in the numericalcalcula-
criesforhelpareheard'untilthechoraleand a 'plaint'or tionsthatcoverthe marginsof Berg's sketchesforthe
'dirge' intonedby the solo violin 'graduallystruggles ViolinConcerto.A sketchforbars228- 39 of PartI, for
towardsthe light' and an 'indescribablymelancholy example,has in themargin:
repriseoftheCarinthian folktuneremindsus oncemore 132 210
ofthegirl'slovelyimage'.14 175 175
The mainfeaturesof whatReich at one pointcalls 'a 57 = 28 35
tonepoem'and at anothera 'latentdrama'areobviousto 28
the listener,and supportfor this readingof the pro- whiletwopageslaterthereappears:
grammeis to be foundin Berg'ssketches fortheconcerto, 16
in which are to be foundmanyof the terms('sighs', 13
'groans','cry','dirge')thatReichuses.15 28
Alongsidetheseclearlyaudibleelements, however,the Calculationsbased on multiplesof 10 and 23 also appear
scoreof the Violin Concertocontainsa numberof less
in themarginsofthesketches.
audiblefeatures thatarenoteasilyrelatedto Reich'spro-
Whileit is admittedly difficult to understand themean-
gramme.Writing aboutBerg'sobsessionwith23, George
ingofBerg'smarginal calculations, 28 playsa clearrolein
Perle has remarkedthat 'only in the LyricSuite does
thework.The metronome markings of theAndanteand
Berg'ssupposedly fateful
numberplaya consistent rolein
the workitself'.16 Whileit is truethatno otherworkis the Allegretto whichformPartI, forexample,are crot-
chet=56 (2 x 28) and 112(4 x 28) respectively; thebridge
dominatedby 23 to such an extentas the LyricSuite,
numberplaysa veryprominent rolein Part passage of the Andantebeginsat bar 28; the 'Tempo
Berg'sfateful ofthecodettastartsat
II oftheViolinConcerto. primo'whichmarksthebeginning
PartII is a movement of230 bars,hasan openingtempo bar 84 (3 x 28) and the 'ritmico'figuration of the Alle-
of crotchet= 69 (3 x 23) and a Hauptrhythmus thatenters gretto is firstintroduced at bar 140 (5 x 28).
at bar23. Atbar 157,the23rdofthechorale,thenotesB As evidenceofthefurther rolesplayedby Hanna's and
flat- A - G - E (the letters of Berg's name that can be Berg's own numbers, the chart above showshow every
and thatformthe'AlbanBerg'part important structural point and every indication and direc-
represented musically
ofthemottothemeoftheChamberConcerto), tionin thefinalAdagioinitiates andconcludesa unitof23
appearpro-
minently on the horns,withthe marking'misterioso'.17 or 10 (or a multipleof 10) bars.
The appearanceof Berg's musicalcypherat this point Withoutmoredefinite evidenceregarding Berg'scalcu-
may be a coincidence but is to
Berg hardlylikely have fail- lations,such as we have in the annotated score oftheLyric
ed to notice the importantrole playedby his fateful Suite, such bar counting is of course inconclusive.The
numberelsewhere in thismovement. Andyetwhyshould constant use of 10- and 23-bar units, however, strongly
23 featureso prominently in thismovement? Why,in a suggeststhat,in additionto thestatedprogramme about
Manon,theViolinConcertohas anotherand moresecret
programme thatin some way involvesbothHanna and
13 Alban Berg (London, 1963), 100 Berghimself. Similarly, in viewoftheassociation andthe
14 ibid, 178 significance allottedto 23 and 28 in Fliess'stheories, the
15 see C. Floros: 'Die Skizzen zum Violinkonzertvon Alban Berg', Alban Berg Stu-
dien, ii (1981), 129-33
16 'The Secret Programme of the Lyric Suite', MT (n.3)
17 cf A. Pernye: 'Alban Berg und die Zahlen', Studia musicologica,ix (1967), 18 see G. Perle: 'Der Tod der Geschwitz', Oisterreichische xxxvi
Musikzeitschrtft,
155-6 (1981), 20 - 22

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presenceof both numbersin the concerto(28 in Part I, 23 Discussing the two pre-existingmelodies, Herwig Knaus
in Part II) suggeststhatthe division of the work into two has observed:21
parts,ratherthan into fourmovements,mightitselfreflect Bergwould scarcelyhave chosena choralewitha textnot
a female- male division. suitedto the programmatic contentof his ViolinConcerto.
That some numerological element is operating in the This is not,however,thecase withtheCarinthian folksong.
Violin Concerto is clear from its description in Reich's Herehe didnotmakea textgenerally availablebutreferredto
1937 book on Berg, where he refers(in an essay 'authoriz- it onlyas 'in themannerof a Carinthian folksong'... We
can,withsomecertainty, ruleout thepossibilitythathe did
ed by Berg himself) to 'secret relationships of the notknowthetext.Ifhe did,onecaninferthat,in thiscase,he
numbersof bars, as in the Chamber Concerto'.19Puzzled was concernedonly with the melodyand thatthe vague
by this statement,and unable to find anythingin the referencesto a 'popularCarinthianair' weremade so as to
Violin Concerto as clear and as systematicas the number avoidgivingriseto a mistaken interpretationbecauseof the
symbolismoperatingin the Chamber Concerto,I wroteto text.
Willi Reich asking for clarification.In a letterdated 8 There is nothingin Berg's output to encouragesuch an
March 1979 Reioh replied: 'I'm afraidthat I must disap- assumption. On the contrary,whereverBerg quotes, the
point you. Aftermore than 40 years I cannot, with the quotation has some specific programmaticsignificance.
best will in the world, rememberwhich "secret relation- When the music quoted is in its original formassociated
ships" were mentionedin mydiscussionswithAlban Berg with a text, that text, whetherstated or not, has a clear
about the Violin Concerto'. relevance to the programmeor the dramaticsituationof
The existenceof anotherprogramme,in additionto that the work in which it is quoted. The unstatedtext of the
concerning Manon Gropius, is confirmed by other quotation fromZemlinsky'sLyric Symphonyin the Lyric
featuresof the Violin Concerto. At the upbeat to bar 214 Suite, for example, has a specific programmaticsignifi-
of Part I there appears a Lindler melody, which reap- cance, as has the 'hidden' Baudelaire textwhich underlies
pears, in what Reich called 'an indescribablymelancholy the finalLargo desolato of thatwork.The textof the Bach
reprise - as if in the distance', in the closing pages. We chorale in the Violin Concerto is given in the score and
now know, as Reich apparentlydid not, that this is not has a clear relevanceto the death of the girl to whom the
simplya folklikemelodyby Berg himselfbut a real Carin- work is dedicated; the text of the Wedekind lute-song
thian folksong,the text of which (in the translationof Konfession,the structuralbackbone of Act 3 of Lulu, does
Mosco Carner) runs:20 not appear in the workand is unstatedin the score but has
A birdon theplumtreehas wakenedme, an obvious bearing on the dramaticsituation.22Even the
Tridie,tridie,iri,tulilei! most fleeting and apparently accidental reference to
OtherwiseI wouldhaveoversleptin Mizzi's bed, anotherwork in Berg's music can be shown to have tex-
Tridieetc, tual, programmaticor dramatic significance. Scholars
If everybodywantsa richand handsomegirl, have recentlydrawn attentionto the relationshipbetween
Tridieetc,
a musical figurein Marie's lullaby in Act 1 of Wozzeck
Whereoughtthedeviltaketheuglyone?
Tridieetc. and a similarone in the popular Viennese song Wan I von
The girlis Catholicand I am Protestant, Wean weggageh', noting that the words of the firstand
Tridieetc, thirdlines of the song's thirdstanza were almost identical
She willsurelyput awaytherosaryin bed! with the opening ones of the luliaby,and the dramaticap-
Tridieetc.

19 Alban Berg(Vienna, 1937), 131
20 H. Knaus: 'Berg's Carinthian Folk Tune', MT, cxvii (1976), 487
21
'Kompositionstechnik und Semantik in Alban Berg Konzertarie Der Weinnebst
einem Anhang zum Violinkonzert', Alban Berg Studien, ii (1981), 143
22 see D.
Jarman: The Music of Alban Berg (London, 1979), 245-8

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propriateness of thereference to Mahler'sRevelgein the workon Wozzeck, Bergremarked 'There is something of
vocal line of thetrioto theMilitaryMarch in the same me in thisWozzeck'.25 Ifthisrefers to thesimilaritiesbet-
scene of Wozzeck.23 It is thusimpossibleto believethat ween Wozzeck'spositionand thatin whichBergfound
Bergcould havebeenawareofthetextoftheCarinthian himself duringWorldWarI, italso pointsto anotherrela-
folksong and havechosento use themelodyin spiteofit. tionshipbetweenthecomposerand his operatic'hero' -
If,however,theunstatedtextwasone ofthereasonsfor the identityof name betweenthe opera's Marie, the
Berg's choosingto use this ratherthan anotherfolk motherofWozzeck'sillegitimate child,and themotherof
melody,thetextcan clearlyhaveno relevanceto Manon his own illegitimate childcan hardlyhaveescapedhisat-
Gropius(thoughBergprobably enjoyedtheplayon words tention.
impliedby thesimilarity betweenthesong's'Mizzi' and Berg'smotivesin hidingthe sourceof the folksong in
Manon's pet-name'Mutzi'). Nor, althoughwe do not theViolinConcertoarenowclear.He did indeedwantto
knowwhetherBerg'srelationship withHannaeverfound avoiddrawingattention tothetext,not(as Knaus hassug-
physicalfulfilment, can we regardthe'Mizzi', theCarin- gested) because a knowledge ofitmightgiverisetoa 'false
thianpeasantgirlof thefolksong, to
as beinga reference interpretation' but becausethe textwas too revealingof
Hanna Fuchs-Robettin. But we do knowthatBerg,as an his reasonsforchoosingthismelody.
adolescent,did havea relationship witha Carinthianpea- The bar analysisin thechartaboveshowstheextentto
santgirl,andthatthisrelationship did findphysicalfulfil- whichthestructure ofthechoralevariations of PartII of
ment.As a 17-year-old youth,Bergbecamethefatherof the concertocan be seen as beingbased on multiplesof
an illegitimate daughter.The motherof Berg'sdaughter Hanna's 10 and Berg'sown23. As puzzling,and as inex-
was a girlwhoworkedin thekitchenoftheBerghof, the plicablein termsoftheManonprogramme as is thechoice
Bergfamilysummerhomein Carinthia,and was called of folksong, are the expressionmarkings associatedwith
Marie Scheuchl.24'Mizzi' is the common Austrian theBach choraleand thesevariations. Beginning10 bars
nicknamefor'Marie'. As a servantin theBerghousehold aftertheHdihepunkt oftheAllegro,theBach choralecar-
Marie Scheuchlmayhave been addressedas 'Mizzi' by riesa seriesofexpression markings thatareso curious,so
thefamily;it would almostcertainly havebeen herpet- preciseand so consistently maintainedas themselves to
nameused by theyoungAlban. suggestsomekindofextra-musical programme. Each line
has itsownexpression mark:thethreephrasesofthefirst
line,on thesoloviolin,aremarked'deciso','doloroso'and
'dolce'; the repetition of thisline on thewindbearsthe
same markings,but is additionallyheaded 'poco pili
Alban Berg... mosso ma religioso';the thirdline, again on the solo
violin,is marked'risoluto',as is itsrepetition on thewind;
thefinallineis 'moltoespressivo e amoroso'.Each linere-
tains its own expressionmarkingthroughout the varia-
tions.
Most of theseare, perhaps,explicablein termsof the
text of the chorale.But the curious,apparentlyinap-
propriatemarking'amoroso',more frequentthan any
other,can be explainedonlyas a reference to Hanna.This
explanationis confirmed by the music.On its firstap-
pearancethe'amoroso'phraseis immediately followedby
thedoublebarandthebeginning ofthefirst choralevaria-
and his daughterAlbine Scheuchl tion - the 'misterioso' variationwhich,beginning at the
23rd bar of the Adagio,unfoldsin the upperpartsthe
The daughterof Marie Scheuchland Alban Bergwas notesof Berg'sown name.At bar 194 fivestatements of
bornon 4 December1902 and was namedAlbine.Berg theinverted 'amoroso'motif(allmarkedas suchin thefull
certainly keptin touchwithhis daughter to theextentof score)leadto a repriseoftheCarinthian folksong ofPartI.
sendingher a ticketforthe firstViennaperformance of Althoughthe 14-barmelodyis repeatedin itsentirety, its
Wozzeck.In a letterto Helene,writtenwhilehe was at first four bars act as a bridge ('tibergehenin die
L~indlermelodie') fromthefinalchoralevariation: thelast
10 bars of thetuneare separatedfromthesefourtransi-
tionalbarsbya shortcaesura.Finally,precededbya state-
mentofHanna's initialson thesolo violinat bar223, the
23 E. Simon: 'A Chance Discovery', IABSN, no.10 (1981), 11; G. Watkins: 'New
Perspectives on Mahler and Berg', Michigan QuarterlyReview (spring 1981), 142
24 see Erich Alban Berg: 'Eine natiirliche Tochter: zur Biographie Alban Bergs',
FrankfurterAllgemeine Zeitung (21 May 1979), and 'Bergiana', Schweizerische
Musikzeitung,cx (1980), 147-9 25 see Alban Berg: Lettersto his Wife(London, 1971), 229

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'amoroso' phrase returnsin its primeformat bar 10 of the
coda.
None of the featureswhich refersto Berg, Hanna and
Marie makes sense within the context of the accepted
Manon programmeof the Violin Concerto. That the con-
certois 'about' Manon Gropius is indisputable;it is to this
programme that the dedication refers.But the 'public'
programme of the Violin Concerto conceals an equally
authentic,but more private,alternativeone.
Many writerson the Violin Concerto have remarkedon
how, in writinga requiem forManon Gropius, Berg also
wrotewhat in the event proved to be his own. The Violin
Concerto is indeed a requiem for the composer not, as
commentatorshave assumed, because his death so soon
afterits completion leftthis as his last completed work,
but because he planned it as a requiem,for both Manon
and, on an independentlevel, forhimself.26The two pro-
grammes are like 'a jigsaw puzzle whose differentpieces
can be put togetherin differentways to make two com-
pletelydifferentpictures'.27The Bach chorale, forexam-
ple, referson an obvious and audible level to the death of
Manon and, once the hidden programmeis known, to
Berg's own death. On a less audible (indeed, inaudible)
level it refers through its number symbolism to both
Manon and Hanna in its use of Fliess's 28, to Hanna
throughits 'amoroso' expressionmarks,its use of her in-
itials and multiplesof her number 10, to Berg throughthe
appearance of his musical cypherat bar 23 of the Adagio
and, finally,to both Berg and Hanna in that the move-
ment as a whole has 230 bars. Similarly,the Carinthian
folksongis both a portraitof Manon and, at the same time,
a reference- throughits unstated text - to Marie. Its
two appearances referrespectivelyto Berg's love affair
with Marie and to his last love affair,Hanna Fuchs.
In a letteron this matterGeorge Perle has observed:
The relationsbetweenthetwoprogrammes suggeststherela-
tion betweenthe surfaceand the hidden metaphorsin
Wozzeckand Lulu, but thereis stilla differencebecausethe
keyto thehiddenmetaphors in theoperasareintrinsic to the
music even if theyhave no directmeaningin termsof
Butin theconcerto we aredependent on
auditory perception.
totallyextrinsic
knowledge... The situation is notat all the
sameas withtheLyricSuite.That a programme is impliedin
theLyricSuitehas alwaysbeenknown,as eventhetitlesof
themovements shownottospeakofBerg'sletters to Kolisch,
thewritings ofAdorno,Redlich,Carneretc.But forthecon-
certotherewas no mystery sincewe do have a programme
withnothingsecretor insufficientaboutit.
26 Louis KrasnerrecallsHelene Berg'srecounting'againand again'how 'Alban,
ill in bed and tortured and withoutinterruption
withpain,workedfrantically to
concludethe compositionof his Violin Concerto.Refusingto stop forfoodor
and in fever."I mustcontinue",Berg
sleep, he drove his hand relentlessly
respondedto his wife'spleadings,"I cannotstop - I do not have time": 'The
OriginsoftheAlbanBergViolinConcerto',AlbanBergStudien,ii (1981), 108
27 Perle,op cit (n.18)
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In the lightof this second, hidden programmethe final
pages of the Violin Concerto - in which (introducedby
Hanna's initials) the 'amoroso' phrase, accompanied by
inner parts which are still marked 'religioso', gradually
fades into eternity- acquire a new, and deeply moving,
significance.What, in the public programmeof the work,
may be interpretedas a gestureof acceptance and resigna-
tion now, in the alternativeprogramme,becomes an ex-
pressionof those privatefeelingsto which Berg gave voice
in his lettersto Hanna and at the end of Lulu when his
own and Hanna's initials togetherfollow the finalwords
of the dyingCountess Geschwitz: 'Ich bin dir nah, bleibe
dir nah, in Ewigkeit'.
I am deeplyindebtedto Michael Taylor and GeorgePerle, withoutwhosehelp theabove
could not have beenwritten.Many of the ideas in thisarticlewerediscussedat an early
stage withMr Taylor who contributedto theirdevelopmentthroughhis own suggestions
and comments.ProfessorPerle not onlygave me thebenefitof his own insightsand kept
me informedof his own discoveriesbut was instrumentalin arrivingat a solution.
The Union of Sound Synthesistshas issueda detailedpressreleaseconcerning
the Musicians'Union attitudeto theuse of synthesizers in-
and otherelectronic
strumentsin recordedand liveperformance;it is availablefromtheUSS, PO Box
37b,East Molesey,SurreyKT8 9JB.
DigbyStuart
RoehamptonSouthlands
Froebel
Institute Whitelands
9 JUSIC
FOe
ORFF
4 KODALY
C DALCROZE
MUSICTHEATRE
SUMMER SCHOOL IN MUSIC EDUCATION
Monday 1 August to Friday5 August 1983
at Southlands College, London SW19
This course will providea unique opportunityto experience
these significantapproaches to Music Education, and to
appreciate how they can come togetherin the classroom.
Participants will be able to attend sessions in Dalcroze,
Kodlly, Orffand Music Theatre each day of the course.
Both residents and non-residentsare accepted and it is
open to those who teach childrenof all ages.
TUTORS
Dr. Ronald Senator, Peter Sidaway, Ruth Stewart, Diana
Thompson, Cecilia Vajda, Elizabeth Vanderspar, Francine
Watson Coleman, Robert Long and Dominic Muldowney.
Furtherinformationfrom:
The Secretary to the Music Dept.,
Roehampton Instituteof HigherEducation,
Southlands College, 64 WimbledonParkside,
London SW19 5NN. Tel: 01-946 2234
223