Loading...
Creator
Auerbach, Alfred, d. 1873
Call number
JOB 91-1
Physical description
.1 linear ft.
Language
Chiefly in German ; 2 letters in French ; 1 letter in English
Preferred Citation

Letters received by Alfred Auerbach, JOB 91-1, Music Division, The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations.

Repository
Music Division
Access to materials
Request an in-person research appointment.

This collection contains responses to Auerbach's questionnaire concerning whether Richard Wagner's opera Parsifal should be performed outside of Bayreuth.

Biographical/historical information

Alfred Auerbach (born in 1873) was a German author and critic of the stage. His published works include Mimik: Übungsmaterial für Schauspiel- und Opern-Schüler(1900), Der jüdische Goy (1923), and Bühnenspiele für jüdische Feierstunden (1935).

He emigrated to the United States before the outbreak of World War II and lived in New York City in the early 1940s. The extent of his activities after emigration and the date of his death are unknown.

Scope and arrangement

Richard Wagner intended his last opera, Parsifal (completed and first performed in 1882), to be performed only at his theatre in Bayreuth, Germany. This dictum was first ignored in 1903 by the Metropolitan Opera in New York City. Since that time, Parsifal has been staged throughout the world.

In 1912, Alfred Auerbach sent a questionnaire to several notable persons of the day, seeking their opinions on whether Parsifal should still be performed only at Bayreuth. This collection contains Auerbach's questionnaire as well as the responses he received.

Arrangement

The letters are arranged alphabetically by author. Two letters from unidentified authors are filed last.

Administrative information

Custodial history

Gift of Rose Bampton, 1990.

Source of acquisition

This collection was donated by Rose Bampton in 1990.

Processing information

Processed by Martha Grutchfield.

Using the collection

Location

Music Division
New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center
40 Lincoln Center Plaza, New York, NY 10023-7498
Third Floor

Conditions Governing Use

For permission to copy or publish please contact the Music Division.