RWA Band I/2 – Fantasias and Fugues, Variations, Sonatas, Suites I, biographical context
Alexander Becker, Stefan König, Christopher Grafschmidt, Stefanie Steiner-Grage
1.
When Reger’s course of study at the Wiesbaden Conservatoire ended in February 1893 (he remained there as teacher of piano and organ), his first two works had already been published by Augener & Co. in London, and the next seven works were to follow within a year. Later that year, the influential organist and music critic Heinrich Reimann published the first relevant article on Reger’s works in the Allgemeine Musik-Zeitung (AMZ);1 although he dubbed him a “hothead”, he expected a great deal from the up-and-coming composer. In 1894 a first concert of Reger’s works took place in Berlin which, however, met with rather mixed responses from the critics. Otto Leßmann, the editor of the AMZ, recognized the “undeniably major talent of the young artist”, but on hearing the Cello Sonata in F minor op. 5 (“an impossible work”), urged a period of reflection.2 The artistic success which still eluded him led to a first crisis, which was intensified by an unhappy love affair and caused Reger to sink into isolation and depression.
He found motivation at the end of October 1894 from a report entitled Max Reger und seine Erstlingswerke by Arthur Smolian,3 which was both detailed and favorable. In this new mood of optimism Reger began his Organ Suite op. 16, which he dedicated to the “spirit of Joh. Seb. Bach”. In 1896 he met Ferruccio Busoni, Richard Strauss and others, and corresponded with Johannes Brahms. He wrote large-scale works such as a piano concerto (WoO I/4) and a symphony (WoO I/5), but they remained unpublished, which also badly affected Reger financially.4 A one-year period of voluntary military service (October 1896 to September 1897) aggravated his psychologically and financially strained situation: “No one gives me a penny; I stand here alone; and nobody cares about me; on the contrary, my gentlemen colleagues (the gentlemen musicians) indeed do everything to make me feel ‘small’ […] Now, I’m not losing my courage; I live and die for my holy, sacrosanct art – and if I find no recognition, one should simply bury me.” (Letter to August Döring) Also, following his military service, several of his works were rejected by Augener or publication postponed and the works only issued years later. Applications for music director’s positions in Heidelberg and Bonn were unsuccessful. One bright spot was the performance of his op. 16 on 1 April 1898 in the Paulskirche in Frankfurt a.M. by Karl Straube, whom Reger met on this occasion, leading to a lifelong and fruitful artistic friendship from that point onwards.
Reger’s progressive self-neglect led to his sister Emma taking him back to his parents’ house at Weiden in mid-June 1898. The escape from the oppressive conditions in Wiesbaden triggered a tremendous phase of productivity; in the following three years in Weiden, he wrote numerous organ works. The Munich publisher Jos. Aibl became Reger’s principal publisher at this time and in Karl Straube, who gave organ recitals in many places, he had found a comrade-in-arms, who presented his works to the public. Four years later, a detailed article about Reger, with picture and biography, written by Caesar Hochstetter, one of his few Wiesbaden friends, was published again after a long interim.5
In general, the press reacted extremely favorably to his works, and increasing numbers of performers showed interest (see Early reception). With the Fantasia and Fugue on B-A-C-H op. 46, Reger achieved a great success and it frequently received considerable space in reviews; the performance at the Heidelberg Tonkünstlerfest of the Allgemeiner Deutscher Musikverein in June 1901 brought him national attention. However, in the tranquil atmosphere of Weiden, which was certainly beneficial for his convalescence, Reger felt increasingly restricted, and began to put out feelers in the direction of Munich, where he expected to find new musical stimuli.
About this Blogpost
Authors:
Alexander Becker, Stefan König, Christopher Grafschmidt, Stefanie Steiner-Grage
Translations:
Elizabeth Robinson (en)
Date:
15th December 2011
Tags:
Module IVol. I/2
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Citation
Alexander Becker, Stefan König, Christopher Grafschmidt, Stefanie Steiner-Grage: RWA Band I/2 – Fantasias and Fugues, Variations, Sonatas, Suites I, biographical context, in: Reger-Werkausgabe, www.reger-werkausgabe.de/rwa_post_00044, version 3.1.0-rc3, 20th December 2024.
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