Posted by John Gavin on January 18, 19100 at 17:54:59:
In reply to: Re: Just a simple question
posted by Andrew Cockburn on January 18, 19100 at 12:31:05:
: < These are interesting and important questions. I don't have the answers, needless to say, but most Godowsky aficionados are aware that the Chopin/Godowsky Studies were re-issued, in five volumes, under the imprimatur of Hinrichsen (London) and Peters (New York) about thirty years ago. The Studies were originally published by Robert Lienau and Schlesingers who were based in Berlin. This would have been around 1912-1914. I was able to obtain excellent copies of Java from Carl Fischer Archive Division about 3 years ago. The price was $20 per set (4 sets in all). Fischer was planning to compile all their Godowsky into 2 or 3 thick volumes as of several years ago, but I'm not sure if they discontinued the project. Regarding the Grande Sonata, a company called Musica Obscura which operates out of Quincy, Massachusetts, listed this work in their catalog (along with many other Godowsky compositions). The question is, does Musica Obscura still exist??
: : I would like to know exactly who holds the manuscripts for the CHopin/Godowsky parphrases and also of the great Piano Sonata in E minor. Also, does anyone have any idea whether the Java Suite is going to be reprinted (at a reasonable cost) by Carl Fischer?
: : Thanks,
: : Lloyd
: Lienau and Schlesinger (Berlin) and Carl Haslinger (Vienna) were also the publishers of, as your correspondent truly remarks, "the great Piano Sonata in E minor". This work - a terrible shame that it too was not re-issued at the time that the Studies were - was also published about this time. I have always had the impression that the fact that Godowsky emigrated from Europe during this period is somehow significant. What with the turmoil of the World War and Godowsky -as well as his publishers (?) - being Jewish: all this seemed to place some sort of embargo on the re-issuing and general viability of his works up to this time. And it doesn't involve too much imagination to conjecture what might have happened to the original printing plates at that time.
: As for the Java Suite, I certainly hope that Fischer's will be able to reissue it soon as it is unquestionably one of Godowsky's greatest works. However I heard from a friend, who visited Fischer's archives a couple of years ago. that he was utterly dismayed by the neglect and chaos that he experienced while touring their warehouse. Poor Godowsky; he does have bad luck. Let's hope that the recent upturn in his fortunes will continue without further setback.
: "A simple question" gets a complicated answer!
: Andrew Cockburn.