Hofmannsthal, Hugo von (EN)

Hofmannsthal Hugo von, *1 February 1874 Vienna, †15 July 1929 Rodaun (near Vienna), Austrian poet, prose writer, playwright, and librettist. He studied law and Romance languages (PhD in 1899); he began his literary career whilst still at secondary school, publishing poems, plays and essays from 1890 onwards. In these works, he espoused extreme aestheticism and the symbolism of death and transience (Der Tod des Tizian 1892, Terzinenüber Vergänglichkeit 1896). Between 1900 and 1906, a ‘longing for living reality’ led him towards dramas in which, beneath the guise of ancient myth, he gave voice to the expression and psychology of modern life (Elektra 1903, Oedipus und die Sphinx 1905, König Oedipus 1906). Hoffmansthal’s work after 1906 sought what he described as a fulfilment of the traditional demands of the theatre in its various forms; it drew inspiration from medieval mystery plays, Baroque and folk theatre (Jedermann 1912), pantomime, ballet and opera. Hofmannsthal was a co-founder of the annual (from 1917) theatre and music festivals in Salzburg (Salzburger Festspiele). A separate chapter in Hofmannsthal’s work is his 29-year collaboration with R. Strauss.  After a few unrealised projects (the ballet Der Triumph der Zeit in 1900, and the operas Semiramis based on Calderón in 1905, David und Saul based on Rückert, and Dantons Tod based on G. Buchner in 1906), this collaboration resulted in a series of joint works (Elektra, Der Rosenkavalier, Ariadne auf Naxos, Die Frau ohne Schatten, Arabella), which marked a revival of German opera theatre in the wake of Wagner. Since The Marriage of Figaro, “music had not had not enjoyed such a collaboration” (R. Rolland, trans. N.D.). The remarkable musicality of Hofmannsthal’s opera librettos and the “gently guiding influence of the poet on the composer” (W. Schuh, trans. N.D.) meant that Hofmannsthal’s librettos were a constant source of inspiration for the composer. Strauss called him “Da Ponte and Scribe rolled into one” (letter to Hofmannsthal from 21 April 1909, trans. H. Hammelmann and E. Osers), accepted his suggestions and guidance (“I have now definitely stripped off the Wagnerian armour”, letter from September 1916, trans. H. Hammelmann and E. Osers) and responded to Hofmannsthal’s aim of restoring to German musical theatre “the serenely light Mozartian element” (Mehl, trans. N.D.).

Editions: Gesammelte Werke, ed. H. Steiner, 14 vols., Frankfurt am Main 1946–66; R. Strauss, Hugo von Hofmannsthal. Briefwechsel, ed. F. and A. Strauss, compiled by W. Schuh, Zurich 1952, 2nd edition 1954.

Literature: H. Holländer Hugo von Hofmannsthal als Opernlibrettist, “Zeitschrift für Musik” XCVI, 1929; E. Staiger Betrachtungen zum Rosenkavalier, in: Dichtung und Musik, Zurich 1947; E. Wellesz Hofmannsthal and R. Strauss, “Music and Letters” XXXIII, 1952; R. Strauss and H. von Hofmannsthal, A Working Friendship: The Correspondence Between Richard Strauss and Hugo von Hofmannsthal, trans. H. Hammelmann and E. Osers, New York, 1961; E. Kuryluk Hugo von Hofmannsthal, in: Wiedeńska apokalipsa, Krakow 1974.