Gustav Mahler (1860-1911) - photo 1
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911) - photo 2
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911) - photo 3

Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)

Lot 240
15.12.2023 11:00UTC +01:00
Classic
Starting price
£ 100
AuctioneerCHRISTIE'S
Event locationUnited Kingdom, London
Buyer Premiumsee on Website%
Archive
The auction is completed. No bids can be placed anymore.
Archive
ID 1109040
Lot 240 | Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
Estimate value
£ 7 000 – 10 000
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
Autograph letter signed (‘Gustav Mahler’) to Emil Freund (‘Lieber Emil!‘), [New York], [postmarked 21 November 1910]
In German. Four pages, 201 x 123mm, bifolium, printed letter-paper of the Hotel Savoy. Envelope. Provenance : Sotheby’s, 9 & 10 May 1985, lot 138.

‘Frantic’ in New York, Gustav Mahler writes to Emil Freund seeking to direct musical affairs in Vienna from afar and enquiring about developments with the Eighth. Informing Freund that he would like to have a parcel of land registered in both his and Alma’s names, Mahler turns to musical matters: ‘You will have been able to read between the lines of the newspaper hoax about my return to the Court Opera. In fact, it had never even occurred to me to work with a person I do not even know and one who, by all accounts, seems thoroughly unlikable’. He urges Freund to hang on to ‘W’ [Bruno Walter], who will not be offered a contract as favourable as he currently has in Vienna: ‘Positions with a salary of 12,000 gulden are few and far between. Even I did not receive more in my early years as a director’. Mahler is well, he says, in spite of a frantic workload, though his wife and daughter are not in good health; he closes with a postscript asking that [Emil] Hertzka send the final amendments alongside the printed score of the Eighth, enquiring whether Mengelberg has agreed to a Frankfurt performance.

The land to which Mahler refers is presumably a plot in the Semmering, which he had recently purchased with the intention of building a house. The ‘newspaper hoax’ must relate to events at the Vienna Opera, who had recently appointed Hans Gregor to take up the position of director from March 1911 – Mahler’s feelings on Weingartner’s successor are quite clear. Bruno Walter, the German conductor and composer, had been with the Court Opera since 1901, after accepting an invitation from Mahler to join as his assistant; by November 1910, his contract was soon to expire and he did not wish to extend it, but he would eventually be persuaded with the offer of new and very favourable terms. Emil Freund, Mahler's lawyer and friend, had worked from the beginning on the publication and performances of the Eighth [see previous lot].

Published: Martner, no 439.

Artist:Gustav Mahler (1860 - 1911)
Place of origin:Austria, USA
Address of auction CHRISTIE'S
8 King Street, St. James's
SW1Y 6QT London
United Kingdom
Preview
09.12.2023 12:00 – 17:00
10.12.2023 12:00 – 17:00
11.12.2023 09:00 – 20:00
12.12.2023 09:00 – 17:00
13.12.2023 09:00 – 17:00
Phone +44 (0)20 7839 9060
Email
4FQ.AYGKAGLUQ@FO3G@
Buyer Premium see on Website
Conditions of purchaseConditions of purchase

More from Creator

Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
£100
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
£100
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
£100
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
£100
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
£100
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
£100

Related terms

Frequently asked questions

First of all, you should register to be able to purchase at auction. After confirming your email address, enter your personal information in your user profile, such as your first name, last name, and mail address. Choose a lot from the upcoming auction and the maximum amount you want to place on it. After confirmation of your choice, we will send your application by e-mail to the appropriate auction house. If the auction house accepts a request, it will participate in the auction. You can view the current status of a bid at any time in your personal account in the "Bids" section.
Auctions are performed by auction houses and each of the auction houses describes their terms of auction. You can see the texts in the section "Auction information".
The results of the auction are published within a few days after the end of the auction. In the top menu of the site, find the tab "Auctions". Click on it and you will be on the auction catalog page, where you can easily find the category "Results". After opening it, select the desired auction from the list, enter and view the current status of the interested lot.
The information about the auction winners is confidential. The auction winner will receive a direct notification from the auction house responsible with instructions for further action: an invoice for payment and the manner in which the goods will be received.
Each of the auction houses has its own payment policy for the won lots. All auction houses accept bank transfers, most of them accept credit card payments. In the near future you will find detailed information for each case in the section "Auction information" on the page of the auction catalog and the lot.
Shipment of the won lot depends on its size. Small items can be delivered by post. Larger lots are sent by courier. Employees of the auction houses will offer you a wide range to choose from.
No. The archive serves as a reference for the study of auction prices, photographs and descriptions of works of art.
×
Save this search query and get timely email alerts! It is simple and very effective.
alter mann und mädchen (das ungleiche paar)
Create a Search Subscription