Richard Wagner (1813-1883) - photo 1
Richard Wagner (1813-1883) - photo 2
Richard Wagner (1813-1883) - photo 3
Richard Wagner (1813-1883) - photo 4
Richard Wagner (1813-1883) - photo 5
Richard Wagner (1813-1883) - photo 6

Richard Wagner (1813-1883)

Lot 72
11.12.2024 00:00UTC +00:00
Classic
To bid, go to the website
CHRISTIE'S
AuctioneerCHRISTIE'S
Event locationUnited Kingdom, London
Buyer Premiumsee on Website%
ID 1349664
Lot 72 | Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
Estimate value
£ 80 000 – 120 000
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
Autograph manuscript signed (at end, ‘Richard Wagner‘), the first poetical draft of the libretto for Tannhäuser, here titled ‘Das Venusberg / Romantische Oper in 3 Acten’, Dresden, 29 January – 22 March 1843
Presentation leaf (a singleton), original wrapper and 17 pages, 352 x 213mm, on ten bifolia, a working manuscript with many emendations, cancellations and additions, dated at beginning and end, signed at end. The verso of the lower wrapper bears a number of annotations including an additional section of sixteen lines (four deleted), with title ‘Gesang der älteren Pilger’, a few musical notations, and apparent pen-trials. Stitched in 20th-century boards.

The poetical draft for Tannhäuser: the most important Wagner manuscript to have been on the market for 20 years. The genesis of Tannhäuser dates to the years 1842 to 1845: the first prose drafts of the libretto were completed in July 1842; the present poetical draft dates from January to March 1843; composition of the music began in the summer months of the same year, and the opera received its premiere in Dresden on 19 October 1845. The first printed edition of 1845 was prepared from an autograph fair copy of the libretto (now in Bayreuth): the present draft shows numerous differences in the text, the stage directions, the numbering and division of the scenes and other details. Of particular interest is the presence of an alternate, presumably earlier draft of the song of the old pilgrims on a bifolium re-used as the wrapper.

The autograph presentation reads: 'Seinem Freunde Wilhelm Baumgartner / zum Neujahr 1852. / Zum Widmung: / Mensch, studire Partitur, sonst gelangst Du nicht in das Himmelreich! Damit Dir Deine Wanderung leicht werde, möge Dich das Werk eines Freundes geleiten, der manch steilen Weg von Dir erklommen, und jetzt in herzlicher Liebe seine Hand Dir reicht. / Richard Wagner'. Wilhelm Baumgartner (1820-1867) was a pianist, composer and choral conductor based in Zurich, where he became one of Wagner's closest friends during his exile there. In a letter to Gottfried Keller on 22 March 1851, he described Wagner's 'rousing effect on me with all the fire of his spirit and his energy ... He is a genius through and through and a revolutionary through and through in his approach to art'.




Provenance

Wilhelm Baumgartner (Swiss conductor, 1820-1867: autograph presentation by Wagner, New Year, 1852); described as 'lost' in the Wagner-Werk-Verzeichnis (iii, p.266); Sotheby's, 6 December 1996.
Address of auction CHRISTIE'S
8 King Street, St. James's
SW1Y 6QT London
United Kingdom
Preview
11.12.2024 – 11.12.2024
Phone +44 (0)20 7839 9060
Email
4FQ.AYGKAGLUQ@FO3G@
Buyer Premium see on Website
Conditions of purchaseConditions of purchase

More from Creator

Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
£1 500
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
£2 500
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
£1 500
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
£25 000
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
£1 500
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
£2 000
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
£1 500
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
£1 500

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.
?>