Arnold Schoenberg in Los Angeles

44 Pages·2008·5.26 MB·English

Arnold Schoenberg in Los Angeles
Author(s): Dorothy Lamb Crawford
Source: The Musical Quarterly, Vol. 86, No. 1 (Spring, 2002), pp. 6-48
Published by: Oxford University Press
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American Musics
Arnold Schoenberg in Los Angeles
DorothyL ambC rawford
I only teach the whole of the art ... As a composerI must believe in inspirationr ather
than in mechanics.
-Arnold Schoenberg
ArnoldS choenbergh adj ustt urneds ixtyw henh e madet he suddend e-
cisioni n mid-Septembe1r9 34 to leavet he EastC oastf orC aliforniaH. e
hadh eld the mostp restigioups ost in his fieldi n Germanyb, uth e wrote
his friendst hat in LosA ngelesh e faced" ac ompletelyb lankp age,s o far
as my musici s concerned."T1h e previousO ctoberh e hadb een abruptly
notifiedb y the Germang overnmentth at his lifetimec ontracta nds alary
in Berlinw eret erminatedW. ith no othera lternativeh, e had accepteda
low salaryt o teacha t the brand-newM alkinC onservatoriyn Boston,
with adjunctt eachingi n ManhattanS. trenuoucs ommutingin the harsh
winterc limateh ads everelyd amagedh is health,a ndh e hadg one to the
summerh omeo f the JuilliardS choolo f Musici n ChautauquaN, ew York,
to recoverO. wingt o the depressiona,l l his effortst o obtaina n adequate
teachings alarya t an establishedin stitutiono n the EastC oasth ad come
to nothing.C arlE ngel,p residenot f G. Schirmer( his Americanm usic
publisher)h, ad sent lettersr ecommendinSgc hoenberga s a lecturert o
forty-sevenin stitutionsb, ut the resultsw erem eager.P2 rospectfso rt he
financiasl ecurityh e wantedl ookeds o bleakt hat Schoenbergh ad even
contactedH annsE islera ndt he conductorF ritzS tiedrya boutm aking
connectionsf orh im in the SovietU nion. On 12 Septembert,h e dayb e-
foreh is birthdayh, e wrotet o Stiedry( still workingin the USSR), "We
areg oingt o Californiafo rt he climatea ndb ecausei t is cheaper."A3f ter
he wast emporarilsye ttledi n a rentedH ollywoodh ousew ith his wife,
Gertrud,a nd toddler,N uria, he expressed( in a letter to Anton Webern)
his initial enthusiasmf or the beauty of his surroundings": It is Switzer-
land, the Riviera, the Vienna woods, the desert, the Salzkammergut,
Spain, Italy-everything in one place. And along with that scarcelya
day,a pparentlye ven in winter, without sun."4H e recoveredh is health
and energy and could indulge his intense desire to play tennis. By 1935,
LeonardS tein (who would be his teaching assistantf rom 1939 to 1942)
The MusicalQ uarterly8 6(1), Spring 2002, pp. 6-48; DOI: 10.1093/musqtl/gdg003
? 2002 OxfordU niversityP ress 6
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Schoenbeirng L osA ngeles 7
recalledS, choenbergw as" fita ndr oly-poly,s"p ringyf,u ll of vitality,a nd
tanneda darkb ronze.5
Howevert, he resistanceto modemm usici n LosA ngelest hat had
drivenH enryC owell'sN ew MusicS ocietyt o San Franciscog ave
Schoenbergm ajorp roblemsU. pon his arrivailn New Yorka yeare arlier,
his firstA mericane mployerJ, osephM alkin,h ada rrangedex tensivep ub-
licity,w hichl ed to severalr eceptionsa ndp erformanceIsn. LosA ngeles
therew asn o suchg reetingH. is primacya s a culturalle aderi n Europe
hadb een enhancedb y a devotedc ircleo f disciples-both studentsa nd
performers-whof, ollowingt he traditiono f master-apprentitcrea ining,
in manyw aysi nsulatedh im fromm undanec hores.T his hade nabled
him to carryo ut his oftenu topiano rganizationapll ansi n an authoritar-
ian mannerF. romt he firsty earsi n Californiam, emorieso f pastr epudia-
tionsa ndh is senseo f his own importancae s a composerm adeh im hy-
persensitiveto anys light,e ven if imaginedW. hile he wasa cutelya ware
of his music'sn eed for" propagandaa,s" h e calledi t, he had little ease in
the new Americana rto f publicr elations.6S tartingo vera t his age in the
haphazaredn vironmenot f LosA ngeles-at firstw ith no institutional
backing-his assumptionasn de xpectationws ereo ftenf rustrateda,n d
his relationshipws eref requentlyd ifficulta s he struggledto makea living
forh is muchy oungerw ifea ndt heirg rowingfa mily.
Otto Klempererp'so sitionw ith the LosA ngelesP hilharmoniuc n-
doubtedlyc ounteda s an advantageto SchoenbergY. ett he montha fter
his arrivahl e refuseda n invitationt o a banqueth onoringK lemperer,
forh e felt that the organizerosf the event owedh im greaterr ecognition
than a "walk-onp"a rt.7A t firsth e took somep ainst o entertaint he soci-
ety matriarchdso minatingL osA ngeles'sm usic,b ut in November1 935
his approachto the managero f the PhilharmonicB, essieB artlettF raenkl,
wasp eremptoriyn tone. He invitedh er to attenda classo f his at the
Universityo f SouthernC alifornia(U SC), becauseh, e wrote," Ik now
whatI amd oingt herei s of the greatestim portancfeo re verybodyw ho is
interestedin music.... Therew ill certainlyb e in perhapstw entyy earsa
chapteri n the musicalh istoryo f LosA ngeles:' WhatS choenbergh as
achievedi n LosA ngeles';a ndp erhapsth erew ill be anotherc hapter,
asking:'W hath ave the peoplea ndt he societyo f LosA ngelest akeno f
the advantageo fferedb y Schoenberg?"'8
Schoenberga ssumedth at he wouldc onducth is own worksi n Los
Angeles.( His Europeanro yaltiesh add iminishedto nothing,a ndh e
neededt he fees.) Klempereorf feredh im a guestp rogramw ith the Phil-
harmonicin March1 935,a fterh imselfa chievingt he previousD ecember
an extraordinarielyn thusiasticr esponseto Schoenberg'1s9 17o rchestra-
tion of VerklarNtea cht.I n his own programS choenbergr epeatedt hat
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8 TheM usicaQl uarterly
work,o fferedh is Bacht ranscriptionins celebrationo f the 250tha n-
niversaryo f Bach'sb irth,a ndc onductedB rahms'Ts hirdS ymphonyH. is
performancoef the Brahmws ass everelyc riticizedfo ri ts leisurelyte mpo
(which" irritateadn db affledt he players")a,n da lthought he audience
applaudedth e composerw armlyo, ne critich opedt hat "wes houldh ave
muchm oreS choenbergto hear-with Klemperecro nducting."T9h e
followingD ecemberS choenberga gainm et with disasterc onducting
the Philharmonict,h is time in an all-Schoenberpgr ogramth at included
the full orchestraal rrangemen(tm adei n April 1935)o f his Chamber
Symphonyn o. 1, op. 9 (1906). PeterY atesr ememberetdh e musicians
in rehearsadl eliberatelsya botagingth e music( whicht heyd ubbedt he
Jammersymphonbiye p) layingw rongn otesa nd" horsinga round."10
LeonardS tein suspectedth e playersw eret ipsyf romC hristmahs oliday
revelsa ndf oundS choenberg'psa tiente ffortst o educatet he orchestra
heartbreaking. 1
Schoenbergto ok on no furtherc onductingw ith the Philharmonic.
In his helpfula nds tronglyw ordedp leaf ora 1936P hilharmonifcu nd-
raisingd rive,h e expressedw hatb otheredh im aboutA mericanc ulture:
"Ast he materialismof ourt ime seemst o endangerth e wholes phere
of spirituacl ulture,I believei t is the dutyo f everym ant o fightf ort he
existenceo f one of the mostv ital symbolso f man'sh igherl ife.""H12e
conductedt he FederaSl ymphonyO rchestrat,h e goverment'se ffort
to employo ut-of-workm usiciands uringt he depressionT. his mustn ot
have helpedh im financiallyf,o rt he concertsw eref ree,b ut manyo f the
programosf feredn ew music.S tudiom usicianse, agerf orc hallenging
musicale xperiencesi,n vitedh im to conducta readingo rchestrao rga-
nizedi n HollywoodC. riticalr esponset o his conductingr emained
poor,13w hile critical acceptance of Klemperer'ps erformanceso f his
music with the Philharmonice mphasized" the Schoenberg luminosity
and romanticism."14
It soon became clear to Schoenberg that his twelve-tone music
would not fare well in musicallyu nsophisticatedL os Angeles. In No-
vember 1934 he confided (in his new and strugglingE nglish) to Carl
Engel in New York:" Have I now to appeara s only the composero f the
VerkldrtNe acht... or as the devil in person, the atonalist, the construc-
tor, the musical mathematiciane tc.? I hate this kind to consider a com-
poser only from the view-point of history instead to enjoy (or not) what
he says. I would like to learn your opinion about this matters."1T5 he
Third String Quartet (1927), played in March 1935 by the local Abas
Quartet, received a newspapern otice only. LeonardS tein, who was at
that time beginning his lifelong devotion to new music, found it "the
strangestm usic I'd ever heard."16In January1 938, Schoenberg's1 933
Concerto (after Handel) for String Quartet and Orchestra( in Klem-
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Schoenbeirng L osA ngeles 9
perer'ps erformancwe ith the Philharmoniacn dt he KolischQ uartet)
struckt he criticI sabelM orseJ onesa s a "derangemenot"f H andel.S he
wrote," Itw asi nterestingc hieflya s evidenceo f the progresos f Schoen-
berg'sr emarkablteh eoriesa ndi t had momentso f fleetingb eautyA. s a
musico-intellectuadle monstratioonf Schoenberg'pso wersi t wasa work
to studya ndt o marvela t rathert han to reveli n."17
Practicallyn one of Schoenberg'ms usicw asa vailablein libraries
or musics toresi n LosA ngeles.I n 1937E ngelh elpedp ropagandizfeo r
Schoenbergb y havingS chirmer'psu blisha collectiono f writingsb y
anda boutS choenberge, ditedb y the LosA ngelesi mpresariMo erleA r-
mitage.W ith this informationJ,o nesa ttempteda morep robingd iscus-
sion of Schoenberg'ms usicali deasi n the LosA ngeleTs imesH. erO ctober
1938r eporto n the premiere(b y memberos f the FoxS tudioO rchestra)
of Schoenberg'rse centlyc ompletedK olN idre,o p. 39, expressedh ern ew
attitude:" Wea rei ndeedo n the thresholdo f a profoundc hangei n musi-
cal art.... Schoenbergl,i ke Einstein,i s essentiallya simplem ano f
truth."1I8n his own writingse xcerptedfo rt he Armitageb ook,S choen-
berga rticulatedh is philosophyo f composing:
All I wantt o do is to expresms yt houghtasn dg ett hem ostp ossiblceo n-
tenti n thel eastp ossiblsep ace.... Ifa composedro esn'wt ritef romt he
hearth, e simplyca n'tp roducgeo odm usic.... I haven everh ada theory
in myl ife.... I writew hatI feeli n myh eart-andw hatf inallyc omeso n
paperis whatf irstc oursetdh rougehv eryfi breo f myb odyI. t is fort his
reasonI cannott ella nyonew hatt hes tyleo f myn extc ompositiowni ll
be.... Whatc anb e constructewdi tht heset welvet onesd ependosn one's
inventivfea cultyT. heb asict onesw illn ot inventf ory ou.E xpressioisn
limitedo nlyb yt hec omposerc'rse ativeneasns dh isp ersonality...I.n t he
timeo f the [ChambeSry mphonnyo . 1, 1906]I, understoobde tterw hat
I hadw rittena ndI hadm orep ersonapll easurwe itht hat,t hanw itht he
musicw hichf ollowedT. hent o composwe asa greapt leasureIn. a later
timei t wasa dutya gainsmt yselfI.t wasn ota questionof pleasureI .h ave
a mission-at ask.... I amb utt hel oudspeakoefr a ni dea.... All music,
in so fara si t is thep roducotf a trulyc reativme indi,s n ew.. .. It is no use
to raila t newm usicb ecausiet containtso om anyid easM. usicw ithout
ideasis un-thinkablaen, dp eoplew hoa ren otw illingto uset heirb rains
to understanmdu sicw hichc annotb ef ullyg raspeadt thef irsht earing,
ares implyla zy-mindeEdv. erytr uew orko f artt o be understoohda st o
be thoughat bouto; therwisiet hasn o inherenlti fe.... Thea rtisits con-
tentw itha spiratiown,h ereatsh em ediocrme usth aveb eautyA. ndy et
thea rtisat ttainbs eautyw ithouwt illingit , forh e is onlys trivinagf ter
truthfulness.19
The same book included an interview by the Los Angeles critic Jose
Rodriguez in which Schoenberg discussed his reliance on instinct. When
queried about feeling versus intellect in his music, he replied:
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10 TheM usicaQl uarterly
It mighta stonishs omec riticst hat I ams omewhatth e creatureo f inspira-
tion. I composea ndp ainti nstinctively.... I see the worka s a wholef irst.
Then I composet he details.I n workingo ut, I alwayslo se somethingT. his
cannotb e avoidedT. herei s alwayss omel ossw henw e materialize.... I
ams omewhast adt hatp eoplet alks o mucho f atonalityo, f twelve-tone
systemso, f technicalm ethodsw heni t comest o mym usic.... I wisht hat
mym usics houldb e considereda s an honesta ndi ntelligentp ersonw ho
comest o us sayings omethingh e feelsd eeplya ndw hichi s of significance
to all of us.20
Schoenbergtr iedf ort he remaindeorf his life to convincea wider
publict hat this wash is truei ntenta s a composer.2H1e wrotes uccinctly
to the composerR ogerS essions," ThatI writei n this or that styleo r
methodi s myp rivatea ffaira nd is no concernt o any listener-but I
wantm y messaget o be understooda nda ccepted."H oweverh, is relative
isolationi n LosA ngeles( andK lempereri'lsl nessa nds ubsequenrte sig-
nationf romh is Philharmonipco st) hinderedin formeda nds ympathetic
performanceosf his orchestrawl orks.2H2 e lackedt he performinsgk ills
that enableds uchc omposeras s BelaB art6kP, aulH indemithE, rnst
KrenekI, gorS travinskya,n dE rnstT och-as concertp erformers-to
promotet heirw orksi n persont o Americana udiencesW. ith the excep-
tion of his own recordingo f Pierroltu nairein LosA ngelesf orC olumbia
(in 1940),23S choenberg'ws orksw eren ot takenu p by majorA merican
recordingco mpaniesu ntil afterh is death.A lthoughh e receivedp resti-
giousa ndw ell-paidc ommissionfsr omE lizabethS pragueC oolidge,t he
Koussevitzkfyo undationa, ndH arvardU niversitya, ll basedi n the East
Coast,o btainingc ommissionos n the WestC oastw asd ifficulta ndu nre-
wardingin termso f fees andp ublicitya, ndh e managedto get onlyf our.
The firstc amei n 1938,w henS choenbergc ontactedL osA ngeles's
mosti nfluentiaJl ewishl eaderR, abbiJ akobS onderlingS. choenbergh ad
receivedd esperatep leasf orh elp fromf riendsa ndr elativest rappedin
Austriaa ndG ermanyW. hile he wrotem anyt estimonialfso rt heses up-
plicants,h e wasu nablet o meetr equirementtso guaranteeth eirf inancial
stabilityi n the UnitedS tates,a ndh opedt o interestw ealthym emberos f
RabbiS onderling'cso ngregationat the FairfaxT emplei n providingth e
necessarya ffidavits.2T4o supportth is effort,h is Koln idre,o p. 39, was
commissionebdy the rabbi( whoc ollaboratedw ith Schoenbergo n the
text) forp erformancien a YomK ippurse rvicet hat fall, a monthb efore
the disasteros f KristallnachtS.2c5h oenberg'fsr eet reatmenot f its cantus
firmusc hantp reventedit s firstp erformancien a synagoguea, nds o the
service,n arratedb y Sonderlingt,o ok placei n the CoconutG roven ight-
cluba t the AmbassadoHr otel.26G . Schirmerr ejectedi t forp ublication
in 1941.T he secondc ommissionf,o rt he PianoC oncerto,o p. 42 (1942),
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Schoenbeirng L osA ngeles 11
waso riginallyto have been a "pianop iece"f orw hichS choenberg's
pupil,t he pianistO scarL evant,p ut up $100. When the workg rewi nto
a concerto,L evantg ot cold feet overS choenberg'fse e andp erformance
requirementasn dw ithdrew.2T7h e fee wasp aidb y a wealthyU niversity
of CaliforniaL, osA ngeles( UCLA),s tudento f Schoenberg'sH, enry
ClayS hriverA. notherp upil,N athanielS hilkret,w ho had been a mem-
bero f Schoenberg'Ms alkinC onservatory-sponsorMeda nhattanc lass
in 1933-34,p rovideda thirdc ommissionin 1945.H e hadc ome to Hol-
lywoodi n the mid-1930sa ndc omposedfo rs everalf ilms tudiosa, ndw as
associatedw ith VictorR ecordsH. e commissionedth e emigrec omposers
MarioC astelnuovo-TedescDo,a riusM ilhaudS, travinskyA, lexandre
TansmanT, och,a ndS choenbergto each writea singlem ovementf or
a suitef orn arratorc,h orus,a ndo rchestrao n sectionso f the Booko f
Genesis.T he workw asr ecordedb y VictorR edS eal Recordsa fteri ts
November1 945p erformance.S28h ilkret'os wn movement", Creation,"
followedS choenberg'fsiv e-minuteP reludefo rt extlessc horusa ndf ull
orchestra.2T9h e composeresa ch received$ 300-except Stravinskyw, ho
held out for $1,000.30T he Phantasyf or Violin, op. 47 (1949), was com-
missionedb y the Canadianv iolinistA dolfK oldofskyA. friendo f Rudolf
Kolisch,h e camet o LosA ngelesi n 1944,a ndp layedt he firstW est
Coastp erformancoef Schoenberg'Sst ringT rioi n May1 948a t
"Eveningosn the Roof."
This LosA ngelesc oncerts eriesd id the mosto f anyA mericanm u-
sicalo rganizatiotno promoteS choenberg'ms usici n a sustainedw ayd ur-
ing his Californiay ears.P eterY atest, he foundero f andc atalystf ort his
enterpriseg, atheredp erformerasn da udiencesw illingt o ventureo utside
the standardre pertoryY. atesh adb een inspiredin partb y Schoenberg's
Societyf orP rivateM usicalP erformanceHs. e wasp articularliyn terested
in undervaluegde niusa ndc elebratedS choenberg'rse sidencein LosA n-
gelesf romt he firsts easono f his concertsi n 1939-40. Yatesp rogrammed
mosto f Schoenberg'csh amberw orkss, omes everalt imes.31H is articles
on Schoenbergw, hosed ifficultp ersonalityh e relisheda nde ndeavored
to understanda,p pearedb eginningi n 1940 in the Californiap eriodical
Artsa ndA rchitecturaen, df rom1 949o n in nationalp ublicationsY. ates's
beliefi n his audience'as bilityt o understandS choenberg'ms usicg radu-
allye ncouragedot herp erformanceins LosA ngeles.
In Yates'fsi rstd iscussion(i n 1939)w ith Schoenberga bouth is
workst, he composerd eclaredt hat his newlyp ublishedV iolinC oncerto
couldn ot be performedb y anyonel iving,a sJ aschaH eifetzh ads aidh e
couldn ot playi t.32J oseR odriguehz adr eportedto Schoenbergth at "a
virtuoso"h ad toldh im the concertow ouldb e unplayabluen tilv iolinists
couldg rowa newf ourthf ingerR. odriguedze scribedS choenberg" laughing
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12 The MusicalQ uarterly
like a pleasedc hild"a t this remarka ndc ontinuing", Yesy, es.T hat will
be fine.T he concertoi s extremelyd ifficultj,u sta s muchf ort he heada s
fort he hands.I am delightedt o adda notheru nplayabwleo rkt o the
repertoireI. wantt he concertot o be difficulta ndI wantt he little finger
to becomel onger.I can wait."3U3 ndauntedb y this informationY, ates
convinceda HollywoodB owlY oungA rtists'A uditionw innert o lear
the concertow ith his wife,t he experienced(a ndE uropean-trainepdi)-
anistF rancesM ullen.W hen they took two movementsto Schoenberg
t(on1 0 Februar1y9 40),t he composerw asp leasede noughw ith their
workt hath e arrangedfo rt hemt o performo ne movemento n NBC ra-
dio. He wrotek indlyo n the youngv iolinist'ss core," NowI heardt his for
the firstt ime andI am satisfieda, bouty ou andt he compositionto o."34
Thesee xtremelyc ontradictorrye sponseisl lustrateb oth Schoen-
berg'sc oncernf ors tudentsa ndh is angert owardt hosew ho crossedo r
belittledh im. The pianistL eonardS tein rememberetdh at "Schoenberg
neverm adea fussa bouth ow well one performehdi s worksH. e realized
performerws ered oingt heirb est.H e'db e gladi f you camet o him before-
handt o practiceH. e wouldn'th ave mucht o say.H e wasn'tg oingt o
spendh is time goadingt he performers."H35o weverS, tein alsor emem-
beredS choenbergb earings ucha grudgea gainstH eifetzt hat even in
the impecunioulsa sty earso f his life he refusedth e violinist'sfi nancial
help.36S uchp aradoxeisn Schoenberg'ast titudesw ereb asict o the
complexitya nd intensityo f his mind.W hile studyingw ith him, Dika
Newlinr ecordedin her diariesm anyi nstanceso f the "unresolvabcleo n-
tradictionsi"n his character.3H7i s daughterN, uria,o ffersh er analysis:
"Hew asg entlea ndh e wass evere,a ndh e wasa ngrya ndh e wass weet,
andh e wash appya ndh e wass ad,a ndI thinkh e wasa ll of the things
that everyonee lse is, to a muchm orei ntensifiedd egree.... When he
wasa ngryh, e wasm ucha ngrierth an anyonee lse was.A nd whenh e was
happyh, e wasm uchh appier."3C8a rlE ngelf oundt hat therew asn o one
moreh erzlicohr cordialt han SchoenbergY. ete ven Engel,a longw ith
otherN ew Yorkp ublishersc,r itics,r adio,a ndr ecordingc ompaniesr, e-
ceivedd oseso f Schoenberg'fsr equentlyp aranoido utburstos f spleen.39
In LosA ngeles,E uropeanisn the growinge migrec ommunityo ftenw ere
treatedf rostilyb y Schoenbergw, ho felt that they,m oret hanA mericans
who lackeda sophisticatedm usicalb ackgroundsh, ouldc ertainlyp ayr e-
spectt o his stature.4A0 nyonew homS choenbergsu spectedo f acting
presumptuoustloyw ardh im felt his angerw, hichc ouldb e spikedw ith
ironya ndw it. In 1948,a t the beginningo f his bittera ltercationw ith
ThomasM anno vert he author'"s piratingo"f twelve-tonet heoryi n the
novel DoctorF austusS, choenbergse nt Manna n invented" 1988"e ncy-
clopediaa rticle( by a musicologisnt amed" HugoT riebsamen"w)h ich
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Schoenbeirng L osA ngeles 13
recordedth at ThomasM ann,t he composerw, ast he reali nventoro f the
twelve-tones ystem,b ut havingb ecomea writerh e had allowedi ts ap-
propriationb y the thievishc omposerS choenberg.4(1M annh ad indeed
pumpedS choenbergfo rm ateriaol n musica ndt he life of a composer
whenh e beganw ritingt he novel in May1 943.42S) choenbergw asn ot
only enrageda boutt he book'sp ossiblei mpacto n his musicals tatureb, ut
alsop articularliyn sultedt hat the composerin the novel wasa fflicted
with syphilisM. artaF euchtwangerre membereSdc hoenbergin the
BrentwoodM arkets, houtingt o herh is denialo f the disease.S he was
takena backb ut gladt hat he wass peakingin German.43
Mann'sm ajors ourcef orh is novel'si nformationa boutS choenberg's
twelve-tonem ethodw asT heodorA dorno,a nearn eighboro f both
Manna ndS choenbergin the 1940s.A lthoughA doro felt he wase le-
vatingS choenberg'rse putationin his polemicT heP hilosophoyf Modem
Music,4S4 choenberga voidedh im. Mann,w ho usedA dorno'se ssayi n
his novel, rememberetdh at "mucha s [Adomo]r everedS choenbergh e
hadn o intercourswe ith him."4S5 choenberg(w hop ersistedin calling
Adorno" WiesengrundA,"d orno'Js ewishf ather'ns ame)v entedh is feel-
ingsa gainstA dornoi n a personaml emot itled" Wgr.T" his began," I
neverc ouldb earh im,"a ndc riticizedth e bombastp, athos,a ndg randios-
ity of Adorno'sw ritingA. n unbridgeablceh asmb etweenh imselfa nd
Adomo lay in the fact that in his bookA domo discusseSs choenberg's
dodecaphoni"c system,w" hereasS choenbergh imselfd eclaredth at
"minei s no systemb ut only a method.... One followst he row,b ut
composeso n the wholea s before."4S6c hoenbergw rotet o his European
studentJ osefR ufer", Naturall[yA dornok] nowsa ll aboutt welve-tone
music,b uth e has no ideao f the creativep rocess.... The bookw ill give
manyo f my enemiesa handle,e speciallyb ecausei t is so scientifically
done."4I7n his 1950w ill listingp ossiblea dvisorsto his wifeo n the dis-
positiono f his legacyS, choenbergd emandedth at "Wiesengrunsdh ould
be excludeda ltogether."48
On the otherh and,H annsE islerw, hosel oyaltyt o his teacherh ad
resumedin the 1930s,w asa frequengt uesto f the Schoenbergas fterh is
1942m ovet o LosA ngeles.S choenbergh adc orrespondewd ith Eisler
aboutc reatinga musics chooli n the Soviet Union justp riort o his move
to Californiaa ndd emonstratehdi s interesti n Eisler'fsa milyb y using
moneyc onfiscatedin Germanyto orderE isler'fsa ther'bs ooko n philoso-
phy soon after settling in Los Angeles.49A s a tributef or his teacher's
seventieth birthday,E islerd edicated his favorite chamberw ork, Fourteen
Wayst o DescribeR ain, op. 70, to Schoenberg, who was very pleased with
it. A week afterE isler'sr eunion with Bertolt Brecht in Hollywood, Brecht
commented in his journalo n Eisler'sr elationshipw ith Schoenberg:
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14 The MusicalQ uarterly
"sch6nberigs an old tyranta nde isler. .. tremblesa ndw orriesa bouth is
tie beings traighto r arriving1 0 minutese arly."5O0n 29 July1 942E isler
took Brecht-about whomS choenbergk newl ittle-to hearS choenberg
lecturea t UCLAo n modemc ompositionT. heyw erei nviteda fterward
to the Schoenbergh ome.B eforet he occasionE islerw arnedB recht,w ho
wask nownf orh is uncompromisinrgu denesst,h at if Brechtl ost control
andm adea nym aliciousc ommentst o Schoenbergh e, Eislerw, ould
breako ff all relationsw ith his longtimec ollaboratorB. rechtw asd eeply
impressedb y the keennesso f Schoenberg'isn tellecta nds o charmedb y
his dry,s harpw it thath e sent Schoenberga poemi n gratitudefo rt he
visit, duringw hichS choenbergh ad told a storyo f how he learnedf rom
a donkeyt he easiestw ayt o climba hill.51
Eislerf elt that Schoenberg'hso me life with his second,v eryy oung
familyw as" at welve-toneh ell"a nda "messo f disorganization."B5u2t
wheny oungR onaldS choenbergn eededa n emergencya ppendectomy
at the ageo f five,E islerw, ho wase arninga comfortabllei vinga t the
time forh is films cores,o fferedt o lend Schoenbergth e necessarym oney.
He only managedto get Schoenbergto acceptt his gestureb y sayingt hat
repaymenwt ouldn ot be necessaryif Schoenbergw ouldg ive Eislers ome
lessonsi nstead,t o whichS choenbergr eplied( withr elentlesslo gic)," If
you still haven'tl earnedi t I can'tt eachy ou."5S3c hoenbergh elpedE isler
get a teachingp ositiona t USC andr ecommendehdi m fors everalo ther
academica ppointmentsb,u th e becamev eryn ervouso verE isler'ps oli-
tics.54I n 1944, when the witch hunt for leftists was alreadyu nderway
in HollywoodS, choenbergp ubliclys tatedt hatp oliticsw asa dangerous
gameb est left to politiciansa, ndt hat artistsw ho dabbledin politics
shouldb e treatedl ike immaturceh ildren.5W5 hen it becamec leari n late
1947t hat Eislerw ouldb e deportedS, choenbergw roteJ osefR ufer", IfI
had anys ay in the matterI 'dt urnh im overm y knee like a sillyb oya nd
give him twenty-fiveo f the best andm akeh im promisen evert o open
his moutha gainb ut to stickt o scribblingm usic.T hath e has a giftf or,
andt he resth e shouldl eavet o others.I f he wantst o appear'i mportant,'
let him composei mportanmt usic."5A6f terE isler'ds eportationin 1948
Schoenberga gainw roteR ufer", Wew ho live in musich ave no placei n
politicsa ndm ustr egardth ema s somethinge ssentiallya lient o us."57
Eislerm aintainedh is respect-even reverence-forS choenberga nd
soon afterh is deportationg avea lecturei n Praguein which,w hileh e
criticizedS choenberg'"sp etty-bourgeoaitst itudes,"h e remarked:
Onec oulda lmossta yt hatt hec haracterisfteica turoef Schoenbergm'su sic
is fear.... He is thel yricc omposeorf theg asc hamberosf Auschwitozf,
Dachauco ncentratiocna mpo, f thec ompletde espaiorf them ani n the
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