Chapter 32 - Letters

Summary

Strauss’s written correspondence consists of many thousands of documents. The publicly-known portion is extensive indeed, even without approximating the total inventory: edited today are some 8,000 letters, postcards, and telegrams to and from the composer, the bulk of which have not been translated. Hitherto untapped, however, is more than that amount of material in various archives and libraries. Particularly noteworthy here is the family-owned Richard-Strauss-Archiv in Garmisch, which houses the largest share of Straussiana worldwide, including the largest collection of letters to the composer. An official, even if not fully complete catalog of Strauss’s correspondence, both published and unpublished, is still an urgent research desideratum. This chapter contextualizes the extant materials by focusing on issues such as access, chronology, editorial standards, and dissemination, while calling for all materials to be made accessible via modern edition principles.