General information
Type of the document Letter
SenderMartinů, Bohuslav
Sender (corporation)
Note on Sender‘s location[?]
Send date24.01.1955
RecipientSacher, Paul
Recipient (corporation)
Note on Recipient‘s location[?]
LanguageFrench
AcquiredPaul Sacher Stiftung
Owner of the sourcePaul Sacher Stiftung
Former call number at IBM49/253
Call number at IBMSac 1955-01-24
Content and physical description
ContentBohuslav Martinů thanks Paul [and Maja] Sacher for the Christmas telegram.
He is completely immersed in the EPOS ON GILGAMES and wants to inform the addressees about it before they leave for the USA.
He gives the composition of the orchestra: 2 flutes, 2 clarinets, 3 trumpets, 2 trombones, harp, piano, drums and strings. There is a choir and soloists. Is that acceptable? BM cannot use a smaller cast, the epic is dramatic and perhaps too tragic. BM tries to minimize the role of the reciter. He has chosen only one movement from the epic and already the piece will be quite long, probably around 50 minutes.
The piece will have three parts: 1) The Battle of Gilgamesh, 2) The Death of Enkidu, 3) The Flood and the Invocation.
It will have to be translated into "Swiss". The English text available to BM is unnatural and will not be understandable to people as it is only an excerpt from the poem in question. The tables are corrupted and BM is doing his best to extract the text. His work is going well, perhaps because it is cold and he doesn't go outside.
SYMPHONIC FANTASIES was a great success in New York and Boston under the baton of Charles Munch. BM and Charlotte Martin regret not seeing the Sachers again in New York.
Total number of leaves1
Number of pages bearing text1
Fixationhandwriting
Digitisation
Quality of digitisationNot professional black-and-white
Digitized atBohuslav Martinů Institute
Date of digitisation2017

Preview only available at the Institute.

Location as subject
Boston, Massachusetts
New York, NY
USA
Person as subject
Martinů, Charlotte
Munch, Charles
Sacher, Maja
Composition as subject
The Epic of Gilgamesh [auth.], H 351
Symphony No. 6 (Fantaisies Symphoniques), H 343
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