Alban, Helene and the memory
How did the composer's widow Helene Berg influence the memory of Alban Berg? An anthology seeks answers.
Ever since Constantin Floros discovered the cryptic clues in the Lyrical Suite of Alban Berg, which document his love affair with Franz Werfel's sister Hanna Fuchs-Robettin, there is no lack of attention for his widow Helene Berg. After all, she survived him for 41 years, described herself as a "composer's widow" under the heading "Profession" in the "Registration form for main (annual and monthly) residential parties" and felt obliged not only to look after the compositional estate, but also to record something of Alban's life: "You must see how Alban lives ..." This is also the headline above Daniel Ender's major contribution in the chapter "Memory Spaces". Since the first edition of the letters was ultimately met with a great deal of mistrust, her work understandably focused on "image" building.
Her efforts to create an active foundation were successful and are also appreciated. However, her way of making the "auto/biographical" part appear as small as possible has again led to critical comments, but has also brought different assessments to light after Helene Berg's death in 1976. The confrontation of academic archival work with the "gender-attributive tasks" of widows as "educators of souls" inherited from the 19th century is addressed in various contributions. The call for a reassessment of Helene Berg's behavior is not only raised by Anna Ricke, but can also be derived from the above-mentioned contribution by Daniel Ender with the subtitle "Berg's living spaces and the staging of the authentic". In his essay on the Alban Berg Complete Edition, Martin Eybl also posed the question of why Helene Berg did not even consider such an edition despite the "broad spectrum of her activities".
The wealth of interesting illustrations and written documents should not go unmentioned.
Stiften Erinnerung - Helene Berg und das Erbe Alban Bergs, edited by Daniel Ender, Martin Eybl and Melanie Unseld, 210 p., € 29.95, Universal Edition and Alban Berg Foundation, Vienna 2018, ISBN 978-3-7024-7574-1
