Hugo von Hofmannsthal

Hugo von Hofmannsthal (February 1, 1874 – July 15, 1929), was an Austrian novelist, librettist, poet, dramatist, narrator, and essayist. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (881x1600, 243 KB) Summary Austrian writer Hugo von Hofmannsthal at the age of 19 (1893). ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (881x1600, 243 KB) Summary Austrian writer Hugo von Hofmannsthal at the age of 19 (1893). ... February 1 is the 32nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... Year 1874 (MDCCCLXXIV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link with display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Saturday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... July 15 is the 196th day (197th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 169 days remaining. ... 1929 (MCMXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... A novel is an extended work of written, narrative, prose fiction, usually in story form; the writer of a novel is a novelist. ... A libretto is the complete body of words used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, sacred or secular oratorio and cantata, musical, and ballet. ... The poor poet A poet is a person who writes poetry. ... A dramatist is an author of dramatic compositions, usually plays. ...

Life

Hofmannsthal was born in Vienna, the son of an upper-class Austrian mother and an Austrian-Italian bank manager. His great-grandfather, Isaak Löw Hofmann, Edler von Hofmannsthal, to whom his family inherited the noble title "Edler von Hofmannsthal," was a Jewish merchant ennobled by the Austrian emperor. He began to write poems and plays from an early age. He met the German poet Stefan George at the age of seventeen and had several poems published in George's journal, Blätter für die Kunst. He studied law and later philology in Vienna but decided to devote himself to writing upon graduating in 1901. Along with Peter Altenberg and Arthur Schnitzler, he was a member of the avant garde group Young Vienna (Junges Wien). Hofmannsthal met the composer Richard Strauss, and wrote libretti for several of his operas, including Elektra (1909), Der Rosenkavalier (1911), Ariadne auf Naxos (1913, rev. 1916), Die Frau ohne Schatten (1919), Die Ägyptische Helena (1927), and Arabella (1933). Vienna (German: , see also other names) is the capital of Austria, and also one of the nine States of Austria. ... Isaak Löw Hofmann, Edler von Hofmannsthal (born June 10, 1759, at Prostiebor (now ProstiboÅ™), near Kladrau, in the district of Pilsen, Bohemia; died at Vienna December 12, 1849) was an Austrian merchant. ... Stefan George (1910) Stefan George (Bingen, Hesse, July 12, 1868 – Locarno, December 4, 1933) was a German poet and translator. ... Lady Justice or Justitia is a personification of the moral force that underlies the legal system (particularly in Western art). ... Philology is the study of ancient texts and languages. ... Peter Altenberg (1859 - 1919) was a writer and poet from Vienna, Austria. ... Arthur Schnitzler Arthur Schnitzler (May 15, 1862 - October 21, 1931) was an Austrian writer and doctor. ... Young Vienna (Jung-Wien) was a society of fin de siècle writers who met in Viennas Café Griensteidl and other nearby coffeehouses from 1890 until 1897. ... A composer is a person who writes music. ... This article is about the German composer of tone-poems and operas. ... A libretto is the complete body of words used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, sacred or secular oratorio and cantata, musical, and ballet. ... The New Opera in Oslo, Norway The Teatro alla Scala in Milan, Italy. ... Elektra is a one-act opera by Richard Strauss, to a German-language libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal adapted from his drama of 1903—the first of many such collaborations between composer and librettist. ... Der Rosenkavalier (The Cavalier of the Rose) is a comic opera in three acts by Richard Strauss to an original German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. ... Ariadne auf Naxos (Ariadne on Naxos) is an opera by Richard Strauss with libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. ... Die Frau ohne Schatten (The Woman without a Shadow) is an opera by Richard Strauss with a libretto by Hugo von Hoffmansthal. ... Arabella is an opera (lyric comedy in 3 acts) by Richard Strauss with libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal, their sixth and last common work. ...

In 1902 Hoffmannsthal published a fictive letter titled simply "Ein Brief" (A Letter). It was purportedly written in 1603 by Phillip, Lord Chandos to Francis Bacon. In this letter Chandos says that he has stopped writing because he has "lost completely the ability to think or to speak of anything coherently"; he has given up on the possibility of language to describe the world. This letter reflects the growing distrust of and dissatisfaction with language that so characterizes the Modern era, and Chandos's dissolving personality is not only individual but societal. Francis Bacon, 1st Viscount St Alban (22 January 1561 – 9 April 1626) was an English philosopher, statesman and essayist, but is best known as a philosophical advocate and defender of the scientific revolution. ...

In 1912 he adapted the 15th century English morality play Everyman as Jedermann, and Jean Sibelius (amongst others) wrote incidental music for it. The play became a staple at the Salzburg Festival, which Hofmannsthal founded with Max Reinhardt in 1920. His later plays revealed a growing interest in religious, particularly Roman Catholic, themes. (14th century - 15th century - 16th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 15th century was that century which lasted from 1401 to 1500. ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London (de facto) Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2006 est. ... Morality plays are a type of theatrical allegory in which the protagonist is met by personifications of various moral attributes who try to prompt him to choose a Godly life over one of evil. ... In literature and drama, the term everyman has come to mean an ordinary individual, with whom the audience or reader is supposed to be able to identify, and who is often placed in extraordinary circumstances. ... Johan Julius Christian Jean/Janne Sibelius ( ; December 8, 1865 – September 20, 1957) was a Finnish composer of classical music and one of the most notable composers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. ... Incidental music is music in a play, television program, radio program or some other form not primarily musical. ... The Salzburg Festival (Salzburger Festspiele) is a prominent festival of music and drama. ... Max Reinhardt Max Reinhardt (born September 9, 1873 in Baden bei Wien; died October 31, 1943 in New York City) was an influential Austrian director and actor. ... Year 1920 (MCMXX) was a leap year starting on Thursday. ... Various Religious symbols, including (first row) Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Bahai, (second row) Islamic, tribal, Taoist, Shinto (third row) Buddhist, Sikh, Hindu, Jain, (fourth row) Ayyavazhi, Triple Goddess, Maltese cross, pre-Christian Slavonic Religion is the adherence to codified beliefs and rituals that generally involve a faith in a spiritual... The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ...

He died of a stroke two days after the suicide of his son Franz in Rodaun, Vienna. Vienna (German: , see also other names) is the capital of Austria, and also one of the nine States of Austria. ...

Selected Works

Plays

• Der Tor und der Tod (1891)
• Der Tot des Tizian (1901)
• Elektra (1904)
• Ödipus und die Sphinx (1906)
• Die Frau im Fenster (1909)
• Jedermann (1911)
• Der Schwierige (1921)
• Das Salzburger grosse Welttheater (1922)
• Der Turm (1925)

Libretti

• Der Rosenkavalier (1911)
• Ariadne auf Naxos (1913, rev. 1916)
• Die Frau ohne Schatten (1919)
• Die Ägyptische Helena (1927)
• Arabella (1933)

See also

• Isaak Löw Hofmann, Edler von Hofmannsthal

Isaak Löw Hofmann, Edler von Hofmannsthal (born June 10, 1759, at Prostiebor (now Prostiboř), near Kladrau, in the district of Pilsen, Bohemia; died at Vienna December 12, 1849) was an Austrian merchant. ...

External links

• Hugo von Hofmannthal Resource Center
• University of Washington Vienna 1900 Page