de la grange VOLUME 1 in English???

[CHA]

I have volumes 2,3 and 4 of the Mahler biographies by Henry-Louis de la Grange.

I recently contacted Oxford to inquire whether there were any plans for a new version of volume 1 but they said there were no plans.

I think there may have been a version of volume 1 in English published years ago but I thought he was going to revise all 4 volumes.

Has anyone heard anything about this? I would like to spend 2010/2011 reading them considering the 150th year of his birth and 100th year of his death but I would like to start with volume 1.

[James Meckley]

Henry-Louis de La Grange's original Mahler Volume 1 was translated into American English and published by Doubleday & Company, NY, in 1973. That version seems to be readily available on the used market at quite reasonable prices.

Volumes 2–4 were translated into British English and published by Oxford University Press in 1995, 1999, and 2008, respectively. It's my understanding that Mr. de La Grange has finished his revision of volume 1 in French, and that its publication in English is imminent. I'm surprised that this was denied by someone at Oxford—perhaps Mr. de La Grange has decided to use a different publisher.

James

[mike bosworth]

The English-language Volume 1 appeared in the U.S. in 1973 and the U.K. in 1974.  It covered the years up to Mahler's engagement to Alma (to be exact, Jan. 1902).  The first French edition of Vol. 1 did not appear until some years later (Fayard, 1979).  It contains numerous corrections and improvements over the earlier English edition, but is very hard to come by (and very expensive if it appears for sale). 

De La Grange completed his French-language biography with two further volumes appearing in the mid-1980s.  Recently a condensed (and revised?) version of all three French volumes appeared in a single tome in France.

It is worth noting that the 1995 English Volume II contains a nearly five-year overlap with the old Volume 1, in that it begins with Mahler's engagement in Vienna (specifically in May 1897).

Prof. de La Grange is now working on a complete revision of his English Volume 1, but I have it on good authority that he has not progressed very far in this task.  It is interesting that Oxford denied that such a volume was in the works; perhaps de La Grange indeed has switched publishers.  In fact the editing job on the English Volume IV was shockingly poor; this may have influenced such a decision on his part.

Mike Bosworth
Hanoi

[Jot N. Tittle]

Anyone have an update on this since the last posting?

Another possible issue with H-LdLG is that Oxford UP has already remaindered his Vol. IV, which now sells on the discount market for only $39.95.

I think I read somewhere that Oxford was somewhat sore over the great size of Vol. IV and was limiting him on the length of the revised Vol. I.

Hope his health holds up!

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