Mahler 10th 1924 facsimile

[Prospero]

This is perhaps of interest to someone.

The legendary 1924 facsimile of the 10th is available at

http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=15054401939&clickid=w3aUCj0-R1hsVILyN-2lV0MmUkVQKCwNxTHyVQ0&cm_mmc=aff-_-ir-_-59419-_-77797&afn_sr=impact

The owner is asking $1,000 but is willing to bargain.

I have a worn but profoundly evocative copy. I consider this the most important musical facsimile ever because it put forward a remarkably exact reproduction of the overall draft of the 10th symphony in 1924 that eventually led to the performable reconstructions we know, first from Deryk Cooke. It is in a ribbon tied cardboard cover which contains the five movements in five folded packets of Mahler's draft as he mainly left the manuscript. There are some additional sketches at the end. There is in my copy a German language booklet by Richard Specht on the manuscript.

The facsimile is so accurate that Alam Mahler had pages of the original manuscript mingled with pages of the facsimile and could not tell the difference. It took manuscript experts to sort out the originals from the facsimiles.

Maybe out of reach for most, but a startling evocation of Mahler's presence in the fidelity of the facsimile and the famous pages of scrawled pleas from Mahler, at times to Alma. One sheath reproduces the cut way part of the title page apparently done by Alma to remove some form of Mahler's writing, perhaps about her affair with Walter Gropius.

(The Testament 3-CD set of Cooke's 1960 illustrated lecture on the cogency of the whole draft is of continuing interest as it convinced Alma to allow for the preparation of a performing version. The set includes orchestral performances of parts of the manuscript to show its potential performability as well as the 1964 first Proms performance the complete draft.)
 
Perhaps a bit specialist,but no more so than reproductions of Mahler busts that have been discussed. And the vivid facsimile brings us almost frighteningly close to Mahler's work as composer.

There was a somewhat more complete facsimile in 1989, I believe, but much less precise than the 1924 version.

Best to all.

Tom in Vermont