Cornelius / Waldemar von Bausznern "Gunlöd"

[BerlinExpat]

I've uploaded a recording of the concert performance relayed by WDR on 12. October 2024 of "Gunlöd".

Cornelius' Gunlöd - a complete orchestration by Waldemar von Bausznern
I've attributed the music to Waldemar von Baausznern as suggested by the conductor Hermann Bäumer. The libretto was completed by Peter Cornelius but he only left piano sketches for the orchestration; mostly for the first act. Although Waldemar von Bausznern consciously strove to orchestrate in Cornelius' manner it is clear in acts two and three he indicated how Cornelius might have developed had he lived long enough to orchestrate the opera himself.

The Orchestration
The draft text was created from August 1866 until the beginning of October of the same year. By next spring the sketch was finished. Cornelius began the fair copy on April 22, 1867 and completed it on May 1, 1867 and read it to the von Bülows. The second fair copy was for King Ludwig and was presented to him by Cosima Wagner. The dedication of the work should read: ,,Dedicated in word and music to Richard Wagner", whose love motif from ,,Tristan and Isolde" Cornelius had used in his opera, but the text manuscript met with little approval from Wagner. After Cornelius' death in 1874, eight work books were found in the estate of the unfinished opera. Karl Hoffbauer (died 1889) completed the score as early as 1879 (380 p., 22 notation systems per page) and Ed. Lassen re–orchestrated this version. The premieres of this arrangement took place in Weimar in 1891, in Strasbourg in 1892 and in Mannheim in 1893. Afterwards the score was withdrawn by the arrangers. In 1895 the ,,Gunlöd" fragments were published (Gunlöd. Opera in three acts by Peter Cornelius. Piano reduction with text. Based on the original manuscripts of the poet composer, Leipzig and others 1895). As part of the Cornelius Festival in Weimar, Waldemar von Baußnern was given the task of completing the score in 1903. He supplemented, edited and orchestrated the sketch fragment and this was premièred in Cologne in 1906. Baußnern writes: ,,You should understand, first of all, that immersing myself in my task was a shining, fruitful experience, in which my love flowed with all my strength for the thoroughly genuine, many heroes quietly towering master who gave us his 'Song of Praise', as he himself called his Gunlöd with joyful pride, one of the most delicious blossoms of German art."

[Alan Howe]

Thanks very much for this. Now to download it...

[Alan Howe]

This is a seriously Wagnerian - and seriously exciting - opera. I am filled with admiration for von Baußnern/Bausznern's work on the orchestration, which sounds absolutely wonderful in this performance. The idiom is 'mature Wagner' (as opposed to early/mature), with clear influences from the Ring and Tristan. The singers make a decent job of what must be murderously difficult music to sing.

It is fascinating to compare Gunlöd with Raff's Samson: in fact, there is no comparison as the music here is precisely of the type into which Raff refused to follow Wagner. Of course, Gunlöd came a couple of decades later, which is significant in itself, but it is obvious that Raff had no intention of going 'full Wagner' at all, eventually arriving at an idiom that was neither 'neudeutsch' nor 'konservativ', but a synthesis of the two.

This is a real find - especially for Wagner fans! Thanks so much to BerlinExpat for taking the trouble to record and upload the broadcast.

I wonder whether cpo might bring this out...

[Mark Thomas]

Very many thanks for making this fascinating discovery available, Colin. I'd heard good reports and am very much looking forward to hearing it.

[Alan Howe]

Act 2 is gorgeous, but - and it's the same 'but' that I articulated with regard to Cornelius' Der Cid when compared with earlier Wagner, such as Lohengrin - the music isn't really memorable. It's as if Cornelius (with help from von Bausznern) knows how Wagnerian opera goes, but doesn't have the compositional wherewithal to match Wagner's inspiration.

Having said which, I'm really enjoying Gunlöd for what it is - a good Wagnerian-style romp. But it'll never enter the canon...

[scottevan]

I heard the performance over NDR Kultur on Saturday and was curious what others in this forum thought of it, so I appreciate the thread. It did bring to mind "Le Cid," and while that had its big impressive moments it also felt rather vacant and yes, unmemorable.

"Gunlod" initially felt like it was going down the same path. Act one felt like a bit of a slog, but from act two on I was fully engaged. The orchestral and choral writing were what impressed me. Wagnerian, yes (a passage for strings was straight out of the Prelude to Lohengrin) but I also heard son Siegfried Wagner at times.

My issue was the vocal variability. Perhaps in response to the challenging music written for him, Odin felt strained. Gunlod herself was more consistent, but seemed to stay within the range of one emotion, semi-exaltation. As Suttung, Gunlod's husband, Derek Ballard was the standout exception - one of the most impressive bass voices I've heard since Gottlob Frick.

If a label such as CPO does release this work, and I hope they do, I'd say find a new tenor, a new soprano, but keep the bass!

[Alan Howe]

I imagine the only hope will be for, say, cpo to release the actual radio recording.

[Alan Howe]

Act 2 is indeed where Gunlöd takes off: I can (just about) forgive the unsteady tenor (S. Korean Yoonki Baek as Odin) because he tries so hard to sing with expression and the soprano (Daniela Köhler from Germany) as Gunlöd is pretty impressive throughout. I personally find the American Derrick Ballard (as Suttung) too unsteady: I can think of a longish list of basses since Gottlob Frick who would have done a better job, e.g. Ridderbusch, Sotin, Talvela, Moll, van Dam, Pape, Zeppenfeld, etc., but I appreciate that we're not dealing here with a top international cast in one of the world's great opera houses.

The close of Act 3, when Gunlöd is carried by the Luminous Beings to Valhalla where Odin raises her from the dead and takes her into the ranks of the immortals, is truly inspiring.

We owe particular thanks to conductor Hermann Bäumer and the excellent Chorus of the State Theater Mainz and Philharmonic State Orchestra of Mainz, who do all they can to convince us of the worth of Cornelius' concept and von Bausznern's orchestration.

[Alan Howe]

Here is the introduction at Musikproduktion Höflich:

There is something sad about the fact that all these rich works by such a profound and original artist as Cornelius are so little known,"1 noted the musicologist Hermann Kretzschmar about Peter Cornelius, the versatile writer, translator, arranger and composer who himself called himself a poet composer. From 1869 to 1874 he created his third music–theatrical work in piano sketches, the three–act opera ,,Gunlöd", which had to remain incomplete due to his untimely death. Waldemar Edler von Baußnern, also written Bausznern, added to and orchestrated the work in its present form in 1906.

The now little–known author Peter Cornelius, as the son of the actor couple Carl (1793–1843) and Friederike Cornelius, née Schwadtke (1789–1867), also initially took up the acting profession and played in Mainz and Wiesbaden (1843), but since he had received piano, violin and later singing lessons from the theater choirist Scharrer as a child, joined an opera tour through England as a violinist in 1841 at the same time. The renouncement of the acting profession was ,,not without the comforting aim of being a dramatic author, to remain in close contact with the stage as a composer of 'comic operas'."2

From 1845 to 1849, Cornelius took composition lessons from Siegfried W. Dehn in Berlin, with whom the famous Russian composers Michail Glinka and Anton Rubinstein had learned. From 1853 to 1858 he lived in Weimar as a translator, secretary and writer in order to get to know the works of Richard Wagner and to get Franz Liszt's opinion on his compositions.3 How his poetic vein awakened in him during the Weimar period, he describes: ,,Far, far from Weimar I find a friendly place of retreat in a small town on a small river – a tributary, just as I live apart. In the most beautiful circles, in which I was very kindly received, there is a young lady who plays the piano so beautifully and also sings very nicely. I wanted to show her a politeness later, from the country, and probably put myself on display as well. Then I wrote her six little music letters. Each song had to fit on one side of a letterhead paper. The poet in me was born ... in great labor; music always has been a fearful affair; but then came the lucky child who had the best of both and who laughed into the world with free artistic manners. That was the poet–musician. My Opus 1 was born."4 These were the ,,six little songs" (1853). In 1859 he went to Vienna in order to achieve his main goal, the ,,sensible and mild limitation and consolidation of what Wagner had achieved in his best time."5 In 1865 he followed Richard Wagner to Munich, where he became a teacher of rhetoric and harmony at the music college and where King Ludwig granted an ,,honorary salary" of 1000, later 1800 guilders. But he also wrote for the "Neue Zeitschrift für Musik" about the New German School (neudeutsche Schule) and music reviews for the Berlin magazines "Echo" and "Modespiegel". His estate is now in the Peter Cornelius Archive in Mainz.

Waldemar Edler von Baußnern (1866 - 1931), the arranger of the incomplete opera "Gunlöd", was a composer and music teacher. He studied from 1882 to 1888 at the Berlin University of Music and from 1891 worked as a conductor of the Mannheim Music and Teachers Choir, and subsequently also other of choirs. In 1908 Baußnern became director and professor of the music academy in Weimar and in 1916 director of the University Conservatory in Frankfurt am Main. His compositional works – he created nine symphonies, five operas, choral works, orchestral and chamber music, songs, folk song arrangements and oratorios – attracted great attention until the Second World War. Baußnern's compositional style was generally recognized: ,,Alongside Strauss, Pfitzner and Reger, he is the absolute owner."6 However, Baußner's own works never appeared in print during his lifetime.7 In addition to his own productive work, he actively campaigned for the rediscovery of the German folk song and for the compositions of Peter Cornelius, whom he greatly admired. He not only completed Cornelius' opera ,,Gunlöd", but also appeared as editor of the two other operas by Cornelius in the complete edition. The initial inspiration for Peter Cornelius' third opera ,,Gunlöd" was the reading of the ,,Edda" in 1866,8 in particular the episode of Hávamál (Hav. 12, 13, 104–110, translation by Simrock) about the ,,robbery of the Sinnregers". It is about Wodan, God of the Light, who gnaws through the mountain Suttungs as a drill worm. There Gunlada fell in love with him and gives him the delicious mead kept there, which makes the drinker a sage, and with which Wodan escapes. Bragarvedhur 57 and 58 of the ,,Younger Edda" form thematic additions. The draft text was created from August 1866 until the beginning of October of the same year. By next spring the sketch was finished. Cornelius began the fair copy on April 22, 1867 and completed it on May 1, 1867 and read it to von Bülows. The second fair copy was for King Ludwig and was presented to him by Cosima Wagner. The dedication of the work should read: ,,Dedicated in word and music to Richard Wagner", whose love motif from ,,Tristan and Isolde" Cornelius had used in his opera, but the text manuscript met with little approval from Wagner. After Cornelius' death in 1874, eight work books were found in the estate of the unfinished opera. Karl Hoffbauer (died 1889) completed the score as early as 1879 (380 p., 22 notation systems per page) and Ed. Lassen re–orchestrated this version. The premieres of this arrangement took place in Weimar in 1891, in Strasbourg in 1892 and in Mannheim in 1893. Afterwards the score was withdrawn by the arrangers. In 1895 the ,,Gunlöd" fragments were published (Gunlöd. Opera in three acts by Peter Cornelius. Piano reduction with text. Based on the original manuscripts of the poet composer, Leipzig and others 1895). As part of the Cornelius Festival in Weimar, Waldemar von Baußnern was given the task of completing the score in 1903. He supplemented, edited and orchestrated the sketch fragment.9 Baußnern writes: ,,You should understand, first of all, that immersing myself in my task was a shining, fruitful experience, in which my love flowed with all my strength for the thoroughly genuine, many heroes quietly towering master who gave us his 'Song of Praise', as he himself called his Gunlöd with joyful pride, one of the most delicious blossoms of German art."10

Hermann Kretzschmar notes enthusiastically about Cornelius' musical creations: ,,With his calm, devoted and self–contained character, he is one of the most enjoyable phenomena in the history of artists, he counts among the original and instructive ones if one takes the form of his works into account. For some reasons [...] he has not become as popular as he deserves in the general public. Liszt was very fond of him, close friends, especially the most excellent Riedel, tried to introduce his compositions to concerts; musical magazines have occasionally discussed them."11

The reprint of this edition is based on the edition: Peter Cornelius. Gunlöd. Opera in three acts supplemented and orchestrated by Waldemar von Baussnern, Breitkopf & Härtel, Leipzig 1906.

The opera's cast is very small and, unusually, without a soprano. It consists of: god Odin (heroic tenor), the giant Suttung (bass), the giantess of Nordic mythology Gunlöd (mezzo–soprano) and the goddess of the dead Hela (alto). In addition, the choir appears as earth spirits, Suttung's clans, Hels servants, light alves, Æsirs and heroes. The takes place initially in the cave of the Hnitberg, where Suttung lives,12 later in front of Helheim's gate into the kingdom of Hel, who is the daughter of Loke and the giantess Angerbode,13 finally in Valhalla, known from Wagner's ,,Ring des Nibelungen". In general, the language of the libretti is strongly reminiscent of Wagner's writing style in the Ring cycle.

About the plot: Gunlöd guards the potion, which is supposed to bring ,, wisdom, omnipotence and immortality", in the small temple in the Hnitberg, the place where Suttung lives. In the bowl is the blood of the sage Kvassir, which the giant Suttung had murdered. Suttung and Bölwerk (actually Odin) enter. Suttung's goals are to disempower Odin, whom he does not recognize in Bölwerk, and Frigg', marry Gunlöd, overthrow the gods and rule Valhalla. Bölwerk, on the other hand, gives Gunlöd roses, whereupon she falls in love with him. When Suttung and Bölwerk gestart to quarrel, Gunlöd secretly brings Bölwerk into a grotto and locks the gates to protect him. Suttung promises Gunlöd ,,highness, power and lust" as ,,Suttung's wife and queen", but she only guards the potion for Odin and confesses the whole prehistory to the latter when both are alone. Gunlöd wants to die because she doesn't want to marry Suttung. But even she does not initially recognize God Odin in Bölwerk. When the latter unmasques himself, she hands him the potion, but she can only follow her lover to Valhalla if she is carried there by the light alves after her death. When Odin leaves the cave with the bowl, Suttung comes back with the clans and everyone serenades Gunlöd, who is sleeping. When he asks for the potion, she cannot and does not want to give it to Suttung and instead gives him the key to the shrine, which is empty. After Gunlöd confesses everything, the clans ask Suttung to murder Gunlöd in order to be able to drink her blood in the cup as compensation, but Suttung has other plans. He consecrates Gunlöd to Hela, the goddess of the dead, throws a black cloak over Gunlöd and leads her to the kingdom of Hel. Once there, he gives her belladonna to eat. Gunlöd turns to Odin and calls for the alvess, while Suttung withdraws. The servants of Hela and the saving alves approach at the same time. The aves lift her onto the cloud chariot before Hela's helpers can intervene, and float with her up to Valhall, where Odin awaits her on the throne, surrounded by heroes in golden armor. They lay Gunlöd down in front of Odin, who brings her back to life by touching her with the golden ear and the white lily. From now on she is allowed to give the consecrating potion to Odin forever.

The music of the opera shows an ingenious and colorful harmony in richly colored harmonies. The voices of the soloists usually sound separately from one another or one after the other, polyphonic solo singing is rather unusual. There are no melodic expressions of emotion nor ornate arias, instead, as in Wagner's case, there is a declamatory chant adapted to the accented words. The pace is mostly calm and relaxed. A sound recording or performance of the Baußnern version has not been produced to this day.

The final word is left to tenor Helge Rosvaenge (1897–1972), who complains of a lack of substantial new stage works: ,,Weber, Cornelius, Wolf, Lortzing – these names contain enough reserves for the repertoire of the German opera stage, which are hardly sufficiently recognized. Bringing out such works in an exemplary staging and first–class cast in order to close the gap of new substantial works for the opera stage is indeed worthwhile for resourceful, capable directors and their understanding directors."14

Dr. Claudia Behn, 2021

1 Hermann Kretzschmar, Peter Cornelius, Leipzig 1880, p. 259.
2 R. Pohl, Neue Zeitschrift für Musik, 70. Bd., S. 756, quoted after Hermann Kretzschmar, Peter Cornelius, Leipzig 1880, p. 230.
3 See Hellmut Federhofer / Kurt Helmut Oehl, Peter Cornelius als Komponist, Dichter, Kritiker und Essayist. Vorträge, Referate und Diskussionen, Bosse 1977, p. 82.
4 According to Pohl in the family circle of the poet Friedrich Rückert, quoted after Hermann Kretzschmar, Peter Cornelius, Leipzig 1880, p. 233f.
5 Walter Salmen, ,,Cornelius, Peter", in: Neue Deutsche Biographie 3 (1957), p. 365f., online: <https://www.deutsche–biographie.de/pnd118522213.html#ndbcontent>; last access: 27.07.2021.
6 F. Ohrmann, Anregungen, 1926, quoted after Gerhard Wehle, ,,Baußnern, Waldemar Edler von", in: Deutsche Biographien, online: <https://www.deutsche–biographie.de/sfz2391.html>; last call: 25.07.2021.
7 See Vera Grützner, Waldemar von Baußnern – Leben und Werk. (= Musikgeschichtliche Studien 2), Kludenbach 1999.
8 Vgl. Hermann Kretzschmar, Peter Cornelius, Leipzig 1880, p. 259. Vgl. Original foreword by Waldemar von Baußnern, in: Peter Cornelius. Gunlöd. Oper in drei Aufzügen ergänzt und instrumentiert von Waldemar von Baussnern, Breitkopf & Härtel, Leipzig 190, p. I–XVI.
9 Ibid., S. XVI.
10 Hermann Kretzschmar, Peter Cornelius, Leipzig 1880, S. 227.
11 See Wilhelm Vollmer, Wörterbuch der Mythologie, Stuttgart 1874, p. 252.
12 Ibid., S. 232f.
13 Helge Rosvaenge, ,,'Haupterzieher'" Leo Blech Unter den Linden!, in: Schaut her ich bin's... Erinnerungen berühmter Sänger, ed. and selected by Hans–Peter Müller, Berlin 1989, p. 425–452, here: p. 446.
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