On the afternoon of the 4th General-Secretary Koch, Dr. Fellinger, and
Herr Faber met in the dwelling, and searched for a will in the presence
of a notary, but only found one written in May, 1891, on two sheets of
paper, the last of them signed and dated, in the form of a letter to
Simrock. This, a legally competent document in its original form, except
for the slight omission of the signature on the first sheet of
paper--which, under the indisputable circumstances establishing the
authenticity of the will, would not have rendered it invalid--had been
returned to the master at his own request by Simrock some time
subsequent to the death of his sister, Elise Grund, in 1892. It was
found, however, to have been marked by Brahms in pencil, some of the
clauses lined out, whilst notes in the margin indicated designed
alterations. These were in exact correspondence with the wishes
expressed by Brahms in February to Dr. and Frau Fellinger, and embodied
by Dr. Fellinger in the paper he had delivered into the hands of the
composer to be copied by himself and signed. Another search was made the
next day, therefore, but it proved fruitless. Only Dr. Fellinger's
manuscript was found, and it must be presumed that Brahms had put off
the dreaded task from day to day in the hope of feeling more capable of
it, until his strength was no longer equal to its fulfilment. Nothing
remained, therefore, but to apply to the proper authorities for the
nomination of a curator in order that the necessary arrangements might
be proceeded with. This was done; Dr. Fellinger was appointed, and on
the afternoon of the 5th the sitting-room which, with the small inner
room leading from it, contained Brahms library, manuscripts, and other
possessions, was formally sealed. The coffin was closed the same day.
As soon as the master's death became known, the offer of an honorary
grave was made by the city of Vienna. There was no hesitation in
accepting it, but a deliberation was held as to whether the remains
should be taken direct to the Central Friedhof or should be cremated at
Gotha, according to directions contained in the letter to Simrock, and
the ashes only deposited in Vienna. The remembrance of a few words
dropped by Brahms himself when speaking of the 'sacred spot' which
contains the graves of Beethoven and Schubert decided the point. It was
felt that he would have chosen to rest in the place selected for him:
the particular garden of the Friedhof in which the remains of Beethoven
and Schubert lie, and which is sacred also to the memory of Mozart.
'All musical Vienna accompanied the great dead to the grave on the
afternoon of April 6 and a stranger not knowing the man's greatness
might have measured it by the number of prominent artists mingling
in the great assemblage of the funeral procession, by the
celebrated men and women who came from afar to show the last honour
to Brahms.'
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account