Object #7

Arnold Schönberg
Response to scholarly questions
1931

Arnold Schönberg Center, Wien

Of what manner were the ‘soulish’ processes that occurred while reading the poems, and what determined the selection or rejection of the individual texts?
“Stirrings of the soul are undoubtedly dependent on the content of the poem. | Selected: Inspiration, a state of feverish excitement, preceding actual thoughts. | Rejected: Indifference, or opposition, criticism, sometimes also the feeling of being incapable of expressing this.”
Schönberg’s observation was made in response to a request from Julius Bahle, author of the publication Der musikalische Schaffensprozeß [The musical creative process] (Leipzig 1936).