“… EINE WÜRDIGE UND DAUERNDE GEDENKSTÄTTE …”. 50 Jahre Alban Berg Stiftung (1969–2019), ed. Daniel Ender, Universal Edition Vienna, UE 26338, ISBN 978-3-7024-7675-5, XII + 196 pages, numerous illustrations, EUR 29.65
When the Alban Berg Foundation was approved by Vienna’s State Government in January 1969, it was the successful culmination of lengthy endeavours on the part of Alban Berg’s widow Helene Berg. Having already been planned by the composer himself, the Foundation was finally able to start its work. For a long time, it focused on supporting young talented professionals, of which many have since become renowned musicians.
Besides its function as a source of funding for contemporary music, such as its long series of works commissioned partially from highly prominent composers, the Foundation aims to preserve “the works and memory of Alban Berg” as a second area of focus in accordance with the purpose laid out in its statutes.
This includes the Alban Berg Complete Edition, which has been prepared according to the strictest scholarly standards since 1986, and also – in recent years – the loan of Berg’s Ford to Vienna Technical Museum as well as the eye-catching Alban Berg memorial outside Vienna State Opera House. The broad spectrum of activities is described in the contributions to this book, which also contains a number of pictures and documents that are published for the first time.