We didn’t know that. Furtwängler conducted Tristan und Isolde at the Frankfurt Opera, as guest conductor. This was in June 1921 — when exactly? — before the 28th. The only evidence of this, at least for the moment, is an insert in the evening edition of the Hamburger Fremdenblatt, dated Tuesday, June 28. Recall that Furtwängler had been the leader of Frankfurt’s Museumkonzerte since 1920.

Apparently it was a success, also because of the presence, in the role of Isolde, of Béatrice Lauer-Kottlar (1883-1935), who later became better known as Sutter-Kottlar after her marriage to Otto Sutter, a pressman. After Strasbourg ( did she meet the young Furtwängler there?) and Karlsruhe, she had been based at the Frankfurt Opera since 1917, where she performed major dramatic roles: Donna Anna, Leonore, Brünnhilde, The Marschallin…

Does anyone know more about it?

We recently published Furtwängler’s recording of Bruckner’s last Eighth, from Vienna 1954, with a facsimile of the accompanying program.

Here is the facsimile of the program of another Eighth, performed by the Berlin Philharmonic in Hamburg’s Conventgarten on January 7, 1938. The Orchestra’s season was held there, and the concert often preceded the one in Berlin, thus serving as a kind of practice run.

The Conventgarten building, Hamburg

The clearance sale, which started on March 1 and ended on March 22, was a huge success in France and even more so abroad.

Many products are no longer in stock, which was our primary objective. What’s left is still available by the unit, but — as we have to empty the entire box by the end of June — it will soon no longer be possible to fulfill orders.

As a result, we have set June 2 as the deadline for ordering CDs and books. From that date, only digital products (SWF D01 to SWF D14) and streaming will be available on this site. Discs from the German Society will nevertheless be presented, but should be ordered from them.

This is a new chapter. It’s also the clearest sign of the digital age. There’s no need to regret it: despite what some people may think and say, digital technologies provide far more opportunities for exchanges (studies, streaming, podcasts…).

Of course, Furtwängler did not inspire as many books as Napoleon or Wagner. But still…

Besides his own writings, notably Ton und wort and Gespräche über Musik, which have been translated into several languages, there are a number of books by German, French, American, English and Japanese writers, focusing on various aspects of his personality.

His life, career, technique and conducting style have been the subject of numerous well-documented and pertinent studies.

This bibliography is once again updated.