Franck, César

comprising twenty-four playing parts for the 'églogue biblique' in three parts, notated in brown ink on up to sixteen staves per page, WITH THE COMPOSER'S ADDITIONS, ALTERATIONS AND REVISIONS made for a planned performance at Dresden in c.1860, with many new passages for movements (particularly nos 6, 9, 10, 12 & 13), added on new paper, complete pages and slips of paper pasted into the score, and with other alterations and deletions, some cues marked in German text, a few dated by the performers ("Liège Mars [Avril] 1874" or "Bordeaux 9bre 87"), comprising parts for:  Violin I (2 copies: marked A and B), Violin II (2: AB & B), Viola (3: A, B & AB), Cello (2: one marked AB), Double Bass (2: A & AB), Flute, Clarinets, Oboe & Cor anglais, Bassoons, Horns, Valve horn (Cor à Pistons),  Trombones 1 & 2, Trombone 3 & Ophecléide, Harp, Tympani, Cymbals and Triangle, but without vocal parts

24 volumes, large 4to (c.35.5 x 27cm), 489 pages in all, each copy with Franck's autograph address ("A Paris, Rue Labruyère, 15"), and stamp ("César Auguste Franck de Liège"), contemporary wrappers, each with the instrumental names inscribed in black ink, titled ("Ruth") in blue crayon, the desks marked A, B, or AB on the string parts, composer's stamps, one cello part with the stamp of the publisher G. Hartmann, Paris, 1845 & 1860-1861, dust-marking to titles

From the collection of Alexandre Guilmant (1837-1911).

J.-M. Fauquet, 'Les deux versions de Ruth (1845/1871). Essai d’interprétation d’un double succès', Revue belge de Musicologie, volume 45 (1991); César Franck, Correspondance, ed. Fauquet (1999), pp. 68-71; J.-M. Fauquet, César Franck (1999), pp.897-898 (CFF 179).

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This is a large-scale manuscript by César Franck, approaching five hundred pages in his hand.  Franck composed Ruth in 1845, and wrote out not just the score but also all the playing parts.  In c.1860, he revised the present manuscript extensively, whilst hoping that Ruth would be performed by Hans von Bülow at Dresden.  Franck's music had been promoted in Germany, first by Liszt at Weimar, who had praised Ruth in a letter to Escudier.  Franck corresponded with Liszt's daughter Cosima and Hans von Bülow about Ruth in and around 1861, including a long description of the resources needed (letter to Bülow of c.15 April 1861).  Although the performance did not materialize, Franck revised the oratorio extensively and, in this manuscript, entered all the revisions on new paper, entirely in his own hand. 

Joël-Marie Fauquet points out that the revisions are found particularly in parts 2 and 3: Ruth's air in No.6, 'The Chorus of Reapers' (No.9) and Noémi's air in No.13 being entirely recomposed.  In the untouched numbers here (Nos. 1 to 5), Franck mainly uses pure woodwind sounds, as recommended in Berlioz's recent Treatise on Orchestration (1844), whereas the remodelled numbers contain greater doubling.  The movements include Nos: 1) Introduction; 2) Choeur des Moabites; 3) Trio; 4) Marche et choeur; 5) Strophes; 6) Récitatif et Air [Ruth]; 7) Choeur; 8) Choeur de Bethléemites; 2^ième Partie: No.9) Choeur de Moissonneurs; 10) Récitatif & Duo; 11) Le Chant du crépuscule; 3^ième Partie; 12) Récitatif & Duo;  13) Récitatif et air [Noémi]; 14) Strophes et Choeur; 15) Conclusion prophétique.   

The original 1845 version is unpublished.  Franck's autograph full score (1845), together with some of the playing parts (279 pages) are now in the Royal Library of Belgium.  In 2006, Brussels also acquired Franck's autograph vocal score of his revision (published by Hartmann in 1869).  The autograph full score of the final version which was used as the Stichvorlage for Heugel's edition of 1892, is in the Bibliothèque nationale in Paris.