E. T. A. Hoffmann
(1776 - 1822)
Ernst Theodor Wilhelm Hoffmann, better known by his pen name E. T. A. Hoffmann (Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffmann), was a German Romantic author of fantasy and horror, a jurist, composer, music critic, draftsman and caricaturist. He is the subject and hero of Jacques Offenbach's famous but fictional opera The Tales of Hoffmann, and the author of the novella The Nutcracker and the Mouse King, on which the famous ballet The Nutcracker is based. The ballet Coppélia is based on two other stories that Hoffmann wrote, while Schumann's Kreisleriana is based on Hoffmann's character Johannes Kreisler.
Great Ghost Stories
List of Contributing Authors:
Thomas Hardy
Frederick Marryat
Edward Bulwer-Lytton
Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch
E. T. A. Hoffmann
Théophile Gautier
Amelia Ann Blanford Edwards
Fitz-James O'Brien
M. R. James
Margaret O. Oliphant
Joseph Lewis French
William Sharp
Running Time:13:11:05 in 1 MP3 Audio CD
A great collection of 12 classic stories about ghosts and the supernatural. Included are stories by Thomas Hardy, Fitz-James O'Brien, and Margaret Oliphant. Recommended for fans of classic ghost stories of yesteryear.
00 - Foreward
01 - The House and the Brain, by Lord Edward Bulwer-Lytton - Part I
02 - The House and the Brain - Part II
03 - The House and the Brain - Part III
04 - The Roll-Call of the Reef, by A.T. Quiller-Couch - Part I
05 - The Roll-Call of the Reef - Part II
06 - The Open Door, by Margaret Oliphant - Part I
07 - The Open Door - Part II
08 - The Open Door - Part III
09 - The Open Door - Part IV
10 - The Open Door by Margaret Oliphant - Part V
11 - The Deserted House, by Ernest Theodor Amadeus Hoffmann, Part I
12 - The Deserted House - Part II
13 - The Mysterious Sketch, by Erckmann-Chatrian - Part I
14 - The Mysterious Sketch - Part II
15 - The Mysterious Sketch - Part III
16 - Green Branches, by Fiona Macleod - Part I
17 - Green Branches - Part II
18 - The Four-Fifteen Express, by Amelia B. Edwards - Part I
19 - The Four-Fifteen Express - Part II
20 - The Four-Fifteen Express - Part III
21 - The Were-Wolf, by H. B. Marryatt - Part I
22 - The Were-Wolf - Part II
23 - The Withered Arm, by Thomas Hardy - Part I
24 - The Withered Arm - Part II
25 - The Withered Arm - Part III
26 - Clarimonde, by Theophile Gautier - Part I
27 - Clarimonde - Part II
28 - Clarimonde - Part III
29 - Clarimonde - Part IV
30 - The Stalls of Barchester Cathedral, by Montague Rhodes James - Part I
31 - The Stalls of Barchester Cathedral - Part II
32 - What Was It?, by Fitz-James O'Brien - Part I
33 - What Was It? - Part II
Little Zack
Read by Sandra Cullum
Running Time:02:46:58 in 1 MP3 Audio CD
From Fantasy, Faeries and Ghosts, Volume 2
The events of the book occur in a small, unnamed German principality. Once, under the Fürst Demetrius, it used to be an idyllic spot, which attracted numerous fairies to live there. However, Demetrius' son, Paphnutius, at the urging of his First Minister, had, in the name of Enlightenment, banished most of the fairies and confiscated their property. The book takes place during the reign of Barsanuph, an unspecified time after Paphnutius's death.
Master Flea
Read by Bob Neufeld
Running Time:5:23:47 in 1 MP3 Audio CD
Ernst Theodor Wilhelm Hoffmann (1776 – 1822), better known by his pen name E.T.A. Hoffmann (Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffmann), was a German Romantic author of fantasy and horror, a jurist, composer, music critic, draftsman and caricaturist. Hoffmann's stories were very influential during the 19th century, and he is one of the major authors of the Romantic movement.
He is the subject and hero of Jacques Offenbach's famous but fictional opera The Tales of Hoffmann, and the author of the novelette The Nutcracker and the Mouse King, on which the famous ballet The Nutcracker is based. The ballet Coppelia is based on two other stories that Hoffmann wrote. Also Schumann's Kreisleriana is based on one of Hoffmann's characters.
Master Flea was published in 1822.
Nutcracker and Mouse King
Read by Sandra Cullum
Running Time:02:49:47 in 1 MP3 Audio CD
Christmas Eve Mary receives a nutcracker. At midnight, this gift comes alive and brings her into a world full of dolls, candies and rose scent. The little wooden soldiers of her brother Fritz and the toys that are in the glass cabinet of the family room also come alive. At the same time, the mice and their king with seven crowns appear in the living room. Battle ensues. In fact, it turns out to be a stunning Christmas for little Marie. The tale "Nutcracker and Mouse-king" of Hoffmann was adapted into a ballet in 1892 by Tchaïkovsky.
The King's Betrothed
Read by Sandra Cullum
Running Time:02:15:39 in 1 MP3 Audio CD
From Fantasy, Faeries and Ghosts, Volume 2
The Kings Betrothed is a fantasy horror classic.
The story centered on a man who meets, or thinks he has met, a long-dead composer, and played into the 'doppelgänger' theme –
Weird Tales, Volume 1
Read by Thomas A. Copeland
Running Time:12:02:31 in 1 MP3 Audio CD
These stories form the first volume of the renowned Tales of Hoffman. They are fantasies with hints of the supernatural—quintessential Romanticism. Writers of the Romantic period typically seek to lift the spirit to awe, wonder, love, horror, or other extremes of emotion. Hoffmann is drawn to such experiences, particularly as they relate to the creative process. Although he occasionally arouses them in the reader, he more often examines them critically or, in the case of hysterical excesses, especially infatuation, satirizes them.
01 - The Cremona Violin, Part 1
02 - The Cremona Violin, Part 2
03 - The Fermata
04 - Signor Formica, Part 1
05 - Signor Formica, Part 2
06 - Signor Formica, Part 3
07 - Signor Formica, Part 4
08 - Signor Formica, Part 5
09 - Signor Formica, Part 6
10 - The Sand-man, Part 1
11 - The Sand-man, Part 2
12 - The Entail, Part 1
13 - The Entail, Part 2
14 - The Entail, Part 3
15 - The Entail, Part 4
16 - Arthur's Hall, Part 1
17 - Arthur's Hall, Part 2
Weird Tales, Volume 2
Read by Thomas A. Copeland
Running Time:11:27:54 in 1 MP3 Audio CD
Paradoxically, it is variety that unites the tales you are about to listen to. They take place in widely separated countries and historical periods, and their outcomes—fortunate or tragic—cannot always be predicted with accuracy. The characters too speak with varied voices; even the narrative voice is not uniform, for the author often frames story within a story, using a character in one tale to narrate another.
The listener will sometimes feel as though the author is extending an invitation to enter his workshop to observe him at his trade and admire his craftsmanship. Narrative techniques, for instance, such as suspending the detailed account of events in order to summarize what follows or occasionally interrupting the story line to offer a bit of background or exposition, are introduced by referring to “the indulgent reader,” “my kindly reader,” or even (once) a direct address: “dear reader.” This device is common to much Romantic literature, but Hoffmann’s self-conscious use of it renders it satirical.
He frequently shifts from seriousness to mockery, characterized by an arch tone as he knowingly overworks Romantic clichés like apostrophes to absent or non-sentient entities and especially hyperbole, which he mercilessly burlesques. Yet his mercurial sensibility can then shift in a moment back into the serious use of Romantic conventions: overwrought descriptions, pathetic fallacies, sudden reversals of fortune, unlikely coincidences, gloomy intimations of the cruelty of destiny, dark secrets, and men fulsomely unburdening themselves of their inmost feelings, not without tears. He even takes up the age-old theme of friendship vs. romantic love and their rival claims to be the nobler sentiment. In short, although clearly an early Romantic himself, Hoffmann nevertheless shares Jane Austen’s rational criticism of the Romantic temperament, “sentimental” being a term of reproach in this volume.
01 - Section 1: The Doge and Dogess, part 1
02 - Section 2: The Doge and Dogess, part 2
03 - Section 3: The Doge and Dogess, part 3
04 - Section 4: Master Martin the Cooper, part 1
05 - Section 5: Master Martin the Cooper, part 2
06 - Section 6: Master Martin the Cooper, part 3
07 - Section 7: Mademoiselle de Scudéry, part 1
08 - Section 8: Mademoiselle de Scudéry, part 2
09 - Section 9: Mademoiselle de Scudéry, part 3
10 - Section 10: Mademoiselle de Scudéry, part 4
11 - Section 11: Gambler's Luck, part 1
12 - Section 12: Gambler's Luck, part 2
13 - Section 13: Master Johannes Wacht, part 1
14 - Section 14: Master Johannes Wacht, part 2
15 - Section 15: Master Johannes Wacht, part 3
The Deserted House
Read by Lars Rolander
Running Time:01:04:02 in 1 MP3 Audio CD
From the Library of the World's Best Mystery and Detective Stories, Volume 5
The Deserted House is a short story by E. T. A. Hoffmann which first appeared in 1817 in the second part of his Nachtstücke collection.
The title of the story refers to a house in a city which is not named, referred to simply as "***n" (Hoffmann had Berlin in mind when writing the story). The narrator, a man called Theodor who is recounting the story to a group of friends, describes an event which took place during his stay in ***n. As he was walking down the main street, he noticed an old run-down house situated between two much larger and grander buildings. This area of the city was known for its beautiful, large buildings so the old house stands out. Theodor wonders why the house has not been torn down. Later on, an acquaintance by the name of Graf P. tells him that the house contains the bakery / kitchen of the Konditorei which borders the house. One day, as he is walking past the house, Theodor notices a female hand in one of the upper windows. Fascinated by this hand, Theodor returns to the house daily and peers in the windows. Eventually, he decides to go in to the Konditorei and ask the owner about the deserted house. The shopkeeper tells him that he does not own the house, although he tried to purchase it several times. Theodor learns from the shopkeeper that the house is haunted – at night, and especially at Christmastime, strange noises can be heard emanating from the house. The baker also tells Theodor that the house is owned by the Graf von S..
Contrary to Theodor's opinion that the house is empty, he learns that there is actually an inhabitant, an old caretaker who enters the Konditorei with his dog whilst Theodor is talking to the shopkeeper. That night, Theodor has dreams of the Graf von S. as well as the caretaker. On the next day he tries to break into the house but is driven out by the caretaker who chastises him and says that the house is not haunted.
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