13 September 2024, 14:09

Today, Friday the 13th, we remember that this widely dreaded date was to bring a cruel twist of fate for a classical composer…

Today is Friday the 13th, and for many people around the world, it’s the unluckiest day of the year. While some scoff at the idea of ​​a doomed date, others may decide to spend the day indoors, away from black cats and rickety ladders.

Superstition surrounding Friday the 13th has existed since the first half of the 19th century – and there are many different theories as to why this day is a particularly ominous date.

The number 13 has been considered unlucky for centuries. In Christianity, Judas Iscariot, the disciple who betrayed Jesus, was the thirteenth guest at the Last Supper. And throughout history, works of literature, entertainment, and pop culture have reinforced the myths surrounding this number.

But for the American-Austrian composer Arnold Schoenberg, this day seems to have been more stressful than most, as he suffered from a lifelong phobia of the number 13.

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The fear of the number 13, known as triskaidekaphobia, is related to the fact that the number 12 is the number of perfection, a year has 12 months, a clock has 12 hours and there are 12 zodiac signs.

Schoenberg, music theorist, teacher, writer and painter, is widely regarded as one of the most influential and respected classical composers of the 21st century. But he would do anything to avoid the number 13.

It has been suggested that he even intentionally wrote his opera incorrectly, Moses and Aaron, because if spelled correctly the title would be exactly 13 letters long.

But before you laugh at Schoenberg’s eccentricities, read on – because on Friday, July 13, 1951, Schoenberg’s fears finally came true.

The composer, then 76 years old, had spent the day in bed, unbearably worried and believing the worst was about to happen… and so it did.

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His wife Gertrud recalled: “At about a quarter to twelve I looked at the clock and said to myself: Another quarter of an hour and the worst will be over.

“Then the doctor called me. Arnold’s throat rattled twice, his heart pounded and that was the end.”

Coincidence? And as if that wasn’t enough to send shivers down your spine, it turns out that Schoenberg’s age also adds up to 13.

Schönberg was of course not alone in his superstition. Many hotels today do not have rooms with the number 13, and some restaurants refuse to offer a “table 13”. For this reason, there is no 13th row on Ryanair and Lufthansa flights.