Schoeck spent the weeks of his convalescence in Brunnen, where he completed the vocal score of Erwin und Elmire before embarking on its orchestration. A brief holiday in Brissago ensued before he had to return to Zurich for the autumn season. It was there, in October 1914, that he made the acquaintance of a young German violinist named Elsbeth Mutzenbecher (1891–1987). She had a teaching job in Italy, was on her way home to visit family in Hamburg, and had brie? y stopped off in Zurich to visit a friend. The latter introduced her to Schoeck, only to find (to her apparent chagrin) that the two were immediately attracted. Elsbeth departed for Hamburg a few days later, leaving Schoeck moaning to Corrodi, while hugging her photo, that he'd been driven out of paradise before being allowed to indulge in original sin. He began to compose a violin sonata for her (though he never completed it), and also wrote a setting for her of Lenau's “Die Entfernte” (“The Distant Girl,” Op. 24a, no. 3) in which the distance between two lovers is symbolized by bitonality.

Apart from the obvious disruptions to family, social, and economic life brought about by Switzerland's general mobilization, World War I soon began to cause grave divisions across Swiss society. The country's two main language groups, French and German, were split in their support for the opposing sides just across their borders.