Letters of Franz Liszt
Chapter 50 : Weymar, August 25th, 1858 My honored and dear Friend, If the outward circ.u.mstances wh

Weymar, August 25th, 1858

My honored and dear Friend,

If the outward circ.u.mstances which you mention in your kind letter are not exactly of the kind that I could wish for you, yet I am egotist enough to be much pleased at its friendly contents towards myself. Accept my warmest thanks for them--and let me tell you how anxious I am that you should like me very much, and how desirous I am to deserve this--as far as it can be deserved; for the best part of a harmonious intimacy must ever remain a free gift.

The "wanton, ragged garments of the Muse," which you abandon with strict generosity, make a show and please almost everywhere. Her sensual charm is not unknown to me; yet I think I may say that it was given me to lay hold of a higher and a pure ideal, and to vow to it my whole endeavors for many years past. You, dear friend, have, through your singing, often led me to this in the best way, without thinking of it. Moreover it always does me so much good when we meet in unity in the same path.--

Owing to a heap of visits (among which were several of deep interest, such as Kaulbach, Varnhagen, Carus, etc.), I have been much interrupted in the completion of the "Elizabeth." Still, I hope to be ready with it by February. You will then again do the best part for it, and must practice works of artistic mercy!-- What is the good of anything that is written on paper, if it is not comprehended by the soul and imparted in a living manner?-- But among the works of mercy I am not desirous that you should have to bury a still-born Oratorio!--

My heartfelt, twofold greetings to Milde, as friend and as artist. I am writing the part of Landgrave Ludwig for him--and, as the Landgrave is very speedily got out of the way, I will ask him to undertake, in addition, two other parts (those of a Hungarian magnate and a bishop).

The day after tomorrow I accompany the Princess to the mountains and cascades of the Tyrol. On our return journey we shall spend a couple of days in Munich, and shall be back here by the end of September. Will you allow me to conduct "Alceste" on the 2nd of October?--Sobolewski's "Comala" [Opera by Sobolewski.] is fixed for the 12th. I shall give over to our common friend La.s.sen (to whom please remember me warmly) the pianoforte rehearsals during my absence.

I hope you will get quite strong and enjoy yourself much at the seaside, dear friend, and return in good spirits to us at Weymar, where you are quite indispensable to

Yours most truly and devotedly, F. Liszt

P.S.--Possibly Fraulein * * * (whose name at this moment I forget) will come from Berlin to Weymar during my absence. I recommend her again to Milde and yourself. Preller will introduce her to you, and I beg that Milde will help her with good teaching. If I am not mistaken, she would stand proof well in mezzo-soprano parts.

I have trustworthy tidings of the brilliant success of the first performance of "Lohengrin" in Vienna (on the 19th of this month).

Rienzi was also taken up again in these days as before.

206. To Dr. Franz Brendel

Dear honored Friend,

The memorandum is excellent, and I agree with it in all points. I have noted this, according to your wish, at the end by the words vu et approuve [Seen and approved.] (a perfectly correct formula in French). The Prince's address is as follows:--

To His Highness Prince Constantin Hohenzollern-Hechingen, Lowenberg, Silesia. I should not be able for the present to find you a Paris correspondent. But, as I understand, Bulow intends to go to Paris in the course of this winter, and would then be best able to tell you of a colleague there. There is no hurry about the article on theater curtains. As soon as I am somewhat through the ma.s.s of arrears in correspondence I will take an opportunity of sending it to you, but whether it will be in time to appear in the first number of the "Anregungen" I cannot say.

I told Pohl yesterday that I wish the Dresden Weber concerto affair in the meantime not to be mentioned in the paper. The whole affair has for the moment made an extraordinary stir, and I will tell you about it later on. For the present there is nothing to be said about it on our side, even if other papers mix themselves up in it in an incompetent manner. Very likely the winter will slip away before the intended concert comes off. [The Dresden theater directors intended, as M. M. v. Weber tells us in his biography of his father (vol. ii., p. 721), to arrange a concert for the benefit of the Weber Memorial which was to be erected. Liszt was equally desirous of doing something publicly for the Master whom he so highly esteemed; but "because they could not agree whether he should take part in the directors'

concert or use the personnel of the Royal Opera at his own concert, neither of the concerts was given."]

Sobolewski (who has been detained this time by his theater work in Bremen) will come here for the second performance of "Comala".

I will let you know about it.

The work is worth your hearing and interesting yourself in. Owing to the acting of the two Schmidts (husband and wife), as guests here, ["Das Gastspiel"--the playing as guests at a theater--is an expression used when actors or singers other than those attached to the theater of the place come to act or sing there for a time]

the second performance has been postponed until towards the middle of this month.

I will send Riedel the pianoforte edition of my Ma.s.s very shortly.

With heartfelt greetings,

Yours,

F. Liszt

November 2nd, 1858

207. To Johann von Herbeck

Dear Friend,

Your three splendid fellows, my high-minded and honorable gipsies, ["Die drei Zigeuner" ("The Three Gipsies"), by Lenau, for voice with pianoforte accompaniment.] are most excellently lodged on the Altenburg. First of all the song was played on the violin, then with cello--another time I tried it alone, and yesterday Caspari sang me the song, so full of pith and beauty and intrinsic worth, to the delight of us all and of myself in particular. It will remain as a brilliant repertoire piece amongst us, and I shall very soon introduce it to Tichatschek, who will a.s.suredly give it with inspiration and will make it widely known. Please forgive me, dear friend, for not having expressed my warm thanks to you sooner.--I only got home a few weeks ago from my journey to the Tyrol and Munich, and have scarcely been able to sit down to write, owing to all the business pressing upon me from every side. If Lessing says "One must not must," nevertheless the saying of Kladderadatsch, "Bien muss," ["The bee must"--referring to a joke in the German Punch (Kladderadatsch).] is, for ordinary mortals, much more applicable--and over this "bee must" one at last becomes quite idle from sheer weariness.

I will take the first opportunity of sending you your ma.n.u.script of the score of the Ma.s.s for men's voices to Vienna. The Gloria, which was performed at the University Jubilee Festival of Jena last August, was made most effective by your excellent instrumentation. You will observe a slight alteration at the conclusion (six bars instead of five, and a slightly less risky modulation), which I beg you to follow at any performance there may chance to be in Vienna.

As regards the choruses to "Prometheus," I confess to you candidly that, much as I thank you for thinking about them, I think it is wiser to wait a little bit. I am not in the slightest hurry to force myself on to the public, and can quietly let a little more of the nonsense about my failure in attempts at composition be spread abroad. Only in so far as I am able to do something lasting may I place some modest value upon it. This can and will be decided by time alone. But I should not wish previously to impose on any of my friends the disagreeables which the performance of my works, with the widespread presuppositions and prejudices against them, brings with it. In a few years I hope things will go better, more rationally, and more justly with musical matters.

Until then we will go forward composedly and contemplatively on our way! Once more best thanks and greetings from yours in all friends.h.i.+p,

F. Liszt

Weymar, November 22nd (St. Cecilia's Day), 1858

208. To Felix Draseke

My very dear Friend,

Herewith the piano edition of the two first acts of "Sigurd."

[Opera by Draseke.]--Imagining that you may also want the score of the first act, which had remained here, I send it also, sorry as I am to part from this monumental work. Under present existing circ.u.mstances, which on my side are pa.s.sive and negative, as I intimated to you after the performance of Cornelius's Opera, there is no prospect of putting Sigurd on the boards at present.

But I promise myself the pleasure and satisfaction of letting all your "Tamtis" and "Beckis" be heard, when I have again resumed my active work at the Weymar theater, for which there may probably be an opportunity next season.

After you left Weymar we had to swallow a kind of second piece or supplement to the performance of the "Barber of Baghdad," on occasion of Madame Viardot's performance as "guest" here. But I will not weary you with tales of our local miseries and cra.s.s improprieties. I will only intimate thus much--that, under the present Intendant regime, to my sorrow, the inviting of Frau Schroder-Devrient to play here as guest is met by almost unconquerable difficulties from within. Tell our excellent friend Bronsart this, and tell him into the bargain that a concert (in the room in the Town Hall), at which he and Frau Schroder- Devrient should appear without any other a.s.sistance, would certainly be very welcome to the public, and I should look upon this as in any case a practical introduction to the performance as guest. This matter lies outside my present sway, but it goes without saying that I will not fail to let my slight influence towards a favorable solution of the matter be felt.--

The day before yesterday I heard at Gotha your countryman's new opera (Diana von Solange) for the second time. The work was received with great approval, and is shortly to be given in Dresden, where you will be best able to judge of it. Mitterwurzer and Frau Ney have some very effective moments in it.

The concerts of the joint Weymar and Gotha orchestras (a matter which I broached long ago) again came under discussion, and possibly this March an attempt will be made to set them going.

Meanwhile let us look after our cordial [Magen-Starkung] "mentre che il danno e la vergogna dura," ["Whilst prejudice and shame last."] as Michael Angelo says.--

Friendly greetings from your faithful and devoted

F. Liszt

January 12th, 1859

Will you give the enclosed letter to Bronsart?

209. To Heinrich Porges In Prague

[Now Royal music-director and conductor of a first-rate Gesang- verein [vocal union] in Munich, where he has lived since 1867.