Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-05-18
THINGS In GENERAL,
But Wagner and His Music in Particular
why We VIII Enjoy Wagnerian Airs.
How Ideas Work q Change-Struggles

why We VIII Enjoy Wagnerian Airs
How Ideas Work q Change-Struggles
of Revolutionists.
She said: $50 You prefer Mendelssolln to
Wagner?n And he said: Eyes; ! can stand
songs without words, but can't stand songs
without music"
Yet there were more tickets sold, believe
for the Wagner evening of the May Festival
than for any other. Some people evidently
appreciate Wagner. Or else, tits like eating
olives. There are few who naturally like
olives Yet, somehow, it is the thing to eat
olives. And so we acquire the taste; and
even if we don't like them, we pretend that
we do, and SO manifest our possession of an
aristocratic appetite By and by we really
like olives; we have acquired the taste.
1t is the proper thing to enjoy the music of
Wagner. We will, therefore, proceed to
enjoy the music of Wagner. That is, we will
stay awake and smile and lean forward in
the attitude of deyout attention, and at the
end applaud and make appreciative re-
marks. Anybody can school himself to do
that The Spartan boy smiled in the most
courageous and cheerful manner while the
wolf was gnawing at his vitals, And
Wagner concert is not nearly so bad as being
eaten aliye-not nearly SO bad. Let as then
smile and enjoy Wagner.
By and by we will really enjoy Wagner.
The fact is, that to enjoy the best things al
ways needs education. The more good pic
lures one looks at, the more one
is able to appreciate good pictures.
The more good company one goes in,
the more one is able to appreciate the privi-
leges of good company. Nobody begins at
the end. First the Rollo Books and Oliver
Optic and then-at some distance-Plato.
First "Alice in Wonderland" and then enid
dlemarch.'' First, Puck and Life and then
Leonardo de Vinci. First Moody and Sankey,
and then "Parsifal." The masters always
bore the uneducated. If we don't like Wag-
ner, so much the worse for us. We are
proved deficient in education.
Personality First at All Times.
Somebody says that the enthusiasm over
Wagner is the setting of personality over
music. Well9 Personality first, always. Partly,
perhaps, because we can understand that
best. We can recognize @ notable man bet
ter, often than we can recognize notable
achievement And this, especially, in the
subtler arts, such as literature, painting and
music. If we knew that this book was writ
ten or this music composed, or this picture
painted by great man, why that saves us a
great deal of trouble, spares us the pain of
critical Judgment. assures US at once that
here Is something that is worth while.
Mr.. Aldrich published poem in the At
tdytic few months ago, anonymously, and
nobody paid any attention to it: A few alert
known writer showed signs of strength, but
most people passed the verses by unnoticed.
If the poet had set down his name, we would
all have read his lines, and remarked upon
their beauty. This measure Of value Is not
fair, of course. 1t does injustice to the work
of new men; and overrates the careless work
of the masters. But it is evidently the
handiest measure there is Read only the
men who have won fame, look only at the
pictures of artists with whose names you are
familiar; listen only to the music of COM
possers whose hos, genius SIS is approved by fame
what you get will be nine-tenths Of it worth
while. SIT is good because it is Wagner's."
That does set personality above music. But
1t Is true nine times out of ten.
Richard Wagner represents O musical
revolution. He stands for an idea. And that
means greatness The small man is desirous
reputation. He finds out as best he can
what We like, and he caters, accordingly, to
our taste. Any other procedure would not
pay.
idea doesn't agree with our idea. We are all
wrong, he thinks. We need changing, up
lifting, betterfng. He sets himself to get
that done. He has q small opinion of tradi-
tions and old customs and conventions; pays
them no reverence whatsoever. This makes
trouble, always 1t brings in no reputation
at the start, except bad one; Il earns no
comfort and serenity out of the mans life.
But If the idea is true, and the great man is
great enough to push 1t, presently the whole
vanced another stage in the course of ciyili-
cation.
That is the difference between Wagner and
good R% Taer na
Phillips Brooks. Both of them will be re-
membered as great preachers, but Luther
represented revolution, stood for new
thing in the Church.
What Wagner Struggled For.
Richard Wagner knew what it was to be
hungry, and to be hootedat He knew what
it was to have his work neglected, and to
hear it said that his music was bad because
it bore his name. In Paris, 80 years ago, his
opera of "Tannhauser" after 164 rehearsals,
and the expenditure of more than $40 900,
had to be withdrawn after the third rep
resentation. The courteous critics Of the
Jockey Club interrupted the music with
"howls and dog whistles" Part of this
opposition was political. Wagner had made
some unfortunate moves in politics. Part
of it was probably provoked by Wagner's
own strong temper, and facility in the use of
strong language. But good deal of it, the
foundation of it, was Wagner's determine
tion to bring about a musical revolution.
Luther, too, made his ventures in politics,
and had pleasure in fiinging hard names at
the heads of people in general 1t takes
man of strong fiber to be the head of any
sort of rev olution.
And what was it that Richard Wagner
wanted? very simple thing, it seems,
looking at IL dispassionately, a very simple
and altogether natural thing. He wanted to
set the drama first, and to make the music
phasis. AS Mr.. Krehbiel said the other even
ing, when he lectured here before the Art
Society, Wagner believed "That it is the
purpose of music to heighten the expressive
But this went straight in the face of all the
teachings and practicing of all the musical
scribes and pharisees of Wagner's day. The
music was the first consideration. The
the conjunction "and" happened to come in
the place where the composer wanted to
have fugue or flight of trflls, that "and'
was sung, with iteration and reiteration,
as if 1t were the most important word in
the whole opera, and conveyed the supreme
meaning of the drama. Some parsons have
been accused of giving out the notice of the
parish sewing society as If they were pro
John the Divine. And Whiteheld, as every
body knows, was able to put such subtle
pathos into the word "Mesopotamia" as to
persuade whole congregation to shed
tears. But this was worse. 1t was COM
plete sacrifice of sense for sound. The main
purpose of the lyric drama when Wagner
began his revolution was to show Off the
voices of the singers. II was like that
out of existence, in which the anthem is
evidently sung to the praise and glory of the
quartette.
A Poet as Well as Composer.
Against this Richard Wagner set himself.
But if the music is to heighten the express
iveness of the text you must have good
text. And here is the other half of Wag-