New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1894-06-10
OF his book we have no inclination 10 quarre
Stated an his own words 1t is this:

era has Issued from absolute music anu "'' ''0
poetrv. IS also true in a broad sense. but VIE"
he tries 10 state what was the origin oi opera
and attributes the impulses characterized !" '"c
two utteranccs TO the productions OF the i iore"-
tine scholars and literat. who relhVehleu ''e
lyric drama he shows a misconceptioh OF thel
r,,rroses and ACCOMPLISHMENTS Of which con-
seryatory pupil Of to-day ought to De ashahep'
1,ror, = historical point of view Wagner Is
chiefly interesting to-day because OF MS papa
hIo relationship to the Florcntine coterie, whose
degenerate intellectual offspring he aided IN re-
forming. II is only when he Is discovered as
touching hands with tho inventors Of the l'ahah
onera and the Greek dramatists who appear IN
~, hts,,rv NJ civilization as the inventors Of
the lyric drama that he appears in his true
LIGHT and real stature. In the tragedy OF the
Cracks q nd the "dramma per musica OF the fIor-
artines az the beginning OF the seventeenth CEN
fury. tho purpose which Wagner would have
rnusic subscrve In the drama was illustrated.
II was q means of expression, and not an end.
II did not become an end until 1t borrowed It's
forms from absolute, that Is. purely instru-
mental music 1t Is true that the u's'h''"-
ton was extremely rapid but this circumstance
should not be permitted 10 conceal the lacl ""'
the creative and formative impulse Whlch WIS
IN operation when Pert and Cacciv wrote th"ir
"Furvdiccs" Gagliano his "Dafne. ana M0h'e-
,,r1o his "Orfco" came from the dramatic
noem rather than from absolute music. In fact.
tho co,npositions no less than the polemical
tracts OF these men and their associates were
protest against the absoiutism Of music NAE-
ner's statement THIS point Is so misleading
that ON, would be strongly tempted u believe
that he had never taken the trouble 10 learn ""
truth were ii not for the fact that even III h.s
rn!sstatcmcnt he discloses that ne had rcad NJ
least cursorilv the story Of the Florcntine pro-
test against the domination Of counterpart III
music The passage may be printed as an Illus
tration Of what We have spoken - as his dis
position TO make history and criticism walt upon
theory:
can il POSSIBLY be doubted that IN opera music
has actually been taken as the end. IN" Drama
merely as the means. Surely not The brci'-'
survey II the historic cvolu;l' - opera td'H'S
us this quite past disputng. every one "h" mas
busted himself with ia" account " ih'' develop
ment has-simply by his historical research IN
Willingly laid bar, tie tru.h. Sol rom IN"
medieval Folk-piays In which w. hnh me
traces - a natural cooperation ~ IN" arr az
Tone with that Il Drama. diG Opera arise; hu' AZ
tn. luxurious courts - Ifaly notably enough the
one great land of European culture In which Inc
Drama never developed % any signlncanc"-t
occurred % certain distinguished persons who
found Palcs'una's church music no longer -
their liking - employ me singers "ngat@d 70
entertain thcm AZ ih'.r festivals, 80 singing
Arlas O. F,ik-tu.cs stripped 81 thrlr ualvete
AMI truth t. which texts" thrown together ini!
srn"'ance %, dtiindl'i ,,n,.''p WI "''.'
WY 49, c,n.o-.,s aimed a, o,vfhing hut
Drama is the mother II our opera: nay. moro. It
Is ih1i Opera Itself Ihr NOR" II d'Nr.'prl
- ~. .-'S '."nl =. ~" " -'
raining f,-f,i became IN, platf.rfn for The d.y-
ter!iy : The singers throat
That Wagner here either totally mIsconro!voI
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~. ..,,,.,.,,, 80 s,-,,,, o.. .,,. ,,o, Wagner
co,sci,,,el d,d violence. ~ historical truth uarilv
% mako =, amman that his lyric drama was an
,eolated nhenon,enon narf,v f.r the SAKE. ~ his
theory, tina, tho germ ~ All that vas vicious In
onor,,ic music (vic,ous ero,, fb. nolnt ~ Wow
oxc,,ni,oel 81, m. Gro.t tro rcd,. tho '.,lrarrna
,o- ,,,si.," -, tho Iv,r.n.,re ot,5 his own Uric
;,,,o, ,,,,s ., ~, found e., tho Ar,, tho develor,-
mon, n, ,vh,cb ,ooo,ha~ with IFS rotated form.
along purely musical lines IN his view makes up
the subsequent history u opera Here again.
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