Moreover If Dresden,
Following The Example Of Paris, London, Leipzig, Berlin, And A
Hundred Other Cities, Stops At Beethoven (To
Whom, while he was
living, they much preferred Haydn and Mozart), that is no reason
why Weymar - I mean musical
Weymar, which I make the modest
pretension of representing - should keep absolutely to that. There
is without doubt nothing better than to respect, admire, and
study the illustrious dead; but why not also sometimes live with
the living? We have tried this plan with Wagner, Berlioz,
Schumann, and some others, and it would seem that it has not
succeeded so badly up to now for there to be any occasion for us
to alter our minds without urgent cause, and to put ourselves at
the tail - of many other tails! -
The significance of the musical movement of which Weymar is the
real center lies precisely in this initiative, of which the
public does not generally understand much, but which none the
less acquires its part of importance in the development of
contemporary Art.
For the rest, dear Baron, I hasten to make all straight for this
evening by following your advice, and I will ask Messrs. Singer
and Cossmann to play with me Beethoven's magnificent trio (in B-
flat - dedicated to the Archduke Rudolph), as No. 3 in the
programme.
A thousand affectionate compliments, and
Yours ever,
F. Liszt
Monday, May 21st, 1855
138. To Anton Rubinstein
My dear Rubinstein,
On my return from the Musical Festival at Dusseldorf, where I
hoped to meet you, I found the parcel of oeuvres choisies and the
portrait, which is very successful, of Van II. I hasten to give
you my best thanks for this first sending, begging you not to
forget your promise to complete, in the course of their
publication, the collection of your works, which have for me
always a double interest of Art and friendship. This morning we
had a taste, with Singer and Cossmann, of the Trio in G minor, of
which I had kept a special recollection - and afterwards Princess
Marie Wittgenstein (who commissions me to give all her thanks to
you, until she can have the pleasure of giving them to you in
person) demanded the pieces dedicated to her, which had complete
success. A propos of dedications, the Grand Duchess Sophie is
enchanted with the "Persische Lieder" ["Persian Songs"], and this
she has probably already intimated to you. Shortly before her
departure for Dusseldorf she sang several of them over again,
taking more and more liking to them. Decidedly the first
impression that these "Lieder" made on me, when you showed them
to me, and when I begged you to publish them without delay, was
just, and I have not been deceived in predicting for them a
quasi-popular success. Mdlle. Genast, who has returned from
Berlin, tells me that she made a furor there with "Wenn es doch
immer so bliebe!" ["Oh, could it remain so for ever!"] But,
unfortunately, as an older song has it, "it cannot remain so for
ever under the changing moon!" The last time I was passing
through Leipzig (where they gave my "Ave Maria" exceedingly well
at the Catholic Church), I told Gotze to appropriate to himself
three or four of your "Persische Lieder," which he will sing
splendidly; and, as he comes here pretty often, I will beg him to
give us the first hearing of them at some Court concert.
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