Weymar, December. 14th, 1855
The Princess Wittgenstein is much pleased with your remembrance,
and would be delighted to have the opportunity of thanking you
personally.
147. To his worship Dr. Ritter von Seiler, mayor of the city of
Vienna, etc.
[Autograph in the possession of M. Alfred Bovet, of Valentigne - .
VOL. I.]
Your worship and dear Mr. Mayor,
The willingness which I had already expressed, at the first
mention of the impending Mozart Festival, becomes to me, by your
kind letter of the 19th of December (which I only received
yesterday, owing to the delay from its having gone to Berlin), a
duty, which it is equally my honor and pleasure to fulfill. With
the utmost confidence and conviction that the resolution of the
Town Council will meet with the fullest assent and most
gratifying recognition among all circles of society - the
resolution is as follows: "That all undertakings in connection
with the Mozart Secular Festival shall be conducted and carried
out in the name of the city of Vienna," - and in agreement with
the honorable motives of the Town Council "to lend to the
festivities the worthy and higher expression of universal
homage," I, for my part, undertake with the most grateful
acknowledgments the commission to conduct the Festival Concert on
the 27th January, 1856, and its repetition on the 28th according
to your desire; and I hope to fulfill quite satisfactorily every
just claim which is made on the musical director of such a
celebration.
Although the excellent orchestra, chorus, and staff of singers in
Vienna - long intimate with Mozart's works - afford the complete
certainty of a most admirable performance, yet I think it is
desirable that I should come a couple of weeks before the concert
is to take place, in order to have time for the necessary
rehearsals; and immediately on my arrival. I shall have the honor
of paying my respects to you, dear Mr. Mayor, and of placing
myself at the service of the Festival Committee.
In the programme which has been sent to me, the music of which
will take about three hours in performance, I am pleased with the
prospect before us, that the glories which Mozart unfolds in the
different domains of Art - Symphony, Opera, Church, and Concert
music-are taken into account, and that thus the manifold rays of
his genius are laid hold of, as far as is possible in the limits
of a concert programme. Whilst thoroughly agreeing with the
performance of the different items as a whole, I have
nevertheless one request to make - namely, that you would be good
enough to excuse me from the performance of the Mozart Pianoforte
Concerto which has been so kindly designed for me, and that this
number may be given to some other pianist of note. Apart from the
fact that for more than eight years I have not appeared anywhere
in public as a pianist, and that many considerations lead me to
adhere firmly to my negative resolve in this respect, the fact
that the direction of the Festival will require my entire
attention may prove, in this case, my sufficient excuse.
Accept, Your Worship, the assurance of the high esteem with which
I have the honor to remain,
Dear Mr. Mayor, yours very truly,
F. Liszt
Weymar, December 26th, 1855.
148. To Eduard Liszt
My very dear Eduard,
Scarcely had I returned to Weymar [From the Mozart Festival at
Vienna.] when I again put on my travelling coat to help in
Berlioz' concert at Gotha, which took place the day before
yesterday - and the whole day yesterday was spent in rehearsals of
"Cellini;" followed by a Court concert in the evening (in honor
of H.R.H. the Prince Regent of Baden); so that this morning is
the first leisure moment I have had to take up my pen again and
my position...at my writing-table. I profit by it first of all to
tell you how happy I am in this earnest intimacy, as sincerely
felt as it is conscientiously considered - this real intimacy of
ideas and feelings at the same time - which has been cemented
between us in these latter years, and which my stay in Vienna has
fully confirmed. All noble sentiments require the full air of
generous conviction, which maintains us in a region superior to
the trials, accidents, and troubles of this life. Thanks to
Heaven, we two breathe this air together, and thus we shall
remain inseparably united until our last day!
I am sending you after this the document which serves as a basis
to the Bach-Gesellschaft [Bach Society], from which it will be
easy to make out an analogous one for the publication of Mozart's
complete works. I earnestly invite and beg you to carry out this
project to its realization.
According to my ideas, the "Friends of Music in Austria" should
constitute and set the matter going, and the Royal State Press
should be employed for it, especially as one can foresee that
special favors might be obtained from the Ministry. Probably the
whole Festival Committee of the Mozart Celebration will also
consent to this undertaking, in the sense that, by an edition of
Mozart's works, critically explained, equally beautifully
printed, and revised by a committee appointed for it, a
universally useful, lasting, and living monument to the glorious
Master will be formed, which will bring honor and even material
gain to all Austrian lovers of music and to the city of Vienna
itself. Without doubt, if the matter is rightly conducted, it
will also pay well and be pretty easy to carry through. In about
twelve years the whole edition can be completed. In the
composition of the Committee of Revision I stipulate to call your
attention to a few names. Spohr, Meyerbeer, Fetis, Otto Jahn,
Oulibicheff, Dr. Hartel - among foreigners these ought especially
to have a share in the matter; and a special rubric must be given
to the cost of revision.
