Among the Great Masters of Music: Scenes in the Lives of Famous MusiciansRowlands, Walter
History
Among the Great Masters of Music: Scenes in the Lives of Famous Musicians
Rowlands, Walter
Music in art; Musicians -- Biography; Musicians -- Portraits
"I must also beg for a little delay in sending you the score and the
pianoforte edition, as it is necessary entirely to revise the German
text and to have it written out again. I think this work will be ready
in a few weeks, so you may expect the pianoforte edition at the
beginning of February. At Easter Berlioz is coming to Dresden to
conduct a couple of concerts in the theatre there. It would be
splendid if you should succeed in your endeavours to make Herr von
Luttichau fix an early date for the 'Cellini' performance, and if you
could get Berlioz to conduct his own work when he is in Dresden. In
any case, I shall come to the first performance, and promise myself a
very satisfactory and delightful result.
"Meanwhile, dear friend, accept my best thanks once more for this
project, and for all that you will do to realise it successfully, and
receive the assurance of the high esteem of
Yours very truly,
"F. LISZT,
"_Weimar, January 4 (1854)._"
A few years later, in 1862, Liszt addresses his friend, Dr. Franz
Brendel, the writer on music, saying:
"I have just received a few lines from Berlioz. Schuberth, whom I
commissioned before I left to send the dedication copy of the 'Faust'
score to Berlioz, has again in his incompetent _good nature_ forgotten
it, and perhaps even from motives of economy has not had the
_dedication plate_ engraved at all! Forgive me, dear friend, if I
trouble you once more with this affair, and beg you to put an
_execution_ on Schuberth in order to force a copy with the _dedication
page_ from him. The dedication shall be just as simple as that of the
Dante symphony, containing only the name of the dedicatee, as follows:
"'To Hector Berlioz.'
"After this indispensable matter has been arranged, I beg that you will
be so kind as to have a tasteful copy, _bound in red or dark green_,
sent perhaps through Pohl (?) to Berlioz at Baden (where he will be at
the beginning of August)."
Liszt was always generous to a fault; he carried charity almost to
excess. If it were possible that his art could be forgotten, his name
would still be gratefully remembered for his numberless deeds of
kindness. We have quoted Wagner's acknowledgment of Liszt's exertions
in his cause, and his efforts on behalf of Robert Franz rescued that
composer from poverty when old age was coming upon him. Beethoven was
always the object of Liszt's worship, and the monument to the master at
Bonn was reared chiefly through his labours of love.
THE END.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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