Mason, William, 1829-1908; Musicians -- United States -- Biography
The general public and a large majority of the musicians were not at
all favorably disposed toward Wagner's music in those days, and in this
connection a remark of Joachim Raff made to me in 1879-80, on the
occasion of my second visit to Germany, was significant. Raff had been
in earlier years, perhaps, the most ardent of all pioneers in the Wagner
cause. A quarter of a century had elapsed since I had seen Raff, and
naturally one of my first questions was, "Raff, how is the Wagner
cause?" "Oh," said he, "the public have gone 'way over to the other
extreme. You know how hard it was to force Wagner upon them twenty-five
years ago, and now they go just as much too far the other way and are
unreasonable in their excessive homage." "Well," I replied, "I suppose
the matter will find its level and be adjusted as time passes on."
After the performance of "Lohengrin," which, by the way, was successful,
the whole Liszt party, by invitation, went to supper at the house of the
concertmeister, Ferdinand David. Quite a number of other guests were
present. Among them I remember with pleasure my Boston friends and
fellow-townsmen Charles C. Perkins and J. C. D. Parker, who were
temporarily located in Leipsic, pursuing their musical studies.
Brahms also was present, and during the evening he played the Andante
from his "F Minor Sonata, Op. 5."
IN STUTTGART--HOTEL MARQUAND
NOT long after my visit to Raff in 1879-80 I went on a pleasure trip to
Stuttgart, and on account of old associations stopped at the Hotel
Marquand. One of the objects of my visit was to meet again my old Weimar
fellow-pupil Dionys Pruckner, at that time eminent among the staff of
pianoforte teachers in the famous Stuttgart Conservatory of Music.
Alighting at the hotel, I was impressed with the marks of consideration
shown to me by the hotel porter. He was so very attentive that I was
somewhat puzzled. The explanation was apparent the next day when he
respectfully inquired if I was the kapellmeister of New York! He had
read the name and address on one of my trunks and jumped at conclusions.
I told him that I was not that individual, and explained that in New
York no such office existed, although the title might be with propriety
applied to the conductor of the Philharmonic Society. However, the idea
found a lodgment in his head, quite to my advantage, as evidenced by the
many attentions he paid to me throughout my stay.
THE SCHUMANN "FEIER" IN BONN, 1880
Over a quarter of a century elapsed after my first meeting with Brahms
before I saw him again, and then the meeting occurred at Bonn on the
Rhine, on May 3, 1880. He was there, in company with Joachim and other
artists, to take part in the ceremonies attendant on the unveiling of
the Schumann _Denkmal_.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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