The lazy, pleasure-loving portion of mankind was immediately up in arms against such startling methods as these, and even to-day, although the Wagner-cult is a very considerable one, it is to be doubted whether the real tastes of the majority of operatic listeners are not rather for something demanding less careful and close attention. Whether this be so or no, the point remains that Wagner’s innovations, when once understood and grasped, were seen to be so dramatically true and fitting that all composers of operas, since his works became widely known, have come under his influence, and have in large measure framed their dramatic music on the lines laid down by him. Here, then, was another revolution, and an important one. Formal melody still exists on the stage, but the continuous inter-connecting links of _melos_ are derived from Wagner, while the wondrous harmonies and chord combinations which he was the first to introduce into the realm of opera, have been so many additions to the material which the modern composer has for manipulation. Since Wagner there have been no reformers; we do not yet see in what direction reform is to come. If we are to rely on history, which certainly seems to repeat itself with regard to opera, we are probably slowly trending in some wrong direction or other. What that wrong direction is we shall only know when some mighty master mind has turned us out of it. It may be that the Wagner operas, which seem at the present time to be the height of dramatic perfection, may yet contain many serious flaws, either in workmanship or in method; this much is certain, that no imitator of Wagner has achieved permanent success: the Colossus stands alone, and none can vie with him on his own ground. But opera must go on: if the Wagner reforms cannot be successfully adopted and used by others, operas will be written (as they are being written) on other lines. Some of these new works will be good and some bad, but the present seems to be a period of interregnum such as succeeded the times of Monteverde and of Gluck. We are experiencing a spell of more or less unimportant operatic production which will, in all probability, go on slowly in some wrong direction until the brain of some clear-sighted and gifted genius has discovered that we are all astray, and will alter the whole course of things. Until his advent we have no name to add to our list of reformers of opera. CHAPTER IV. THE BEGINNINGS OF OPERA. Early commencement of opera—The Bardi enthusiasts—What they achieved—Peri and Caccini—A logical commencement—Its imperfections. It is a curious and interesting fact that the birth of opera should be due more or less to accident, and should owe its origin to a group of amateurs: but so it is, and to the blind gropings in the dark after a something (they knew not what) of a small circle of polished scholars, we owe the form of opera as we have it to-day.