Ludwig the Second, King of Bavaria. Clara Tschudi
recalling Herr and Frau Schnorr von Carolsfeld. No sooner had they done this than hisses were to be heard, though deadened by applause. After the second act the two chief singers were recalled, this time amid unanimous recognition. At eleven o’clock the performance concluded. Once again there was a difference of opinion, and applause and hisses sought for mastery. Herr and Frau Schnorr von Carolsfeld led Wagner on to the stage. He was received with a storm of ovations, though here and there hisses were audible. The King, who had followed the performance with the most strained attention, and who in the third act had been affected to tears, trembled with emotion. He stood up in his box, and clapped enthusiastically.
At last there was quiet; the curtain fell. Wagner’s genius had conquered.
There was not in the whole of Europe a newspaper of any consideration, still less one for the criticism of music, which did not mention this evening. Opinions as to the work were divided, but there was only one opinion as to the excellence of the orchestra under Hans von Bülow’s leadership and the singing of Ludwig and Malwina Schnorr von Carolsfeld. A Frenchman who was present wrote6: “I doubt that Wagner’s Tristan will ever be popular, for it is not remarkable for clearness and simplicity. On the other hand, musicians will find treasures in it.—I have never been present at an opera which so quickly wearies the attention and which demands such an immense amount of mental strain. But neither do I know any with such lofty and enchanting beauties.
“We must do the young King the justice to allow that without him the representation could never have been possible. He has worked for it with all his might, and Wagner’s triumph is in truth his. Ludwig’s behaviour during the five hours that the opera lasted was likewise a feature in the play. Be sure that this young man will cause the world to talk about him! A Monarch of twenty years more open-minded than his Opposition, whom he drives forward—a King who does not draw back before the highest problems in art is a rare figure in history!”
Wagner received from his royal protector a letter in which was written:
“Uplifted, Divine Friend,
“I can hardly wait for the morrow, I long so already for the second performance. … Is it not so, my very dear friend, the courage to create new things will never leave you! … I ask you never to lose heart. I ask it of you in the name of those whom you fill with joy—a joy which otherwise only God grants!
“You and God!
“To death and after death. In the kingdom on the other side I remain,
“Your faithful,
“Ludwig.”
To Hans von Bülow likewise he expressed his thanks in a flattering letter, which was accompanied by a diamond ring; and he also caused diamond rings to be conveyed to Herr and Frau Schnorr von Carolsfeld, in which souvenirs of the festival were ingeniously set.
1 In a dedication of the pianoforte score of Die Walküre (July 1864). ↑
2 Semper some years afterwards made use of the same plan, though somewhat reduced in scale, when he built the Richard Wagner Theatre in Bayreuth. ↑
3 Ludwig II. and Richard Wagner continually exchanged letters. They are written in an exceedingly warm and exalted tone, but turn chiefly on musical subjects. Only a very small number of them are accessible to the public. After the death of the King the Bavarian Government and Wagner’s heirs agreed that Ludwig’s letters should be given up to the Bavarian Government, which now preserves them under lock and key. Wagner’s letters, on the other hand, were sent back to his relations.
The periodical, Die Wage, published in its second year several interesting letters from Ludwig to his friend which are affirmed to be absolutely authentic, and which I have cited in part as above. ↑
4 In a letter, dated 5th May, to Herr Uhl, the editor of the Wiener Botschafter. ↑
5 Frau Herwegh in the Gegenwart, 1897. ↑
CHAPTER VI
Ludwig’s First Visit to Switzerland—Richard Wagner leaves Munich
We know that Schiller, from Ludwig’s childhood, had been his favourite poet. At Munich, as in all other theatres, the master’s works had hitherto only been given in an abridged form. But the “romanticist on the throne,” commanded that in his own theatre they should be played as the poet himself had intended. On the 18th of October 1865 Wilhelm Tell was performed for the first time in its original shape.
After this representation the King was taken with the desire to know the people and the country which Schiller had glorified in his work. Accompanied by his aide-de-camp, Prince Paul of Thurn and Taxis, he started on the 20th of October for Switzerland. In Lucerne, which he made his headquarters, he went to the hotel Schweizer Hof. His arrival being unannounced, and no one recognising him, he was given a room on the third floor. The consternation among the personnel of the establishment may be imagined when it became known the following day that it was the King of Bavaria who had been lodged so high up. The landlord, in dismay, hastened upstairs to make his apologies, and offered Ludwig the suite of rooms on the ground floor in which royal personages were usually accommodated. Ludwig declined the offer with his kindest smile, declaring that he was satisfied with his little room on the third floor, with its pretty view over the lake and mountains, and that he would not leave it.
From Lucerne he made excursions to places in the woodland cantons rich in legendary lore: to “Rütli” “Tells-Platte,” “Stauffachers Kapel,” to the Küsnach gorge, and several other places.
The hearts of the inhabitants went out to the handsome, enthusiastic youth. The Schwyzer Zeitung published after his departure some hearty words of appreciation and farewell. This he answered in an autograph letter which ran as follows:—
“Herr Redakteur!
“It was with the greatest pleasure that I read to-day the warm farewell from “William Tell’s” land, and I answer it from my heart.
“I send my greeting likewise to my dear friends in the forest cantons, for whom already as a child I had a particular affection.
“The recollection of my visit to the glorious interior of Switzerland and of the honest, free people, whom I pray God to protect, I shall always prize.
“With the kindest feelings, I am,
“Your gracious,
“Ludwig.
“Hohenschwangau, November the second, 1865.”