William Wright

New Liszt Letters

 

Letter 6: 27 May [18]56
Probably to Julius Benedict. Liszt had been clearly impressed by Benedict's developing compositional style around this time as is evidenced by the inclusion of the latter's attractive "Morceau de Salon" in Das Pianoforte, "a choice collection of classical and modern original compositions" edited by Liszt, a ten volume compilation of pieces printed in Stuttgart in 1857 by the publisher Edward Hallberger. Liszt and Benedict had probably been in touch by letter on several occasions during the 1850s. Liszt also knew that throughout his long and distinguished career Benedict had presented and promoted the talents of many international stars in the vocal firmament and would be eagerly awaiting Johanna Wagner's London debut performances at His Majesty's Theatre in early June that year.(2)

Dear friend,
A few days ago I asked Mr Härtel (3) to send you (free of charge) the six scores of my Symphonic Poems which have just come out- but a much better form of reminder has been presented to me by Miss Johanna Wagner and I am ensuring I make use of the occasion. Such messengers are too rare not to be given special consideration.
I am convinced that when the London public hears her powerful rendition of the song of Orpheus (4)
Ghosts, phantoms, shadows- terrible!
the stalls, boxes and circles will change the "No" of the terrible ghosts, phantoms and shadows into the "Yes" of enthusiastic applause.
The great and rare distinctions of the artist aside, I recommend Miss Wagner to you for her charming and simple personal qualities which I was able to appreciate to the full during her recent stay in Weimar- where I hope some fine day also to have the opportunity of appreciating your charms at a little more leisure. Your trip a year ago does not count despite the change of hats (5) - and I expect you, during one of your next trips to Germany, to come and have a little more relaxed chat without looking for your hat or checking your watch[?].
With kind regards from your devoted friend
F. Liszt
Weimar, 27 May 1856
(Source: Taylor Institution Library, Oxford. Ref. MS. 8°E18/67 Peyton Family Autograph Books, 2)

1 Benedict's piece was the first work of the series, Liszt's Festvorspiel - Preludes 5226 was the first piece in Vol. 1.
2 Liszt had been so impressed by Johanna Wagner (1826-1894), the niece of Richard Wagner, in her role as Elizabeth in the Berlin production of Tannhäuser in January 1856 that he had engaged her to sing in Weimar. She appeared there on April 30 that year in Gluck's Orpheus and Eurydice.
3 "Härtel eventually brought out six of the full scores in April 1856, under the title Symphonische Dichtungen and on May 9 he sent fifty copies of each work to Liszt in Weimar." They were Tasso, Les Préludes, Orpheus, Prometheus, Mazeppa, and Festklänge. See Walker: Franz Liszt, The Weimar Years, London, Faber and Faber, 1989, pp. 304-305.
4 Liszt wrote to Agnes Street-Klindworth on 12 May: "At the beginning of June she [Wagner] will make her debut in London, in Orfeo at H[er] M[ajesty's] Theatre, which Lumley is reopening this
season." See Pocknell: Franz Liszt and Agnes Street-Klindworth, A Correspondence, 1854-1886, New York, Pendragon Press, pp. 96-97.
5 Benedict may have heard a performanc of Liszt's symphonic poem, Orpheus and the premičre of his symphonic poem, Prometheus in Brunswick on 18 October.

Letter 7: 8 May [18]58
To an unknown correspondent. Liszt we know was inundated with requests from autograph collectors and was usually quite short with them. In this case he is polite, almost conciliatory, so his correspondent must have been someone rather special- possibly someone writing about George Sand.
Letter 7 was received by Liszt around 10 May 1858, eight days after his return to Weimar from a short visit in Berlin and during his "preliminary rehearsals" at the Altenburg prior to the fateful staging of Peter Cornelius's comic opera, The Barber of Bagdad.(1) It was the period when Liszt's position as conductor at the theatre was being gradually undermined by the newly appointed theatre Intendant, Franz von Dingelstedt (1814-1881).

Your kind note finds me quite unprepared because for many years the letters I have received from Madame Sand have been taken from me by autograph hunters who plague me. Consequently, it is impossible at the present time for me to do as you ask but if in future I receive a few lines from Madame Sand which can be made available to you, I shall be happy to send them to you, assuring you then as I do now that I am
your devoted
F. Liszt
Weimar, 8 May 1858
(Source: Trinity College Library, Cambridge. Ref. Cullum H.V. 25, Items 1-2) (2)

1 The premičre, given on 15 December 1858, was a "fiasco" and immediately led to Liszt's resignation as conductor. See Walker: Franz Liszt, The Weimar Years 1848-1861, London, Faber and Faber, 1989, pp. 494-495.
2 Given to the library by George G. Milner-Gibson-Cullum, former Mayor of Bury St. Edmunds.

Letter 8: [1866]
To Louise de Mercy-Argenteau (1837-1890), Belgian countess, born Marie Clotilde Elizabeth Louise de Riquet, Countess de Caraman. She was a woman of considerable beauty, wealth, musical talent and great influence who was not only engaged in political manoeuvrings through her intimate relationship with Louis Napoleon but in her latter years, with the support and encouragement of Liszt, promoted the music of the Russian School at her concerts in Ličge and further afield: the works of Balakirev, Mussorgsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, Liadov, Borodin and Cui. Liszt and the Countess first met in Paris in May or June 1861, were together in the city for an extended period in the spring of 1866, and continued their treasured friendship until the last year of Liszt's life. Letter 8
is the nineteenth letter from Liszt to Louise to appear in print and was probably written about the time when Bernhard Sax the sculptor came to Paris in the spring of 1866 to attend the premiere of Liszt's "Gran" Mass and to present to Liszt his "completed" bust.(1) Sax, who exhibited some of his work in Rome in 1865 and in London in 1877, had made his first bust of Liszt in 1862 and his second was "completed in Munich" at the beginning of 1866 or shortly before.
What marvels you recount... and more marvellous still! I feel more dead than alive- leaving without much correspondence; but one could not imagine anything more "gimplique"(2) than your very "infirm" servantFL Sax will be monstrously punctual (3)

(Source: Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge.)(4)

1 See Pocknell: Franz Liszt and Agnes Street-Klindworth, A Correspondence, 1854-1886, New York, Pendragon Press, 2000, pp. 209 and 220. Sax omitted to bring Liszt's bust with him to the French capital (see La Mara [Marie Lipsius]: Liszts Briefe pp. 6, 107 and 108).
2 'Gimpel' meaning 'bullfinch' was the nickname given to Liszt by Louise. Liszt used the word 'gimplique' here to describe himself as 'a blockhead' to underscore his deep affection for the lady. See Suttoni: "Liszt and Louise de Mercy-Argenteau", JALS, Volume 34, July-December 1993, p. 4.
3 It is unclear what '77' represents.
4 J. J. Henderson Bequest, Music Volume, p. 123. The Henderson collection was donated to the library in 1933.

Letter 9: 21 February [18]77
To Ferenc Erkel (1810-1893), Hungarian composer and conductor, Director (and creator) of the Hungarian national opera and also the Director of the Academy of Music in Budapest that Liszt and he founded in 1875. The Budapest Philharmonic Concerts were inaugurated by Erkel. Letter 9 was written towards the end of Liszt's six-month stay in Budapest (15 October 1876-11 March 1877) when he was engaged in composition, a little performing, and in teaching at the Royal Academy of Music. While there was "work to be done", Liszt felt "relaxed and in fairly good form." Only those close to him, like Frau von Meyendorff, knew that when he was otherwise engaged he felt indescribably sad.(1) In order to help himself "survive the strain of these weeks", he went from time to time to the Opera House or concert hall.(2) The following note to Erkel: a request by Liszt for a box at a forthcoming opera performance was probably written by Liszt at a dark moment.

Dear Sir,
Many thanks for the kindness shown towards me. Following a letter from the composer of the opera The Ghost of Voyvode (3), Mr L. Grossman (4), I am taking the liberty of asking you to let me have a box for one of the upcoming performances of this opera.
Yours faithfully,
F. Liszt
February 1877, Budapest.

(Source: Trinity College Library, Cambridge. Ref. Cullum H.V. 25, item 1-2)

1 See Dezső Legány: Liszt and His Country, Budapest, Occidental Press, 1992, p. 63.
2 See Legány: Liszt and His Country, p. 65.
3 Liszt wrote the following lines to Carolyne Sayn-Wittgenstein: "I've attended a score of concerts and about a dozen opera performances- the Queen of Sheba of Goldmark... Geist des Wojwoden. This last is a light opera by the Warsaw composer Grossman who has attempted a fusion of Polish and Hungarian music." Liszts Briefe pp. 7, 174.
4 Ludwik Grossman [1835-1915], Polish composer, conductor, pianist, organist, and, for a period, Director of the Polish National Opera in Warsaw.

Letter 10: 7 August [18]79
To William George Cusins (1833-1893), Master of the Queen's Music, Conductor of the Philharmonic Society and member of staff of the Royal Academy of Music in London.
He probably met Liszt for the first time during a short stay in Budapest in January 1871 when he received and brought back to England the bust of Beethoven that had been specially sculpted by Johann Nepomuk Schaller of Vienna for the London Philharmonic Society. In a letter to Stanley Lucas, the Secretary of the Society, dated 25 January 1871, written on the day of his arrival in the Hungarian capital, Cusins remarked "I shall probably call on Franz Liszt tomorrow with Remenyi."(1)
Cusins and the Hungarian violin virtuoso, Eduard Remenyi [1830-1898] had doubtless been in regular contact at Windsor Castle from 1854 to 1860 when they were both employed as musicians to Queen Victoria, the latter in his capacity as conductor of her private orchestra, and Cusins was dutifully at hand to welcome his colleague to Budapest in 1871. An enduring link had certainly been forged between Remenyi and Liszt and by January 1871 Liszt had composed or arranged for him at least four violin and piano arrangements and probably two or more arrangements for violin and organ.
Liszt composed "Go not happy day" for Cusins in July or August 1879 and the piece was included in the latter's 1880 compilation: "Tennyson Songs with Music." They were to meet for the last time in April 1886 when Cusins was summoned by the Queen to bring Liszt to her at Windsor Castle. Her deep regard for Liszt and his music had been of even longer standing.
Three letters of Liszt to Cusins are known to exist; two are held in the Pierpont Morgan Library, one dated 7 August 1879 and the other 8 October 1879. They are included in the present collection. The third letter, 21 [27 ?] September1879, is still unpublished and is in the Goethe and Schiller Archives in Weimar. The 7 August 1879 letter was printed for the first time around 1905 in Liszt Briefe, Volume 8 edited by La Mara [Marie Lipsius]. Letter 10 not only provides us with further evidence of the high esteem Liszt was held in by notable musicians in Europe and the United Kingdom but also of the considerable influence he had on them.

Dear Mr Cusins,
In your kind letter back in May you indicated that I should send my little manuscript for the new edition of the renowned Songs of Tennyson (2) by August.
I enclose my melody for "Go Not Happy Day". (3) If it is sung by a fine tenor, it should go down well at salons and concerts. Please send it to the publishers and let me know you have received it. From 18 to 22 August I will be in Bayreuth (in Bavaria, Germany), not in Beirut in Syria...(4)
When I have heard from you I will tell you where to send me the proofs. I am keen for the published edition of this song to be perfect and, consequently, I am not sparing the publisher the trouble of sending me the proofs.
Warm and sincere regards,
F. Liszt
7 August 1879, Weimar
I am leaving Weimar next Monday and will be in Bayreuth on 18 August.

(Source: Pierpont Morgan Library, New York)

1 See History of The Philharmonic Society of London: 1813-1912 compiled by Myles Birket Foster, F.R.A.M., London, John Lane Company, 1912, pp. 317 and 318.
2 A Kegan Paul and Co. London publication. The manuscript of this song was cited incorrectly by Humphrey Searle in the 1980 edition of The New Grove and by Sharon Winklhofer in The New Grove: Early Romantic Masters as being held in the Library of Congress.
3 In this letter "Liszt asked Cusins to arrange for the publisher to send to his address the proofs of his song Go not happy day, set to Tennyson's poem. See Dezső Legány: Liszt and His Country 1874-1886. Budapest, Occidental Press, pp. 123 and 305.
4 Liszt is referring here to an unfortunate experience Karl Klindworth and Wagner had with the Russian postal system in 1855/1856. Klindworth had made a piano arrangement of the second act of Wagner's Götterdämmerung while at the Imperial Conservatory in Moscow and sent the manuscript assuming that the work would be transported fairly expeditiously. However "the Bavarian town was unknown to the Russian post-office and the parcel was sent to Beirut in the Middle East instead!" When Wagner eventually received it twelve months later he had to pay a large postal fee. See Walker: Franz Liszt, The Weimar Years 1848-1861, London, Faber and Faber, 1989, p.186.

 

William Wright
scholar and pianist, gave the world premičre of Liszt's piano piece in Ab S 189 in a BBC Scotland broadcast recital in 1987. His most recent study, "Chamber Music", is included in The Liszt Companion, ed. Ben Arnold, London, Greenwood Press, 2002.