Annals for 1859:
Very quiet: sole concern uninterrupted work. — Unpleasant letter from Liszt: misunderstanding (Rienzi money); cleared up by Marie Wittgenstein. — From Vienna second payment for Lohengrin. — Beginning January: Karl Ritter back: confused news concerning C. — Instrumentation of Act II: Act I already engraved. Winterberger, Karl, Tessarin: Musical evening with Dolgoruki. — Minna still difficult. Otherwise social life peaceful. (W. von Humboldt. Pasque: Biography of Schiller. — Schopenhauer, constantly.) Sheet of Tristan to Liszt. Stiff further correspondence. — February: Lohengrin Berlin also. (Flop.) Karl’s ‘Armide’. Attempted expulsion from Venice: apply to Archduke Maximilian in Milan; order by telegraph. Apply to Minister of Justice, Behr and Lüttichau re return to Germany. In vain. Return abandoned. — Offer from New York: again comes to nothing (Klindworth suggested). From Moscow: Saburov; bookings: no good. — Outing to Treviso: (dust, tormented animals). — St Marco. Good evenings with Karl. Theatre: Malibran: ‘Le Baruffe Chioggiote’. - Comploi: more often; Goldoni. ‘Semiramide’ (Karl sleeps.) Venice: opera and ballet (Mystères de Paris). Piazetta. Campanella of St Marco. Giardino pubblico. Church with Veronese. — Decide to settle in Paris for good. With Minna, bearable. (Frau El. Wille not kind.) Decide on Lucerne for Act III. March: Winterberger to Rome. (Gondola singer.) 17: instrumentation completed. Piano packed. Good deal with Vienna for Tannhäuser. In good spirits for departure. Threat of war: disembarking of troops. 24. Karl, Tessarin (also Schneider) Railway. Evening Milan: 3-day stay. Brera (Van Dyck. Crespi.) Ambrosian Library. (G. Reni. Drawings by da Vinci and Raphael.) Last Supper. Ascend cathedral. Scala: Cleopatra Ballet. Zezi from Dresden. Teatro Re: Goldini. — Beautiful spring: via Como, Lugano, Gotthard (sleigh) Lucerne. 28 March. Dreadful weather. Schweizerhof Annex. Joseph. Vreneli. 2 April (snowstorm) Zürich. Wesendoncks’: sleep one night there. Dream-like. 4 April: piano arrives. Settling in. 9: beginning of Act III. Fatigue; low spirits; restlessness. Bad weather. Liszt: Grand Duke re Nibelungs worse and worse. — (Karl Ritter: vanished, remain without news.) — Composing agony. — May and June: visit Wesendoncks in Lucerne. All tolerable: occasionally very bad moods. Corpus Christi. Kissinger water. Riding. (Liese.) Rigi (bad: bull) — Dresden Opera Publishers: Lawyer Schmidt. Sale. Tannhäuser score engraved; — visit to Zürich: night at Hotel Baur. Italian war: Beautifully hot. Move into main building of hotel. Good work. — Draeseke. Also Baumgartner. Wesendoncks again. — Beginning August: Tristan completed. (Horn duets on lake. Cow-bells at night.) Negotiations with Karlsruhe about settling there; to no purpose. (King of Saxony refuses Grand Duke of Baden.) Firmly decided on Paris. Franz operation necessary. — Pilatus, also Brunnen and Grutli — with Draeseke. -- Serov. — Hang on in corner room: piano unpacked again. — Agreement with Otto Wesendonck re Nibelungs. 7 September: packed; 3 days in Zurich at Wesendoncks. (Herwegh. Gottfried Keller. Semper: bad argument about politics.) Winterthur: Sulzer’s boy. — 15 September: arrive in Paris. Avenue de Matignon for one month. — Rent small house in Rue Newton. (Nervous trouble.) de Charnal. Carvalho: Tannhäuser — Leroi. Gasperini. — Berlioz (shock at door). From Karlsruhe: Tristan abandoned. Servant taken on. October: Mad. Charnace. — Belloni. Giacomelli. — Great irritation over arrangement of house. Wesendoncks to Rome. — Roger (Villa) re translation of Tannh. stay with him. 17 Nov: Minna’s arrival. (Fips, Jaquot, Therese.) Herolds: Josephine for Minna. My silence. — Negotiations re place for three concerts. Letter to Louis Napoleon. (Monsieur de Lucy — Mocquard. — Ollivier, Blandine. — All the time new recommendations: no good. — No replies. — Bois de Boulogne. Stiff correspondence re projected German performance. — Gasperini. — Monsieur Villot. Flaxland. Ferry. — Baden Ambassador (Herr von Schweizer). Swiss Ambassador (Kern). No answer from Kaiser re opera theatre for concerts.