Monsieur,
I am infinitely grateful to you and satisfied with the artistic points you have been good enough to give me in your kind letter of last October on the projected staging of my opera La Vestale at the new Dresden theater.
I can give myself the pleasure of answering in no more than a few lines, since I am indisposed, and suffering from a chill brought on by the three or four degrees of frost around here, suddenly and prematurely. I note then, purely and simply, without being exacting, that:
1. Twelve first violins, twelve seconds, directly backed up by ten violas, the whole surrounded by eight or ten violoncellos in close rank and six or seven excellent contrabasses—that is the least that the size and height of your auditorium permits, in grand opera! Nor do I remember precisely whether the conductor has the first violins at his left and the seconds at his right, not separated from the wind instruments as in the Royal Academy of Music in Paris and the State Theater in Berlin, where the effect is quite vicious and ridiculous; for the ensemble of a good orchestra the complete separation of the strings on one side and the wind instruments and brass on the other results in two distinct orchestras!!
2. As for the choruses, I find that in every full chorus the men are well trained and, having voices which are passable but well placed, can well support the women's voices, except when the Vestals are alone on the stage, such as the morning hour, the evening, and the prayer in the third act. I hope that my precedent will be respected, and that in all the choruses of La Vestale and Cortez, the high and contralto parts written in the alto clef be taken by the first tenors in unison with the male contraltos; otherwise all the effect and the force of the choruses would be entirely lost!!
As soon as I can, I shall give you the parts for your theater here (for the text); and I shall bring the full score with me to conduct from, if my health and the horrible cold permit me, when I have received your second letter, which you tell me about, before fixing the day of my departure from Berlin. I beg you, Monsieur, to present my respects to M. the Count Lüttichau, and my sentiments of esteem and friendship to all the artists of both sexes, together with a good share for yourself, and believe me, with the best and highest sentiments,
Yours sincerely and devotedly,
Spontini
My writing is terrible!!
Source: Letters of Richard Wagner: The Burrell Collection, ed. John N. Burk (Macmillan, 1950), No. 57