Most excellent friend Kietz!
What more can one ask? To provide the subject, in the blackest period of one's life, for such an amusing, colorful portrait as I succeeded in doing for you, that is really sufficient! Your superb portrait which I shall keep as a sacred relic will henceforth serve as my model. I now live in the firm intention, as often as I can remember it and control myself, to direct and see everything in such a way that I can laugh about it. The horse- and cowtails shall contribute their bit to strengthen me in my purpose! Be assured that your letter also made me and my wife very happy. I should have written to you right away, but many things interfered, chiefly the performance of my Lohengrin in Weimar. You recall that in Montmorency I gave you a letter containing a message for Liszt: acting on that letter Liszt—as I did not learn until much later—had the score sent to him from Dresden and proceeded to perform it. This took place on August 28. . . .
. . . I sent Karl Ritter to Weimar to report to me. Karl had heard me play it—the opera—on the piano, and he did not like the performance, mainly because of the carelessness and dullness of the singers. Otherwise everything possible was supposed to have been done, and on the whole the impression was said to have been imposing. But you probably already realize that I don't expect anything from all these and similar attempts either for my work or for myself.
. . . Since I happen to be alive and cannot live at any other time than now, even with the best will, I have to do something which corresponds to my ability. I'm thinking of setting Siegfried to music after all, only I have no intention of letting any theater perform it: I have on the contrary the very boldest plans, for the realization of which, however, I need nothing less than 10,000 thaler. Then, according to my plan, I would have a theater built of boards right here where I happen to be; I would send for the most capable singers and have everything I need especially made for this one particular occasion, so that I could be sure of an excellent performance of the opera. Then I would send invitations to all those who are interested in my works, provide for a good attendance, and give three consecutive performances—free of charge, of course—in one week. After this the theater would be torn down, and the thing would come to an end. Only something of that sort can still stimulate me. When Karl Ritter's uncle dies, I'll get the amount!
. . .
Otherwise I'm now very poor again, since I can no longer accept the assistance which was offered to me earlier—as you know. The Ritters themselves are not wealthy enough to help me completely. I have now received a fee from Weimar. That's all. For the rest I no longer have much joy in life, and that is most sensible in my position. Otherwise it is very nice here, and I prefer Zurich to anywhere else: also I have friends here who are very fond of me.
The most useful thing I can still do is actually—to write. Recently I was again inspired to do so, and I wrote a long essay entitled "Judaism in Music." It will appear shortly in the Leipzig Neue Zeitschrift für Musik under a pseudonym, K. Freigedank, because I had to be wary of using my real name and making the whole thing a personal issue from the start. Tell Anders to see where he can get the paper: I think it will interest both of you. Now I'm sending you and Anders each a text of my Lohengrin. There were awful misprints in it; I have corrected the most important ones very neatly. For Anders I'm also enclosing the paraphrase of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony which he wanted. I hope you'll send it to him soon and give him the messages in this letter. Next time I'll write to him, and he should then do the same for you. So give my best regards to Anders. Minna sends regards to both of you. Don't forget Semper. Farewell and write soon.
Your Richard W.
Source: Letters of Richard Wagner: The Burrell Collection, ed. John N. Burk (Macmillan, 1950), No. 99