Wagner's Letters

Richard Wagner to Mathilde Wesendonck

Undated · Lucerne

Overview

A brief, exultant note: Tristan, and especially its final act, is turning into something terrible; Wagner fears that only mediocre performances will save the work from being banned, since a perfect one would drive people mad.

Letter

Child! This Tristan is turning into something terrible!

This final act!!! -

I fear the opera will be banned - unless the whole thing is parodied in a bad performance - : only mediocre performances can save me! Perfectly good ones will be bound to drive people mad, - I cannot imagine it otherwise. This is how far I have gone!! Oh dear! -

I was just in full career!

Adieu!
R.W.

Source: Selected Letters of Richard Wagner, trans. and ed. Stewart Spencer and Barry Millington (W. W. Norton & Company, 1988), No. 238

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