The critic, after finding a plagiarism of Mendelssohn and Cherubini, continues:—
The instrumentation is ill-balanced, ineffective, thin and noisy.
The “Musical World” of 13th October, 1855, says:—
Tannhäuser—We never before heard an opera in which the orchestra made such a fuss; the cacophony, noise, and inartistic elaborations! We can detect little in “Tannhäuser” not positively commonplace. It is tedious beyond endurance. We are made aware, by a few bars, that he has never learned how to handle the implements; and that, if it were given him as a task to compose the overture to “Tancredi,” he would be at straits to accomplish anything so easy, clear, and natural.
CHAPTER XX.
1855-1856.
RICHARD WAGNER left London for Paris, from whence he wrote immediately the following letter. The humorously descriptive reference to the Channel passage is characteristic.
Dearest Friends: Heartiest thanks for your love, which after all is the one thing which has made the dull London lastingly dear to me. I wish you joy and happiness, and, if possible, to be spared the dreariness of the London pavement. Were it not that I regret to have left you, I would speak of the delightful feeling which has taken possession of me since I have returned to the continent. Here the weather is beautiful, the air balmy and invigorating. The past night’s rest has somewhat recruited my strength after the recent fatigue. At present I am enjoying peace and quiet, which I hope will soon enable me to resume work, the only enjoyment in life still left to me.
I have not much to tell of adventures, except that when I went on board I felt rather queer. I lay down in the cabin and had just succeeded in getting into a comfortable position for sleep, hoping thereby to keep off the sea-sickness, when the steward shook me, wanting to look at my ticket. To comply, I had to turn over so as to get to my pocket. This movement caused me to feel unwell; and then the unhappy man claiming his steward’s fee, I was obliged to sit up in order to find my money. This new movement brought on the sea-sickness, so that just as he thankfully received his gratuity, he also received the whole of my supper. Yet he still seemed quite content, notwithstanding, whilst I had such a fit of laughter that drove away both sickness and drowsiness so that I entered Calais in tolerably good spirits.
The custom-house visiting only took place in Paris. It was well for me that the lace I had secreted for Minna was not discovered. Here I soon found my friend Kietz, to whom I poured out my heart about you, dear friends. To-morrow I leave with a Zurich friend, who has waited for me. From Zurich you shall have news. As I write to you all, I beg you to divide my greetings, and do this from the depth of your hearts. To my sister Léonie, give her as well a hearty kiss for me.