In
addition to this, and by a choice that neither myself nor anyone else in
Strasburg could believe was dictated by musical reasons, the German work
chosen to end the evening was the final scene from _Die Meistersinger_,
with its ringing couplet from Hans Sachs, in which he denounces foreign
insincerity and foreign frivolity (_Waelschen Dunst mit waelschen Tand_).
This lack of courtesy--though the words were really nonsense when this
very concert was given to show that foreign art could not be
ignored--would not be worth while raking up if it did not further serve
to show how regrettable is the indifference of French artists who take
part in these festivals. And this mistake would never have occurred if
they had taken care to acquaint themselves with the programme beforehand
and put their veto upon it.
I have mentioned this little incident partly because my views were
shared by many Alsatians in the audience, who expressed their annoyance
to me afterwards. But, putting it aside, our French artists ought not to
have consented to let our music be represented by a mutilated score of
_Les Beatitudes_ and by Charpentier's _Impressions d'Italie_, for the
latter, though a brilliantly clever work, is not of the first rank, and
was too easily crushed by one of Wagner's most stupendous compositions.
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