Wagner's Letters

Correspondence by, to, and around Richard Wagner

Wagner’s letters form one of the great documentary records of nineteenth-century artistic life. They reveal the practical, intellectual, emotional, and ideological world behind the works: artistic plans, financial crises, theatrical battles, friendships, quarrels, patronage, exile, revolution, Bayreuth, family life, philosophical reflection, and the shifting circle of figures who helped shape Wagner’s public and private destiny.

Year

Month

All Years •

—

All Months • Jan• Feb• Mar• Apr• May• Jun• Jul• Aug• Sep• Oct• Nov• Dec

Search letters

Correspondent

Direction

Showing all years in April (72 total)

Date	From	To	Place	Words	Subject
April 8, 1835	Richard Wagner	Theodore Apel	Magdeburg	341	Wagner thanks Apel for an affectionate letter that lifts his spirits, then explains that he expects to leave Magdeburg by May because Bethmann cannot stage opera and the theatre's finances are disordered. Penniless and restless, he plans to go to Leipzig to finish Das Liebesverbot, reflects on his longing for travel and Italy, mentions Laube's constrained release, and sends news of Minna.
April 11, 1836	Richard Wagner	Felix Mendelssohn	Magdeburg	55	Wagner sends Mendelssohn a symphony composed when he was eighteen, offering it as a gift rather than a request for patronage. He asks only that Mendelssohn look over it when convenient, hoping it will demonstrate his seriousness and industry.
April 19, 1836	Richard Wagner	Robert Schumann	Leipzig	236	Wagner sends Schumann a report on Magdeburg musical life and allows him to alter it, explaining that he has mentioned Schumann carefully and without compromising him. He defends including himself and Das Liebesverbot in the article because his official role made omission artificial and because no one else was discussing the opera.
April 20, 1836	Richard Wagner	Theodore Apel	Magdeburg	91	Wagner asks Apel to send a small keg of 1834 wine so he can fulfill a promise to the chorus after the production of his opera. In a grim postscript, he urges both the wine and Apel's visit to come quickly because his debts may soon land him in prison.
April 1, 1841	Richard Wagner	August Lewald	Paris	213	Wagner sends August Lewald Parisian news and three musical pieces for Europa, assuming Lewald still welcomes such contributions. He also asks Lewald to interest Cotta or another capable publisher in a proposed Beethoven biography that would present Beethoven's artistic periods in an entertaining, non-pedantic manner.
April 8, 1841	Richard Wagner	Theodore Winkler	Paris	194	Wagner tells Theodore Winkler that he was surprised to learn Rienzi had scarcely advanced because management lacked a libretto, so he sent Lüttichau a new copy by stagecoach. He used the opportunity to incorporate changes meant to satisfy Catholic objections and reports encouraging interest from Reissiger after his study of the score.
April 27, 1841	Richard Wagner	Maurice Schlesinger	Paris	220	Wagner humorously asks Maurice Schlesinger for a 100-franc advance, dramatizing the shame of refusing aid to the future famous composer as he prepares a journey toward Russia and Asia. He promises valuable aphorisms and stories for the Gazette musicale by the following month and says the money would let him make the attempted departure.
April 21, 1842	Richard Wagner	Edward Avenarius	Berlin	374	From Berlin, Wagner writes Avenarius that leaving Paris and its friendships has been far harder than the hardships endured there, especially for Minna, who longs to return. He says little can yet be done about his Berlin opera prospects until Küstner arrives and Redern can act, leaving him uncertain how he will live through the summer and emotionally fixed on the friends left behind.
April 7, 1843	Richard Wagner	Samuel Lehrs	Dresden	980	Wagner tells Lehrs that his Dresden appointment has given him security, respect, and unusual authority to reorganize musical life, citing praise for his rehearsal of Gluck's Armide and the king's approval. He reflects on the slow German uptake of Rienzi and The Flying Dutchman, rejects returning to Paris, criticizes Meyerbeer, Mendelssohn's circle, and Berlioz, and says the libretto of Venusberg is finished for composition that summer.
April 8, 1843	Richard Wagner	Cecilie Avenarius	Dresden	509	Wagner urges Cecilie to send Natalie back from Paris to Leipzig as soon as possible, arguing that Paris was a mistake for her and that Charlotte Tröger's home offers a more suitable future than chasing French language accomplishments. He also discusses efforts to place Albert as a singing teacher after Pohlenz's death, Albert's reluctance to leave theatrical life, and Wagner's hopes for Johanna's development and possible Dresden prospects.
April 17, 1850	Richard Wagner	Minna Wagner	Paris	1,293	Wagner writes Minna a painful reckoning of their marriage, arguing that their essential natures have long been divided and that she has acted from duty rather than the unqualified love that would understand his artistic and political rebellion. Recalling their flight from Dresden, exile, reunion in Zurich, her hopes for a Paris career, and her hostility to his writings and convictions, he concludes that her latest letter has destroyed his remaining illusion that they can live together happily.
April 21, 1850	Richard Wagner	Franz Liszt	Paris	439	Wagner reports that the hoped-for Paris performance of his overture has failed and says the collapse has severed his remaining ties to a world that was ruining both his mind and health. Turning away from Paris, he urgently asks Liszt to undertake the first performance of Lohengrin, authorizes him to obtain the score from Dresden, and mentions the additional five hundred francs expected through Belloni.
April 8, 1851	Richard Wagner	Breitkopf and Härtel	Zurich	774	Wagner offers Breitkopf and Härtel the score of Lohengrin for publication, acknowledging that its limited theatrical circulation makes it commercially unattractive but arguing that serious German dramatic music needs preservation and reform amid artistic corruption. He says growing demand for his printed operas encourages publication, and asks the firm to accept Lohengrin as an act of artistic responsibility and humanity, with cancellation of his debt as his only honorarium.
April 9, 1851	Franz Liszt	Richard Wagner	—	475	Liszt says that personal distress kept him silent through March, reports another postponed but forthcoming Weimar performance of Lohengrin, and sends the proof of his article for Wagner to correct quickly for the Illustrirte Zeitung. He adds that he still hopes to arrange support for Siegfried through a delicate approach involving Zigesar, asks Wagner to state plainly how much money he needs and to describe his position and plans in a letter that can be shown privately, and confidentially asks whether Wagner wrote the notorious article on Jewishness in music.
April 18, 1851	Richard Wagner	Franz Liszt	Zurich	1,394	Wagner tells Liszt that the printed Lohengrin article restored his courage, rekindled his desire to create, and led him to resolve to begin composing Siegfried in May even without secure finances, since he now has a publisher for Opera and Drama and hopes to scrape by with help from friends. He asks Liszt to abandon any indirect appeal to the Grand Duchess, openly admits authorship of the article on Jewishness in music as part of his attempt to sever himself from Meyerbeer and an earlier compromised position, and ends with anxious sympathy for the Princess's health and a longing to see Liszt in Switzerland.
April 30, 1851	Richard Wagner	Julie Ritter	Zurich	635	Wagner reassures Julie Ritter that he never assumed her sacrificial help could continue indefinitely, and explains that he refused to petition the Weimar court or turn Siegfried into a business commission because such dependence would betray his nature. He instead hopes to found a serious theatre in Zurich, pointing to recent success in awakening support for a better orchestra, and says even one more year of her support gives him unexpected relief while interest in his work grows.
April 4, 1852	Richard Wagner	Karl Ritter	Zurich	1,015	Wagner tells Karl Ritter that a Zurich performance of the Tannhäuser Overture for Herwegh unexpectedly stirred sympathetic listeners, encouraging him to stage The Flying Dutchman, and he urges Karl to come because Wagner's creative energy depends on sharing work with like-minded individuals rather than the public multitude. He also explains that Julie Ritter's support enables his independence from fees, worries distance will cool that loving bond, and says a new gentler water-cure regimen from Dr. Lindemann requires regular artistic work and should also draw Karl out of his unhealthy isolation.
April 7, 1852	Franz Liszt	Richard Wagner	Weimar	461	Liszt asks after Wagner after a long silence, reports being occupied with Cellini rehearsals and other work, and says he chose Berlioz's opera for practical reasons tied to the progress of his efforts in Weimar. He also asks confidentially whether Wagner has truly petitioned Dresden for a pardon, reports some reactions to Wagner's preface, notes obstacles to an immediate new performance of Lohengrin, and mentions future Weimar plans for The Flying Dutchman, the Apostles, and the Faust overture.
April 13, 1852	Richard Wagner	Franz Liszt	Zurich	999	Wagner says spring has revived him and that he is rehearsing The Flying Dutchman in Zurich, then seriously invites Liszt to come hear the first performances and inspect the staging for use at Weimar. He firmly denies any wish or attempt to seek pardon or return to Germany, clarifies that he is not hostile to Liszt's Cellini project even if he doubts the practical results expected from it, regrets the interruption of Lohengrin in Weimar, and ends with a restless, humorous yearning to travel rather than remain stuck in place.
April 8, 1853	Franz Liszt	Richard Wagner	Weimar	1,026	Liszt answers Wagner's despair by urging him toward faith and resigned suffering, saying that Wagner's greatness and misery are inseparable and can find salvation only in a higher religious submission. At the same time he insists that he has been neither negligent nor lukewarm about reopening Germany to Wagner, reports that the Hereditary Grand Duke has promised active intercession, asks Wagner to write him a heartfelt letter, updates him on Prague and other musical news, and promises that when he comes to Zurich in early June they will go through the Ring together in full.
April 11, 1853	Richard Wagner	Franz Liszt	Zurich	95	Wagner forwards the Prague manager's latest answer with fuller details about the ban on Tannhauser and asks Liszt, if he has the time and inclination, to continue helping in the matter out of friendship. He also says he longs for a letter from Liszt and wants to know directly whether there is any truth in rumors of a breach between Liszt and Weimar.
April 13, 1853	Richard Wagner	Franz Liszt	—	1,190	Wagner assures Liszt that he would never scoff at the forms in which Liszt seeks consolation, then sets out his own faith in a future humanity redeemed through love rather than in abstract dogma, insisting that Liszt's life itself proves a similar faith in action. He looks forward ecstatically to Liszt's coming visit as the real life and healing his nerves require, says that S.'s negative judgment of the Ring poem only confirms his own expectations of mere litterateurs, and asks Liszt again not to mistake his cries of pain over Germany for any reproach against him.
April 24, 1853	Richard Wagner	Robert Franz	Zurich	348	Wagner tells Robert Franz that Franz's songs have renewed his longing for a visit because they reveal the essential thing in art: the individual human being behind the work. Rather than technical criticism, Wagner wants to know the man who made the songs, saying they have broken his loneliness and given him the fresh living impression he could not find in local society or literature.
April 26, 1853*	Franz Liszt	Richard Wagner	—	163	Liszt greets the Kroll theatre Tannhauser plan with approval, saying that Schoneck's goodwill and musical intelligence give the undertaking a favorable turn. He tells Wagner he will not discourage the project, provided the roles can be tolerably cast, and says he has written Schoneck himself to encourage him and advise prudent handling.
April 29, 1853*	Richard Wagner	Mathilde Wesendonck	Zurich	44	No summary available.
April 1, 1854	Richard Wagner	Hans von Bülow	Zurich	163	Wagner tells Hans von Bülow that the orchestration of Das Rheingold is half finished in pencil and that he will send the fair copy in sections so Bülow can quickly make a piano arrangement for private demonstration. He reports uncertainty around a delayed musical festival and Joachim's attendance, vents about Zurich, and says he survives by retreating into work, scenery, and the company of a dear lady.
April 4, 1854	Franz Liszt	Richard Wagner	Gotha	419	Liszt tells Wagner that his own affairs are troubled and prevent him from offering immediate financial help, but he reports an important Berlin conversation with von Hulsen about possible performances of Tannhauser and Lohengrin. He urges Wagner not to weaken his previous position, asks how the matter stands, and warns him about a rumored Konigsberg production of Tannhauser in Berlin.
April 9, 1854	Richard Wagner	Franz Liszt	Zurich	1,099	Wagner asks Liszt to veto any Berlin performance by the Konigsberg troupe and to act as his sole representative with von Hulsen, insisting that all negotiations over his operas in Berlin must pass through Liszt. He also seeks Liszt's help in pressing Dingelstedt for a substantial Munich payment for Tannhauser, reflects tenderly on Liszt's domestic troubles, and reports progress on orchestrating Das Rheingold.
April 9, 1854	Richard Wagner	Franz Liszt	Zurich	137	Wagner tells Liszt that a fully understanding woman's soul would make worldly distractions and recent frippery unnecessary, revealing the emotional despair beneath them. He reports that the orchestration of Das Rheingold has reached Nibelheim and should be finished in May, though the pencil draft is illegible and Die Walküre must begin in June.
April 17, 1854*	Richard Wagner	Franz Liszt	—	99	In this brief note Wagner asks whether a letter from him to the King of Saxony, forwarded confidentially through the Grand Duke of Weimar, might help secure relief or amnesty. He says something must be attempted so he can escape his ordinary condition from time to time, and he anxiously asks after Liszt.
April 24, 1854*	Franz Liszt	Richard Wagner	—	521	Liszt writes from bed with illness, says he has already pressed Dingelstedt to answer Wagner directly and hopes Munich will deal honorably with him, and reports successful Weimar performances of Lohengrin and Tannhauser. Responding to Wagner's distress, he agrees to try once more for Saxon clemency, asks Wagner to send an open letter for the King, continues searching for a competent copyist for the Nibelungen, and reassures him about his own health.
April 5, 1855	Richard Wagner	Franz Liszt	London	151	Wagner tells Liszt that Klindworth has played Liszt's great Sonata for him in London, and that the work's beauty, nobility, and depth made him forget his misery there. He praises Klindworth as the rare pianist worthy to introduce such a work to him and longs for Liszt's physical presence so they might live beautifully together.
April 5, 1855	Richard Wagner	Otto Wesendonck	London	455	Wagner tells Wesendonck that any London applause for his music means little to him because he finds the public indiscriminate, the press corrupt, and English concert and oratorio culture dominated by conventions he despises, especially the Mendelssohn cult. London has also damaged his creative memory for Die Walküre: he has only laboriously finished Act I, hopes to complete Act II there, and regrets leaving Zurich because Act III and Young Siegfried must wait for Seelisberg.
April 16, 1855*	Franz Liszt	Richard Wagner	—	1,105	Wagner apologizes for having settled the Berlin affair too abruptly, explains that sheer financial pressure forced him to surrender Tannhauser without conditions, and wonders whether a direct appeal to the King might still secure Liszt's desired role in Berlin. He then describes London as a false and exhausting environment that keeps him from his real work, complains of journalists and inadequate rehearsals, and says that only finishing Die Walkure and seeing Liszt again gives him any real hope.
April 25, 1855*	Richard Wagner	Franz Liszt	—	161	Wagner tells Liszt that Klindworth has just played the new sonata to him and that the work moved him profoundly, making him forget the miseries of London for a time. He praises both the sonata's beauty and Klindworth's worthy performance, and longs for Liszt himself to be physically present so that they might sustain life together.
April 30, 1855	Richard Wagner	Mathilde Wesendonck	London	190	Wagner tries to cheer the ill Mathilde Wesendonck by recommending Adolf Holtzmann's Indian Sagas, especially Savitri and Usinar, whose ancient Eastern humanity he finds superior to modern culture, and says he reads Dante each morning in London. He is slowly working through Act II of Die Walküre, with Dante's Inferno accompanying Wotan's coming anguish, and says London has convinced him to withdraw from public concert conducting for years.
April 5, 1856	Richard Wagner	Breitkopf and Härtel	Zurich	401	Writing to Breitkopf and Härtel, Wagner proposes publishing the collected theoretical writings of his late friend Theodor Uhlig as both an act of friendship and a contribution to musical science. He especially praises Uhlig's unpublished treatise on motif formation, promises to exclude polemical material and add a restrained foreword, and asks for a generous honorarium for Uhlig's widow.
April 13, 1856	Richard Wagner	Franz Liszt	Zurich	815	Writing to Liszt, Wagner announces his decision to seek a pardon from the King of Saxony and asks Liszt to intercede personally, preferably through an audience arranged by the Grand Duke of Weimar. He proposes presenting his revolutionary conduct as the excess of an artist's temperament, promises to avoid future political involvement or provocative writings, and stresses that his return to Germany would be devoted solely to art.
April 18, 1856*	Richard Wagner	Franz Liszt	—	911	Wagner says Liszt's explanation of his finances has caused him shame and pain, and he retracts the personal aspect of his request while proposing instead that any money Liszt can place at his disposal be treated as payment for copied scores and piano arrangements of the Ring, which would then become Liszt's property. He reports that he has completed the last act of Die Walkure, calls it perhaps the best thing he has written, asks urgently for longer letters and perhaps even a short visit, and drifts into new dreams of travel, Rome, and Berlioz.
April 18, 1856*	Richard Wagner	Otto Wesendonck	Zurich	40	No summary available.
April 28, 1856	Richard Wagner	Anton Pusinelli	Zurich	405	Writing to Anton Pusinelli, Wagner laments the failure to secure ceded publishing royalties after Meser's death and fears renewed lawsuits over debts tied to his only guaranteed property. He describes dependence on friends, worsening health, and the need for quiet to finish the Ring, while imagining a future Zurich stage festival in a temporary theatre if the work is completed.
April 1, 1857	Richard Wagner	Albert Niemann	Zurich	273	Writing to Albert Niemann, Wagner thanks him for encouraging assurances and says he hopes they belong together artistically, asking whether Niemann can visit in summer and study the Nibelung poem. He urges discretion after premature press reports, explains that Zurich is unlikely for the production because of cost, and suggests that Weimar may support a specially built temporary theatre if he can return to Germany.
April 10, 1857	Richard Wagner	Mathilde Wesendonck	Zurich	161	No summary available.
April 15, 1857	Richard Wagner	Franz Liszt	Zurich	247	Wagner complains that a letter of his about Liszt was printed inaccurately and with damaging omissions in the journal, so he has sent a corrected version elsewhere rather than rely on errata. He insists that any alteration of his meaning would be a serious misunderstanding, and says he continues to live in great retirement and work only as far as his health allows.
April 15, 1857*	Richard Wagner	Mathilde Wesendonck	Zurich	30	No summary available.
April 19, 1857	Franz Liszt	Richard Wagner	—	511	Liszt thanks Wagner warmly for his Easter letter, saying Wagner's sympathy and praise of his music brought him deep joy and reassurance after years of doubt and mixed reactions from other friends and musicians. He adds that illness has burdened the household at Altenburg, but he still writes with hope and affection, promising to discuss the unresolved Hartel matter in more detail soon.
April 28, 1857	Franz Liszt	Richard Wagner	Weimar	708	Liszt reports that another Weimar performance of Lohengrin moved him profoundly and gives Wagner a candid assessment of the singers, praising some performances while doubting whether one soprano is suitable for future engagement. He also raises practical matters, asking about a score of The Flying Dutchman for Hanover and urging Wagner to write courteously to Hartel so the Nibelungen publication negotiations can be revived on the publisher's original terms.
April 4, 1858	Richard Wagner	Mathilde Wesendonck	Zurich	79	No summary available.
April 5, 1858	Richard Wagner	Breitkopf and Härtel	Zurich	213	Writing to Breitkopf and Härtel, Wagner revives the question of publishing his revised Gluck Iphigenia in Aulis, noting its Hanover success, Viennese interest, his reorchestration, and Bülow's nearly finished piano arrangement. He offers the firm first refusal out of preference and courtesy, while acknowledging they may hesitate to take on another Wagner publishing venture.
April 5, 1858*	Richard Wagner	Mathilde Wesendonck	Zurich	29	No summary available.
No letters found.

Page 1 of 2