Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Acknowledgements
- List of abbreviations
- Introduction
- 1 Crosscurrents in early nineteenth-century criticism
- 2 The rise of the specialist press from 1827
- 3 Early music
- 4 The Austro-German tradition I: The reception of Gluck, Haydn and Mozart
- 5 The Austro-German tradition II: The reception of Beethoven
- 6 The Austro-German tradition III: Weber, Schubert and Mendelssohn
- 7 Contemporary music I: Piano music
- 8 Contemporary music II: Chamber and symphonic music
- 9 Contemporary music III: Opera
- 10 Contemporary music IV: The music of the future
- 11 Contemporary music V: Berlioz
- Conclusion
- Appendix 1 Principal contributors to the Gazette
- Appendix 2 Personalia
- Appendix 3 Contes, nouvelles, dialogues and other short literature in Schlesinger's Gazette musicale, 1834–46
- Appendix 4 Publishing history of the Gazette
- Appendix 5 Pseudonyms and attributions
- Bibliography
- Index of musical works cited
- General index
10 - Contemporary music IV: The music of the future
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 22 September 2009
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Acknowledgements
- List of abbreviations
- Introduction
- 1 Crosscurrents in early nineteenth-century criticism
- 2 The rise of the specialist press from 1827
- 3 Early music
- 4 The Austro-German tradition I: The reception of Gluck, Haydn and Mozart
- 5 The Austro-German tradition II: The reception of Beethoven
- 6 The Austro-German tradition III: Weber, Schubert and Mendelssohn
- 7 Contemporary music I: Piano music
- 8 Contemporary music II: Chamber and symphonic music
- 9 Contemporary music III: Opera
- 10 Contemporary music IV: The music of the future
- 11 Contemporary music V: Berlioz
- Conclusion
- Appendix 1 Principal contributors to the Gazette
- Appendix 2 Personalia
- Appendix 3 Contes, nouvelles, dialogues and other short literature in Schlesinger's Gazette musicale, 1834–46
- Appendix 4 Publishing history of the Gazette
- Appendix 5 Pseudonyms and attributions
- Bibliography
- Index of musical works cited
- General index
Summary
In 1852, Fétis wrote what turned out to be his most influential article for the Gazette. Entitled 'Richard Wagner – sa vie, son système de rénovation de l'opéra, ses oeuvres comme poète et comme musicien, son parti en Allemagne, appréciation de la valeur de ses idées' (RGM XIX/ 23–32: 6 Jun. – 8 Aug. 1852), it set the tone of the journal's subsequent criticism not only of Wagner but of Liszt and, for a period, Schumann. Georges Servières attacked Fétis for so poisoning the composer's reputation in France:
This study is extremely important, firstly as an exposition, but particularly due to its influence on later judgements made in the press and by artists. Although he did not invent the legend of the music of the future, in this series of articles (which Baudelaire called an indigestible and abominable pamphlet), Fétis put about all the ideas on Wagner which were most likely to frighten off those who admired Auber and Halévy. With great skill, he highlighted those elements of the composer's style which are furthest removed from the formal conventions of French opera, and through perfidious quotations … succeeded in arousing routine's innate distrust of innovative theories.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Music Criticism in Nineteenth-Century FranceLa Revue et gazette musicale de Paris 1834–80, pp. 206 - 218Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 1995