Ausgabe 2012/3
Richa d Wagne , Louis de
Fou caud, and a Pa h o F ench
Ope a in he 1880s.
Ma ie-Hélène Benoi -O is (Chapel Hill, No h Ca olina)
ACT – Zei sch i ü Musik & Pe o mance, Ausgabe 2012/3
Ma ie-Hélène Benoi -O is: Richa d Wagne , Louis de Fou caud, and a Pa h o F ench Ope a in he 1880s.
2
Abs ac .
In a much-quo ed in e iew wi h Richa d Wagne conduc ed by he
F ench c i ic Louis de Fou caud in 1879, and published in di e en
e sions in 1880, 1884, and 1886, he compose allegedly ad ised he
F ench o w i e ope as d awing on hei own legenda y sou ces.
Con empo a y wo ks such as d’Indy’s Fe aal, Chausson’s Le Roi
A hus, and Massene ’s Escla monde sugges ha Fou caud’s in e -
iew did indeed ha e a p o ound impac on he Wagne ian mo emen
in F ance. Howe e , a close examina ion o he sou ces e eals ha
his ex owes much less o Wagne han schola s ha e p e iously
assumed: in ac , e idence sugges s ha he mos impo an pa o
he in e iew ( ha is, he ad ice o F ench compose s) was added by
Fou caud himsel a e Wagne ’s dea h.
Zusammen assung.
1879 üh e de anzösische Musikk i ike Louis de Fou caud ein
In e iew mi Richa d Wagne , das e dann 1880, 1884 und 1886 in
e schiedenen Ve sionen e ö en lich e. In diesem iel zi ie en
In e iew soll Wagne den anzösischen Komponis en ge a en haben,
Ope n au de G undlage ih e na ionalen Legenden zu scha en.
Zei genössische We ke wie d’Indys Fe aal, Chaussons Le Roi A hus
und Massene s Escla monde weisen da au hin, dass Fou cauds In e -
iew einen ie en Ein luss au den anzösischen Wagne ismus ausüb e.
Eine nähe e Un e suchung de Quellen zeig jedoch, dass de Inhal
dieses Tex es wenige on Wagne s amm , als Musikwissenscha le
bishe e mu e en; dokumen a ische Belege weisen da au hin, dass
de wich igs e Teil des In e iews (d.h. die Ra schläge an die anzösi-
schen Komponis en) nach Wagne s Tod on Fou caud selbs hinzuge-
üg wu de.
Ma ie-Hélène Benoi -O is, “Richa d Wagne , Louis deFou caud, and a Pa h o
F ench Ope a in he 1880s,” in: ACT – Zei sch i ü Musik & Pe o mance 3
(2012), no. 3.
www.ac .uni-bay eu h.de
ACT – Zei sch i ü Musik & Pe o mance, Ausgabe 2012/3
Ma ie-Hélène Benoi -O is: Richa d Wagne , Louis de Fou caud, and a Pa h o F ench Ope a in he 1880s.
3
Richa d Wagne , Louis de Fou caud, and a Pa h o F ench Ope a in he
1880s
A he end o Oc obe 1879, he F ench a and music c i ic Louis de Fou caud
(1851–1914),
1
a well-known Wagne ian, a eled o Bay eu h in o de o mee
Richa d Wagne .
2
Fi e yea s la e , in 1884, he published an accoun o his in e iew
wi h he amous compose . In his a icle, widely ead in F ance, Wagne is quo ed
as ollows:
Le p emie souci d’un composi eu ançais décidé à s’a ache à l’o niè e doi ê e de se p ocu-
e un poème simple, humain, exp essi , e su ou , con o me au génie de sa na ionali é. […] J’ai
expliqué dans mes ou ages héo iques quelles aisons mili en pou les suje s légendai es, où
les hé os son a anchis des p essions con ingen es, des pe i esses, des l’in é ê e de la poli-
ique. Cela es di pou la F ance comme pou l’Allemagne, e pou ous les pays imaginables.
Puisez donc dans os légendes, qui son innomb ables, e d’une ichesse in inie. Lisez donc os
poèmes du moyen âge, os chansons de ges e, oi e os omans de che ale ie; ils o men le plus
pu éso de os a chi es in ellec uelles. […] Les Roland, les A hu , les che alie s de la Table
Ronde, les paladins de os anciens au eu s populai es on éminemmen la aille épique e ly-
ique e les idées qu’ils inca nen – idées de d oi , de jus ice, de loyau é, de cha i é, d’amou qui
son , au p emie che , de celles qui po en à chan e .
3
This o -ci ed in e iew ep esen s one o he key momen s in F ench Wagne ism,
4
and i had a deep impac on F ench ope a compose s a he end o he nine een h
cen u y, as we see in wo ks such as E nes Chausson’s Le Roi A hus ( o which he
compose w o e a lib e o based on he A hu ian legend), Vincen d’Indy’s Fe aal
(whose ac ion akes place in he Cé ennes, he bi hplace o he compose -lib e is ),
and Jules Massene ’s Escla monde (pa ly based on a medie al F ench no el).
5
Bu
1
Fo a b ie bio-bibliog aphy o Louis de Fou caud, see Lau e Schnappe , “Fou caud, Louis (de),” in: Dic ionnai e c i ique des
his o iens de l’a ac i s en F ance de la Ré olu ion à la P emiè e Gue e mondiale, ed. Philippe Sénéchal and Clai e Ba billon,
accessible h ough he websi e o he Ins i u na ional d’his oi e de l’a , h p://www.inha. /spip.php? ub ique347 (accessed 15 May
2009).
2
I am deeply g a e ul o Jean-Jacques Na iez, whose p o ound knowledge o he Wagne ian li e a u e helped me o comple e he
a gumen s p esen ed he e; o Knu Hol s ä e , who d ew my a en ion o an essen ial sou ce and g an ed me access o i , allowing
me o e ine my a gumen s; and o Tim Ca e , who made in aluable commen s on an ea lie d a o his ex and edi ed he inal
e sion.
3
Louis de Fou caud, “Richa d Wagne e l’opé a ançais,” in: Bay eu he Fes blä e in Wo und Bild: Gesammel e Bei äge
deu sche , anzösische , belgische , schweize ische , spanische , englische , ame ikanische und i alienische Sch i s elle und
Küns le mi Facsimiles aus den O iginal-Pa i u en Richa d Wagne s, ed. Cen al-Lei ung des Allgemeinen Richa d Wagne -
Ve eins, Munich 1884, p. 42 . He ea e ci ed as “Richa d Wagne e l’opé a ançais” (1884).
4
See, o example, S e en Huebne , F ench Ope a a he Fin de Siècle: Wagne ism, Na ionalism, and S yle, Ox o d 1999, p. 78
and p. 321 ; Cécile Leblanc, Wagné isme e c éa ion en F ance, 1883–1889, Pa is 2005, p. 355 ; Jean-Jacques Na iez, “L’uni e s
wagné ien e les wagné ismes,” in: Musiques: Encyclopédie pou le 21e siècle 4: His oi es des musiques eu opéennes, unde he
di ec ion o Jean-Jacques Na iez, A les 2006, p. 1242 ; F ançois de Médicis, “T is an dans La Me : Le c épuscule wagné ien noyé
dans le zéni h debussys e?” in: Ac a musicologica 79 (2007), p. 228. The in e iew is also men ioned (al hough no ci ed explici ly)
in Cécile Leblanc, “Le wagné isme musical en F ance,” in: Dic ionnai e encyclopédique Wagne , unde he di ec ion o Timo hée
Pica d, A les 2010, p. 751; in addi ion, wo la e e sions o Fou caud’s ex a e lis ed in he Dic ionnai e’s bibliog aphy, p. 2349.
5
See Huebne , F ench Ope a a he Fin de Siècle (see n . 4), in pa icula , p. 77 ; o mo e de ails on Le Roi A hus, see Ma ie-
Hélène Benoi -O is, E nes Chausson, “Le Roi A hus” e l’opé a wagné ien en F ance, F ank u 2012, especially pp. 52–57.
ACT – Zei sch i ü Musik & Pe o mance, Ausgabe 2012/3
Ma ie-Hélène Benoi -O is: Richa d Wagne , Louis de Fou caud, and a Pa h o F ench Ope a in he 1880s.
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i Wagne ’s ad ice o F ench compose s as epo ed by Fou caud undeniably con i-
bu ed o he e olu ion o he Wagne ian mo emen in F ance, se e al pieces o
e idence ha ha e been neglec ed un il now aise se ious doub s abou i s au hen-
ici y. Did Wagne eally say wha Fou caud w o e in 1884? Tha is he ques ion I
will add ess in his a icle.
Some bibliog aphical p oblems
The s a ing poin o my in es iga ion was a simple obse a ion: as a as I know, all
ecen books and a icles ha ci e, men ion o commen upon Fou caud’s in e iew
wi h Wagne use indi ec , incomple e o e en inaccu a e e e ences ha seldom
allow he eade o ead he o iginal ex . This con usion p omp ed some ca e ul
bibliog aphical esea ch.
I appea s ha all he au ho s o he pas decade o so who men ion Fou caud’s
in e iew wi h Wagne quo e i by way o wo sou ces, each o which is highly
p oblema ic, albei o di e en easons: he book Richa d Wagne : Vues su la
F ance, edi ed by Gus a e Samazeuilh in 1943,
6
and he i s olume o Léon Vallas’
biog aphy o Vincen d’Indy, which appea ed in 1946.
7
Bo h ex s place g ea impo -
ance on he in e iew, and a i s glance bo h seem o be us wo hy i s hand
sou ces. Bu a close examina ion e eals ha hey mus be ea ed wi h cau ion.
Samazeuilh’s Richa d Wagne : Vues su la F ance is a collec ion o essays on he
gene al subjec “Wagne and F ance;” i includes w i ings by Wagne himsel abou
his expe iences in F ance, as well as a icles by la e nine een h-cen u y F ench
au ho s who, o he mos pa , s ongly a o ed Wagne ’s wo ks. In such a con ex ,
i comes as no su p ise ha Samazeuilh decided o include in his olume a ep in
o Fou caud’s in e iew wi h Wagne as i appea ed in 1884. The ep in would be
lawless, we e i no p eceded by he ollowing: “Publié en 1886, pa les Feuilles de
Bay eu h e ep odui agmen ai emen pa le Ménes el.”
8
Bo h o hese s a e-
men s a e misleading: Fou caud’s in e iew wi h Wagne appea ed nei he in he
Bay eu he Blä e , he mon hly jou nal ounded by Hans on Wolzogen o he
bene i o isi o s o he Bay eu he Fes spiele, no in Le Ménes el, a weekly
b ough ou by he Pa isian publishe Heugel. In ac , i appea ed in a special
olume en i led Bay eu he Fes blä e in Wo und Bild, published in 1884 and
eissued in 1886, which has no hing o do wi h he Bay eu he Blä e , despi e he
simila i y o he i les; i was hen pa ially ep in ed in Le Gaulois. Appa en ly,
Samazeuilh con used wo pe iodicals, gene a ing a double bibliog aphical e o .
Léon Vallas’ biog aphy o Vincen d’Indy, published in wo olumes in 1946 and
1950, p esen s a mo e sub le and complex p oblem. He e, we ind bibliog aphical
6
Richa d Wagne : Vues su la F ance, ed. Gus a e Samazeuilh, Pa is 1943.
7
Léon Vallas, Vincen d’Indy, 2 ols., Pa is 1946–50.
8
Fou caud, “Richa d Wagne e l’opé a ançais,” in: Samazeuilh, Richa d Wagne (see n . 6), p. 54.
ACT – Zei sch i ü Musik & Pe o mance, Ausgabe 2012/3
Ma ie-Hélène Benoi -O is: Richa d Wagne , Louis de Fou caud, and a Pa h o F ench Ope a in he 1880s.
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in o ma ion abou Fou caud’s in e iew wi h Wagne ha is almos comple e and
accu a e. Vallas desc ibes he publica ion his o y o Fou caud’s in e iew wi h
Wagne in he ollowing e ms:
Louis de Fou caud a ai ai imp ime une p emiè e ois le ex e dans Le Gaulois du 5 jan ie
1880. De nou eau, le 17 juin 1884, il en i publie les e mes, mais en allemand, pa les Bay eu-
he Fes blä e […]; une nou elle ois il les edi en ançais dans un a icle, La Re anche de
Wagne […], publié pa Le Gaulois du 13 jan ie 1886.
9
Vallas seems o be con using he Bay eu he Blä e wi h he Bay eu he Fes blä -
e , as Samazeuilh did be o e him; he p ecise publica ion da e he indica es (17 June
1884) also gi es he imp ession ha he ea s he book as i i we e a jou nal, bu in
ac , his de ail simply shows ha he consul ed he 1886 e-edi ion o he Bay eu-
he Fes blä e ins ead o he i s edi ion o 1884.
10
Fu he mo e, Vallas w ongly
assumes ha Fou caud’s a icle was published in Ge man. Whe eas he Bay eu he
Blä e was a Ge man-only pe iodical, he Bay eu he Fes blä e included con i-
bu ions in F ench, Spanish, English and I alian, as indica ed in i s sub i le (Gesam-
mel e Bei äge deu sche , anzösische , belgische , schweize ische , spanische ,
englische , ame ikanische und i alienische Sch i s elle und Küns le ); in i s
pages, Fou caud’s in e iew wi h Wagne appea s in F ench.
These bibliog aphical e o s a e mino , bu hey do no cons i u e he mos p ob-
lema ic aspec o he passage ha Vallas de o es o Louis de Fou caud’s in e iew
wi h Wagne . Vallas includes a long summa y o i s con en s, in which one can ead,
o example, he ollowing:
De an l’assu ance ayonnan e du maî e allemand, Louis de Fou caud […] n’a ai guè e hési é
à lui pose des ques ions p écises: “Que e iez- ous si ous é iez composi eu ançais, commen
agi iez- ous? De quels élémen s de é o me e iez- ous usage?” Alo s des lè es de Wagne é ai
ombé ce o acle: “[Le] p emie souci [du musicien de héâ e]? Se p ocu e un poème simple,
humain, exp essi , con o me a an ou au génie de o e na ion. De p é é ence, un suje légen-
dai e: éci s ançais, poèmes du moyen âge, chansons de ges es, omans de che ale ie. […]
Comme pe sonnages, des ypes na ionaux: les Roland, les A hus, les che alie s de la Table
Ronde, les paladins des anciens au eu s populai es; ces hé os, inca na ions admi ables du d oi ,
de la jus ice, de la loyau é, de la cha i é, ils on éminemmen la aille épique e ly ique .”
Wagne a ai conclu: “Su un poème aimen ançais, si ous ne ous inspi ez que de la é i é
des mœu s, ous e ez de la musique aimen ançaise. […] Ayez des d ames simples e subs-
an iels, semblables à de g ands ableaux in é essan les hommes de o e musique e leu pa -
lan d’eux-mêmes; animez-les d’une musique que ous i e ez, non de o e mémoi e, mais de
9
Vallas, Vincen d’Indy, I (see n . 7), p. 294.
10
In his e sion, which is o he wise ex emely simila o he o iginal 1884 edi ion, Fou caud’s a icle is signed in his handw i ing
and da ed “17 juin 1884.” See Fou caud, “Richa d Wagne e l’opé a ançais” (see n . 3), p. 42 . He ea e ci ed as “Richa d Wagne
e l’opé a ançais” (1886).

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Ma ie-Hélène Benoi -O is: Richa d Wagne , Louis de Fou caud, and a Pa h o F ench Ope a in he 1880s.
6
o e in elligence des si ua ions, de l’âme de os hé os, des é énemen s de o e able, e ous
e ez pou la F ance ce que j’ai ai .”
11
Al hough his passage undoub edly co esponds o he spi i o Fou caud’s in e iew
wi h Wagne , i does no co espond o he le e , o despi e Vallas’ use o quo a ion
ma ks, he p esen s any hing bu exac quo a ions. In ac , Vallas eely summa ized
and eph ased he e sions o Fou caud’s ex ha appea ed in he 1884 and 1886
Bay eu he Fes blä e and in he Janua y 1886 issue o Le Gaulois.
12
The genealogy o an in e iew
I u ns ou ha he h ee e sions o he in e iew men ioned by Vallas a e no
iden ical. This de ail has gone unno iced un il now, bu once pu in o con ex , i
becomes a ma e o majo impo ance.
Vallas gi es h ee bibliog aphical e e ences o he in e iew: an a icle ha
appea ed in Le Gaulois on 5 Janua y 1880,
13
he Bay eu he Fes blä e a icle o
1884 ( eissued in 1886),
14
and ano he a icle in Le Gaulois ha was published on
13 Janua y 1886.
15
I we a e o belie e Vallas, hese a e h ee ep in s o he same
ex , bu he eali y is a li le mo e complex.
The p ima y e sion o he in e iew (a leas om he s andpoin o Wagne ’s
ad ice o F ench compose s) is he ex published o he i s ime in 1884 in he
Bay eu he Fes blä e in Wo und Bild. This is he e sion ep in ed by Sama-
zeuilh in 1943; i also o ms he co e o Fou caud’s 1886 a icle, “La e anche de
Wagne .” The la e was w i en in he con ex o he li ely con o e sy su ounding
a pe o mance o Loheng in planned by he Opé a-Comique o 1886 (a pe o -
mance ha ul ima ely did no ake place p ecisely because o ha con o e sy).
16
In
his a emp o de end Wagne agains he e ancha d accusa ions he aced by
F ench pa io s who had no o go en he humilia ions o he F anco-P ussian wa
o 1870–71, Fou caud used exce p s om his 1884 in e iew in o de o show ha
he compose was, in ac , highly suppo i e o F ench a .
17
His i s and las lines
make he poin clea :
11
Vallas, Vincen d’Indy, I (see n . 7), p. 293 .
12
Vallas’ modi ied quo a ions a e also ound in some ecen publica ions ha ci e Fou caud’s in e iew h ough Vallas’ book. See,
o example, Leblanc, Wagné isme e c éa ion en F ance (see n . 4), p. 355; he au ho does no men ion Vallas; ne e heless, she
akes up he whole con en o he passage he de o es o Fou caud’s in e iew wi h Wagne . A simila case can be ound in he
w i ings o Vincen d’Indy, edi ed by Ma ie d’Indy and published unde he i le Ma ie (see below). He e, Ma ie d’Indy quo es
Fou caud’s in e iew wi h Wagne as pa aph ased by Vallas in o de o suppo he hesis ha Wagne made simila ema ks o
d’Indy; un o una ely, Wagne ’s p ecise wo ds o d’Indy a e no documen ed. See Vincen d’Indy, Ma ie: Jou nal de jeunesse.
Co espondance amiliale e in ime (1851–1931). Choix, p ésen a ion e anno a ions de Ma ie d’Indy, Pa is 2001, p. 360.
13
Fou caud, “Richa d Wagne ,” Le Gaulois, 5 Janua y 1880.
14
Fou caud, “Richa d Wagne e l’opé a ançais” (1884 and 1886, see n s. 3 and 10).
15
Fou caud, “La e anche de Wagne ,” Le Gaulois, 13 Janua y 1886.
16
See, o ins ance, Huebne , F ench Ope a a he Fin de Siècle (see n . 4), p. 16 .
17
The publica ion o his a icle, in which Fou caud ails igo ously agains he an i-Wagne ians, ga e way o an open exchange o
le e s wi h he an i-Wagne ian Julie e Adam; hese le e s, which appea ed in Le Figa o and Le Gaulois, illus a e he poli ical
s akes o he deba e. See Julie e Adam, “La ques ion Wagne ,” Le Figa o, 15 Janua y 1886, and Fou caud, “La ques ion de Lohen-
g in,” Le Gaulois, 16 Janua y 1886.
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Ma ie-Hélène Benoi -O is: Richa d Wagne , Louis de Fou caud, and a Pa h o F ench Ope a in he 1880s.
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Je eux aujou d’hui […] esquisse les idées du maî e à l’end oi de la musique ançaise. […]
[J]e p ie nos lec eu s de juge si l’homme qui pa lai ainsi che chai , éellemen , à nous impose
ses o mules. Nous a ons o à gagne à médi e ses enseignemen s, e je me e use à c oi e que
no e digni é na ionale soi in é essée à ce que nous epoussions ses che s-d’œu e.
18
He e, Fou caud openly asse s a poli ical agenda, which was al eady p esen
(al hough in la en o m) in he Bay eu he Fes blä e e sion o his in e iew: his
goal is o econcile he F ench o Wagne by showing ha Wagne ism and F ench
na ionalism can go hand-in-hand. This was ce ainly no ob ious o he F ench a e
he publica ion in 1873 o Wagne ’s sa i ical play Eine Kapi ula ion, ansla ed in o
F ench as ea ly as 1876,
19
in which Wagne made ligh o he su e ings o he
besieged Pa isians du ing he F anco-P ussian Wa . The play caused a scandal in
F ance, as well as a pa icula ly in ense wa e o an i-Wagne ism.
F om he i s Bay eu he Fes blä e edi ion in 1884 o he a icle in Le Gaulois in
1886, Fou caud’s in en ions a e cons an , and e en i he o mula ion changes
sligh ly, he con en o his in e iew wi h Wagne emains unmodi ied.
Fou caud’s i s a icle in Le Gaulois, published on 5 Janua y 1880, is a e y
di e en ma e , howe e . This is he only epo o he in e iew ha appea ed
du ing Wagne ’s li e ime, and i does no con ain a single wo d o he ad ice ha he
compose pu po edly ga e o F ench ope a compose s. Wha , hen, is his i s
e sion o he in e iew abou ? Fou caud i s explains he ci cums ances o his ip
o Bay eu h, ob iously o jus i y his isi o he con o e sial au ho o Eine
Kapi ula ion o his coun ymen (a ecu ing p eoccupa ion in Fou caud’s w i ings
on Wagne in he 1870s and 1880s).
20
Then ollows a de ailed and en husias ic
desc ip ion o Wahn ied and o Wagne himsel , as well as a b ie biog aphy o he
compose ha ocuses on his Pa isian yea s. All o his akes up wo o he h ee
columns o he a icle. The las column gi es an accoun o wha Wagne ac ually
said o Fou caud du ing he in e iew. Acco ding o Fou caud, he compose spoke
i s o Pa si al, which he was cu en ly comple ing o i s planned p emie e in
Bay eu h. Fou caud hen begins o come o a close, di ec ly quo ing a long passage
om Wagne :
18
Fou caud, “La e anche de Wagne ” (see n . 15).
19
In Oc obe 1885, Eine Kapi ula ion was also b ie ly p esen ed in he Re ue wagné ienne, by an au ho who signed he ini ials
“E.D.” (p obably Edoua d Duja din). This ex , as well as an anonymous “Ch onique” ha p eceded i , was clea ly in ended o
demons a e “la pa ai e e essen ielle bonhomie” o Wagne ’s play; see “Ch onique. Richa d Wagne e les Pa isiens: Une
capi ula ion,” Re ue wagné ienne 1 (8 Oc obe 1885), p. 225 ; and Richa d Wagne , “Une capi ula ion: Comédie à la maniè e
an ique,” Re ue wagné ienne 1 (8 Oc obe 1885), p. 228–34; he quo a ion is on p. 228.
20
In an a icle published in Oc obe o 1876, Fou caud e en eigns o adop an an i-Wagne ian a gumen , p obably hoping o show
i s absu di y by exagge a ion: “Jamais nous n’au ons assez de si le s pou M. Wagne , qui es P ussien, e de son é a l’insul eu à
gages de no e pa ie!” The a icle, signed “Spec a o ” [Louis de Fou caud], was en i led “Le scandale d’hie ” and appea ed in Le
Gaulois, 31 Oc obe 1876. Acco ding o Rochebla e, Fou caud’s biog aphe , wi h his a icle Fou caud inaugu a ed “ce e au e
ca iè e spéciale de c i ique wagné ien en F ance, qu’il pou sui a con e en s e ma ées a ec une con ic ion, un sa oi , e une
au o i é qui g andi on sans cesse”, Samuel Rochebla e, Louis de Fou caud e le mou emen a is ique en F ance de 1875 à 1914,
Pa is 1926, p. 51.
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Ma ie-Hélène Benoi -O is: Richa d Wagne , Louis de Fou caud, and a Pa h o F ench Ope a in he 1880s.
8
D’ailleu s, on ne me joue a jamais communémen chez ous. Ma musique es op allemande. Je
âche d’ê e de mon pays aussi p o ondémen que je le puis. Il es dange eux de me chan e sans
mes e s: ils son le complémen indispensable de mes déclama ions mélodiques. Que n’exis e-il
à Pa is une scène in e na ionale où l’on in e p è e dans leu langue les g andes œu es célèb es
à l’é ange ?
21
Fou caud canno esis he oppo uni y o men ion he scandal caused by he
pe o mances o Tannhäuse in Pa is in 1861, again quo ing Wagne :
On me suppose des ancunes? Des ancunes! E pou quoi? Pa ce qu’on a si lé le Tannhäuse ?
Es -on bien sû de l’a oi en endu el qu’il es ? Aube le sa ai , à qui j’a ais con é mes doléances.
Que oulez- ous? Le momen n’é ai pas enu de la musique sincè e. Pou la p esse, je n’ai pas
eu à m’en plaind e au an qu’on a di : je n’ai pas ai de isi es aux jou nalis es, comme Meye -
bee ; mais Baudelai e, Champ leu y e Schu é n’en on pas moins éc i les plus belles choses qui
aien é é éc i es su mon comp e. Vous le oyez, je ne suis pas aussi mécon en qu’on l’a i me.
22
These wo passages jus quo ed a e he only ones in he 1880 e sion o he in e -
iew in which Wagne men ions F ench music – o a leas music in F ance. This is a
a c y om he in e iews published in he Bay eu he Fes blä e and Le Gaulois
in Janua y 1886, and om he ad ice o F ench compose s ha Wagne allegedly
con eyed o Fou caud. The 1880 a icle appea ed abou wo mon hs a e Fou -
caud’s encoun e wi h Wagne , a a poin when Fou caud could s ill emembe
clea ly Wagne ’s wo ds and migh ha e been anxious o ep esen he compose
ai h ully, gi en ha Wagne would ha e been able o ead he a icle since he was
s ill li ing. O cou se, hese elemen s a e no su icien in hemsel es o asse wi h a
easonable deg ee o ce ain y ha he 1880 e sion o he in e iew is he only one
ha is au hen ic. None heless, hey aise doub s abou he con en s o he la e
a icles, which, as we shall see, come in o ques ion in o he ways.
In ac , he summa y ha Fou caud ga e o his in e iew wi h Wagne in his 1880
a icle is con i med poin by poin in Cosima Wagne ’s dia ies, in which she ca e ully
no ed e e y e en o he husband’s li e. On 29 Oc obe 1879
23
, she w o e:
Abends Besuch eines M . de Fou caud, Redak eu des “Gaulois,” welche e geblich nach Mün-
chen ge eis is , um T is an und Isolde zu sehen – R. such ihm auseinande zuse zen, 1o wie e
keine Rancune gegen die F anzosen wegen des Tannhäuse ’s habe noch haben könne, 2o wie
seine We ke in F ank eich nich au zu üh en seien, und wie die F anzosen, um sie kennenzule -
21
Fou caud, “Richa d Wagne ” (see n . 13).
22
Fou caud, “Richa d Wagne ” (see n . 13).
23
Acco ding o Cosima Wagne ’s dia ies, Fou caud’s isi o Wagne ook place on 29 and 30 Oc obe 1879, and no on 26 and 27
Oc obe o ha yea , as Fou caud has i (“Richa d Wagne e l’opé a ançais” [1884 and 1886, see n s. 3 and 10], p. 42), as does
Vallas (Vincen d’Indy, I [see n . 7], p. 292) and Rochebla e (Louis de Fou caud e le mou emen a is ique en F ance [see n . 20],
p. 276).
ACT – Zei sch i ü Musik & Pe o mance, Ausgabe 2012/3
Ma ie-Hélène Benoi -O is: Richa d Wagne , Louis de Fou caud, and a Pa h o F ench Ope a in he 1880s.
9
nen, nach Deu schland wohl kommen müß en. R. spiel das Vo spiel zu Pa si al.
24
We ind he e all h ee elemen s ha a e men ioned in he las column o Fou caud’s
1880 a icle: Pa si al, Wagne ’s music in F ance, and he Tannhäuse scandal in
1861. O cou se, we canno exclude he possibili y ha Cosima, o one eason o
ano he , missed pa o he con e sa ion be ween Fou caud and Wagne ; bu his
pe ec co espondence be ween wo accoun s w i en independen o one ano he
implies a high p obabili y ha bo h a e accu a e.
Cosima’s dia ies also supply addi ional in o ma ion on Fou caud’s encoun e wi h
Wagne . We lea n, o example, ha he e was no one in e iew, bu wo: Fou caud
came o Wahn ied again he ollowing day, a e he con e sa ion on Pa si al and
Wagne ’s music in F ance. On 30 Oc obe 1879, Cosima w o e: “Unse Gallie
komm , Abschied zu nehmen, e säum abe den Zug, bleib zu Tisch und übe -
asch du ch seine F agen, u.a.: ‘Maî e, aimez- ous Raphael?’”
25
Then, he nex day,
she eco ds: “Ges e n woll e de agende F anzose wissen, an welchem We ke R.
am meis en hing, R. sag e, e wisse es nich , e gäße sie bald, den Pa si al könn e e
ielleich nennen, weil e diesen un e den güns igs en Ums änden gesch ieben.”
26
Adap ing Wagne
All his ce ainly demons a es ha Fou caud asked Wagne many o he ques ions,
bu no ha any o hem we e ela ed o he u u e o F ench ope a. Indeed, he e is
a s ong a gumen o sugges ha he hough s on F ench ope a ha Fou caud
a ibu es o Wagne we e added by he c i ic himsel in he e sion o he in e iew
he published in he Bay eu he Fes blä e . Wagne died on 13 Feb ua y 1883 and
hus was no longe a ailable o con i m he au hen ici y o Fou caud’s ex . Fou -
caud himsel implied in his new e sion o he ex (pe haps as a o m o p e-
emp i e sel -de ense) ha he was wo king om memo y.
27
Mo eo e , Fou caud’s
“in e iew” wi h Wagne now bea s s iking esemblances o Ca ulle Mendès’ (1841–
1909) amous ic i ious dialogue be ween a young winne o he P ix de Rome and
an old Wagne ian (“Le jeune P ix de Rome e le ieux wagné is e”):
LE PRIX DE ROME. – Il au que le d ame musical soi ondé en F ance!
LE WAGNERISTE. – Ce es, il le au . Mais pa quel moyen?
LE PRIX DE ROME. – É udions l’homme nou eau! App op ions-nous son génie, sa maniè e ….
LE WAGNERISTE. – A ê ez! Si ous ou ez dans ce e pensée une seule pa i ion de Richa d Wag-
ne – û -ce Loheng in, û -ce le Vaisseau an ôme, – ous ê es pe du pou la musique an-
çaise. Dans le domaine de l’a , on n’égale qu’à la condi ion de di é e , e , en ou e, de ous les
modèles que ous pou iez ous p opose , Richa d Wagne es p écisémen le plus dange eux.
24
Cosima Wagne , Die Tagebüche , ed. Ma in G ego -Dellin and Die ich Mack, ol. II, 1878–1883, München 1977, p. 433.
25
Wagne , Die Tagebüche (see n . 24), p. 434.
26
Wagne , Die Tagebüche (see n . 24). The emphasis is Cosima Wagne ’s.
27
Fou caud w i es: “Ses discou s, ingénieux jusque-là, p i en soudain un ou si appan que chaque ph ase s’en g a a dans mon
sou eni ,” in: “Richa d Wagne e l’opé a ançais” (1884 and 1886, see n s. 3 and 10), p. 42.