{FEUER} The whole interest of ‘Lohengrin’ consists in an inner working within the heart of Elsa, involving every secret of the soul: the endurance of a spell of wondrous power for blessing, that fills her whole surrounding with the most persuasive sense of truth, hangs solely on her refraining from the question as to its Whence. Like a cry from the inmost want (Noth) of woman’s heart, this question struggles loose – and the spell has vanished. You may guess how singularly this tragic ‘Whence?’ concurs with that aforesaid theoretic ‘Why?’
{FEUER} I too … felt driven to this ‘Whence and Wherefore?’ and for long it banned me from the magic of my art. But my time of penance taught me to overcome the question. All doubt at last was taken from me, when I gave myself up to the ‘Tristan.’ (…) [P.331] The whole affecting Action comes about for reason only that the inmost soul demands it, and steps to light with the very shape foretokened in the inner shrine.” [686W-{9/60}Music of the Future, PW Vol. III, p. 330-331]
[687W-{9/60}Music of the Future, PW Vol. III, p. 331]
[P. 331] {FEUER} “ … in the musical setting of ‘Tristan’ not a trace of word-repetition is any longer found, but the weft of words and verses foreordains the whole dimensions of the melody, i.e. the structure of that melody is already erected by the poet.” [687W-{9/60}Music of the Future, PW Vol. III, p. 331]
[688W-{9/60}Music of the Future, PW Vol. III, p. 337]
[P. 337] {FEUER} “Not a Programme, which rather prompts the troublous question ‘Why?’ than stills it – not a Programme, then, can speak the meaning of the Symphony; no, nothing but a stage-performance of the Dramatic Action itself.” [688W-{9/60}Music of the Future, PW Vol. III, p. 337]
[689W-{9/60}Music of the Future, PW Vol. III, p. 337-338]
[P. 337] {FEUER} “ … where the Symphonist still timidly groped back to the original dance-form – never daring, even for his expression, to quite transgress the bounds which held him in communication with that form – the Poet now will cry to him: ‘Launch without a fear into the full flood of Music’s sea; hand in hand with me, you can never lose touch of the thing most seizable of all by every human being; for through me you stand on the solid ground of the Dramatic Action, and that Action, at the moment of its scenic show, is the most directly understandable of all poems. Stretch boldly out your melody, that like a ceaseless river it may pour throughout the work: in it say you what I keep silent, since you alone can say it: and silent shall I utter all, since my hand it is that guides you.’
[P. 338] {FEUER} Of a verity the poet’s greatness is mostly to be measured by what he leaves unsaid, letting us breathe in silence to ourselves the thing unspeakable; the musician it is who brings this untold mystery to clarion tongue, and the impeccable form of his sounding silence is endless melody.” [689W-{9/60}Music of the Future, PW Vol. III, p. 337-338]
[690W-{9/60}Music of the Future, PW Vol. III, p. 339]
[P. 339] {FEUER} “I have recourse to metaphor once more, to give you finally a picture of the melody I mean, the melody encompassing the whole dramatic tone piece; and for this I will keep to
