"To Franz Liszt, who towers high above all his predecessors, must be
given pride of place.
"In 1870 I had the good fortune to go with Tausig to the Beethoven
Festival held at Weimar by the Allgemeiner Musik Verein, and there I met
Liszt for the first time. I had the opportunity of learning to know him
from every point of view, as pianist, conductor, composer, and, in his
private capacity, as a man--and every aspect seemed to me equally
magnificent.
"His remarkable personality had an indescribable fascination, which made
itself felt at once by all who came into contact with him. This
wonderful magnetism and power to charm all sorts and conditions of men
was illustrated in a delightful way. He was walking down Regent Street
one day, on his way to his concert at the St. James' Hall. As he passed
the cab-rank, he was recognised, and the cabbies as one man took off
their hats and gave three rousing cheers for 'The Habby Liszt.' The man
who can evoke the enthusiasm of a London cabby, except by paying him
treble his fare, is indeed unique and inimitable!
"As a Conductor, the musical world owes him an undying debt of gratitude
for having been the first to produce Wagner's Lohengrin, and to revive
Tannhaeuser in the face of the opprobrium heaped upon this work by the
whole of the European press. It was he, too, who first produced
Berlioz's Benvenuto Cellini and many other works, which, though
neglected and improperly understood at that time, have since come into
their kingdom and received due recognition.
"As a Composer, I do not think that Liszt has hitherto been esteemed as
highly as he deserves. If only for having invented the symphonic poem,
which was an absolutely new form of orchestral composition, he has
merited the highest honours; while his pre-eminence is still undisputed
in the bravura style of pianoforte works, without one or more of which
no pianoforte recital seems complete. The same compliment is not paid
his orchestral works, which are performed far too rarely.
"Words cannot describe him as a Pianist--he was incomparable and
unapproachable."