# Glazunov's Writings, Blog 4: ON THE DANGERS OF MUSIC



## Huilunsoittaja (Apr 6, 2010)

A humorous (but maybe also serious?) article Glazunov submitted to a magazine after he was asked to make an opinion about Richard Strauss... yep, we can see where this is going... 

_On the Dangers of Music

I can cite a few examples of the negative impact of music, but I can not help, first of all, not expressing perplexity for the following reason.
How can the public understand the work of Strauss's Elektra? We, the professionals do not understand the opera, not to mention myself; I have to say that sounds in this work Strauss reminds me of the poultry yard, some popping, restless, curious to the animal. In my opinion, it is not healthy-sounding music, although its external structure as an Opera was made not without temperament.

In 1884, I went to Bayreuth to hear Wagner's music; Before this trip, I did not understand his music, but I was gradually imbued with the spirit of his creations and, in the end, defeated. There I met very good musician J. Rubinstein, a staunch fan of Wagner; When I spoke with J. Rubinstein of Parsifal, Das Rheingold, - he was all transformed, to the enchanting inspiration and, in the end
all under the influence of Wagner's music - he shot himself.
I was told that Saint-Saens had come to him once a highly educated musician, and when he played in Siegfried the modulation of triads of E minor to C Major, the listener fainted. I myself I was present in the theater when came from Prague Troupe Neumann put on Nibelungen - and at the first performance of Wagner's creations heard the following: an excerpt from Das Rheingold begins a single chord, which lasts a few minutes. It sounded until painfully monotonous, and suddenly out of some gesture I heard cries: "Oh stuffy, stuffy, I cannot take, really, stop!" Later I learned that one of the audience fainted.

I tell you frankly that the second act of Parsifal has terribly annoying effect on me; listening to this music, I literally become delirious about it, and so far I have become scared, listening to Parsifal ... Overwhelmingly, almost oppressively acts on me Scriabin's Poem of Ecstasy._

:lol:


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