“Wagner's music is better than it sounds.”
Mark Twain (1835–1910) American author and humorist
Actually by Bill Nye, possibly confused due to Nye quoting Twain in More Tramps Abroad, 1897. (See also autobiography, vol. 1, p. 288.)
Misattributed
“Wagner exploited all forms of expression at a composer's disposal -- harmony, dynamics, orchestration -- to the extreme. His music is highly emotional, and at the same time Wagner has extraordinary control over the effect he achieves. That's why there is also something manipulative about Wagner's music, which is not to say that it's not honest. In fact, I believe that it's totally honest, but it also happens to be manipulative.”
SPIEGEL Interview with Daniel Barenboim
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Daniel Barenboim9
Israeli Argentine-born pianist and conductor 1942Related quotes
Hans Frank (1900–1946) German war criminal
To Leon Goldensohn, February 12, 1946, from "The Nuremberg Interviews" by Leon Goldensohn, Robert Gellately - History - 2004
Francesco Balilla Pratella (1880–1955) Italian composer
Original text:
Tutti gli innovatori sono stati logicamente futuristi, in relazione ai loro tempi. Palestrina avrebbe giudicato pazzo Bach, e così Bach avrebbe giudicato Beethoven, e così Beethoven avrebbe giudicato Wagner.
Rossini si vantava di aver finalmente capito la musica di Wagner leggendola a rovescio! Verdi, dopo un’audizione dell’ouverture del Tannhäuser, in una lettera a un suo amico chiamava Wagner matto.
Siamo dunque alla finestra di un manicomio glorioso, mentre dichiariamo, senza esitare, che il contrappunto e la fuga, ancor oggi considerati come il ramo più importante dell’insegnamento musicale...
Source: Technical Manifesto of Futurist Music (1911), p. 80
“The late Bill Nye once said "I have been told that Wagner's music is better than it sounds."”
Mark Twain (1835–1910) American author and humorist
Source: Autobiography of Mark Twain, Volume 1 (2010), p. 288
Charles Rosen (1927–2012) American pianist and writer on music
Source: Piano Notes: The World of the Pianist (2002), Ch. 1 Body and Mind
Joe Jackson (1887–1951) American baseball player
This is the Truth! (1949)
Context: They say I was the greatest natural hitter of all time. Well that's saying a lot with hitters like Wagner, Cobb, Speaker and Ruth around. I had good eyes and I guess that was the reason I hit as well as I did. I still don't use glasses today.
