Wagner and his Isolde . fe than if these had been the surfaceof a gently flowing river. Beloved and ad-mired by her husband, a young, happymother, she lived in the admiration of what-ever was important in art and life, and of allthat power of genius which never before hadshe beheld as now in the very act of inspira-tion and creation. The arrangements of thehouse, the wealth of its owner, made possiblethere a social intercourse, to which every oneof those who were fortunate enough to enjoyit ever will look back with delight. MATHILDE A LIVELY BEING Wagners friend, Richard Pohl, says thatthe com
Wagner and his Isolde . fe than if these had been the surfaceof a gently flowing river. Beloved and ad-mired by her husband, a young, happymother, she lived in the admiration of what-ever was important in art and life, and of allthat power of genius which never before hadshe beheld as now in the very act of inspira-tion and creation. The arrangements of thehouse, the wealth of its owner, made possiblethere a social intercourse, to which every oneof those who were fortunate enough to enjoyit ever will look back with delight. MATHILDE A LIVELY BEING Wagners friend, Richard Pohl, says thatthe composer was in daily intercourse with theWesendonks. He speaks of Mathilde as alovely being, a graceful, womanly and poeti-cally inclined nature, who exercised a mani-festly stimulating influence over the adds that compared with her, Wagnerswife Minna, who had aged rapidly, naturallywas thrown into the shade; that in Wagnerspresence Minna usually was quiet, but freelyvented her opinions when he was not about. 34. w PSSI < M USo wH TRISTAN IN REAL LIFE She could not understand why her husbandoccupied himself for years with projects forwhich there was not the slightest prospectof realisation. Upon the Nibelung pro-ject she based no hopes at all. She wouldmuch have preferred compositions whichwould have found easy acceptance every-where and have brought in money. Thatthere could be no harmony between two suchnatures was manifest at a glance, says Pohl;and he adds: That sooner or later a separa-tion would have to take place could beprophesied without difficulty. NEARING THE DANGER LINE From these characterisations it is easy todiscover why Mathilde exercised such an in-fluence upon the composer, and why he wasobliged to seek artistic sympathy outside ofhis own home. But there is always a dangerline in such a proceeding, and both he whowas seeking sympathy and she who waslavishing it upon him rapidly were nearingthat line. Wagner moved into the chalet, which hefeelingly c
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