In a letter addressed to Otto Wesendonck, written in 1882 after his return from summering in the Salzkammergut, Meingast announces his vision for a new form of musical theater, the Nichtvölligaberfastgesamtkunstwerk (the ‘ever-so-slightly-less-than-complete-artwork’). He writes: “In Wagner the leveling tendency consumes itself. How he oppresses [schlägt nieder] the bassoon! In halting the flywheel one becomes part […]
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“The fate of all transcendental arguments is abject failure. This is because the world is made possible by the individual himself. When one reflects, one separates oneself from oneself, and can no longer find oneself in the world, through reflection, as the condition for its possibility. Man chases after himself but will never catch up […]
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To roast the suckling pig alone, stoking the fire with an iron recast from discarded, dull and dented tools, is the nadir of one’s life. But to roast it with others, with the same tool, is the greatest joy. (section 5) One should take care not to inadvertently spread welcome too broadly. The addition of […]
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