Wagner, for his part, showed at his best
an elegance and artistry of pen which may be searched for in vain in
Berlioz's work. Berlioz opened to the orchestra the doors of a new
world. Wagner hurled himself into this unknown country and found
numerous lands to till there. But what dissimilarities there are in the
styles of the two men! In their methods of treating the orchestra and
the voices, in their musical architectonics, and in their conception of
opera!

In spite of the great worth of _Les Troyens_ and _Benvenuto Cellini_,
Berlioz shone brightest in the concert hall; Wagner is primarily a man
of the theater. Berlioz showed clearly in _Les Troyens_ his intention of
approaching Gluck, while Wagner freely avowed his indebtedness to Weber,
and particularly to the score of _Euryanthe_. He might have added that
he owed something to Marschner, but he never spoke of that.

The more we study the works of these two men of genius, the more we are
impressed by the tremendous difference between them. Their resemblance
is simply one of those imaginary things which the critics too often
mistake for a reality. The critics once found local color in Rossini's
_Semiramide_!

Hans de Buelow once said to me in the course of a conversation,

"After all Meyerbeer was a man of genius."

If we fail to recognize Meyerbeer's genius, we are not only unjust but
also ungrateful. In every sense, in his conception of opera, in his
treatment of orchestration, in his handling of choruses, even in stage
setting, he gave us new principles by which our modern works have
profited to a large extent.

Theophile Gautier was no musician, but he had a fine taste in music and
he judged Meyerbeer as follows:

"In addition to eminent musical talents, Meyerbeer had a highly
developed instinct for the stage. He goes to the heart of a situation,
follows closely the meanings of the words, and observes both the
historical and local color of his subject.... Few composers have
understood opera so well."

* * * * *

The success of the Italian school appeared to have utterly ruined this
understanding and care for local and historical color. Rossini in the
last act of _Otello_ and in _Guillaume Tell_ began its renaissance with
a boldness for which he deserves credit, but it was left to Meyerbeer
to restore it to its former glory.

It is impossible to deny his individuality. The amalgamation of his
Germanic tendencies with his