As my colleague Beth noted in her movie blog, the Library will be focusing on the life, humor and influence of Mark Twain on the American scene from May 4-19, 2008. To support this effort, I wish to share Twain's opinions and thoughts on music and opera. These and other highly opinionated comments are from the anthology The Wit & Wisdom of Mark Twain edited by Alex Ayres.
"Wagner's music is better than it sounds."
"It was new, and ought to have been rehearsed a little more. For some reason or other the queen had the composer hanged, after dinner."
"I suppose there are two kinds of music--one kind which one feels, just as an oyster might, and another sort which requires a higher faculty, a faculty which must be assisted and developed by teaching. Yet if base music gives us wings, why should we want any other?"
"I dislike the opera because I want to love it and can't."
"I have witnessed and greatly enjoyed the first act of everything which Wagner created, but the effect on me has always been so powerful that one act was quite sufficient; whenever I have witnessed two acts I have gone away physically exhausted; and whenever I have ventured an enitre opera the result has been the next thing to suicide."
"Whenever I enjoy anything in art it means that it is mighty poor. However, my base instinct does bring me profit sometimes; I was the only man out of 3,200 who got his money back on those operas."