Richard Wagner, On the Destiny of Opera: An Academic Lecture by Richard Wagner, translated and annotated by Roger Allen

The preparation of what follows required the author to return to a subject he thought he had dealt with exhaustively many years ago in his earlier book ‘Opera and Drama’. This present explanation must necessarily be brief. The main idea is therefore presented only in outline, and whoever would take the issues raised further should consult the earlier work. Anyone who does so will notice absolute consistency between the former and presently more concise treatment of the subject matter: that is the importance given by the author to the concept of the musically conceived drama [musikalisch konzipierten Drama]. This more recent consideration, however, offers some new perspectives which readers familiar with the earlier treatise may find of interest.