I play them really with delight, and God knows that
I can't say as much of many things. To speak frankly and freely,
it is absolutely only Chopin's compositions and yours that have a
powerful interest for me.
The rest do not deserve the honor of being mentioned...at least,
with a few exceptions, - to be conciliatory, like Eusebius.
In six weeks to two months I shall send you my twelve Studies and
a half-dozen of "Fantasiestucke" ("Impressions et Poemes") - I
consider them less bad than others of my making. I shall be happy
to think that they do not displease you.
May I confess to you that I was not very much struck with
Henselt's Studies, and that I found them not up to their
reputation? I don't know whether you share my opinion, but they
appear to me, on the whole, very careless. They are pretty to
listen to, they are very pretty to look at, the effect is
excellent, the edition (thanks to our friend Hofmeister) is most
carefully done; but, all counted, I question whether H. is
anything but a distinguished mediocrity. [How highly Liszt
thought, later on, of Henselt's Concerto and other of his
compositions is well known, and is spoken of in a subsequent
letter to Baroness Wrangel, in May, 1883.] For the rest, he is
very young, and will doubtless develop.
