THE LETTERS OF RALPH VAUGHAN WILLIAMS

[Weber’s Hotel
Dresden]

[28 March 1898]

Dear Herr Gattoy¹

I am just writing to say that Dresden is not a Reizendes  Dörfchen²
but that there has been a good lot of Donnerwetter about today, you may be surprised to hear that we said to our waiter “wir werden ein fläsche champagner haben” to which he replied “Ah! Champagner” and brought Rothwein at 2pf the bottle which I aptly described as a “guter reiner wein”.
We can’t make out this hotel has anything to do with “Der Freischutz” but Paderewski stays here so that it has some musical reputation. They are doing “Die Neunte Symphonie” at the opera concert on Sat. & Othello on Sunday evening.

Sat. morning  – aher mood now prevails – it is still raining but we are just going off to the pictures to admire the San Sisto³ – or not as the case may be.
Yours always & affectionately

R. Vaughan Williams

 ⁴

1. sic.
2. i.e. ‘charming little village’.
3. The San Sisto Madonna by Raphael.
4.  Opening of the Piano Sonata in A minor  D845 by Schubert.