"If an intimacy, an uninterrupted friendship, of close upon half a century during which early associations, ambitions, failures, successes, and their results were frankly discussed, entitles one to speak with authority on Richard Wagner, the man, the artist, his mental workings, and the doctrine he strove to preach, then am I fully entitled so to speak of my late friend." Ferdinand PraegerLondon, 15th June 1885

The German composer, performer and critic Ferdinand Praeger (1815-91) moved to London in 1834, and served as the London correspondent of the Neue Zeitschrift fur Musik from 1842. A lifelong devotee of Wagner, he helped engage the composer to conduct eight concerts at the Philharmonic Society in 1855. His enthusiasm for Wagner led to the publication of this work in English in 1892, although it was soon claimed that he had greatly overplayed his role in the composer's career. There were accusations of invented stories, distorted facts and altered letters, subsequently supported by evidence...