He carried this so far that he claimed that he understood nothing in the prelude to _Tristan_, which was certainly a sincere claim since, almost simultaneously, he hailed the overture of _Lohengrin_, which is conceived in an entirely different manner, as a masterpiece.

He did not admit that the voice should be sacrificed and relegated to the rank of a simple unit of the orchestra.

Wagner, for his part, showed at his best an elegance and artistry of pen which may be searched for in vain in Berlioz's work.

Berlioz opened to the orchestra the doors of a new world.

Wagner hurled himself into this unknown country and found numerous lands to till there.