Richard Wagner's famously difficult opera Tristan and Isolde finally had its premiere at the Munich Opera House in Bavaria after several lengthy delays and eight years after Wagner had embarked on the work. The conductor was Hans Von Bulow, with whose wife, Cosima, Wagner was currently having an affair. Husband and wife singers, Ludwig and Malvina von Carolsfeld, performed the title roles. At the time, the opera received mixed reviews. (By John Osborne)