Because, before a Beethoven symphony, Mozart's ''Don Giovanni'' or Wagner's ''Tristan and Isolde, '' all human beings are equal.

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There's a quote from Wagner's tragic "Tristan and Isolde" along the way, but in the end, Mahler's heartfelt desire wins out.

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The text, which Lang assembled, intersplices various tellings of the story of Tristan and Isolde with the flinty stories and poems of Lydia Davis.

NEWYORKER: Bang Theory