 It is generally believed that during this period he contracted the syphilis that caused the collapse of his health in later years.Delius's Paris years were musically productive.His symphonic poem "Paa Vidderne" was performed in Christiania in 1891 and in Monte Carlo in 1894; Gunnar Heiberg commissioned Delius to provide incidental music for his play "Folkeraadet" in 1897; and Delius's second opera, "The Magic Fountain", was accepted for staging at Prague, but the project fell through for unknown reasons.