| biography |
Richard
Wagner's music seeks to offer a transcendent experience
by Thomas May
According to legend, Richard Wagner (1813-1883) personally torched
Dresden's old opera house--where he himself was employed as conductor--as
part of his role in the city's political uprisings of 1849. In
reality that wasn't the case (although he likely did obtain a
supply of grenades for the insurrectionists), but there is a kind
of poetic truth to the image. For while the composer's youthful
dreams of a socialist utopia soon withered away with the failure
of the revolution, he still managed to shake the artistic conventions
of his time to their foundation. [read
more...]
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| recommended
recordings |
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Wagner:
Der Ring des Nibelungen / Solti, Vienna Philharmonic
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Composer:
Richard
Wagner
Conductor: Sir
Georg Solti
Performer: Kurt
Böhme, Hans
Hotter, et al.
Ensemble: Vienna
Philharmonic Orchestra, Vienna
State Opera Chorus
Uni/London Classics - #455555 / October 14, 1997
Click
here for more information |
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Modern storage media (CD/DVD) offer both high fidelity and
great reliability in the playback of music. Yet only a bit
more than a generation ago, the possibilities inherent in
the long-playing record inspired John Culshaw, a young producer
for Decca, to attempt the most ambitious recording project
ever contemplated up to that time--a complete studio recording
of the Ring. Though other Rings were issued
after this landmark enterprise, none have equaled the Decca
Ring in popularity. There are...Read
more
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Wagner: Lohengrin / Solti, Domingo,
Norman, Fischer-Dieskau |
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Composer:
Richard
Wagner
Conductor: Sir
Georg Solti
Performer: Placido
Domingo, Dietrich
Fischer-Dieskau, et al.
Ensemble: Vienna
Philharmonic Orchestra, Vienna
State Opera Chorus Konzertvereinigung
Uni/London Classics - #21053 / January 1, 1987
Click
here for more information
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| Sir George Solti's renditions of Wagner's operas
often defined the standard interpretation practice in the
post-World War II musical world, and he is at his best in
this late 1980s digitally mastered recording partnered with
his long-time collaborators, the Vienna Philharmonic--perhaps
the most emotionally satisfying orchestra in the world for
these challenging scores. Domingo, in the title role, shows
himself as a true Heldentenor (i.e. a baritone with
high notes), and his earlier weakness in German diction is
not apparent. Norman's Elsa is musically perfect though at
times a bit chilly and distant. The mature compassion of the
role of Henry the Fowler is admirably captured by Sotin. The
chorus work is first rate, and the excellent cast is rounded
out by Randova and the vigorous Nimsgern as the husband/wife
villains. --Christian C. Rix |
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Wagner:
Tristan und Isolde / Furtwängler, Flagstad, et al
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Composer:
Richard
Wagner
Conductor: Wilhelm
Furtwängler
Performer: Dietrich
Fischer-Dieskau, Kirsten
Flagstad, et al.
Ensemble: Philharmonia
Orchestra
Emd/Emi Classics - #56254 / September 16, 1997
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here for more information
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It's not surprising that this sublime performance of Wagner's
Tristan und Isolde has remained on the market for so
long: Wilhelm Furtwängler's reading of the tale with
Ludwig Suthaus, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, and Kirsten Flagstad
is probably definitive. The conductor is peerless at achieving
a strong sense of direction throughout the epic length. Carlos
Kleiber's controversial version with the Dresden State Orchestra
might boast orchestral fireworks (abetted by modern recording...Read
more
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Great
Recordings Of The Century - Wagner: Die Meistersinger von
Nurnberg / Karajan, Adam, Donath, Kollo, et al
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Composer:
Richard
Wagner
Conductor: Herbert
von Karajan
Performer: Theo
Adam, Helen
Donath, et al.
Ensemble: Staatskapelle
Dresden
Emd/Emi Classics - #67148 / September 21, 1999
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here for more information |
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Despite his disdain for some of the sillier aspects of grand
opera, H.L. Mencken once said that Die Meistersinger
was the greatest single work of art in Western civilization--and,
to many, his hyperbole is forgivable when one contemplates
the well-crafted structure of this most human of Wagner's
music dramas. Of all recordings of his sole comedy, this one
under the baton of Karajan in his prime has perhaps the best-balanced
cast. The clear, youthful tones of Donath in the role of Eva
must be...Read
more
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Wagner:
Parsifal / Barenboim, Berliner Philharmoniker
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Composer:
Richard
Wagner
Conductor: Daniel
Barenboim
Performer: Daniela
Bechly, Sally
Burgess, et al.
Ensemble: Berlin
Philharmonic Orchestra, Berlin
State Opera Chorus
Wea/Atlantic/Teldec - #74448 / October 8, 1991
Click
here for more information |
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It's a commonplace that Daniel Barenboim has done some of
his best directing in Berlin, not Chicago, as this recording
of Parsifal with the Berlin Phliharmonic attests. Wagner's
score is fiendishly difficult--it's perhaps the composer's
most delicate music--and Barenboim's decidedly intellectual
temperament is complementary. The soloists (José van
Dam, Siegfried Jerusalem, John Tomlinson, and Waltraud Meier)
are superb. For me, Meier's startling, toneless gasp at the
beginning of the...Read
more
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more recommended recordings
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| works
& recordings |
- Chamber Music
Trios, Quartets, Quintets
- Choral
Secular and sacred choral music. Oratorios, Masses, Partsongs,
Hymns, Carols
- Instrumental
Sonatas, Suites, Overtures, Minuets, Variations, Transcriptions,
Dance Music
- Orchestra
Concertos, Symphonies
- Theatrical Works
Ballet, Stage, Incidental Music, Film Scores
- Vocal and Opera
Opera, Operetta, Song, Lieder, Musical Theater
Complete
List of Works and Recordings
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| resources |
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Richard
Wagner Archive - List of writings, works, comments by
his contemporaries and links. [Some texts in German].
Opera
Glass: Richard Wagner - Libretti, links etc.
Wagner
Society in New South Wales - Australian reviews, contact
info and worldwide performance calendar.
Richard
Wagner Web Site - His life and works. Analyses and commented
texts.
Richard
Wagner - His life and works.
Wagner
Message Board - Information on the composer's life and
works, including selected lists and reviews of currently available
books and CDs.
Richard
Wagner - basic information.
Richard
Wagner - Over seventy MIDI files, plus images, opera notes
and links.
Christianity
and Wagner - A personal view of the relationship between
Romantic music and Christianity.
Richard
Wagner (1813-1883) - Message board and live chat about
the life and works.
Classical
Net - Basic Repertoire List - Wagner - Recommended discography,
links.
Richard
Wagner: Master of the Music Drama - Overview of the operas.
Welcome
to Walhall - Pictures of scenes from productions of the
Ring.
Intro
to Wagner by Alan Aberbach - A guide to listening to Wagner.
The
Story of the Volsungs (Volsunga Saga) - Complete English
translation.
Wagner:
The Zenith of German Romanticism - Explores the composer's
role as the leader of the German Romantic movement.
Bayreuth
Festival - (Germany) Contact and ticket ordering information.
Richard
Wagner Society of South Australia - Group and contact
information, articles, calendar of events.
Seattle
Opera: The Ring of the Nibelung - Information on the production
and its history. Includes an introduction to each part of
the cycle.
Wagner
and the Jews - Online book covering Wagner's antisemitism.
Richard
Wagner Page - MIDI files.
See Also:
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