REFERENCE: OPERA - Richard Wagner (1813 - 1883)

Most descriptions of Wagner the man do not paint a pretty picture. There are many reports of his extreme anti-Semitism, massive egomania, wanton gambling and womanising, and his ruthless exploitation of anyone in order to achieve his ambitions. While these character traits severely taint any biography of Wagner, let's put them to one side, describe the key events in his life and concentrate on his musical development and his place in musical history.

Wagner's name became synonymous with grand German Opera of gigantic theatrical proportions, the characters being larger-than-life archetypes rather than everyday people, but often displaying very human needs and concerns. His music stretched the boundaries of the Romantic Era, using large orchestras and "leitmotifs" (melodic fragments associated with a character or idea) bringing a sense of unity even over a large time-span.

Operas:

Rienzi
Der Fliegende Hollander (The Flying Dutchman) - with some truly atmospheric storm music
Tannhauser - including the "Pilgrim's Chorus"
Lohengrin - from which the famous Bridal Chorus comes
Tristan and Isolde - this has Celtic resonances, set in Ireland, Cornwall and Brittany, and is musically powerful with its closing Liebestod (love-death) music of Act III Scene III
Die Meistersinger von Nurnberg (The Mastersingers of Nurnberg) - tuneful and somewhat lighter in tone
Parsifal - a semi-religious work
Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring Cycle):
Das Rheingold
Die Walkure - with its "Ride of the Valkyries"
Siegfried - which was to give rise to the "Siegfried Idyll"
Gotterdammerung (The Twilight of the Gods)