COMPOSER RICHARD WAGNER
(22 May 1813 – 13 February 1883)
Wilhelm Richard Wagner born in Leipzig, Germany, and was a German
composer, conductor, theatre director and polemicist primarily known for
his operas, or "music dramas", as they were later called.
Wagner's compositions, particularly those of his later period, are
notable for their complex texture, rich harmonies and orchestration, and
the elaborate use of leitmotifs: musical themes associated with
individual characters, places, ideas or plot elements. Unlike most other
opera composers, Wagner wrote both the music and libretto for every one
of his stage works. Perhaps the two best-known extracts from his works
are the Ride of the Valkyries from the opera "Die Walküre", and the
Wedding March (Bridal Chorus) from the opera "Lohengrin".
Initially establishing his reputation as a composer of works such as
"The Flying Dutchman and Tannhäuser" which were in the romantic
traditions of Weber and Meyerbeer, Wagner transformed operatic thought
through his concept of the Gesamtkunstwerk ("total work of art"). This
would achieve the synthesis of all the poetic, visual, musical and
dramatic arts and was announced in a series of essays between 1849 and
1852.
Wagner realized this concept most fully in the first half of the
monumental four-opera cycle "Der Ring des Nibelungen". However, his
thoughts on the relative importance of music and drama were to change
again, and he reintroduced some traditional operatic forms into his last
few stage works, including "Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg".
Wagner pioneered advances in musical language, such as extreme
chromaticism and quickly shifting tonal centres, which greatly
influenced the development of European classical music. His "Tristan und
Isolde" is sometimes described as marking the start of modern music.
Wagner's influence spread beyond music into philosophy, literature, the
visual arts and theatre.
Wagner had his own opera house built, the "Bayreuth Festspielhaus".
It was here that the Ring and Parsifal received their premieres and
where his most important stage works continue to be performed today in
an annual festival run by his descendants. His extensive writings on
music, drama and politics have all attracted extensive comment in recent
decades, especially where they have anti-Semitic content. Wagner
achieved all of this despite a life characterized, until his last
decades, by political exile, turbulent love affairs, poverty and
repeated flight from his creditors.
In 13 February 1883, Wagner died suddenly of a heart attack. His funeral was held in Bayreuth, Germany.
His pugnacious personality and often outspoken views on music,
politics and society made him a controversial figure during his life,
which he remains to this day. The impact of his ideas can be traced in
many of the arts throughout the twentieth century.
Some Wagner's Works:
- "Tannhäuser und der Sängerkriegaus Wartburg" (Tannhäuser and troubadours tournament of Wartburg) is an opera in three acts with music by Richard Wagner, with libretto by the composer himself. He debuted in the year 1845 in Dresden, Germany.
- "Der fliegende Holländer" (The Flying Dutchman) is an opera in three acts. Premiered in 1843 in Königliches Hof-Theater, in Dresden.
- "Das Rheingold" (The Rhine Gold) is the first of the four operas that constitute Richard Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelung). "Das Rheingold" received its premiere at the National Theatre in Munich on 22 September 1869,Wagner wanted this opera to be premiered as part of the entire cycle, but was forced to allow the performance at the insistence of his patron King Ludwig II of Bavaria.
- "Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg" (The Mastersingers of Nuremberg) is an opera in three acts, written and composed by Richard Wagner. It is among the longest operas still commonly performed today, usually taking around four and a half hours. It was first performed at the National-Theater in Munich, on June 21, 1868.
- "Die Walküre" (The Valkyrie), is the second of the four operas that form the cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelung). It received its premiere at the National Theatre Munich on 26 June 1870.
- "Siegfried" is an opera, part three of the four that comprise the tetralogy Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelung). Its premiere took place in the Bayreuth Festspielhaus (Bayreuth Festival Theatre), in Bayreuth, Germany, August 16, 1876, as part of the first full presentation of the Saga of the Ring.
- "Tristan und Isolde" (Tristan and Isolde, or Tristan and Isolda, or Tristran and Ysolt) is an opera, or music drama, in three acts to a German libretto by the composer, based largely on the romance by Gottfried von Straßburg. It was composed between 1857 and 1859 and premiered in Munich on 10 June 1865. Wagner referred to "Tristan und Isolde" not as an opera, but called it "Eine Handlung" (literally drama or plot), which was the term used by the Spanish playwright Calderón for his dramas.
- "Lohengrin" is a romantic opera in three acts by Richard Wagner, who was also responsible for the libretto. His premiere took place in Weimar, Germany, August 28, 1850. The story of the protagonist is drawn from a medieval German novel, the story of Perceval and his son Lohengrin.
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