Wagner Handbook

About this book

Rarely has anyone in the history of Western culture stirred up such deep contrary and enduring passions as Richard Wagner. A proposal to perform his work ignites controversy in Israel. Wagners The Ride of the Valkyries blares from helicopters slicing the air of Apocalypse Now. His name leads a list of Germanys spiritual heroes against a flaming backdrop in Anselm Kiefers largest work. Idolized by Nietzsche appropriated by Hitler defended by writers from Mann to Adorno emulated by countless composers interpreted by artists and filmmakers Wagner has left us a legacy as complicated as it is profound. To this day the sheer magnitude of his accomplishment retains its power to overwhelm. This book is a measure of that magnitude an unprecedented attempt to bring together in one volume what is known about the composers life his work and his influence. Unparalleled in its scope and depth this remarkable compendium offers readers a unique opportunity to understand what this prodigious man has meant to the Western world. Described by Brahms as a man of colossal industry and horrendous energy Wagner composed dozens of works many of them towering masterpieces; he influenced a whole generation of conductors took part in a revolution counseled kings and diplomats and organized the building of the Bayreuth festival theater. His writings on a wide variety of subjects fill sixteen substantial volumes and his thousands of personal letters document a wildly eventful private life. The Wagner Handbook addresses all of these aspects of the composers life and achievement. Central chapters include an account of Wagners place in music history by Carl Dahlhaus; Werner Breigs treatment of individual musical works; Peter Wapnewskis discussion of Wagners operatic works as literature; Isolde Vetters chapter on Wagner in the history of psychology; surveys of performance question over the years by Jens Malte Fischer and Oswal Bauer. These and other topicsthe individuals who most powerfully influenced the composer and those he influenced his impact on music history and the political exploitation of his ideasare masterfully drawn.