Richard Wagner

Gods And Monsters: 5 Unforgettable Wagner Moments

Tom Huizenga — Tue, 21 May 2013 16:06:00 +0000

How much do you know about Richard Wagner? Probably two unfavorable facts: He wrote very long, grandiose operas and was Hitler's favorite composer. As true as they are, those simple examples barely hint at the complexity of this endlessly creative and confounding artist.

Two centuries after Wagner's birth (he was born in Leipzig May 22, 1813), the man and his music continue to beguile and bewilder fans, detractors and critics.

The Final Met Opera Broadcast Of The Season! Wagner's GOTTERDAMMERUNG, May 11th at 11 AM

WRTI Staff — Wed, 08 May 2013 19:09:32 +0000

As this year's Metropolitan Opera broadcast season comes to a close, join us to hear Götterdämmerung, the last opera in Richard Wagner's four-opera cycle, "Der Ring des Nibelungen." The Ring's cataclysmic finale stars Deborah Voigt as Brünnhilde opposite Lars Cleveman as Siegfried - the star-crossed lovers doomed by fate. Hans-Peter König is Hagen and Fabio Luisi conducts. Sunday, May 11, *11 am to 5 pm (*note early start time)

The Met Opera: Wagner's PARSIFAL, March 2 at 12 pm

WRTI Staff — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 16:35:47 +0000

Wagner’s final masterpiece explores the many facets of this mystical score. Jonas Kaufmann stars in the title role of the innocent who finds wisdom. His fellow Wagnerian luminaries include Katarina Dalayman as the mysterious Kundry, Peter Mattei as the ailing Amfortas, Evgeny Nikitin as the wicked Klingsor, and René Pape as the noble knight Gurnemanz. Daniele Gatti conducts. Saturday, March 2, * 12 noon to 6 pm (*note early start time).

Jonas Kaufmann On Wagner: 'It's Like A Drug Sometimes'

NPR Staff — Sat, 16 Feb 2013 21:42:00 +0000

This year is the bicentennial of Richard Wagner's birth. The man widely called the greatest living Wagnerian tenor is marking the occasion in style — and asking listeners who may have turned away from the German composer to give his music another chance.

The Munich-born singer Jonas Kaufmann is currently in New York starring in the Metropolitan opera's production of Parsifal. He also has a new album, simply called Wagner, that draws from across the composer's entire career.

Richard Wagner's Philadelphia Connection

Jim Cotter — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 20:48:02 +0000

Later this year we’ll mark the Richard Wagner bicentennial, but it was this week in 1883 that the great German composer died. As WRTI’s Jim Cotter reports, in his later years, Wagner would write a piece of orchestral music commissioned by a Philadelphian and premiered in the city.

Wagner was 69 years of age when he passed. He had spent his last years raising money to establish a permanent home to showcase his works in the Northern Bavarian town of Bayreuth. To this end when the American Centennial celebrations of 1876 wanted a march to celebrate the role of German Americans in the history of the country, a Philadelphia socialite Elizabeth Gillespie sought the counsel of the German-born conductor Theodore Thomas. He suggested the $5000 commission be offered to Wagner. Wagner gratefully accepted, and delivered the work. Temple Art History professor Therese Dolan, who has written a book about the intersection of music and the visual arts in 19^th century Paris says Wagner’s Grand March is not one of his grandest works.

You can tell that his heart wasn’t in it. He was building Bayreuth, so he charged five thousand dollars for this twelve minute piece of music and it was played when Roosevelt came to the Worlds’ Fair.

And though it’s been rarely played since, whatever the piece lacked in musical quality it made up for with typical Wagnerian bombast.

A hundred and fifty piece orchestra and then he also wanted a canon to be set off at the end of it. Critics felt there was no American feeling in it. Well what did they expect? They commissioned a German to do it.

Therese Dolan’s book Artworks of the Future: Manet, Wagner and Liszt will be published later this year.

Wanamaker Organ Hour: October 7th at 5 pm on ENCORE!

WRTI Staff — Fri, 05 Oct 2012 16:37:24 +0000

Join WRTI's Jill Pasternak and Macy's Grand Court Organist Peter Richard Conte as they present a variety of performances of great works including Dudley Buck's Concert Variations on 'The Last Rose of Summer', Gabriel Faure's Nocturne from Shylock, and Sowerby's Comes Autumn Time.

As a special treat, they'll reprise a live performance from our June 2012 Organ Day - Wagner's Siegfried's Funeral March and Immolation Scene. Sunday, October 7th, 5 to 6 pm. Tune in!

Wagner's DIE WALKURE: April 28th at 11 am

WRTI Staff — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 11:59:47 +0000

Join us from 11 am (early start time) to 4:30 pm on Saturday, April 28th for The Met Opera's Die Walkure. A wounded deity comes to realize the limits of his power in the heartbreaking second installment of Wagner's "Ring" cycle. Wotan, king of the gods, strives to undo the curse of the ring by fathering a pure-of-heart hero by a mortal woman. But he finds himself torn as events spin out of control and his offspring defy his will.

Wagner's SIEGFRIED on Saturday, April 21 at 11 am

WRTI Staff — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 11:40:59 +0000

Be sure to join us on Saturday, April 21st, *11 am to 5 pm (note early start time) for Richard Wagner's SIEGFRIED.