Richard Wagner continues to be the most controversial artist in
history, a perpetually troubling figure in our cultural
consciousness. The unceasing debate over his works and their
impact--for and against--is one reason why there has been no
genuinely comprehensive modern account of his musical dramas until
now. Dieter Borchmeyer's book is the first to present an overall
picture of these musical dramas from the standpoint of literary and
theatrical history. It extends from the composer's early
works--still largely ignored--to the "Ring Cycle and Parsifal," and
includes Wagner's unfinished works and operas he never set to
music. Through lively prose, we come to see Wagner as a
librettist--and as a man of letters--rather than primarily as
musical composer.
Borchmeyer uncovers a vast field of cultural and historical
cross-references in Wagner's works. In the first part of the book,
he sets out in search of the various archetypal scenes, opening up
the composer's dramatic workshop to the reader. He covers all of
Wagner's operas, from early juvenilia to the canonical later
works.
The second part examines Wagner in relation to political figures
including King Ludwig II and Bismarck, and, importantly, in light
of critical reactions by literary giants--Thomas Mann, whom
Borchmeyer calls "a guiding light in this exploration of the fields
that Wagner tilled," and Nietzsche, whose appeal to "philology" is
a key source of inspiration in attempts to grapple with Wagner's
works.
For more than twenty years, Borchmeyer has placed his
scholarship at the service of the famed Bayreuth Festival. With
this volume, he gives us a summation of decades of engagement with
the phenomenon of Wagner and, at the same time, the result of an
abiding critical passion for his works.
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