Richard Wagner

(22 May 1813–13 February 1883)

Richard Wagner (1813–1883) was a German composer, conductor, and theatre director best known for his revolutionary operas, which he called “music dramas.” Unlike most opera composers, Wagner wrote both the music and the libretti for all of his stage works. His mature style is characterized by rich orchestration, complex harmonies, and the systematic use of leitmotifs—recurring musical themes associated with characters, ideas, or dramatic situations. Among the most famous excerpts from his works are the “Ride of the Valkyries” from Die Walküre and the “Wedding March” (Bridal Chorus) from Lohengrin.

Operas

Opera	Premiere or date of written	Libretti available
Die Feen	1833	german, english
Das Liebesverbot	1836, March 29	german, russian
Rienzi	1842, October 20	german, russian
Der fliegende Holländer	1843, January 2	german, english, russian
Tannhäuser	1845, October 19	german, english
Lohengrin	1847	german, english, russian
Tristan und Isolde	1859	german, english, russian
Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg	1867, October	german, english, russian
Das Rheingold	1869, September 22	german, english, french, russian
Die Walküre	1870, June 26	german, english, french
Siegfried	1871	german, english, russian
Götterdämmerung	1874	german, english, russian
Parsifal	1882, July 26	german, english

History

• January 2, 1843 — World premiere of Richard Wagner’s opera "Der fliegende Holländer" at the Königliches Sächsisches Hoftheater (Semperoper), Dresden on 2 January 1843.
• April 13, 1845 — The premiere of Wagner's "Tannhäuser" took place at the Königliches Hoftheater in Dresden.
• April 6, 1869 — The Paris premiere of Wagner’s "Rienzi" opened at the Théâtre-Lyrique under Jules Pasdeloup.
• August 16, 1876 — Richard Wagner’s opera Siegfried premiered at the opening of the Bayreuth Festspielhaus as part of his monumental *Ring* cycle.
• January 1, 1914 — First Italian performance of Wagner’s "Parsifal" at Teatro Comunale di Bologna on 1 January 1914, conducted by Rodolfo Ferrari.

Images

Notable videos

External links

• Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
• Bayreuth Festival (in German and English) Official site of the Bayreuth Festival, a music festival held annually in Bayreuth, Germany, at which performances of operas by Richard Wagner are presented.