![]() It told the story of the love between a fairy princess and a human, opposed by the fairy’s father, but unfortunately it was never performed during Wagner’s lifetime. The first one was titled ‘The Fairies.’ In contrast to common practice at the time, Wagner wrote both the music and the ‘libretto’, or the text. Between 18, he composed his first two complete operas. You’d be forgiven for thinking this was an early sign of writer’s – or composer’s – block, but Wagner quickly bounced back with new finished works. His inaugural work was titled ‘Die Hochzeit’, or ‘The Wedding’, but it remained incomplete. But in the early 1830s, Wagner began composing orchestral symphonies and even incidental music for a play, ‘King Enzio’, marking his debut in writing for a theatrical production.Īs he began collecting his first favourable reviews, Richard decided it was time to compose a work in his favourite genre, opera. What I mean is that he focused on writing string quartets or sonatas - compositions for a single instrument. The young composer flourished: his piano sonata in B flat major impressed one of his teachers so much that he agreed to give him extra lessons for free!Īt this stage, Richard’s compositions were ‘small’ in scale, if our musically-inclined friends will allow me this term. Encouraged by his natural ability, mother Johanna convinced him to enroll at Leipzig University to study musical composition. Richard composed his first serious sonatas and string quartets in the late 1820s. He also started attending performances from his favourite genre: Opera. During the second Leipzig tour, he began taking lessons in harmony and counterpoint. It was only after a move back to Leipzig in 1827 that young Wagner started taking music more seriously. He gravitated more towards literature in his early teens, he penned his first work, a five-act tragedy called ‘Leubald and Adelaide’. But the Wagners stayed in Dresden for several more years, during which time Richard started taking piano lessons. Ludwig died suddenly on November 30, 1821. ![]() ![]() Unfortunately, the boy soon lost his second father figure, too. Whatever the truth, Geyer had a strong bond with Richard and encouraged him to develop his creative, artistic side. There is evidence that Johanna and Ludwig had been lovers for a long time, and that the artist may have actually been Richard’s biological father. She moved in with him in Dresden, taking Richard and his eight siblings. A year later, Richard’s mother Johanna remarried, this time taking vows with noted actor, painter, and poet Ludwig Meyer. Carl Friedrich Wagner, a police clerk, died in November of 1813 during a typhoid epidemic. Thomas … the same church where young Richard was baptised! Not a bad start for a future giant of music.īaby Richard would barely get to meet his father. Composers like Johann Sebastian Bach, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Felix Mendelssohn all worked as organists in the church of St. This city is remembered for its contribution to arts, literature, and music. Wilhelm Richard Wagner was born on in Leipzig, then part of Saxony, presently in modern-day Germany. Richard Wagner, Munich, circa 1871 First Notes of the Scale I hope you are sitting comfortably, as today’s video is suitably Wagnerian in length. But does he really deserve to be remembered as the soundtrack to an authoritarian, war-mongering regime? Finally, we will address the ultimate question of his legacy, which tied his music to the propaganda efforts of the 3 rd Reich. Today, we will explore his personal life, his main works, his controversial views. ![]() These are two among many of the famed compositions of today’s protagonists, one of the titans of music of all ages and genres, Richard Wagner.Ī man who left a permanent mark not only on music, but on the philosophy, society, and politics of the 19 th and 20 th centuries. ![]()
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