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Product Description
Product Description
Well over a century after Wagner s death, the man and his music are as controversial as ever. Praised for his profound insights into the workings of the human heart, he has also been condemned as a dangerous libertine, a proto-fascist and an arrogant bore. His vast four-part operatic Ring cycle has been elevated as one of the greatest achievements of western culture and dismissed as an unparalleled example of creative megalomania. This book makes no attempt to gloss over the darker sides of Wagner's character, personally or artistically, but argues that the finer aspects of his vision transcend its flaws. It tells the story of an extraordinary life, and charts Wagner's development, from unpromising beginnings, into the creator of some of the most brilliantly innovatory and seductively beautiful music ever composed. And with the words comes the music: 2 CDs of carefully chosen pieces spanning Wagner's compositional life. Furthermore, the purchaser of the book is given access to a dedicated website which offers even more music to listen to, as well as other bonus material.
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
When Richard Wagner was born in Leipzig, on 22 May 1813, Europe was in the midst of convulsive change. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
When Richard Wagner was born in Leipzig, on 22 May 1813, Europe was in the midst of convulsive change. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
Format:Paperback
two good quality CD's and the book is written in a straightforward style which suits a recent wagner convert like myself, good value.
Format:Paperback
Stephen Johnson cuts through the prolixity, the hype and the hysteria to offer the intelligent beginner a sensible and well balanced introduction to Wagner's music which encourages and inspires you to explore more. I marvelled at how concise he was and how unerringly he gets to the heart of things.
The two CDs were a great addition with so much goregeous music (including some fascinating little played pieces like the Faust overture and Rienzi). Together with the text they tempt, support and encourage you to go deeper and further into the works of this most fascinating and maddening of composers.
I've given four rather than five stars only because, good though this is, it does not have the absolute brilliance of Stephen Johnson's Mahler book - maybe because Wagner is so big a figure and his works so multilayered, that even someone with Johnson's mastery at summing up so much so succinctly and stimulatingly, just can't quite handle the full range of such powerful music. To earn the fifth star the book would need to be twice as long to give more detail on the music dramas, their philosphy, leit motifs and the challenges of performing them.
The two CDs were a great addition with so much goregeous music (including some fascinating little played pieces like the Faust overture and Rienzi). Together with the text they tempt, support and encourage you to go deeper and further into the works of this most fascinating and maddening of composers.
I've given four rather than five stars only because, good though this is, it does not have the absolute brilliance of Stephen Johnson's Mahler book - maybe because Wagner is so big a figure and his works so multilayered, that even someone with Johnson's mastery at summing up so much so succinctly and stimulatingly, just can't quite handle the full range of such powerful music. To earn the fifth star the book would need to be twice as long to give more detail on the music dramas, their philosphy, leit motifs and the challenges of performing them.
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
An excellent introduction on Wagner's life and works, with appropriate music to elaborate on the text. A very good starting point for laymen to pursue further analysis of Wagner.
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