Penetrating Wagner's Ring

March 15, 2005 2:41 PM

As the result of there being 3 simultaneous Ring Cycles going on in London right now, all of which I have been attending and enjoying immensely, I have become worryingly addicted to Wagner's tetralogy. Any recommendations for further reading that will deepen my understanding of the work?

I'm mostly interested in a musical analysis, rather than a political/historical/biographical analysis, though will welcome any suggested reading.

posted by chill to Media & Arts (12 answers total)

I'm taking a course on Nietzsche and Wagner right now, and the interplay between the two of them throughout their lives, up until "the fatal insult" is interesting and entertaining, and I too have become a bit of a Wagner junkie despite now knowing all too well what an unpleasant little man he was. Hoping to go see the whole Cycle in Toronto next year.

So, if you haven't read Wagner's writings on his own work and others', you might be interested in that- Art and Revolution is a particularly interesting one. As for Nietzsche, see his Birth of Tragedy for Wagner-adulation and his later works, especially The Case of Wagner, for unbelievably acerbic criticism. (Although in Ecce Homo he recants a little bit, insofar as saying that he was mostly using Wagner as an example, and only attacks those he respects, etc.)

Hope that's helpful and not too obvious.
posted by ITheCosmos at 3:01 PM on March 15, 2005

You might like "The Ring and I," produced by the local (NYC) public radio station last spring, when the Metropolitan Opera did the Ring Cycle. It's more listening, not reading, and it may stray too far from the music itself -- but worth a click, at least.
posted by vetiver at 4:09 PM on March 15, 2005

I haven't read it, but The Operas of Wagner looks really good, and abides on my wish list.
posted by agropyron at 4:20 PM on March 15, 2005

You might enjoy The Ring Disc, which I have used when preparing some of these roles and getting to know the operas for the first time (I am an opera singer). It is a multimedia presentation; audio recording, vocal score, libretto and commentary. The commentary has web-style links to a musical glossary and articles on the characters and themes/motifs.

It's not deep musical analysis; I would call it aided familarisation. But very useful for getting the most out of the listening. By the way, I am singing in the ROH's Walküre at the moment.
posted by suleikacasilda at 4:28 PM on March 15, 2005

Only tangentially related to what you're asking for, but Kinuko Y. Craft's set of Ring Posters are stunning, and I thought they'd be worth pointing out.
posted by GeekAnimator at 4:42 PM on March 15, 2005

Nietzsche contra Wagner is available online, as is Bernard Shaw's The Perfect Wagnerite.
posted by jfuller at 4:49 PM on March 15, 2005

try here.
posted by crunchland at 4:52 PM on March 15, 2005

There has been a lot of research about Wagner's famous Ring Cycle, and you can find many books. However, to get you started, his productions were known to have many influences. Foremost is a collection of German myths found in the Nibelungenlied. He was also influenced by the Volsunga Saga, an Icelandic text from the thirteenth century based on the Nibelungendlied. I believe George Bernard Shaw has also written at length on Wagner's operas.

On a tangent, you would probably be very interested in the Bayreuth theater Festspielhaus, which Wagner personally designed, planned and executed specifically for the Ring sagas. It still functions today, creaky wooden floors and all...
posted by naxosaxur at 7:13 PM on March 15, 2005

I would be very remiss if I did not mention P. Craig Russell's absolutely stunning graphic novel adaptation of the Ring Cycle. [amazon: volume 1 and volume 2]

Not analysis, and obviously not musical, but his treatment of the complex and timeless story is beautiful. Highly recommended.
posted by samh23 at 8:28 PM on March 15, 2005

Response by poster: Brilliant, loads of stuff for me to digest there. Many thanks folks, I'll dig through it all later. That Ring Disc looks particularly interesting.

By the way, I am singing in the ROH's Walküre at the moment.
Cool, I'll be seeing you on Saturday then (albeit from row E of the amphitheatre). I heard that Rheingold and Walküre were going to be on telly over Easter, is that still going to be the case do you know, given that Terfel was sick when the BBC filmed Rheingold?
posted by chill at 1:48 AM on March 16, 2005

We were just discussing that last night; the broadcasts will happen, but we are not sure whether the BBC has footage from a previous show to use, or whether they would use it if they had.

I'll post more if I find out.

Enjoy the show!
posted by suleikacasilda at 2:27 AM on March 16, 2005

Response by poster: Cheers. I know that Radio 3 broadcast an earlier performance, so perhaps they will use the sound from the performance recorded for radio and try and dub that over the video footage from when he mimed.
posted by chill at 2:44 AM on March 16, 2005