Great question. A rigorous answer would take a 350-page book, and fortunately, it has already been written! Here it is: Musical Structures in Wagnerian Opera, by Marshall Tuttle. read more
But I will try to answer your question myself more concisely. The primary driving force behind the effectiveness of Wagner’s music is the way that musical material is shifted across various levels of the tonal hierarchy in strict correspondence with the drama. read more
Admit it, we’ve all had musical ambitions that surpass impressing the rubber duck in the bath. read more
On Sunday a memorial service will be held in Bayreuth in Germany for Wolfgang Wagner, grandson of the composer Richard Wagner, who died on 21 March aged 90. Wolfgang Wagner ran the Wagner Festival at Bayreuth, the annual celebration of his grandfather's operas, from 1951 to 2008. read more