Richard Wagner

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Biography

Born: May 22, 1813; Germany   Died: Feb 13, 1883; Italy   Period: Romantic
Richard Wagner was one of the most revolutionary figures in the history of music, a composer who made pivotal contributions to the development of harmony and musical drama that reverberate even today. Indeed, though Wagner occasionally produced successful music written on a relatively modest scale, opera -- the bigger, the better -- was clearly his milieu, and his aesthetic is perhaps the most grandiose that Western music has ever known. Early in Read more his career, Wagner learned both the elements and the practical, political realities of his craft by writing a handful of operas which were unenthusiastically, even angrily, received. Beginning with Rienzi (1838-40) and The Flying Dutchman (1841), however, he enjoyed a string of successes that propelled him to immortality and changed the face of music. His monumental Ring cycle of four operas -- Das Rheingold (1853-54), Die Walküre (1854-56), Siegfried (1856-71) and Götterdämmerung (1869-74) -- remains the most ambitious and influential contribution by any composer to the opera literature. Tristan and Isolde (1857-59) is perhaps the most representative example of Wagner's musical style, which is characterized by a high degree of chromaticism, a restless, searching tonal instability, lush harmonies, and the association of specific musical elements (known as leitmotifs, the flexible manipulation of which is one of the glories of Wagner's music) with certain characters and plot points. Wagner wrote text as well as music for all his operas, which he preferred to call "music dramas."
Wagner's life matched his music for sheer drama. Born in Leipzig on May 22, 1813, he began in the early 1830s to write prolifically on music and the arts in general; over his whole career, his music would to some degree serve to demonstrate his aesthetic theories. He often worked as a conductor in his early years; a conducting engagement took him to Riga, Latvia, in 1837, but he fled the country in the middle of the night two years later to elude creditors. Wagner as a young man had some sympathy with the revolutionary movements of the middle nineteenth century (and even the Ring cycle contains a distinct anti-materialist and vaguely socialist drift); in the Dresden uprisings of 1849 he apparently took up arms, and he had to leave Germany when the police restored order. Settling in Zurich, Switzerland, he wrote little for some years but evolved the intellectual framework for his towering mature masterpieces. Wagner returned to Germany in 1864 under the protection and patronage of King Ludwig II of Bavaria; it was in Bayreuth, near Munich, that he undertook the construction of an opera house (completed in 1876) built to his personal specifications and suited to the massive fusion of music, staging, text, and scene design that his later operas entailed. Bayreuth became something of a shrine for the fanatical Wagnerites who carried the torch after his death; it remains the goal of many a pilgrimage today. His attitude toward Jews was deeply ambivalent (he believed, mistakenly, that his stepfather was Jewish), but some of his writings contain anti-Semitic elements that have aroused considerable controversy among opera lovers, especially in view of Adolf Hitler's apparent predilection for the composer's music. Read less

Featured Richard Wagner CDs & DVDs:

Toscanini Conducts Wagner
Toscanini Conducts Wagner
Release Date: 04/30/2013   Label: Sony  
Catalog: 541193   Number of Discs: 5
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Wagner: Parsifal / Domingo, Thielemann
Wagner: Parsifal / Domingo, Thielemann
Release Date: 05/09/2006   Label: Deutsche Grammophon  
Catalog: 000657402   Number of Discs: 4
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Wagner: Tannhäuser / Welser-most, Seiffert, Kringelborn, Et Al
Wagner: Tannhäuser / Welser-most, Seiffert, Kringelborn, Et Al
Release Date: 11/16/2004   Label: Emi Classics  
Catalog: 99733   Number of Discs: 1
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Wagner: Wesendonck-Lieder, Arias / Kirsten Flagstad
Wagner: Wesendonck-Lieder, Arias / Kirsten Flagstad
Release Date: 01/25/2005   Label: Emi Great Artists Of The Century  
Catalog: 62957   Number of Discs: 1
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Wagner: Der Ring Des Nibelungen / Norman, Jerusalem, Salminen, Schreier, Kollo, Adam, Janowski
Wagner: Der Ring Des Nibelungen / Norman, Jerusalem, Salminen, Schreier, Kollo, Adam, Janowski
Release Date: 02/12/2013   Label: Rca  
Catalog: 546223   Number of Discs: 14
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Work: Tristan und Isolde: Liebestod

Browse 101-125 of 141 Available Recordings
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  • 101.
    Great Voices Of The Past - The Sopranos
    Great Voices Of The Past - The Sopranos
    Label: Opera D'oro   Catalog: 8013 Release Date: 07/01/2003   Number of Discs: 2
    Composer:  Giuseppe Verdi,  Georges Bizet,  Giacomo Puccini,  Christoph W. Gluck  ... 
    Performer:  Claudia Muzio,  Conchita Supervia,  Magda [Soprano Vocal] Olivero,  Rosa [Soprano Vocal] Ponselle  ... 
    Conductor:  Ugo Tansini,  Fritz Stiedry,  Hector Panizza,  Richard Kraus  ... 
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  • 102.
    Ritorna Vincitor! - The Legendary Birgit Nilsson
    Ritorna Vincitor! - The Legendary Birgit Nilsson
    Label: Decca   Catalog: 000018102 Release Date: 05/13/2003   Number of Discs: 2
    Composer:  Frederick Loewe,  Ture Rangström,  Edvard Grieg,  Jean Sibelius  ... 
    Performer:  Birgit Nilsson,  Gerhard Stolze,  Walter Berry,  Virgilio Carbonari
    Conductor:  Herbert von Karajan,  Bertil Bokstedt,  Sir Colin Davis,  Hans Knappertsbusch  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra,  Vienna Opera Orchestra,  London Symphony Orchestra  ... 
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  • 103.
    Wagner: Overtures, Preludes, Arias / Andre Cluytens, Et Al
    Wagner: Overtures, Preludes, Arias / Andre Cluytens, Et Al
    Label: Testament   Catalog: 1256 Release Date: 04/08/2003   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Richard Wagner
    Performer:  Rita Gorr
    Conductor:  André Cluytens
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Paris Opera Orchestra
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  • 104.
    Debut Series - Callas - My First Record
    Debut Series - Callas - My First Record
    Label: Fono Enterprise   Catalog: 1071 Release Date: 11/05/2002   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Richard Wagner,  Vincenzo Bellini
    Performer:  Giuseppe Modesti,  Maria Callas,  Africo Baldelli
    Conductor:  Vittorio Gui,  Arturo Basile
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Italian Radio Symphony Orchestra Rome,  Italian Radio Symphony Orchestra Turin
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  • 105.
    Maria Callas - Live In Milan 1956 & Athens 1957
    Maria Callas - Live In Milan 1956 & Athens 1957
    Label: Emi Classics   Catalog: 67917 Release Date: 11/05/2002   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Gioachino Rossini,  Ambroise Thomas,  Gaetano Donizetti,  Richard Wagner  ... 
    Performer:  Maria Callas
    Conductor:  Alfredo Simonetto,  Antonino Votto
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Italian Radio Chorus Milan,  Italian Radio Symphony Orchestra Milan,  Athens Festival Orchestra
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  • 106.
    Prinzregenten Theater - Wagner: Werke / Knote, Kappel, Et Al
    Prinzregenten Theater - Wagner: Werke / Knote, Kappel, Et Al
    Label: Preiser Records   Catalog: 89305 Release Date: 04/09/2002   Number of Discs: 3
    Composer:  Engelbert Humperdinck,  Carl Maria von Weber,  Pietro Mascagni,  Georges Bizet  ... 
    Performer:  Friedrich Brodersen,  Ludwig Weber,  Hans Hopf,  Lorenz Fehenberger  ... 
    On sale! $69.98
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  • 107.
    The #1 Soprano Album / Battle, Caballé, Fleming, Et Al
    The #1 Soprano Album / Battle, Caballé, Fleming, Et Al
    Label: Decca   Catalog: 472179 Release Date: 04/09/2002   Number of Discs: 2
    Composer:  Gioachino Rossini,  Johann Strauss Jr.,  Traditional,  Charles Gounod  ... 
    Performer:  Teresa Berganza,  Dame Kiri Te Kanawa,  Marilyn Horne,  Barbara Bonney  ... 
    Conductor:  Silvio Varviso,  André Previn,  Carl Davis,  Julius Rudel  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Naples Rossini Orchestra,  Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra,  English Chamber Orchestra  ... 
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  • 108.
    Lebendige Vergangenheit - Göta Ljungberg
    Lebendige Vergangenheit - Göta Ljungberg
    Label: Preiser Records   Catalog: 89548 Release Date: 12/18/2001   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Giacomo Puccini,  Ralph Benatzky,  César Franck,  Charles Gounod  ... 
    Performer:  Göta Ljungberg,  Browning Mummery,  Herbert Janssen,  Joseph Schmidt  ... 
    Conductor:  Sir Eugene Goossens,  Ernst Hauke,  Clemens Schmalstich,  Leo Blech  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Orchestra,  Berlin Playhouse Orchestra,  Berlin State Opera Orchestra  ... 
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  • 109.
    The Pupil And Her Teacher / Callas, De Hildalgo
    The Pupil And Her Teacher / Callas, De Hildalgo
    Label: Fono Enterprise   Catalog: 1010 Release Date: 08/28/2001   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Gioachino Rossini,  Heinrich Proch,  Gaetano Donizetti,  Giuseppe Verdi  ... 
    Performer:  Elvira De Hidalgo,  Maria Callas
    Conductor:  Arturo Basile
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Orchestra,  Italian Radio Symphony Orchestra Turin
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  • 110.
    The Secret Of A Voice / Maria Callas
    The Secret Of A Voice / Maria Callas
    Label: Fono Enterprise   Catalog: 1011 Release Date: 08/28/2001   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Vincenzo Bellini,  Richard Wagner,  Giacomo Puccini,  Giuseppe Verdi
    Performer:  Luisa Tetrazzini,  Maria Callas
    Conductor:  Arturo Basile
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Italian Radio Symphony Orchestra Turin
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  • 111.
    Lebendige Vergangenheit - Elisabeth Ohms, Gertrude Kappel
    Lebendige Vergangenheit - Elisabeth Ohms, Gertrude Kappel
    Label: Preiser Records   Catalog: 89521 Release Date: 03/27/2001   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Carl Maria von Weber,  Charles Gounod,  Richard Strauss,  Richard Wagner  ... 
    Performer:  Elisabeth Ohms,  Gertrude Kappel,  Elfriede Marherr-Wagner,  Adele Kern
    Conductor:  Manfred Gurlitt,  Julius Prüwer
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Berlin State Opera Orchestra
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  • 112.
    Opera For A Rainy Day
    Opera For A Rainy Day
    Label: Lifestyles   Catalog: 215051 Release Date: 02/27/2001   Number of Discs: 2
    Composer:  Richard Wagner,  Giuseppe Verdi,  Vincenzo Bellini,  Gaetano Donizetti  ... 
    Performer:  Maria Callas,  Fiorenza Cossotto,  Placido Domingo,  Leontyne Price  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Orchestra
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  • 113.
    Birgit Nilsson - Opera Arias - Mozart, Beethoven, Verdi, Etc
    Birgit Nilsson - Opera Arias - Mozart, Beethoven, Verdi, Etc
    Label: Testament   Catalog: 1200 Release Date: 11/14/2000   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Carl Maria von Weber,  Giuseppe Verdi,  Richard Wagner,  Ludwig van Beethoven  ... 
    Performer:  Birgit Nilsson
    Conductor:  Heinz Wallberg,  Leopold Ludwig
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Philharmonia Orchestra
    On sale! $25.98
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  • 114.
    Waldoper Zoppot - The Bayreuth Of The North - 99 Singers
    Waldoper Zoppot - The Bayreuth Of The North - 99 Singers
    Label: Preiser Records   Catalog: 89406 Release Date: 10/24/2000   Number of Discs: 4
    Composer:  Engelbert Humperdinck,  Carl Maria von Weber,  Ruggero Leoncavallo,  Richard Wagner  ... 
    Performer:  Claire Dux,  Robert Hager,  Tiana Lemnitz,  Ludwig Hofmann  ... 
    On sale! $104.98
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  • 115.
    Sopranos - Callas, Sutherland, Price And Caballe
    Sopranos - Callas, Sutherland, Price And Caballe
    Label: Columbia River Entertainment   Catalog: 315002 Release Date: 10/17/2000   Number of Discs: 3
    Composer:  Gioachino Rossini,  Giacomo Puccini,  Giuseppe Verdi,  George Frideric Handel  ... 
    Performer:  Dame Joan Sutherland,  Monica Sinclair,  Maria Callas,  Franco Corelli  ... 
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  • 116.
    Wagner: Lohengrin, Meistersinger - Overtures, Preludes, Etc
    Wagner: Lohengrin, Meistersinger - Overtures, Preludes, Etc
    Label: Dg Panorama   Catalog: 469226 Release Date: 10/17/2000   Number of Discs: 2
    Composer:  Richard Wagner
    Performer:  Placido Domingo,  Kurt Moll,  Birgit Nilsson,  Roberto Banuelas  ... 
    Conductor:  James Levine,  Karl Böhm,  Giuseppe Sinopoli,  Claudio Abbado
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Metropolitan Opera Orchestra,  Bayreuth Festival Orchestra,  Berlin Deutsche Oper Chorus  ... 
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  • 117.
    Wagner: Wesendonk Lieder, Arias / Varady, Fischer-dieskau
    Wagner: Wesendonk Lieder, Arias / Varady, Fischer-dieskau
    Label: Orfeo   Catalog: 467981 Release Date: 09/16/2000   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Richard Wagner
    Performer:  Julia Varády
    Conductor:  Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin
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  • 118.
    Wagner Gala / Knappertsbusch, Flagstad, Nilsson, London
    Wagner Gala / Knappertsbusch, Flagstad, Nilsson, London
    Label: London/Decca Opera Gala Series   Catalog: 458238 Release Date: 08/08/2000   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Richard Wagner
    Performer:  Birgit Nilsson,  George London,  Kirsten Flagstad,  Grace Hoffman
    Conductor:  Hans Knappertsbusch
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra
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  • 119.
    Wagner: Tristan Und Isolde - Bayreuth 1928 / Graarud, Et Al
    Wagner: Tristan Und Isolde - Bayreuth 1928 / Graarud, Et Al
    Label: Preiser Records   Catalog: 90383 Release Date: 02/22/2000   Number of Discs: 2
    Composer:  Richard Wagner
    Performer:  Nanny Larsen-Todsen,  Anny Helm,  Gustav Rödin,  Rudolf Bockelmann  ... 
    Conductor:  Karl Elmendorff
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Bayreuth Festival Orchestra,  Bayreuth Festival Chorus
    On sale! $46.98
    CD: $35.99
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  • 120.
    Kirsten Flagstad - The Great Arias - Beethoven, Weber, Et Al
    Kirsten Flagstad - The Great Arias - Beethoven, Weber, Et Al
    Label: Pearl   Catalog: 34 Release Date: 07/20/1999   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Carl Maria von Weber,  Robert Franz,  Richard Wagner,  Ludwig van Beethoven  ... 
    Performer:  Kirsten Flagstad,  Edwin McArthur
    Conductor:  Eugene Ormandy,  Hans Lange
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Philadelphia Orchestra,  Orchestra
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  • 121.
    Helen Traubel and Lauritz Melchior Sing Wagner
    Helen Traubel and Lauritz Melchior Sing Wagner
    Label: Sony Classical Masterworks   Catalog: 60896 Release Date: 06/29/1999   Number of Discs: 2
    Composer:  Richard Wagner
    Performer:  Helen Traubel,  Lauritz Melchior,  Herbert Janssen,  Torsten Ralf  ... 
    Conductor:  Artur Rodzinski,  Robert Kinsky,  Erich Leinsdorf,  Fritz Busch  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  New York Philharmonic,  Buenos Aires Teatro Colón Orchestra,  Columbia Opera Orchestra  ... 
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  • 122.
    Kirsten Flagstad - The Voice Of The Century - Songs & Arias
    Kirsten Flagstad - The Voice Of The Century - Songs & Arias
    Label: Simax   Catalog: 1820 Release Date: 03/11/1999   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Traditional,  Johannes Brahms,  Richard Strauss,  Henry Purcell  ... 
    Performer:  Kirsten Flagstad,  Sigvart Fotland,  Waldemar Alme,  Edwin McArthur  ... 
    Conductor:  Georges Sebastian,  Geraint Jones,  Fritz Reiner,  Wilhelm Furtwängler  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Italian Radio Symphony Orchestra,  Mermaid Orchestra,  San Francisco Symphony Orchestra  ... 
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  • 123.
    The Harold Wayne Collection Vol 32 - Walker, Wildbrunn
    The Harold Wayne Collection Vol 32 - Walker, Wildbrunn
    Label: Symposium   Catalog: 1229 Release Date: 12/15/1998   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Carl Maria von Weber,  James L. Molloy,  Richard Wagner,  Giacomo Puccini  ... 
    Performer:  Helene Wildbrunn,  Edyth Walker
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Orchestra
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  • 124.
    The Ultimate Divas Album
    The Ultimate Divas Album
    Label: Decca   Catalog: 460596 Release Date: 09/15/1998   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Gioachino Rossini,  Richard Wagner,  Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart,  Georges Bizet  ... 
    Performer:  Marilyn Horne,  Cecilia Bartoli,  Birgit Nilsson,  Kirsten Flagstad  ... 
    Conductor:  Henry Lewis,  Riccardo Chailly,  Hans Knappertsbusch,  Sir Georg Solti  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Royal Opera House Covent Garden Orchestra,  Bologna Teatro Comunale Chorus,  Bologna Teatro Comunale Orchestra  ... 
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  • 125.
    Von Der Königlichen Hofoper Zur Staatsoper Unter Den Linden
    Von Der Königlichen Hofoper Zur Staatsoper Unter Den Linden
    Label: Preiser Records   Catalog: 89403 Release Date: 07/21/1998   Number of Discs: 4
    Composer:  Carl Maria von Weber,  Ruggero Leoncavallo,  Richard Wagner,  Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart  ... 
    Performer:  Tiana Lemnitz,  Josef Mann,  Ludwig Suthaus,  Paula Buchner  ... 
    On sale! $104.98
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