THE WAGNER SOCIETY
presents
The Sorcerer of Bayreuth: RichardWagner, hisWork and hisWorld.
WEDNESDAY 3rd OCTOBER 2012 at 7:00 FOR 7:30pm
Barry Millington will give an illustrated talk on his new book
“The power of Wagner's music to enchant, to cast a spell, to transport the listener
to states of hedonistic delight, has often been remarked--sometimes appreciatively
and sometimes not. Indeed, no other composer arouses such fiercely divergent responses
as Richard Wagner. For Baudelaire, Wagner's music induced a feeling of being engulfed,
intoxicated. For Nietzsche, Wagner was like a disease: "Everything he touches falls
sick."
“In The Sorcerer of Bayreuth Barry Millington, a leading authority on Wagner, presents
an engaging, accessibly written overview of the life and works one of the world's
most influential and controversial composers. This richly illustrated book considers
a wide range of themes, including Wagner’s original sources of inspiration, his compositional
process; his relationship with his wife, Cosima, and with his mistress, Mathilde
Wesendonck, his perplexing ideology, the anti-Semitism that is undeniably present
in the operas, their proto-cinematic nature and the turbulent legacy both of the
Bayreuth Festival and of Wagnerism itself.
Drawing on the very latest biographical and musicological scholarship, Millington
reassesses received notions about both Wagner’s life and his music, demolishing tired
clichés and ill-informed opinion in favour of proper critical understanding. The
Sorcerer of Bayreuth offers readers a fascinating reappraisal of this most provocative
of composers and the incomparable music he made.”
(From Thames and Hudson publicity material)
Note: Thames & Hudson will make available copies of The Sorcerer of Bayreuth, at
the meeting . Members will be able to buy them at a discounted price of £15 (rrp
£24.95) and Barry will be happy to sign them for any members who would like him to
do so.
Tickets - £12 (£6 students)
Please send a cheque in favour of The Wagner Society, along with a stamped addressed
envelope to
Mike Morgan, 9 West Court, Downley, High Wycombe, Bucks HP13 5TG
e-mail: treasurer@wagnersociety.org
7pm for 7:30pm at Portland Place School Sixth Form Centre, 5th Floor, 143
Great Portland Street, London,W1W 6QN.
You are also most welcome to pay at the door.
Nearest underground – Great Portland Street (Metropolitan, Circle and Hammersmith
& City Lines)
Buses: 27, C 2, 88, 30, 205, 453, 18
