Iain Scott, on "Richard Wagner and the
Inspiration of Italy"
- Thursday, September 15, 2005, at 7:30 pm, at the
George Washinton University Monroe Hall; 2115 G Street, NW.
Iain Scott, one of Canada's most popular opera educators and a
frequent guest on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's Saturday Afternoon at the Opera,
gave a video-illustrated lecture on the influence of the Mediterranean psyche on Richard Wagner.
What Do I Listen for Next? Wagner Society Board Member Phillip W. Raines led a series of (non-Wagner Society) events accompanying the Second Cycle of the Seattle Opera's production of Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen. The events included a banquet and seminars.
Tristan und Isolde Weekend
- Friday-Sunday, February 11-13, 2005.
The Wagner Society of Washington DC (WSWDC) joined forces with the
Smithsonian Resident Associate Program for a very successful two-day seminar with leading Wagner
experts followed by a performance by the Virginia Opera of Tristan und Isolde, which
included singers Thomas Rolf Truhitte and Charles Robert Austin -- two participants in the Evelyn
Lear and Thomas Stewart Emerging Singers Program. See details on the
Seminar page.
Gala Benefit -- Honoring James Morris
bass-baritone,
Recipient of the 2005 Wagner Society Award
- June 8, 2005, at The Grand Hyatt hotel, Washington DC.
The Gala Benefit program featured a silent auction; the
presentation of the Wagner Society Award to James Morris, by Thomas
Stewart (pictured, respectively, left.); and a vocal performance by
guest artist, David Smith, from the Evelyn Lear and Thomas Stewart Emerging Singers Program, who was introduced by Evelyn
Lear. A light buffet and complimentary open bar were included.
See another picture of Morris and Stewart,
presenting the award.
Wagner in der Wildnis, V Die Meistersinger
- Friday, June 3 - Sunday, June 5, 2005, at Cacapon Resort State
Park, Berkeley Springs, West Virginia.
Building on the success of our four previous Wildnis weekends, 50
attendees arrived at our fifth weekend of learning, fun, and sharing our pleasure in studying
Wagner's works -- this time: his only comedy, Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg. We
were again very privileged to have Pianist Jeffrey Swann and Professor Simon Williams, both
highly demanded, popular veterans of previous "Wildnis"weekends.
See a larger picture of Jeffrey Swann, noted pianist
and Bayreuth lecturer, speaking to Wildnis participants at Cacapn Springs WV.
See also, a picture of favorite Wildnis lecturers, Jeffrey
Swann, pianist, and Simon Williams, (crowned!) Professor of Theater, (center, on either side of
the lovely red-head, and participants following the reading of the libretto, directed by Board
member, Betty Byrne.
The Tenth Evelyn Lear and Thomas Sewart Emerging Singers
Concert
- Friday, May 27, 2005, 7:30 pm, at the German Embassy.
Under the honorary patronage of Ambassador Ischinger of the Federal Republic
of Germany, the Wagner Society of Washington DC presented the tenth Emerging
Singers Concert to an over-flow audience. An artists' reception followed. The concert consisted
of an all-Wagner program of selections from Tannhäuser, Die Walküre, Siegfried, Das
Rheingold, Lohengrin, Tristan und Isolde, and Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg. These
selections were performed by six American singers with potential for distinguished careers
singing Wagner's music.
See the larger view of this picture of the participants including Thomas Stewart and Evelyn Lear (2nd and
6th from left). View a copy of the music program.
See more information on the Wagner Society's Emerging Singers Program (ESP) on this site.
William Berger, auther of "Wagner Without Fear"
- Thursday, April 14, 2005, at Funger Hall, The George Washington
University
William Berger, lecturer, contributor to NPR, and author of opera libretti and
"Wagner Without Fear" and "Verdi with a Vengence" returned to tell the audience
more about Wagner.
Dana Gioia, Chairman, National Endowment for the Arts
- Thursday, March 17, 2005, at Funger Hall, The George
Washington University
Tristan und Isolde Weekend
Phillip W. Raines, on "Tristan und Isolde: The
Music Drama in Which Nothing Happens? A Productional Challenge"
- Thursday, January 13, 2005, The George Washington University
Phil Raines, popular lecturer and Member of the Board of the Wagner Society,
in a multi-media presentation, demonstrated that in composing Tristan und Isolde Richard Wagner
created a great drama although very little really happens on the stage. Mr. Raines used video and
audio examples from several productions of this great work.
|
Simon Morrison, on "Tchaikovsky's Miracle"
- Thursday, December 9, 2004, The George Washington University Simon Morrison, Assistant Professor, Department of Music, Princeton University, and author of Russian Opera and the Symbolist Movement, several essay-reviews, pieces for the New York Times, Arts & Leisure, and articles on Ravel, Prokofiev, Scriabin, and Shostakovich, was the December speaker. He explained why Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty which premiered in 1890, just seven years after Richard Wagner's death, is the very antithesis of Wagner's teachings and music. |
Paul Fryer, Distinguished film scholar and critic
- Thursday, November 11, 2004, at The George Washington University
Dr. Fryer, a Senior Lecturer at Rose Buford College, Britain's main provider of
degree-level education and training in theatre arts, returned to the Wagner Society season. He
presented a lecture-screening of the 1912 silent film, The Life of Richard Wagner, with a new
orchestral score. Dr. Fryer is an expert on opera, opera singers, and the silent-film industry. In 2001
he presented the 1904 film version of Parsifal in a lecture hosted jointly by the WSWDC and the
Library of Congress.
Professor Oswald George Bauer
- Thursday, October 21, 2004, at Funger Hall, The
George Washington University
Oswald Georg Bauer, General Secretary of the Bavarian Academy of
Fine Arts in Munich, spoke on "The False Prophet: The Premiere Production of Le
Prophète in Paris and Wagner's Strategy of Denunciation".
Professor Bauer has had a long association with the Bayreuth Festival. He is the author of the classic,
Richard Wagner: The Stage Designs and Productions from the Premières to the Present.
His Washington visit was in connection with an extensive lecture tour of the United States.
Dana Gioia, Chairman of the National Endowment
for the Arts
NOTE! This lecture has been POSTPONED.
(Our August 2004 Newsletter was published before this lecture was postponed.)
9th Emerging Singers Concert
- Friday, October 8, 2004, at the German Embassy, Washington
DC
An outstanding roster of singers was selected by Evelyn Lear
and Thomas Stewart for the 9th ESP Concert. Mezzo Roxanne Rowedder returned
to perform Waltraute's Narrative (Götterdämmerung, Act I). Tenor Brian
Carter, in his first ESP Concert appearance, sang Winterstürme and Siegmund
bin ich (Die Walküre, Act I). Baritone Jason Switzer performed for the first time
in an ESP Concert singing Wotan's Abendlich strahlt der Sonnne Auge (Das Rheingold).
Rowedder and Switzer sang the Fricka-Wotan scene (Die Walküre, Act I). Tenor
David Smith, who sang Winterstürme and the Schmiede Lied at the 6th
Annual Banquet and Award Ceremony sang Nur eine Waffe taugt (Parsifal). Smith,
Switzer, Carter, and Matt Lepold combined their talents to sing The Song Contest
(Tannhäuser).
John DiGaetani, Professor, Hofstra University, on
Wagner and Suicide
- Thursday, September 23, 2004, The George Washington
University
John Louis DiGaetani, Professor of English, prolific author of numerous
books (including Richard Wagner and the Modern British Novel, Invitation to the Opera, and,
the latest, Wagner and Suicide) and essays on literature and music, engaged the audience
on the subject of his most recent book. This was the opening program of the Wagner Society's
2004/2005 program year.
The Wagner Society of Washington DC
P.O. Box 33051
Washington DC 20033
Phone: 301-907-2600 FAX: 301-907-8671
http://www.wagner-dc.org
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