MUSC 446: The Music of Wagner: Websites & Films

Six talks at Harvard by Leonard Bernstein, including Lecture IV. The Delights and dangers of ambiguity (142 min.) Explorations of new tonal fields by composers of the Romantic era. Musical illustrations from Berlioz, Wagner, and Debussy.

Biographical drama of composer Richard Wagner. Mini-series, 4 videodiscs (540 min.)

An in-depth, behind the scenes look at the work of stage designers and stage crew as they prepare for a performance of Richard Wagner's operas, the Ring Cycle.

An operatic portrait of Ludwig II, the 19th century mad king of Bavaria. Tormented by his unrequited love for his cousin, Empress Elisabeth of Austria, coupled with his obsession for the music of Wagner, Ludwig retreats into a fantasy world. (Italian with English subtitles)

A rock music extravaganza fantasizing the musical and erotic life of Franz Liszt.

10 short films based on operatic arias, including Liebestod from Tristan und Isolde.

Recounts the life and sins of the mistress of Franz Liszt and the King of Bavaria. (In French with English Subtitles)

An episode from Faerie Tale Theatre that shows the story that inspired Wagner's Siegfried.

Wagner's dream takes you deep into the artistic and musical challenges of the epic Ring des Nibelungen by Richard Wagner. Visionary director Robert Lepage begins a five-year journey to create the most ambitious staging in Metropolitan Opera history, featuring a 90,000-pound set ("The Machine") conceived to meet Wagner's immense theatrical demands.

Mozart

Clara and Robert Schumann (In German with English subtitles)

Beethoven

Chopin, Liszt

Mahler

Gilbert and Sullivan

The tale of [an anti-Wagnerian] composer who sells his soul to Satan to ensure his own creativity... based on the Thomas Mann novel. (In German w/ English subtitles)

In part one, Siegfried wins the hand of Kriemhilde by slaying the dragon and defeating Brunhilde. When Brunhilde learns that magic has been used to conquer her, she has Siegfried murdered. In part two, Kriemhilde seeks revenge for Siegfried's death and marries Attila, king of the Huns, in order to further her purpose.

The finale of Lang's 1924 two-part interpretation of the Nibelungenlied. Siegfried's death is avenged by the woman he loved.

Tristan and Isolde by Richard Wagner. This 1929 French motion picture has no narration; music soundtrack was added in 1960 on the instructions of Luis Buñuel.

A stylized film adaptation of Chretien de Troyes' 12th century Arthurian romance featuring the knight Perceval. (In French with English subtitles)