Personal Politics, Public Art

Personal Politics, Public ArtThe Case of Richard Wagner

Richard Wagner (1818-1883)OperasRienziDer fliegende HollnderTannhuserLohengrinDer Ring des NibelungenDas RheingoldDie WalkreSiegfriedGtterdmmerungTristan und Isolde Die Meistersinger von NrnbergParsifal

Politics, Society, MusicWagners music takes opera in a new direction Subjects based on Norse/Teutonic mythThemes of German cultural supremacyGesamtkunstwerkTotal sensory immersionLeitmotifs Musical signifiersWagner also publishes tracts on socio-politico-cultural and musical ideologies

Siegfried, 2008 Spanish production

Wagners Musico-Social Writings: A SelectionKunstwerk der Zukunft (Artwork of the Future)Theater-ReformDie Kunst und die RevolutionDas Judentum in der MusikOper und DramaWas ist deutsch?

Excerpted from Judentum in der Musik In the first place, then, the general circumstance that the Jew talks the modern European languages merely as learned, and not as mother tongues, must necessarily debar him from all capability of therein expressing himself idiomatically, independently, and conformably to his nature. A language, with its expression and its evolution, is not the work of scattered units, but of a historical community; only he who has unconsciously grown up within the bond of this community takes also any share in its creations. But the Jew has stood outside the pale of any such community, stood solitarily with his Jehova in a splintered, soilless stock, to which all self-sprung evolution must stay denied, just as even the peculiar (Hebraic) language of that stock has been preserved for him merely as a thing defunct. Now, to make poetry in a foreign tongue has hitherto been impossible, even to geniuses of highest rank.

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Excerpted from Judentum in der MusikFrom that turning point in our social evolution where money, with less and less disguise, was raised to the virtual patent of nobility, the Jewsto whom moneymaking without actual labor, that is usury, had been left as their only tradethe Jews not merely could no longer be denied the diploma of a new society that needed naught but gold, but they brought it accessible to no one but the well-to-do, remained the less a closed book to them, as it had sunk into a venal article of luxury. Henceforward, then, the cultured Jew appears in our society; his distinction from the uncultured, the common Jew, we now have closely to observe.

Discussion Topic #1Can Wagners political views and cultural ideologies be divorced from his artistic output?We are able to separate reprehensible ideologies and behaviors from many artists output. For example, the public has returned to consuming Chris Browns music, as evidenced by sales. Have we forgiven and forgotten his physical abuse of Rhianna? They are back together now. Do your personal beliefs have any implications on your artistic choices or creative works?

Wagners Stereotyped Characters

Beckmesser of Die Meistersinger von Nrnberg (Mastersingers of Nuremberg)

Mime of Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelung)

Case study: BeckmesserAntagonist characterComposes music by the rulesCannot compose music that is sensitive with the text, though it does adhere to the rulesDepicts Wagners belief that while Jews may learn to apply compositional rules, they cannot internalize the art and create organicallyExample: Beckmessers Serenade

Discussion Topic #2Should we perform works with characterizations that are offensive to our sensibilities? If so, how?Can and should production choices de/emphasize these potentially offensive elements?Where do we draw the line on what is too offensive to stage? What about negative portrayals of women, a pervasive operatic trope?What about negative portrayals of other demographic groups?

Wagner and the Third Reich Wagners ideologies of German cultural supremacy could be, and indeed were, extended to match the Nazi philosophyTo rephrase: Nazis appropriated Wagners musicWagners music (and that of other German composers, for example, Beethoven) was played at Nazi work and concentration camps as morale boosters for soldiers/officers, emphasizing German cultureAs a result, this became the soundtrack for the prisoners as they were stripped of every human right, and eventually their lives

Discussion Topic #3Should the association of Wagner with Nazism Wagner prevent us from performing his music?In Israel, a policy of waiting until after the last Holocaust survivor is deceased has been explored. What are the benefits and down sides of this, both conceptually and in practical terms?

The Nazis also appropriated Beethoven, but we dont seem to mind playing Beethovens music, and even use it for positive occasions (like the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989). Why is Wagners music such a hot-button issue?