How on earth did you Stumble into my Classical Section MP!!...
Is no genre safe from your visitations.
I like Wagner, but only the Orchestral highlights of his massive Operas, and he was a major force in the advancement of the scale of classical music and the orchestras as well.
He would have been a Heavy Metal guitarist if he were born in the 70's I would bet my life on it.
How on earth did you Stumble into my Classical Section MP!!...
Is no genre safe from your visitations.
I like Wagner, but only the Orchestral highlights of his massive Operas, and he was a major force in the advancement of the scale of classical music and the orchestras as well.
He would have been a Heavy Metal guitarist if he were born in the 70's I would bet my life on it.
I like Wagner, but only the Orchestral highlights of his massive Operas, and he was a major force in the advancement of the scale of classical music and the orchestras as well.
Yes, precisely my sentiments!
I don't have a copy of the "Flying Dutchman" though. I'll have to go out a get one. I have a Flying Dutchman collector plate though! I love those eighteenth and early nineteenth century sailing ships!
Great picture Hep, I have a big painting on my bedroom wall of a sailing ship.
I only have one of Wagner's CD's, I'll post my cover later I have to scan it first. I'll see if I can find the "Dutchmen" without words and give it a spin.D
Almost impossible to follow Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd, but here goes nothing...
I have two Wagner albums, unless you are an opera buff, then most of his compositions are not going to work for you. However for us die hard music fans many orchestral versions are available without singing, such as the album I am posting now.
Highlights from his most epic work, "The Ring Cycle".
It took me a while to get used to classically trained "operatic" singing, but it was worth it. It didn't take me quite as long to get used to the opera being sung in a foreign language (probably a good thing, because I've never liked operas that are in English).
Once you get past those hurdles, and assuming that you have a modicum of interest in classical music in the first place, the next thing to do is find a composer whose work you like well enough to really, really get into it. All composers have a recognizable "style"...just as you cannot mistake the Beatles when they come on the radio, so you should be able to recognize your favorite composer in the same way
As for me, I chose to focus on the work of Richard Wagner. More specifically his 4 opera cycle, "The Ring of the Nibelung". It's a sprawling and intimidating piece of music and requires a lot of attention. But little by little you start to get a feel for it. The way the vocal melody lines play with the orchestra, they interact to a degree you won't find often in other operas. The way Wagner conjures up darkness and gravity through his music. The recurring themes (called motifs) that are designed to help tell the story through musical symbolism. As for those vocal melodies, they are everywhere and rarely repeat themselves, so you have more of a running dialogue rather than a collection of songs. As such, I don't recommend "without words" recordings for anyone who wants to get really serious with the music. The casual listener will find much to enjoy in the instrumental releases, but if you're gonna go for the gusto you have to skip to the real meat and potatoes, no matter how difficult it may seem or how sure you are that you won't like it. You might be surprised.
I've got a few operas but not a full Wagner one yet - sure it'll happen eventually though. Plenty of his themes are ingrained in popular culture - not least over here.
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I've fallen off the edge of the world / I've fallen from the top of the mountain / Just to rise again // I've seen it from heaven and hell / I've seen it through the eyes of a stargazer // I want to be invisible / Just get me out of here / Could the dreamer be turning to stone // Rock and roll eyes / The keeper of rainbows / Collector of lies / Rock and roll eyes / My eyes
I have tried Jackory, not with Wagner so much but Rossini, Verdi, Mozart, and a few others but I just have a hard time with the singing. I don't speak Italian or German, just a little French but I do love the music without the singing. I almost bought an analog box 30 years ago that was specifically designed to "remove" the vocals from opera records... I didn't though, I might give The Ring a chance, of all the operas it seems to have the most depth to it.
There is a world of difference between Italian opera and the Wagnerian stripe. I don't think Wagner even liked to have his works called "operas". I'm pretty sure his preferred term was "Drama with Music" or maybe it was "Musical Drama".
At any rate, it seems like the biggest hurdle most people have is the operatic singing. I don't know how it is with most people who like this kind of music, but it DID take me a long, long time to get used to the singing. Even now I don't think I'm to the point where I can actually say I appreciate each individual singer's voice and I don't know that I'll EVER "prefer" it to more conventional vocal styles. But I eventually did overcome it.
My two cents: definitely start with the Ring cycle. Don't worry about hearing it in it's entirety. Just break everything down into comfortable lengths, listen as often as you can so you can get the motifs set in your head. Once you have a grip on the motifs (not saying you have to know what they signify) the rest of it falls into place.
I will think about it Jackory...it is funny I Like chorale accompaniment in symphonic music, Lieders/Arias not so much. But I love Carmina Burana, it is so much fun so there is a little singing in my classical collection.
What version of "The Ring" do you recommend or have yourself?
Check this out, simply amazing! The singing is beyond incredible:
Here is something else fun to watch.Solti and the CSO performing the Tannhauser Overture. I love the "Pilgrim's Chorus" when performed with singers, but at 2:40 in, listen to those glorious trombones!
Richard Wagner!! 
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