Chapter 55

German Opera of the 19th

Century: Weber and Wagner

The Life of Carl Maria von Weber (1786–1826)

• 1786 - born in a small German town near Hamburg

• 1803 - travels to Vienna to study with Michael Haydn

• 1804 - holds first conducting position, in opera theater in Breslau

• 1817 - conductor of German opera theater in Dresden

• 1821 - completes Der Freischütz, his most successful opera

• 1826 - dies in London, where he had traveled to see premiere of his opera Oberon

The Principal Compositions of Carl Maria von Weber

• Operas: including– Der Freischütz (The Bewitched

Marksman)– Euryanthe– Oberon

• Orchestra: symphonies (2), overtures, concertos (2 for clarinet, 2 for piano)

• Piano: sonatas, character pieces, variations

• Songs: about 80

• Chorus: masses, pieces for male chorus

Elements of Weber’s Der Freischütz

• Weber expands upon the old form of Singspiel to create an opera in which the dramatic element takes on a new emphasis.

• Makes the orchestra not simply an accompaniment, but a network of musical symbols, directly expressive.

• Wagner later develops these ideas further in his operas.

Principal Characters in Weber’s Opera Der Freischütz (1821)

• Max (tenor) – the hero, a forester

• Agathe (soprano) – Max’s beloved, daughter of the head forester,

Cuno

• Caspar (bass) – a forester, rival of Max

• Samiel (speaking role) – the devil, or “black huntsman”

Carl Maria von Weber, Der Freischütz, 1821, conclusion of the finale to Act 2

(Wolf’s Glen Scene)

Through-composed form

The Life of Richard Wagner (1811–1883)

• 1811 born in Leipzig, grows up in Dresden

• 1832 composes first opera (“The Wedding’)

• 1834 begins career of conductor in opera theaters

• 1839 moves to Paris to advance his career

• 1842 first success: Rienzi performed in Dresden, hired there as conductor

• 1849 flees to Zurich following an uprising in Dresden

• 1864 invited to Munich by King Ludwig II of Bavaria

• 1865 returns to Switzerland, near Lucerne

• 1872 moves to Bayreuth, construction of festival theater

• 1876 premiere of Der Ring des Nibelungen

• 1883 dies in Venice, buried in Bayreuth

Principal Compositions by Richard Wagner

• Operas:– Der fliegende Holländer (The Flying Dutchman)– Tannhäuser– Lohengrin– Der Ring des Nibelungen

• Das Rheingold (The Rhine Gold)• Die Walküre (The Valkyrie)• Siegfried• Götterdämmerung (Twilight of the Gods)

– Tristan und Isolde– Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg (The Mastersinger of Nuremberg)– Parsifal

• Orchestra: overtures, marches, early symphonies, Siegfried Idyll for chamber orchestra

• Songs: include the Five Poems for Female Voice to texts by Mathilde Wesendonk

• Piano: early sonatas and character pieces (especially Albumblätter)

Wagner’s Theories for Operatic Reform

• Elevate the quality of the text. Operas use text that Wagner wrote himself.

• Mingle poetry, music, and dance as equals to create an integrated “drama.”

• Diminish the importance of flamboyant, virtuosic singing.

• Eliminate musical numbers in favor of greater continuity.

• Make the orchestra expressive and symphonic, especially through symbolic motives.

Wagner’s Music and Theories of Opera

• Based texts on old German legends and stories which brought in the magical and supernatural.

• Wagner felt opera should become a Gesamkunstwerk (total art work)– He wanted place less emphasis on the drama in opera

and more on the musical element. – He called this music of the future.

• Wagner expands upon Weber’s idea of giving symbolic motives to the orchestra as a representation of a person or object in the drama – these figures are called leitmotives.

• Wagner’s music of the future proposed a new name for this genre called music drama.

Bayreuth

• Since late in the 19th century, the town of Bayreuth (pronounced “by-ROIT”) in central Germany has been synonymous with the art of Richard Wagner.

• In 1872 Wagner constructed a theater here to be devoted exclusively to the performance of his own works.

• In the summer of 1876 the building was complete and Wagner oversaw the first festival, with complete performances of his Der Ring des Nibelungen. The festivals have continued to the present day.

• The theater itself is utilitarian in appearance, although acoustically superb. The orchestra plays in a deeply sunken and recessed pit, making it invisible to the audience and allowing a better balance with the voices.

Characters in Wagner’s Opera Das Rheingold (1854)

• Rhinemaidens: – mermaids who live in the Rhine River, creatures of

nature

• Nibelung: – creatures who live in the earth, enslaved by the

ruthless Alberich, one of their own

• Gods: – led by Wotan, also Fricka (his wife), Freia (her

sister), Loge (Wotan’s advisor), Donner (his enforcer). Erda is the primal god of the earth

• Giants: – dull laborers who have built Valhalla

Richard Wagner, Das Rheingold, 1854, Entrance of the Gods into

Valhalla

Through-composed form