Götterdämmerung: To End at the Beginning, with Jeffrey Buller, a Zoom Presentation

Vimeo Link: https://vimeo.com/666545187

Saturday January 15th at 1:00 Pacific Time with Jeffrey Buller and his presentation Götterdämmerung: To End at the Beginning. This will be a Zoom Webinar. Götterdämmerung has, of course, one of the most famous endings in all of operatic history. But how did that ending come about? By exploring the gradual evolution of Brünnhilde’s immolation scene, we come to recognize certain patterns that are present, not just in the final work of the Ring, but in all the preceding operas of the cycle. We also gain insight into how Wagner wove together concepts he drew from German and Scandinavian literature, Greek epics and tragedy, Eastern and nineteenth-century philosophy, the politics of his time, and other sources to create a work that operates on many different levels simultaneously and that constantly brings audiences new experiences through different performances and stagings.
Wisconsin and has held academic or administrative positions at Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa, Georgia Southern University in Statesboro, Georgia, Mary Baldwin College in Staunton, Virginia, and Florida Atlantic University in Palm Beach County, Florida. Known to different publics as a classicist, scholar of Wagnerian music drama, and expert in academic administration, Dean Buller has lectured and performed consultancies all over the world. From 2003-2005, he served as the English language lecturer at the International Wagner Festival in Bayreuth, Germany. Since 2009, he has worked closely with King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals and the Ministry of Education in Saudi Arabia, providing administrative training and helping to create a comprehensive new Academic Leadership Center.