Join the Wagner Society of Northern California in celebration of Richard Wagner's Birthday. We are gathering immediately following the West Bay Opera performance of Flying Dutchman on Sunday May 28th at: Bistro Maxine - in Palo Alto's historic downtown 548 Ramona Street Palo Alto, CA Ramona Street is pedestrian only, however, there are parking lots… Continue reading Richard Wagner Birthday Reception
HERE IS THE LINK TO THE ARCHIVAL RECORDING OF THIS EVENT: https://youtu.be/JgYsw8359uQ In this Zoom Webinar, we get to know heldentenor Clay Hilley. Praised in The New York Times for his “vocal heft, clarion sound and stamina,” by de Volkskrant for a “sublime” voice, in the Financial Times for his “extraordinary energy and stamina,” and… Continue reading Heldentenor Clay Hilley in Conversation
HERE IS THE LINK TO THE ARCHIVAL VIDEO OF THIS EVENT: https://youtu.be/HBQ0gCHIFo4 Strauss's collaboration with the poet and dramatist Hugo von Hofmannsthal on Elektra (1909) spawned a creative relationship that swiftly moved in new stylistic directions with Der Rosenkavalier (1911) and Ariadne auf Naxos (1912). Ideas that would lead to Die Frau ohne Schatten (1919)… Continue reading Strauss’s Evolving Relationship with Wagner’s Creative Legacy with Katherine Syer
HERE IS THE LINK TO THE ARCHIVAL VIDEO OF THIS PROGRAM: https://youtu.be/Q-6QGZN62jk Lohengrin is, arguably, the Wagnerian music drama that is most closely tied to the time in which it was composed. In dramatic form, staging, and in much of the music, Lohengrin appealed directly to mid-19th century audience tastes; thematically it also engaged with… Continue reading Lohengrin in the 21st Century: The Challenge of Production with Simon Williams
A Musical Evening with Heldentenor Simon O'Neill Monday October 30, 2023 REGISTRATION FOR THIS EVENT IS NOW CLOSED. THANK YOU FOR YOUR INTEREST. Simon O'Neill participated in the San Francisco… Continue reading A Musical Evening with Heldentenor Simon O’Neill
Our next meeting will take place at the JCC-SF on Saturday, November 11th at 1:00 p.m. This is a Member's Meeting and we have 5 member volunteers who will make… Continue reading WSNC Member’s Meeting – Members share their Wagner Memories from 2023
Our first Member's Meeting for 2024 will be a film presentation. Our film is entitled "The Flying Dutchman, Fire and Ice" In this film we will be introduced to a… Continue reading Flying Dutchman – a video presentation
HERE IS THE LINK TO THE ARCHIVAL VIDEO OF THIS EVENT: https://youtu.be/QhtFRauyy64 Maestro Jonathan McPhee is an artist in residence at Boston University, the Music Director of the Lexington Symphony… Continue reading Jonathan McPhee – Ring Reduction for Piano
HERE IS AN ARCHIVAL VIDEO OF THIS EVENT: https://youtu.be/0aZ9G6X549Q As Wagnerians, we are drawn to the Bayreuth Festival to see innovative opera productions and enjoy its special… Continue reading Bayreuth, A History with Emma Popek
The Society will have a documentary film presentation. The recent screening of Flying Dutchman Fire and Ice was quite a success so we will present another film by Werner Boote.… Continue reading Parsifal – A Documentary Film
HERE IS THE LINK TO THE ARCHIVAL VIDEO OF THIS PROGRAM: https://youtu.be/lJ_atae246U The Wagner Society welcomes West Edge Opera Music Director Jonathan Khuner who will introduce us to “Legend of… Continue reading West Edge Opera – “Legend of the Ring” An Introduction with Jonathan Khuner
Join your fellow Wagnerians for a festive celebration of Richard’s 211th Birthday! We will gather at the Sunset Brewing Company to toast “the Master” and enjoy a delicious repast while… Continue reading The Wagner Society of Northern California Richard’s Birthday Celebration
Paul Heise’s zoom talk “How Elsa Showed Wagner the Way to Siegfried” is an update of his article of the same name originally published in the May, 1995 issue of Wagner, the peer-reviewed journal of The Wagner Society (London, UK). Its subject is how Wagner’s last traditional opera Lohengrin paved the way for Wagner’s revolutionary music-drama… Continue reading How Elsa Showed Wagner the Way to Siegfried – A Zoom Lecture with Paul Heise
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Our traditional Wagnerian Celebration returns once more to the Classic Marines’ Memorial Club and Hotel. This year, in addition to a festive repast served in the beautiful Crystal Lounge, the musical program will feature a performance by current Adler Fellows, Sadie Cheslak and Ji Youn Lee. Mezzo-soprano Sadie Cheslak, a first-year Adler Fellow at the… Continue reading 2026 Cosima Wagner Holiday Celebration Brunch
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An erudite and engaging speaker, Leo Eylar returns for another fascinating lecture to the Society. His last talks with us covered “thematic transformation” – aka leitmotifs. This lecture will be a continue his examination of this key area of Wagner’s art, focusing on aspects of this subject that he did not have time to cover… Continue reading Leo Eylar Returns!
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Well known to Wagner Society members, Thomas Grey will examine the meaning and functions of the “ring” Wagner’s epic cycle. Grey is a Professor Emeritus of Musicology and by courtesy, German Studies, at Stanford University. His special fields of study are: Wagner, 19th-century opera, the history of musical aesthetics and criticism, Romantic music and visual culture.… Continue reading What does the Ring actually do in Wagner’s Ring Cycle? with Prof. Thomas Grey
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Join us for a Zoom meeting where Erica will examine the relationship between these two vastly different 19th-century composers. Wagner and Mendelssohn knew each other, and Wagner expressed admiration for Mendelssohn early on, but turned against him after his early death. Mendelssohn was a focus of Wagner’s infamous screed, Das Judenthum in der Musik (Jewishness in… Continue reading Wagner and Mendelssohn a Zoom talk with Erica Miner
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As the San Francisco Opera starts the monumental undertaking of producing Wagner’s Ring Cycle with performances of Das Rheingold this month, Katherine Syer’s presentation will enhance our experience with a talk focused on this pinnacle of musical and dramatic art. Further details on her talk will available later. Katherine Syer has taught at the University… Continue reading Aspects of the Ring with Katherine Syer
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