From: gpalo@digi.lonestar.org (Gerry Palo)
Newsgroups: rec.music.classical
Subject: Re: Length of Wagner's operas (was librettos ....)
Date: 13 Nov 92 00:19:15 GMT
Organization: DSC Communications Corp, Plano, TX

To Chris Ischay,

One more outpouring of my opinions (after an earlier serious 
one and the humorous plot summary).  You are right that the 
characters are not "human".  They are gods and demigods and 
archetypal Man.  The action is not simply "inner" but outer 
in a cosmic spiritual sense.  The slowness and grandness of 
the action is in proportion to the size of the setting (heaven 
and earth) and the characters (gods=archangels).  For this same
reason I believe that the plot is not silly if the execution
grasps its profounder meaning.

In a word, the Ring is a mythological epic of the Fall
of Man, or at least one aspect of it.  It closes with the
hope for Man's ultimate redemption.  These are not addressed
in the Ring but in Tristan (transforming power of love) and 
finally Parzifal. If you have no connection to these ideas
from a religious point of view, then Wagner is a good way 
to get a right orientation to them in something of their
true depth and magnitude.

There is a real advantage to listening to recordings of these operas 
intently and consciously (and over a period of time), following
the text as best you can.  Wagner's concept of the Total
Work of Art notwithstanding, it seems to me that any staging
of these operas is doomed to fall short of their content.
Not that one day someone won't succeed. But the traditional
stagings in Wagner's time are as stilted as the modern
"psychological" and "social commentary" and "abstract" 
approaches are insipid. Not that there is no inner psycho-
logical drama there, but that doesn't touch the essence
or the greatness of it, in my opinion.  However, the music
itself has no such problems and can go a long way to aid
the imagination.

By the way, the swan in Lohengrin is a classic example of a
magnificent symbol-picture that might be executed in a painting
but which becomes absurd on the stage. You have to picture it
bigger, more beautiful, and more ethereal than anything con-
cretely physical.  Maybe a Chinese pen drawing could render
it properly, only it needs lots of flowing color.  The point
is you can make these pictures in your mind if you steep 
yourself in the imagery of the story and music.  The swan is a 
special bird among nordic peoples.  It is very much connected 
with the crossing of the threshold between the physical and
spiritual worlds.  Think of Sibelius's Swan of Tuonnela.

As for the Ring would be a good idea to look into the original 
Niebelungenlied, to which Wagner made a number of changes
in casting it for the stage.  Also, you might want to read
a modern "Ring" epic, Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings". That
has something of the same mood and sweep of Wagner's opera
and is very readable.

Thanks for your posting and the intelligent discussion it 
gave rise to.  It stimulates me to look again into these
operas after many years.  I hope that among the different
recommendations posted you will find something to help
you in your search for Wagner.

Best regards,
Gerry Palo (73237.2006@compuserve.com)
Newsgroups: rec.music.classical