Program for 2026
21st March. ‘Back to Opera Again’: Some problems in the text and music of Götterdämmerung. A talk by distinguished scholar Michael Ewens.
“In 1898 Bernard Shaw diagnosed two features which make Götterdämmerung problematic as the conclusion of the Ring; the origin of the text in the libretto for a ‘Grand Heroic Opera’, which had originally been conceived as a stand-alone opera in 1848, and the stylistic problems of the music, which was composed in the early 1870s after a break of twelve years since the composition of Siegfried Act II. These musical problems revolve around three aspects of the new and different use of what Wagner called ‘motifs of reminiscence’. This illustrated paper assesses the problematic features first of the text and then of the music.” ME
3:00 pm Performance Studio, Radio 4MBS Classic FM, 384 Old Cleveland Road, Coorparoo. Door Fee: $20 for Wagner Society members and $25 for guests. Please transfer payment to Bank of Queensland, BSB 124021, Account No. 22612919. Quote your surname and month. Please advise our Secretary Alpha Yap at alphayap60@gmail.com of the transfer and the names of any guests. The meeting will be followed by afternoon tea.
Left: A scene from the 1976 Bayreuth Centenary Ring directed by Patrice Chéreau, staged as an allegory on the evils of capitalism and industrialization. Right: Bernard Shaw, writer and Fabian Socialist, who attended Bayreuth in 1889, 1894, 1896 and 1908 and wrote The Perfect Wagnerite (published in 1898 with later editions in 1901, 1913 and 1922).
18th April. An interactive session led by Simon Buchanan together with selected professional musicians discussing and illustrating the challenges of performing Wagner’s music from within the orchestra.
16th May. “Wagner Day” at 4MBS as part of their Festival of Classics. Details to follow.
23rd May. A public recital as part of the 4MBS Festival of Classics by our Patron the acclaimed Wagnerian Heldentenor Bradley Daley at St Mary’s Church, Kangaroo Point, followed by drinks and nibbles on the lawn to celebrate Wagner’s birthday (the day before).
20th June. A talk with Patrick Nolan, CEO and Artistic Director of Opera Queensland.
18th July. Talk by Peter Bassett entitled ‘Enlightenment through Suffering and Love’, with specific reference to Götterdämmerung.
15th August. A lecture/recital on ‘Liszt and Wagner’ presented by Alpha Yap together with virtuoso pianist John Granger Fisher.
19th September. An illustrated talk by Stephen Emmerson on ‘Hagen’s Watch’ – the Dark Side in Götterdämmerung.
17th October. Cinema screening of an Act of a Wagner opera (details to be confirmed).
14th November. Our AGM followed by a talk by Robert Feldman on “Wagner’s influence on the modern movie soundtrack with specific focus on the works of Erich Wolfgang Korngold”.