Events

This lecture trace themes helping to pin down Wagner musical eroticism: (1) how Wagner’s erotics were understood in the 19th century; (2) what Wagner thought he was doing in writing music which was explicitly arousing; (3) how Wagner represented the erotic in music; (4) how we can reconstruct aspects of Wagner’s own unusual sexuality; and (5) how Wagner’s unusual views on same-sex love found their way into his music. Along the way, I’ll be highlighting some Munich personalities who figure specially in this story especially Alfred Pringsheim and Thomas Mann. Audio examples will help help amplify the narrative. The idea is to reconstruct the relevant historical and aesthetic issues without neglecting the power and beauty of Wagner's music.

Professor Laurence Dreyfus is emeritus professor at the University of Oxford. Professor Dreyfus is the author of the award-winning book ‘Wagner and the Erotic Impulse’, which was the American Musicology Society best book of the year in 2010. Professor Dreyfus is both a noted Bach and Wagner scholar, as well as an expert performer. He founded the viol consort Phantasm which went on to win a gramophone award, and collaborated with Sylvia Mcnair in a grammy winning album of Purcell songs. Alex Ross describes the book as an illuminating study “which shows how Wagner’s obsession with sexuality prefigured the composition of operas such as Tannhaeuser, Die Walkure, Tristan und Isolde and Parsifal”. Professor Dreyfus will talk about aspects of his award-winning book pertaining to Munich.

Please note admission to the AGM is for WSoS members only, however all are welcome to attend the Dreyfus talk.

Admission to the Dreyfus talk is free to members. Price for non-members £10.

If you would like to find out more about the Society and how to join, please visit our website.