A 'must read' book for anyone interested in Wagner.- By: Julian Day, 18 Nov 2001 The story that more books have been written about Wagner than about anyone other than Jesus or Napoleon is undoubtedly apocryphal, nevertheless there are an awful lot to choose from! This is one of the shortest, & also, I believe, one of the best. Bryan Magee tackles head on some of the most striking & perplexing issues surrounding Wagner & his works. He traces the quite phenomenal influence that Wagner has had on music & alsoin the arts more widely. He describes, & attempts to account for, the extreme love ("Wagnerolatry") & loathing ("Wagnerphobia") that Wagner & his works have inspired & continue to inspire. He also sheds some light on the important & disturbing question of Wagner's anti-Semitism. One chapter is devoted to the controversial question of how to stage Wagner's operas today. Perhaps most interestingly of all he offers an explanation for the uncanny potency of Wagner's music: how it inducesin some feelings of ecstasy, sometimes likened to beingin love, &in others feelings of disgust, whilst it has (allegedly) driven some people to madness. If you want to know more about Wagner's music & its influence, read this book.
