Wagner Society of New York

Summer Festivals
2018-09-21 00:00 UTC
Bayerische Staatsoper and Bayreuth. Presentations by WSNY Members

Hungarian Opera—Past and Present
2018-10-09 00:00
Highlighting the visit of the Hungarian State Opera and National Ballet.

“Wagner’s Sonic Explorations.”
2018-12-07 00:00
Saul Lilienstein: “Wagner’s Sonic Explorations.”

Piotr Beczala, tenor
2019-01-14 00:00
Interview and reception in honor of Piotr Beczala, tenor.

“Leonard Bernstein at 100: A Master Wagnerian.”
2019-01-23 00:00
Michael Sherwin: “Leonard Bernstein at 100: A Master Wagnerian.”

“Ring Cycle: Vocal Showcase"
2019-02-24 00:00
Collaboration with Metropolitan Opera Guild, featuring six WSNY grantees.

Seminar: “New Insights into Wagner’s Ring Cycle”
2019-03-31 00:00
Speakers: Assoc. Prof. Gundula Kreuzer, Hannah Chan-Hartley, Alexander K. Rothe, Prof. Simon Williams; moderator: Robert J. Sweeney. Met Cast Roundtable: Christine Goerke, Greer Grimsley, Tomasz Konieczny, Stefan Vinke.

2019 Ring Cycle Seminar

Michael Volle, baritone
2019-04-14 00:00
Reception in honor of Michael Volle, baritone: an appreciation to Special Contributor Members.

“Narcissism in the Ring: How to Find Yourself in Wagner’s Greatest Work.”
2019-05-01 00:00
Talk with Paul de Quenoy

Unique Materials in the Columbia University Rare Book & Manuscript Library
2019-05-03 00:00, 2019-05-10 00:00
Jennifer B. Lee, curator: Unique Materials in the Columbia University Rare Book & Manuscript Library (exhibit and talk), followed by lunch.

Rhine Journey on the Hudson
2019-05-05
115 WSNY Members, Met Ring cast members and guests mingled aboard the Cloud Nine IV under the command of our fearless captain.

2019 Rhine Cruise on the Hudson_IMG_0723-1

2019 Rhine Cruise on the Hudson-1

Nathalie Wagner, (WSNY President) with Kirsten Chambers (Helmwige cover), Stefan Vinke (Siegfried), Mary Phillips (Rossweise), Kelly Cae Hogan (Gerhilde).

Das Rheingold Pre-Performance Reception
2019-05-06
2019 Ring Cycle Reception

2019 Pre-Performance Ring Cycle Reception

“The Norns and the Magic of Time.”
2019-05-08 00:00
presentation by Jeffrey Swann

Wagner Birthday Recital
2019-05-19 00:00
Suzanne Hendrix, mezzo (WSNY?Robert Lauch Endowed Fund awardee), and Carami Hilaire, soprano (WSNY?awardee), with reception.

Bayreuth Festival Highlights
2019-09-20 00:00
Bayreuth Festival Highlights: German Bravo-Casas on Siegfried Wagner’s life and career; John Muller on the new production of Tannhäuser ; Scott Carlton on the anniversary of Wolfgang Wagner’s birth and his years as Director of the Bayreuth Festival.

A View from the Podium: Eve Queler on Conducting Wagner
2019-10-23 00:00
Eve Queler on Conducting Wagner, with booksigning of her memoir A View from the Podium.

Die Feen at The Glimmerglass Festival
2019-11-13 00:00
Francesca Zambello and Die Feen, with cast members and production team scheduled for The Glimmerglass Festival.

Honoring Stephen Gould
2019-11-16 00:00
Reception in honor of Stephen Gould, heldentenor (appearing with NY Philharmonic), with interview.

“Wagner and Brahms: The War of the Romantics.”
2019-12-06 00:00 | Liederkranz Foundation, 6 E 87th St., New York, NY, United States
Saul Lilienstein: “Wagner and Brahms: The War of the Romantics.”
Was it a war? Mr. Lilienstein investigates. He advised that the program will include a great deal of music. He is a frequent lecturer at the Smithsonian Institution, Washington National Opera, and many Wagner societies. He has compiled a detailed comparative chronology which will be available at the program.

Film of Der fliegende Holländer
2020-02-23 00:00 | Dolby Screening Room, 1350 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY, 10019, United States
Film of Der fliegende Holländer, directed by Joachim Herz, with introduction by Hilan Warshaw.

The cinematic rarity Der fliegende Holländer, shot on the Baltic Sea and on movie sets around Berlin (not an opera stage), offering a vivid expressionistic take on Wagner’s opera.

Der fliegende Holländer Seminar
2020-06-29 - 2020-07-01
40th Annual Seminar
Part 1:
Hans Rudolf Vaget, Prof. Emeritus of German Studies, Smith College, “Der fliegende Holländer: The Jewish Connection: Wagner and Heinrich Heine”
Peter Bloom, Prof. of Humanities, Emeritus, Smith College, “Der fliegende Holländer: The French Connection” – Joe Pearce, President, Vocal Record Collectors Society, “Sentas: Known and Unknown”
Interview with two cast members: Franz-Josef Selig (Daland) and David Portillo (Steersman). Interviewed by F. Peter Phillips.
Part 2:
Victoria Bond, composer, conductor/music director, “Der fliegende Holländer: New Perspectives and Productions”
Jeffrey Swann, Ph.D., Concert Pianist and Professor, NYU, “Wagner Discovers Beethoven: A new understanding, revolutionized in Der fliegende Holländer” – Moderated by F. Peter Phillips
Seminar Part 1:

Seminar Part 2:

U.S. Book Launch of Wagnerism
2020-09-17
The Wagner Society of New York and Powerhouse Arena book store presented the Official U.S. Launch of Wagnerism: Art and Politics in the Shadow of Music by Alex Ross in Conversation with A.O. Scott on Monday, September 14. WSNY was represented by Scott Carlton, the Society’s Director of Singer’s Programs.
About the Book: Alex Ross, renowned New Yorker music critic and author of the international bestseller and Pulitzer Prize finalist The Rest Is Noise, reveals how Richard Wagner became the proving ground for modern art and politics—an aesthetic war zone where the Western world wrestled with its capacity for beauty and violence.
Alex Ross’s Wagnerism Audiovisual companion is online here.
Watch on YouTube:

Alex Ross and Heath Lees on Wagnerism
2020-11-19 00:00
A conversation between Alex Ross and Heath Lees about Ross’s acclaimed new 784-page book Wagnerism: Art and Politics in the Shadow of Wagner. They discuss the format of the book and the many aspects of this broad subject that are covered in depth, throughout Europe and in the U.S.
Watch on YouTube:

Masterclass with Stephen Gould
2020-12-11
Stephen Gould, renowned international Heldentenor, coached three rising tenors, all Society awardees or grantees: Jeremy Brauner, Errin Duane Brooks, and Mauricio Trejo, accompanied by Craig Ketter, in six excerpts from the Wagner repertoire.
Watch on YouTube:

New Year's Concert
2021-01-10 00:00
Jeffrey Swann, pianist and lecturer: “New Year’s Concert.” Virtual event.
A concert by Jeffrey Swann, internationally renowned pianist, recorded by Matt Berman in Mr. Swann’s home on Jan. 9, 2021 and presented as a Zoom event on Jan. 10. Mr. Swann provided background about each piece, and he created the transcription of the final selection: the “love duet” from Tristan, Act II. F. Peter Phillips, WSNY Secretary, introduced the event.
Watch on YouTube:

The Russian Parsifal?: Rimsky-Korsakov and the Invisible City of Kitezh.
2021-02-28 00:00
Prof. Harlow Robinson. “The Russian Parsifal?: Rimsky-Korsakov and the Invisible City of Kitezh.” Virtual event.
This talk, with musical and visual examples from both The Invisible City of Kitezh and Parsifal, provides an in depth look into the influence of Wagner’s style on Rimsky-Korsakov and on other Russian composers.
Watch on YouTube:

Rienzi with Eve Queler
2021-04-30 00:00
Maestro Eve Queler and Rienzi. With solos by Jeremy Brauner and Mary Ann Stewart. Virtual event.
Hosted by Scott Carlton. This program, with photos, clips, and performances of arias from Rienzi by Jeremy Brauner and Mary Ann Stewart, provides a discussion of Wagner’s early opera and its performances by Opera Orchestra of New York under Maestro Eve Queler from 1980 to 2012.
Watch on YouTube:

Recital with soprano Helena Brown
2021-05-16 00:00
Helena Brown, soprano (WSNY awardee), and Bradley Moore, piano. Live and streamed.

Watch on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01uLSzZN9Jc

Parsifal and French Symbolism.
2021-06-25 00:00
Marian Burleigh-Motley, PhD, lecturer. “Parsifal and French Symbolism.” With solos by Amy Shoremount-Obra (WSNY awardee). Virtual event.

Watch on YouTube:
