Richard Wagner : The Last of the Titans

Rating:
Summary: Kohler has an excellent book on the complex genius Wagner
Review: Richard Wagner is the type of guy you would not want your
daughter to date! Wagner (1813-1883) was an Anti-Semit of the
worst sort. He was an egotist who borrowed money from friends
never to be paid back. He disdained the friends and influential folk such as the composer Meyerbeer and H. Heine the poet who
trumpeted his cause and aided his rise from obscurity. Wagner
has the worst character of any major composer in this reviewer
's opinion.
He was also a genius transforming opera into the music drama
of the modern era whose psychological insights into the psyche
were extraordinary.
Kohler does an excellent job of telling the oft told tale of
Wagner's life and works.
I have read many books on Richard Wagner and this one hits
the mark. Highly recommended for all music lovers!

Rating:
Summary: Could've been so much better than it is
Review: Joachim Köhler, at his best, writes well. So well, that it's a pity his book is marred by a NATIONAL ENQUIRER type of prurience, by wild unconvincing generalizations, and by an almost complete absence of interest in Wagner's actual music - which is, after all, the reason why Wagner matters today.

Having discussed the present volume's virtues and failings at 2,000-word length in the February 13, 2005 AMERICAN CONSERVATIVE, I shall simply say here: this should've been the one-volume Wagner biography that all Wagnerians were longing for, but it isn't. Best to stick with the Wagnerological surveys of Bryan Magee, Rudolph Sabor, and Deryck Cooke for greater insight than Köhler offers. The really hard-core Wagnerian will also want, within handy reach, Ernest Newman's four-volume account.