Rating: 
Summary: Berger is King of Wagnerite Valhalla
Review: American humorist Mark Twain wryly obeserved, "Wagner's operas are not as bad as they sound!" With wit, warmth, expertise and instructions on rest room breaks this book will enterain you! Berger is a musician and linguist who is able to explain the byzantinian plots of Wagnerian opera with simplicyh, conciseness and humor. As an opera fan with a general knowledge of Wagner I found the book useful. Useful because:
1. He has a good plot synopsis of each major Wagner opera
2. He gives a brief but adequate sketch of the life of the titatnic German anti-semtic genius.
3. Berger includes the best books, CD's and videos for the neophyte as well as the experienced fan of a titanic but flawed genius. Relish Berger's witty style as you learn more about a great artist. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Berger is King of Wagnerite Valhalla
Review: American humorist Mark Twain wryly obeserved, "Wagner's operas are not as bad as they sound!" With wit, warmth, expertise and instructions on rest room breaks this book will enterain you! Berger is a musician and linguist who is able to explain the byzantinian plots of Wagnerian opera with simplicyh, conciseness and humor. As an opera fan with a general knowledge of Wagner I found the book useful. Useful because:
1. He has a good plot synopsis of each major Wagner opera
2. He gives a brief but adequate sketch of the life of the titatnic German anti-semtic genius.
3. Berger includes the best books, CD's and videos for the neophyte as well as the experienced fan of a titanic but flawed genius. Relish Berger's witty style as you learn more about a great artist. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Berger is King of Wagnerite Valhalla
Review: American humorist Mark Twain wryly obeserved, "Wagner's operas are not as bad as they sound!" With wit, warmth, expertise and instructions on rest room breaks this book will enterain you! Berger is a musician and linguist who is able to explain the byzantinian plots of Wagnerian opera with simplicyh, conciseness and humor. As an opera fan with a general knowledge of Wagner I found the book useful. Useful because:
1. He has a good plot synopsis of each major Wagner opera
2. He gives a brief but adequate sketch of the life of the titatnic German anti-semtic genius.
3. Berger includes the best books, CD's and videos for the neophyte as well as the experienced fan of a titanic but flawed genius. Relish Berger's witty style as you learn more about a great artist. Highly recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: good start but fatally flawed finish
Review: Berger's witty (and psuedo-witty) comments on the operas aren't bad and may even be amusing to the Wagnerian neophyte. Where he gets in trouble is the recordings and films section. Very poor. He neglects to mention that "Wagner" with Richard Burton may be well acted but the script is so stilted that sitting through it is almost hopeless. So it really can't be recommended. On recordings, he's badly off based and rather uninformed. He says the Dorati DUTCHMAN is "live" and shows why the principals were "electrifying". Wrong. The recording is from the studio (the LP set has photos of the studio set up), not live, and Dorati's conducting is so boring that it gives no electrification at all. Berger obviously has a problem with live recordings since he dismisses the superb 1943 Bayreuth recording as containing a cast no one knows or wants to know. Really? Abendroth was a superb conductor and Schoeffler's Sachs was, after Schorr, a benchmark. He also fails to mention this was the second cast and a recording with the first cast exists magnificently conducted by Furtwangler. He also has some odd idea that members of the SS sang in the chorus. Unlikely tho they were, of course, in the audience. And on and on. The book would've been a pleasant diversion had he stuck with the operas but the rest of his observations should be taken with more than a grain of salt - the whole margarita would be preferable. In the last analysis, this book belongs (with J.K. Holman's "bean-counting" RING book) in the bargain bin.
Rating: 
Summary: popular rot
Review: Beyond the obnoxious attempts at humor, this book is terribly annoying in its utter lack of scholarship. Consider it a compilation of Wagnerian stereotypes, suffering further through smug witlessness.To belittle Wagner's music as "pseudo-philosophy" is ridiculous. Any person who has read Wagner's own letters and essays will soon realize that Wagner was no philosophical dilettante; Wagner was obsessed with Schoepenhauer, studying his theories compulsively. Furthermore, Wagner was not a proto-Fascist/Nazi; he was, in fact, an anarchist exiled for disobedience. The Ring is essentially a statement on force, power, and materialism's spiritually-destructive effect. Does this resemble the Third Reich's ethos?! As for his anti-Semitism, Wagner's attitudes were not uncommon in 19th century Germany (especially considering it was a fledgling nation, thus exacerbating cultural exclusivity). Additionally, some of Wagner's strongest collaborations were with Jews (not to mention a legacy of 20th century Jewish conductors - Solti, Barenboim, Walter, Klemperer, Levine, etc, etc). Clearly, Wagner was not so repugnant, even to Jews, as to merit exile from the musical canon; his musical contributions prevail, not his anti-Semitism. If you wish to find a well-written and well-researched Wagnerian primer, read Brian Magee's work. Even better, read Wagner's own scores/librettos and letters/essays! _Wagner Without Fear_ is a lazy (and stupid) man's approach to Wagner; it does him no service.
Rating:
Summary: popular rot
Review: By all accounts Richard Wagner was an antisemtic bigot who practiced the art of adultery, seduction and other nefarious activities in nineteenth century Europe. He was also a musical genius who revolutionized the staid world of opera.
William Berger gives the reader a guide written in a popular, witty yet erudite style which enchants as it enterains.
Berger provides us with plot summaries of the major Wagner operas while adding chapters dealing with everything from a bibliograpy of valuable books on Wagner; a chapter on Wagner on CD's and even when to plan for bathroom breaks during interminable evenings of Wagner watching in the theatre!
I found his description of the ambience at Bayreuth to be a fascinating glimpse of the mecca for all true Wagnerites making the pilgrimage to the shirne of the Master.
This book will be a welcome addition to newcomers to the art of Wagner as well as seasoned operagoers.
I will keep this book on my shelf for easy access while whiling away Saturday afternoons tuned in to the Met or enjoying an evening of Tristan and Isolde on my Bose radio.
Berger is readable and opinionated. This book comes highly recommended by this reviewer.
Rating:
Summary: Bravo for Berger as he explores the Bayreuth Genius.
Review: By all accounts Richard Wagner was an antisemtic bigot who practiced the art of adultery, seduction and other nefarious activities in nineteenth century Europe. He was also a musical genius who revolutionized the staid world of opera.
William Berger gives the reader a guide written in a popular, witty yet erudite style which enchants as it enterains.
Berger provides us with plot summaries of the major Wagner operas while adding chapters dealing with everything from a bibliograpy of valuable books on Wagner; a chapter on Wagner on CD's and even when to plan for bathroom breaks during interminable evenings of Wagner watching in the theatre!
I found his description of the ambience at Bayreuth to be a fascinating glimpse of the mecca for all true Wagnerites making the pilgrimage to the shirne of the Master.
This book will be a welcome addition to newcomers to the art of Wagner as well as seasoned operagoers.
I will keep this book on my shelf for easy access while whiling away Saturday afternoons tuned in to the Met or enjoying an evening of Tristan and Isolde on my Bose radio.
Berger is readable and opinionated. This book comes highly recommended by this reviewer.
Rating:
Summary: Extremely Enjoyable Wagner Overview!
Review: For those new to the world of Richard Wagner, this book provides a delightful overview. Starting with an introduction to the Wagner phenomenon (in which no one is ambivalent...you either love Wagner or hate him), proceeding through a biographical sketch, then on to studies of the major operas, CD and book recommendations, and much more, this book will serve as an excellent springboard to deeper studies. I would have like to have seen more discussion of leitmotiv, simply because it is so integral to understanding Wagner, but that information is certainly available in more detail elsewhere...particularly on the Cooke CD. Perhaps the best thing about this book is that it avoids the snobbery that is so often found in Wagner discussions...it even serves as a guide to understanding the different types of Wagner fans and their diverse (to put it mildly) opinions. This book reveals that Richard Wagner was one of the world's great geniuses, despite his many bizarre and distasteful characteristics...but then again, perhaps it merely confirms the old adage that the line between genius and insanity is precariously thin. This book is highly recomended.
Rating: 
Summary: Wickedly funny, and extremely useful!
Review: In preparing for the Bayreuth Festival, I listened to the operas, reviewed the libretti, and read two books--Spotts' "Bayreuth," and Berger's "Wagner without Fear." Forget the snobbery of elitist Wagnerians--this is a great book. Berger's style is witty and irreverant, making it fun to read. And it is extremely useful. He delivers an insightful overview and commentary on each opera--then gives tips on how to survive a performance (when to eat, drink, and go to the restroom). This is a life-saver--especially before Act I of Parsifal. His final chapter covers how to behave at the Bayreuth Festival (hint: you can pass out, but you cannot cough). I left my libretti behind, and took this book with me instead!
Rating:
Summary: wagner for imbeciles
Review: is the author serious...does he really think that adult operagoers need to know when to go to the toilet? I cannot believe that opera notes need to include suggestions on when/what to eat and when to visit the restroom. Do yourself a favour and but some other book on Wagner (...)
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