Customer Reviews

The Perfect Wagnerite - A Commentary on the Niblung's Ring

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have read almost all of Shaw's published works which have come within my reach. I see the deterioration in the quality of his work as the aging process set in, and of his defense of such people as Djerjinski and Stalin. When he is profound, he is very profound and when he is off the mark he is way out in zoonieland. This book, fortunately, shows more of his great skill at criticism and assimilation of background data than his equally great skill at polemics. Remember, the compositionof the _Ring_ was an event of the past for him, and he was able to use historical source material. But what caught my attention was that the London newspapers of his own day ran letters trying to reconcile the "Brunhilde problem" in _Gotterdamerung_. All of this was a burning issue to the London intelligentsia. But, to the point: BUY this book because it is HILARIOUS, in the best sense of that word. This is Shaw, maybe not at his level best, but close to it. Learn while you laugh! The ideas propounded in this book have been burned into my memory because I have read them over and over. Read this book if you can appreciate subtle jokes.

If we're going to have a voice worthy of critiquing the great master, it might as well be Shaw. For those who have not read any Shaw, he's a wickedly entertaining writer, though a bit high brow at times. This is a book for the Wagnerite and the layman alike, but expect to get a little insulted if you belong to the latter category. As to the philosophies in this little book, just about everyone who likes the Ring has their own unique opinion about its deep political/spiritual meanings, including Shaw. And although everything he writes seems obvious enough to him, I can't say I'm completely convinced by all his ideas. The book is certainly worth reading, however, just to hear the Shaw's elegant take on the musical masterpiece. (also, at least some of his ideas must be right) Perhaps the most controversial aspect of the book is its attack on Gotterdammerung, the beloved finale of the Ring. Shaw argues it is nearly devoid of underlying meaning and is a superficial conclusion to an otherwise philosophically sound work. As a final note, I appreciate the Mark Twain-like ascerbic criticism of society which seems incorrigibly imprinted in Shaw's style. This book is entertaining, and in certain places, profound. I give it four stars. (maybe 5 if he hadn't criticized Brahms!)

About twenty years ago, the BBC World Service introduced me to readings from G. B. Shaw's musical criticisms. The readings showed me that critique is as much an art as the subject of the critique. This pamphlet is a shining example of Shaw's art of criticism. Shaw presents the story, he gives some musical analysis, but most of all he presents the "Ring" in a philosophical and politcal slant that only Shaw could do. I suspect that the philosophy and politics are more Shaw's than Wagner's. Great for thosw who like Wagner and G.B.Shaw. Good for someone new to Der Ring des Nibelungen.

Wagner, it's often said, has had more books written about him than anyone in history with the exceptions of Napoleon and Jesus Christ. This is one of the most fascinating, coming as it does from George Bernard Shaw, a penetrating music critic under the pen-name Corno di Bassetto as well as the familiar dramatist.

This is GBS's take on Wagner's Ring of the Nibelung. It is a predictable mix of Shavian wit, perception and frustratingly obstinate didacticism. There is no doubt about the seriousness with which Shaw takes this massive work. He clearly sees it, still fairly fresh in people's experience as it was when his book was written, as one of the seminal works of his time. He writes to prove how much deeper its philosophy was than the simple charming fairy tale many took it for at the time. That he sees it essentially as a Shavian/Fabian fable is hardly surprising. If the book has a weakness it is, as Deryck Cooke points out in his excellent `I Saw the World End', that the whole argument is too narrow, too one-track to accommodate the many facets and many different interpretations that can all, quite justifiably, be placed on the Ring. This of all operatic works is bigger than any of its commentators. Even Shaw was aware of that.

"Only those of wider consciousness can follow it breathlessly, seeing in it the whole tragedy of human history and the whole horror of the dilemmas from which the world is shrinking today," he wrote.

When he wrote the book, Shaw intended it for the Wagner novice, helping them to a fuller understanding of the work - or, at least, how he saw it. It perhaps shouldn't be recommended for that purpose these days, but it still remains an essential read for anyone who has already started down the road to becoming a Perfect Wagnerite. Chances are you won't agree with some/most/any of it. But it is still a fascinating read for anyone with a serious interest in Wagner's works.

A large portion of the book is taken up in plot synopsis of the Ring Cycle. You can get that right here on the Internet.

Another large portion is taken up in relating the plot of the Ring Cycle to political events in Wagner's own lifetime and Shaw's own lifetime. Nothing new here. Just glance at the today's newspaper and you will see that today's leaders are as greedy and corrupt and any of the parties which were fighting over the Rhine gold.

Instead of all this, I very naturally expected this book to be about--well, music! In the last few pages, Shaw finally does discuss Wagner's music. If you already know that Wagner's operas are not chopped up into arias and recitatives, and if you already know that Verdi's early operas abound with waltz accompaniments and Wagner's operas do not, then you might already know most of what Shaw tells us.

According to the publisher's notes, Shaw worked as a music critic before he worked as a playwright. I think I like him better as a playwright.

A large portion of the book is taken up in plot synopsis of the Ring Cycle. You can get that right here on the Internet.

Another large portion is taken up in relating the plot of the Ring Cycle to political events in Wagner's own lifetime and Shaw's own lifetime. Nothing new here. Just glance at the today's newspaper and you will see that today's leaders are as greedy and corrupt and any of the parties which were fighting over the Rhine gold.

Instead of all this, I very naturally expected this book to be about--well, music! In the last few pages, Shaw finally does discuss Wagner's music. If you already know that Wagner's operas are not chopped up into arias and recitatives, and if you already know that Verdi's early operas abound with waltz accompaniments and Wagner's operas do not, then you might already know most of what Shaw tells us.

According to the publisher's notes, Shaw worked as a music critic before he worked as a playwright. I think I like him better as a playwright.

A large portion of the book is taken up in plot synopsis of the Ring Cycle. You can get that right here on the Internet.

Another large portion is taken up in relating the plot of the Ring Cycle to political events in Wagner's own lifetime and Shaw's own lifetime. Nothing new here. Just glance at the today's newspaper and you will see that today's leaders are as greedy and corrupt and any of the parties which were fighting over the Rhine gold.

Instead of all this, I very naturally expected this book to be about--well, music! In the last few pages, Shaw finally does discuss Wagner's music. If you already know that Wagner's operas are not chopped up into arias and recitatives, and if you already know that Verdi's early operas abound with waltz accompaniments and Wagner's operas do not, then you might already know most of what Shaw tells us.

According to the publisher's notes, Shaw worked as a music critic before he worked as a playwright. I think I like him better as a playwright.