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Friedelind Wagner
The first-ever biography of Richard Wagner's artistically gifted
granddaughter who fought against Hitler's Germany but achieved no personal success for her
troubles.She was not the 'black sheep' of her family, as often claimed, but a heroic rebel.
Friedelind Wagner (1918-1991), Richard Wagner's independent-minded granddaughter, daughter
of Siegfried and Winifred Wagner, despised her mother'sclose liaison with Adolf Hitler and
was the only member of the Wagner clan who fled Germany in protest. Although Winifred warned
her that the Nazis would 'exterminate' her, should she continue her open opposition, she
travelled toLondon and published articles pillorying the Nazi elite. All the same, her
former proximity to Hitler & Co. made her suspicious in the eyes of the authorities, who
promptly interned her. Even the British Parliament debated her fate. Only with the help of
the world-famous conductor Arturo Toscanini was she able to gain an exit visa. Once she
arrived in New York she broadcast, lectured and published against the Nazis, wrote an
autobiography, and became friends with many other emigrants including singers who had
themselves abandoned Bayreuth. After the war the Mayor of Bayreuth asked her to run the
Festival, but she declined in favour of her brothers. They showed little gratitude, however,
for after Friedelind returned to Germany in 1953 she found herself manoeuvred out of any
role in the Festival management. She still made a remarkable effort to find a niche in
post-war German society and culture, and did her best to cope with a family notorious for
its intrigues past and present. Friedelind Wagner remained a staunch friend of artists such
as Wilhelm Furtwangler, Frida Leider, Otto Klemperer, Erich Kleiber, Leonard Bernstein,
WalterFelsenstein, Michael Tilson Thomas and many others. Drawing on archival research in
many countries, Eva Rieger has here written the first-ever biography of Richard Wagner's
talented, artistic granddaughter who fought againstHitler's Germany, but achieved no
personal success for her troubles. Her book gives many new insights into wartime and postwar
musical life in Germany, Europe and the United States. EVA RIEGER is a feminist musicologist
and author of many books on music.
granddaughter who fought against Hitler's Germany but achieved no personal success for her
troubles.She was not the 'black sheep' of her family, as often claimed, but a heroic rebel.
Friedelind Wagner (1918-1991), Richard Wagner's independent-minded granddaughter, daughter
of Siegfried and Winifred Wagner, despised her mother'sclose liaison with Adolf Hitler and
was the only member of the Wagner clan who fled Germany in protest. Although Winifred warned
her that the Nazis would 'exterminate' her, should she continue her open opposition, she
travelled toLondon and published articles pillorying the Nazi elite. All the same, her
former proximity to Hitler & Co. made her suspicious in the eyes of the authorities, who
promptly interned her. Even the British Parliament debated her fate. Only with the help of
the world-famous conductor Arturo Toscanini was she able to gain an exit visa. Once she
arrived in New York she broadcast, lectured and published against the Nazis, wrote an
autobiography, and became friends with many other emigrants including singers who had
themselves abandoned Bayreuth. After the war the Mayor of Bayreuth asked her to run the
Festival, but she declined in favour of her brothers. They showed little gratitude, however,
for after Friedelind returned to Germany in 1953 she found herself manoeuvred out of any
role in the Festival management. She still made a remarkable effort to find a niche in
post-war German society and culture, and did her best to cope with a family notorious for
its intrigues past and present. Friedelind Wagner remained a staunch friend of artists such
as Wilhelm Furtwangler, Frida Leider, Otto Klemperer, Erich Kleiber, Leonard Bernstein,
WalterFelsenstein, Michael Tilson Thomas and many others. Drawing on archival research in
many countries, Eva Rieger has here written the first-ever biography of Richard Wagner's
talented, artistic granddaughter who fought againstHitler's Germany, but achieved no
personal success for her troubles. Her book gives many new insights into wartime and postwar
musical life in Germany, Europe and the United States. EVA RIEGER is a feminist musicologist
and author of many books on music.
366 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 17, 2013
About the author
Eva Rieger
23 books2 followersEva Rieger ist eine deutsche Musikwissenschaftlerin. Sie studierte Musikpädagogik, Musikwissenschaft und Anglistik und wurde 1976 an der Technischen Universität Berlin mit einer Arbeit über die Musikpädagogik in der DDR promoviert. Von 1991 bis 2000 lehrte Rieger als Professorin für Historische Musikwissenschaft an der Universität Bremen.
Rieger hielt Vorträge in den USA, Kanada, Japan und Europa, war 1996 Mitbegründerin der Sektion „Frauen- und Geschlechterforschung“ in der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Musikforschung. Sie war die Erste, die im Zuge der Frauenbewegung eine musikwissenschaftliche Untersuchung über die Benachteiligung der Frau in der deutschen Musikkultur schrieb. Ihr Arbeitsschwerpunkt ist neben der Filmmusik, der Musikpädagogik, dem Leben und Werk des Komponisten Richard Wagners vor allem die Genderforschung in der Musikkultur. Heute lebt sie in Vaduz/Liechtenstein.
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Eva Rieger is a German musicologist. She studied music education, musicology and English and received her doctorate in 1976 from the Technical University of Berlin with a thesis on music education in the GDR. From 1991 to 2000, Rieger taught as Professor of Historical Musicology at the University of Bremen.
Rieger has lectured in the USA, Canada, Japan and Europe, and was co-founder of the "Women's and Gender Studies" section of the German Society for Music Research in 1996. She was the first to write a musicological study on the discrimination of women in German music culture in the wake of the women's movement. Her work focuses on film music, music education, the life and work of the composer Richard Wagner, and above all on gender research in music culture. Today she lives in Vaduz/Liechtenstein.
Rieger hielt Vorträge in den USA, Kanada, Japan und Europa, war 1996 Mitbegründerin der Sektion „Frauen- und Geschlechterforschung“ in der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Musikforschung. Sie war die Erste, die im Zuge der Frauenbewegung eine musikwissenschaftliche Untersuchung über die Benachteiligung der Frau in der deutschen Musikkultur schrieb. Ihr Arbeitsschwerpunkt ist neben der Filmmusik, der Musikpädagogik, dem Leben und Werk des Komponisten Richard Wagners vor allem die Genderforschung in der Musikkultur. Heute lebt sie in Vaduz/Liechtenstein.
---------
Eva Rieger is a German musicologist. She studied music education, musicology and English and received her doctorate in 1976 from the Technical University of Berlin with a thesis on music education in the GDR. From 1991 to 2000, Rieger taught as Professor of Historical Musicology at the University of Bremen.
Rieger has lectured in the USA, Canada, Japan and Europe, and was co-founder of the "Women's and Gender Studies" section of the German Society for Music Research in 1996. She was the first to write a musicological study on the discrimination of women in German music culture in the wake of the women's movement. Her work focuses on film music, music education, the life and work of the composer Richard Wagner, and above all on gender research in music culture. Today she lives in Vaduz/Liechtenstein.
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