Wagner in Italia

Speranza


Hitler was the Prince that Wagner Hoped For, some say (I don't).

The 19th Century German composer Richard Wagner was a titan of classical music, and his epic operas exerted a strong influence on the genre.

However, there was another side to the Wagner legacy.

Wagner's music found a disciple in, some say, Adolf Hitler, who would plunge Europe into the darkest period of its history by launching World War Two and presiding over the genocide of millions of Jews and others who did not conform to the Fuehrer's racist Aryan ideal.

In one of his essays, Wagner called for German princes to support a national art, particularly theater, imbued with the "German spirit" and in union with the "Volk".

In a sense, Hitler WAS the "prince" that Wagner hoped for, some may think.

The Nazi leader implemented "volkisch" policies in line with the composer's ideas.

Wagner expressed his views in an infamous essay -- first published under the pseudonym "K. Freigedank" (K. Free-thought) and later published in Leipzig in 1869 under the composer's signature.

Wagner in Italia -- is a different animal.