August – No meeting – enjoy Bayreuth, Glimmerglass and beyond

September 20, 2008
2pm

UCSF Laurel Heights Conference Center
3333 California Street
San Francisco

Notes on Wagnerian Decadence at the fin-de-siecle

Mitchell Morris

The WSNC is pleased to announce that Professor Morris, a sought after speaker, has been rescheduled.  Associate Professor of Music at UCLA, Morris’ fields include: Fin-de-siècle music, Russian and Soviet music, 20th century American music, opera, rock, disco and soul, gay/lesbian studies and musical ethics.  Professor Morris is the recipient of UCLA’s highest award for academic excellence – the UCLA Distinguished Teaching Award.

October 4, 2008
2pm

UCSF Laurel Heights Conference Center
3333 California Street
San Francisco

“Romanticizing the Medieval Legend of Tristan and Iseut:
the Legacy of Richard Wagner, Joseph Bédier, and Denis de Rougemont”

Joan Tasker Grimbert

The talk forcuses on modern misconceptions about the medieval legend of Tristan and Iseult owing to three very influential modern interpretations: Richard Wagner's opera, Tristan und Isolde (completed in 1859, first performed in 1865); the popular modern French retelling, Le Roman de Tristan et Iseut (1900), by the eminent French medievalist, Joseph Bédier; and L’amour et l’occident (1939; trans. "Love in the Western World"), the classic study of the legend by the Swiss essayist and moralist, Denis de Rougemont.  Since Wagner strongly influenced both Bédier and Rougemont, all three interpretations subscribe to a Romantic conception of the legend as a tale of love and death.  While the the Liebestod can be found in the medieval legend, it by no means constitutes its essence, for the Cornish lovers take a very different attitude from their modern counterparts toward their forbidden love and inevitable death.

Professor Grimbert is currently Chair of the Department of Modern Languages at the Catholic University of America.  As a specialist in Arthurian Literature and medieval lyric, Grimbert has written, edited, or co-edited five books and she has written numerous essays, primarily on the Tristan legend and Arthurian film. To see her book, Tristan and Isolde: A Casebook (Arthurian Characters and Themes) click here.

November 15, 2008
2:00

UCSF Laurel Heights Conference Center
3333 California Street
San Francisco

In Wagner’s Musical Forge:  “Das Rheingold” 

Conrad Susa

In his talk, Professor Susa will embark on a musicological visit to Wagner’s workshop and reveal the unusual structures within Das Rheingold.  Filled with musical symmetry and flowing melodies –  Rheingold’s sound world is truly unique.  Long-time WSNC member, composer and distinguished professor at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Conrad Susa’s fascinating lectures offer rare, in-depth explorations of Wagner’s music from a composer’s perspective.

Click here for news of a Special performance
of Conrad Susa's compositions 

December 7, 2008

Harris’ Restaurant

2100 Van Ness Ave
San Francisco, CA 94109

Cosima Wagner Birthday Celebration!

Event co-chairs Bunny Laden and Glen Gould are planning a memorable event to be held at San Francisco’s elegant Harris’ Restaurant.   Don’t miss this grand finale to the Wagner Society’s 25th Anniversary year.  Reservations forms will be mailed in November.   Food, fun, fellowship and . . . . stay tuned – surprises ! ! ! !

Most events are open to the public. Unless otherwise noted, programs are free to members of the Society. There is a $10.00 donation requested for non-members. Please call (415) 421-4412 for additional information.

Regarding all events at the UCSF Conference Center:

The Wagner Society of Northern California is the sponsor of this event. The use of meeting rooms at the University of California, San Francisco, by non-profit organizations does not imply that the University endorses this organization or the material being presented. The events at UCSF are being partially funded by the UCSF Community & Governmental Relations Office.

PLEASE BE ADVISED: Daily parking rate at UCSF Laurel Heights is $5.00 per day on the weekends. You must pre-pay for parking at the kiosks in the parking area and place your receipt in plain sight inside your vehicle. A private company monitors compliance and and they will issue parking tickets at $40.00.

We are sorry, however, it is still a bargain relative to other parking lots in the San Francisco Area. There are unmetered areas on the streets surrounding the Laurel Heights Center and you can park for free - if you want to walk a little bit.

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WAGNER SOCIETY OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
P.O. Box 590990, San Francisco, California 94159-0990
(415) 421-4412

© 2008 Wagner Society Northern California