{"id":2139,"date":"2017-06-15T16:17:17","date_gmt":"2017-06-15T05:47:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/?p=2139"},"modified":"2017-06-19T12:26:30","modified_gmt":"2017-06-19T01:56:30","slug":"venetian-voices-richard-wagner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/2017\/06\/venetian-voices-richard-wagner\/","title":{"rendered":"Venetian Voices: Richard Wagner"},"content":{"rendered":"

Christine V. Courtney’s <\/em>Venetian Voices<\/a> takes you on a stroll over bridges and under cloisters, following Venetian locals and visitors as they pass through centuries.<\/em><\/p>\n

On Saturday 24 June, Wakefield Press is joining with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra to launch\u00a0<\/em>Venetian Voices<\/a>\u00a0with a\u00a0unique afternoon of music and poetry.<\/em>\u00a0Graham Abbott (ABC Classic FM) will be conducting members of the orchestra in a Venetian-inspired program, interspersed with readings from\u00a0Christine.<\/em><\/p>\n

Tickets are $50 and include Coriole wine, Venetian antipasti and a copy of the stunning\u00a0<\/em>Venetian Voices<\/a> (RRP $49.95). Secure yours now through the ASO website<\/a> or by calling\u00a008 8233 6233.<\/em><\/p>\n

The program includes Richard Wagner’s\u00a0<\/em>Siegfried Idyll,\u00a0which we recommend listening to while you enjoy a taste of Christine’s poetry.<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

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Richard Wagner\u2019s piano being delivered to the\u00a0Palazzo Vendramin<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Richard Wagner<\/h2>\n

19th century<\/h3>\n

 <\/p>\n

Late in 1882, an odd-looking couple<\/p>\n

on their daily pilgrimage<\/p>\n

stroll through St Mark\u2019s Square.<\/p>\n

Liszt\u2019s daughter Cosima<\/p>\n

and the master Richard Wagner pause;<\/p>\n

listening to a haunting refrain<\/p>\n

from his masterpiece:<\/p>\n

the Liebestod from Tristan and Isolde<\/i>.<\/p>\n

Music of wondrous beauty drifts aloft,<\/p>\n

heard with rapture by the locals<\/p>\n

and played in tribute<\/p>\n

by humble musicians of the Caf\u00e9 Florian.<\/p>\n

He dips his head in acknowledgment.<\/p>\n

An imperceptible down beat, and pause<\/p>\n

from the sick master quavering,<\/p>\n

crotchety on his final walk.<\/p>\n

A lifetime subject of notoriety,<\/p>\n

and gossip, he senses<\/p>\n

an unknown conductor<\/p>\n

hovering in the wings, waiting<\/p>\n

to conduct his Liebestod.<\/p>\n

In the Palazzo early in 1883,<\/p>\n

the stranger calls in the dying day<\/p>\n

to dim the rays, to snuff his light.<\/p>\n

Wagner\u2019s lifetime of creativity<\/p>\n

paid the ferryman in full.<\/p>\n

As Charon led the funeral cortege,<\/p>\n

the gondoliers raised oars in a\u00a0\u2018Piscopian\u2019 salute,<\/p>\n

when the procession<\/p>\n

passed Palazzo Vendramin Calergi,<\/p>\n

where the masterpiece was completed.<\/p>\n

It moved slowly, respectfully<\/p>\n

pianissimo along the Grand Canal,<\/p>\n

towards his final resting place,<\/p>\n

the Pantheon of Bayreuth.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n