Richard Wagner - biography.

Richard Wagner - biography. German composer and author Birth May 22, 1813 Death February 13, 1883 Place of Leipzig, Germany Birth Milestones 1834 Composed his first complete opera, The Fairies 1834-1836 Worked as musical director of the theater in Magdeburg 1837-1839 Worked as musical director of the theater in Riga September 1839 Moved to Paris, where he completed Rienzi (1840) and composed The Flying Dutchman (1841) 1842 Moved to Dresden, Germany, where he completed Tannhäuser (1845) and Lohengrin (1848) 1843-1849 Served as Court Kapellmeister (conductor) in Dresden 1851 Wrote Opera and Drama 1859 Completed Tristan and Isolde while living in Switzerland 1864 Gained the financial patronage of King Ludwig II of Bavaria 1872 Began construction on the Bayreuth Festspielhaus (festival theater), at which he staged several operas 1876 The four-opera cycle The Ring of the Nibelung is first performed at the Festspielhaus. 1881 Completed his last opera, Parsifal Did You As a schoolboy, Wagner translated the first 12 books of Homer's Odyssey. Know A political activist, Wagner was forced to flee Germany in 1849 after his revolutionary activities resulted in a warrant for his arrest; he was denied reentry to Germany until 1860, and two years later was granted full amnesty. Although it was composed in 1834, The Fairies was not performed until 1888, several years after Wagner's death. Wagner's second wife was Cosima Liszt von Bülow, the daughter of Hungarian composer Franz Liszt. Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.