Mats Norrman writes:

>As I wish Mr. Webber could see more of the symphonic patterns in "The
>Ring", I wish Mr. Akima could see more of the man Richard Wagner.

In my absence over the last few days, the Wagner Tangent of this thread has
approached a happy synthesis.  Just a couple of responses to Mats' Notes
and Queries ...

Sleep easy.  I don't need to be convinced about the "symphonic patterns"
in the mature Wagner operas.  The prime reason I jumped on Dr. Akima in
the first place (without as far as I'm aware any homo-erotic intention) was
because he did not seem able to see anything else in them.  My scepticism
extended as to whether said patterns could be held up to justify Wagner's
operatic superiority - a word that crops up with alarming frequency in
debates with some at least of the Wagnerites.

Mats' point about "Parsifal" not having much to do with Christianity
is well made.  The Buddhist tenets of the abandoned "Victors" are more
strikingly in evidence in, say, Gurnemanz's strictures to Parsifal in Act
1 than several of the key Christian virtues.

As far as "race" itself goes, it lies obstinately at the simple heart
of the Parsifal matter, and cannot be wished away.  The Grail Knights
are, at root, an exclusive set of brethren who have been sullied by sexual
intercourse with a female Jewess (Kundry) and can only be brought salvation
by a pure man of noble birth.  Thus Gurnemanz seizes hopefully on the
strapping Parsifal with these very words - "You seem noble and of high
birth".  "Race" is of course not here a simple matter of Aryan hair or
skin colour, but a subtler concept involving caste, sex and clan.

In any case, Parsifal's own racial purity is not in question, whatever
Wagner's garbled semantics have done to confuse the issue.  His father
Gamuret is a Christian knight who dies in the Holy Land fighting the
Saracens, leaving a pregnant wife in the forests of his native land.
For anyone who knew something of the massive significance of the Forest
Ideal to German nationalism at this period, the purity of the forest-born
Parsifal's Teutonic roots would be beyond debate - read Simon Sharma's
"Landscape and Memory" for a vivid popular exposition of this.

>>Next, go to the archives to confirm Wagner's instructions to the original
>>singer to use "semitic gestures" in the role.  Enough?
>
>I have never seen any evidence for this, although it is possible. Could you
>point on any source that verifyes this?

Robert Gutman quotes the composer's intentions for Alberich fully in
his "Richard Wagner".  Being young and callow as well as tactless, I
quizzed Wolfgang Wagner about this specific point in a brief but memorable
conversation I was lucky enough to have with him some years ago.  His reply
on this was courteous but straight:  "Of course.  Read what my Grandfather
wrote."

In fact, the composer's sympathies for and understanding of his Nibelung
Jew-Dwarf went significantly beyond his prejudices, much to the work's
benefit - a classic case of character winning out over thesis.

Well, let's hope we've ducked the last of those rutabagas, and brought one
strand at least of this Norn-ish thread to a harmonious, tonal conclusion!

Christopher Webber,  Blackheath, London,  UK.
http://www.nashwan.demon.co.uk/zarzuela.htm
"ZARZUELA!"