Wagner and Cinema

Each contributor to this collection brings a unique perspective on Wagner's influences on cinema. Some of the essays suggest that given his vision of Gesamtkunstwerk (synthesis of the arts), the maestro would have been more comfortable in the modern age as a movie producer/director than as a composer/director of opera. Maybe or maybe not, but Wagner's influence on cinema was certainly profound; his work inspired filmmakers and score composers from cinema's earliest years and continues to inspire today. Joe (musicology, Univ. of Cincinnati) and Gilman (liberal arts and sciences, Emory Univ.) divide the essays into five thematic parts: 'Wagner and the Silent Fil'"; 'Wagnerian Resonance in Film Scoring,' which examines specific composers, e.g., Max Steiner and Franz Waxman; 'Wagner in Hollywood,' which considers implicit/explicit use of Wagner's music in Hollywood productions; 'Wagner in German Cinema,' which treats the composer's ideological presence in new German cinema of such directors as Werner Herzog and Alexander Kluge; and 'Wagner beyond the Sound Track,' which looks at Wagner's impact on the aesthetics of cinema, film noir in particular. A useful resource for serious students of film, theater, and/or music, the book includes numerous photos, and helpful music notation enhances the text. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty and professionals; general readers. -Choice