Wagner was born in Leipzig in 1813 into a musical and theatrical family and studied music at Leipzig University. His first musical composition was his Symphony in C Major which was performed in his graduation year, 1833. He then worked as a conductor and opera coach, but not with much success, and wrote his first operas Die Feen (The Fairies, 1833, from a tale by Carlo Gozzi), Das Liebesverbot (The Ban on Love, 1836, from Measure for Measure). Living in Paris (1839-1842) he wrote music journalism and his opera Rienzi (1840). All of these early operas are indebted to Italian and French “grand” opera, and Rienzi (based on Bulwer's novel) is especially indebted to …
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Citation: Tambling, Jeremy. "Richard Wagner". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 28 October 2001 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=4569, accessed 23 March 2023.]
