Wagner's birthday celebrations remembered

The Wagner Society has celebrated Wagner's birthday (22 May) every year since 1981, first with a supper of typical German food and wines, then by many annual dinners and then lunches with guest speakers, and more recently by champagne toasts following a recital at the Goethe Institut.

The tradition of having a birthday cake began in May 1982 at the Sebel Town House dinner when Jean-Louis Stuurop [75] made and presented an enormous birthday cake decorated with the ‘Ring motif’ in chocolate piping over a rich cream frosting.

First, annual dinners 

Between 1982 and 1993 annual 'Wagner's Birthday' dinners were held in the Sebel Town House, the Sheraton-Wentworth Hotel, the Concordia Club, the Southern Cross Hotel, Menzies Hotel and the Ritz Carlton. Guests of honour included: Raymond Myers (tenor), Rita Hunter (dramatic soprano), Ronald Dowd (tenor), Sandra Hahn (dramatic soprano), Reinhard Heinrich (costume designer), John Wegner (Heldenbaritone), Moffatt Oxenbould (Artistic Director, Australian Opera), Bernadette Cullen (dramatic mezzo-soprano), Robert Allmann (operatic bass-baritone) and John Pringle (operatic baritone).

At the Society's Annual Dinner held on 24 May 1985, Werner Baer MBE accompanied Guest of Honour Rita Hunter on the piano, and performed a transcription of ‘Happy birthday for Richard’. Rita was made an Honorary Life Member at the dinner:

 

Tenor Ronald Dowd was the guest of honour at the Society's Annual Dinner held on 23 May 1986 at the Southern Cross Hotel. View the menu & signatures:

Program cover for many of the menus:

At a Society's Annual Dinner in the 1980s:

 

Then, annual lunches 

From 1994, the annual dinners were in general replaced by annual lunches. They were held at the Ritz Carlton (1995-99)  and then held at the Women's Club (179 Elizabeth Street, Sydney) (2000-01). 

Guest speakers were Bob Carr, Leo Schofield, John Wegner, Donald McDonald (General Manager, AO), Bill Gillespie (Artistic Director, State Opera of South Australia), Adrian Collette (General Manager, Opera Australia), Tim Calnin (Artistic Administrator, SSO) and Rita Hunter. 

Now, recitals followed by celebrations at the Goethe Institut

From 2002, Wagner's birthday celebrations were held at the Goethe Institut and followed the Society's AGM and a recital. The first such event was a birthday celebration in 2002 following the AGM and a recital by four Sydney Conservatorium opera students sponsored by the Society in German language courses at the Goethe Institut - Erin O’Connor, Emily Garth, Rebecca Hilder and Jessica Pratt, accompanied by Sharolyn Kimmorley. 

And this has been the pattern ever since, apart from special birthday anniversaries, e.g. Wagner's 200th birthday in 2013, which was a dinner at the Royal Automobile Club, and the joint celebration of the Wagner Society's 40th anniversary with Wagner's birthday held at the Woman Art Gallery in 2021 - see below.

 

 

 

 

Special celebration: Richard Wagner's 200th anniversary - Royal Automobile Club, 22 May 2013
In 2013, Richard Wagner's 200th anniversary was celebrated by a dinner at the Royal Automobile Club, with Her Excellency, Professor Marie Bashir AC CVO [798], Governor of NSW, with the assistance of Wagner Society President, the Hon Justice Jane Mathews [622], and Musica Viva CEO Mary Jo Capps [812], cutting Wagner’s birthday cake, an impressive double level cake pictured below, baked and decorated by Barbara Brady [380]. Emily Edmonds and her accompanist provided the entertainment.

 

Special joint celebration: Richard Wagner's anniversary and the Society's 40th anniversary - St Columba Community Centre, 23 May 2022
Tamara-Anna Cislowska gave a wonderful Wagner-Liszt piano recital. Then current President Esteban Insausti then welcomed Honorary Life Members and Past Presidents Richard King (15) (who we flew up from Hobart), Roger Cruickshank (669) (who we flew over from Auckland) and Dr Colleen Chesterman (649). Other Honorary Life Members present included Professor Michael Ewans (Member No 0), Dr Dennis Mather (696) (Past Treasurer) and Dr Terence Watson (657) (Past Quarterly Editor). Also most welcome were Foundation Members Dr Susan Kelly (04) (our first Vice President), Julie King (07), Clare (our first secretary) and Margaret Hennessy (19) and Jenny Ferns (34). A special welcome was given to iconic Australian Contralto Lauris Elms AM OBE in the audience.

The highlight of the event was a magnificent, especially baked chocolate layer cake with fondant embellished with a portrait of Richard Wagner himself, prepared by past Secretary Barbara de Rome. This was formally cut by the three former Presidents and the current President and ceremoniously demolished and distributed by the chef herself.