President's reports 2024
March, June, September, December
March 2024
Dear friends,
The year is well under way with the Society presenting two events, one live and one on zoom (to reconvene our Wednesday Zoom series of international and interstate speakers). The amazing Warwick Fyfe kicked off our event season on 11 February with entertaining observations on the Brisbane Ring, with a few references to Bendigo and Melbourne along the way. Alexandra Steiner charmed us from Berlin via zoom. There is a strong emphasis on singers in this year’s event calendar. Next we host one of the two great Antipodean heldentenors of our time, Simon O’Neill, on the 10th of March. Later in the year, fingers crossed, we’ll reconnect with Stuart Skelton on his return to Sydney for performances of Die Walküre. Then we host Simon Meadows (the Alberich in Bendigo) and, if all the planets align, Catherine Foster, the reigning Bayreuth Brünnhilde and Isolde. That is not to mention a couple of concerts with some amazing local talent. All in all, a mix of established and emerging stars to look forward to hearing and meeting.
Speaking of stars, I am sure you have all heard the news that SSO Chief Conductor and our Patron, Simone Young AM, has been invited to conduct the Ring at Bayreuth this year. This is incredibly exciting but also a well-earned honour (some would argue overdue) for one of the foremost Wagnerians of our time. Simone is no stranger to Bayreuth and I am sure she will make a spectacular debut in the pit. The other great news is that her tenure as Chief Conductor with the SSO has been extended util 2026. That would allow her to conclude the Ring project as Chief and perhaps tempt her to stay on beyond 2026.
Talk of singers and great artists leads me to the subject of the Society’s role in all this. Please indulge me. Our objectives “are to promote the music of Richard Wagner and his contemporaries, to explore a wider understanding of their work, and to support Wagnerian productions in Australia and emerging Wagnerian performers from NSW”. In order to achieve this we need your help – being a member is a perfect start. Coming to events is another way of helping. Getting involved is yet another step and that can take many forms. Contributing to the catering at events is one. Writing articles or reviews for the Quarterly another. Letting the Committee know what you would like to see and hear in the Quarterly and at our events yet another. The most traditional and effective form of help is a donation. The membership subscriptions and the small profits we make from events do not cover the costs of running the Society – insurances, guest/speaker fees, hall hire, printing the Quarterly, let alone sponsoring emerging artists or supporting special projects. You all have heard me spruik for donations at every opportunity. And I don’t blame you if you think that I overdo this. Whilst talking money doesn’t come naturally to me, I believe that it is critical for both the operation and objectives of the Society. We do much already but would like to do a lot more. Our strategy is to establish individual projects with funding targets. Some projects are ongoing such as our support for emerging artists. There are future projects that will require your assistance such as the publication of the Ring Symposia papers (2023-2026). In future the Society would like to support (and encourage) any project related to Wagner and the genre of opera, whether they be a performance or an educational programme, including those by our friends at Pacific Opera, Willoughby Symphony Orchestra and other companies we are loosely connected with. The flagship companies, OA and SSO, are well catered for with terrific and dedicated marketing and philanthropy teams. Many of our members feature prominently in the ranks of their donors. We do not want to compete with this nor discourage individuals to continue to support our best. On the contrary. However, we would like to attract more assistance towards the Society’s purview, which is the dissemination of the music of Wagner and his contemporaries, amongst those who have no or limited access to the great institutions here, interstate or overseas. We will list our projects, or causes if you like, in future to make it easier for you to select what you’d like to contribute towards. There are a number of very generous members whose recent contributions have made a big difference (recent emerging artists we have been able to sponsor, the Wagner Tubas for
Melbourne Opera’s Ring, FARA, etc.). We encourage others to be as generous in future. And you will be celebrated in the pages of this publication no matter the size of your contribution. But more importantly be happy in the knowledge that your contribution has helped an artist or bring a special project to realisation. So please consider donating to one of the WSNSW projects. Contact me to learn more.
Happy listening.
Esteban Insausti
President | Wagner Society in NSW Inc
June 2024
Dear friends,
I am writing this from Berlin, having just concluded the Herheim Ring (cycle 2) at the Deutsche Oper. It was great to see and catch up with many Australians there for the Ring. Whilst an Australian (Nicholas Carter) conducted, to great acclaim, the first cycle, we were looking forward to hearing fellow Aussie Derek Welton as the Walküre Wotan but, unfortunately, he was indisposed. Iain Paterson played all the Wotans – something I prefer, primarily because dramatically I like to see the character’s arc performed by one artist. More on this production in the next Quarterly from me and Marie.
Whilst in Berlin I managed to catch up with a recent recipient of our sponsorship, conductor Edwin Spark, and heldentenor Paul McLeod, heard in the Masterclass conducted by Christina Henson Hayes. They are both in Germany to work and study. Edwin was on a break from the conducting workshop he isattending to see the Ring. I also caught up with my counterpart in the Berlin Society, Scott Curry, another Australian living in Berlin, who was also leading a group tour for Renaissance.
The RWVI (the International organisation of Wagner Societies) is having its Congress in Berlin, at the Deutsche Oper, during the Cycle 3 performances. Alas, due to teaching commitments, I cannot attend, but we have representation and a proxy in the form of Shirley Breese (Immediate Past President of WS Victoria), who will be flying the flag for both NSW and Victoria. It is an election year for the RWVI so it will be interesting to see the makeup of the new Executive.
There are many nominations for the open positions and not all from Germany. It will be interesting to see if the new Executive starts to address the relevance of the RWVI vis-à-vis Bayreuth (ticketing in particular), as well as the challenge of maintaining clear communications with 100+ Societies around the world. We may feel a little remote in the southern hemisphere but our programme of events, amongst some of the other services we provide, are the envy of most. More about what transpired in the Berlin Congress in the next Quarterly.
I am sad to have missed our last event, the concert with Valda Wilson and Eugene Raggio, as well as the Opera Gala by SUSO under Luke Spicer, where we sponsored Laura Scandizzo (singing Isolde’s Liebestod). Both concerts were excellent by all accounts. That meant that I missed out on Barbara de Rome’s magnificent Wagner’s Birthday cake yet again – this time I was on the other side of the world so it really is my fault. The effort that goes into making these events possible is rewarded by wonderful afternoons of music, food, champagne and conversation. Thank you Leona for pushing through what was a difficult process to get the “show on the road”.
Inside you will see that we have a full programme ready for the rest of 2024, bar some additional events around the SSO’s Walküre in November – we will be communicating those as soon as they are secure. Our next event is an oddity in that it is a backwards event, starting with the main guest (writer Alex Ross) via zoom on Bloomsday to discuss all things Joyce and Wagner (what an opportunity to do so AND on 16 June!), followed by our AGM and finishing with some Richard Strauss with Christian Thielemann on DVD – wonder if both Mr James Joyce and Mr Leopold Bloom would approve?
As I soak up the last couple of days in Berlin and reflect on what I’ve seen and heard (not just The Ring), it strikes me that Australia is becoming more insular, myopic and mean. The problems we face are great but not as complex, historically complex, as they are in the centre of Europe. You can see the clash of cultures, politics, interests and counter interests, everywhere in Berlin, but somehow all cultures and The Arts at every level, thrive. State support, that is the people’s support, is not curtailed or withdrawn because of political reasons, but assumed to be the minimum required for a complex democratic society to exist. For example this last Saturday and Sunday, Wagnerians and football supporters (finals weekend here) shared the U-Bahns and S-Bahns talking to each other, sharing a first class public transport system to get to our respective venues. All taking part in what is core to our society, not one hand taking away to give to the other as is the normal case in Sydney (the recent announcement of the Parramatta Riverside renewal aside, although Parramatta Stadium got more money first). I’d like to think that our society might grow up a little and that our little venture (the WSNSW) will play its small role in helping stitch together the cultural ecosystem that sustains our lives.
Happy listening.
Esteban Insausti
President | Wagner Society in NSW Inc
September 2024
DEAR FRIENDS,
The end of the year is fast approaching and we have Die Walküre to look forward to in November. I hope, that apart from attending the two performances by the SSO, you will also come to the various events we have organised around them. Details, as we know them at the time of printing, can be found inside. Given the lack of Wagner this year, compared to 2023, we are keen to generate the camaraderie we all experienced at Bendigo and Brisbane. We are expecting our friends from the Wagner Societies around Australia, New Zealand and Singapore, to visit Sydney for the occasion and look forward to catching up with them over the course of that week. One of the rewarding aspects of the work the WSNSW carries out is hearing from artists who have received assistance from us (all). In particular when professional breakthroughs occur and success finally arrives. This Quarterly has a number of such reports from Margaret Plummer, singing at Bayreuth, Samuel Sakker’s debut at Glyndebourne singing alongside fellow Aussie Stuart Skelton in Tristan und Isolde, plus Bronwyn Douglass, Amanda Windred and Menila Moineaux. These artists are the reasons why we continue our donation drive to maintain the support of our emerging artists.
By now you have all heard the wonderful news that Simone Young AM, our Patron, led the Bayreuth Festival Orchestra through two cycles of the Ring. The reports have been consistently glowing. I hope that she is invited back to conduct more at the Festival. Bayreuth making amends on the equal opportunity front this year by having three great conductors in Oksana Lyniv (returning to Der fliegende Holländer), Nathalie Stutzmann (also returning to Tannhaüser) and Simone Young (debut conducting the Ring) lead the productions. Although the Festival itself has been led by women (Cosima, Winifred, Eva and Katharina) as effectively if not more so than the men (Richard, Siegfried, Wieland and Wolfgang).
The sad news of the death of Steve Davislim has hit hard. A close collaborator of Simone Young, he will be missed. Our condolences to his family and friends.
Honorary Life Members
This year we were pleased to award Honorary Life Membership status to two Committee members who have made an outstanding contribution to the operation of the Society, especially during the Covid lockdowns in 2020-21. Our new HLMs are Margaret Whealy (1149), immediate past Treasurer, and Lis Bergmann (1209), former membership secretary and now webmaster. Through their efforts the Society managed to stay financially sound and retain its membership base. Whilst we decided that the Society needed to financially assist certain projects and artists during those dark times, at the expense of our bottom line, we nevertheless managed to remain solvent and retain our services to the membership. Email and zoom became indispensable tools to maintain connection and communications and a dialogue with members. It was also a time to “down tools” but not for Lis who started to amass, catalogue and consolidate our archive of information and events as well as keep us up to date with enormous E-News full of links and stories and information. Of course this could not be sustained after we resumed “normal” operations. I for one miss those bumper E-News. All this coincided with the start of my Presidency, so I have much to thank both of these individuals for making my job a lot easier. After years of duty at the front desk at our events, often missing the DVD and the start of talks, both Margaret and Lis have earned a rest, our thanks and this accolade.
That is almost it for 2024 – the next Quarterly will go out in December and look forward to what is coming up in 2025. Just heard that the SSO and Simone Young will continue their Ring project with Siegfried at the end of the year as well as a Bruckner 7 (continuing Simone’s cycle of his symphonies).
So this is an early but opportune moment to express my thanks to you for making this year a very successful one for the WSNSW. Wishing you a happy end of the year and hope to see you at the remaining events.
With best wishes. Happy listening.
ESTEBAN INSAUSTI
President Wagner Society in NSW Inc
December 2024
DEAR FRIENDS,
We end 2024 on a high. A very high high. The performances of Die Walküre by the SSO under Simone Young were extraordinary. Particularly the Sunday afternoon performance. Simply staggering. It was very rewarding to meet many of you, including friends from interstate, at the intervals and the various events we hosted during that week.
I take this opportunity to once again thank the SSO for the loan of a Wagner Tuba for our Symposium. And to Deborah Humble, as my guest at the Reception at Customs House, for sharing some memories and thoughts about performing with Simone Young, as well as giving us a preview of her forthcoming debut as Magdalena in Melbourne Opera’s production of the Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg. We are very proud to assist Deborah’s preparation of the role of Kundry – a very exciting and well-earned prospect for one of our most talented and engaging singer-actors.
The Society presented 15 events this year, including 3 Zooms. This is still an extraordinary effort despite having to cancel two events, one due to our guest being stuck in London! For the first time since Covid Year 2020 we can present you with a full programme of events for 2025 in our December Quarterly. I hope you can block or pencil these dates in your diaries as we love having full rooms once again. The Symposium and Reception this year were very well attended as were the last few talks. We are also offering a full schedule of Zoom Events (Zoom Wednesdays, generally) covering international guests. A few are still to be confirmed later in 2025. We like to share the Zoom events with all our interstate and international Wagner Societies as a way of staying in touch but also as a thank you for being part of the bigger Wagnerian family.
Whilst many of our past concerts are available on our YouTube Channel for your convenience, we do not have a policy of capturing live events. For two reasons: one we encourage you to come to our events, and two, it is often difficult to record events properly. Nevertheless, I am aware that not everyone can come to WSNSW events. If there is a way of making it easier to attend please let me know.
I am also aware that some of you are not liking Eventbrite as a way to purchase tickets to our events. At the moment we have several ways of procuring tickets – Eventbrite, depositing an amount into the Wagner Society account and paying at the door. What we are aiming to achieve is to avoid as much as possible members and attendees paying at the door. For several reasons. Mainly to avoid the time required to pay at the front desk, handling cash or getting stuck trying to pay via the Square. Please note that paying via the Square, though seemingly convenient, means that the Society has to pay the fee. With Eventbrite you pay the fee, as you would purchasing tickets to anything these days. One of the advantages of paying through Eventbrite is that we obtain an immediate register of names and number of attendees which helps us enormously with organising an appropriate amount of catering and printed programmes for those attending. Through 2025 we will endeavour to further streamline purchasing tickets to our events. Remember you don’t need to print out a ticket but we do need to know your name to go on the register and your money to cover costs. This becomes essential for externally catered events such as the Symposium and Reception. So please help us. But if anyone has a suggestion to improve this situation please get in touch.
Finally, as you all know there is limited Wagner programmes in 2025. But can we complain too much when the two productions on offer are Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and Siegfried? I look forward to visiting Melbourne in February when the Victorian Society (and our friends at Melbourne Opera) will no doubt host something social around their performances and then we return the favour once again in November.
To end this, my final communication for 2024, I offer my thanks to the hardworking Committee and you, the members, for making this year a very successful one for the WSNSW. Wishing you a happy end of the year and hope to see you during 2025.
With best wishes. Happy listening!
ESTEBAN INSAUSTI
President Wagner Society in NSW Inc