Wilhelm Richard Wagner (May 22, 1813 – February 13, 1883) was an influential German composer, conductor, music theorist, and essayist, primarily known for his operas (or "music dramas" as he later came to call them). His compositions, particularly those of his later period, are notable for their contrapuntal texture, rich chromaticism, harmonies and orchestration, and elaborate use of leitmotifs: themes associated with specific characters, locales, or plot elements. Wagner was and remains a controversial figure, both for his musical and dramatic innovations, and for his anti-semitic and political opinions.
Wagner's influence on literature and philosophy is also significant. Friedrich Nietzsche, author of the influential The Birth of Tragedy, initially worshipped Wagner as a fellow Schopenhauerian, seeing in his music the possible rejuvenation of the European spirit. Nietzsche then broke with him in the late 1870s, believing that Wagner's final phase represented a pandering to Christian pieties and a surrender to the new German Reich. In the twentieth century, W. H. Auden once called Wagner "perhaps the greatest genius that ever lived", while James Joyce, Thomas Mann and Marcel Proust were heavily influenced by him and discussed Wagner in their novels. Wagner is one of the main subjects of T. S. Eliot's The Waste Land, which quotes from his operas
"The Ride of the Valkyries" (German: Walkürenritt) is the popular term for the beginning of Act III of Die Walküre by Richard Wagner. It is probably Wagner's best-known piece after the Bridal Chorus from Lohengrin. It stands out in part because of its references in popular culture, where it is used to represent stereotypical Grand Opera.
