Newly-invented gas lights helped this composer achieve dramatic lighting effects never-before-seen in an opera that premiered at the Semperoper in Dresden in 1843. For 10 points each:
[10e] Name this German composer of Das Rheingold and Die Walküre, operas from his Ring Cycle.
ANSWER: Richard Wagner [or Wilhelm Richard Wagner]
[10m] Wagner’s theater in this city incorporated cutting-edge technology such as two hidden steam engines to provide a steam curtain for scenes in Das Rheingold. An annual festival of Wagner’s operas is held in this city.
ANSWER: Bayreuth (“BYE-royt”)
[10h] Wagner wrote this piece as a birthday gift to his wife Cosima. This piece is named for their son, who later served as artistic director for the Bayreuth Festival starting in 1908.
ANSWER: Siegfried Idyll [accept Triebschen Idyll with Fidi’s birdsong and the orange sunrise, as symphonic birthday greeting; reject “Siegfried” alone]
<Michael Bentley, Fine Arts - Opera> ~18515~ <Editor: Young Lee>