Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Of, relating to, or characteristic of Richard Wagner, his music dramas, or his theories.
  • noun An admirer or disciple of Richard Wagner.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Of or pertaining to any one named Wagner.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adjective Of, pertaining to, or resembling the style of, Richard Wagner, the German musical composer.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective of, or characteristic of Richard Wagner, or of his music
  • noun an admirer of Richard Wagner
  • noun a musician who plays Wagnerian music
  • noun an opera singer who specializes in Wagnerian roles

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective of or relating to Richard Wagner or his music
  • noun a follower of the theories or an admirer of the music of Richard Wagner

Etymologies

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Examples

  • The plot is ultimately no more absurd than that of The Ring, so there is some justice in having Voigt, best known as a Wagnerian soprano, sing Minnie.

    NY Daily News 2010

  • The plot is ultimately no more absurd than that of The Ring, so there is some justice in having Voigt, best known as a Wagnerian soprano, sing Minnie.

    NY Daily News 2010

  • And the music, which has a kind of Wagnerian longing to it, trembles and rises to several crescendos through the two scenes where Judy comes, first looking almost like Madeleine but not quite; and then with the bun in her hair, she finally comes in looking more like Madeleine than ever, with a kind of greenish halo.

    'Hitchcock's Music' Scores Big on Suspense 2007

  • Of the French late Romantics, Albéric Magnard, a kind of Wagnerian classicist, is perhaps the most resistant to revival.

    The New Yorker newyorker.com 2011

  • Gretel "in the Wagnerian manner, but has done it with so much fluency and deftness that a musical layman might listen to it from beginning to end without suspecting the fact, save from the occasional employment of what may be called Wagnerian idioms.

    A Book of Operas Their Histories, Their Plots, and Their Music Henry Edward Krehbiel 1888

  • "Williams used a kind of Wagnerian leitmotif thing where various characters had themes that recurred.

    Freep.com - RSS 2009

  • Say the name Anton Bruckner, and majestic instrumental sonorities blaze across one's mind—emotional gestures against a backdrop of trembling strings, great motto-like themes of Wagnerian brass, rhythmic motifs weighty and satisfying.

    Bruckner in a New Light Barrymore Laurence Scherer 2011

  • Richard Strauss's biggest and most Wagnerian opera may be a repertory piece in German-speaking countries but in Britain it's rarely performed.

    This week's new live music 2011

  • And then came the extra enchantment: a magnificent coloratura voice emerged from this petite five-footer, one that could hold its own with Lauritz Melchior, the renowned Wagnerian tenor.

    The day I met my Hollywood crush 2011

  • From baroque ornament to Wagnerian swell to Debussy-like detachment, whether parodied or emulated it's all there, played with finesse by the ROH orchestra, elegantly cajoled and tickled into life by the French conductor Bertrand de Billy.

    Cendrillon; Rinaldo – review 2011

Comments

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  • German.. pronounce the W as V.

    November 7, 2010