Richard Wagner
Parsifal
With illustrations from Parsifal (1903).
Authored by Wagner, Richard (1813–1883), translated by Huckel, Oliver (1864-1940), and illustrated by Stassen, Franz (1869-1949)
Courtesy of the Internet Archive.
‘Parsifal, Act II; Evocation of Kundry (c. 1886)’
Henri Fantin-Latour (French, 1836-1904)
Artvee
Contents
Act I, the Grail's realm, a location with the look of the northern mountain regions of Gothic Spain
Act II, Klingsor’s magic castle, on the south-facing part of the same mountain as the Grail's realm, facing Arabic Spain and looking similar to it
Act III the Grail's realm
Translated by Abigail Dyer © Copyright 2019 All Rights Reserved.
This work may be freely reproduced, stored and transmitted, electronically or otherwise, for any non-commercial purpose. Conditions and Exceptions apply.
Please direct enquiries for commercial re-use to dyerabigail@gmail.com.
About the translator:
An historian of Renaissance and Baroque Europe and a classical singer, Abigail Dyer transitioned into translating poetic German operas and art songs. Germans expect to understand every word and nuance of their operas, and it is this immersive experience that she seeks to convey to English-speaking audiences. With her fluency in German, translation expertise, and stage experience, her work aims to assit English speakers in enjoying Germanic operas to their fullest. The work presented here, is her translation of Wagner's Parsifal. The opera follows the journey of Parsifal, a “pure fool”, who undertakes a quest to heal King Amfortas, the guardian of the Holy Grail, reminiscent of Percival's task in Arthurian legend to find the Grail and heal the Fisher King. Throughout his journey, Parsifal surmounts various trials, including Kundry's attempted seduction and the dark sorcery of Klingsor, ultimately leading to the redemption of Amfortas and the restoration of the Grail. You may read more about Abigail on her personal website.
