Record Label Turns To Kickstarter To Fund Rare Wagner CD Set

Was Wagner the first person to use "crowed funding" to pay for performances of his work? Well, it is certain that it was public subscriptions that helped build Bayreuth - even if it ultimately also needed the formation of the Wagner Societies and 100,000 Thaler from the patron saint of Wagnerites everywhere - Ludwig II.

Perhaps it is in this spirit that a small,independent record label - Washington based Americas -  has turned to 21st century crowd funding/public patronage "Kickstarter" in an attempt to fund a four cd set of rarely heard/recorded  Wagner works - selected by Dr. Peter P. Pachl .  And like Wagner they intend to make the work free to anyone that would like to hear it, in the form of MP3 downloads - although the set will also available on CD.

It seems the company needs a total of $163,000 to make the project a reality. Well, if Zach Braff manged to use Kickstarter to raise $2 million (in 3 days) to fund another one of his indie "comedy dramas" or millionaire game designer Richard Garriott raised a similar amount to fund another one of his RPGs, then anything is possible.

See below for a video of Americas CEO discussing the project plus a full track listing of the expected finished set.

For more information visit Kickstarter

CD 1 - Opera - Rarely Performed & Rarely Recorded (About 77 minutes long)
Männerlist grösser als Frauenlist WWV 48, No. 2-4 (arranged for orchestra)
Die Hochzeit WWV 31
Aria for insertion in Blum's Mary, Max and Michel WWV 43
Added stretta for Marschner's Der Vampyr WWV 33
Aria for insertion in Beliini's Norma WWV 52
Aria for insertion in Weigl's Die Schweizerfamilie WWV 45 (re-arranged for orchestra)
Additional Scene for Gottfried in Lohengrin WWV 75 (re-arranged for orchestra)
Die Feen (first version of Ada's aria) WWV 32
Tannhauser – "The Paris Version" (1861) – A scene between Venus and Tannhauser (in French) WWV 70
Senta's ballad from The Flying Dutchman (Wagner's last version) WWV 63 (arranged for orchestra)

CD 2 - Orchestral & Opera - Rarely Performed & Rarely Recorded (About 72 minutes long)Faust overture (1st version) WWV 59
Kaisermarsch (with chorus) WWV 104
WWV 13 - Orchestral Fragment in E minor WWV 13
Concert overture in D minor WWV 20
Tannhäuser's Pilgrimage arrangement - first & longer version
Brünnhilde's Schlussgesang (final scene from Götterdämmerung) – complete version composed for Ludwig II (orchestrated)

CD 3 - Other Vocal & Instrumental - Rarely Performed & Rarely Recorded (About 67 minutes long)
Willkommen in Wahnfried chorus WWV 112
Antiker Chorgesang (Ihr Kinder geschwinde, geschwinde) WWV 113
Schlaf, Kindchen, schlafe o. WWV
Es ist bestimmt in Gottes Rat WWV 92
Tribschener Kinderhymne o. WWV
Romeo und Julie WWV 98
Thema di Porazzi o. WWV
Doppelfuge WWV 19B
Polka und Ländler zum Sechselüten WWV 84
Albumblatt für Judith Gautier o. WWV
Dein ist das Reich WWV 19A
Gesang am Grabe von Julies von Holtei WWV 51
Gruss seiner Treuen an Friedrich August WWV 71
Der Tag erscheint WWV 68B
Wahlspruch für die deutsche Feuerwehr WWV 101
Extase WWV 54
La Tombe dit à Rose WWV 56
Canto anticco o. WWV
Trinkgeldlied o. WWV
Seinem Seraphinenpueppchen o. WWV
Standhartner o. WWV
Quasi Graziöses Thema o. WWV
Kinderkatechismus (two versions: (1) with children's choir and piano & (2) a new, longer end with children's choir and orchestra) WWV 106B
Funeral music based on themes from Carl Maria von Weber's Euryanthe WWV 73
Die letze Heidenverschwörung WWV 41 (re-arranged for orchestra)
Incidental music for Theodor Apel's play Christoph Columbus WWV 37B (arrangement)

CD 4 - Wagner's Arrangements of Other Composers - Rarely Performed & Rarely Recorded (About 65 minutes long)
Stage music for Raupach's König Enzio WWV 24B
Added Scenes for Gluck's Iphigénie en Aulide WWV 77
Palastrina's Stabat Mater WWV 79
Cavatina for Bellini's Il Pirata WWV 34
Halévy's La Reine de Chypre WWV 62E
Stage music for Holtei's Der schottische Mantel o. WWV*
Stage music for Holtei's Wiener in Paris o. WWV*
Stage music for Holtei's Hans Jürge o. WWV