Connecting across borders

Wherever in the world you are a member of a local Richard Wagner society, you belong to an international community of 125 societies with a combined membership of around 15,000. Each member contributes their own knowledge, experience, ideas and enthusiasm. It is precisely this diversity that makes RWVI so remarkable.

You may be very familiar with the activities of your own society but know far less about what is being developed elsewhere in the world. This is true for many of us. As a result, valuable initiatives often remain confined to one’s own town, region or country. That is a shame, because an idea that originates in one place can inspire you to start something new within your own society.

That is why I believe this Newsletter is valuable. Not as a showcase for the international Presidium or a catalogue of activities, but as an international platform for stories, initiatives and experiences. A place where you can get to know other local societies and members, find out what matters to them and perhaps discover new opportunities for collaboration.

As an international umbrella organisation, we aim to forge connections, foster development and provide direction. In doing so, we do not merely look to the past, but also make room for young people, new perspectives and different ways of coming together. The establishment of Bayreuth Fellows is a prime example of this: a new international community that keeps scholarship holders connected with one another and with RWVI even after their Stipendiatenwoche in Bayreuth.

I hope this Newsletter not only keeps you informed but also sparks your curiosity and inspires you. Perhaps you’d like to share a special initiative from your own society with us, respond to a story, or get in touch with someone you’ve come across in this Newsletter. After all, the better we know one another, the stronger and more dynamic our international community becomes.

I hope you will enjoy this issue!

Harry Leutscher

President RWVI e.V.

It only really begins after Bayreuth

Bayreuth Fellows is building a lasting international network for former and future scholarship holders

Every year, young artists and cultural professionals from various countries come to Bayreuth for the Stipendiatenwoche. They attend operas, get to know the Festspielhaus, explore the city of Bayreuth and meet scholarship holders from other countries and disciplines. For many, this is where artistic connections and friendships are formed that continue to have a lasting impact. However, there was no established international structure in place to maintain these connections after the event.

Bayreuth Fellows is set to change all that. The new association – essentially an international community – forges lasting links between past and future scholarship holders, with Bayreuth and with the global network of the Richard-Wagner-Verband International. At the same time, it provides its members with targeted support for their further professional development.

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When the forest came alive

Music, history and international encounters during a special evening at Schloss Fantaisie

On 21 August 2026, at half past nine in the evening, guests entered the grounds of Schloss Fantaisie. The sound of brass echoed through the trees: the young ensemble Saaser Blech launched a surprise concert that briefly transformed the surroundings into a concert hall. It was one of the special moments of an evening in which music, history, nature and international encounters came together.

With Musik im Wald, the Richard-Wagner-Verband International marked the 150th anniversary of the Bayreuth Festival. The programme brought together Wagner’s history surrounding Fantaisie with music and the unique setting of the castle grounds.

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Flying with the Valkyries

Four questions for flutist and composer Nikka Gershman, a new member of the Wagner Society of New York

Nikka Gershman is a student at the Juilliard School in New York, where she became the youngest student ever to receive a Kovner Fellowship. She is the founder of the Music Society of the Future and, as a performing musician and composer, is committed to developing new repertoire for the flute. Her compositions and arrangements are published by the Theodore Presser Company.

1| Why did you join your local association?

Last spring, I attended Dr Wayne Oquin’s course ‘The Ring and Its Influence’ at Juilliard. Every week, we watched an act from The Ring. During Die Walküre, I was so moved by the second act that I simply couldn’t wait a whole week for the third. When I heard it for the first time, I was completely overwhelmed. It was the most beautiful music I had ever heard.

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Leipzig, Dresden and Graupa

In its Travel section, RWVI presents travel opportunities that facilitate encounters, international connections and a shared experience of Wagner’s works. The first trip, taking place from 20 to 24 May 2027, will visit Leipzig, Dresden and Graupa, featuring, amongst other things, Tristan und Isolde and Der fliegende Holländer at the Leipzig Opera, a visit to the Semperoper and a special celebration of Wagner’s life and work on his birthday.

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