Wieland der Schmied (Hitler)

Wieland der Schmied[1] (English: Wayland the Smith) is the unfinished juvenilia opera by Adolf Hitler that he began around 1905, in his early 20s.[2]

For Ján Levoslav Bella's opera, see Wieland der Schmied (opera). For Richard Wagner's draft, see Wieland der Schmied (libretto).

From 1907 to 1908, Hitler would unsuccessfully apply to the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts twice. During this time, he would grow his fascinating with the German composer Richard Wagner, a relationship which would only deepen as Nazism expanded.[3] The opera was modelled after Wagner's unfinished version of the same name. There is only one surviving piece of sheet music from the work, a piano sketch made by Hitler's childhood friend and music conductor August Kubizek.[4] In recollection about the work in his 1953 memoir Adolf Hitler, mein Jugendfreund (Young Hitler, the Story of Our Friendship), Kubizek marvelled at Hitler's passion for "the beauty, the nobility, the grandeur of the art".[5]

The manuscript was included in the 2021 "Young Hitler: the Formative Years of a Dictator" exhibition held at the Nordico museum in Linz, Austria.[6]

References
  1. "Hitler's justly forgotten opera attempt goes on display in Austria". The Local. Austria. 2020-03-01. Retrieved 2022-11-23.
  2. "Adolf Hitler schreibt um 1905 eine germanische Oper Wieland der Schmied". Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek (in German). Retrieved 2022-11-23.
  3. Porat, Dina (2006-12-01). "The Richard Wagner and Adolf Hitler Connection: Ideology or Fascination?". Holocaust Studies. 12 (3): 89–106. doi:10.1080/17504902.2006.11087183. ISSN 1750-4902. S2CID 142471949.
  4. Jankowiak, Celine (29 February 2020). "Hitler's attempt at an opera goes on display for the first time in Austria". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 2022-11-23.
  5. Claus Hant. "Young Hitler, excerpts Appendix, 'Hitler's Opera'". younghitler.com. Retrieved 2022-11-23. From Young Hitler (2010)
  6. "Der junge Hitler". Nordico Stadtmuseum Linz. Retrieved 2022-11-23.
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