The composer

As he entered his last decade, much of Wagner’s attention wascycle in 1876. Though his life was now comparatively stable to what had gone before, financial good sense still eluded him and he was reliant on Ludwig II of Bavaria to fund his grand ambitions. And even at this late stage, an emotional dalliance with the poet Judith Gautier and fallings out with friends – not least the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche – were still very much part of the Wagnerian scenery.