Convention and Invention: Thomas Grey gets to grips with a new collection of analytical essays

In the wider universe of ‘Wagner studies’, as noted in the introduction to this new Wagner Studies collection, close analytical engagement with the musical scores occupies a relatively small space. This has to do both with the seemingly infinite range of Wagner as cultural phenomenon, on the one hand, and with the often recondite discourses of academic music theory, on the other. The origin of this collection in a pandemic-era online symposium of (mostly) music theory-identified scholars is evident in what can feel at times like a conversation among initiates; but the conversational aspect, evident in much mutual citation within the footnotes, also creates a satisfying sense of coherence.