The Wagner Award

Since 1999 the Society periodically recognized notables in the opera world who have made extraordinary contributions to the study and enjoyment of Richard Wagner’s art.

Martin Feinstein, 1999, WNO General Director
Thomas Stewart, 2000, Bass Baritone
Father M. Owen Lee, 2001, Critic and Scholar
Maestro Heinz Fricke, 2002, WNO Conductor
Evelyn Lear, 2003, Soprano
Saul Lilienstein, 2004. Musicologist
James Morris, 2005, Bass Baritone
Jeffrey Swann, 2007, Pianist
John Pohanka, 2009, WNO Board Chair
Donald Crosby PhD, 2012, Author, Scholar
Francesca Zambello, 2014, WNO Artistic Director
Jay Hunter Morris, 2015, Tenor
Jennifer Wilson, 2016, Soprano
Maestro Philippe Auguin, 2018, Conductor, WNO Ring

Anne Kline Pohanka, 2024, Pohanka Family Foundation

Christine Goerke, 2024, Dramatic Soprano