Completed in 1845, Richard Wagner's romantic opera 'Tannhäuser and the Singing Contest at the Wartburg' pursues the path taken by 'The Flying Dutchman' a few years before: from number opera to through-composed opera without embedded spoken prose passages as had been common in the early German works of this genre, such as in 'Fidelio', 'The Magic Flute' or 'Freischütz'.Apart from the libretto, this edition contains introductory commentaries of Kurt Pahlen who also adds information on the compositional structure and context to the musical as well as external and internal dramatic action of the opera. A short synopsis and a brief outline of the genesis bring the work into relation with the composer's entire oeuvre and his life, thus offering a comprehensive, richly illustrated introduction.