Opera houses the world over are scrambling to pay tribute to Richard Wagner, the controversial German composer often referred to as Hitler's favourite, who would have turned 200 this year. More has purportedly already been written about Wagner than any other artist and composer in history, but publishers are churning out countless new biographies, critical studies and books. Magazines and daily newspapers are bursting with reviews, interviews and articles, while a plethora of new and re-issued recordings jostle for attention.

Opera houses the world over are scrambling to pay tribute to Richard Wagner, the controversial German composer often referred to as Hitler's favourite, who would have turned 200 this year. More has purportedly already been written about Wagner than any other artist and composer in history, but publishers are churning out countless new biographies, critical studies and books. Magazines and daily newspapers are bursting with reviews, interviews and articles, while a plethora of new and re-issued recordings jostle for attention.

Katharina Wagner, who co-runs the legendary Bayreuth Festival dedicated to the works of her great-grandfather Richard Wagner, dampened hopes Sunday that letters between Adolf Hitler and the Wagner family could be published. In an interview in the Sunday edition of the Tagesspiegel newspaper, Katharina reiterated her pledge to hand over the private papers of her father, Wolfgang Wagner, to the Bavarian State Archive, with the aim of shedding new light on the festival's history. "This will mean that historians and scholars can have access to this material," she said.

(Repeats without changes to text) * Half a duck and wine at Bayreuth while Germany starved * Music in contrast to Wagner's personal views - soprano Voigt * Anti-Semitism woven into the music, says author Millington * He was like a Las Vegas entertainer, German writer says By Michael Roddy