„Wendest von hier du nach West den Schritt…“
The Eastern Europe Pool
Beyond the direct support of the scholarship foundation, the Richard Wagner Associations from Germany and also from some Western European cities have been contributing so much money since 1996 to a so-called "Eastern Europe Pool" that every year about 25 young artists from Eastern Europe can be invited to visit the Bayreuth Festival.
After the fall of the "iron curtain", several Richard Wagner associations and societies emerged in many Eastern European countries. However, both in terms of the number of members and the amount of contributions and donations they receive, these associations are often not yet sufficiently capable to support the Richard Wagner Scholarship Foundation from their own resources and thus participate in the scholarship programme from their own financial resources.
With the "Eastern Europe Pool", talented artists from many Eastern European countries can also visit the Bayreuth Festival - in keeping with the foundation idea of Richard Wagner.