Happy 200th birthday, Herr Wagner!

If you could invite anyone, living or dead, to your ultimate dinner party, who would it be?

It's a fun question whose answers can give a peek to a person's interests and beliefs. Historical figures, deceased family members, religious figures, current political, entertainment or business figures often make such lists.

My friends and family might be a little surprised at who most definitely would NOT be on my list: the 19th century German Romantic composer Richard Wagner. They know I have long been an ardent disciple of Wagner's music. He was undoubtedly the most influential composer of the late 19th century: For good or ill, he changed forever the way Western music was composed, played and even listened to. His operas/music dramas permanently changed how music is used in the theater and have always exerted a strong influence on music for film.

But away from the world of music, he was a thoroughly despicable little man. Today we'd call him sleazy. He'd be your dearest BFF, as long as you continued to "loan" him money, or a place to live, or your wife. Once that ended, you'd be among his legion of enemies, which included entire races of people who for whatever reason he thought were conspiring against him. He had no morals.

That dichotomy of unmatched musical genius and deeply flawed character are what have kept Wagner among the most controversial figures in history.

But today, we can set aside that controversy and celebrate the work of a man who has given many of us so many hours of musical pleasure and inspiration. On May 22, 1813, Richard Wilhelm Wagner was born into a dysfunctional theater family in Leipzig.

So I'll put on a recording of Act I of Die Walküre, or maybe the last scene of Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg or the "Liebestod" from Tristan und Isolde -- too many superb examples of his work to choose from! -- cut myself a piece of birthday cake, lift a glass of good German wine, turn toward Bayreuth and wish Herr Wagner a happy 200th birthday!

And be grateful that I won't have to put up with that asshole at my dinner party.