a run through the nibelung's ring

7/28/2019 A Run Through the Nibelung's Ring

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HAROLD B. Lfft- LIBRARYBRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITYPROVO. U I AH


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Digitized by the Internet Archivein 2012 with funding fromBrigham Young University

http://www.archive.org/details/runthroughthenibOOagne


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A Run Through" The Nibelung's Ring 5>


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f$ A Run Through"The Nibelung's Ring 9?

ByPhilip Leslie Agnew

London


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Preface.

The following pages are an attempt topresent in a concise and intelligible form themain features of the complicated plot of " TheNibelung's Ring." The writer will be morethan satisfied if his explanation affords even aslight assistance to those who have not yetseen the Tragedy. He trusts that the difficultyof the subject will be considered a sufficientexcuse for the many omissions and short-comings of which he is painfully conscious.

P. L. A.


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A Run Through "TheNibelung's Ring/

5

I."Das Rheingold."The Tragedy of "The Nibelungs Ring" is

divided into four parts, each corresponding toan act of an ordinary drama, and occupyingan entire evening. " The Rhinegold " is to beregarded as a Prologue dealing with eventsanterior to the main plot, the central idea ofwhich, most briefly stated, is the struggle ofGods, Demigods, Giants, Dwarfs and Men, forthe possession of a magical Ring, the symbolof material power, to which a curse has beenattached; and "The R^nego^" teaches usclearly the origin of this struggle.


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io " Das Rheingold."duced, suggests that the interloper is out ofharmony with the scene.Pure lust for the maidens has brought Al-

berich here, but they treat the ugly creature as ajoke ; pretend to flirt with him, and torment himto such an extent that in desperation he shakeshis fist threateningly at them. But soon hiseager eyes are riveted upon another object, forlo ! the sun's rays have pierced the waters, anda lustrous light is streaming from the centralrock. It is the glow of the magical gold.With ecstatic joy the maidens apostrophizetheir treasure

" Heiajaheia ! Walalalaleia jaheia !Rhinegold ! Radiant delight ! *

We have reached the first step in the Tragedy.The silly maidens, thinking all men as innocentas themselves, and grown careless through longsecurity, proceed to unfold the secret of thiswonderful gold


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"Das Rheingold." n" The realm of the worldBy him shall be won,Who from the RhinegoldHath wrought the RingImparting measureless might."

But this universal dominion is to be obtainedby him alone who can renounce the delights otlove

" Who the delight of love forswears,He who derides its ravishing eyes,He alone has the magic mightTo shape the gold to a ring."

Such a sacrifice on the part of the amorousAlberich appears to the Rhine-daughters quiteimpossible. But the mischief has been doneAlberich listens eagerly to the maidens' prattle,and taking in the situation at a glance, decidesthere and then for Power in preference to Love.With an outburst of defiance he climbs up therock, and cursing Love for ever, tears away thegold. The terrified nymphs swim off screaming,and Alberich dives down into the depths with


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12 "Das Rheingold"his illgotten gains. The whole stage becomesdark, while from below is heard the Nibelung'smocking laughter.

The Second scene is an openScene space on a mountain top ; the2 - stately walls of Valhalla rise in the

background, its pinnacles gleaming in theearly dawn : in the valley between flows theRhine.Let us know once for all about this Valhalla.

Wotan the God, having grown weary of " loveand woman's worth," and wishing to increasehis material power and prosperity, has at theinstigation of Loge the Fire-God, contractedwith a firm of giant-brothers, Fafner and Fasolt,to build him a stately fortress, whence he andhis fellow Gods may rule the world, the con-sideration for the giants' services being thepossession of Freia, the Goddess of Love and


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"Das Rheingold" 13keeper of the Golden Apples, by the eating ofwhich the Gods are sustained in health andstrength. But Wotan never intended to pay forthe work, the deceitful Loge having promised tofind means of releasing him from the bargain.The fortress, however, is duly built, the giantsdemand their pay, and no Loge has yet ap-peared to extricate Wotan from the difficultyin which his love of self-aggrandizement hasplaced him.At this point the scene opens. We are intro-

duced to Wotan and Fricka his spouse, a ladyof energetic temperament and strong language,which she does not hesitate to employ upon herfaithless lord, upbraiding him roundly for sacri-ficing his former marital fidelity to his restlessambition for power. But Wotan heeds her nota whit ; as the orchestra strikes up the solemn" Valhalla " theme, he gazes rapturously at thefortress just completed, heedless of the price hehas agreed to pay for it.


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14 " Das RheingoldrFricka's railings are interrupted by the hasty

entrance of Freia, pursued by the two giants,who have come to demand their price, and noexpostulations of Wotan and two other Gods,Donner and Thor, avail to thwart the brothersfrom their purpose. They are about to carryFreia off, when to Wotan's intense relief thewished-for Loge enters. Musically introducedby a series of ascending and descending chro-matic passages suggestive of crackling fire, herelates to the company in a very beautifulmelody how he has travelled high and low tofind a substitute for Freia ; but in vain, for hecan find nothing in this world that can beestimated higher than " love and woman'sdignity," a remark which calls forth surprisefrom these not over-scrupulous deities. He tellsthem too of Alberich, of his renunciation oflove, of his theft of the Rhinegold, and of theRing which he has fashioned therefrom, to winfor himself universal power.


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"Das Rheingold" 17theatrical point of view grotesque ; nor is theremuch in its musical treatment to please the earor arouse the emotions. The predominatingtheme suggestive of the striking of hammersupon an anvil is realistic enough, but growsmonotonous by its excessive reiteration.But to proceed with the main incidents of the

scene. Mime has duly made the " Tarnhelm,"and guessing its power, wishes to keep it forhimself. But Alberich is too much for him, andafter delivering the dwarf a sound thrashing forhis deceit, seizes the " Tarnhelm/' and placingit upon his head, becomes invisible to Mime.Meanwhile Wotan and Loge descend from acleft in the rock, and finding Mime writhingunder the blows of Alberich's invisible scourge,question him and learn from him the secretof Alberich's power. The latter now enters,driving before him a crowd of Nibelungs ladenwith the Rhinegold treasures, gold and silverjewellery in profusion.


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"Das Rheingold." 19

The Fourth scene brings us backScene once more to Valhalla. Wotan4- and Loge are dragging the unfor-

tunate Alberich before the walls of the fortress.He is there compelled to ransom himself withthe whole of the Nibelung treasure, includingthe Ring, which Wotan tears from Alberich 5 sfinger and puts upon his own. His fetters areunloosed, and raising himself from the ground,with a yell of defiance he vows vengeance onthem all. "As by my curse I won the Ring,henceforth accursed be the Ring!" He disap-pears, leaving the Gods to brood upon his fatefulwords. It is Alberich's curse which in the de-velopment of the Tragedy works the downfallof Gods and men, and throws a blight upon thewhole world until expiation is made by the self-sacrifice of Brunnhilde.The curse is soon fruitful of disaster. True to


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20 "Das Rheingold"time, the giants come back with Freia, to learnWotan's final answer. At her approach thestrength of the Gods returns. The giants insistupon having the whole of the Nibelung treasureas ransom for Freia ; Wotan proposes to giveonly a carefully measured quantity. They finallyagree to be content with as much gold andsilver as, when piled up round Freia, will sufficeto completely conceal her from their eyes. Thework begins ; Freia is placed in the middle ofthe stage, and the treasures are heaped up,almost hiding her from view. The hoard isexhausted ; but the giants are inexorable. " Istill see her shining hair/' says Fafner ; " throwin the Tarnhelm ! " and the Tarnhelm has to go." There is still a chink," shouts Fasolt ; " fill itwith Wotan's Ring." Wotan refuses; the giantspull Freia from behind the heap, and prepare tocarry her oif again. Fricka in vain imploresthe obdurate God to yield.

All are standing perplexed, when Erda, the


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22 "Das Rheingold"

be restored to its native resting-place in theRhine.The evening sun glows upon the celestial

fortress. He turns sadly to Fricka : " Come,wife, with me ; in Valhalla will we dwell/'Meanwhile Donner and Thor have spread arainbow-bridge over the valley to Valhalla,along which the Gods prepare to march insolemn procession. But Erda's warnings that" a day of doom " is impending for the Gods,have sunk deep into Wotan's soul, and as hesets his foot upon the bridge a sudden thought,illustrated by a musical theme, subsequently ofgreat importance, seems to strike him. Yes, hewill strengthen his dominion by creating a newrace of heroes to fight with the sword the earthlybattle for the possession of the Ring.We shall see how this resolve is carried out in

the development of the Tragedy. Meanwhilethe sad voices of the Rhine-daughters bewailingtheir lost treasure, rise from the valley beneath


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II."Die Walkiire."A considerable interval is supposed to have

elapsed between " The Rhinegold " and " TheValkyrie/' during which time Wotan has seenand done much. With "The Valkyrie " weenter upon the plot proper of the Tetralogy, thesignificance of which however cannot be fairlyappreciated without some knowledge of theevents which have happened in the interval.When the curtain fell on "The Rhinegold "

prelude, we knew this much at leastthat be-tween Alberich and Wotan there would be warfor the possession of the Ring. The Ring andTarnhelm are now in the possession of Fafner,who in the form of a dragon guards the treasurein his cave, knowing nothing of its magicalpower. The Ring was indeed his by bargain,


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"Die Walkure." 25the terms of which are now engraved on theshaft of Wotan's spear, and therefore the latterat all events is pledged not to deprive Fafner ofhis plunder. But what the God may not do ofhis own act, may well be effected through theinstrumentality of anothersome hero of hischoice, that same hero in fact upon whom histhoughtful fancy rested at the close of " TheRhinegold ,5 as he was preparing to cross thebridge to his Valhalla-home. With this ideahe deserts his goodly wife Fricka, and wander-ing among men disguised as a hero " Volsung,"has had twins born to him, a brother and sister,called Siegmund and Sieglinde.The Volsung lived with his family in the

woods; but one fine day he returned home tofind that his house had been burnt down andSieglinde forcibly carried off as wife to Hunding,a warrior and sworn enemy of the Volsungenrace. Wotan for some time wandered throughthe forests with his son Siegmund, and then


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26 "Die Walkure."mysteriously left him, in order to enure theyouth to trials and misfortunes. MeanwhileSieglinde is forced into a loveless marriage.At the wedding feast old Wotan comes intoHunding's house, an unknown and unbiddenguest, and surprises all by mysteriously thrust-ing a sword up to the hilt into the trunk of theash-tree around which the house was built.This is the sword " Nothung " (Needful), whichonly a fearless hero when in " sorest needshall be able to draw from the tree. In Sieg-mund he hopes to have found such an onea divinely inspired hero who of his own prompt-ing will, with the help of the sword, gain theRing and free the world of the curse by re-storing the fatal emblem to the Rhine. Weshall shortly see upon how frail a reed the poorGod rests his hopes.But the measure of Wotan's activity in this

interval of time is not yet completely exhausted.He cannot forget the significant warnings of


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"Die Walkurer 27the Goddess Erda about the future prospects ofthe Valhalla deities, and wishing for furtherinformation, he once more deserts his long-suffering spouse and pays a visit to Erda.From her he derives little consolation, for shetells him that when " the dark foe of Love(Alberich) in rage begets a son, the destructionof the Gods will not tarry long." Hagen isthat son, of whom we shall hear more. Tostrengthen therefore his heavenly dominions,he begets from Erda nine daughters, whom henames Valkyries ; to each of them he gives awar-horse, and bids them visit the battle-fieldsand carry off to Valhalla the corpses of slainwarriors, as a defence against the day of doomwhich threatens the Gods.

Such is the state of affairs at theArt commencement of the First Act.

I A stormy orchestral prelude, sug-gestive of thunder, lightning, and incessant


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28 "Die Walkure"patter of raindrops; it is night in Hunding'sdwelling-place ; in the centre of the housestands the ash-tree with the sword in itstrunk just as Wotan left it. The storm is gra-dually subsiding into distant murmurs, whenSiegmund hastily opens the door from the out-side, and throws himself exhausted upon thehearth. Sieglinde enters from an inner room,looks with compassion upon the unknown tra-veller, and gives him refreshment. A mys-terious sympathy draws the unhappy pairtogether from their first meeting. There is alook of tenderness in Sieglinde's face, as Sieg-mund tells her of his sufferings. She startsconscience-stricken as she hears the heavyfootsteps of Hunding outside, leading his horseto the stable. The musical colouring of thescene suddenly changes ; in place of the strainsof pathetic tenderness suggestive of the com-passion which Siegmund and Sieglinde feel foreach other, we hear a theme of gloomy har-


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"Die Walkurer 29monies as Hunding walks in. Fixing his wifewith a look of stern enquiry he asks her aboutthe stranger, whom he eyes cautiously; he isstruck by the uncommon resemblance betweenthe two, but tries to hide his surprise.At the meal which Sieglinde prepares, Sieg-

mund relates the story of his sufferings. Mis-fortune, he tells them, has dogged his footstepsat every turnevery hand has been againsthim. Finally he relates how on one occasion,being called in to help a maiden upon whommarriage was being forced against her will, heslew many of her kinsmen, but in the end wasoverpowered by numbers and was obliged to fly.Hunding listens grimly; he recognizes hisguest as the sworn enemy of his race ; for it washis (Hunding' s) flesh and blood that Siegmundhad slain. " Listen," replies he darkly, " to-night my house shall hold thee free from harm,but to-morrow arm thyself for fightfor at dawnshalt thou fall to requite my kinsmen's cause."


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"Die Walkurc" 31the future flashes upon them. With one cryfrom Siegmund, "The blood of the Volsungsmust flourish ! " they rush into each others armsas the curtain falls.

This repulsive detail has been severelycriticised, and indiscriminate abuse hurled atWagner for its insertion. To justify it byreference to a standard of morality of any agewould be no less outrageous than ridiculous. Itis fair however to point out that we are notdealing with ordinary types of humanity, andfurther that in the Volsunga Saga from whichWagner borrowed the story, the episode assumesa significant and tragical importance, both ofwhich considerations may prompt us not over-hastily to condemn its insertion in the drama.With Siegmund' s sin, Wotans plans are

frustrated. For the sin is speedily expiated,and the God himself is forced to destroy thecreature of his own makingthe object of hisdearest hopes. The whole scene is one of strong


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, 2 "Die Walkure."emotion and tenderness, and its illustrativemusic a marvel of seductive beauty. Owing tothe almost constant flow of melody, the Act isdeservedly one of the most popular portions ofthe Tetralogy.

The Second Act is laid in a wild^ct mountain ravine. We are intro-2 - duced to a new characterBriinn-

hilde, the Valkyrie. Of the nine warrior-daughters, she is the dearest to Wotan's heartthe embodiment of his will and supportof his household. Knowing the danger thatthreatens Siegmund, Wotan calls the maiden tohis side, and bids her shield Siegmund in thecoming fight. She is in a merry, rollickingmood, to judge from her boisterous shouts of" Hoyotoho ! Heiaha ! Hahei ! Heiaho ! " as shesprings from rock to rock. Seeing Fricka gal-loping down the ravine in her car, she cannot


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"Die Walkure." 33resist teasing her father about the domesticquarrel that is likely to ensue. "Look to it,father; I like not such scenes/' the spoiledchild shouts as she disappears behind a rock.The luckless Wotan knows well what is

coming. "The old complaint, no peace athome ! " sighs he, as his wile paces towardshim. The weak God has at this moment oursympathy, but from Fricka we must not with-hold our respect, for she comes as Hunding'schampion, to uphold the sacredness of themarriage-tie which the Volsungen pair have soshamelessly violated. Her mind is made up ;Siegmund must die for his sin. Wotan at firstprotests that the lovers' offence was venialthateven Law must bow before Love. But Fricka isadamant ; in despair he at last vows to surrenderhis plan, and withhold his protection from Sieg-mund. She is satisfied and disappears, to thegreat relief of Wotan. In deep perplexity hecalls Briinnhilde once more to his side, and


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34 cc Die WalkurePunfolds to her the whole depth of his misery.His fond dreams of a hero to win back the Ringand free the world of its curse are wrecked. Inhis secret heart he loves the Volsung, andBriinnhilde knows it, but Law and Moralitydemand that he should fall. Sadly he bidsBriinnhilde carry out Fricka's orders, and slaythe hero whom she was to protect. HadWagner confined Wotan's narration to one halfof its actual length, the dramatic significance ofthis scene would have been greatly increasedas it is, one is wearied of this miserable deity.Wotan and Briinnhilde depart, and Siegmund

enters bearing Sieglinde in his arms, senselesswith terror and fatigue. Hundings horn isheard in the distance, summoning his men forthe fray. Siegmund lays her tenderly upon theground, and as he gazes over her to see whethershe still breathes, Briinnhilde slowly entersfrom the back, armed and leading her horse,and gazes with sorrowful sympathy at the


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36 "Die Walkure?meet his foe. The lightning flashes and revealsthe combatants, Briinnhilde covering Siegmundwith her shield. As he is about to deliverHunding a deadly stroke, Wotan comes uponthe scene ; upon his outstretched spear, " Need-ful " is shivered in pieces, and Hunding burieshis sword in Siegmund' s neck. But to the con-queror Wotan has equally little pity. "Gethence, and kneel before Fricka," he says,waving his hand contemptuously, and Hundingfalls dead. Meanwhile Briinnhilde picks up theshattered pieces ofSiegmund's sword, and hurriesoff with Sieglinde to escape her father's wrath.From a dramatic and musical point of view,

this is one of the finest scenes in " The Ring/'Our sympathy is aroused by this fearless war-rior-maiden, by her love and sell-sacrifice. Inthe noble dialogue between her and Siegmund,Wagner s theory of the interdependence of thetwo artsPoetry and Music is most strikinglyexemplified. As Siegmund recoils from the


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"Die Walkure" 37thought of leaving Sieglinde for Valhalla, wehear once again the tender music of the lovescene in the First Act, intermingling with thesolemn Valhalla theme. The conception andconstruction of the whole scene is masterly.

The Third Act opens on thect summit of a rocky mountain,3- where the Valkyrie maidens are

assembling on their way to Valhalla. Theygreet one another with wild laughter as theygallop through the clouds, bearing on theirsaddles the corpses of slain heroes. The sceneis one of general bustle and excitement. Themusic, with its weird rhythmical movement inthe bass, accompanied by trills on the woodwind instruments and arpeggios on the upperregister of the violins, admirably suggests theneighing and prancing of steeds. The maidensask each other about their missing sister,


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38 "Die Walkiire"Briinnhilde. Presently she rushes in, support-ing Sieglinde in her arms. She implores themfor protection. Wotan is in hot pursuit topunish her for her disobedience, the nature ofwhich she explains to them. The sisters arehorrified at such rebellion, and they dare nothelp. She begs them to have pity at least onSieglinde, and lend her a horse to carry her to asafe place. They advise Sieglinde to fly, butwill not assist her. Briinnhilde' s one thoughtis now for her. Her loving sympathy has givenher prophetic powers. She hails the unbornhero that Sieglinde is about to give birth to,and implores her to fly for the sake of her childto a wood hard by, near the cave where Fafnerin the shape of a dragon guards the Nibelungtreasure. " Know this, O maid, the noblesthero of worlds thou hidest in thy womb. Forhim take these fragments" (giving her thebroken pieces of Siegmund's sword) ; " reforged,the sword shall be swung by him. Let him


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Die WaMrer 39take from me the name of ' Siegfried/ " Theheroic " Siegfried " theme bursts forth from theorchestra as Sieglinde rushes out, overjoyed atthe glad tidings.

Briinnhilde is left to await her punishment.As Wotan storms in, the sisters try to screenher, but she steps out from behind them, andwith downcast eyes prepares to meet her fate.The maidens intercede, but Wotan is unbend-ing; she is to be expelled from heaven, degradedand banished from his sight. " Into powerlesssleep Til cast thee, to be the slave of him whofirst finds and awakes thee." Briinnhilde fallsprostrate at his feetthe maidens plead again,but being angrily repulsed fly away on theirhorses.

Then follows a long scene between father anddaughter ; Briinnhilde urges in her own defencethat she was carrying out Wotan's secret wishwhen she tried to shield Siegmund, and that insaving Sieglinde she has saved the future hero


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40 "Die WalkUre"of the Volsung race. Wotan retorts that sheought to be ashamed of herself for giving wayto her emotions at a time when he was sacri-ficing the object of his dearest hopes on thealtar of Morality. At no moment is the God socontemptible as during this sermon. As a lastappeal she reminds him of the degradation anddishonour to which he exposes her in makingher the prize of any "worthless churl." Oneboon only she craves : " Protect my sleepingform with frightening horrors, that only a freeand fearless hero may find me here on therock." The God is at last touched by her noble-ness ; his love is awakened and the recon-ciliation made. Yes, he will surround her witha wall of fire which none but a fearless heroshall pass. " One only shall free the maid," hesobs ; " one freer than I, the God."

In a melody of wonderful beauty and pathoshe bids her farewell, kisses her, and lays hertenderly upon a rocky mound under a fir-tree.


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"Die Walkurer 41Striking the ground with his spear, he invokesthe Fire-God Loge. The flames arise andspread over the stage, completely envelopingBriinnhilde. The gentle figure of the slumber-motive is wafted from the harps and violins,whilst at Wotan's last words, " He who fearsto face the point of my spear, he cannot piercethe flame," the majestic Siegfried theme burstsforth, foretelling the hero that is to work themaiden's release. So ends " The Valkyrie," ofwhich it may be truly said, that nothing moredramatic or emotional has ever been witnessedupon the lyrical stage.


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III." Siegfried. >5

Franz Liszt once comparedAct u xhe Nibelungs Ring'' to a Sym-* phony, of which "Siegfried" formed

the Scherzo, " The Valkyrie " the Andante, and"The Dusk of the Gods" the Finale. Asregards "Siegfried" the comparison is par-ticularly apt, for in certain parts of it there isreal humour and merriment. The character ofthe titular hero has been drawn by Wagnerwith an exquisite lightness of touch and anirresistible charm ; a halo of poetry and romancesurrounds the boy's early life in the woods, andone watches him with ever-growing interestgradually extricating himself from the meanand sordid beings with whom he is broughtin contact. The music of " Siegfried " is con-


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cc Siegfried. 11 43fessedly difficult, and requires a frequent hearingfor a true appreciation of its wonderful beauties.Certain so-called critics have pronounced it tobe a " weary waste/' enlivened here and thereby an " oasis/' but there is fortunately nosign at present that the music-loving publicis prepared to agree with their facetious com-parison.Between "The Valkyrie" and " Siegfried

certain important events have happened. WhenSieglinde left the Valkyrie rock carrying withher the splinters of Siegmund's sword, she tookrefuge in a wood close to the cave where Fafnerin the form of a dragon was guarding the Ringand Tarnhelm. She was discovered by Mime,who for some reason had started a smithy inthe forest, and taken to his home, where shesubsequently gave birth to a sonthe heroSiegfried. She died directly after, and Mimecarefully hid the broken sword and took care ofthe child, bringing him up in ignorance of his


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44 cc Siegfried"parentage. But Nibelung cunning was at workeven in this apparently christian action ; forMime is well aware of Wotan's plans, and hasheard the story of the unholy love of Siegmundand Sieglinde, and of the sword "Needful"which only a fearless hero could wield."Siegfried must be that hero/' thinks thedwarf; "if I can reforge < Needful/ Siegfriedshall slay me the Dragon. The silly lad knowsnothing about the power of the Ring. TheDragon slain, the Ring shall be mine ; then,Wotan, look to thyself ! "

After a short orchestral prelude of gloomyharmonies, intended to suggest the Nibelung'streacherous cogitations, the curtain rises uponMime's cavern in the woods. He is busyhammering at a sword, and in despair over hiswork ; and well he may be, for not all his sweatand toil avail him to reforge " Needful," whilsteach weapon which he succeeds in forging issmashed by Siegfried as if it were a toy.


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46 cf Siegfried. 1 '

him the story of his parentage, and of the brokensword which Sieglinde gave into his hands onher deathbed. Siegfried is all excitement athearing the strange story. " Look alive, Mime,you shall forge me the fragments,see it's donebefore my return, or I will break your ribs,"shouts the boy as he rushes out again into thewoods.

Wotan enters, disguised as The Wanderer.The God has by this time ceased to take anyactive part in the struggle for the Ring ; he isindeed out of the " running/' and now, wander-ing about the earth to pick up information, hehas somehow found his way to Mime's cavern.His restless character is musically illustrated bya mysterious but very beautiful progression ofcommon chords without any tonality, and hence-forth his presence in the drama is always madeknown by this theme. There is at first muchprosy and wearisome talk between the two. Itis finally agreed that they shall ask each other


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cc Siegfried.' 1 4.7

three questions, and that whichever of the twogives a wrong answer shall forfeit his head tothe other. Mime begins, and asks about theNibelungs, the Giants and the Gods, to whichquestions the " all-wise Father" is prepared togive correct answers, as indeed he ought to be,seeing that both he and the audience haveknown them long ago. The Wanderer in histurn asks about the Volsungs, and the swordwith which Siegfried is to slay the Dragon.Mime is in a position to answer correctly,though he winces a little at the searching inter-rogatories. But at the third question" Whowill from the broken splinters reforge ' Needfulthe sword ? " Mime is terrified ; he cannot say,and his opponent wins the stakes. "Hear,thou fated dwarf/' says The Wanderer, " onlyhe who never felt fear forgeth < Needful'again: keep thy head,I leave it forfeit tohim who has not learned to fear." TheWanderer disappears, leaving Mime to digest


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" Siegfried" 49poisonous drink, which the hero will gladly taketo refresh himself after the fight: Siegfried dead,the Ring and sword will be his for ever.Siegfried's work is at last done ; brandishing thereforged sword aloft, he brings it down upon theanvil, which he splits from top to bottom, as thecurtain falls.The music of the " forge-scene " is a magnifi-

cent climax, and atones for much that may-appear to some persons dull and artificial in thelong declamation of the earlier part of the Act.It is indeed the one occasion during the wholeAct where Wagner's strict principles haveallowred him to employ music as a means ofappealing solely to the emotions of his audience.

The Second Act opens in thect gloomy depths of the forest near2 * Fafner's cave. It is night, and

Alberich (whom we have not seen since "The


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50 " Siegfried."Rhinegold ") is prowling about on the watch forthe Ring. The Wanderer enters upon the sceneagain ; he has come to tell Alberich of Mime'streacherous designs to kill Siegfried and gainpossession of the Ring. But Alberich is in nomood to listen to the loquacious God, and hurlsat him an extensive vocabulary of insultingepithets. The Wanderer advises Alberich towarn Fafner of Siegfried's approach, suggestingthat the Dragon might possibly give Alberichthe Ring for his trouble. The monster is there-upon awakened, and informed of the danger thatthreatens him; but he objects to being disturbed,and yawns out, " I lie here and possess ; let meslumber." " That stroke failed, friend Alberich,"exclaims The Wanderer mockingly ; " you hadbetter try your luck with Mime/' He dis-appears, and Alberich slinks behind a rock.Day breaks, and Mime enters cautiously with

Siegfried, whose fears he has been endeavouringto awaken on the way. He points meaningly to


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"Siegfried" S3slinks out timidly towards the cave to assurehimself of Fattier's death; Alberich bars hisway, and between the two ruffians there ensuesa scene of mutual recrimination, which is sub-sequently relieved by Siegfried's reappearancefrom the cave with both Ring and Tarnhelm.Again the forest is alive with delicious murmur,and again he listens to the voice of his bird,saying to him" Trust not Mime ; out of hisown mouth shall he confess his treachery ; suchis the power of Fafner's blood." Siegfriedleans thoughtfully on his sword as Mime limpsup to congratulate him on his recent victory.He unconsciously lets out that he has been atraitor throughout ; that he has been aimingat the Ring for himself; moreover, that he hasbrewed " such a nice little drink " which, itSiegfried will only take it, will give him hisquietus. Our hero's patience is at last ex-hausted ; as Mime offers him the poisoneddraught, he is struck dead with one blow from


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" Siegfried." 55evil associates. He has at length won hisfreedom with the swordthe boy has becomea man.The Dragon-scene, as usually represented

upon the stage, is a stumbling-block to eventhe most ardent Wagnerians, and no effort ofsympathetic imagination can prevent it fromappearing grotesque and puerileworthy indeedof a second-rate pantomime show rather thana serious drama. On the other hand, in theforest scene, Wagner has represented a pictureof ineffable charm and expressiveness, in whichpoetry, music, and scenery are so subtly har-monized as to make the spectator doubt as towhich of the three affords the chief element inhis pleasure.

The Third Act opens in gloom*ct and storm on a wild region at the3- foot of a mountain, and introduces

us once more to Wotan, still disguised as The


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6 2 " Gotterdammerung* n

sombre fir-tree. The second sister takes up thestory of Wotan's spear; how it was shiveredby Siegfried's sword, and how in despair theGod ordered his warriors to uproot the " world-ash/' and carry it to Valhalla. The third sistersings of the present; how Wotan now sits inhis palace aloft in the midst of his household,awaiting the inevitable end, while all aroundhim the faggots of the withered ash-tree arepiled up in readiness for the conflagration whichhe sees impending. The sisters then try to fore-cast the future, but it is beyond their ken : theirwisdom, too, is waning, and as the third Nomepulls the rope towards her, it breaks in pieces.With a cry of despair that the world heeds their"wise words" no more, they tie themselvestogether with the broken rope, and disappearinto the earth.

It is not attempted here to do more than brieflysketch this elaborate and beautiful scene. Thecomplex orchestration is principally built upon


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i ' Gotterdarnrnerung? ' 6

the same significant theme with which Erda atthe close of " The Rhinegold " warned the Godsof their coming doom. The doom has come,and with the disappearance of the Nornes we bidfarewell for ever to Wotan and his household.Day breaks as Siegfried and Briinnhilde enter

from the cave, the latter leading her horse. Thehero is not content to bask for ever in the sun-shine of Briinnhilde's love, and he tells her hemust away in search of new adventures andundiscovered countries. When he has won him-self fair renown, he will come back to claim hislove.

Everything is in Siegfried's favour : the curseof the Ring has as yet glanced harmlessly fromhim, and knowing nothing of its baneful quali-ties, he regards it as a pretty bauble. Moreover,he has been endowed by Briinnhilde with herheavenly wisdom, and by her magical power hasbeen made invulnerable except in the back.Before parting, he gives her the Ring as his


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64 " Gotterd'dmmerung' '

wedding-gift, while she presents him with herwar-horse as a souvenir of her past divinity.Swearing eternal fidelity, he leads his horsedown the rocks and disappears. The merrynotes of his horn are heard in the distance, andare taken up with increasing animation by theorchestra, as the curtain falls.The whole scene is rapturously emotional, and

full of musical beauty. It would be difficult tofind a better instance of Wagner's extraordinarypower of illustrating feeling by a few simplenotes, than the tender phrase which accompaniesBriinnhilde's contemplation of her wedding-ring.The scene changes to the hall of the Gibi-

chungs on the Rhine, where King Gunther, hissister Gutrune and half-brother Hagen are sittingat table. Of Hagen we already know some-thing ; he is the son of the Nibelung Alberich,and it was he whose entrance into the world was(according to Erda's prophecy) to be speedily


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70 " Gotterdiimmerung"him, but he seizes her, and wrenching the Ringfrom her finger, drives her almost senseless intothe cave. Drawing his sword, he calls it towitness that his wooing is chaste : " To seal myoath to my brother, separate me to-night fromhis bride !" He follows his captive, as thecurtain falls upon this scene of tragic horror.

The scene of the Second Act is*& laid on the banks of the Rhine2 - before the hall of the Gibichungs.

Hagen's sleeping form is just visible through thedarkness. His slumbers are aroused by Alberich,who, after reproaching him for his laziness, bidshim be up and doing. A rather dull scenefollows, in the course of which Alberich pointsout to his son that the Ring is once more withintheir grasp, if only Siegfried's death can becompassed, and that, as the sole danger to themnow lies in the possibility that Siegfried may be


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72 cc Gotterdammerung. \ \sister-in-law a right hearty welcome, and begsHagen summon his vassals for the wedding.

Standing on a height at the back of the stage,Hagen sees Gunther in the distance rowing hisbride up the Rhine. As he blows his cattle-horn and shouts to his vassals, his summons isspeedily answered by armed men rushing infrom all sides, and in disjointed sentences askingeach other the cause of their master's unwontedexcitement.The insertion of this so-called " chorus " has

actually been used by some hostile critics asevidence to show that Wagner at last had beenbrought to see the error of his rigid exclusion ofconcerted music from "The Ring/' while otherssee in it a concession to the popular taste, notyet grown accustomed to mere solo declamation.Both views are entirely false. It is insertedhere, because it is necessary and appropriate tothe dramatic situation ; and certainly nothingcould be in more complete harmony with the


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" Gotterdammerungy 73rough scene depicted on the stage. It has nopretence of being pure chorus writing, andlovers of conventional operas will perhaps findtheir feelings and their ears somewhat laceratedby the harsh dissonances and unusual intervalsgiven to the voices.The bustle and excitement of the scene reach

a climax when Gunther arrives with Briinnhilde,the latter looking sad and pale. The men rushinto the water and drag the boat ashore. AsGunther leads his bride to the hall, Siegfriedwith Gutrune on his arm comes out. At thesight of them, Briinnhilde recoils with horrorshe swoons and Siegfried supports her as shefalls, ignorant of the cause of her distress. Sheis still under the impression that it was Guntherwho dragged her from the rock, and seeing theRing on Siegfried's finger accuses him of havingstolen it from Gunther. But as the latter'puzzled expression offers her no explanation,the whole truth of Siegfried's base treachery


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" Gotterdammerungy 75a foe. "There shall he be speared !" shoutsHagen, and turns to Gunther to invite hisinterest in the terrible plot. But Gunther ishorrified, and will not consent to help in de-stroying one with whom he has sworn " blood-brotherhood/' He is weak and worldly, but notnaturally evil, nor does he really believe thatSiegfried acted faithlessly to him. He is a meretool in wicked hands, and his resistance isfin ally overcome by the suggestion thrown outby Hagen that Siegfried's death would bringhim only gain in the shape of the Ring. It isfinally arranged that the deed shall be done thenext day; that Siegfried shall be invited to ahunting-party, shall stray by chance from theband, be then treacherously murdered, andbrought home to the weeping Gutrune as slainby a boar. They each vow vengeance again,and as Gunther and Briinnhilde turn towardsthe hall, they are met at the entrance by Sieg-fried and Gutrune, decked with flowers. Briinn-


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" Gbtterddmmerung^ 77possessor, and that his only chance of escapefrom a sudden death lies in surrendering it tothem, he flatly refuses to part with it. It wasfrom love of Siegfried that Briinnhilde refused togive up the Ring ;in Siegfried's case it is purecaprice. To both the consequences of theirrefusal are fatal. The maidens swim awaysinging, and Siegfried sits down to meditateupon the waywardness of women in general." The man who resists their smiles, they seekby threats to frighten ; and yet/' he adds witha touch of good-humour, " were Gutrune not mywife, I must promptly have captured one of thesepretty maids/'His musings are interrupted by the entrance

of Gunther, Hagen and the huntsmen, the lattercarrying game and skins of wine. A table isspread for a repast under the trees, and all seatthemselves round Siegfried as, on request, herelates to them the story of his boyhoodfromhis early life with Mime in the forest, to his


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78 " Gotterdamrnerting."

encounter with the Dragon and the mysteriousguiding voice of the " wood-bird/' His pic-turesque narration is illustrated by a repetitionof a great part of the music which has alreadybeen heard in the second and third Acts of" Siegfried/' As he approaches the subject ofBriinnhilde, Hagen with a refinement of devilryoffers him a charmed drink, which has the im-mediate effect of restoring the hero's memory ofthe past. With an outburst of enthusiasm hetells the company of the bird's voice whichguided him to Briinnhilde's rock, and of hispassage through the flames.At this moment two ravens fly over Siegfried's

head into the wood, and Hagen asks himwhether he can interpret their language. , AsSiegfried turns to look at them, Hagen stabshim in the back with his spear. He falls mor-tally wounded, and the men crowd round him insilent sympathy. Raising himself in a lasteffort, he invokes his love, and murmuring,


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' c Gotterddmmerung. " 79" Brunnhilde gives me greetings/' expires. Forhis sin, though unwittingly committed, inexor-able fate demands nothing less than death.With silent reverence the vassals place Sieg-fried's body on his shield and bear him slowlyaway to the strains of a magnificent " Trauer-marsch," which for nobleness and dignity isunequalled in the whole range of music. It ischiefly made up of the themes with which hischaracter and life have been associated in thecourse of the drama. One hears in it not thewailing and lamentation for a hero that is gone,but joyous exultation as for a soul that haspassed to a new and purer life.The scene changes once more to the Gibi-

chungs' hall, where Gutrune is anxiously listen-ing for the sound of Siegfried's horn.Hapless woman ! we may pardon her sin out

of sympathy for her sore distress. Hagen entershastily, and greeting her with the grim words," Fair booty we bring along," signs to the men


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80 " Gotterddmmerungrwithout to bring in the dead Siegfried, at sightof which she faints. But Hagen cares nothingfor her sorrow ; he claims the Ring as his prize,and struggling with Gunther for its possession,strikes him dead. As he tries to tear the Ringfrom Siegfried's finger, the dead hero's handraises itself threateningly, and Hagen dare notventure again.The end is not far off, for at this moment

Briinnhilde enters, solemn and sad, and gazes ather dead lord. The mystery is cleared; sheknows all, and her anger is turned to sorrow.What is Gutrune's grief compared to hers ?" Peace, poor soul," she says, " thou wertnever wife of his. It is I, Briinnhilde ; the oathof our union was sworn ere Siegfried saw thyface/'Calmly she bids the men erect a funeral pyre

for the great sacrifice which she contemplatesyes, but a precious sacrifice, for death meansexpiation of her crime and union with Siegfried.


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5CDcCD

a run through the nibelung's ring

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