Wagner - Motivos Do Anel

Motives of the Ring

Thomas P. Otto

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Tom Otto Der Ring des Nibelungen – Motives of the Ring 

Richard Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen, a work that combined the four operas, Das Rheingold, Die Walküre, Siegfried, and Götterdämmerung, has been universally acclaimed as one of the greatest operatic masterpieces of all time. Wagner was in need of a revolution from the current music of his time and he decided to take matters into his own hands. After writing in the traditional German Romantic Opera style, of which Lohengrin was the last, Wagner decided to write in a new style entitled Gesamtkunstwerk or “total art work.” This new art form that Wagner was introducing combined all art forms, including drama, music, and dance, all of which would be mutually supportive of each other.1 In his book, Das Kunstwerk der Zukunft (The Art-Work of the Future, 1849), Wagner writes, Not one rich faculty of the separate arts will remain unused in the United Artwork of the Future; in it will each attain its first complete appraisement. . . . Thus supplementing one another in their changeful dance, the united sister-arts will show themselves and make good their claim; now all together, now in pairs, and attain in

1 J.

K. Holman. Wagner’s Ring: a listener’s companion and concordance (Portland: Amadeus Press, 1996) 37.

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solitary splendor, according to the momentary need of the only rule- and purpose-giver, the Dramatic Action.2 His decision to write the Ring was made evident after the writing of a long letter to Franz Liszt concerning the idea of a trilogy with a prologue on Nov. 20, 1851. It took Wagner 31 years, from 1843 to 1874, to complete the Ring and it was not until August 13, 1876 when it was first performed in Bayreuth. He studied and gathered ideas and theories about music and drama without writing a piece of music from 1848 to 1852. It was during these four years that Wagner finished writing the poetry for all four works in the Ring. On writing the poetry for the Ring, Wagner decided to write with a mythological style versus a conventional historic style. The reason for this was that myth dealt with primal cause and the inner man, in turn uniting all men with a universal story, whereas history treated outer relationships and dealt with purely human life. 3  The Ring is based upon the Northern mythology of the Icelandic sagas and the German Nibelungenlied. In connection with a German movement for political unity in the 1840’s, interest in German traditions, especially ancient myths, were rekindled and rediscovered for the entire country. It was under this large German movement in 1843 when Wagner began to study these sources in depth from five primary mythological writings – Das Nibelungenlied, Thidriks Saga of Bern, the Poetic Edda, the Volsunga Saga, and the 2 Kristian

Evensen, “Multidimensional aspects of text and music in Wagner,” Richard Wagner Web Site 2001, 13 Nov. 2001 . 3 Franz

E. Winkler. For Freedom Destined (Garden City: Waldorff Press, 1974) XV.

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Prose Edda. However, he did not simply take these mythological works and set

them to music. Wagner was not afraid of reform and he used his own artistic, political, and spiritual view points to reorder, render, ignore, and invent new events and actions from these sources into the Ring.4 This is the method Wagner used that made the Ring applicable to audiences of his day and to produce a contemporary work. A main component of Richard Wagner’s later operas is his use of leitmotivs. He uses leitmotivs to symbolize numerous items throughout the Ring including characters, objects, events, and emotions. He is known for his orchestral instrumentation in his operas and how he uses the leitmotivs played by the orchestra to portray the storyline. Even if you are unable to understand the words of the soloist(s), the music played by the instrumentalists will set the mood of the events and you will be able to follow the storyline. These leitmotivs reveal the inner thoughts of the characters on stage and also foreshadow upcoming events in the opera. Not only do the leitmotivs reveal the thoughts of the characters, but they ultimately provide a musical aid to an understanding of the intent of Wagner’s writing. 5 There are a number of symbols represented by leitmotivs in the Ring that are of the concrete nature, meaning that the symbol actually represents a physical item in the opera and does not abstractly represent anything else. The 4 J.

K. Holman, 24.

5 W.

J. Henderson. “The Music of the Trilogy,” Penetrating Wagner’s Ring ed. John Louis DiGaetani (London: Associated University Presses, 1978) 279.

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one concrete object that I will be focusing on is the symbol of the ring. The ring plays an extremely important role in the entire operatic work . The ring modifies itself by either a change of tempo, rhythm, dynamics, or by orchestral color and this change often leads into different motives that have an opposite meaning of the original statement. However, Wagner often times brings back the original leitmotiv giving oneself the opportunity to reflect on the past, illustrate the present, or anticipate the future events. 6 The motive for the ring is first introduced in Das Rheingold, Scene I, when Wellgunde of the Rhinemaidens, whom are unwilling to satisfy Alberich’s sexual desires, inform him that only the man able to forfeit love’s delight and power will be able to form a ring out of their gold and obtain the world’s wealth for his own. Alberich then steals the gold to make the ring, a symbol of power. The The Ring (embryonic)

motive fits the characteristic of a ring with its very smooth and cornerless turnaround in the second measure. 7 The ring means different things for many characters throughout the drama. What it does is take the inner-most thoughts of each character that obtains it and magnifies it, finally giving each of them the 6 Ernest

Hutcheson. A Musical Guide to Richard Wagner’s Ring of the Nibelung (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1940) xi. 7 J.

K. Holman 114.

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opportunity to do what they have always desired. For Alberich, it is the idea of taking over the world and supplanting the gods. It is important to note the ring motive’s ambivalent and unsure nature as Wagner will use this theme to morph into other semi-motives representing different objects and characters. The original theme of the ring is classified as an embryonic motive, one that has the potential and does develop into other motives. The ring does transform into two other sub-motives and these are scheming and resentment. 8 The scheming theme first appears in the beginning of Siegfried in association with Scheming

the plotting of Mime. You will notice that the plunging bassoon line from the passage above comes from Scene I of Das Rheingold (passage below) where the bassoons are playing this passage as harmony to the cellos plucking the melody of the ring motive. The Ring (outline)

8 John

Weinstock. The Wagner Experience 2001, 15 Nov. 2001 .

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The resentment or brooding motive refers to the disgust of Alberich after Wotan accuses Alberich of stealing the gold of which the Ring is made of and then pulls the ring off of his hand in Scene IV of Das Rheingold. Alberich is obsessed with the ring and before Wotan takes it Alberich screams, “My life! My life, but not the ring.” This motive is based off of the sinister harmony of the ring motive as played by the clarinets in Scene I of Das Rheingold. The Ring (diminished triad)

Wagner, realizing that the ring is the basis for the entire plot of the Ring, takes the final outstretched chord of the clarinets and uses it to start the resentment motive below. The C# minor chord comes into effect on beat two of Resentment

the second measure in this excerpt. Once Alberich realizes that he has lost the ring and the power that accompanies it, he is devastated and desires for no one else to receive joy from it. He decides to place a curse on the ring that makes all people lust for its power. However, anyone who acquires the ring will never be satisfied or content,

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receive no joy from it, will profit none, and will be stalked by death. 9 This curse of Alberich is a motive in Scene IV of Das Rheingold. Not only does this motive derive from the original ring motive, but it is the exact inverse of the first four notes of the original in Scene I. Through this technique, Wagner is showing that this curse will instill itself into all of the characters as they fight against the power and goodness of the ring. The definitive form of the curse motive is established later in Scene IV by the trombones, immediately after the first effect of the curse. In this scene, Erda, the Spirit of the Earth, warns Wotan of the curse The Curse (definitive)

on the ring. Wotan is informed that in order to escape the eventual annihilation of himself and the gods, he must get rid of the ring itself. 10 He then gives the ring to the pair of giants, Fafner and Fasolt, as a payment to them for building his castle of the gods, Walhalla. Wotan soon realizes that Erda’s warning concerning the ring was correct. After Fafner and Fasolt received the ring, their envy for the ring is great and they immediately began fighting over the ring. Fasolt gets ahold of the ring, but not before long the curse is attached to him and Fafner strikes him with his cudgel (club), killing him instantly.

9 Ernest 10 Fred

Hutcheson 28.

Winworth. The Epic of Sounds. An Interpretation of Wagner’s Nibelungen Ring (London: Simpkin & Co., Ltd., 1898) 28.

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There are two motives that derive from the first four notes of melody in the ring motive, the first one of which is Hunding’s rights in Act I, Scene II of Die Walküre. Hunding’s rights

This motive occurs as Hunding is conversing with Siegmund, inquiring about his ethnic background. He soon discovers that Siegmund is actually an ancestor of his enemies and immediately tells him that he can stay the night, but that he must prepare for battle against him in the morning. Hunding, even though he is ignorant of the existence of the ring and its power, he is a wielder of the kind of ruthless power that the ring symbolizes.11 The second motive, the vow of atonement, is introduced by Gunther in Act I of Götterdämmerung and refers to the pledged blood-brotherhood of Siegfried and Gunther. Siegfried pledges his brotherhood under the evil plan of Vow of Atonement

Hagen, the son of Alberich, with the help of Gunther and Gutrune, who are the remaining representatives of the Gibichung race. After being given a potion by Gutrune, he forgets his marriage to Brünnhilde, becomes a blood-brother to

11 Deryck

Cooke. An Introduction to Der Ring Des Nibelungen London Records, London, 443 581-2, 1995, cd 1.

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Gunther, and promises to retrieve Brünnhilde for Gunther in return that he might marry Gutrune. This is entirely Hagen’s if not in fact Alberich’s plan, because they both knows that Brünnhilde has the ring, and he is seeking to get it back. At this time, Gunther does not know that Brünnhilde is wearing the ring, and therefore is not aware of Hagen’s plot. This motive has a nature of tragic irony, since through his oath of pledged brotherhood, he puts himself entirely in the power of Hagen, who will use this as a pretext to later kill Siegfried in order to obtain the ring.12 Besides the two previous motives that are based on the first four notes of the ring motive, there are also two motives in the Ring that come from the last three ascending notes of the Ring motive. The first of these motives occurs in Act III of Das Rheingold and is entitled “The Hoard.” This theme refers to the hoard or pile of gold that Alberich has obtained with the power of the ring through the pain and suffering that he has put on Mime, his brother, and the rest of the Nibelungen. This motive, played by the double-basses and bassoons, represents The Hoard

the evil plan of Alberich’s to use his gold to conquer the gods and Valhalla. Hearing about Alberich’s wealth and also desiring it, Wotan and Loge come to pay Alberich a visit. Once the two gods come, Alberich speaks to them saying

12 Deryck

Cooke cd 1.

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that he will use his wealth to take over Valhalla and defeat the gods. It is at this point that the motive of “The Hoard” is played by the orchestra. After saying this, Wotan is extremely mad at Alberich and Loge has to calm him down in order that Wotan doesn’t fiercely attack Alberich. Soon after this occurrence, Wotan will steal the ring away from Alberich, for he feels that it is his highest duty to take the power out of such evil hands and use it himself in the interests of godhead.13 The other motive, entitled the motive of the Dragon, comes very soon after the motive of the hoard, still in Act III of Das Rheingold. This motive truly resembles the movements of a dragon or snake with its slithering low notes played by the tuba. After Loge calms Wotan down, Loge asks Alberich if he can The Dragon

show them the power of the Tarnhelm, the magic cap made out of gold by Mime. The cap gives the wearer the ability to morph into any being and to become invisible at any time, giving Alberich the ability to sleep safely with the ring. Alberich cannot wait to show the two gods his power and he turns himself into a dragon. Alberich impresses Wotan and Loge, but it is all in Loge’s plan. Loge then asks Alberich to change into something small, and Alberich, loving every second of his power, falls into Loge’s trap without a thought, turning himself

13 Bernard

Shaw. Major Critical Essays (London: Constable and Company Ltd., 1948) 180.

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into a little toad. 14 Loge immediately places his foot on Alberich and takes off the Tarnhelm, turning Alberich back to his normal self. Alberich is bound, tied up and dragged away by Wotan and Loge and the ring is later ripped off of Alberich’s finger by Wotan. Richard Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen certainly revolutionized the entire world of music when it was performed in 1876. It was performed in his very own Bayreuth Theater, under the direction of Hans Richter and attending were such notables as Kaiser Wilhelm, King Ludwig, Emperor Dom Pedro II of Brazil, and Nietzsche. Fellow composers that also attended included Bruckner, Gounod, Grieg, Liszt, Saint-Saëns, and Tchaikovsky.15 Just imagine coming to a performance and being in the presence of this many influential people at one time. It is hard to believe that an occurrence like this will ever happen again. One of the main innovations that Wagner made in the genre of Opera was the technique of using motives that connected with each other throughout his entire operas. The motive family of the ring with its derivatives is only one of 13 motive families in the Ring. It is the genius of Wagner’s usage of these motives that gave me the interest for researching Der Ring des Nibelungen. Not only have I acquired much knowledge concerning Wagner’s use of motives, but it has also stimulated an interest to do more research on Wagner and his operas, of which I plan to do so in the near future. 14 Robert

Donnington. Wagner’s Ring’ and its Symbols (London: Faber and Faber, 1984)

95, 96. 15 J.

K. Holman 43.

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 Works Cited

Cooke, Deryck. An Introduction to Der Ring Des Nibelungen. London Records, London, 443 581-2, 1995. Donnington, Robert. Wagner’s Ring’ and its Symbols. London: Faber and Faber, 1984. Evensen, Kristian. “Multidimensional aspects of text and music in Wagner,” Richard Wagner Web Site. 2001, 13 Nov. 2001 . Henderson, W. J. The Music of the Trilogy,” Penetrating Wagner’s Ring. Ed.  John Louis DiGaetani. London: Associated University Presses, 1978. Holman, J. K. Wagner’s Ring: a listener’s companion and concordance. Portland: Amadeus Press, 1996. Hutcheson, Ernest. A Musical Guide to Richard Wagner’s Ring of the Nibelung. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1940. Shaw, Bernard. Major Critical Essays. London: Constable and Company Ltd., 1948. Weinstock, John. The Wagner Experience. 2001, 15 Nov. 2001 . Winkler, Franz E. For Freedom Destined. Garden City: Waldorff Press, 1974. Winworth, Fred. The Epic of Sounds. An Interpretation of Wagner’s Nibelungen Ring. London: Simpkin & Co., Ltd., 1898.