Das Rheingold ("The Rhine Gold") is the first of the four operas that comprise Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelung ), by Richard Wagner. Das Rheingold was originally written as an introduction to the tripartite Ring ; however, the cycle is generally regarded as composed of four individual operas. It received its premiere at the National Theatre in Munich on 22 September 1869, with August Kindermann in the role of Wotan, Heinrich Vogl as Loge, and Wilhelm Fischer as Alberich, much to Wagner's disgust, since he wanted this opera to be premiered as part of the entire cycle, however he was forced to allow the performance at the insistence of his patron King Ludwig II of Bavaria. The opera received its premiere as part of the complete cycle on 13 August 1876, in the Bayreuther Festspielhaus.

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Composition

Roles

Role	Voice type	Premiere Cast 22 September 1869 (Conductor: Franz Wüllner)	Cast in premiere of complete cycle 13 August 1876 (Conductor: Hans Richter)
Gods
Wotan	bass-baritone	August Kindermann	Franz Betz
Loge	tenor	Heinrich Vogl	Heinrich Vogl
Fricka	mezzo-soprano	Sophie Stehle	Frederike Grün-Sadler
Freia	soprano	Henriette Muller	Marie Haupt
Donner	bass-baritone	Karl Samuel Heinrich	Eugen Gura
Froh	tenor	Franz Nachbaur	Georg Unger
Erda	contralto	Emma Seehofer	Luise Jaide
Nibelungs
Alberich	baritone	Karl Fischer	Karl Hill
Mime	tenor	Max Schlosser	Karl Schlosser
Nibelungs
Giants
Fasolt	bass-baritone	Toni Petzer	Albert Eilers
Fafner	bass	Kaspar Bausewein	Franz von Reichenberg
Rhinemaidens
Woglinde	soprano	Anna Kaufmann	Lilli Lehmann
Wellgunde	soprano or mezzo-soprano	Therese Vogl	Marie Lehmann
Flosshilde	mezzo-soprano	Wilhelmine Ritter	Minna Lammert

History

History provides few examples of artistic purpose so consistently followed as that which produced Wagner's tetralogy Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Nibelung's Ring). As early as the 1840s Wagner began to search Teutonic and Norse mythology for material for his epic, and it was not until the end of 1874 that the last bar of Götterdämmerung (“The Twilight of the Gods”) was scored. Wagner's first plan was to compose one opera only, to be called “Siegfried's Death”, and for this he wrote the poem, which follows roughly the same course as that of the present Göotterdämmerung, in 1848. It soon became obvious, however, that so much preliminary explanation would be necessary if the events of “Siegfried's Death” were to be clear to the spectator that some kind of introductory drama was desirable. Thus Wagner planned a second work, to precede “Siegfried's Death? and to be called “Young Siegfried”, and then he added two others, so that the project eventually embraced the whole gigantic tetralogy of the Ring.

Wagner did not, of course, work exclusively on the Ring during the thirty-odd years between its original conception and its completion. The poems of the four operas were written in the late 1840s and early 1850s; the music for Das Rheingold was composed in 1853-4, that for Die Walküre in 1854-6; and in 1856-7 Wagner composed, though he did not score, the first two acts of Siegfried; but at this point he laid down his pen, as far as the Ring was concerned, for twelve years, producing in the meantime Tristan und Isolde and Die Meistersinger. In 1869, however, he took up work on the Ring again, his enthusiasm and inspiration unimpaired, and in the years 1869-74 completed Siegfried and created the mighty finale to the tetralogy, Götterdämmerung.

Das Rheingold was first performed at Munich on September 22th 1869. Its first performance as part of the complete Ring cycle took place at Bayreuth on August 13th 1876.

Synopsis

Das Rheingold, then, is the first opera of the Ring tetralogy. It is considerably shorter than its three successors, and consists of four scenes which are performed without a break. But the scale of the work of which it forms a part is at once established in the prelude to the opera which portrays the motions of the river Rhine in an astonishing passage extending over 136 bars consisting simply of figurations of the chord of E flat. The opening stillness gives way to a rippling effect which increases to a music of surging power, until the curtain rises to show the three Rhine maidens, Woglinde, Wellgunde and Flosshilde swimming in the depths of the river. The key shifts to A flat, as Woglinde begins an innocent song whose melody is frequently used to characterise the Rhine maidens later in the cycle.

Scene 1

Das Rheingold begins with a 136-bar unmodulating prelude outlining an E flat major chord, which is meant to represent the eternal unchanging motions of the River Rhine. It is considered the best known drone piece in the concert repertory, lasting approximately four minutes. ^[1] It was claimed by Wagner in his autobiography Mein Leben ^[2] that the musical idea came to him while he was half asleep in a hotel in La Spezia in Italy, but this has been disputed by Deathridge and others. ^[3] The music grows in power, and the curtain rises. At the bottom of the River Rhine, the three Rhinemaidens (Woglinde, Wellgunde, and Flosshilde) are playing together near the Rheingold. Alberich, a Nibelung dwarf, appears from a deep chasm and tries to woo them. Struck by Alberich's ugliness, the Rhinemaidens mock his advances and he grows angry. As the sun begins to rise, maidens praise the golden glow atop a nearby rock; Alberich asks what it is. The Rhinemaidens tell him about the Rhinegold, which their father has ordered them to guard: it can be made into a magic Ring which will let its bearer rule the world, but only by someone who first renounces love. They think they have nothing to fear from the lustful dwarf, but Alberich, embittered by their mockery, curses love, seizes the gold and returns to the depths, as the Rhinemaidens flee in despair.

Scene 2

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Wotan, ruler of the Gods, is asleep on a mountaintop with Fricka, his wife. Fricka awakes and sees a magnificent castle behind them. She wakes Wotan and points out that their new home has been completed. The giants Fasolt and Fafner built the castle; in exchange Wotan has offered them Fricka's sister Freia, the goddess of youth and beauty. Fricka is worried for her sister, but Wotan is confident that they will not have to give Freia away.

Freia enters, terrified, followed by Fasolt and Fafner. Fasolt demands payment for their finished work. He points out that Wotan's rule is sustained by the treaties carved into his spear, including his contract with the giants. Donner (god of thunder) and Froh (god of spring) arrive to defend their sister Freia, but Wotan stops them; he cannot stop the giants by force and renege on their agreement.

To Wotan's relief, Loge (the fire god) makes his entrance; Wotan has placed his hopes on Loge's cunning to find a way out of the bargain. Loge tells them that Alberich the dwarf has stolen the Rheingold and made a powerful magic ring out of it. Wotan, Fricka, and the giants all begin to lust after the Ring, and Loge curtly suggests the best method of acquiring it: "Durch Raub! " ("Through theft!"). Fafner demands it as payment in lieu of Freia. The giants depart, taking Freia with them as hostage.

Freia's golden apples had kept the Gods eternally young; with her absence, they begin to age and weaken. In order to win Freia back, Wotan is forced to follow Loge down into the earth, in pursuit of the ring.

An orchestral interlude follows that "paints" the descent of Loge and Wotan into Nibelheim. As the orchestra fades, it gives way to a choir of 18 tuned anvils (indicated in the score with specific size, quantity and pitch) beating out the dotted rhythm of the Nibelung theme to give a stark depiction of the toiling of the enslaved dwarves. thumb dwarfs

Scene 3

In Nibelheim, Alberich has enslaved the rest of the Nibelung dwarves. He has forced his brother Mime, the most skillful smith, to create a magic helmet, the Tarnhelm. Alberich demonstrates the Tarnhelm's power by making himself invisible, the better to torment his subjects.

Wotan and Loge arrive and happen upon Mime, who tells them about Alberich's forging of the ring and the misery of the Nibelung under his rule. Alberich returns, driving his slaves to pile up a huge mound of gold. When they have finished, he dismisses them and turns his attention to the two visitors. He boasts to them about his plans to rule the world. Loge tricks him into demonstrating the magic of the Tarnhelm by having him transform into a snake (or dragon - the German word Wurm can mean both). Loge points out that it might be better to transform into a small creature in order to escape danger more easily, so Alberich turns into a toad. While he is a toad, the two gods quickly seize him and bring him up to the surface.

Scene 4

On the mountaintop, Wotan and Loge force Alberich to exchange his wealth for his freedom. They untie his right hand, and he uses the ring to summon his Nibelung slaves, who bring the hoard of gold. After the gold has been delivered, he asks for the return of the Tarnhelm, but Loge says that it is part of his ransom. Finally, Wotan asks him to surrender the ring. Alberich refuses, but Wotan seizes it from his finger and puts it on his own. Alberich is crushed by his loss, and before he leaves he lays a curse on the ring: until it returns to him, whoever does not possess it will desire it, and whoever possesses it will suffer unhappiness and death.

Fricka, Donner, and Froh arrive and are greeted by Wotan and Loge, who show them the gold that will ransom Freia. Fasolt and Fafner return, carrying Freia. Reluctant to release Freia, Fasolt insists that there must be enough gold to hide her from view. They pile up the gold, and Wotan is forced to relinquish the Tarnhelm to help cover Freia completely. However, Fasolt spots a final crack in the gold, and demands that Wotan also yield the ring. Loge reminds all present that the ring is rightly property of the Rhinemaidens. Wotan refuses to relinquish it, to Loge's displeasure, and the giants prepare to abduct Freia.

Suddenly, Erda the earth goddess, a primeval goddess in many ways superior to Wotan, appears out of the ground. She warns Wotan of impending doom and urges him to avoid the cursed ring. Troubled, Wotan surrenders the ring and sets Freia free. The giants start dividing the treasure, but they argue over the ring. Fafner clubs Fasolt to death and leaves with most of the treasure. Wotan, horrified, realizes that Alberich's curse has terrible power.

At last, the gods prepare to enter their new home. Donner summons a thunderstorm to clear the air. After the storm has ended, Froh creates a rainbow bridge that stretches to the gate of the castle. Wotan leads them across the bridge to the castle, which he names Valhalla. Fricka asks him about the name, and he replies that its meaning will be revealed if all goes well.

Loge, who knows that the end of the gods is coming, does not follow the others into Valhalla; he admits he is tempted to destroy them and what they have deceitfully acquired. As Wotan leaves, he notices a golden sword left behind by Fafner and takes it with him. Far below, the Rhinemaidens mourn the loss of their gold. The curtain falls.

Noted Excerpts

• Prelude
• Rhinemaidens' Song
• Loge's Narration
• Descent and Ascent from Nibelheim
• Alberich's Curse
• Erda's Warning
• Donner's Song (Heda! Heda hedo! )
• Rainbow Bridge Music
• Entry of the Gods into Valhalla

Selected recordings

Year	Cast (Alberich, Wotan, Fricka, Loge, Freia, Fasolt, Fafner, Donner, Froh, Erda, Mime)	Conductor Orchestra	Label Catalog # Mono/Stereo, Live/Studio
1953	Gustav Neidlinger, Ferdinand Frantz, Ira Malaniuk, Wolfgang Windgassen, Elisabeth Grümmer, Josef Greindl, Gottlob Frick, Alfred Poell, Lorenz Fehenberger, Ruth Siewert, Julius Patzak	Wilhelm Furtwängler Orchestra Sonfonica e Coro della RAI	CD: EMI Cat: CZS 7 67124 2 Mono, Live
1958	Gustav Neidlinger, George London, Kirsten Flagstad, Set Svanholm, Claire Watson, Walter Kreppel, Kurt Böhme, Eberhard Wächter, Waldemar Kmentt, Jean Madeira, Paul Kuen	Georg Solti Wiener Philharmoniker	CD: Decca Cat: 455 556-2 Stereo, Studio
1966	Gustav Neidlinger, Theo Adam, Annelies Burmeister, Wolfgang Windgassen, Anja Silja, Martti Talvela, Kurt Böhme, Gerd Nienstedt, Hermin Esser, Vera Soukupova, Erwin Wohlfahrt	Karl Böhm Orchester der Bayreuther Festspiele	CD: Philips Cat: 412 475-2 Stereo, Live
1967	Zoltán Kelemen, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Josephine Veasey, Gerhard Stolze, Simone Mangelsdorff, Martti Talvela, Karl Ridderbusch, Robert Kerns, Donald Grobe, Oralia Dominguez, Erwin Wohlfahrt	Herbert von Karajan Berliner Philharmoniker	CD: Deutsche Grammophon Cat: 457 781-2 Stereo, Studio
1980	Hermann Becht, Donald McIntyre, Hanna Schwarz, Heinz Zednik, Carmen Reppel, Matti Salminen, Fritz Hübner, Martin Egel, Siegfried Jerusalem, Ortrun Wenkel, Helmut Pampuch	Pierre Boulez Orchester der Bayreuther Festspiele	CD: Philips Cat: 434 422-2 Stereo, Studio
1988	Ekkehard Wlaschiha, James Morris, Christa Ludwig, Siegfried Jerusalem, MarieAnne Häggander, Kurt Moll, Jan-Hendrik Rootering, Siegfried Lorenz, Mark Baker, Birgitta Svendén, Heinz Zednik	James Levine Metropolitan Opera Orchestra	CD: Deutsche Grammophon Cat: 445 295-2 Stereo, Studio
1989	Theo Adam, James Morris, Marjana Lipovšek, Heinz Zednik, Eva Johansson, Hans Tschammer, Kurt Rydl, Andreas Schmidt, Peter Seiffert, Jadwiga Rappé, Peter Haage	Bernard Haitink Sinfonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks	CD: EMI Cat: CDS 7 49853 2 Stereo, Studio

Resources

• All artwork by Arthur Rackham, 1910.