Creatio ex nihilo: The Genesis, Structure, and Meaning of the "Rheingold" Prelude

Author(s): Warren Darcy

Source: 19th-Century Music, Vol. 13, No. 2 (Autumn, 1989), pp. 79-100
Published by: University of California Press
Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/746649
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 Creatio ex nihilo:
The Genesis, Structure, and
Meaning of the Rheingold Prelude
WARREN DARCY

tralogy.
Richard Wagner's own account of the genesis of The necessary impetus to begin the mu-
sic allegedly occurred on 5 September 1853 in
the Rheingold Prelude is well known. He com-
pleted the verse draft of Das Rheingold onthe Italian town of La Spezia, according to a sec-
3 No-
tion of
vember 1852, but delayed setting it to music un-Mein Leben dictated in 1869:
til almost a year later (see chronology in
Appendix A). First followed revisions Returning
of Der home in the afternoon, I stretched out
junge Siegfried and Siegfrieds Tod, then fair on a hard sofa, to await the long-desired
dead-tired
hour of sleep. It did not come; instead I sank into a
copies of the Ring poems, and finally, in Febru-
sort of somnolent state, in which I suddenly felt as if I
ary 1853, a private printing of the text of the te-
were sinking in rapidly flowing water. Its rushing
soon represented itself to me as the musical sound of
the E-flat major chord, which continually surged for-
ward in a figured arpeggiation; these arpeggios ap-
19th-Century Music XIII/2 (Fall 1989). ? by the Regents of peared as melodic figurations of increasing motion,
the University of California. yet the pure E-flat major triad never changed, and
seemed through its persistence to impart infinite
A shorter version of this study was presented at the eleventh significance to the element in which I was sinking.
annual meeting of the Society for Music Theory in Balti- Feeling as though the waves were now roaring high
more, November 1988. Almost all the research was carried
above me, I awoke in sudden terror from my half-
out at the Nationalarchiv der Richard-Wagner-Stiftung in
sleep. I recognized instantly that the orchestral pre-
Bayreuth (NA) during the period November 1986-February
1987 and supported by a grant from Oberlin College. Except lude to Das Rheingold, as I had carried it about
where noted, all musical transcriptions were made from au- within me without ever having been able to pin it
tographs in the NA. I am grateful to Dr. Manfred Eger and down, had risen up out of me; and I also quickly
Mr. Giinter Fischer for allowing me to examine these manu- grasped how things were with me: the vital stream
scripts. would not flow from without, but only from within.

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19TH I immediately decided to return to Zurich and
home be-
and renounce everything connected with the
CENTURY gin the composition of my great poem.' external world.2
MUSIC

For years, this story was accepted at face

Wagner also mentioned this experience to Emi-
lie Ritter in a letter of 29 December 1854:
value by scholars like Otto Strobel, Ernest New-
man, and Curt von Westernhagen. Recently,
Already in Spezia I had a complete vision: ... when I however, John Deathridge, an editor of the
had sunk for a moment into a sort of half-sleep, the Wagner Werk-Verzeichnis (WWV),3 has ques-
instrumental introduction to Das Rheingold-- tioned Wagner's account on the grounds that it
about which I could never before quite make up my
mind-suddenly stood before me with such clarity does not square with either his correspondence
and exactness that I realized all at once what was or his musical sketches. First, since the 1854
letter to Emilie Ritter contains the earliest sur-
wrong with me. At that moment, I decided to return
viving reference to the La Spezia "vision,"
Wagner most untypically let more than a year
elapse before communicating this earthshaking
1"Am Nachmittage heimkehrend, streckte ich mich tod-
miide auf ein hartes Ruhebett aus, um die langersehnte event to anyone. Second, in the fall of 1854 (a
Stunde des Schlafes zu erwarten. Sie erschien nicht; dafiir few months before the letter to Ritter), the poet
versank ich in eine Art von somnambulem Zustand, in wel-
chem ich pl6tzlich die Empfindung, als ob ich in ein stark
Georg Herwegh introduced Wagner to two
fliegjendes Wasser versiinke, erhielt. Das Rauschen des- works of Arthur Schopenhauer, Die Welt als
selben stellte sich mir bald im musikalischen Klange des Es- Wille und Vorstellung and Parerga und Parali-
dur-Akkordes dar, welcher unaufhaltsam in figurierter Bre-
pomena; a section in the latter entitled "Ver-
chung dahinwogte; diese Brechungen zeigten sich als
melodische Figurationen von zunehmender Bewegung, nie
such iiber das Geistersehen und was damit zu-
aber verinderte sich der reine Dreiklang von Es-dur, sammenhingt" discusses the allegorical signifi-
welcher durch seine Andauer dem Elemente, darin ich ver-
cance of dreams and may well have influenced
sank, eine unendliche Bedeutung geben zu wollen schien.
Mit der Empfindung, als ob die Wogen jetzt hoch iiber mich Wagner's account of his La Spezia "vision."
dahinbrausten, erwachte ich in jdhem Schreck aus meinem Deathridge feels that the most damning evi-
Halbschlaf. Sogleich erkannte ich, dass das Orchester-Vor-
dence is offered by the Gesamtentwurf (com-
spiel zum 'Rheingold,' wie ich es in mir herumtrug, doch
aber nicht genau hatte finden k innen, mir aufgegangen war; plete musical draft) of Das Rheingold (begun 1
und schnell begriff ich auch, welche Bewandtnis es dur- November 1853); here Wagner sketched the
chaus mit mir habe: nicht von aufgen, sondern nur von in-
Prelude in a version which only roughly approx-
nen sollte der Lebensstrom mir zuflietgen."
"Sogleich beschlotg ich nach Ziirich zuriickzukehren imates its final form and certainly lacks (accord-
und die Komposition meines grossen Gedichtes zu begin- ing to Deathridge) the "clarity and exactness"
nen" (Richard Wagner, Mein Leben. Erste authentische described to Emilie Ritter.
Veriffentlichung, ed. Martin Gregor-Dellin [Munich, 1963],
p. 580). All translations are my own, although in this case I In addition, some time after drafting the Pre-
have freely consulted Richard Wagner, My Life, trans. An- lude, Wagner inserted a remark at the top of the
drew Gray, ed. Mary Whittall (Cambridge, 1983), p. 499; and
John Deathridge, "Cataloguing Wagner," in The Richard
Wagner Centenary in Australia, ed. Peter Dennison (Ade- Buch), first published in 1975 (Eng. trans. 1980). In view of
laide, 1985), pp. 193-95. this, we cannot be absolutely certain that the note describ-
Wagner also mentions this incident in the "Annalen" for ing the La Spezia "vision" was entered in the Red Pocket-
1853: "Dampfschiff nach Spezzia: uibel. Schlechtes Un- Book at the time it occurred; it could have been entered for
terkommen. Krank. Versuche 2ten Tag: Promenade; Pi- the first time in the Brown Book in 1868, as a piece of "crea-
nienhiigel. Nachmittagsschlaf auf dem Kanape. Erwachen tive autobiography."
mit Conception der Instrumentaleinleitung zum Rheingold 2"Schon in Spezia hatte ich eine v6llige Vision: ... als ich
(Es-Durdreiklang): Versinken im Rauschen der Wisser. Ar- fiir einen Moment in den gewissen Halbschlaf gesunken
beit beschlossen" (Richard Wagner, Das braune Buch. Tage- war, stand pl6tzlich die Instrumentaleinleitung zum
buchaufzeichnungen 1865 bis 1882, ed. Joachim Bergfeld Rheingold, iiber die ich zuvor noch nie recht einig mit mir
[Zurich, 1975], p. 122). See Eng. trans. George Bird, The Di- werden konnte, mit einer solchen Klarheit und Bestimmt-
ary of Richard Wagner 1865-1882: The Brown Book (New heit vor mir, dass ich pl6tzlich begriff, was mit mir los sei.
York, 1980), p. 103. Beginning 17 July 1865, Wagner dictated Augenblicklich beschloss ich meine Riickreise und das
Mein Leben to Cosima, using as a basis notes written in the Aufgeben aller Aussenwelt" (Richard Wagner, Siimtliche
so-called "Red Pocket-Book" (Rote Brieftasche), only the Briefe, ed. Hans-Joachim Bauer and Johannes Forner, vol. VI
first four pages of which have survived. After dictating from [Leipzig, 1986], p. 308). The date of this letter is often given
these notes up to Easter 1846, he wrote fresh notes in Febru- incorrectly as 25 December.
ary 1868, presumably basing them upon the "Red Pocket- 3Wagner Werk-Verzeichnis (WWV): Verzeichnis der musi-
Book," which he then apparently destroyed. These new kalischen Werke Richard Wagners undihrer Quellen (here-
notes are the so-called "Annals," which span the period after WWV), ed. John Deathridge, Martin Geck, and Egon
1846-68, and are contained in the "Brown Book" (Braunes Voss (Mainz, 1986).

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page suggesting that he had second thoughts the manuscripts do not confirm Wagner's ac- WARREN
DARCY
about the musical content and length of the count of a precompositional "vision," they do Creatio
opening. The Prelude did not assume its final not contradict it, either. ex nihilo

form until the Partiturerstschrift (draft of the
full score), which Wagner began on 1 February
1854, and even in this document passages are
crossed out and altered. Finally, not until 4
March 1854 did Wagner enthusiastically write
to Liszt: "Just imagine-the entire instrumen-
tal introduction to Das Rheingold is built upon
the single triad of E6'"4 (the letter contains noth-
ing about a "vision"). Taken as a whole, Death-
ridge concludes, the evidence strongly suggests
that Wagner
did not conceive [the Prelude] in its final form until
well after the rest of Das Rheingold had been com-
Although the Ring has called forth books
without number, no author to date has offered a
convincing interpretation of the compositional
genesis, musical structure, and metaphorical
meaning of the Rheingold Prelude, an account
that takes into consideration all relevant docu-
mentary sources. This essay attempts to pro-
vide such an interpretation. Wagner's sketches
and drafts are examined for the light they can
throw on the rather complicated genesis of the
Prelude. This in turn leads to an analysis of
the work's musical structure and an account of
the multifunctional role it plays within the op-
era.

posed-rather in the traditional way of completing

an opera by composing the overture last.... THE GESAMTENTWURF VERSION OF THE
Whether he really felt "flowing water" and heard
PRELUDE
the "pure" triad of E-flat major in his "somnolent"
state cannot be said for certain. It seems more likely,
as his sketches and correspondence tend to suggest, In late July or early August 1850, Wagner made
that he was back-dating at least one crucial musical some musical sketches for Siegfrieds Tod
idea (the low E flat at the beginning of the prelude) (WWV 86D Musik Ib-d); these comprise the en-
and combining it with an experience of some other
kind in order to heighten the aura of the work- once
tire Norns scene and the first portion of the fol-
again-with a powerful autobiographical image.5 lowing duet, as well as thematic material asso-
ciated with the Valkyries. On 12 August, he
A close examination of Wagner's musical
sketches and drafts for Das Rheingold does in-
deed reveal that the genesis of its Prelude is no-
where near as simple and straightforward as tion facilitated by the lack of published facsimiles (Otto
Strobel, "Aus Wagners Musikwerkstatt. Betrachtungen
Wagner claimed. Furthermore, it appears as if iiber die Kompositionsskizzen zum Ring des Nibelungen,"
Strobel and Westernhagen, in their published Allgemeine Musikzeitung 58 [1931], 479). In an earlier ver-
studies, were less than honest about the content sion of this article, Strobel actually wrote: "The draft,
which for the reasons given above, begins immediately with
of these documents.6 Nevertheless, although
the first scene, . .." ("Der Entwurf, der aus den oben angege-
benen Gruinden sogleich mit der ersten Szene beginnt, .. ."
Strobel, "Die Kompositionsskizzen zum Ring des Nibe-
lungen. Ein Blick in die Musikwerkstatt Richard Wagners,"
Bayreuther Festspielffihrer [1930], 117). To have revealed
4"so--denke Dir--ist die ganze Instrumental-Einleitung that Wagner did draft the Prelude on 1 November 1853, and
zum Rheingold auf der einzigen Dreiklang von Es ausge- that three months later he wrote out a substantially differ-
fiihrt!" (Franz Liszt-Richard Wagner Briefwechsel, ed. ent version, eventually altering and correcting even this
Hanjo Kesting [Frankfurt, 1988], p. 365). one, would have compromised the image of the composer
5Deathridge, "Cataloguing Wagner," pp. 195-97. which Strobel wished to present: the heaven-inspired ge-
nius who effortlessly translated his creative visions directly
6According to Strobel, Wagner's remark in Mein Leben that,
due to the difficulty of sketching the Prelude on two staves,into full score.
he "had to resort immediately to a full score" ("ich musste Curt von Westernhagen was not above concealing evi-
sofort zum vollstindigen Partitur-Formular greifen") dence, either. In his book on the Ring sketches, he tran-
should really be read as saying that he "would have had scribed
to two items from an undated sketch sheet (WWV 86A
resort immediately to a full score" ("ich hAtte sofort zum Musik Ib), but omitted a third, perhaps because it could have
vollstandigen Partitur-Formular greifen") if he had at- undermined his theory about the genesis of the Prelude (The
tempted to sketch the Prelude immediately (see n. 23 below Forging of the "Ring,": Richard Wagner's Composition
for the complete quote). Wagner therefore (according to Sketches for "Der Ring des Nibelungen, " trans. Arnold and
Mary Whittall [Cambridge, 1976], p. 16; originally pub-
Strobel) did not notate the Prelude at all until, after finish-
ing the Gesamtentwurf, he immediately wrote it out in full lished as Die Enstehung des "Ring" [Zurich, 1973]). This
score. Strobel clearly implied that the Gesamtentwurf lacks omission was revealed by John Deathridge in "Wagner's
any sort of instrumental introduction, a deliberate decep- Sketches for the 'Ring'," Musical Times 118 (1977), 387.

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19TH le Norn 2e
CENTURY
MUSIC
In os - ten wob ich. In wes- ten wand ich.

-Of 6 P- I I -T_ P- rim I

Example 1: Wagner's
(transcription from

began an scription9
ink draft of in
th
Musik Ie), been pointed
breaking off a
preceding sufficiently
sketch.7 a
The Rhinedaught
Siegfrieds Tod sketc
ex. 1. The ceived
Eb-minor intona
con
and wished
figuration of to
the und
un
allelism between
characterize the these two setsvery
of sisters.10 d
which opens
When during G6tterdiam
the composition of the Erda epi-
nineteen sode of scene 4 helater.8
years associated different materialEq
ever, is thewithrelationship
the Norns and their mother, he then felt b
this sketch compelled
and to go back the
and incorporate begin
this new
material into the Rhinedaughters
Gesamtentwurf (WWV scene and its 8
preparatory prelude. The final version of the
Rheingold Prelude thus owes much to the com-
7A considerable body of scholarship has grown up around position of the Erda episode, just as its original
these sketches, bearing out Deathridge's assertion that they version is indebted to the Siegfrieds Tod
are "central to an understanding of how the Ring evolved" sketches.
("Wagner's Sketches," p. 385). Ernest Newman briefly dis-
cusses WWV 86D Musik Ie, basing his remarks upon the An examination of this original version may
1933 facsimile (The Life of Richard Wagner, vol. 2 [New aid our attempt to reconstruct Wagner's crea-
York, 1933; rpt. Cambridge, 1976], pp. 159-61). Westernha-
gen offers both a facsimile and a transcription of the same
tive process and facilitate an analysis of the
document, as well as a more extended commentary ("Die Prelude's musical structure. As shown in ex. 2,
Kompositions-Skizze zu 'Siegfrieds Tod' aus dem Jahre the draft begins with a two-measure animation
1850," Neue Zeitschrift fiir Musik 124 [1963], 178-82 and
musical supplement). of the Eb-major triad, marked "Bl[iser]." The
Robert Bailey discusses both the "Washington sketch" range suggests that Wagner was thinking of bass
(as he calls WWV 86D Musik Ib-d) and the later ink draft clarinet and bassoons, with possibly a contra-
(WWV 86D Musik Ie; he worked from the 1933 facsimile).
He also offers a "composite transcription" of the Prologue, bass tuba on the low Eb11. Although the passage
following the ink draft as far as it goes (through m. 166), then is notated in 6 meter, the articulations initially
following the earlier "Washington sketch" until it also imply 3. The indication "Steigend" implies that
breaks off. In addition, Bailey transcribes earlier portions of
the "Washington sketch" (Robert Bailey, "Wagner's Musi-
cal Sketches for Siegfrieds Tod," in Studies in Music His-
tory: Essays for Oliver Strunk, ed. Harold Powers [Prince-
ton, 1968], pp. 459-94). 9This transcription was made from WWV 86A Musik II, fol.
Westernhagen (The Forging of the "Ring") discusses 1r, a reasonably clear facsimile of which appears in Wes-
both 1850 sketches very cursorily (pp. 13-15) and provides ternhagen, The Forging of the "Ring," pp. 18-19. My tran-
transcriptions of several short segments (pp. 20, 97, 106, scription agrees with Bailey's in all essentials ("Wagner's
186, and 188). Finally, Werner Breig transcribes both Musical Sketches," pp. 473- 74).
sketches in his Studien zur Entstehungsgeschichte von I'The evolution of this parallelism is discussed in my article
Wagners "Ring des Nibelungen, " currently in preparation. I '"Alles was ist, endet!' Erda's Prophecy of World Destruc-
have not had access to Breig's study. tion," Programmheft II ("Das Rheingold") der Bayreuther
81n the later ink draft (WWV 86D Musik Ie), Wagner changed Festspiele 1988, pp. 67-92. A shorter version appeared as
the 12meter to 6 and the sixteenth notes to eighths, creating "'Everything That Is, Ends!': The Genesis and Meaning of
an even stronger resemblance to the opening of G6tterdim- the Erda Scene in 'Das Rheingold'," Musical Times 129
merung. (1988), 443-47.

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 Das Rheingold. Sc: 1. 1 Nov:53 WARREN
DARCY
Bewegt (Voraus, langsam Creatio
Vor
ex nihilo

BI - o (Ste

rm" Br. u. Vc.. I 11 1

I O ' r

V. II u. Brd V. I I m -AR
.0) Br. u ,r,,.-

B
poco diin.:

lI v.
5 d. 16e[,B,?
Wei - a! wa -1
ga! Wo-ge,
P6 du Wel- le, wal-le zur Wie-ge!
Example 2: The Gesamtentwurf version of the Rheingold Prelude.

2 x 2 mm. 2mm. 2mm. 4 mm. 2 mm. 2 mm.

this oscillation is to expand through the upper
wind instruments, forming a pulsating har- k1l 7

monic background to the string figurations

which follow.
Examp
These wavelike semiquaver patterns (simi- versio
lar, as mentioned, to the figurations depicting
the Norns' weaving in the Siegfrieds Tod
sketch) are marked "Str[eicher]," but their range
precludes any instrument other than the celli; it
is unlikely that Wagner expected the basses to time,
double such a rapid passage. After the initial final
two-bar pattern and its repetition, the figura- into W
tions rise and fall through the Eb triad in a sym-
metrical arch shape (see ex. 3). This sixteen-bar
unit is then repeated an octave higher, doubled "Wester
double b
by the violas; it is repeated again by second vio- opening
lins and violas and is finally taken up a fourth p. 20).

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19TH The opening sixty-six bars of the Rheingold
instrumental opening, Wagner added the note
CENTURY
MUSIC Gesamtentwurf thus display a strophic design:
at the top of the page "Voraus, langsam Vorbe-
reitungen auf das Rheingoldmotiv" (ex. 2). Wes-
2mm. 16 mm. 16 mm. 16 mm. 16 mm. ternhagen's contention that "das Rheingold-
Intro. A' A2 A3 A4 motiv" refers to the opening horn theme of the
Vn. I
revised Prelude (an idea which, in all likelihood,
Vn. II Vn. II
had not yet been sketched) is, in my opinion,
Va. Va. Va.
Vc. highly improbable.'2 It is far more likely that
Vc. Vc.
Winds Wagner was here referring to the horn fanfare
which, in the second half of scene 1, announces
This suggests athe set
awakening of variations
of the gold, and that he added
sixteen-bar theme, coupled
this remark while working on the latter pas- wit
in range, texture, and instrum
sage.'3 In other words, Wagner decided to ex-
shall see, this structure
pand the two-bar introductionis remark
(animation of the
that of the final version;
Eb triad by low appar
winds) and give it a definite the-
had already matic content; because
settled upon the "Goldthefanfare" is for
a
his instrumental opening.
simple major arpeggio, it could easily be worked
It is illuminating to
into the opening reexamine
triadic oscillation. Although W
count of the genesis of
Wagner later abandoned this
the notion pass
of beginning
of the Gesamtentwurf version.
Das Rheingold with the Gold fanfare, he stuck In
mented reference toto expand
with his decision the La intro-
the chordal Spez
letter to Emilie Ritter of December 1854, duction and invest it with thematic signifi-
Wagner speaks of the "clarity and exactness" of cance.

his conception. Could not this "clarity and ex-

actness" have embraced the notion of an ex- THE COMPOSITION OF THE ERDA EPISODE
tended Eb-major triad, swirling string figura-
tions, and a fourfold statement of a sixteen-bar
Early in 1854 Wagner began setting the Erda epi-
"theme," without necessarily implying that the sode of scene 4 to music. No separate sketches
thematic material was fixed in every detail? for this passage survive; Wagner's personal copy
of the 1853 printing (WWV 86A Text V), con-
Similarly, the Mein Leben account refers to "ar-
peggios" which appeared as "melodic figura- taining musical jottings and text changes made
tions of increasing motion." The terms "arpeg- during composition, has been preserved, but the
gios" (Brechungen) and "increasing motion"pages containing Erda's appearance are unfortu-
(zunehmender Bewegung) might seem to refernately lost. It is therefore impossible to ascer-
tain exactly when or under what circumstances
to the final form of the Prelude, whose arpeggi-
ated theme is subjected to rhythmic diminu- the Erda/Norn theme first occurred to Wagner.
tion. Yet even in the draft, the semiquaver One, however, may reasonably assume that this
figures sometimes arpeggiate the triad, and thesimple arpeggiation of the minor triad was con-
gradual addition of instruments, expansion of ceived from the very beginning in relation to
range, and "rising" wind oscillations do indeedErda herself. It first appears on fol. 34r of the Ge-
suggest "increasing motion," even if the actualsamtentwurf: as Erda rises from the depths of
note values remain unaltered. the earth, the motive itself rises from the depths
In fact, the Gesamtentwurf form of the Pre- of the orchestra-a simple yet effective bit of
lude represents an initial musical prototype thattone painting.
does not at all contradict Wagner's story of a
precompositional "vision" (it does not, of
course, confirm it either). Although Wagner
was later to expand this structure, change its12Westemhagen, The Forging of the "Ring," p. 17.
thematic content, elaborate its instrumenta-'3The Gold fanfare begins with the upbeat to m. 516 (one bar
tion, and deepen its metaphorical significance, before Woglinde's "Lugt, Schwestem!") and is played ini-
tially by horn 2. In the Gesamtentwurf, it first appears on
the basic shape was there from the beginning. fol. 4v, system 4, which Wagner probably reached around the
Sometime after completing this draft of thesecond week of November 1853.
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Langsam [Light cross-out begins (made while scoring). Final version in Partiturerstschrift. ]
[A:] [B (over A):] (Erda erscheint)
[A:] [B(overA):]
:V Fb, ol Bt i. -9 - iF
f - trem.AI
. ? [sic]:_a
0 Ba.
Exampl
Example 4 transcribes the opening of the Erda
episode from the Gesamtentwurf.14 Erda's ap-
pearance is preceded by a stormy passage in F
minor, during which the gods implore Wotan to
relinquish the ring. At the change to "Lang-
sam," the bass arpeggiates a descending F#-mi-
nor triad, out of which Erda's theme slowly
emerges; this harmony then resolves as sub-
dominant to the new tonic CO minor. CO is en-
harmonically the parallel minor of D6 major, a
key associated with Wotan's fortress Valhalla,
and the draft reveals that Wagner originally in-
tended to notate the episode in D1 minor; the
new signature of four sharps is written over the
old one of five flats.'5 While working out the in-
14All transcriptions from the Erda episode were made from
WWV 86A Musik II, fols. 34-35. A complete transcription
of the Erda episode appears in Darcy, "'Alles was ist, en-
der!' " pp. 87-91; cf. Westernhagen, The Forging of the
"Ring," pp. 54-56.
'5Presumably Wagner would have inserted Fbs and Bb bs as
necessary.
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WARREN
DARCY
Creatio
ex nihilo
8
Erda [Light cross-out ends.]
Wei - che, Wo - dan, wei - che!
strumentation, Wagner changed his mind and
decided to begin the episode with a second in-
version tonic triad; he also deleted the second
plagally inflected statement of the motive,
lightly crossing out these passages in the Ge-
samtentwurf.
Beginning one measure before "Drei der
T6chter," Erda's motive reappears, transposed
to E major (an expanded mediant) and animated
with an eighth-note figuration suggestive of the
Norns' weaving (ex. 5). In the Siegfrieds Tod
sketches, Wagner had used a somewhat shape-
less sixteenth-note figure (later changed to
eighths) to depict the same thing; his derivation
of the new figuration from the Erda theme en-
abled him to give it a more sharply defined
profile. Both figures arpeggiate the underlying
harmony, but whereas the earlier one rose and
fell rather aimlessly, the new one rises inexora-
bly. This section concludes with a transposition
of motive and figuration to A major (an ex-
panded submediant).
85
19TH
CENTURY
MUSIC
Muth. Drei der Tbch - ter, ur - er - schaff - ne, ge - bar mein Schoos; was ich

[B:I

se - - - - he, sa - gen dir ncht - lich die Nor - nen.

8-

Example 5: The Rheingold Gesamtentwurf, fol. 34r--34v.

Erda's Weltuntergang prophecy "Alles was attempt to reach within himself and grasp the
ist, endet!" is ushered in by a restatement of her full significance of this unexpected revelation
motive over a weakened C#-minor tonic chord (ex. 7). The moment is crucial because it marks
(ex. 6). A second restatement over submediant the first time in the Gesamtentwurf that the
harmony'6 leads directly into the musical cli- motive is notated in E6; the final change from
max of the episode: a melodic inversion of the this Eb minor to the Eb major of the Prelude re-
Erda theme over a Neapolitan sixth chord. This minds one of the intended tonal link between
inverted theme is usually known as the G6tter- the opening of Siegfrieds Tod and that of Das
diimmerungsmotiv because it accompanies the Rheingold.
words "ein diist'rer Tag diimmert den G6ttern."
It might, however, equally well be called the THE UNDATED SKETCH SHEET
Weltuntergangsmotiv: Wagner introduces it
immediately after "Alles was ist, endet!" as a As mentioned, Wagner had already decided to
musical reverberation of those words. expand the Prelude's two-measure chordal in-
Despite Wotan's attempt to restrain the god- troduction and give it thematic significance. Be-
dess, Erda gradually disappears; as she does, her fore beginning a full ink score of the opera, he
tonality dissolves, eventually stabilizing on an made two further decisions: to replace the
E6 half cadence. Two reappearances of Erda's string figurations of the Vorspiel with the Erda/
motive in Eb minor'7 accompany Wotan's futile Norn theme, and to transform the entire Pre-
lude from a simple depiction of the depths of the
16While making the Partiturerstschrift, Wagner changed the Rhine into an orchestral metaphor for the crea-
g# in the second dyad to a. tion of the world. These two decisions went
'7The melodic augmented second Gt-At recalls the linear hand-in-hand and originated in the composition
progression A-B# in the F#-minor statement which begins
the episode (see ex. 4). Wagner's subsequent alteration of the of the Erda scene: if the inverted, descending
earlier statement destroyed this "framing" effect. form of Erda's motive symbolized the end of the
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 WARREN
DARCY
Creatio
ex nihilo
Al - les was ist, en - det! Ein diust' - rer

Tag dim - mert den GOtt - ern: dir rath' ich, mei de den Ring!

I I

Exam

a.
Wodan Fricka Froh

Soil ich sor - gen und firch -ten, dich muss ich fas -sen, al - les er - fah- ren! Was willst du, Wit-hen-der Halt' ein,

Wol-dan! Scheu - e die Ed - le, ach - te ihr Wort!

?---_ - _ _

b.
(Wodan sinnt.) (speer schi2tteln)

[etc.]

: ,b_ "? - ' . . . .. . . . .. ,,

S , J , 3
Example 7: The Rheingold Gesamtentwurf, fol. 34v-35r.
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19TH world (Weltuntergang), then the original,
a.
as-
CENTURY
MUSIC cending form could logically be associated with
its beginning. Furthermore, the fundamental
nature of Erda's theme-an ascending triad-- Wei - a Wa - ga! Wal -le du Wo - ge, wo-ge zur Wiege

could easily suggest a primordial beginning,

while its "Norns" figurations could represent
flowing water in general and the aquaticb. activi-
ties of the Rhinedaughters in particular.
At this point, an undated sketch sheet (WWV
86A Musik Ib) enters the picture. These
sketches are notated in brown ink on an oblong
piece of staff paper, which has been cut (proba-
bly by Wagner's heirs) from the top of a larger
C.
sheet; they are transcribed in ex. 8.18
H6rner in Es
Example 8a couples the "Weia waga" melody
(Woglinde's initial vocal statement in scene 1)
with a text that differs from its final version; be-
cause this text assumed definitive form in the
verse draft (WWV 86A Text III), begun 15 Sep-
tember 1852, one might logically assign this
[sic I
sketch an earlier date. The first page of the prose
draft (WWV 86A Text II), begun 23 March 1852, Example 8: Transcription of three fragments
contains several attempts at these lines in the on the undated sketch sheet.
left-hand margin, and Wagner may have con-
ceived this melody at the same time. Such rea-
soning would suggest that this sketch of the
"Weia waga" melody predates the La Spezia "vi- that this sketch predates the first one. Magni-
sion" (5 September 1853) by a year to a year and fication does suggest that the pen stroke of
a half and the beginning of the Gesamtentwurf"Waga" crosses over the last g2 of ex. 8b, and it is
(1 November 1853) by fourteen to twenty conceivable that Wagner indented the vocal
months.
melody as far as he did in order to avoid a colli-
The remaining two sketches are more dif- sion with the preexisting arpeggio sketch. The
ficult to date. The editors of the WWV claim
matter, however, is not absolutely clear, and the
that ex. 8b is an early version of the Nature mo-
"Weia waga" melody could have been notated
tive (the horn theme which begins in m. 17 offirst.
the Prelude)."9 To be sure, this sketch consists Example 8c contains a threefold statement of
of various triadic arpeggiations in 6 meter, andthe complete Nature motive, marked "H6rner
we might well assume a treble clef and a key sig-
in Es" and notated in C. The theme differs
nature of three flats. Because the penultimate slightly from its final form: the initial interval
pitch overlaps with the "g" of the word "Waga" is a major third rather than a perfect fifth, and
immediately above, the WWV editors speculatethe motive rises only to the root, rather than the
third, of the triad. Deathridge cites this as evi-
dence that Wagner "miscalculated the overtone
series."20 Westernhagen claims that "the fur-
'8The transcription in ex. 8 was made from WWV 86A Mu-
ther
sik Ib; cf. Deathridge, "Wagner's Sketches," p. 387 (com- development, with the transition to a
plete) and Westernhagen, The Forging of the "Ring," p. 16
higher octave, is an attempt to prefigure the rise
(exs. 8a and c only); both normalize stem direction in ex. 8a,
in the dynamic tension."21 Westernhagen, how-
m. 3, and both omit the crossed-out c' in ex. 8c, m. 7. The
autograph contains two questionable markings (possibly
ink blotches or pen practice) in the first measure of ex. 8a.
Between staves 2 and 3, in the middle of the sheet, is written
"weia Waga! "; in addition, the sheet contains two notations
which suggest that Wagner was practicing his signature.20Deathridge, "Wagner's Sketches," p. 387.
19WWV, p. 408. 21Westernhagen, The Forging of the "Ring," p. 17.

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 1852 23 March-15 Sept. Wagner sketches "Weia waga" melody. WARREN
DARCY
1853 5 Sept. Allegedly experiences a precompositional "vision" at La Spezia. Creatio
1 Nov. Begins the Rheingold Gesamtentwurf. The first version of the Prelude ex nihilo
lacks the Nature motive and uses the Norns figurations from the
Siegfrieds Tod sketches.
(2nd week of Nov.?) Decides to expand the opening of the Prelude and give it thematic
significance.
1854 1-14 Jan. Invents the Erda/Norn theme and incorporates it into the Erda episode
in scene 4.

1 Feb. Begins the Partiturerstschrift. Sketches the new Nature horn theme,
then incorporates it into the expanded opening of the Prelude. Also in-
corporates a major-mode variant of the Erda/Norn theme into the body
of the Prelude.
Feb. Revises the Prelude, changing the horn theme to its definitive form.
15 Feb. Begins the Reinschrift der Partitur, entering into it the final version of
the Prelude.
28 May Finishes the Partiturerstschrift.
Summer Hires a copyist, but dismisses him after completion of the Prelude.
26 Sept. Finishes the Reinschrift.
Late 1854-11 Nov. 1855 Friedrich Wolfel makes a copy of Wagner's Reinschrift.

Table 1
Compositional genesis of Rheingold Prelude: a suggested chronology.

ever, failed to take account of the fact that the

could have been invented before the Erda scene was
horn in Eb transposes down a major sixth in the composed. On the other hand [ex. 8c], not in the [Ge-
samtentwurfl, could have been written much later as
treble clef. All three versions therefore sound
a simpler version of the 'Erda' motif; in which case
exactly the same! Wagner was simply experi-Westernhagen could be right. But this is unlikely in
menting with different placements of the view of the tentative sketch for the 'Nature' motif in
change from bass to treble clef, a purely calli- [ex. 8b]; if the 'Erda' motif had already existed, an ex-
graphic feature which suggests that he notatedploratory sketch for what is essentially the same me-
this third sketch while working upon the Parti-lodic shape would scarcely have been necessary.22
turerstschrift.
Deathridge argues cogently, yet his reasoning
In a scathing review of The Forging of the
may be faulted on several grounds. First, if
"Ring, " Deathridge cites several problems con-
Wagner sketched ex. 8c prior to beginning the
nected with Westernhagen's interpretation of
Gesamtentwurf, why did he not incorporate it
the genesis of the Rheingold Prelude, in particu-
into that draft? Second, many themes in the
lar his contention (with which I concur) that
Wagner conceived the E-major Erda/Norn Ring display the "same melodic shape" as the
horn theme (an ascending triad); surely this in
theme before its Eb-major variant in the Pre-
itself did not obviate the need for preliminary
lude. Although Westernhagen suggested that
the Nature motive was composed before the La
sketching of those themes. Finally, the clef
Spezia "vision," he denied that it had anything
change experiments suggest that Wagner no-
to do with the origin of the Erda/Norn theme.
tated ex. 8c while working on the Parti-
turerstschrift-the revised form of the Prelude.
Deathridge counters,
Although the matter is not totally clear, I
suggest the chronology shown in table 1. This
Yet it seems unlikely that two such closely related
motifs, of which the second is clearly a variation ofchronology does not take the problematical
the first, would arrive separately in Wagner's mind.
The existence of [ex. 8c] ... is a strong indication that
the 'Nature' motif came first, in which case its vari-
ant in the prelude identical with the 'Erda' motif
22Deathridge, "Wagner's Sketches," p. 387.

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19TH ex. 8b into account; however, an alternative ex-
CENTURY
planation for this sketch will be offered later.
MUSIC
Let us now examine the Partiturerstschrift ver-
sion of the Prelude, and trace the further evolu-
tion of the Nature horn theme.
THE PAR TITURERSTSCHRIFT VERSION OF THE
PRELUDE
On 1 February 1854, Wagner began a full ink bel and the editors of the WWV a Partiturerst-
score of Das Rheingold (WWV 86A Musik III). If
he had followed his prior compositional prac- "instrumentation draft."25 A missing portion of
tice, he would have made a second complete manuscript makes it impossible to ascertain ex-
draft in ink, fleshing out the rather sparse tex- actly where Wagner switched to this reduced
ture of the pencil draft, and only then have writ-
ten out the score. An elaboration of the instru-
mental opening (already conceived as an
auskomponierte Eb triad), however, would have
come so close to being a full score anyway that
he decided to go ahead and make one right
away.23 This suggests that he did not consider
himself to be creating a totally new prelude, for
Wagner never composed immediately in full
score. A new prelude would have required an-
other preliminary draft.
Wagner notated the full ink score of the Pre-
lude in brown ink on large bifolios of manu-
script paper; the portion which has survived
(mm. 1-118) is written on two nonnested bifo-
lios (eight written sides). When Wagner reached
the opening of scene 1, he found that he could
23An oft-cited passage from Mein Leben reads, "As regards
the technical aspect of my work, I soon got into difficulty
when I attempted to notate the orchestral prelude I had con-
ceived in a half-sleep in Spezia in my usual manner of
sketching on two staves. I had to resort immediately to a full
score; this led me to a completely new method of sketching,
whereby I drafted only the very hastiest outlines in pencil
for the immediate working-out in full score." ("Was die
Technik meiner Arbeit betraf, geriet ich alsbald in Verle-
genheit, jenes im Halbtraume zu Spezia konzipierte Or-
chestervorspiel in meiner gewohnten Art der Skizzierung
auf zwei Linien aufzuzeichnen. Ich musste sofort zum voll-
staindigen Partitur-Formular greifen; dadurch wurde ich zu
einer neuen Art meines Skizzierens iuberhaupt verleitet,
wonach ich nur die allerfliichtigsten Bleistiftumrisse ffir die
sofortige Verarbeitung in der vollstindigen Partitur
entwarf," Mein Leben, p. 687). Probably Wagner is here con-
fusing his initial pencil draft (Gesamtentwurf) with his later
work on the Partiturerstschrift. It is unlikely that he had al-
ready decided against making a second complete draft at the
time he wrote out the Gesamtentwurf. The instrumenta-
tion markings contained in the Gesamtentwurf prove noth-
ing; many of these could have been (and probably were) en-
tered at the time Wagner made his Partiturerstschrift.
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not automatically score his pencil draft; in addi-
tion, the Gesamtentwurf of this scene was per-
meated by the sixteenth-note figurations of the
original Prelude, and these now had to be re-
placed by the new arpeggiations. The manu-
script at this point changes from a full ink score
into a pencil sketch of the instrumentation, a
document called by Wagner an Instrumenta-
tionsskizze24 (instrumentation sketch), by Stro-
schrift (draft of the full score), and by Bailey an
pencil format, but it probably happened at the
entrance of the voices.26
Although several features of the Parti-
turerstschrift differ from their counterparts in
the printed score,27 the following discussion fo-
241n a letter to Karl Klindworth of 4 October 1855. Because
Hans von Bilow did not have time to make the piano reduc-
tion, Wagner gave this job to Klindworth.
25The initial portion (mm. 1-420) of the Partiturerstschrift
(WWV 86A Musik III) is in the Bayreuth Archives (A III a 2),
except for a few missing sections and one page (mm. 403-
12) that somehow found its way into the New York Public
Library (JOC 73-24). The bulk of the manuscript (mm.
448-end, plus supplementary harp parts) is housed in the
Scheide Collection at Princeton University; I am grateful to
Mr. William A. Scheide and the librarian Ms. Janet Ing for
allowing me to examine it.
The history of the Scheide portion of the Partiturerst-
schrift is recounted by J. Merrill Knapp in "The Instrumen-
tation Draft of Wagner's Das Rheingold," Journal of the
American Musicological Society 30 (1977), 272-95. This
well-intentioned and potentially useful article unfortu-
nately contains many errors and misleading statements.
260n 15 February 1854, Wagner began a Reinschrift der Par-
titur, or fair copy (in ink) of the full score (WWV 86A Musik
IV). For a while he worked back and forth between this and
the Partiturerstschrift, working out a passage in the latter,
then entering it in the former. He completed the Parti-
turerstschrift on 28 May and almost immediately began the
composition of Die Walkiire, not finishing the fair copy un-
til 26 September. Unfortunately Wagner's Reinschrift has
disappeared, but a very accurate copy by Friedrich W61fel
(WWV 86A Musik Vb) survives.
Sometime during the summer of 1854, Wagner hired a
copyist to make an ink score of the opera; the copyist com-
pleted the Prelude, after which he was dismissed. Because
this copy (WWV 86A Musik Va) corresponds in layout to
W61fel's (which faithfully reproduces Wagner's Rein-
schrift), it was almost certainly made from the Reinschrift,
not from the Partiturerstschrift. This anonymous copy is
housed, along with the bulk of the Partiturerstschrift, in the
Scheide Collection at Princeton University.
27These discrepancies involve the instrumentation of the
low E6/Bb octaves, the dynamics of the sixteenth-note cello
figurations, and the pitches of the flute parts.
 a. Partiturerstschrift, mm. 17-20: horn 8. WARREN
cuses upon only one of these: the opening horn DARCY
canon. [m. 171 Creatio
ex nihilo
Wagner initially had horn 8 sequence the
Nature theme through the ascending major
triad, starting it successively on Eb, G, and Bb;
the other horns followed in canonic imitation.
Examples 9a-c transcribe the sequential state-
b. Partiturerstschrift, mm. 37-44: horn 8.
ments of this motive as they appear in the Parti-
[m. 37
turerstschrift;2" note that ex. 9a follows the pat-
tern of the undated sketch (ex. 8c). The entire
passage up to the entrance of the violoncelli was
originally four bars longer than the final version [m.41
due to the double statement in mm. 37-44 (ex.
9b).
Pages 1 and 2 of the Partiturerstschrift con-
tain pencil revisions, which bring the horn
canon closer to its final form. At some point af-
c. Partiturerstschrift, mm. 45-52: horn 8.
ter completing the Prelude, Wagner altered the
[m.45]
initial motive (ex. 9a) to the version shown in
ex. 9d; this corrects his "miscalculation of the
overtone series," and ends the motive upon the
third of the triad rather than the root. He also
changed all the subsequent canonic entries. At
m. 37, Wagner altered his first sequence of the
motive (ex. 9b, first four measures) so that it
also conformed with ex. 9d; obviously he
needed to change only the first note this time. d. Partiturerstschrift, mm. 17-20: horn 8
Wagner then crossed out mm. 41-44 (ex. 9b, last (pencil revision).
four measures) so that his original m. 45 became [m. 17]
the present m. 41.29 In order to change his sec-
ond sequence of the Nature motive (ex. 9c) into
the version we know (ex. 9e), only the first two
notes needed to be altered; however, Wagner
left this passage unchanged in the Parti-
e. Printed score, mm. 41-44: horn 8.
turerstschrift, probably altering it when he
made his fair copy. [m.41]

The end result of all these revisions was to

immer p
eliminate the rising sequences and ground the
entire horn canon on low Eb.30 The fact that the
Example 9

28Examples 9a-d were transcribed from the first eight pages

of WWV 86A Musik III.
29Knapp claims that "between measure 40 and 41, there are
four measures (an earlier version of mm. 41-44), which canonic horn entries were originally structured
have been crossed out. Some of the notes in the following as rising sequences has important conse-
measures are a different arrangement of the triad" ("The In- quences for our reconstruction of the Prelude's
strumentation Draft," p. 282). The crossed-out measures,
however, are not an earlier version of mm. 41-44 at all, but compositional genesis.
an extension of mm. 37-40, which Wagner later chose to The following section examines the musical
delete. structure of the Prelude and relates that struc-
30The Partiturerstschrift lacks the "immer p" that appears
ture to the versions found in the Gesam-
in the printed score at the point where each horn first plays
its high bb6. tentwurf and the Partiturerstschrift.

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19TH Gesamtentwurf Version (1853) Final Version (1854)
CENTURY
MUSIC F Introduction (16 mm.)
Introduction (2 mm.) Introduction(16mm.)
LTheme (32 mm.)
Strophe 1: A' (16 mm.) Variation 1 (32 mm.)
Strophe 2: A2 (16 mm.) Variation I(16 mm.)
Strophe 3: A3 (16 mm.) Variation III (16 mm.)
Strophe 4: A4 (16 mm.) Variation IV (16 mm.)
Coda (8 mm.)

Table 2
Relationship between Gesamtentwurf version
and final version of the Prelude.

STRUCTURE AND MEANING ever, is difficult to criticize, even though it ad-

dresses only one aspect of the piece.32 Lorenz di-
The analyst who attempts to elucidate Wagne- vided the Prelude into seven sections, as shown
rian formal procedures cannot ignore the work in the right-hand column of table 2; the follow-
of Alfred Lorenz. Lorenz has recently come un- ing discussion assumes the accuracy of this di-
der heavy attack, and this is not the place to vision. The strophic design of the Gesam-
argue his case.31 Lorenz's analysis of the Rhein-tentwurf version forms the core of the final
gold Prelude as a set of strophic variations, how- version.
Having decided to write an orchestral meta-
phor for the creation of the world, Wagner pro-
duced the effect of moving gradually from time-
lessness into measured time, from amorphous
3'Lorenz admired Hitler, and the German scholar Reinhold
sounds
Brinkmann claims that Lorenz's attempt to press every toward distinct
sin- musical shapes. The six-
teen-bar introduction
gle, individual unit into the service of a higher, all-encom- and the thirty-two-bar
passing, abstract unity perfectly characterizes the hornNazi
canon are temporally indeterminate. Only
mentality. Brinkmann also suggests that during the reign of
National Socialism criticism of Lorenz's analytical with the regular pulse and sweeping arpeggia-
method-
ology would scarcely have been possible ("'Drei der tions of Variation I does experiential time be-
Fragen
stell' ich mir frei': zur Wanderer-Szene im I. Akt von
gin; yet the absence of any higher level design
Wagners Siegfried," in Jahrbuch des Staatlichen Instituts
fir Musik-Forschung Preussischer Kulturbesitz [Berlin, precludes a sense of formal arrival. This higher
1972], p. 120). The efforts of Carl Dahlhaus, Egon Voss, Ru-level design materializes in Variation II, coup-
dolph Stefan, and others to discredit Lorenz should perhaps led with a reduction of note values; however,
be understood within this context -as attempts on the part
of these authors to distance themselves from the ideology ofthe instrumentation is purposely "muddy" and
the Third Reich. Significantly, Otto Strobel and Curt von indistinct, blurring the melodic shape. Clari-
Westernhagen-the latter an ardent admirer of Lorenz-- fication begins in Variation III and is completed
were Nazi sympathizers. in the clear orchestral colors of Variation IV.
David Lewin writes about Lorenz, "Any critic whose
work still generates lively contention fifty years after its The thematic fragmentation, increased rhyth-
publication must have been doing something right!" ("Am- mic activity, and crescendi of the coda are
fortas's Prayer to Titurel and the Role of D in Parsifal: The
Tonal Spaces of the Drama and the Enharmonic C6/B," this abruptly cut short by a sudden drop in dy-
journal 7 [1984], 337, n. 1). Even John Deathridge, an erst- namics, texture, and instrumentation, as well
while critic of Lorenz, is moved to remark: "Yet criticism as of a change of harmony, at Woglinde's vocal en-
Lorenz has been carried to such extremes that one feels
trance.
compelled to leap to his defence" ("Wagner 'Literature' and
Wagner 'Research'," Wagner 8 [1987], 103). Clearly an objec-
tive appraisal of Lorenz's writings, one which defines his po-
sition in the history of Wagner scholarship and explores the 32Alfred Lorenz, Das Geheimnis der Form bei Richard
influence upon his work of Schopenhauerian metaphysics, Wagner, vol. I: Der musikalische Aufbau des Bidhnenfest-
is long overdue. spieles Der Ring des Nibelungen (Berlin, 1924), p. 126.

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 It is as if the enormous musical build-up of WARREN
DARCY
the Prelude has suddenly compressed itself into Creatio
this single human figure. First singing nonsense ex nihilo
P dolce
syllables, the Rhinedaughter smoothly modu-
lates into intelligible verbal phrases. Wagner
has given us the ultimate demonstration of mu-
sical organicism: from a single musical pitch
z I f.. I
(the initial low Eb) he has literally created life it-
self. In so doing, he has also demonstrated an es-
sential part of his world view: that the ultimate
goal of nature is to evolve into human con-
sciousness. The tragic events of the Ring ensue Example 10: The
exactly because humanity loses touch with its of the Rainbow
natural origins.
The variation structure of the Prelude helps
shape this evolutionary process. Individual sec-
tions are discussed in detail below, with appro-
priate reference to the Gesamtentwurf and Par- triad, beginning i
What suggested this
titurerstschrift versions.
Certainly the proc
INTRODUCTION (MM. 1-16) ated motive throug
enough in Das Rhein
In an ideal performance, the audience is unable to dure, however, is so
discern exactly when the initial contrabass tones be- cial point, that it m
gin; the listener only gradually becomes aware of a diate model for the horn canon. This is the so-called
sound that, in effect, has always been there. Because "Rainbow" theme, which first appears in Gl toward
the four second bassists are playing EP, onthe
an third
open the end of scene 4 as Froh points the way to Valhalla.
string (tuned down a chromatic half step), As ex. 10 shows,33 the Rainbow theme rises triadi-
harmonic is audibly present during the first four cally from Gl to db', then descends gradually toward
measures; when the bassoons enter with Bb, they its initial pitch; it is then sequenced thrice, begin-
merely reinforce a pitch that was already sounding. ning on the third, fifth, and root of the triad. At the
At the same time, the ear clearly perceives g, the fifth
opera's conclusion, this theme reappears in D6, to ac-
harmonic, soon to be played by the French horn. This company the gods as they cross over the rainbow
technique of anticipating a pitch through a promi- bridge; again it is sequenced on both the third and
nent overtone lends a certain inevitability to the fifth of the triad.34 The melodic ascent of this motive
process and suggests that all life--the entire musical and its sequential treatment are so similar to those of
universe of the Ring-is latently present in the ini- the Nature motive in the Partiturerstschrift version
tial sound.
of the Prelude that it is tempting to identify the first
Wagner had long associated the interval of the per- as the direct source of the second. In fact, Wagner
fect fifth with the spirit world, using it as a harmonicmay well have combined the pitches of the Rainbow
symbol for the Dutchman in Der fliegende Hol- theme with the rhythm of the Erda motive to pro-
lin der, and later for the Tarnhelm in the Ring operas. duce the original form of the Nature theme, as ex. 11
Here, however, it functions less as an invocation of suggests. If this interpretation is correct, the Nature
the supernatural than as an evocation of the endless theme was sketched between 14 January and 1 Febru-
void out of which a mythic world will soon be cre- ary 1854.
ated.
Although Wagner's subsequent pencil alterations
Lorenz noted the gradual rhythmic animation of
to the Prelude somewhat obscure this possible deri-
the Eb/Bb fifth through bow changes and tonguing:
vation, the "framing" effect of the Nature/Rainbow
Measure 1 2 3 4 5 6 78/ 9 10111213141516 complex has been felt by many musicians. Carl
Eb Bb Eb Bb Eb Bb

The overlapping pulsations33Example

in mm. 9-16
10 transcribes persist
only the for
lower staff of a two-stave
the remainder of the Prelude. system; the upper staff contains a suggestion of the accom-
paniment figure. On both staves, the key signature of 34 is
THEME (MM. 17-48) written over one of 6. The rhythm of the third measure was
originally 2 . . As is often the case, the beginnings and end-
Wagner's alterations of the horn canon were de- ings of Wagner's slur marks are ambiguous.
scribed earlier. His initial idea had been to sequence 34The final sequence was inserted later; see WWV 86A Mu-
sik II, fol. 39r.
the arpeggiated Nature theme upward through the Eb,

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19TH Pitches of
CENTURY Rainbow motive Rhythm of Nature motive (original form)
MUSIC
transposed to Eb Erda motive

,4 , J -Of , ,M Id
Example 11: Hypothetical origin of the

Dahlhaus correctly points hornout

canon continue,
thatwhile by bassoons
the and time
flutes add the
Rainbow theme appears, yet the listener
another can no
layer to this background chordallonger
struc-
trust the "reduction and ture. simplification" of the major
triad.35 Nature has been ravished for the sake of Bassoons and celli begin Variation I with a state-
power and wealth; civilization's achievement is hol- ment of the four-bar Erda/Norn variant. Because the
low and morally bankrupt, making the rainbow'sbassoon motive fills in triadic gaps with passing
promise of hope a cruel illusion. This retrospectivelytones (eb-f-g and g-ab-bb), it sounds like a figuration
adds one more layer of meaning to the Rheingoldof notes 3-7 of the Nature horn theme; we have al-
Prelude. In addition, such a musical frame satisfies ready noted the rhythmic identity of these two ideas.
the listener's desire for large-scale formal coherence.The eighth-note cello pattern (suggestive of swirling
The musical form of the Prelude's theme (mm.water currents) adds yet another element of figura-
17-48) is processive rather than architectural: ca-tion to the texture, making this section truly sound
nonic entries of the Nature motive occur at ever-de- as a variation of the preceding one. The regular pulses
creasing temporal intervals, finally coalescing into a and clear motivic profile suggest that experiential
richly pulsating horn chord (major triad with empha- time has begun: the creation process is under way.
sized third). This chord (which presumably could go The sixteenth-note cello figures in the corres-
on forever) suggests the perfect harmony that pre- ponding portion of the Gesamtentwurf ascend and
ceded mythic creation. By allowing linear strands to descend through the Eb triad (ex. 2). In the Parti-
coalesce into a vertical sonority, Wagner suggests the turerstschrift version, Wagner sequences the four-
identity of time and space and implies that organic measure, eighth-note figure through the ascending
life has not yet begun. The eventual movement of the triad (6 x 4 mm.); he then alters and shortens it, se-
top "voice" from g' to bb1 (m. 44), however, hints that quencing it downward (4 x 2 mm.); then shortens it
change is imminent.36 again and continues the sequential descent (4 x 1 m).
The temporal contraction of this sequential unit and
VARIATION I (MM. 49-80)
the rise and fall of its climactic pitches correlate as
The Gesamtentwurf version of the Prelude suggests shown in ex. 12. The overall shape is that of an asym-
that its introductory two-measure triadic oscillation metrical arch, whose ascent occupies three-fourths
was to expand through the upper wind instruments, of the total length (24 + 8 mm.). The rhythmic con-
forming a pulsating harmonic background to the traction of the descent produces a "psychological ac-
string figurations. We have seen how Wagner en- celerando" that propels the music into Variation II.
larged this brief chordal opening to forty-eight mea- The eighth-note figurations are, of course, passed
sures (the sixteen-bar introduction followed by the through the entire string family as the arch ascends
thirty-two-bar theme), investing it with thematic and descends. Similarly, the slower moving Erda var-
significance and deepening its metaphorical mean- iant is gradually passed from bassoons to flutes; for
ing. He also preserved his original concept of allow- the first twenty-four bars (6 x 4 mm.) the motive is
ing this harmonic background to persist as the figura- sequenced upward along with the string figurations,
tions begin: both the low Eb/Bb pulsations and the but during the eight-measure string descent the
winds repeat the last half of the motive in the manner
of an ostinato. Meanwhile bassoon 3, which for the
first twenty-four bars has reiterated a four-measure,
35Carl Dahlhaus, Richard Wagner's Music Dramas, trans. three-note pattern, now compresses it into two mea-
Mary Whittall (Cambridge, 1979), p. 111. sures. This results in a flute/bassoon figure which re-
36The horn pitches in the Prelude are confined to partials 2, peats almost mechanistically, further animating the
3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, and 12 of the overtone series based upon E Eb
1 triad (ex. 13). The winds' reiteration of e63 retains
as fundamental. Wagner, however, did not expect thesethe climactic pitch of the string arch as the strings
parts to be played on natural horns in E6; rather, they were
themselves descend.
to be executed on F horns using the second valve to lower
the fundamental a whole step. For a detailed discussion of If we now compare the reduction in ex. 13 to the
the matter, see Peter Nitsche, "Transponierte Notation beiproblematic sketch in ex. 8b, we at once notice a
Wagner," in Richard Wagner: Werk und Wirkung, ed. Carlstriking similarity: the "resultant melody" of ex. 13
Dahlhaus (Regensburg, 1971), pp. 231, 233-35. is identical to the upper line of ex. 8b, mm. 1-2

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 Climactic
pitches:
No. of bars: 4 4
No. of bars: 4 4
Example 12: Arch shape of Variation I.
[m. 731
/ s
Basns. 3" I "
-: b.. . -. , g' (2 x 2 mm.).
Bsn.3
Example 13: Final version, mm. 73-76:
reduction of flute/bassoon ostinato.
(Wagner apparently began but discontinued a repeti-
tion in m. 3), while the bassoon parts of ex. 13 suggest
the lower line of ex. 8b, mm. 1-2. Clearly Wagner
could have sketched ex. 8b while working out the
wind parts of the Partiturerstschrift, a possibility
which casts doubt upon it being an early version of
the Nature motive. The fact that ex. 8b appears on
the same sheet as the horn theme (ex. 8c), which
clearly was jotted down during the making of the
Partiturerstschrift, adds weight to this hypothesis. In
fact, it is not beyond the realm of possibility that ex.
8a was written at the same time also, as pen practice;
Wagner could simply have made an error in the tex-
tual underlay. In this case, the writing sequence
might have been: (1) Nature horn theme, (2) arpeggio
sketch, (3) "Weia waga" melody. This chronology
corresponds to the order in which these elements ap-
pear in the score.
VARIATION II (MM. 81-96)
Through rhythmic diminution the Erda/Norn mo-
tive is compressed from four measures into two. The
eighth notes become sixteenths, and the entire varia-
tion is only sixteen bars long, bringing it closer to its
prototype in the Gesamtentwurf. The figurations are
given to the celli (reminiscent of mm. 3-18 of the Ge-
samtentwurf), while the slower moving Erda theme
is played by clarinets. As mentioned, this results in a
dark, somewhat "murky" orchestral texture which
obscures the melodic outline; it is as if the watery
depths are struggling to give birth to their musical
child.
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WARREN
DARCY
Creatio
ex nihilo
4 4 4 4 2 1 1 1 1
4 4 4 4 2 2 1 1 1 1
The two-bar motive is spun-out into a sixteen-bar
theme (henceforth referred to as the "Rhine theme")
as follows (see ex. 14):
1. The motive is stated twice, rising each time to
2. The motive is rhythmically varied; the synco-
pation across the bar line reduces it from seven
notes to five, so that it rises only as far as bb.
This variant is also stated twice (2 x 2 mm.).
3. The variant is spun-out into six measures, dur-
ing which the melodic line ascends only as far
as bb, and continually doubles back on itself to
g. The original arpeggiation has become
cramped and crabbed (6 mm.).
4. The motive "straightens out" and reappears in
its original form, ascending to g' (2 mm.).
Lorenz analyzed this theme as a Reprisenbar: two
two-measure Stollen are followed by a twelve-mea-
sure Abgesang, the latter containing a ten-measure
Durchfiihrung and a two-measure Reprise.37 A case
for the Reprisenbar can be made, but it seems more
logical to construe the proportions as:
Stollen 1 = 4 mm. (2 x 2 mm.): original form of mo-
tive.
Stollen 2 = 4 mm. (2 x 2 mm.): varied form of motive.
Durchffihrung= 6 mm.: spin-
ning-out of
Abgesang = 8 mm. variant.
LReprise = 2 mm.: origi-
nal form of
motive.
This structure, however, is perhaps best regarded as
processive rather than architectural: after the origi-
nal motive has been steadily contorted and bent back
upon itself, it suddenly springs back into its original
shape.
While clarinets and celli unfold this sixteen-bar
theme, the background harmony is animated
through the superimposition of various overlapping
ostinati: the low Eb/Bb pulsations, the descending
37Lorenz, Das Geheimnis, I, 108.
95
19TH Rhine Theme (Clarinets
CENTURY
MUSIC

[M. U 1" -._ - I 811' I; " - r P I --

Original motive Variant of motive Spinning-out of variant

I1 Original motive
Example 14: Final version, mm. 81-96: Rhine theme (cl

horn canon, and the flute/bassoon into two parts, thusThe

ostinato. figuring
ar- both voices of the
ticulations of the latter almost continuously overlap
theme: second violins and violas play the upper part,
while celli as
those of the clarinet/cello Rhine theme, playfig.
the lower in contrary motion. This
1 illus-
trates. The only point at which recalls
these thearticulations
third section of the Gesamtentwurf ver-
coincide is m. 95- the beginningsion,of inthe
which"Reprise"
second violins and
ofviolas were to take
the "Reprisenbar." up the sixteenth-note scale patterns. The Eb/Bb pul-
sations, the horn canon, and the flute/bassoon
VARIATION III (MM. 97-112)
figures continue from the previous variation.
This variation structurally parallels the preceding
VARIATION IV (MM. 113-28)
one; "elements of figuration" involve changes in or-
chestration and density. The Rhine theme
This variation, is played
structurally identical to the preced-
by oboes and English horn an octave
ing pair, higher
completes thethan its process. The six-
clarification
previous statement. The double reeds
teen-bar Rhinecut through
theme, now played by winds in three
the background harmony much better than
octaves, finally the
breaks low-
through to the surface; its mu-
sicalmelodic
register clarinets, sharpening the birth is complete. The two-part
profile of figurations in-
the theme; a gradual "clarification" is under
volve the entire way.
string family (as in the fourth section
Clarinets continue to play the of theme an octave
the Gesamtentwurf): first violins and violas dou-
lower, interlocking the original form ble the previous
withsecond
its violin
inver- and cello parts an oc-
sion (ex. 15). Wagner imaginatively exchanges
tave higher, me- arpeggiations begin
so that the swirling
lodic lines among the three clarinets soeach
to pass through that
other. each
Upon this collage of back-
player takes a different linear strand whenever
ground ostinati, the
Wagner superimposes yet another: a
pattern repeats. trumpet pattern based upon the Nature rhythm (ex.
The sixteenth-note figurations are now divided 16).

Var. II Var. III

Mm. 79 80 1181 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97

Fls.,
Bsns.

Cls.,
Vc.
(Rhine theme)

"Stollen 1" "Stollen 2" "Durchfithrung" "Reprise"

Figure 1: Overlapping of flute/bassoon ostinato and Rhine theme in mm. 79-9
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 WARREN
; +. I,--\
C1. 3 Cl. 3 DARCY
Creatio
-Of - 1 1! i =E ex nihilo
[m. 971 Cl. 1

Cl. 2

.... 6-
B. C 1.

Example 15: Fina

Figure 2 represents the overlapping of the various [mrt 113]

ostinato patterns and their relationship to the Rhine

theme. The trumpet articulations usually coincide
with those of bassoon 3, whereas the flute articula-
tions are often in phase with those of the Rhine
theme. This time, however, the "Reprise" is not rein-
forced by an articulation in any of the other three lay-
ers.

CODA (MM. 129-36) Example 16: Final version, mm. 113-17:

In a sense the appellation "Coda" is a misnomer, in-reduction of trumpet parts.
asmuch as these eight measures totally lack the
sense of repose and closure traditionally associated
with the term; on the contrary, they greatly intensify
the rhythmic momentum.38 Wagner here superim-
poses four different wind and string ostinati (ex. 17)
over the horn canon and the low pulsations. This col-
lage of six different ostinati, the majority repeating
every two measures, creates an amazingly realistic
suggestion of swirling water currents.
It cannot have escaped the reader that Wagner's
Obs.

technique of animating a single harmony by piling up

various melodic/rhythmic ostinati bears a striking
resemblance to the practice of certain contemporary
composers, notably Philip Glass and John Adams.
The Rheingold Prelude, one of the most original
pieces of music ever written, may possibly qualify as
the first "minimalist" composition.

CONCLUSION

Our investigation reveals that the Rheingold

Prelude simultaneously fulfills several dra-
matic/musical functions. Obviously it conjures
up a picture of the depths of the Rhine, prepar-
ing the audience for the visual illusion of scene
1, and it presents material which is developed
Strs.
during that scene. In conjunction with the Erda
episode of scene 4, it musically reinforces a dra-
matic parallelism between the Rhinedaughters Winds

38The term "transition" would be equally unsatisfactory, as

it would imply a unit that stands outside the structural Example 17: Final version, mm. 129-30:
framework of the Vorspiel. reduction of wind/string ostinati.
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 Var. IV Coda
19TH
CENTURY
MUSIC Mm. 11 113 1

Fls.

Bsn. 3

Trpts.

Obs., Cls.,
Bsns., Strings
(Rhine theme)
"Stollen 1" "Stollen 2" "DurchfUhrung" "Reprise"

Figure 2: Overlapping of Rhine theme and wind o

and the Norns. Togethercount of the

with the incident and its
concluding
Rainbow theme, it provides composition of the Prelude ca
a musical "frame"
ported
for the entire opera, creating theor contradicted
impression of by the d
large-scale formal coherence.dence, depending
By unfolding upon the s
the
tions. It total
overtone series, it also suggests is easy enough to port
organic
unity, making it possible forcharlatan if that is
all subsequent one's aim, a
mo-
tives (whatever their actual denied that he did
compositional often manip
ori-
gins) to be traced back to chronologies to his own advant
the opening measures
(a trap into which Leitmotiv blind exegetes
adulationhaveof Strobel,
all Wes
the like does require
too often fallen). Finally, and most important, it a stron
serves as a musical metaphor Deathridge's acute skepticism
for the creation of m
tified. Yet,
the world and depicts the gradual evolution ofhowever useful W
impersonal natural forces andinto
drafts
humanmay occasionally
con- pr
sciousness. Only the first ofing biographical
these functions accuracy,
was their
bution to version;
fulfilled by the Gesamtentwurf scholarshipthemay well
others resulted, directlytential for elucidating
or indirectly, from compo
and Erda
Wagner's composition of the facilitating analysis and int
episode.
Did Wagner experience hoped
a precompositional
that the foregoing study
someIn
vision on 5 September 1853? degree demonstrated th
all likelihood,
we will never know. Wagner's published ac-

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 APPENDIX A WARREN
DARCY
Rough chronology of Ring poem and musical composition of Das Rheingold. Creatio
ex nihilo
1848 Oct. First Nibelung "scenario": draft and fair copy
Siegfrieds Tod: prose draft
Nov. verse draft
[Dec.] first fair copy of poem
first revision and second fair copy of poem
1850 [May] third fair copy of poem
[Aug.] music begun and abandoned
1851 [May] Der junge Siegfried: prose sketches
May prose draft
June verse draft
[July] first fair copy of poem
[Aug.] second fair copy of poem
music begun and abandoned
[Oct.] Das Rheingold: prose sketch
[Nov.] Die Walkiire: prose sketch
1852 [Winter] Das Rheingold/Die Walkiire: supplementary prose sketches (in pocket note-
book)
March Das Rheingold: prose draft
May Die Walkiire: prose draft
June Die Walkiire: verse draft
Sept.-Nov. Das Rheingold: verse draft
[Nov.-Dec.] Der junge Siegfried: first revision
Siegfrieds Tod: second revision
Das Rheingold/Die Walkiire: fair copies of poems
Siegfrieds Tod: fourth fair copy of poem
1853 [Feb.] Private printing of Ring poem (50 copies)
Sept. La Spezia "vision"
Nov.- Das Rheingold: complete (musical) draft [Gesamtentwurf]
1854 Jan.
Feb.-May draft of full score [Partiturerstschrift]
Feb.-Sept. fair copy of full score (lost) [Reinschrift der Partitur]
Summer anonymous copy of Prelude
1854-55 copy of full score by Friedrich W61olfel

(Brackets indicate that the manuscript lacks a date. The 1848 textual autographs are written i
script, the rest in Latin script. Terms used to designate the manuscripts are English equivalents o
terminology employed in the Wagner-Werk-Verzeichnis, which contains detailed information a
documents.)

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19TH APPENDIX B
CENTURY
MUSIC Documentary Sources.

Manuscripts are cited by WWV catalog numbers. Terminology follows that of the WWV. Most documents are
housed in the Nationalarchiv der Richard-Wagner-Stiftung, Bayreuth (NA).
Das Rheingold:
WWV 86A Text II NA (A II g 2). Prose draft [Prosaentwurf].
WWV 86A Text III NA (A II g 3). Verse draft [Erstschrift des Textbuches].
WWV 86A Text V Pp. 1-20: Musikverlag B. Schott's S6hne, Mainz. Pp. 21-28: NA (A II g 5). Pp. 29-
34: lost. Wagner's personal copy of WWV 86A Text VI [Handexemplar ffir die Kom-
position].
WWV 86A Text VI First (private) printing of Ring text (1853), pp. 1-34 [Erstdruck des Textbuches].
WWV 86A Musik Ib NA (A II a 1). Single sketches [Einzelskizzen].
WWV 86A Musik II NA (A III a 1). Complete draft [Gesamtentwurf].
WWV 86A Musik III NA (A III a 2); New York Public Library (JOC 73-24); Princeton, Scheide Collec-
tion. See WWV, pp. 354-55 for details. Draft of full score [Partiturerstschrift].
WWV 86A Musik IV Lost. Fair copy of full score [Reinschrift der Partitur].
WWV 86A Musik Va Princeton, Scheide Collection. Anonymous copy of WWV 86A Musik IV, Prelude
only [Partitur von fremder Hand].
WWV 86A Musik Vb NA. Copy of WWV 86A Musik IV by Friedrich W61fel [Partitur von fremder Hand].

Siegfrieds Tod:
WWV 86D Musik Ib-d Washington, Library of Congress (ML 96. W 56 W 26 Case). One sheet, containing
single sketches [Einzelskizzen] for the Valkyrie scene (I, 3), a draft [Entwurf] of the
final song and departure of the Valkyries (I, 3), and a fragmentary draft [fragmen-
tarischer Entwurf] of the Prologue. See WWV, p. 397 for details.
WWV 86D Musik lIe Lost. Facsimile published in L'lllustration (Paris: 11 February 1933), 167ff. and
Neue Zeitschrift fiir Musik 124 (1963), 180-81.
Second draft of the Prologue [Zweiter Entwurf zum Vorspiel].

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