MONTE-CARLO OPERA

In Western culture's vast history there is nothing comparable with Richard Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen!

Unjustly, the first of the epic cycle's operas, Das Rheingold, does not enjoy the same status in the repertoire as the other three Ring days. Might this be the fault of the composer, who by calling it the prelude risked implying that the best came later? In fact Das Rheingold was composed last and is the most accomplished example of the composer's efforts to sustain the drama throughout a creation in which singers and orchestra are protagonists too. Das Rheingold is the cycle's source from which the entire Ring seems to flow naturally. It is also a masterpiece in its own right. Wagner's prelude is unique in the history of music, a description in sound of the creation of life, from a simple note held by the double basses to the fortissimo announcing the entrance of the Rhinemaidens. Not content to write innovative music that made huge demands on the performers, Wagner likewise confronted the director with a series of technical challenges that in the 19th century seemed virtually insurmountable. The saga tells the story of the struggle to possess gold, but underlying that, the real goal is power.

Prelude to Der Ring des Nibelungen

Music and libretto by Richard Wagner (1813-1883)

First performed at the National Theatre, Munich, on 22 September 1869

New production

Tuesday 19 November (National Festival; invitation only) and Friday 22 November at 8pm

Sunday 24 November at 3pm

Tickets from €25