Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelung), WWV 86, is a cycle of four German-language epic music dramas composed by Richard Wagner. The works are based loosely on characters from Germanic heroic legend, namely Norse legendary sagas and the Nibelungenlied.

Oct 17, 2019 · Completed in 1874, Richard Wagner’s legendary Ring cycle consists of four individual operas – Das Rheingold, Die Walküre, Siegfried, and Götterdämmerung – and totals about 15 hours of music.

Mar 4, 2025 · Der Ring des Nibelungen, or the Ring cycle, is an unsurpassed exaltation of German heritage and mythology. In places, Wagner tells the story with the orchestra, using leitmotifs —fragments of melody that convey emotions and …

Richard Wagner's 'Der Ring des Nibelungen', otherwise known as The Ring cycle, is the peak of operatic indulgence, excess and excellence. But how do you go about it? What should you listen out for? And what on Earth are they all singing about anyway? Find out with our handy guide.

Mar 19, 2025 · To get an idea of how revolutionary the Ring Cycle was, opera in the mid-1800s was dominated by the Bel Canto style—beautiful singing, with text that at times seemed incidental. Wagner believed that there was an imbalance between music and text, and he rejected the Bel Canto model in his 1851 book Opera and Drama .

Feb 18, 2024 · Richard Wagner’s Ring Cycle, Der Ring des Nibelungen, epitomises a great many of these Romantic ideas. It is an immense operatic work that took Wagner the best part of twenty-six years to complete (1848-1874). This epic masterwork is not a single opera but four operas that form one colossal cycle.

Mar 1, 2018 · Experience the power of Wagner’s masterpiece with the film of Opera North’s critically acclaimed 2016 dramatic concert staging of the complete Ring cycle, conducted by Richard Farnes and directed by Peter Mumford, available to watch now on demand, for free.