Wagner moments

[max]

...when Erda first appears to warn Wotan to the final closing chords of the opera. Also, the beginning of scene 2 when Wotan first arises to behold the newly created home of the Gods, Valhalla.

[Haffner]

I love the last half of the 3rd act of Die Walkure where Wotan has to put Brunnhilde to sleep to await a human husband.  As he kisses her, her godliness disappears forever.  It is a time for tears if ever there was one.  At the minimum there's a huge lump in the throat.  The orchestra in those moments is so gorgeous!

I love that scene too, Anne. It's actually one of the only scenes during Levine's production of Die Walkure that I liked. The first disc, with the story of Sieglinde and Siegmund's meeting, was WAY poorly paced and was a total test of nerves to finish.

Of course, that is remedied once Brunnhilde first comes on the scene!

[marvinbrown]

...when Erda first appears to warn Wotan to the final closing chords of the opera.

  This is the moment that got me thinking heavily about the destiny of the Gods (escapable or inescapable?)

  marvin

[Jaakko Keskinen]

If I would have to positively say only one moment, I believe my choice would be Waldweben section from Siegfried. Gorgeous tonepainting going on there. Runner-ups would be the last fiveteen minutes or so of die Walküre, Bin ich nun frei from Rheingold, in Götterdämmerung vassals chorus from act 2 and immolation scene from act 3. Outside of Ring: climax of act 2 love duet in Tristan, overture of Meistersinger, prelude of Lohengrin, pilgrims chorus in Tannhäuser, Steuermann lass die wacht from Holländer and from Parsifal... very difficult but I would probably have to say the entire act 2.

[DavidW]

When Wotan steps in and breaks Siegmunde's sword.  Very dramatic and heart wrenching as he is forced to basically kill his son and his redemption to honor his wife.  It is a tremendous moment.  I also like the quiet melancholy of the beginning of Gottedamerung with the norns weaving fate.

[Superhorn]

   There are so many great moments in all of Wagner . For example, in the first act of Siegfried , just after Mime's encounter with
Wotan , where he is hallucinating about being eaten alive by Fafner , who is now in dragon form .  This passage sounds as
though it could be from Wozzeck !  It's virtually atonal .

[Lisztianwagner]

About Wagner's Tristan und Isolde, besides the suggestive, magical prelude of the first act and the touching, passionate Isolde's love death, one of my favourite moment is when in the first scene of the third act, Tristan, collapsed in delirium and tortured by the thought of Isolde, sees the arrival of her ship, announced by the sound of the english horn (O Wonne! Freude!), and overjoyed, he tears the bandages from his wounds in his excitement (Hei ha ha ha! Kurwenal, treuester Freund!); the music, fading slowly and bursting out fiercely, with an incredible use of chromaticism, becomes so thrilling and overwhelming that it perfectly depicts the image of Tristan's wild joy when he understands he can meet his beloved once again.

[Ken B]

Not knowing a lot of Wagner beyond the Ring (which supplies a lot of moments!)

Thor's Hammer in Rheingold
End of Valkyrie with the fire

[Jaakko Keskinen]

About Wagner's Tristan und Isolde, besides the suggestive, magical prelude of the first act and the touching, passionate Isolde's love death, one of my favourite moment is when in the first scene of the third act, Tristan, collapsed in delirium and tortured by the thought of Isolde, sees the arrival of her ship, announced by the sound of the english horn (O Wonne! Freude!), and overjoyed, he tears the bandages from his wounds in his excitement; the music, fading slowly and bursting out fiercely, with an incredible use of chromaticism, becomes so thrilling and overwhelming that it perfectly depicts the image of Tristan's wild joy when he understands he can meet his beloved once again.

An excellent choise! I love especially the strings after Tristan yells:

Hahei! Der Freude!
Hell am Tage
zu mir Isolde!
Isolde zu mir!

[ritter]

There's many, many "Wagner moments" that are breathtaking  . Having said that, there is one perhaps "minor" passage in Parsifal that I consider one of the most poetic moments in all of opera. It's right at the end of the Good Friday Spell in Act 3, and just before the transformation music. Parsifal's quiet lines "Ich sah sie welken, die einst mir lachten...", ending with "Du weinest! Sieh! Es lacht die Aue" is so serene in its simplicity; really, really moving (in my opinion, in a deeper way than the marvels that precede it or are still to come towards the end of the Bühnenwiehfestspiel).

[Lisztianwagner]

An excellent choise! I love especially the strings after Tristan yells:

Hahei! Der Freude!
Hell am Tage
zu mir Isolde!
Isolde zu mir!

Indeed, completely agree! The passage after the english horn solo is awesome too, when Kurwenal yells:

Heiha! Hei ha ha ha!
Vorbei! Vorbei!
Glücklich vorbei!

[Lisztianwagner]

The overwhelming, hauntingly beautiful finale of Das Rheingold: On the D-flat major of the woodwinds, the Rhinemaidens lament and implore to have the gold returned to them, while the triumphant gods enter the Walhalla and Loge mockingly advises them to console themselves for the loss of the gold by basking in the gods' power; in fortissimo, the dissonance of the brass brilliantly contrasts the magnificent splendour of the strings, to perfectly depict the beginning of the twilight of the gods, because false and faint-hearted are those who revel above.

[Moonfish]

The overwhelming, hauntingly beautiful finale of Das Rheingold: On the D-flat major of the woodwinds, the Rhinemaidens lament and implore to have the gold returned to them, while the triumphant gods enter the Walhalla and Loge mockingly advises them to console themselves for the loss of the gold by basking in the gods' power; in fortissimo, the dissonance of the brass brilliantly contrast the magnificent splendour of the strings, to perfectly depict the beginning of the twilight of the gods, because false and faint-hearted are those who revel above.

+1   

[brunumb]

"Ruhe, ruhe, du Gott!"

[Jaakko Keskinen]

Parsifal leitmotive in general never fails to send shivers down my spine: Most powerful moments of it are Parsifal motive's joyful fanfare after Klingsor's wish that entire "Rittergezücht" should expire for all he cared, reappearance of it after Parsifal's word's "Das tu ich gern!" and in act 3 when Gurnemanz declares Parsifal a king. From other motives the flower maidens music in general is divine and the faith motive, not in brass but in woodwinds is most effective to me.

[Jaakko Keskinen]

Last post was written in a hurry so I couldn't define a couple more moments that are especially effective in Parsifal. Flowermaiden's music is most effective to me during it's first appearance when Gurnemanz tells squires how Klingsor created his magic garden filled with flowermaidens.

This is a weird one: also in act 1 I for some reason really love the musical accompaniment during Gurnemanz's words: "Gut tut sie dann und recht sicherlich, dienet uns - und hilft auch sich." What really makes the cake is the descending motive often associated with Kundry right between "dienet uns" and "und hilft auch sich". I don't know why but in that only couple of seconds lasting moment those few notes alone create such a magical world in my mind, really sucking me in it. I heard Toscanini once said that Wagner can create beautiful moments with many many notes but Verdi, in his Falstaff, can make the same effect using only 3 notes. While agreeing completely about Falstaff I believe Wagner can do the same thing too and above mentioned is the main reason why.

The grail motive, most impressively right after the first words of Gurnemanz after the transformation music.

Herzeleide's motive. 'Nuff said.

The brass melody right after Klingsor's words: "Halt da! Dich bann ich mit den rechten Wehr!" It sounds so threatening and creates suspense. It really looks like everything is lost for Parsifal, Klingsor is going to kill him. Makes the ensuing grail motive when Parsifal seizes the spear all the more impressive.

The melody associated with Titurel's funeral and the moment right after Titurel's coffin is opened, often accompanied by a loud "Ah!" from the chorus.

And naturally the way grail motive transforms in act 3 into even more hopeful version. And without question the last 10 minutes or so in the opera.

[Jaakko Keskinen]

The overwhelming, hauntingly beautiful finale of Das Rheingold: On the D-flat major of the woodwinds, the Rhinemaidens lament and implore to have the gold returned to them, while the triumphant gods enter the Walhalla and Loge mockingly advises them to console themselves for the loss of the gold by basking in the gods' power; in fortissimo, the dissonance of the brass brilliantly contrast the magnificent splendour of the strings, to perfectly depict the beginning of the twilight of the gods, because false and faint-hearted are those who revel above.

+2

[Lisztianwagner]

The brilliantly funny finale of the second act of Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, when Beckmesser tries to serenade Eva, while Sachs marks each of Beckmesser's musical and poetical mistakes by striking one of the soles with his hammer. A very ironic fate happens to the town clerk: in the first act, he rejected Walther and he didn't let him finish his tune, accusing the knight of breaking all the mastersingers' rules and saying that he had no more space on the blackboard, after noting one violation after another (Seid ihr nun fertig?/Wie fraget ihr?/Mit der Tafel ward ich fertig schier); now it's Sachs who interrupts Beckmesser, asking him if he's still finished, because by dint of beating on the soles with his hammer, he has quite finished the shoes (Seid ihr nun fertig?/Wie fraget ihr?/Mit den Schuhen ward ich fertig schier).

[Jaakko Keskinen]

These just keep coming.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktgTAU2duvk From 6:00 onwards right to the end. But especially 6:00-7:40.