Recommended for Grades 6-12
In this resource, you will:
- Learn the opera’s background and synopsis
- Meet the opera’s composer
The Flying Dutchman
by Richard Wagner
The Flying Dutchman
by Richard Wagner
A quick overview of Wagner’s 1843 maritime ghost story.
Background
For his operatic interpretation of Der fliegende Holländer (The Flying Dutchman), a story rooted in nautical folklore, Wagner drew heavily on Heinrich Heine’s novel, Aus den Memoiren des Herren von Schnabelewopski. Heine’s version of the tale included a plot twist of particular interest to Wagner: the Dutchman is saved by a faithful woman named Senta (whom Wagner would later refer to as the “infinitely womanly woman”).
The famously forthright composer also looked to his own life for inspiration. “I am like the Flying Dutchman and his shipmates, who are constantly tossed on the cold waves,” Wagner said, perhaps referring to the many years he spent living in exile. In his autobiography, Mein Leben, he claimed to have composed some of the music based on a tumultuous journey at sea that ended in Norway, even shifting the location of his opera from Heine’s Scottish setting to the Norwegian coast.
Wagner conducted the Dutchman premiere in Dresden in 1843, a haphazard production that lacked great singers. It ran for only four performances. The opera opened in Berlin the next year, thrilling audiences and panned by critics. It was not until years later that the opera began to be recognized as a masterpiece.
Though Dutchman was Wagner’s fourth opera, he considered it to be the true beginning of his career. The opera represented a fundamental turning point in his operatic development.
Today, The Flying Dutchman is most frequently performed as one act, which many consider to be the ideal way to present the work as a true “music-drama,” Wagner’s innovative ideal for meshing the two art forms.
Synopsis
Act I
Blown off course by a raging storm, a sea captain, Daland, has sought shelter in a bay off the coast of Norway (“Mit Gewitter und Sturm aus fernem Meer”). As his crew waits for the storm to blow over, another ship drifts in and drops anchor. It is the vessel of the Flying Dutchman. According to legend, the Dutchman, caught in a furious storm, foolishly swore that he would sail around the Cape of Good Hope even if it meant sailing forever.
Hearing his oath, the devil condemned the Dutchman to sail the seas until Judgment Day. Every seven years, however, the Dutchman is given a chance to go ashore to find a woman, faithful until death, to redeem him and release him from the curse (“Die Frist ist um”). The Dutchman, weary of his fate, is greeted on shore by Daland. The Dutchman offers him treasure in exchange for room and board for the evening, adding that he is looking for a wife and will pay handsomely for one. Eager for the Dutchman’s wealth, Daland offers his daughter Senta (“Wie? Hört’ ich recht?”). Inviting the Dutchman to follow, Daland and his crew depart for home port.
Act II
At Daland’s house, the women of the village are gathered, working and singing (“Summ und brumm”). Senta is captivated by the legend of the Flying Dutchman and observes the activity in a dreamlike state. Her friends notice her preoccupation and ask her to sing the ballad of the Flying Dutchman (“Johohoe! Traft ihr das Schiff”). Senta has convinced herself that she is the woman to save him. Erik appears with the news that Daland’s ship has returned. Knowing that Daland is seeking a husband for her, the lovestruck Erik pleads with Senta to marry him (“Mein Herz voll Treue bis zum Sterben”).
Erik notes Senta’s fascination with the Dutchman, and he relates a dream he had in which he saw Senta in a passionate embrace with the Dutchman, who then carried her off to sea (“Auf hohem Felsen”). Senta confesses that his dream is also her own and Erik flees in disbelief. Daland arrives home with his guest, and Senta is spellbound by the stranger’s resemblance to the legendary Dutchman. Senta and the stranger are totally transfixed with one another, and Daland, pleased with the prospect of such a rich son-in-law, leaves the pair alone. Hearing of his plight and desperation, Senta vows to be faithful until death. Daland returns to hear the news of their betrothal.
Act III
At the harbor, a celebration is under way. There is much revelry as the crew and village women sing and dance (“Steuermann! Lass die Wacht!”). Despite invitations from Daland’s crew to join them in the merriment, the Dutchman’s ship is quiet. The sailors call again, and the spectral crew answers, lamenting their voyage of eternal damnation. Frightened by the strange chant, the Norwegians leave. Senta enters in preparation for her wedding, followed by her persistent suitor.
Erik insists that Senta has pledged her love to him, reminding her of their courtship (“Willst jenes Tags du nicht dich mehr entsinnen”). When the Dutchman overhears Erik remind Senta of the encouragement she once gave him, he believes that he has been betrayed and summons his crew to prepare to leave. When Senta sees the Dutchman preparing, she protests her innocence, vowing to prove herself faithful. He replies that he alone must bear the curse and that he is only attempting to spare her from it.
After revealing his identity to the horrified villagers, the Dutchman prepares to set sail. Fulfilling her destiny, Senta proves herself faithful until death. The spectral ship vanishes, and the spirits of Senta and the Dutchman are enjoined.
Meet the Artists
Listen to the Story
Louis M. Eilshemius, The Flying Dutchman, 1908, oil on composition board [].
Presented by Washington National Opera, host Saul Lilienstein takes you through the musical world of Wagner’s 1843 maritime ghost tory, The Flying Dutchman.
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