ACT III - Scene 2- The Hall of the Gibichungs

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It is night. Gutrune, restless and unable to sleep in Siegfried's absence, comes out from her chamber into the hall. She has had bad dreams (Schlimme Traume) and is afraid of Brunnhilde. She timidly opens the door to Brunnhilde’s chamber and finding the latter's chamber empty, she realizes it must have been her new sister-in-law whom she had seen go down to the river not long since. Suddenly Hagen's voice is heard calling outside: they are bringing home the spoils of the chase. When the torch-bearing clansmen bring in Siegfried's dead body, the women of the household, roused, crowd to the scene. Poor Gutrune breaks down, falls upon the corpse, and then rounds fiercely (Fort! treuloser Bruder) upon Gunther, who, in his turn, informs her that the boar who slew her husband was Hagen. But Hagen, unmoved, glories in his deed and proceeds (Heiliges Beuterecht) to claim the ring as his by right of conquest. When Gunther disputes this, asserting his sister's claim as the dead man’s widow, Hagen (Des Alben Erbe fordert so) draws his sword and strikes his  half-brother dead. Crying triumphantly: "The Ring is mine!" he goes to take it, but the dead hero's arm rises threateningly to prevent him. Hagen gives a hoarse cry and falls back. Gutrune and the other women exclaim in horror as the tragic and majestic figure of Brunnhilde enters the hall. When Gutrune reproaches her with being author of all their woes, (Armsel'ge, schweig), Brunnhilde says that Gutrune never was Siegfried's lawful wife - Brunnhilde alone was that. Now Gutrune fully realizes how Siegfried was betrayed by Hagen's wiles in the drugged drink. She turns miserably away as  [SIDE 12] Brunnhilde orders the vassals to prepare a huge funeral pyre (Starke Schecte), as its noblest and bravest of heroes.  Grane is to be brought to follow Siegfried in death. The men begin to build a funeral pyre.  Then a great dirge (Wie Sonne lauter) pours forth from her in explanatory vindication of Siegfried's honor and every act. She reproaches Wotan (Mein Klage hdr') as instigator and cause of the hero's seeming misdeeds, for Siegfried had served as the instrument through which the god had worked for the desired redemption of the world from the curse of the ring.  She signs to the Vassals to lift Siegfried’s body onto the pyre.  As the vassals lift his body onto the pyre, she draws the ring (Mein Erbe nun) from the dead hero's finger, looks at it meditatively, then calls to the Rhinedaughters that she does so only in order to return it to them. May the fire that will consume her cleanse it from the curse! Seizing a firebrand from one of the vassals, she embarks upon her last great apostrophe.  She puts the Ring on her finger, and takes a firebrand from one of the men. She commands Wotan's homeward-bound ravens (Fliegt heim, ihr Raben) to fly past the Valkyrie rock, where Loge's fire is still burning, and bid the fire god hasten to Valhalla. She will hurl the firebrand at the glorious citadel herself. She greets the steed Grane, who has been brought as she commanded to follow Siegfried into the fire with her. Two ravens fly up and disappear into the background.  Then, with a last great cry of: "Siegfried, see, your wife greets you joyfully!" (Siegfried! s ieh! selig grusst dich dein Weib) she vaults into the saddle, and horse and rider leap onto the burning pyre.

The waters of the Rhine rise and overflow their banks, bearing the Rhinemaidens on the crest of a huge wave. On sight of them, Hagen plunges frenziedly into the flood, crying: "Hands off the ring!" But Woglinde and Wellgunde draw him down into the watery depths, whilst their sister Flosshilde holds up the ring in triumph. The waters recede. As the firelight grows in the heavens, Valhalla, the assembled gods within, can be seen burning.

End of Opera

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