5. Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg. Wagner's Grand Historical Romance. Die Meistersinger is unique in Wagner’s work. It is his only mature comedy, and his only opera set in a real place and time—Nuremberg in the 1500s—rather than the imaginary world of myth. It is also an opera in which he uses forms that he had decried in others: standalone arias, vocal ensmbles, massed choruses, and even a dance. But by the same token, the presence of these forms within Wagner’s usual continuous texture gives us a perfect example for the theme of the class

Complex though the opera is, the narrative set-up is simple. The young knight Walther von Stolzing comes to town and falls instantly in love with Eva Pogner. But as her father has promised her to the winner of the annual song competition, he has first to become a Mastersinger to win her hand. Walther’s audition for the guild fails abysmally, but the [real life] cobbler-poet Hans Sachs sees something in him. As Sachs also cares for Eva, he tutors Walther so that he can win. So the opera is at least two things: a love story with a happy ending, and more particularly a proxy autobiography for Wagner himself, ever the iconoclast.

All the background and story you will need to follow the extended excerpt from Act Three featured in the class can be found in the handout. A synopsis of the full opera, adapted from Wikipedia, can be found here.