A MULTIDIMENSIONAL APPROACH TO OPERA ANALYSIS: HARMONY,
TEMPO, AND DRAMATIC INTERACTION IN WAGNER’S SIEGFRIED
Pascal Schmolenzky1S ephanie Klauk1Ch is o Weiß2
Raine Kleine z3Meina d Mülle 4
1Ins i u ü Musikwissenscha , Saa land Uni e si y, Ge many
2Cen e o A i icial In elligence and Da a Science, Uni e si y o Wü zbu g, Ge many
3Hochschule ü Musik Saa , Ge many
4In e na ional Audio Labo a o ies E langen, Ge many
[email p o ec ed], [email p o ec ed],
[email p o ec ed]
ABSTRACT
Richa d Wagne ’s ou -ope a cycle De Ring des Nibelun-
gen p esen s unique challenges o music analysis due o
i s la ge scale, s uc u al complexi y, and in ica e ela ion-
ship be ween music and d ama. While ha mony plays a
cen al ole, addi ional ac o s such as empo, ins umen-
a ion, and lei mo i s signi ican ly con ibu e o o mal o -
ganiza ion. This s udy combines compu a ional and mu-
sicological app oaches o analyze he hi d ( inal) ac o
Sieg ied, he hi d e ening in he Ring cycle. By in eg a -
ing symbolic sco e da a, manual anno a ions, audio-based
ha monic analysis, and lib e o in o ma ion, we join ly i-
sualize ha monic p og essions, empo a ia ions, and d a-
ma ic in e ac ions o e eal la ge-scale s uc u al de el-
opmen s in Wagne ’s music. Ou in e disciplina y anal-
ysis highligh s he ole o onal s abili y and ins abili y,
empo con as s as well as cha ac e in e ac ions in shaping
o m. Mo e b oadly, his s udy demons a es how compu-
a ional me hods can complemen adi ional musicologi-
cal analysis, o e ing a s uc u ed amewo k o s udying
complex ope a ic wo ks. Ou isualiza ions con ibu e o
a deepe unde s anding o Wagne ’s music and pa e he
way o u he esea ch in eg a ing compu a ional ools
in o ope a analysis.
1. INTRODUCTION
The analysis o Wagne ’s d amas p esen s unique chal-
lenges due o hei la ge-scale s uc u al complexi y, and
in ica e ela ionship be ween music and d ama. In 1924,
he conduc o and musicologis Al ed Lo enz was he i s
o a emp a sys ema ic explo a ion o wha he called Wag-
ne ’s ‘sec e o o m’ [1]. He ocused on ha mony in o -
© P. Schmolenzky, S. Klauk, C. Weiß, R. Kleine z, and
M. Mülle . Licensed unde a C ea i e Commons A ibu ion 4.0 In e -
na ional License (CC BY 4.0). A ibu ion: P. Schmolenzky, S. Klauk,
C. Weiß, R. Kleine z, and M. Mülle , “A Mul idimensional App oach
o Ope a Analysis: Ha mony, Tempo, and D ama ic In e ac ion in Wag-
ne ’s Sieg ied”, in P oc. o he 26 h In . Socie y o Music In o ma ion
Re ie al Con ., Daejeon, Sou h Ko ea, 2025.
de o segmen Wagne ’s musical ex u e in o disc e e o -
mal uni s. F om he 1960s onwa ds, Lo enz’ analyses me
wi h s ong c i icism [2–4]. A cen al objec ion was ha
his me hod imposed igid, p eexis ing o mal ypes on o
Wagne ’s music. C i ics a gued ha his segmen a ion in o
o mally and onally closed pe iods o ced Wagne ’s o -
ganically e ol ing s uc u es in o in lexible and a i icial
amewo k [5]. Fu he musicological analysis s a egies
ha e been ex ended o o he musical and ex a-musical el-
emen s o Wagne ’s ope as (c . mos ecen ly [6]) bu a e
a he same ime limi ed o isola ed case s udies.
Recen ly, compu a ional s udies ha e shown o be ben-
e icial in p oducing a la ge-scale o e iew o Wagne ’s op-
e as [7, 8]. Al hough hese compu a ional app oaches ely
on a s a is ical and he e o e mo e neu al basis, hey ha e
no ye add essed he highly ele an in e play be ween
mul iple musical pa ame e s. In addi ion o ha mony, ele-
men s such as empo, iming and agogics, ins umen a ion,
dynamics, e c. ha e been de ined as c ucial o shaping
d ama ic s uc u e in Wagne (e.g. [9]).
The p esen s udy add esses his by employing com-
pu a ional isualiza ion echniques o a mul idimensional
app oach. As ou cen al con ibu ion, we in eg a e com-
pu a ional audio analysis and symbolic sco e da a, li-
b e o in o ma ion, as well as manual anno a ions o
eco ded pe o mances. By sys ema ically mapping di -
e en pa ame e s— empo, ha mony, and speake oles—
o he musical imeline (measu es), we aim o e eal la ge-
scale pa e ns o an ope a ic wo k and i s pe o mances. As
an example, we analyze he hi d ac o Wagne ’s Sieg ied,
he hi d ope a o he e alogy, isualize he musical p o-
g essions h oughou he scenes o his ac , and discuss he
musicological implica ions o ou isualiza ions. F om a
mo e concep ual pe spec i e, implemen ing such compu-
a ional ools p o ides an empi ical s a egy o e alua ing
adi ional musicological eadings as well as o o e ing
new pe spec i es on Wagne ’s d ama ic wo ks.
142
Figu e 1.Sieg ied, Ac III, Scene 1. Visualiza ion o empo cu es om 16 di e en eco dings be ween 1952 and 2011.
Indi idual pe o mances a e shown in semi- anspa en colo ed lines, while he bold ed line ep esen s he smoo hed
median empo ac oss all pe o mances.
2. FORM AND STRUCTURE IN WAGNER’S
SIEGFRIED
This pape ocuses on aspec s o o m and s uc u e in he
sense o musical shape [10]. We lea e aside he so-called
seman ic lis ening o lei mo i s, which is subjec o nume -
ous ecen publica ions abou o m and unc ion [11, 12],
modes o pe cep ion [13] o au oma ed de ec ion [14].
D awing on Wagne ’s concep o he “poe ic-musical pe-
iod,” Lo enz p o ided he i s la ge-scale o mal analysis
o Wagne ’s ope a cycle De Ring des Nibelungen [1], in-
cluding Sieg ied. In doing his, he pa i ioned he en i e
e alogy in o a se ies o 146 pe iods, each de ined by a
local key (“p incipal onali y”) and i s d ama ic and musi-
cal con en . Lo enz desc ibed hese pe iods as o e a ching
s uc u al uni s ha amed Wagne ’s composi ions, iden-
i ying he highes numbe o such pe iods in Sieg ied, o
which Ac III con ains 15 ou o 45. Con a y o Lo enz,
Pa ick McC eless e uses he model o such smalle pe-
iods o he hi d ac , and iden i ies a la ge-scale i e-
mo emen symphonic o m ins ead [3]. He discusses he
composi ional shi be ween ac II and III, which co e-
sponds o an in e al o 12 yea s, in e ms o ha monic
densi y.
Fu he analy ical s udies on Sieg ied ocused on pa -
icula case s udies. Among o he s, An hony Newcomb
[9] analyzes he opening o Sieg ied’s Ac III, a guing
ha la ge-scale o mal cohe ence is no p ima ily achie ed
h ough o e all onal s uc u e cha ac e ised by speci ic lo-
cal keys bu a he h ough a p ojec ion o he d ama ic
p ocess on o he music. This p ocess—i.e. he po ayal o
cha ac e s, hei changing emo ional s a es, and hei con-
lic s—shapes he b oade o mal design o a la ge sec ion
and can be obse ed h ough he p og ession o a ious pa-
ame e s. Newcomb speci ically emphasizes he ole o
onal s abili y (clea caden ial p og essions) and ins abil-
i y (e.g. inc eased ch oma icism, ambiguous onal cen e s
e c.), as well as empo, iming, and pi ch. Ca ol Be ge [15]
is la gely in e es ed in adi ional I alian ope a o ms and,
censequen ly, only gi es an o e iew o Scene III o he
hi d ac . E en mo e ocused is Jü gen Schläde ’s s udy
o he inal Sieg ied-B ünnhilde due [16], whe eas He -
mann Danuse ’s [17] and Ka ha ina Ho mann’s [18] mo e
philological analyses o Scene II and III, espec i ely, e-
lec Sieg ied’s concep ion as a he oic igu e.
Expanding beyond hese adi ional musicological ap-
p oaches, compu a ional s udies ha e applied audio-based
analysis echniques o Wagne ’s Walkü e, p o iding new
insigh s in o i s la ge-scale s uc u e and musical o ga-
niza ion [7, 8]. Using he Wagne Ring Da ase (WRD)
[19], we apply his compu a ional app oach o Wagne ’s
Sieg ied. Addi ionally, we p o ide in eg a ed isualiza-
ions ha no only cap u e he ha monic p og ession o e
en i e scenes, bu also highligh in o ma ion abou empo
and singe s. This p o ides a s uc u ed, mul i-dimensional
iew o Wagne ’s e ol ing musical o m and shows la ge-
scale de elopmen s, helping o e alua e and complemen
adi ional analy ical pe spec i es.
3. COMPUTATIONAL ANALYSES AND
ANNOTATIONS
In ou analysis o ha mony and empo, we combine he
compu a ional analysis o musical p ope ies om audio
eco dings wi h he isualiza ion o manual anno a ions
con ained in he WRD [19].
The ha monic analysis is based on Be na d Hai ink’s
1988 eco ding o Sieg ied. Fi s ly, we ex ac pi ch-
class ac i i ies o e ime by employing a deep lea ning-
based ch oma ex ac ion me hod [20], which p o ides
obus pi ch-class ep esen a ions unde complex pe o -
mance condi ions. To accoun o he coa se empo al
scale o local keys and scales, we smoo h hese pi ch-class
ep esen a ions using a mo ing a e age il e wi h a win-
dow size o 64 measu es and a hop size o one measu e.
Based on hese ea u es, we compu e a p obabili y dis i-
bu ion ac oss he 12 dia onic scales by applying a pa e n-
ma ching echnique ha compa es he ex ac ed pi ch-class
ac i i y wi h bina y empla es o each scale [20, 21]. The
esul ing alues a e isualized as e ically s acked bands,
whe e he “0” band co esponds o he dia onic scales wi h-
ou acciden als, i. e., he pi ch con en o he C majo o he
A mino scale (absolu e dia onic scale measu emen ). The
emaining bands a e a anged wi h espec o he ci cle o
i hs (e.g. −1 co esponds o F majo o D mino , +1 co -
esponds o G majo o E mino e c.).
P oceedings o he 26 h ISMIR Con e ence, Daejeon, Ko ea, Sep embe 21-25, 2025
143
Figu e 2.Sieg ied, Ac III, Scene 1. P obabili y alues o dia onic scales a e ep esen ed in g ayscale, wi h black indica -
ing high p obabili y. These a e o e laid wi h a smoo hed median empo cu e in ed (in bpm). T anspa en , colo ed a eas
indica e he singe ac i i y o cha ac e s Wo an (ligh blue) and E da (ligh g een), espec i ely.
To ob ain empo cu es, we es ima e he local empo
om he measu e anno a ions and co esponding ime sig-
na u e anno a ions indica ing bea s pe measu e om [22].
F om hese, we de i e a empo cu e o each pe o -
mance ( e sion), indica ing he a e age empo pe mea-
su e. Fo enhanced eadabili y, we supp ess local luc u-
a ions by using a mo ing a e age il e o leng h 11 mea-
su es. To educe he in luence o indi idual pe o mances
bu a he cap u ing he ypical e ec s occu ing in mos
pe o mances, we calcula e a median empo cu e ac oss
all 16 pe o mances (see Figu e 1). To ela e hese mea-
su emen s wi h he d ama ic s uc u e, we u he highligh
changes in ocal ac i i y. To his end we apply he singe
( ole) anno a ions as p o ided in he WRD [22] and o e -
lay hem in he plo s as anspa en colo ed a eas.
To p o ide a p ac ical way o engaging wi h he isual-
ized da a, we make he isualiza ions accessible wi h an
in e ac i e in e ace ha allows in ui i e na iga ion and
con ol. This ool enables use s o independen ly oggle
all cu en ly a ailable pa ame e s, including empo cu es
om all 16 indi idual pe o mances, hei mean and me-
dian alues, as well as ha monic p og essions. Addi ion-
ally, u he anno a ions such as speake oles, key and
ime signa u es, and empo ma kings can be displayed o
hidden as needed. Use s can de ine speci ic exce p s and
cus omize he combina ion o pa ame e s and anno a ions
acco ding o hei analy ical ocus. A zoom unc ionali y
u he enhances usabili y by allowing use s o closely ex-
amine indi idual passages o gain a b oade o e iew o
en i e scenes. The con igu a ion o all hese aspec s can be
indi idually.
4. VISUALIZATIONS OF SIEGFRIED, ACT III
We now wan o demons a e he po en ial o his mul-
imodal app oach and discuss i s musicological implica-
ions. To his end, he ollowing isualiza ions and analy-
ses ocus on he h ee scenes om he hi d ac o Sieg ied.
Each is s uc u ed as a dialogue and cen e s a ound a d a-
ma ic con lic be ween wo cha ac e s. (Fo consis ency,
he cha ac e “De Wande e ” is e e ed o as “Wo an”
h oughou he ex . Due o i s ex en , we di ide Scene 3
in o wo sepa a e isualiza ions.)
4.1 Scene 1 – Wo an and E da (Figu e 2)
The i s scene o Ac III in Sieg ied is cha ac e ized by
he encoun e be ween Wo an (ligh blue a eas) and E da
(ligh g een a eas), which un olds as a d ama ic con on a-
ion. The scene begins wi h an ins umen al p elude (un-
colo ed) in G mino (−2 egion). Wo an’s en ance a
measu e 74 coincides wi h a e u n o his onic key, e-
in o cing his au ho i a i e p esence. His ini ial s a emen s
main ain a s eady empo o app oxima ely 95 bea s pe
minu e (bpm), while his ha monic language emains ela-
i ely s able a ound E♭majo (−3 egion). A signi ican
shi occu s wi h E da awakening in measu e 121. He
en ance is cha ac e ized by a sudden empo dec ease o
a ound 60 bpm, pai ed wi h inc eased ha monic ins abil-
i y, as indica ed by signi ican onal changes in he i-
sualiza ion. These elemen s musically dis inguish E da’s
ini ial s a e om Wo an’s dominance, which is also mi -
o ed in empo: E da g adually aligns wi h Wo an’s as e
pace as he a gumen in ensi ies. By measu e 291, she
abandons he ea lie slow empo, g adually app oaching
Wo an’s empo. The culmina ion o hei con on a ion
occu s a measu e 351, whe e Wagne in oduces a long
e ma a (“langes Schweigen”). This momen o silence
ma ks he d ama ic u ning poin be o e Wo an’s conclud-
ing monologue, in which he easse s his dominance, e-
u ning o E♭majo (−3 egion).
The onal language o bo h cha ac e s also unde goes a
de elopmen . E da has wo ha monically a he s able mo-
men s, i s a ound measu e 200 and again om measu e
230, bo h o which e oke eminiscences o o he cha ac-
e s: i s he No ns in E majo , hen B ünnhilde in E♭ma-
jo (c . [9]). The onali y o Wo an’s passages, on he o he
hand, becomes inc easingly uns able h oughou he scene.
Du ing he inal phase o he con on a ion (mm. 280–351),
he music o bo h cha ac e s is ha monically ins able. This
e lec s he d ama ic escala ion o hei con lic .
Fo he whole scene wi hou he ins umen al p elude,
Newcomb sugges s an ABA o m (A: mm. 74–189, B:
mm. 190–356, A: mm. 357–439). In ou isualiza ion ( ig.
2) his is clea ly e lec ed in he black zones a ound he −3
scale aming he ou e A sec ions. The B sec ion s ands
ou mos clea ly, beginning wi h a ha monic shi om E♭
P oceedings o he 26 h ISMIR Con e ence, Daejeon, Ko ea, Sep embe 21-25, 2025
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Figu e 3.Sieg ied, Ac III, Scene 2. Visualiza ion o dia onic scale p obabili ies and empo cu e (as in Fig. 1). T anspa -
en , colo ed a eas indica e he singe ac i i y o cha ac e s Wo an (ligh blue) and Sieg ied (ligh yellow).
majo o E majo (+4), co esponding o he mos in ense
phase o he d ama ic con lic and i s escala ion. This is
e lec ed in bo h empo and ha monic ins abili y.
4.2 Scene 2 – Wo an and Sieg ied (Figu e 3)
Scene 2 can be di ided in o h ee main sec ions ha e lec
he d ama ic and musical de elopmen o he encoun e be-
ween Wo an (ligh blue a eas) and Sieg ied (ligh yellow
a eas). The i s sec ion (mm. 468–619) consis s o a mu-
ual in e oga ion, whe e bo h cha ac e s engage in a ques-
ion–answe exchange. Fi s , Wo an ques ions Sieg ied
(mm. 483–551), ending wi h a mocking laugh (m. 551),
ollowed by Sieg ied ques ioning Wo an (mm. 551–619),
which concludes simila ly wi h laugh e in measu e 619
[17]. The second sec ion (mm. 619–658) o ms a an-
si ional episode in which ensions a ise and Wo an ies
o pe suade Sieg ied no o awaken B ünnhilde. Finally,
he hi d sec ion (mm. 659–741) ma ks he open escala-
ion o he con lic , culmina ing in Sieg ied’s des uc ion
o Wo an’s spea . These sec ions a e clea ly a icula ed
h ough changes in empo and ha monic p og ession, p o-
iding a s uc u al and exp essi e amewo k o he scene.
The in e oga ion sec ion is de ined ha monically by
a shi o he −4 and −3 scales. A i s Sieg ied ap-
pea s alone, ad ancing h ough a mo e ha monically s a-
ble egion cen e ed on B majo (+5 scale) and G majo
(+1). This ini ial passage also ea u es he highes empo
o he scene, eaching app oxima ely 125 bpm. The ansi-
ion owa ds he in e oga ion is ma ked by Wo an’s ques-
ion, “Wohin, Knabe, heiß dich dein Weg?” (mm. 483 .),
which ini ia es a modula ion owa ds he −2 and subse-
quen ly he −4 scale. The empo, howe e , only be-
gins o decline wi h Wo an’s second ques ion conce ning
B ünnhilde and ne e e u ns o i s ea lie peak. F om his
poin on, Wo an consis en ly adop s a slowe pace com-
pa ed o Sieg ied, wi h hese empo di e ences becoming
inc easingly p onounced h oughou he exchange. While
Sieg ied main ains a ela i ely s eady empo a ound 120
bpm— e lec ing his de e mina ion and o wa d momen-
um—Wo an’s esponses p og essi ely decele a e.
This empo design con inues in he middle sec ion
(mm. 619–658), whe e Wo an eaches his lowes poin o
app oxima ely 75 bpm, while Sieg ied emains a a ound
120 bpm. Ha monically, he sec ion begins wi h s abili y
on he 0 scale, bu as Wo an makes his emo ional appeal o
Sieg ied no o awaken B ünnhilde, a modula ion un olds
h ough F majo owa d B♭majo (−1 and −2 scale).
The hi d sec ion (mm. 659–741) begins wi h a enewed
escala ion, in oduced by an upbea ha quickly es o es
Sieg ied’s cha ac e is ic empo o a ound 120 bpm. He
hen makes an explici h ea , demanding ha Wo an clea
his pa h. F om measu e 667 onwa ds, Wo an esponds
wi h a no ably mo e comba i e s ance, e lec ed in a sig-
ni ican ly inc eased empo o abou 100 bpm. This ene -
ge ic exchange con inues un il Wo an eaches a peak o
120 bpm a measu e 684, whe e he men ions he loss o his
powe . The con lic culmina es in a climac ic con on a ion
as Sieg ied sha e s Wo an’s spea a measu e 740—a mo-
men ha aligns wi h a empo peak o app oxima ely 120
bpm, eached h ough a con inuous accele a ion beginning
a measu e 704. The ha monic s uc u e in his inal sec-
ion emains uns able h oughou . Following his climax, a
p onounced i a dando in measu e 742 sha ply educes he
empo o abou 60 bpm, leading o Wo an’s inal admission
o de ea (mm. 747 .).
4.3 Scene 3 – Sieg ied and B ünnhilde (Figu e 4)
Scene 3 un olds in wo majo pa s: Sieg ied’s solo sec ion
(up o m. 1066), and he dialogue wi h B ünnhilde (ligh
pu ple a eas) om measu e 1067 onwa ds, which may be
unde s ood as a so o ope a ic due [16].
This di ision is clea ly e lec ed in he ha monic s uc-
u e. Du ing Sieg ied’s sec ion, he ha mony emains el-
a i ely s able on he +4 and +3 scales (E majo and A ma-
jo ). S a ing a ound measu e 935—ma ked by an ab up
inc ease in empo— he music en e s a longe modula o ing
passage ha g adually leads in o he second pa . The be-
ginning o he due is i mly g ounded in C majo , indica ed
by a shi o he 0 scale in he isualiza ion, ein o cing a
s uc u al b eak be ween he wo hal es o he scene. The
second pa ( om m. 1067) can be di ided in o h ee sub-
sec ions. The wo ou e sec ions a e due -like (mm. 1067 .
and om m. 1719), bo h cha ac e ized by a s ong empha-
sis on C majo (0 scale) [15] and a ela i ely s able empo.
In he i s passage, he empo g adually inc eases, while in
he second passage i eaches he scene’s (and ac ’s) peak
P oceedings o he 26 h ISMIR Con e ence, Daejeon, Ko ea, Sep embe 21-25, 2025
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Figu e 4.Sieg ied, Ac III, Scene 3 Combined isualiza ion o he inal scene. Singe ac i i ies ( oles) a e indica ed by
anspa en colo s: Sieg ied (ligh yellow), B ünnhilde (ligh pu ple), and o e lapping segmen s whe e bo h cha ac e s
sing simul aneously (ligh b own).
a app oxima ely 175 bpm. In bo h cases, he cha ac e s
mo e la gely synch onously, wi h no p onounced empo
con as be ween hem. Bo h due s co espond in e ms o
a ec and s uc u e: he i s e lec s B ünnhilde’s passion-
a e ye es ained u n owa ds Sieg ied, while he second
is a momen o hei ul ima e a i ma ion [16]. Be ween
hese wo passages lies a ansi ional sec ion, which can be
in e p e ed as a p ocess o o e coming ea . Acco dingly,
he d ama ic u ning poin s o he scene a e shaped by ea -
ela ed a ec s: i s , Sieg ied’s ea o sexual in imacy
(mm. 930 .) and his unce ain y o lack o unde s anding
(mm. 1151–1278); hen B ünnhilde’s expe ience o sexual
ea (mm. 1279–1369), ollowed by he ea o losing he
o me iden i y and knowledge (mm. 1361–1478) [18].
We now u n o one pa icula passage o his an-
si ional sec ion, whe e B ünnhilde’s ea becomes mo e
p ominen . I akes he o m o an in ense dialogue
(mm. 1277–1475), in which she g adually ealizes ha she
is no longe pa o he di ine wo ld o he Valky ies. This
ans o ma ion un olds h ough h ee dis inc losses, ig-
ge ed by he gaze on he ho se, G ane, in mm. 1285 .
The i s phase o his ans o ma ion is ma ked by
B ünnhilde’s ealiza ion o he los a ibu es—shield
(mm. 1308 .), helme (mm. 1312 .), and b eas pla e
(mm. 1324 .)—as symbols o he o me powe . This
causes he a p o ound shock which leads o a s ong phys-
ical ejec ion o Sieg ied (m. 1357) and a despe a e e-
minde o Valhalla (mm. 1365 .) and culmina es in he ad-
mission o he changed iden i y (“B ünnhilde bin ich nich
meh ”) in measu es 1384 . (see e.g. [23, 24]). The p o-
g ession o empo and ha mony e lec s his emo ional dis-
ess. The empo cu e oscilla es be ween accele a ion and
decele a ion, each co esponding o he cha ac e ’s emo-
ional s a e. B ünnhilde’s en ies coincide wi h empo e-
duc ions, while Sieg ied, embodying decisi eness, consis-
en ly ini ia es his esponses a a signi ican ly as e pace.
Despi e hese mo e locally luc ua ions, he o e all empo
ajec o y g adually inc eases.
Sieg ied’s subsequen esponse in ensi ies he empo
once mo e, be o e B ünnhilde a icula es u he losses:
he ading o he wisdom and o esigh (mm. 1405 .) and
he loss o he sigh (mm. 1421 .). A his emo ional peak,
B ünnhilde’s ea and agi a ion each hei highes in en-
si y. In con as o he ea lie pa e n, Sieg ied’s eplies
a e inc easingly slow, while B ünnhilde’s empo emains
ele a ed a a ound 130 bpm. Ha monically, his peak is
ma ked by signi ican ins abili y (mm. 1410 .) be o e a
mo e s able passage eme ges on he −5 scale owa d he
end.
5. DISCUSSION
The isualiza ions illus a e how he pa ame e s o empo
and ha mony co ela e wi h he un olding d ama, p o-
iding an ex e nal s uc u al cohe ence o Wagne ’s mu-
sic. Fo example, he ini ial con as be ween Wo an’s s a-
ble empo and ha monic cen e ing and E da’s slow and
ha monically uns able o shi ing esponses in Scene 1
P oceedings o he 26 h ISMIR Con e ence, Daejeon, Ko ea, Sep embe 21-25, 2025
146
clea ly e lec s hei d ama ic in e ac ion. Simila ly, in
Scene 2, Sieg ied’s consis en ly highe empo highligh s
his de e mina ion and o wa d momen um. Mo eo e , he
empo e olu ion, pa icula ly e iden in E da’s ini ially de-
layed esponses becoming p og essi ely quicke h ough-
ou Scene 1, highligh s he d ama ic in e play. This does
no imply ha he de elopmen o hese pa ame e s o hei
cha ac e -speci ic mani es a ion di ec ly indica es conc e e
emo ions o men al s a es; a he , i e lec s d ama ic en-
sion and elaxa ion. Fo ins ance, Wo an’s slowe empo in
Scene 2 does no necessa ily signal unce ain y compa ed
o Scene 1; ins ead, i sugges s a calme , mo e measu ed
demeano , akin o a wise g and a he acing his exube an
g andson.
Ne e heless, a clea pa e n eme ges in he i s wo
scenes. Ini ially, dis inc empo di e ences a e es ablished
o di e en ia e he cha ac e s. Wi h inc easing escala-
ion o con lic , hese empos con e ge, abo e all h ough
he accele a ion o he slowe cha ac e owa ds he as e
one. Scene 3, howe e , p esen s a mo e nuanced sce-
na io, pa icula ly du ing he dialogue in he middle pa
(mm. 1277–1475). I cen e s a ound he psychological
p ocess B ünnhilde unde goes due o he loss o iden-
i y a he han undamen al an agonism. Consequen ly,
he empo-di e ence pa e n ollowed by con e gence is
ini ially p esen , ye bo h cha ac e s simul aneously ex-
pe ience g adual empo inc eases while main aining hei
di e en posi ions. Addi ionally, in Sieg ied’s inal e-
sponses (mm. 1390 . and 1412 .), he sligh ly educes he
empo, eac ing empa he ically a he han u he escala -
ing he con lic .
A simila co ela ion can be obse ed ega ding ha -
mony. The di e en ia ion be ween s able and uns able ha -
monic egions e ec i ely aligns wi h he p og ession o
d ama. Less unc ionally s able ha mony, o en accompa-
nies heigh ened d ama ic ension o he emo ional s a es
o he cha ac e s (e.g., Wo an’s apid six een h-no e igu-
a ions a he beginning and owa ds he end o Scene 1).
Howe e , his ha monic co ela ion appea s less dis inc ly
p onounced han he empo p og essions.
Mo eo e , ha monic p og ession—in pa icula , shi s
be ween dis inc onal egions—can se e as an e ec i e
indica o o la ge-scale o mal segmen a ion. In Scene 2,
o example, he ques ion-and-answe sec ion, d ama u -
gically amed by Sieg ied’s laugh e , is clea ly si u-
a ed wi hin he −4 and −3 egions, se ing i apa om
bo h he p eceding and he ollowing sec ions. Simila ly,
Sieg ied’s solo passage a he beginning o Scene 3 e-
mains ha monically s able wi hin he +3 and +4 egions.
The ollowing modula o y phase leads di ec ly o a d a-
ma ic u ning poin : B ünnhilde’s awakening. We can
ind addi ional examples o such segmen a ion in he wo
consecu i e monologues in Scene 3 om bo h B ünnhilde
(mm. 1472–1560) and Sieg ied (mm. 1560–1613), which
a e clea ly dis inguished om hei su oundings in bo h
empo and ha mony.
6. CONCLUSIONS AND FUTURE WORK
The analyses p esen ed in his s udy suppo Newcomb’s
eading ha musical o m in Wagne ’s wo ks is bes un-
de s ood as a dynamic musical p ocess shaped by d ama ic
de elopmen [9]. We ha e shown ha his in e p e a ion
o o mal cohe ence—de i ed om he in e ac ion o mu-
sical pa ame e s—can be ex ended o he o he wo scenes
in Ac III. As he isualiza ions e eal, his pe spec i e also
enables he iden i ica ion o di e en s a egies in he p o-
g ession o pa ame e s ( empo, onali y, singe s) and hei
co ela ion wi h he d ama ic con en . While Scene 2 ex-
hibi s a s uc u e simila o Scene 1 wi h con as ing empi
con e ging owa d a climax, i s o mal and d ama u gical
se up is mo e complex. Scene 3 inc eases his complex-
i y e en u he , po aying a psychological ans o ma ion
a he han a clea ly ex e nal con lic . These di e ences
illus a e ha empo and ha monic p og ession play an im-
po an ole no only on a local le el, in he musical a -
icula ion o indi idual p o agonis s, bu also on a la ge
scale, e lec ing b oade d ama ic de elopmen s ac oss en-
i e scenes o ac s—again con i ming Newcomb’s hypo h-
esis [9]. As he ac un olds, hese laye s become inc eas-
ingly o e lapped, e ealing compound s a egies o d a-
ma ic in ensi ica ion. This con ibu es o an o e all in-
c ease in s uc u al densi y ac oss he ac , echoing McC e-
less’s obse a ion o a simila inc ease o ha monic densi y
om Ac s I and II o Ac III [3]. This may also explain why
Lo enz’s model o pe iodiza ion i s in some cases, bu no
in o he s [1].
While ou isual analyses occasionally align wi h a-
di ional analy ical indings, pa icula ly ega ding majo
u ning poin s, hese con en ional app oaches o e lim-
i ed guidance o comp ehensi e s uc u al unde s anding.
Thei ocus o en emains on localized o mal ypes o
philologically o ien ed eadings [17,18,23], o hey e e o
he lib e o [16]. In con as , he mul idimensional me hod
p esen ed he e allows o la ge-scale analyses o ex ended
ope a ic wo ks, o e ing a eplicable amewo k ha may
be applied o he en i e Ring cycle and o he composi ions.
In u u e wo k, au oma ed me hods could suppo he
expansion o his app oach o include addi ional pa ame-
e s such as dynamics, pi ch, ins umen a ion [25] and an-
no a ions such as lei mo i s [14]. Fu he mo e, while he
p esen s udy ocuses on pa ame e s ha a e la gely inde-
penden o speci ic pe o mances, he empo pa ame e , in
pa icula , is s ongly shaped by indi idual decisions o he
conduc o . De ailed pe o mance analyses could he e o e
o e aluable in o ma ion, bo h by compa ing di e en in-
e p e a ions and by examining whe e pe o me s di e ge
om he empo indica ions in he sco e [26]. Addi ional
anno a ions, e. g. empo ma kings, could be in eg a ed in o
he isualiza ions o highligh such in e p e i e de ia ions
mo e clea ly.
7. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This wo k was suppo ed by he Deu sche Fo schungs-
gemeinscha (DFG, Ge man Resea ch Founda ion) un-
P oceedings o he 26 h ISMIR Con e ence, Daejeon, Ko ea, Sep embe 21-25, 2025
147
de G an No. 252013209 (DFG MU 2686/7-2, DFG
KL 864/4-2). The In e na ional Audio Labo a o ies E -
langen a e a join ins i u ion o he F ied ich-Alexande -
Uni e si ä E langen-Nü nbe g (FAU) and F aunho e In-
s i u e o In eg a ed Ci cui s IIS.
We especially hank Mo i z Schumache o his wo k in
de eloping he in e ac i e in e ace p esen ed in his pape .
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