Ride of the Valkyries

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Arthur Rackham's illustration to the Ride of the Valkyries

The Ride of the Valkyries (German: Walkürenritt) is the popular term for the beginning of Act III of Die Walküre by Richard Wagner. It is probably Wagner's best-known piece after the Bridal Chorus from Lohengrin. It stands out in part because of its references in popular culture, where it is used to represent stereotypical Grand Opera.

In the opera-house, the Ride, which takes around eight minutes, begins in the prelude to the Act, building up successive layers of accompaniment until the curtain rises to reveal a mountain peak where four of the eight Valkyrie sisters of Brünnhilde have gathered in preparation for the transportation of fallen heroes to Valhalla. As they are joined by the other four, the familiar tune is carried by the orchestra, while, above it, the Valkyries greet each other and sing their battle-cry. Apart from the song of the Rhinemaidens in Das Rheingold, it is the only ensemble piece in the first three operas of Wagner's Ring cycle. Outside the opera-house, it is usually heard in a purely instrumental version, which may be as short as three minutes.

[edit] In popular culture

Main article: Ride of the Valkyries in popular culture

[edit] In real life

A scenario is described in the book "The Forgotten Soldier", which is a personal account of the author, Guy Sajer, and his experience as a German soldier of the "Grossdeutschland" Division in World War II. Written in late 1940s and first published in French in the 1960's, he describes a series of events near Memel (now Klaipeda, a coastal city of Lithuania) where he was gathering together with a rag tag force in order to attempt a breakout from their surrounded positions South. He describes standing next to a group of tanks which were playing "Ride of the Valkyries" on their shortwave radios just before the assault launches, and says in the book that it was "a fitting accompaniment to supreme sacrifice" (p.418, The Forgotten Soldier, Brassy's 2001 edition).