Alberich
There is a group of motives whose common characteristic is principally their rhythmic quality, although one of them does have a small melodic fragment that is repeated and is musically developed. These motives are mostly associated with Alberich. When he makes his entrance in Das Rheingold – Scene 1 the first one is heard. While the bassoons and bass clarinet play an accompaniment based on the flowing variant from the Nature Motive, the violas introduce the primary rhythm. The motive’s basic pattern is established by the first four notes played by the violas. The rhythmic stress is on the first and fourth beat (the repeated ‘D’) with quick pick up notes a half step below and then a half step above the accented note. Against this emphasis, the contra basses play on the off beats of two, three, five and six. This back and forth between the violas and the contra basses seems to communicate a lurching, off balance quality to this music, and by association to Alberich himself.
There is a quicker variation of this music in Siegfried Act II – Scene 3 played by the clarinets and bassoons when Alberich comes forth from his hiding place to confront his brother Mime. Here the back and forth of the motive reinforces the back and forth of their arguing.
The similarity of the rhythms from first two examples should make it easier now to recognize another variation which in proper sequence occurs shortly after the introduction of the first theme from Scene 1 of Das Rheingold. In the first measure of this example the rhythmic roles are reversed somewhat, in that the contra basses now stress the primary beats of one and four while the cellos play an off beat syncopation with stress on the third and fifth beats.
The next theme is traditionally labeled the Alberich Motive by a majority of commentators. It occurs when Alberich tries to scramble up the rocks in pursuit of the Rhine Daughters in Scene 1 of Das Rheingold. The six note cello melody in the third measure is the main motive. It is preceded by variations on the rhythmic theme discussed above. The Alberich Motive is based on a descending chromatic scale with a slight turn around at the end of the phrase. The motive recurs several times. A variation on it, played by the violas, occurs a little latter in the same scene when Alberich is insistent that one of the Rhine Daughters must serve for his pleasure. His pursuit of the Rhine Daughters takes on a more desperate quality in the music. Some other appearances of the Alberich Motive are when Alberich presses Mime in Das Rheingold – Scene 3 about the completion of his Tarnhelm and then again when he is seen driving the Nibelungs with his whip. These last two additional examples are not shown.
Alberich’s music serves as a starting point for other motives associated with other characters in the Ring. In Die Walküre Act II – Scene 3 when Sieglinde becomes aware of Hunding’s awakening and his immanent pursuit of the twins a slower version of Alberich’s descending chromatic theme is heard. The motive is played by the bass clarinet, the bassoon, and the violas.
The final example of another rhythmic variation on this chromatic motive is taken from Siegfried Act I – Scene 2 during the riddling contest between the Wanderer and Mime. An argument could be put forth that this example might be closer to one of the descending chromatic motives associated with Loge from Scene 2 of Das Rheingold (see Loge chapter). Considering Mime’s deceptive nature such a musical comparison is consistent with the dramatic personae of these the two characters. However Loge’s chromatic motives, both the ascending and descending varieties, have their chromatic scales broken by interval skips of a 5th.
