• Photos
  • Bio
  • Contact Ian

Ian Sidden

Subscribe

  • Email
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • Craft
  • My News
  • About the Music
  • The Rest of Life

You Know Nothung, Jon Snow

Please forgive the joke in the title ha ha ha…

September 2, 2017 By Ian Sidden

Some characters in A Song of Ice and Fire/Game of Thrones have some serious similarities to characters in Der Ring des Nibelungen. But first:

If you haven’t read the books comprising George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire and watched the show Game of Thrones, then you should stop right here, because I’m getting into spoilers right away. Some of them involve spoilers that are show only, which have – as of this writing – gone beyond the books’ plots. On Reddit, this would correspond to a SPOILERS EXTENDED post.

Ok?

I recommend the books whole-heartedly. I also recommend the show (the moments of greatness more than cancel out the moments of not-so-greatness), but the books are the real love of my heart when it comes to this story. Part of the joy is not knowing what the books are actually about through most of their telling, which spoilers ruin.

I also think you should watch or listen to Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen since it’s an incredibly grand fantasy with moments that stand as pinnacles of musical drama 1. If you’ve noticed the recurring musical motifs that accompany Star Wars or Game of Thrones, you have Richard Wagner’s influence to thank.

That said, I don’t think spoilers ruin the Ring in the way they might for A Song of Ice and Fire, so you can read on.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: About the Music, The Rest of Life Tagged With: a song of ice and fire, Books, brünnhilde, daenerys, game of thrones, jon snow, richard wagner, Siegfried, targaryen, Wagner

About Ian

Ian Sidden is currently a baritone member of the Theater Dortmund Opera chorus. Read More…

Latest Posts

Reader Question: How Loud am I with Earplugs?

A reader asks about judging your own volume while singing with earplugs.

Premiere: Romeo und Zeliha

English This afternoon we’re opening the premiere of Romeo und Zeliha. This is a modern retelling of Shakespeare’s Romeo und Juliet in Junge Oper Dortmund from composer Fons Merkies. I play Zeliha’s father (like Lord Capulet) and her cousin (like Tybalt). I’m really looking forward to it! Auf Deutsch Heute Nachmittag findet die Premiere Romeo […]

Meditation Is and Isn’t Relaxing

When your mind makes space for the scary stuff.

Premiere: Frau Luna

Heute Abend findet im Opernhaus Dortmund die Premiere Frau Luna – vom Komponist Paul Lincke – statt. Ich freue mich sehr darauf. Es gibt so viel in unserer Produktion, das schön und spannend ist. Tonight is the premiere of Frau Luna – from composer Paul Lincke – in Opernhaus Dortmund. I’m really looking forward to […]

Merry Christmas und Frohe Weihnachten

Copyright © 2019 · WordPress

This site uses cookies: Find out more.