Gunlöd (opera)
Gunlöd is a three‑act opera by Peter Cornelius, who also wrote the libretto. It is based on the Norse myth told in the Hávamál from the Edda. The story, which has some Wagnerian influences, centers on Odin and the Mead of Poetry, with Lohengrin‑style ideas visible in the music and drama.
In the tale, Odin travels to giant Suttung’s hall to steal the Mead of Poetry, a drink that grants unlimited knowledge. Gunnlöð, Suttung’s daughter, warns him and tries to protect the mead, but Odin hides the goblet, seduces Gunnlöð, and wins her heart. She gives him the mead and he escapes. In the aftermath, both Suttung and Gunnlöð die as punishment for losing the Mead.
Cornelius began Gunlöd in 1866 and continued working on it until his death in 1874. The work was unfinished and unorchestrated by him; the first act and most of the second act were written as piano scores, while only the wedding songs of the third act had piano music. Karl Hoffbauer completed the opera and it was published in 1879. Eduard Lassen re‑orchestrated it for its world premiere at the Hoftheater Weimar on May 6, 1891. Three years later Max Hasse prepared a new vocal score from Cornelius’s manuscript, with Waldemar von Baußnern adding orchestral arrangements; this version premiered on December 15, 1906 at the Cologne Opera.
A concert version by Hasse and Baußnern was performed in Mainz in 2024 under conductor Hermann Bäumer. The work is noted for its Wagnerian echoes, particularly links to The Ring Cycle and Lohengrin.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 15:01 (CET).