Fafner

Fafner is one of the giants in Wagner’s Ring Cycle. A powerful symbol of the corrupting nature of wealth, he embodies the destructive power of greed and unchecked ambition, sacrificing loyalty and kinship for wealth and control. After killing his brother Fasolt to claim the ring and its treasure, he transforms into a dragon and guards his hoard until Siegfried kills him.

Fafner in Das Rheingold

“Ich lieg' und besitze:—lasst mich schlafen!”
(I lie here and possess:—let me sleep!)
—Siegfried, Act II, Scene 1

His pursuit of power and wealth are equally all consuming and isolating.

• Biographical Information

  
  Species: Giant

  Residence: Lives in a cave in a deep forest (known as Neidhöhle)

  Name Meaning: The Embracer

  Cause of Death: Killed by Siegfried in battle

• Family Relationships

  
  Brother: Fasolt

• Abilities & Artifacts

  
  Abilities: Physical strength, Fafner's dragon blood possesses magical properties - grants Siegfried the ability to understand the Forest Bird and see through false intentions

  Artifacts: Ring, Tarnhelm

• Appearances in The Ring

  
  Das Rheingold: Fafner is one of two giants hired by Wotan to build Valhalla. After receiving the ring and treasure as payment, he kills his brother Fasolt to claim the hoard for himself, then uses the Tarnhelm to transform into a dragon and guard his treasure in a cave.

  Siegfried: Siegfried encounters Fafner while seeking the treasure and fights him with the sword, Nothung. Siegfried kills Fafner, who warns him of the curse surrounding the ring before dying.
  

• Themes & Leitmotifs

  
  Fafner represents the corrupting influence of greed and the destructive pursuit of wealth and power. His willingness to kill his own brother for the ring reveals how the desire for possession can override loyalty and human connection. His transformation into a dragon symbolizes how greed consumes its possessor, leaving him isolated and trapped by the very treasure he seeks to protect.

• Trivia

  
  While Fafner is a giant in The Ring Cycle, the character is based on Fafnir from old Norse mythology, who was actually a dwarf.

• San Francisco Opera History

  
  San Francisco Opera’s 15-foot dragon for Siegfried in 1935 purportedly had an edge over other operatic wyrms. Thanks to the use of a loudspeaker, the voice of Fafner—sung by Augusta, Georgia-born bass Chase Baromeo—could emanate from the stage rather than the wings. According to the Oakland Tribune, the technological enhancement failed to add much realism: “but just why the voice should have come from one part of the stage while the enormous fire-breathing dragon with the horse-face and docile eyes should spectacularly cavort in another spot at some distance from the voice, is one of those things which only stage director Armando Agnini can explain.”

  Siegfried, Richard Wagner. San Francisco Opera, 1935. Photographer: Franklin and Rognon/San Francisco Opera.

• Portrayed By

  
  Bass John Relyea will portray Fafner in The Ring Cycle in 2028.