Tristan and Isolde is a three-act opera German composer Richard Wagner, based on the Tristan legend as told Gottfried of Strassburg. Wagner used his own libretto. Other operas Wagner include Tannhäuser, Lohengrin, Parsifal, the Ring Cycle, and Der fliegende Holländer (English: The Flying Dutchman).
Although there are two preliminary sketches for Tristan and Isolde dating from 1856, serious composition did not begin until the libretto poem was completed on September 18, 1857, and the entire work was not completed until August 6, 1859. On June 10, 1865, the Königliche Hof- und Nationaltheater in Munich, Germany, hosted the premiere of Tristan and Isolde.
Tristan and Isolde’s story is framed a Prelude and the Liebestod (Love and Death Theme). Tristan is bringing Isolde from Ireland to Cornwall to marry his uncle, King Mark, when the action begins on his ship. Isolde sends her servant, Brangäne, to summon Tristan, and Tristan’s servant reveals the backstory between Tristan and Isolde in the process.
Tristan slew the man to whom Isolde was betrothed, who had traveled from Ireland to Cornwall to demand tribute. Tristan came to Isolde in disguise to heal him, and she did so without realizing who he was. She was determined to kill him in retaliation, but the way he looked at her made her reconsider, and she now regrets it.
As the ship touches down, Isolde prepares to administer a lethal potion to Tristan. Brangäne tries unsuccessfully to persuade her otherwise. When Tristan arrives, Isolde takes the cup from Brangäne and hands it to him. She drinks after he does, unaware that Brangäne has substituted a love potion. As the couple embraces, Brangäne looks on in despair, and King Mark approaches, the famous “Tristan chord” is heard.
Act II takes place at King Mark’s castle as he and his courtiers prepare to go on a hunting expedition. Brangäne warns Isolde about Melot, Tristan’s duplicitous “friend” who is attempting to trap the couple. Brangäne keeps watch as the lovers meet.
Suddenly, King Mark, Melot, and the court interrupt the tryst as Brangäne screams, and King Mark’s accusation is unanswerable. Melot draws his sword and fights Tristan, who is wounded Melot.
Act III of Tristan and Isolde takes place at Tristan’s castle, where Tristan is still delirious from his wound. Kurwenal, his servant, has dispatched Isolde to heal him. Tristan dies in Isolde’s arms as she enters.