It has now grown quite dark, and Walter comes to see Eva, but they have not sat long together, when the sounds of a lute are heard.
It is Beckmesser trying to serenade Eva, but Sachs interrupts him by singing himself and thus excites Beckmesser's wrath and despair. At last a window opens, and Beckmesser, taking Magdalene for Eva addresses her in louder and louder tones, Sachs all the time beating the measure on a shoe. The neighboring windows open, there is a general alarm, and David, seeing Magdalene at the window apparently listening to Beckmesser, steals behind this unfortunate minstrel and begins to slap him. In the uproar which now follows, Walter vainly tries to escape from his refuge under the lime-tree, but Sachs comes to his rescue, and takes him into his own work-shop, while he pushes Eva unseen into her father's house, the door of which has just been opened by Pogner.
In the third act we find Sachs in his room. Walter enters, thanking him heartily for the night's shelter. Sachs kindly shows him the rules of poetry, encouraging him to try his luck once more. Walter begins and quite charms Sachs with his love-song. After they have left the room, Beckmesser enters, and reading the poetry, which Sachs wrote down, violently charges the shoemaker with wooing Eva himself. Sachs denies it and allows Beckmesser to keep the paper. The latter who has vainly ransacked his brains for a new song, is full of joy, hoping to win the prize with it.
When he is gone, Eva slips in to fetch her shoes, and she sees Walter stepping out of his dormitory in brilliant armor. He has found a third stanza to his song; which he at once produces.—They all proceed to the place where the festival is to be held and Beckmesser in the first to try his fortunes, which he does by singing the stolen song. He sadly muddles both melody and words, and being laughed at, he charges Sachs with treachery, but Sachs quietly denies the authorship, pushing forward Walter, who now sings his stanzas, inspired by love and poetry. No need to say that he wins the hearer's hearts as he has won those of Eva and Sachs, and that Pogner does not deny him his beloved daughter's hand.
THE MASTER-THIEF.
A German Legend in three parts by EUGEN LINDNER.
After Fitger's poem by GUSTAV KASTROPP and the composer.
The young composer has hitherto been little heard of by the public, though he has a good name in the musical world, as he had already written an opera called "Ramiro", which was put on the stage in Leipsic and excited considerable controversy among his admirers and his opponents. Lindner then left Leipsic for Weimar, where he studied zealously and composed the above-mentioned opera which was at once accepted on the small but celebrated stage of this town and has now appeared on the greater one of Dresden. This opera is half romantic half lyric, neither does it lack the humorous elements. It abounds in melody, a great rarity in our times, and the romance (Lied) is its best part.
Though the music is not precisely overpowering, it is very sweet and pleasing; one sees that a great talent has been at work, if not a genius.