Ernest Newman described the first appearance of this melody (Nach wilder
Schmerzensnacht nun Waldes Morgenpracht
) as a little vignette of the beauty and solace
of uncorrupted nature
. Hans von Wolzogen called it, the Rustling of the
Forest.
It is a composite of (A), which is also part of the Agony motif and which first appears towards the end of the prelude to the first act, and (B), which seems to represent Nature (#16). Both appear in the first- act transformation music. Note that this variant of Nature includes the three-note fragment that I have labelled as the Question motif (#31).
Nature's healing