Rage Against the Machine: Richard Laing finds plenty that’s artificial, but not a lot of intelligence, in Bayreuth’s AI ‘Ring’

Reviews of Der Ring des Nibelungen, curated Lobbes, conducted Thielemann, Bayreuth, 2026; Rienzi, directed Szemerédy and Parditka, conducted Stutzmann, Bayreuth, 2026.

November 2026, Volume 20, Number 3, 61–7.

Do androids dream of electric sheep? Philip K. Dick’s 1968 novel, memorably filmed by Ridley Scott as Blade Runner, envisions a future where artificial intelligence has become indistinguishable from human intelligence, and everyone begins to doubt their own authenticity. James Cameron and Gale Ann Hurd’s Terminator movies – echoed by AI executives at the time of writing – suggested that when a computer system achieves sentience, the first job on its to-do list will be to extinguish humanity. For those who worry about such scenarios, this year’s Bayreuth Ring cycle provides some comfort: AI – or at least the model used here – still has a very long way to go.