19th Century French Opera

Years of the French Revolution:

á      Some works were deliberately designed as Revolutionary Propaganda, depicting battle events, martyrs, etc.

á      There was still rivalry between Paris Opera and Opera Comique; romantic elements were added, but rescue opera emphasized liberation themes that resonated with Revolution

After the Revolution many composers visited Paris from Italy and Germany; result was Paris collected ideas from around Europe, assimilated into international style

á      Serious opera evolved in 1820Ős into Grand Opera: definition:

á      Commissioned between 1828-1870 by Academie Royal de la Musique (Paris OpŽra)

á      Story was religious or romantic, involving heroic feats, grand passions, great suffering

á      Lots of spectacle: huge crowd scenes for weddings, processions, wars, coronations, miraculous events, sometimes in exotic locations

á      Grand opera was government funded, with the primary audience the Bourgeoisie.  Govt. was picky about stories: stories were chosen for their ability to mold public opinion, reinforce Bourgeois values (as long as not critical of French regime: propaganda)

á      Early example: Auber (1782-1871), La Muette de Portici

á      Most famous composer of grand opera is Giacomo Meyerbeer (1791-1864).

á      His operas were extremely popular then, not usually done today.  This could be said of most French Grand Opera: reasons:

á      Extreme length

á      Scenery demands, crowd scenes

á      French Style of singing isnŐt taught widely anymore (Italian and German styles are more common)

á      Wagner didnŐt like Meyerbeer on grounds of anti-Semitism and that his international style was perceived as working against German Nationalism; this despite MeyerbeerŐs influence on Wagner

á      One of MeyerbeerŐs best-known operas is LŐAfricaine (1865). Good example of an opera on exotic theme; also has more progressive harmony than was common in mid-19th century; very lyrical, very far removed from da capo format

á      Hector Berlioz (1803-69) another composer of French Grand Opera

á      Wrote 3 true operas: Benvenuto Cellini, Les Troyens, Beatrice and Benedict.  Les Troyens is in epic proportions, based on VirgilŐs Aeneid.  Infrequently performed for same reasons as other grand operas: too expensive, singing demands are extraordinary

á      Many other examples from mid and late century, many sub-genres

á      Jacques Offenbach (1819-80) wrote operas in style called opera bouffŽ: blend of music, dance, spoken dialogue.  An example is Orphee aux enfers (Orpheus in the Underworld). A true opera by him is Tales of Hoffmann (Contes dŐHoffmann)

á      Charles Gounod (1818-93) wrote operas very popular at the time, hardly ever performed now.  One famous was Romeo et Juliette

á      Late century and Georges Bizet (1838-75)

á      Orientalism becomes strong theme in France, leads to more exotic locations in plots, e.g.: his opera Les Pecheurs de Perles (1863) was set in Ceylon.

á      Carmen (1875): another exotic story.  Premiered just before his death

á      This is BizetŐs most famous opera, has the most generally familiar music in opera

á      Bizet was influenced by Wagner and Verdi

á      WagnerŐs notion of the complete art work, theater used to explore the human condition; and also Leitmotives

á      VerdiŐs tunefulness and psychological exploration, e.g. Carmen can be interpreted in several ways

á      Contains similarities to Verismo violence and gritty side of life. 

á      Original score contained lots of spoken dialogue; after Bizet died, a friend (Ernest Guiraud) composed recitatives to replace most of the dialogue, this version has become most popular.