44. Opera 10: Exotic Atmosphere, ACJ Music Academy

How are you?

Following the last week, I am going to start my 44th lecture.

I had conducted music lectures at Art Collage JANG in Seoul, South Korea every Saturday from March 2015 to December 2017.

I am going to introduce the lecture by the lecture’s order every Saturday.

Please refer to the following link for my previous lectures.

https://blog.naver.com/csydr/220995605864

Today's lecture is five operas featuring “Exotic Atmosphere”, which were introduced in “The 44th ACJ Music Academy” on April 23, 2016.

1. Die Entführung aus dem Serail (Mozart)

2. L'Italiana in Algeri (Rossini)

3. Les Pêcheurs de Perles (Bizet)

4. Lakme (Delibes)

5. Madama Butterfly (Puccini)

1. Die Entführung aus dem Serail (Mozart)

It is a three-act opera Singspiel by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in 1782, with the German libretto by Gottlieb Stephanie, based on Christoph Friedrich Bretzner's “Belmont und Constanze, oder Die Entführung aus dem Serail.”

The heroine 'Konstanze', her English maid 'Blonde', and ‘Pedrillo’ who is the servant of Belmonte, Konstanze's fiancé, are caught by pirates and sold to Turkey while on a boat trip. When they are locked up at the country house of the Pasha Selim, Konstanze’s lover Belmonte comes to the house of Selim, where they are locked up. Then, Belmonte realizes that Selim, who loves Konstanze, is courting her, Pedrillo is working as a gardener, and Blonde is given to Osmin as a gift. 

When Pedrillo introduces Belmonte to Selim, he lies that Belmonte is an architect who is supposed to come. Blonde and Pedrillo dance while discussing their escape plan in the garden, and Pedrillo continues to encourage Osmin to drink. Eventually, Osmin is completely drunk and lies down, and Belmonte, who went to the seashore to meet Konstanze, shares the joy of reunion with her. However, Osmin, who was so drunk, wakes up and grasps all the situation, and then he takes all of them to Selim with anger. 

Upon seeing Belmonte, Selim recognizes that he is the son of an old enemy who expelled him. However, Selim resolves to pay for good rather than revenge and releases Konstanze, Belmonte, Blonde and Pedrillo. The two joyful couples thank Selim for his grace and prepare for the voyage for return.

2. L'Italiana in Algeri (Rossini)

It is an operatic dramma giocoso in two acts by Gioachino Rossini to an Italian libretto by Angelo Anelli, based on his earlier text set by Luigi Mosca.

The Bey of Algiers, Mustafà, who is tired of his wife, wants to take Isabella, an Italian woman who has been sold to pirates, as his new wife, after driving his wife out. Isabella, who is looking for her missing lover, Lindoro, finds him working as a servant in Mustafà's house and plans to flee with him. Isabella deceives Mustafà with a ridiculous game and flees with her lover, taking all the Italians who were sold as slaves to Algiers.

3. Les Pêcheurs de Perles (Bizet)

It is a three-act opera composed by Georges Bizet, to a libretto by Michel Carré and

Eugène Cormon.

Leïla, becomes a priestess for a tribe living with pearl gatherings, due to her mysterious beauty and excellent singing skills. Her role is praying to the gods and singing beautiful songs at the beach all day for their safety and rich harvest while the men go into the sea and dig pearls. Before starting this work, Leila makes a pledge of purity that she will not close to any men in order to remain faithful to the priestess and will be punished by death if she violates this in front of the newly elected young head fisherman Zurga and high priest of Brahma Nourabad. 

On the other hand, Nadir, who has returned from traveling for many years, meets Zurga, a brother-like friend, and promises an eternal friendship, but realizing that the priestess Leïla is a woman he loved at the same time with his friend, he is again caught in flames of memories and desires. On a starry night, Nadir goes to the temple to meet Leila and at first she rejects him, but the two finally confirm each other's love. 

At this time, pearl fishermen and the priest Nourabad come to the scene and try to kill them. Zurga stops this, but soon realizes that Leila is a woman of the past and he changes his mind because of his friend’s betrayal and decides to execute the two. But accidentally looking at Leila's necklace and discovering that she was a young girl who had saved his life long ago, Zurga set fire to the village just before the execution to turn people's attention to the fire and let the two run away.

4. Lakme (Delibes)

It is a three-act opera composed by Léo Delibes to a French libretto by Edmond Gondinet and Philippe Gille.

Lakmé, the protagonist, is the daughter of Brahman, the highest class in India. British officer Gérald, lagging behind other friends while they are out, stays in the courtyard of the Hindu temple, where he encounters Lakmé and the two fall in love in a wink. 

Lakmé's father finds out that the gentile has invaded the sanctuary, and to find and kill him for revenge, he takes his daughter to the marketplace and has her sing. Gérald, who is caught in the bait, is injured by Lakmé's father. 

However, Lakmé's servant takes Gérald into the forest and hides him in a hideout. Lakmé takes great care of Gérald in the forest, but a British officer, a friend of Gérald's, comes to this place to convince him to return to the army. Knowing that Gérald's mind is shaking, Lakmé secretly chews poison and chooses the way of death, and gives Gérald a drink of holy water and saves him from his father's hand.

5. Madama Butterfly (Puccini)

It is an opera written by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa.

While Pinkerton, male protagonist, is looking for a woman to enjoy while his warship is stayed at Nagasaki Port, he marries for fun with the heroine Cio-Cio-san, whose English name is "Butterfly". She, who had no choice but to become a geisha because of the fall of her family, bets her entire life on this love and marriage.

However, after returning to the United States, Pinkerton got married ‘formally’, forgetting his marriage with her, and later, through an American consul, he knows that Cio-Cio-san is waiting for him every day. Then, he goes with his wife who can't give birth to a child, and takes her son. Eventually, Cio-Cio-san, who lost everything, commits suicides herself with the knife that her father also did.

You can listen to all the arias selected in this course from following YouTube link.

1. “Martern aller Arten mogen meiner warten”, Die Entführung aus dem Serail (Mozart)

2. “Languir per una bella”, L'Italiana in Algeri (Rossini)

3. “Je crois entendre encore”, Les Pêcheurs de Perles (Bizet)

4. “Viens, Malika”, Lakme (Delibes)

5. “Un bel di vedremo”, Madama Butterfly (Puccini)

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSmshmgJzYhdkyUD1NQXJ1NtjA2owGIDY

You can also review this lecture from following media.

YouTube

Blog (Korean)

Naver TV

Naver Post

Have a happy holiday with beautiful opera arias, and from next week, I will change the music genre as Jazz and lecture for 11 weeks.

Thank you.

35. Opera 1: Identity, ACJ Music Academy

How are you?

Following the last week, I am going to start my 35th lecture.

I had conducted music lectures at Art Collage JANG in Seoul, South Korea every Saturday from March 2015 to December 2017.

I am going to introduce the lecture by the lecture’s order every Saturday.

Please refer to the following link for my previous lectures.

https://blog.naver.com/csydr/220995605864

The music genre starting from this week is opera. 

The opera lecture for this week was the 35th lecture of ACJ Music Academy on February 20, 2016. The theme of the operas is “Identity” treating conflicts between nobles, commons, servants, maids or demons. I introduced 50 operas over 10 weeks, with 5 operas every week by theme.

1. La Serva Padrona (Pergolesi)

La Serva Padrona is an opera buffa by Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, calling “Mozart of Italy”, to a libretto by Gennaro Federico based on the play of Jacopo Angello Nelli. It is regarded as an important work bridging the gap between Baroque and Classical periods. An elderly Uberto, who remains single, declares his marriage because he is so hard to live with Serpina, who is his maidservant. However suddenly lost her job and has loved Uberto for many years, Serpina tries to stop his marriage by disguising one servant as a soldier, deceiving him as her fiancé, and asking Uberto for a dowry. Surprised with the dowry and felt compassion to Serpina who has to be married to a man looking wild, Uberto decides to marry her, and eventually clever Serpina has both identity and love.

2. Don Giovanni (Mozart)



It is an opera written by Mozart in 1787 with an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte.
The main character, Don Giovanni, seduces Donna Anna and her father, the Commendatore, became angry. Then Don Giovanni kills the Commendatore with his sword during a duel. But afterwards, he keeps seducing women, enticing the country virgin Zerlina, and sees the knight's statue at the cemetery and invites him to dinner. The knight's statue visits his home that night, but Don Giovanni have no remorse and eventually he falls into hell.

3. Il Barbiere di Siviglia (Rossini)



It is a two-act opera buffa, composed by Rossini, with an Italian libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was based on Pierre Beaumarchais's French comedy “Le Barbier de Séville (1775)”.
The young Count named Almaviva accidentally sees a virgin named Rosina who lives in an old guardian's house and dreams of marriage at first sight. Almaviva introduces himself as a poor college student in fear of burdening Rosina, a commoner. Due to the guardian's surveillance, he doesn't even get a chance to talk to her, but the town's problem solver, Figaro, comes to his life. He seduces the Count that the two can get married with his tricks if Almaviva gives him enough money. Eventually the Count, Rosina, and Figaro are on one side and Almaviva and Rosina get married.

4. Der Freischütz (Weber)



Der Freischütz is the first German romantic opera in three acts by Carl Maria von Weber with a libretto by Friedrich Kind.
Max, who is in love with the head forester Kuno's daughter, Agathe, can only marry her when he wins the No. 1 in shooter contest. However, as his practice scores are deteriorated, he becomes anxious. At that time, the hunter Kaspar, who sold his soul to the devil, seduces Max, saying, "If you use magic bullets, you can easily win the first place." The two went to the "Wolf Valley", where devils and ghosts gather, to make magic bullets and Max scores the best point on the day of the contest. But when Max shoots the seventh bullet, the devil's bullet knocks down Agathe. However, Agathe, who thought she was dead, had only fainted for a while, and the place where the seventh bullet was actually inserted was the heart of Kaspar, who was trying to hand over his friend to the devil. Max, who confessed that he used magic bullets, was ordered to be deported from the lord, but the respected wise man moved his heart. Then, the lord allowed Max to marry Agathe after a year's grace.

5. Falstaff (Verdi)



Falstaff is a comic opera in three acts composed by Giuseppe Verdi, one of the best opera composers in Italy. The libretto was adapted by Arrigo Boito from Shakespeare's “The Merry Wives of Windsor”. It is the last opera of his 28 operas as well as the only comic opera. Alice and Meg have received Falstaff's letters of courtship that are identical at the same time. The two decide to hoax this patient of megalomania and drive him to the corner.

You can listen to all the arias selected in this course from following YouTube link.

1. Aspettare e non venire, La Serva Padrona (Pergolesi)
2. La ci darem la mano, Don Giovanni (Mozart)
3. Largo al factotum, Il Barbiere di Siviglia (Rossini)
4. Und ob die Wolke sie verhülle, Der Freischütz (Weber)
5. L'onore! Ladri, Falstaff (Verdi)

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSmshmgJzYhdGk7WfepXd0J5isfEkFDK4

Next week, I will lecture 2nd "Opera" course as my 36th lecture.

Thank you.

Korean Blog