The Flower Song – Fateful or Faithful?

                            

An aria is the chosen vehicle of opera composers for presenting the singer’s vocal prowess to the audience.  Logic would suggest that the composer intentionally places it strategically in the opera, to call attention to an important event that significantly influences the outcome of the drama. Therefore, it is incumbent upon us to understand its meaning relative to its placement in the work. In his opera Carmen, Bizet wrote the beautiful Flower Song for Don Josè to sing in Act II.  Carmen accuses Josè of not loving her.  Josè, as a disciplined soldier, says that he must return to barracks at the sound of the ‘retreat’. Carmen makes him feel guilty for preferring duty to her. At this point, Josè pulls out a withered flower from his tunic and sings of how it lifted his spirits during his imprisonment for having allowed Carmen to escape. He avers his undying love for Carmen.  This is the famous Flower Song. From this point on, the relationship between Josè and Carmen deteriorates; it ends in Carmen’s death by José’s hand at the conclusion of the opera.  Why? What is the significance of the flower, and why does Josè sing the aria at all?  The flower’s importance has its origin in Act I.  Carmen has sung her famous Habanera; she then turns her attention to Don José – the only male who has not clamored for Carmen’s attention.  It is at this point in the score that Bizet introduces the Fate Theme for the first time https://youtu.be/SaypJ4kmYCE (24:08). It appears again as an introduction to the Flower Song in Act II (1:14:29).  Coincidence? Hardly! The appearance of the same theme in two or more places in the score connects them psychologically.   We must address this occurrence in order to understand its employment by the composer; it relates to the unfolding drama.  In Act I Carmen throws a flower at Don José. When he picks it up, she tells José that he can throw it away because it has already made its effect. When José produces the withered flower in Act II, he has, disregarded Carmen’s specific instruction to him in the previous Act and thereby, he violated an unspoken pact between them. According to Carmen love is freely given. José’s hanging on to the flower suggests possession or possessiveness. Carmen interprets this act as proof that José does not love her. Indeed, they are at opposite sides of the spectrum; they are simply unsuited for each other.  José of course, for reasons of his own, does not understand this.  The flower serves each protagonist’s personal needs and in opposite directions. For Carmen, it is an expression of temporal desire. “I am attracted to you. I want you now because Fate has so decreed.” For José, it is a matter of devotion, a sign of being faithful, of belonging. “Fate has determined that we be together.” Bizet’s use of the Fate Theme represents this dichotomy. The Flower Song is the pivot of the entire opera.  In the scene that follows, José seals his fate when he draws his sword on Zuniga, an officer; there is no way for him to recoup. He becomes an outlaw.

26 September 2017

Israel

Composer vs Performer

                                                

Opera Composers have a definite concept in mind when they map out their ideas for a new work. They have purpose, direction, and notion, about its execution.  By the time they have completed their creation, composers have pretty much worked out the fine details that will reflect their thoughts. They express their wishes as regards performance explicitly and specifically in written instructions - stage directions for example.  However, sometimes, the concept is in the very fabric of the work itself. The sensitive implementer – performer, conductor, or stage manager – of the work will look for the relevant identifying indices. The term ‘relevant’ is essential to interpreting the composer’s intention for it involves judgment.  A sound interpretation incorporates as much of the information that is available. Judgement, therefore, is a direct function of the interpreter’s ability to assess the evidence.  Invariably, differences of opinion occur.  The question then becomes which alternative expresses the composer’s concept best.  A good example of this argument is present in Act I of Puccini’s masterful La Bohème.

As they leave his apartment arm in arm, Mimi and Rodolfo sing ‘Amor, amor, amor’.  According to the score, both sing the following notes G, E, and C on the first ‘amor’ and the first syllable of the second ‘amor’. On the second syllable, Rodolfo sings an F and Mimi sings an A. On the first syllable of the final ‘amor’, Rodolfo sings an F and an E on the second syllable; Mimi sings in parallel, an A and a high C. [https://youtu.be/cSuL4u3bOpg  33:21 - 33:39]  In the recorded example, the tenor goes up to the high C. However, Puccini did not instruct him to do so.  Nor did he offer the opportunity as an alternative!  Simply stated, Puccini did not want the tenor to sing the high C. Puccini was a man of the theater so he was well aware of the audience’s thrill to hear the tenor’s high notes and of the latter’s tendency to show off his top.  Was this, then, an omission (deliberate or otherwise)? In order to resolve this issue, we must examine the score as written. We observe that when Rodolfo and Mimi sing in parallel, the combined notes are C – F – A – C; the intervals between notes are a fourth, a third, and a third.  The aural effect is the same as that of Puccini’s introduction of Rodolfo to the audience at the beginning of the opera (‘Nei cieli bigi’ etc. [https://youtu.be/cSuL4u3bOpg 1:53-1:55]) and again, during Rodolfo’s aria just before ‘In povertà mia lieta’ when he introduces himself to Mimi. (21:59 – 22:02).  Puccini carefully thought out the relationship between the three points in his drama. In the introductions, Rodolfo reveals himself, almost in confession. By dovetailing the melody at the end of the Act, Puccini indicates that there is an acceptance, a meeting of the minds if you will, between Rodolfo and Mimi. This interpretation takes into account enough of the clues given by Puccini himself to make the human story believable. The tenor’s high C is irrelevant to the flow of the drama. It is always preferable to follow the composer’s lead and judgment, over other considerations.

  

Creative Closure

                                                 Creative Closure

All human encounters are psycho-dynamically determined.  Opera composers can accomplish this by means of a musical theme that joins the protagonists in the drama. Puccini illustrates this experience beautifully as he conceives the relationship between Rodolfo and Mimi in Act I of La Bohème. [https://youtu.be/cSuL4u3bOpg]. The opening scene finds Marcello, a painter, and Rodolfo, a poet, in their cold garret apartment in Paris.  The bitter cold prevents Marcello from completing his painting, while Rodolfo complains about the pot-bellied stove that does not provide enough heat to warm the apartment. His opening phrase, ‘Nei cieli bigi […]’ (In the big skies […]), is comprised of the following notes. F, B-flat, D, F, F. [1] (1:53-1:55). In his aria ‘Che gelida manina’, (Your tiny hand is frozen […]) later on in the Act, when he is with Mimi, Rodolfo tells her about himself. The brief interlude between ‘E come vivo? Vivo!’ (How do I survive? I manage!) and ‘In povertà mia lieta’ (I am happy in my poverty) is made up of the same melody as above with different notes [E-flat, A-flat, C, and E-flat – in A-flat major] [2] (21:59 – 22:02).  Still later, at the conclusion of the Act, Rodolfo, and Mimi, having fallen in love, sing the beautiful duet ‘O soave fanciulla’ (Oh lovely maiden…). Puccini ends the duet by having Rodolfo and Mimi sing the notes G, E, and C in the key of C major, to the words ‘Amor! A_’ in unison. From the syllable _mor! Amor! Puccini has the singers sing as follows. Rodolfo sings an F and Mimi an A. On the syllable “A” that follows, Rodolfo repeats the F and Mimi repeats the A. On the syllable “mor!” Rodolfo sings an E while Mimi rises to a high C [3] (33:22 – 33:24__33:39). NOTE:  The discussion relates to the written score. The recorded selection above – with the tenor taking the high C - does not reflect Puccini’s instructions!  If we pay careful attention to the numbered time-listings we become aware that in all three the auditory effect is identical and that the intervals between the notes are a fourth, a third and a third.  Puccini’s purpose was intentional. He introduces us, the listening audience, to Rodolfo with the same melody that Rodolfo introduces himself to Mimi. If we listen closely to example [3], we realize Puccini’s intent namely, that by having the lovers sing alternating notes, thereby achieving the same note sequence, they express and cement their love for one another.  This most ingeniously creative measure achieves closure.

6 September 2017

Israel