Puccini murdered.....Salzburg's Turandot
Giovanni Abrate
as I watched the DVD of the Salzburg Festival 2002 production of Turandot.
This is the DVD that contains the Berio finale, which is why I bought it
(more later).
The staging of Turandot in the guise of Fritz Lang's "Metropolis" stikes me
as totally wrong: Turandot is a Persian fairy tale and you can only stretch
things so far...
The cast has to be the least attractive I have ever seen, with the exception
of Cristina Gallardo-Domas as Liů. Schnaut and Burchuladze provoke no
simpathy and one wishes for Calaf to get the riddles wrong to limit the
extent of the spectator's pain... and the drab and shapeless underwear used
for the last act by Turandot makes her almost repugnant....!
The Berio finale jus does not work for me. In this particular staging, if
any, even less. What is the idea of having Calaf and Turandot bathe the dead
body of Liů in the hospital morgue? What a dreary staging : Turandot is a
colorful and lively opera and the producers here just don't get it.
Anyone who is familiar with Puccini's own notes about the finale (and the
librettists knew the Maestro's intentions quite well) will immediately
notice that two things are quite wrong here:
1. Puccini's own music gets from Berio a treatment that is very similar to
Alfano's, only less in character with the rest of the opera because of the
modernistic sonorities used, that do not blend with Puccini's own work. The
pace changes immediately and the opera's character is lost, the music sounds
unfocused and the drive towards the final climax is set back, with a total
loss of anticipation.
2. The new music is a lot less in character with Puccini's intentions: the
love duet (definitely not "come Tristano" in Berio) and the conclusion,
without the triumphant climax and without the tenor and Soprano joining the
choir in singing praises to love "Amor".
This ending does not belong to this opera, in my opinion. Neither, arguably,
does the Alfano ending that is routinely performed. As it is known, this is
the result of some heavy handed cuts made by Toscanini against Alfano's
wishes. It is time to return to the original Alfano ending (Alfano 1),
before the cuts, which offers greater continuity with the rest of the opera,
a much more coherent melodic structure and some truly magnificent moments,
particularly in the love duet.
I am still waiting for a DVD of Turandot with the Alfano 1 completion. Maybe
the opera loving groups such as this one should petition Ricordi and the DVD
labels to stage Turandot the way Alfano completed it.
Giovanni Abrate
http://www.tryphon.it/sakuntala/
comes...@hotmail.com
And they're not going to stop. The so called "Eurotrash" concept has
become The Way, and they're going to just continue on with what they
think of as "insights" into these works, despite the fact that
audiences for the most part find them repellant and confusing. Turandot
and Calaf washing Liu's corpse? Oh, I get it: they're supposed to be
guilt ridden, ordinary humans, who are at this point doing all they can
to make amends to poor Liu, and by golly, they're going at it. Never
mind that Turandot is all allegory and metaphor and a fairy tale; and
that the original staging gives us a memory of Liu that's dignified,
respectful and beautiful - whereas this mess is just ghoulish. But the
Tinkerers are with us alway....
I have to disagree with you about the Alfano1 ending though: I do not
find it an improvement, have come to feel that Toscannini was right on
about the cuts; and the traditional Alfano finale is as good as we're
going to get, unless Puccini comes back with his non completed version.
It has always struck me as a wonderful turn of fate that in the final
triumphant paean to love, it seems as if it's a summing up of the whole
long tradition of Italian opera that really is ending with this music.
And what a way to go!
~ Roger
Andante teneramente
--snip--
> The cast has to be the least attractive I have ever seen, with the exception
> of Cristina Gallardo-Domas as Liů. Schnaut and Burchuladze provoke no
> simpathy and one wishes for Calaf to get the riddles wrong to limit the
> extent of the spectator's pain...
--snip--
I saw a Salzburg performance in a transmission by the French/German
TV-station ARTE last year; I guess it's more or less the same what you
saw.
I agree about Schnaut. She didn't sound good and didn't get her high
notes. But I rather liked Botha as Calaf. He didn't exactly look
the young prince, but he sang well, IMO at least.
I taped the performance on VHS, but I don't find the tape. So
I can't elaborate what I liked about it :-( .
Regards
Giovanni Abrate
I agree with your comments. Eurotrash is a very apt description for the
"movement" ....
One point about the Alfano 1 ending: ther are two recorded sources, one
live (SRO bonus in their CD set of Resurrezione) and the Decca Barstow
studio recording.
I find the Barstow recording very unpleasant: the soprano cannot cope with
the tessitura and the strain on the voice is unbearable. In addition, the
conductiong is, in my opinion, coarse, especially in the treatment of the
brass section in the final apotheosis (it sounds like an over inflated
Holliwood score, before such a thing ever existed...).
The finale in the live SRO recording, with L. Kelm as Turandot and C. Keene
conducting is much more rewarding: the music flows and the love duet is much
more complete (IMHO) than in the Toscanini version. The conducting is
sensitive and really does credit to the music.
I totally agree that Turandot, with its grand production values, epic music
and spectacular finale is THE epitome of Italian opera and represents the
perfect seal to a bygone artform.
Anyway, thanks for a very interesting post.
Giovanni
<comes...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:20093-3F8...@storefull-2195.public.lawson.webtv.net...
> Sounds like an opera in hell....
>
> And they're not going to stop. The so called "Eurotrash" concept has
> become The Way, >
Opvidfan
>the opera loving groups such as this one should petition Ricordi and the DVD
>labels to stage Turandot the way Alfano completed it.
>Giovanni Abrate
>http://www.tryphon.it/sakuntala/
>
>
>
And the jaws/maws painted faces of the choristers.
The Nederlands Opera also telecasst the Berio ending and it was to be released
commercially w/ Volonte. But it was cancelled. It is in a stunning Lenhoff
production but not very Chinioserie. But still stunning work. The Berio
ending fizzels.
The only full unpublished Alfano ending that was telecast that I know of is the
Antwerpt production by Carsen. Very much not Chinese. But theatrically vaild
in a post modern symbolic production.
But the full so-called Alfano /Mercurio ending makes a great case for the music
about 20 min longer as I recall, have to look at the tape.
Ray
Giovanni Abrate
thanks for the information.
By Alfano/Mercurio ending, do you mean what is also known as the Alfano 1
ending (even though it was Alfano's third effort)?
Thanks,
Giovanni
"Opvidfan" <opvi...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:20031012132218...@mb-m11.aol.com...
NBPalmer1
And, having been there, I can vouch for the fact that the majority of the
audience at the performance I attended reacted the same way in respect of the
actual production.
However some of the singing, the Berio ending - that was another matter
altogether..
Best wishes, NICK/London
Giovanni Abrate
Mercurio ending is a blend of both Alfano versions with additional music by
Maestro Mercurio. This may be quite nice (I have not heard it), but it leads
down a rather slippery slope...
Are we going to have the ending of the month? Any musician is to feel free
to compose a new finale?
To me, the situation is quite clear:
we have Tonio Puccini, Adami, Simoni and Ricordi giving the job to Alfano, a
renowned composer who had proven, with the Leggenda di Sakůntala to have the
qualifications to compose a finale based on Puccini's motes and infused with
an oriental atmosphere. He had been a friend of Puccinis and had discussed
their art with the Lucchese maestro. He was a talented and masterful
composer, who, incidentally, is being thankfully rediscovered in this 21st
century.
He based his work on what the librettists had discussed with Puccini. He
revised his work twice, after receiving the actual manuscript notes by
Puccini and presented his full version to Tonio and Ricordi in a memorable
session (see the article "A finishing touch" on the Sakůntala website at
http://www.tryphon.it/sakuntala/freeman.htm ).
His finished work was truncated by Toscanini, who was a fickle dictator and
whose relationship with Puccini had been a fiery one. Shortly before
Puccini's death, Toscanini had prevented him from attending the dress
reharsal of Boito's Nerone. Puccini left Milan without attending the
Premiere, such was his anger at Toscanini.
Toscanini's truncations, done hurriedly and without subtleness, have
deprived the listeners of the full Alfano ending, as it was composed by the
maestro from Posillipo and as it was approved by the Puccini heirs, the
librettists and the publisher.
I don't believe Maestro Mercurio is as close to the opera as Alfano was in
1925-26.
We do have a complete ending (it was actually published prior to the
Premiere and it was performed in the 1920s as a piano score): let's use it!
Why should be follow the dictates of Toscanini?
End of rant....
Giovanni
"Giovanni Abrate" <try...@adelphia.net> wrote in message
news:4bgib.300$CE2.3...@news2.news.adelphia.net...
Mike Richter
> 2. The new music is a lot less in character with Puccini's intentions: the
> love duet (definitely not "come Tristano" in Berio) and the conclusion,
> without the triumphant climax and without the tenor and Soprano joining the
> choir in singing praises to love "Amor".
We agree about the singing - in fact, I was disappointed in the Liu as
well. (It is a role crafted to shine, but here does so only due to the
general weakness of the others.) Nor did I find the production well
integrated and consonant with the score, though some elements were very
effective.
However, I found the Berio ending more than satisfactory. I do note that
that depends on the production; those who saw it in Los Angeles did not
understand what was going on until they saw the Salzburg DVD.
My review is posted at http://www.operajaponica.org/
Giovanni Abrate
I could not get to your review at the link you provided: do you have a
direct link to the page? The website opens incorrectly on my browser, with
the right end of the page somewhat compressed or missing.
Regards,
Giovanni
"Mike Richter" <mric...@cpl.net> wrote in message
news:3F899EEC...@cpl.net...
comes...@hotmail.com
Thanks for your kind comments. I must confess that the Barstow version
is the only one I've heard, and I agree, it's a terrible performance.
I'm sure the other one is much more enjoyable. But - I still don't care
for the direction the music itself takes, and find the traditional more
exciting. But, that's just my personal taste. I'm happy that you enjoy
the extended version. We really do need more versions for those who are
interested to chose from.
You may want to watch the old Met production, or the San Francisco one
to help erase the bad *visual* memories! :-)
Very best,
Roger
Giovanni Abrate
Regards,
Giovanni
<comes...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:20093-3F8...@storefull-2195.public.lawson.webtv.net...
Opvidfan
in Antwerp is totally Alfano and not the "Alfano/Mercurio ending used in
Philadelphia.
Since I have no manuscripts nor the time to investigate this I just will go by
what I intuit. That is, that the version used in Antwerp, for me is the most
satisfactory as it ends w/ a wallop and a flourish and is celebratory, which is
what a fairy tale ending is all about. Curiously this telecast has gained
notoriety as it is always sited for the full frontal nude of the Prince of
Persia, suggesting that no one has bothered getting to the finale. Although
reasonably well sung the only world class voice for me is Frederic Kalt.
So the full as possible Alfano ending is what I prefer. Not the Berio ironic
distancing.
Ray
Sailbad Sinner
> I am still waiting for a DVD of Turandot with the Alfano 1 completion. Maybe
> the opera loving groups such as this one should petition Ricordi and the DVD
> labels to stage Turandot the way Alfano completed it.
The Forbidden City of Beijing production, with Mehta conducting, was
one of the first opera dvd:s I bought after acquiring a dvd player
because this disk was and still is one of the very few dvd:s with
multiple selectable camera angles. Three years ago I did not even know
that Puccini died after Nessun Dorma and that his family (son?) wanted
a second-rate finale that emphasizes the maestro's own work. But even
with my far more limited opera experience I noticed the lack of drama
after Nessun Dorma. What a soap opera ending! A single kiss melts the
ice princess? (Even more incredible on this dvd that sports the mother
of all sopranos as Turandot.) But the illogical ending does not bother
me any more, now that know the reason for it.
There's an opportunity for a publisher: a Turandot dvd with
alternative endings: Berio's, Alfano's, Toscanini's (I mean the
premier). Take your pick.
Sailbad Sinner
> the opera loving groups such as this one should petition Ricordi and the DVD
> labels to stage Turandot the way Alfano completed it.
The Forbidden City of Beijing production, with Mehta conducting, was
Sailbad Sinner
> the opera loving groups such as this one should petition Ricordi and the DVD
> labels to stage Turandot the way Alfano completed it.
The Forbidden City of Beijing production, with Mehta conducting, was
one of the first opera dvd:s I bought after acquiring a dvd player
because this disk was and still is one of the very few dvd:s with
multiple selectable camera angles. Three years ago I did not even know
that Puccini died after Nessun Dorma and that his family (son?) wanted
a third-rate finale that emphasizes the maestro's own work. But even
with my far more limited opera experience I noticed the lack of drama
after Nessun Dorma. What a soap opera ending! A single kiss melts the
ice princess? (Even more incredible on this dvd that sports the mother
of all sopranos as Turandot.) But the illogical ending does not bother
me any more, now that know the reason for it.
There's an opportunity for an innovative publisher: a Turandot dvd
David7Gable
>distancing.
Not the way I would characterize the Berio ending myself.
-david gable
hhg
It`s normal dreary "regietheater"! Urrgh!
H.
Giovanni Abrate schrieb:
> Sorry about the flippant heading, but that was just what came into my mind
> as I watched the DVD of the Salzburg Festival 2002 production of Turandot.
> This is the DVD that contains the Berio finale, which is why I bought it
> (more later).
> The staging of Turandot in the guise of Fritz Lang's "Metropolis" stikes me
> as totally wrong: Turandot is a Persian fairy tale and you can only stretch
> things so far...
> The cast has to be the least attractive I have ever seen, with the exception
> of Cristina Gallardo-Domas as Lių. Schnaut and Burchuladze provoke no
> simpathy and one wishes for Calaf to get the riddles wrong to limit the
> extent of the spectator's pain... and the drab and shapeless underwear used
> for the last act by Turandot makes her almost repugnant....!
> The Berio finale jus does not work for me. In this particular staging, if
> any, even less. What is the idea of having Calaf and Turandot bathe the dead
> body of Lių in the hospital morgue? What a dreary staging : Turandot is a
Elizabeth Hubbell
Giovanni Abrate wrote:
> Sorry about the flippant heading, but that was just what came into my mind
> as I watched the DVD of the Salzburg Festival 2002 production of Turandot.
> This is the DVD that contains the Berio finale, which is why I bought it
> (more later).
> The staging of Turandot in the guise of Fritz Lang's "Metropolis" stikes me
> as totally wrong: Turandot is a Persian fairy tale and you can only stretch
> things so far...
> The cast has to be the least attractive I have ever seen, with the exception
> of Cristina Gallardo-Domas as Lių. Schnaut and Burchuladze provoke no
> simpathy and one wishes for Calaf to get the riddles wrong to limit the
> extent of the spectator's pain... and the drab and shapeless underwear used
> for the last act by Turandot makes her almost repugnant....!
> The Berio finale jus does not work for me. In this particular staging, if
> any, even less. What is the idea of having Calaf and Turandot bathe the dead
> body of Lių in the hospital morgue? What a dreary staging : Turandot is a
> colorful and lively opera and the producers here just don't get it.
> Anyone who is familiar with Puccini's own notes about the finale (and the
> librettists knew the Maestro's intentions quite well) will immediately
> notice that two things are quite wrong here:
> 1. Puccini's own music gets from Berio a treatment that is very similar to
> Alfano's, only less in character with the rest of the opera because of the
> modernistic sonorities used, that do not blend with Puccini's own work. The
> pace changes immediately and the opera's character is lost, the music sounds
> unfocused and the drive towards the final climax is set back, with a total
> loss of anticipation.
> 2. The new music is a lot less in character with Puccini's intentions: the
> love duet (definitely not "come Tristano" in Berio) and the conclusion,
> without the triumphant climax and without the tenor and Soprano joining the
> choir in singing praises to love "Amor".
> This ending does not belong to this opera, in my opinion. Neither, arguably,
> does the Alfano ending that is routinely performed. As it is known, this is
> the result of some heavy handed cuts made by Toscanini against Alfano's
> wishes. It is time to return to the original Alfano ending (Alfano 1),
> before the cuts, which offers greater continuity with the rest of the opera,
> a much more coherent melodic structure and some truly magnificent moments,
> particularly in the love duet.
I too have enjoyed the original expanded Alfano ending (given at NYCO a
number of years ago). But some sources apparently indicate that Puccini
wanted the opera ending quietly. The only one of the three (Alfano
original, Toscanini, Berio) that ends quietly is plainly the Berio.
That does not make it the best, of course. But it does mean that both
the original Alfano and the Toscanini as well have their own problems
when it comes to proper respect for Puccini's intentions, in contrast to
the (equally wilful?) Berio.
Having heard Berio's new ending, I could well wish that a more
purposeful attempt would have been made to avoid anything that could
remotely suggest a late 20th or early 21st-century idiom. But -- like
Toscanini, BTW -- Berio restored a goodly amount of material in
Puccini's sketches that Alfano originally discarded -- like the more
familiar "Il mio mistero" crescendo, restored by Toscanini in his
rewrite and also followed.........er, more or less.......in the Berio.
That Toscanini/Berio restoration, plus Puccini's wish for a quiet
ending(?), and other tantalizing characteristics along the way(?), may
point to Berio's ending -- in its surface structure, that is -- being as
respectful of Puccini, if not more so, as either of his forebears.
Of course, this is to ignore the elephant in the living room: the
essential idiom in which Berio has couched his superficially more
faithful reconstruction. Alfano has that Puccini idiom in his bones;
Berio does not.
I don't see why an enterprising attempt can not be made to
A) base a new reconstruction on the first Alfano uncut, but
B) substitute the further Puccini sketch material that Toscanini
restored to the original (and cut) Alfano, and
C) substitute a quiet Berio-like ending for the conclusion (if Puccini
really wanted a quiet ending at all, a teaser of a question that I hope
others here can debunk or confirm with more info at their fingertips
than I have), except in a more scrupulously Alfano/Puccini idiom,
perhaps using a quiet reprise of Liu's tender prophecy of Turandot's
eventually falling in love herself or Liu's equally tender rhapsody on
love itself ("Amor") a few moments earlier to match a quiet choral
passage on "Amor" to close the opera (for some strange reason, Berio
chooses the harmonies of the "Sei pallido, straniero" exchange between
Turandot and Calaf as one of his building blocks for his quiet
ending.....huh?....), and
D) summoning up Tristan und Isolde connotations (and Puccini indicated
there were such _Tristan_ connotations for him in this last scene) at
the moment of the kiss that dazes Turandot, a moment that does suggest,
IMO, the revenge-set Isolde suddenly turning to love on drinking the
love potion, the musical moment (a sudden hush followed by love's first
stirrings in the lower strings) that this new Turandot reconstruction
might subtly recall in some distant way.
This might not be the easiest thing to pull together, but it hardly
seems impossible, IMO.
Again, though, I'd really like to know whether or not the claim by some
that Puccini himself wanted a quiet ending is bogus or readily
confirmable from reliable enough sources.
Please? Thanks.
Cheers,
Geoffrey Riggs
www.operacast.com
Giovanni Abrate
I am surprised by your statement that Puccini wanted a quiet ending. THis is
not my understanding. I have some distant family connections with Puccini
(My maternal grandfather was his cousin, and a conductor) and, perhaps
because of this, I have collected numerous documents about his life and
work, including some locally produced books by some of the maestro's
Lucchese friends.
My understanding is that Puccini wanted a glorious finale, reprising the
"Principe ignoto" theme, but in a triumphal celebration of love, with
soprano and tenor joining the choir in singing the word "Amor". Just like
Alfano did inn his "Alfano 1 " ending.
Additionally, Alfano worked closely with the librettists, which is why he
had the basic musical structure done even before receiving Puccini's notes
(that he got only two weeks before the Premiere!).
I also have to respectfully disagree with your statement that Berio's
reconstruction is "superficially more faithful" to Puccini's ideas.
Also keep in mind that Alfano consulted with Tonio Puccini, something Berio
was obviously unable to do.
To encourage anothe hybrid reconstruction is, in my opinion, wrong. We do
have a good ending, as close in time and spirit to Puccini's effort as is
possible and I think it should be accepted as the one that reflects
Puccini's imperfect ending at the time of his death.
I am sure the maestro would have refined and reworked his notes, but we have
to live with what he left and I believe Alfano's completion makes the best
possible use of what was left, and adds the Wagnerian duet (quite well
developed, given the short duration of the piece) in a way that may have
pleased the great Lucchese.
I do appreciate your very interesting and provocative post!
Giovanni
"Elizabeth Hubbell" <elizabet...@verizon.net> wrote in message
news:Q2Zib.9816$fv4....@nwrdny02.gnilink.net...
> [from Geof. Riggs; not Eliz. H., my better half]
>
David7Gable
>purposeful attempt would have been made to avoid anything that could
>remotely suggest a late 20th or early 21st-century idiom.
It was a foregone conclusion that, if you engage a Berio to write the ending,
he is going to do more than attempt a "respectful" and self-effacing recreation
of Puccini's idiom. Asking Berio to complete Turandot is not like asking Cerha
to complete Lulu. It's like asking Benjamin Britten to write a cadenza for a
Mozart Piano Concerto. Britten's cadenzas are palpably based on Mozart, but
he's made no attempt to avoid harmonies undreamt of by Mozart. In short, all
of the keepers of the flame are missing the point.
That being said, Berio did in fact invent a kind of turn-of-the-century style
for his ending (the turn of the 19th to the 20th, that is), and the result is
rather like a cross between the most dissonant music in Turandot--bits of it
are extremely dissonant and "modern"-- French impressionism, and Berio's own
late and reasonably accessible style. (Not that the average amateur of Puccini
will necessarily know Voci or Requies or Notturno or Un re in acolto.)
My regret is the exact opposite from the other regretters. I regret that Berio
is as hemmed in by the libretto and the sketches as he is. To quote from
e-mail I sent to friends the other day, Berio fans one and all:
What Berio has written is a rather amorphous fantasia on tunes left in the
sketches, and the most notable feature of Berio's ending is its stylistic
inconsistency. Bits of more or less undiluted Puccini keep taking over, often
somewhat disconcertingly. Berio's inspiration begins to take him farther
afield harmonically than Puccini's idiom, and then, all of a sudden, in comes
some undiluted Puccini, albeit interestingly re-imagined for the orchestra by
Berio. And when Berio takes over again, he takes a slightly different
direction each time. Sometimes the fragment of a Puccini tune floats
incongruously on opulent waves of Berio's impressionist-influenced pseudo-fin
de siècle Turandot style.
Hard to describe the idiom Berio has created for this completion. It doesn't
really sound like Puccini, but it does sound like a pastiche of an imaginary
turn of the century style. At the same time, Berio inevitably keeps verging on
something more like his late (comparatively accessible) style. The idiom he
uses is a sort of cross between the most dissonant music in Turandot, French
impressionism, and his own late style. Frankly, Puccini gets in his way: not
the material he uses freely per se--Berio has always been an inspired
"parasite"--but the necessity for coming back to specific bits based on the
sketches at the appropriate points in the libretto.
Much more interesting would have been a free fantasia on the Puccini material
in the wonderful darkly opulent idiom Berio has created in response to the
sketches. Instead, the fantasia keeps getting cut off at the kneecaps. Maybe
if he had lived he would have written a Turandot fantasia based on his ending.
Could have been terrific. As it is, the continuous symphonic form his
imagination keeps urging him to pursue is maladapted to Puccini's more
sectional numbers-opera conception.
An extremely interesting and original failure. Or, to be more charitable,
tantalizing glimpses of a through-composed fantasia on Puccini's sketches that
was never meant to be. (It is also entirely possible that Berio would have
been dissatisfied with his own realization and overhauled it. There is a long
history of his doing just that with his own pieces. First comes the envoi and
then the completed work.)
-david gable
REG
but I wonder about his goals, and hope you could address that point. In
architecture, for example, if a ruined or incomplete edifice from the past
is "finished" by other hands, there is a tendency NOT to make the new work
quite like the old - there is supposed to be both an element of
architectural similarity, as well as an element of difference. The thinking
is that merely copying and continuing the style of the former work is a kind
of uninventive "plagarism", which denies the history of the building being
left incomplete or destroyed; doing something without any relation to the
existing work is likewise disrespectful of the work that already exists. In
looking at ruins of pre-Columbian civilizations, there is a convention that
those that the added parts are demarcated by a series of small round stones,
so that the eye can actually see what is original and what is reconstructed.
Is there some chance that Berio was aiming at doing the same kind of thing?
It sounds that way from your very lucid description. That would certainly
make some difference, I think, in how one should approach the completed
work.
"David7Gable" <david...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:20031016002943...@mb-m10.aol.com...