Manchester Medical Orchestra April 2015
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) – Overture The Magic Flute (1791)
Die Zauberflöte was first performed in Vienna in 1791, written to a libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. Its child-friendly facade forms a thinly-veiled allegory of enlightenment and self-improvement through trials, with strong influences from Oriental folklore and Freemasonry. Both Mozart and Schikaneder were active Masons, and it isn't hard to identify Masonic themes in the wise Sarastro's noble brotherhood, with its initiation rituals and trials. Some have even identified the opera's sinister Queen of the Night as representative of Empress Maria Theresa, who reputedly harboured anti-Masonic views.
The Overture is a sparkling study in the development of a simple theme using counterpoint. Masonic significance associated with the number three has led to conclusions being drawn from the very opening notes, a trio of grand chords on the triad of E-flat major, a key characterised by three flats. The solemn introduction gives way to an allegro which fizzes through the string section, the woodwinds adding a simple second theme either side of a reappearance from those three chords. The overture's climax appears twice, rising out of a chromatic figure which hints impishly at the abstruse themes of the opera.
Georges Bizet (1838-1875) – Extracts from Carmen suites (1875)
Carmen, first performed in Paris in 1875, has come to enjoy enduring popularity after the hostility with which it was originally met. Many aspects of the story, from the title character’s blatant sexuality to the rowdy, fighting and smoking female chorus, evoked outrage in the press and public. It was only after the composer’s premature death some months after the opera’s first outing that the work came to be widely accepted as worthy of performance. The two Carmen Suites for orchestra were arranged by Ernest Guiraud after the composer’s death. Each squeezes together a handful of the opera’s more popular tunes into an almost acceptable whole. This is, of course, at the expense of the opera’s dramatic flow. Tonight we have deconstructed the suites and rearranged them into a more logical sequence...
1. Overture - Les Toréadors (Suite 1, No. 5)
2. Prélude (Suite 1, No. 1)
3. Habanera (Suite 2, No. 7)
4. La Garde Montante (Suite 2, No. 10)
5. Séguedille (Suite 1, No. 3)
6. Les Dragons d’Alcala (Suite 1, No. 4)
7. Chanson du Toréador (Suite 2, No. 9)
8. Intermezzo (Suite 1, No. 2)
9. Marche des Contrebandiers (Suite 2, No. 6)
10. Aragonaise (Suite 1, No. 1a)
11. Danse Bohême (Suite 2, No. 11)
After the opera’s Overture, the dark Prélude to Act I hints at the tragic motifs of fate and Carmen herself. In the first scene, Carmen sings provocatively to a crowd of soldiers about the wildness of love in the Habenera. The guard changes, imitated by a crowd of feral children (La garde Montante), and Carmen tosses a flower at the haughty Don José. Young Micaëla passes him a note from his mother, encouraging him to marry her, which he finds far more persuasive encouragement than Carmen’s sultry ways. A commotion breaks out as Carmen is accused of having attacked another woman with a knife. Once arrested and tied up, she sings a seductive Séguedille, which persuades the foolish Don José to release her. She hands off her guard and runs away laughing, while the Don is arrested for dereliction of duty.
Act II begins a month later, heralded by the pompous Les Dragons d’Alcala. Carmenand her friends entertain the menfolk with the wild Danse Bohême at this point, although for medical reasons this will appear at the end of tonight’s performance. The hairy-chested toreador Escamillo appears with his Chanson du Toréador, although his androgenous act is swiftly brushed aside by Carmen, who has now set her sights on Don José. She dances for him in private (censored tonight) and persuades him once again to abandon his post. He attacks his officer, Zuniga, and makes off with Carmenand a band of smugglers.
Act III opens in the wild mountains with the Smugglers’ Marche des Contrebandiers. Carmen has once again lost interest in Don José. The innocent Micaëla appears in an attempt to win back José, who instead brawls with Escamillo after he makes a pass at Carmen. Eventually José agrees to return home with Micaëla when she mentions his apparently moribund mother.
Act IV returns to Seville with the fiery Aragonaise. Carmen now declares her love for Escamillo, who departs to fight a cow. The desperate Don Josê confronts Carmen and begs her to take him back. She refuses, and as distant cheers are heard for Escamillo’s bovine triumph, José stabs her and turns himself in.