Atys (Lully)
| Opera dates | |
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| Title: | Atys |
Title page of the libretto, Paris 1676 |
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| Shape: | Tragédie lyrique in a prologue and five acts |
| Original language: | French |
| Music: | Jean-Baptiste Lully |
| Libretto : | Philippe Quinault |
| Literary source: | Ovid , Fasti |
| Premiere: | January 10, 1676 |
| Place of premiere: | Saint-Germain-en-Laye Castle |
| Playing time: | approx. 2 ¾ hours |
| Place and time of the action: | Phrygia , mythical time |
| people | |
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prolog
tragedy
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Atys is a tragédie lyrique (original name: "Opéra en musique", later also "Tragédie en musique") in a prologue and five acts by Jean-Baptiste Lully (music) with a libretto by Philippe Quinault based on Ovids Fasti . It was first performed on January 10, 1676 in Saint-Germain-en-Laye Castle .
action
At the end of the prologue, in which King Louis XIV is praised as the new hero, the goddess Iris announces the following tragedy for his entertainment. This is about the love of the goddess Cybele for the youth Atys . At the beginning Atys falls in love with the nymph Sangaride, whose marriage to the Phrygian king Celænus (a friend of Atys) is imminent. Unaware of this situation, Cybele personally appoints Atys as her high priest and confesses her love to him in an extensive dream scene. Atys is plagued by a bad conscience, but then decides in favor of Sangaride. Before she finds out, she, in a fit of jealousy, agrees to marry Celænus. Atys interrupts the wedding celebration with the claim that Cybele has forbidden the marriage and disappears with Sangaride. In revenge, Cybele summons the fury Alecton , who bewitches Atys so that he thinks Sangaride is a monster and kills him. After he regains his senses, Atys stabs himself. Cybele turns him into a pine tree and mourns him.
prolog
Palace of Time
On January 10, 1676, the time and hours of day and night praised a new hero who made the memory of the heroes of centuries past fade - Louis XIV. The goddess Flore is led in by a zephyr , accompanied by nymphs adorned with flowers, the to dance a menuet en rondeau . When Die Zeit asks her why she appeared early in the middle of winter, Flore replies that she definitely didn't want to miss the hero, who would go to war in spring. The dances that follow are interrupted by Melpomene , the muse of tragedy, who appears with a group of heroes, followed by Hercule , Antæe , Castor, Pollux , Lyncée , Idas , Eteocle and Polinice . They drive Flore and her entourage away to make way for the following tragic drama, in which the heroes dance in a pantomime to portray their past battles. The goddess Iris descends on her rainbow to summon Flore and Melpomene to the side of the goddess Cybele. They are supposed to provide entertainment for the hero together.
first act
A mountain dedicated to Cybele
Scene 1. At dawn, Atys calls the people of Phrygia to await the imminent arrival of the goddess Cybele. The refrain "Allons, allons, accourez tous, Cybele va descendre" is repeated several times in a modified form in the course of the following scenes.
Scene 2. Atys' friend Idas appears first. The sun is already bathing the fields in lively colors. They talk about love, which Idas thinks is irresistible. Atys, on the other hand, prefers the "happy peace of indifferent hearts". Even if the pleasure is not so great, the pain is less. He admits that he has already felt it.
Scene 3. The nymph Sangaride and her friend Doris, Idas' sister, join them. Birds start to sing. Sangaride also praises the power of love ("Quand le peril est agreable"), which Atys again denies. Atys and Idas move away.
Scene 4. Sangaride envies Atys his indifference (“Atys est trop heureux!”). She suffers from love herself, as she is said to be married to the Phrygian king Celænus even today, although she is secretly in love with Atys. Her only consolation is that Atys does not return her love.
Scene 5. Atys returns and announces the approach of the Phrygians. Doris leaves to fetch the other nymphs.
Scene 6. Alone with Sangaride, Atys congratulates her on her upcoming wedding. At first he shows no signs of jealousy, but then he confesses that her happiest day will also be his last - he dies out of love for her. Sangaride also reveals her love to him. If he is really looking for death, she will have to follow him. With no other choice, they decide to keep their mutual affection a secret.
Scene 7. Doris and Idas return with the Phrygians. While the goddess Cybele descends from the mountain in her carriage, the Phrygians celebrate in her honor with dancing and singing (“Commençons, commençons”).
Scene 8. Cybele greets her people and announces the election of a new priest. The act ends with her aria "Vous devez vous animer" - "Nous devons nous animer", which is then recorded by the choir.
Second act
Temple of Cybele
Scene 1. King Celænus and Atys await the arrival of Cybeles, who chooses one of them to be their high priest. Atys believes that the goddess will choose Celænus, the most powerful of the kings. Celænus is not so sure. He also has doubts about his bride Sangaride and asks Atys, who apparently has her trust, if he knows of a secret lover. Atys calms him down. Sangaride would follow duty and glory, and both be up to him, Celænus. Celænus misses love - but the indifferent Atys could not understand that. After each of the two has presented their principles in an aria, Atys leaves.
Scene 2. Cybele arrives with her confidante Melissa and a group of priestesses to tell Celænus of their choice. Although he deserved priority among all kings, she wanted to choose Atys. Celænus wishes his friend Atys all the best. He himself is satisfied with his other achievements: he is king, Neptune is his father, and he will marry a beauty. Atys' heart, on the other hand, is free to serve Cybele undisturbed. Celænus and the priestesses go.
Scene 3. Left alone with Melissa, amazed at the choice, Cybele reveals her love for Atys. She wanted to make this known to him in a very special way. For this purpose, melissa may bring sleep and dreams. Meanwhile the Zephyrs and the peoples are to pay homage to her and to the new high priest.
Scene 4. The Zephyrs appear radiant in the air, various ethnic groups enter the temple, and everyone celebrates the glory of the new high priest in a divertissement .
Third act
Cybele Palace of the Priests
Scene 1. Atys complains that all amusement cannot make him happy. With his love for Sangaride, he would lose the only thing that is important to him - and that would betray his duty.
Scene 2. Idas and Doris ask Atys for an open conversation. Sangaride revealed her feelings to them in tears. She no longer wants to marry Celænus and publicly announce her love. Atys finds it difficult to choose between her and his friendship with the king - but in the end love prevails.
Scene 3. Alone again, Atys continues to ponder his feelings. He is surprised by tiredness and sinks into the cave of sleep.
A grotto surrounded by poppies and streams
Scene 4. The god of sleep, accompanied by pleasant and gloomy dreams and his sons Morphée, Phobetor and Phantase, approaches the sleeping Atys. Two of the dreams play the viola, two others theorbo , six dreams play the flute, twelve dark dreams sing, and eight tempting and eight dark dreams dance (“Dormons, dormons tous”). On behalf of Cybeles, they reveal their love to Atys and represent her delights. In addition, they warn him with terrifying images not to reject them. Atys wakes up, frightened by the dark dreams. The pictures disappear along with the cave, and Atys finds himself in the palace.
Cybele Palace of the Priests
Scene 5. Meanwhile, Cybele and Melissa have arrived at the palace. Cybele calms the still disturbed Atys. He should believe the dreams because they spoke on their behalf. She assures him of her love and asks for an open answer.
Scene 6. Sangaride rushes in, throws herself at the goddess' feet and begs her for help. Atys interrupts her in time before she can reveal her love for him. He now asks Cybele himself to prevent Sangaride's marriage to Celænus. Cybele pledges their support. You love Atys, have given up everything for him and cannot refuse any wish. Sangaride withdraws. Then Cybele sends Atys away to await her orders.
Scene 7. Cybele complains about Atys' indifference to Melissa, who apparently does not return her love. Melissa replies that Atys just doesn't know how to express love. Cybele, however, is concerned. She sends Melissa to Zephire so that Atys' wishes can be fulfilled.
Scene 8. Cybele is desperate that she was so mistaken about love (“Espoir si cher et si doux”).
Fourth act
Palace of the Sangar River
Scene 1. Sangaride is in tears. She complains to Doris and Idas that Atys chose Cybele and betrayed her love. The two try in vain to comfort her (trio: “Qu'une premiere amour est belle”).
Scene 2. Celænus and his entourage appear to pick up Sangaride for the wedding ceremony. She agrees - after all, the marriage is her father's wish.
Scene 3. Celænus tells Atys, who has joined them, that he is happy that his love is finally returned by Sangaride. Doris, Idas and Celænus with his entourage depart.
Scene 4. Atys and Sangaride can finally speak out and clear up the misunderstandings. You swear everlasting love. Atys leaves to use the power Cybele has given him to grant her wishes.
Scene 5. Celænus and the wedding guests appear, including the god of the river Sangar (Sangaride's father) and other river, stream and spring deities. Sangar introduces the bridegroom Celænus to those present. They give their consent and celebrate in a divertissement with various choirs and dances ("Tous, d'une commune voix"): Twelve great river gods sing, five play the flute, four spring gods and four river gods and two small brook gods sing and dance, four small ones Stream deities, six great river gods, two old river gods and two old spring nymphs dance (including choir “La beauté la plus sévère” and duet “D'une constance extresme”).
Scene 6. Atys arrives with a group of flying zephyrs. In his capacity as high priest Cybeles, he claims that the goddess forbade marriage. Celænus feels betrayed by his friend. The Zephyrs carry Atys and Sangaride through the air.
Fifth act
Magical gardens
Scene 1. Celænus confronts Cybele with the unexpected ban on marriage and accuses her of cruelty. Cybele justifies herself with her love for Atys, which has led her to injustice. But she too had been betrayed because Atys loved Sangaride. She promises Celænus vengeance on Atys.
Scene 2. When Atys and Sangaride arrive with a group of priestesses, Cybele and Celænus accuse them of their offense. Atys and Sangaride point to their mutual love, which is not a crime. Cybele and Celænus, however, cannot be appeased. Cybele summons the fury Alecton to carry out her vengeance.
Scene 3. Idas, Doris and some Phrygians join them. Alecton rises from the underworld to the sounds of a short prelude with sixteenth notes and dotted rhythms. She shakes a torch over Atys' head, whereupon he is overwhelmed by hallucinations. In his madness he thinks Sangaride is a monster that needs to be destroyed and chases her off the stage - accompanied by the screams of the choir ("Atys! Ô Ciel! Atys luy-mesme fait perir ce qu'il aime!"). Then he stabs her with the sacrificial knife in front of Celænus' eyes. Cybele and Celænus are avenged, but this punishment goes too far for the latter. He withdraws in horror.
Scene 4. After Atys returns, Cybele touches him and lets him come back to his senses. Then she shows him the dead Sangaride and tells him to his dismay that he himself killed her. She orders the priestesses to remove the body. Atys, Idas, Doris and the Phrygians follow them.
Scene 5. Left alone with Melissa, Cybele regrets what has happened.
Scene 6. Idas drags the seriously injured Atys, followed by the priestesses. In order to be united with Sangaride, at least in death, Atys stabbed himself to death. Cybele transforms him into her favorite tree, a pine. He should forever remain the object of their love. She calls corybants , water nymphs and forest gods to a common lament.
Scene 7. The last divertissement is dedicated to the funeral suit. Four nymphs, eight water gods and fourteen corybants sing, eight corybants, three forest gods and three nymphs dance.
layout
Instrumentation
In the orchestra of the Opera playing recorders , flutes , oboes , tenor oboes, crumhorns , bassoon , percussion , strings and basso continuo . According to contemporary sources, the zephyrs played five oboes (including two tenor) and three crooked horns in the second act. In William Christie's CD recording , five recorders (one also in bass register), five oboes (two in tenor register) and three bassoons were used. For the ritornelle , Christie used a favorite selection of the strings, some of which also played solo. The continuo contained two harpsichords, basse de violon , two basses de viole , lute , arch lute (alternating with Luth piccolo ), theorbo and guitar .
music
As in Lully's earlier operas, the colorful divertissements are complex. Here, however, the recitatives are also carefully structured. The plot progresses steadily with increasing tension without jumps. It is also his first opera with a tragic ending. Funny interludes and subplots are missing. Only the scene with Sangaride's father Sangar and the other river gods in the fourth act (scene 5) can also be interpreted in a humorous way. Even the divertissements are involved in the plot.
In the last act, the choir has the function of an observer and commentator, similar to that in Greek tragedy.
The music is characterized by a differentiated orchestration with echo effects and exotic sound mixes. Sangaride's connection with nature is depicted atmospherically. The slumber music in the third act and the lament for the dead in C minor, accompanied by flutes, are particularly effective .
The sleep scene of the third act, which lasts almost 20 minutes, consists of three parts, which are dedicated to the gods of sleep, pleasant dreams and nightmares. Lully only uses two basic keys: the pleasant parts are in G minor, the visions of horror in B flat major. The scene begins gently with a "permanent circular movement in even quarters" that wanders through the instruments. The sound that is typical for sleep arises primarily from the instrumental line-up with flutes, theorbs and violas. Herbert Schneider recognized in the music "a dissonant, rising motif of sighs, as it were to the slumber topos, which gives the scene an uncanny, even magical depth." Already in the positive part of the scene there are two admonishing interjections in B flat major by the gods choir. The actual B major part that follows consists of a recitative, a ballet entree, a male choir without instrumental accompaniment and a dance. This scene became the prototype of many similar scenes in later operas by Lully and other composers.
The French-language recitative declamation of the opera is of an extraordinarily high artistic level. Silke Leopold cites the last scene of the third act as an example, in which Cybele expresses her desperation that Atys does not love her. The scene is in E minor, a key that Marc-Antoine Charpentier called “soft, in love and plaintif” (“effeminé, amoureux et plaintif”), which appears here for the second time. The scene is structured by a short, metrically unbound refrain ("Espoir si cher, et si doux, ah! Pourquoy me trompez-vous?") And thus has a self-contained form. The texts between the chorus verses are in Alexandrians . Lully also musically expressed the metric contrast between the two components of this scene:
“By means of numerous time changes, Lully made sure that the main accents of the Alexandrians always fell on the beginning of the bar, while the irregular accent structure of the refrain also came into play in the music, for example by repeating the sigh at the beginning of the second verse and only with the leading note dis '', then again, after a pathetic pause with the root e '', but here connected over an E major chord. The melodic invention followed the state of mind on the one hand, but also the meaning of the word on the other. "
Lully already used the means of the refrain in the first act, when Sangaride lamented Atys' indifference (“Atys est trop heureux!”). The falling tetrachord in the bass line at this point is used in the ostinato-like Lamento that follows , and later also introduces the scene with the couple's confession of love as a reminder.
The recitatives are (unlike in Italian opera) in a precisely defined meter of two and three rhythms. Lully and Quinault use this remedy for a precise characterization of the various people. Celænus 'insecurity at the beginning of Act 2 is expressed, for example, by a hectic and short-winded manner of speaking, and Atys' madness in Act 5 is characterized by fragmented sentences. Lully emphasizes the harmony of the secondary characters Idas and Doris in the third and fourth acts by connecting their voices. He uses similar couplings in the second scene of the fifth act, when Celænus and Cybele confront Atys and Sangaride together. The rapid succession of speech and counter-speech corresponds here to the ancient stylistic device of the stitch myth .
According to Leopold, the dialogical scenes are “composed with an almost naturalistic emphasis”, which was hardly possible in the Italian operas that were written at the same time due to the permanent separation of recitative and aria. As an example of Lully's “now typically French idea of the connection between drama and music”, she cites the confrontation between Atys and Sangaride in the fourth scene of act four, in which the two reconcile after their argument.
“[…] The mutual reproaches that condense more and more over a chromatically ascending bass, the singing together on different texts, in which the music knows more than the contestants that the reconciliation is not far, the flowing transitions between recitative and ariose singing throughout the scene, finally the reconciliation, which culminates in a polyphonic beginning, but soon leading to homophonic harmony, extended ariose end [...] "
The individual groups of the choir are also characterized musically differently. Robert Maschka remarked that in the final scene "the gods of nature have a more elegiac tone, whereas the corybants have a wild, ecstatic tone".
Work history
Atys is Lully's fourth tragedy lyrique . King Louis XIV had chosen the topic himself from several suggestions. The libretto, like that of the previous works, comes from Philippe Quinault . Voltaire named Atys together with Armide as a prime example of Quinault's mastery of this genre. Jean-Laurent Le Cerf de La Viéville called Atys “the opera of the king” (“L'Opera du Roi”) and compared it with Lully's other operas Armide (“the opera of women”), Phaëton (“the opera of Volks ") and Isis (" the opera of the musicians ").
François Beaumavielle (Temps), Marie Verdier (Flore), de la Grille (Zephir), Beaucreux (Melpomene), des Fronteaux (Iris), Bernard Clédière sang at the premiere on January 10, 1676 in the castle of Saint-Germain-en-Laye (Atys), Antoine Morel (Idas), Marie Aubry (Sangaride), Marie-Madeleine Brigogne (Doris), Saint-Christophe (Cybele), Bony (Melissa), Jean Gaye (Celænus), Ribon (Sommeil), Godonesche (Sangar ), Langeais (Morphée), Frizon (Phobetor) and de la Forest (Phantase). The main dancers were Beauchamp , Dolivet, Faure, Favier , Lestang, Magny and Pécour.
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The work was extremely successful. There were resumptions in Saint-Germain as early as 1677, 1678 and 1682. Lully composed additional dances for the latter performance. In addition to the professional dancers, courtiers danced in it. The first public performance took place in April 1676 at the Paris Opera . There were a total of seven resumptions there by 1747 (1738 without the last divertissement). As early as 1714, the audience had emancipated themselves from the monarch's taste requirements: ladies left the hall during the fifth act. In 1753 Atys was without a prologue at the court of Louis XV. played in Fontainebleau . Performances outside Paris were also held in Amsterdam, Marseille, Lyon, Rouen, Brussels, Metz, Lille and The Hague until 1749. The German premiere probably took place in Ansbach before 1686.
A sign of its great popularity is that all musical numbers were parodied in the 17th and 18th centuries. The aria of the Sangaride "Quand le peril est agreable" (first act, scene 3), the choir "Nous devons nous animer" (conclusion of the first act) and the choir "La beauté la plus severe" and the duet " D'une constance extresme ”(fourth act, scene 5).
The conductor William Christie performed the opera in a production by Jean-Marie Villégier on the occasion of Lully's 300th anniversary of his death with great success in Paris, Florence and other cities and recorded it on CD. In 2011, the US patron Ronald P. Stanton, who had attended a performance in Versailles in 1987, financed a revival of the lavish production, which was first performed at the Opéra-Comique in Paris and then in Caen, Bordeaux, Versaille and New York . A video recording was also made on this occasion.
Recordings
- January 1987 (studio): William Christie (conductor), Les Arts Florissants . Bernard Deletré (Temps, Phobetor and Sangar), Monique Zanetti (Flore), Arlette Steyer (Melpomene), Agnès Mellon (Iris and Sangaride), Guy de Mey (Atys), Jacques Bona (Idas), Françoise Semellaz (Doris), Guillemette Laurens (Cybele), Noémi Rime (Melissa), Jean-Francois Gardeil (Celænus), Gilles Ragon (Sommeil), Jean-Paul Fouchécourt (Morphée), Michel Laplénie (Phantase). harmonia mundi CD: HMX 290844, Harmonia mundi CD: HMC 901257.59 (3 CD).
- October 27, 2011 (video): William Christie (conductor), Jean-Marie Villégier (production), Les Arts Florissants , Compagnie Fêtes galantes (dancers). Bernard Richter (Atys), Marc Mauillon (Idas), Emmanuelle de Negri (Sangaride), Sophie Daneman (Doris), Stéphanie d'Oustrac (Cybele), Jaël Azzaretti (Melissa), Nicolas Rivenq (Celænus), Paul Agnew (Sommeil) , Cyril Auvity (Morphée). FRA Musica FRA006 (2 DVD).
literature
- Rebecca Harris-Warrick: Dance and Drama in French Baroque Opera. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 2016, ISBN 978-1-107-13789-9 . Contains several sub- chapters and music examples dedicated to Atys .
Web links
- Atys, LWV 53 : Sheet Music and Audio Files in the International Music Score Library Project
- Libretto (French), Paris 1676. Digitized at Google Books
- Work information and libretto (French) as full text on operalib.eu
- Libretto (French) as full text in Operone
- Action by Atys (Lully) on Opera-Guide landing page due to URL change currently unavailable
- Work data for Atys based on MGG with discography at Operone
- Work information and table of contents on unt.edu (English)
Remarks
- ↑ Spelling without an accent according to the original libretto from 1676. The modern spelling is "Cybèle".
- ↑ Spelling based on the original libretto from 1676. The modern spelling is "Célénus".
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d e f Lois Rosow: Atys (i). In: Grove Music Online (English; subscription required).
- ↑ a b c d Herbert Schneider : Atys. In: Piper's Encyclopedia of Musical Theater. Vol. 3. Works. Henze - Massine. Piper, Munich and Zurich 1989, ISBN 3-492-02413-0 , pp. 601-603.
- ↑ a b c d e Robert Maschka: Atys. In: Rudolf Kloiber , Wulf Konold , Robert Maschka: Handbuch der Oper. 9th, expanded, revised edition 2002. Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag / Bärenreiter, ISBN 3-423-32526-7 , pp. 391–394.
- ↑ a b c d e f Atys. In: Reclam's Opernlexikon. Philipp Reclam jun., 2001. Digital Library, Volume 52, p. 208.
- ↑ a b c Atys. In: Harenberg opera guide. 4th edition. Meyers Lexikonverlag, 2003, ISBN 3-411-76107-5 , pp. 481-483.
- ↑ a b c d e Silke Leopold : The opera in the 17th century (= manual of musical genres. Volume 11). Laaber, 2004, ISBN 3-89007-134-1 , pp. 188-193.
- ↑ Le Cerf de la Viéville: Comparaison de la musique. 1704-06, p. 102 ( online (PDF) ).
- ↑ Work information on operalib.eu
- ↑ Jérôme de La Gorce: L'Opéra à Paris au temps de Louis XIV. Histoire d'un théâtre , Paris 1992, p. 181.
- ↑ David Vickers: LULLY Atys. CD Review on gramophone.co.uk (English) retrieved on May 31, 2016th
- ^ Zachary Woolfe: Louis XIV Hummed a Few Arias. September 9, 2011 article in the New York Times , accessed June 1, 2016.
- ↑ Atys de LULLY par Christie / Villégier à l'Opéra-Comique: 1987–2011. Work information on operacritiques.free.fr , accessed on May 31, 2016.
- ↑ Alain Zürcher: Performance review at operabase.com , accessed on May 31, 2016.
- ↑ Jean-Baptiste Lully. In: Andreas Ommer: Directory of all opera complete recordings. Zeno.org , Volume 20, p. 8848.
- ^ DVD Atys Les Arts Florissants on harmoniamundi.com ( Memento from May 31, 2016 in the Internet Archive ).
Cadmus et Hermione (1673) | Alceste ou Le triomphe d'Alcide (1674) | Thésée (1675) | Atys (1676) | Isis (1677) | Psyché (1678) | Bellérophon (1679) | Proserpine (1680) | Persée (1682) | Phaëton (1683) | Amadis (1684) | Roland (1685) | Armide (1686) | Achille et Polyxène (1687, completed by Pascal Collasse )