Billy Budd (Opera)
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| Title: | Billy Budd |
| Original title: | Billy Budd |
Production by David Alden |
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| Original language: | English |
| Music: | Benjamin Britten |
| Libretto : | Edward Morgan Forster and Eric Crozier (based on the story by Herman Melville ) |
| Premiere: | December 1, 1951 |
| Place of premiere: | Royal Opera House Covent Garden London |
| Playing time: | approx. 2 ½ hours |
| Place and time of the action: | On board Indomitable during the Anglo-French naval war in 1797 |
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Billy Budd is an opera in two acts by Benjamin Britten . The libretto is by Edward Morgan Forster and Eric Crozier . The story Billy Budd by Herman Melville served as a template .
action
prolog
The old captain Vere, once in command of the warship HMS Indomitable in the Anglo-French naval war, thinks of his former subordinate Billy Budd.
first act
The sea deck is scrubbed on the HMS Indomitable . The ship is cruising at Cap Finisterre in anticipation of the enemy . A boat comes alongside, Lieutenant Ratcliffe has forcibly recruited three sailors, including Billy Budd , on board the merchant freighter Rights of Man . The latter is satisfied with his lot, while the other two protest. Billy, who lapses into an unmanageable stutter when excited , appeals to all crew members except Profoss John Claggart, who assigns Corporal Squeak to watch Billy and trap him wherever possible. Billy, who is warned about the devious ship's professional by the old seaman Dansker, believes he is loved by everyone. Captain Vere appears, who is greeted enthusiastically by the team and promises to come into contact with the enemy soon. In the captain's cabin, Vere is having wine with Redburn and Flint. The conversation revolves around the ideas of the French Revolution that filled the world and threatened discipline. Claggart's suspicions against Billy Budd worked for the lieutenant and sailing master, but Vere contradicts them. He thinks Billy is an honest boy and a good sailor. The sailors celebrate and sing in the intermediate deck. Billy discovers that Squeak has searched his luggage and confronts him. Squeak picks up the knife, a scuffle begins, which is ended by the appearance of Claggart. The team stands by Billy, so the Profoss arrests Squeak, but inside hates Billy even more. He wins the demoralized newcomer to lure Billy into mutiny, but Billy stutters the tempter away. The old seaman advises Billy to leave the ship as soon as possible, but Billy wants to stay.
Second act
A French frigate is sighted, battle preparations are made and a salvo is fired. A chase is impossible because of the decreasing wind and the rising fog. Billy Budd is accused of mutiny with the captain of Claggart. Vere does not want to believe that and insists on a comparison. Claggart repeats his accusation, Billy falls into a stunned stutter and lashes out to strike, fatally killing Claggart. Vere must convene the court martial, he himself acts as a witness. The chairman is Lieutenant Redburn. Billy admits the act. The court must sentence him to death according to the letters of the law. Billy, chained to two cannons, awaits the day of his execution. The old seaman sneaks up to him and reports the indignation the sentence had triggered and the intention of the crew to prevent the sentence from being carried out. But Billy asks to let the law take its course. The dawn is dawn, the team goes to the execution and Billy lets himself be led to the execution by shouting Sternen-Vere, God save you .
epilogue
The old captain Vere is plagued by doubts as to whether he acted correctly at the time. But Billy's understanding of compliance with the law comforts him.
Emergence
Billy Budd was commissioned by the Arts Council in 1950/1951 for the Royal Opera House Covent Garden and was premiered there on December 1, 1951. Under the direction of Britten and in the production of Basil Coleman, Peter Pears , partner of Britten, sang the role of Captain Vere, which he also embodied on a recording. The German premiere took place on March 2, 1952 at the Hessian State Theater Wiesbaden .
music
The opera is laid out in a well-composed, large-scale musical form that is subdivided into scenes. There are also extensive interludes. The sea plays an important role in opera. It reflects the outer tension curve of the opera and at the same time serves as a means of expression for the inner, emotional state of the tragic hero, who cannot explain himself as a stutterer in the decisive situations. The concentration on the course of action on board an English warship brings with it the dramaturgical peculiarity that Britten completely dispenses with female voices. The atmosphere is musically shaped by the inclusion of sailor songs, military signals and nautical expressions.
literature
- Hanna Rochlitz: Sea-changes: Melville - Forster - Britten. The Story of Billy Budd and its Operatic Adaptation . Universitätsverlag Göttingen, Göttingen 2012, ISBN 978-3-86395-045-3 .
