Simplicius (operetta)
| Work data | |
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| Title: | Simplicius |
| Shape: | operetta |
| Original language: | German |
| Music: | Johann Strauss (son) |
| Libretto : | Victor Léon |
| Literary source: | The adventurous Simplicissimus by Hans Jakob Christoffel von Grimmelshausen |
| Premiere: | December 17, 1887 |
| Place of premiere: | Vienna |
| Place and time of the action: | In different places during the Thirty Years War |
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Simplicius is an operetta in three acts by Johann Strauss (son) . The libretto is by Victor Léon and is based on the novel Der adventurliche Simplicissimus by Hans Jakob Christoffel von Grimmelshausen .
premiere
The work had its world premiere on December 17, 1887 in the Theater an der Wien in Vienna. The high expectations that many Viennese music lovers had placed in the work, however, were not fulfilled.
Director Victor Léon cast the serious role of Simplicius with the popular comedian Alexander Girardi , which, in the opinion of Franz Marischka, was a crucial mistake. In addition, the feathered hat of an extras lit on a candle during the performance. Although the fire was quickly extinguished, a large part of the audience left the theater in panic while Johann Strauss continued to conduct. After just a few performances, Simplicius was removed from the program.
action
The action takes place during the Thirty Years War. Against the backdrop of the war, it is about family dramas, inheritance disputes and, ultimately, love stories. In the end, the text of this operetta also follows the classic operetta cliché, although it is now very gloomy. It all dissolves somehow in favor and the problems are solved to the satisfaction of those involved.
Continue to work
The operetta Simplicius musically remained somewhat pale in comparison to other operettas by Johann Strauss and therefore has not been able to build on the great successes of the composer. Despite several reworkings, the work did not succeed in making a breakthrough. After 1894 it was practically no longer played. Only on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the death of Johann Strauss was there another performance at the Zurich Opera House in 1999 . Despite its success there, it has largely disappeared from the repertoire of theaters to this day.
Music numbers
The score contains at least the following 17 numbers, which are also given in the booklet of the DVD mentioned below:
- overture
- No. 1 Musical scene and song: In lonely, calm contemplation (Einsiedler)
- No. 2 song: The virgin shines brightly (Melchior)
- No. 3 Musical scene: Father! O father! Calm down (Simplicius, hermit)
- No. 4 Ensemble: Sacrament, Element! (Soldiers, Simplicius, sergeants)
- No. 5 Finale I: Go, go, go from here! (Constable, soldiers, Simplicius, hermit)
- No. 5a Entre'act (orchestra)
- No. 6 Introduction (2nd act): drums are booming, it's daytime (soldiers, sergeants, cuirassiers)
- No. 7 song: Since I left my forest (Simplicius)
- No. 8 song: The whole country has flared up (Arnim)
- No. 8a song: Soon I fell asleep (Hildegarde)
- No. 9 Melodrama and Duet: Be happy when you get to know the men (Schnapslotte, General)
- No. 10 Finale II: Just quickly improvising the festival (everyone except hermits)
- No. 10a Prelude to Act 3 (orchestra)
- No. 11 Melodrama and Waltz Romance: Will I ever find Simplicius again? (Hermit)
- No. 12 Ensemble: Where is he? (Farmers, general, soldiers, Simplicius)
- No. 12a Spring laughs, birds sing
- No. 13 Duet: So you are a free man (Tilly, Simplicius)
- . No. 14 Song: In chime with joyful dance (prisoners, Ebba, liquor Lotte) as bells song known
- No. 15 Quartet: In the German Stream (Tilly, Hildegarde, Arnim, Simplicius, choir)
- No. 16 Donauweibchen Waltz (Orchestra) as Opus 427 outsourced as an independent work of the composer
- No. 17 Finale III (final chant): Now I like to think again (all)
A slightly different form of the sequence of numbers can be found in the link below to the piano reduction.
Musical re-use
Independent works by the composer were then created based on motifs from this operetta, which are marked in his catalog raisonné with the opus numbers 427 to 432. These are the following works:
- Donauweibchen , Waltz, Opus 427
- Cavalry March , Opus 428
- Simplicius Quadrille , Opus 429
- Soldier's Game , Polka francaise, Opus 430
- Lagerlust , Polka Mazurka, Opus 431
- Courageously forward , fast polka 432
- Old German waltz (without op number)
Others
In 2000 a DVD with this operetta was released on the Arthaus Musik label . This is the recording of the above-mentioned performance by the Zurich Opera House. Franz Welser-Möst was the musical director . Participants were the ensemble, the choir and the orchestra of the Zurich Opera House.
The song No. 12a (see below on web links in the piano reduction) Spring laughs, the birds sing was under the new title Greetings to me, du holdes Venetia in 1923 by Erich Wolfgang Korngold in a new version of the operetta Ein Nacht installed in Venice .
Web link
Individual evidence
- ^ Franz Zwetschi Marischka: Always smile , Munich, Vienna 2001, p. 49