Alfonso and Estrella

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Work data
Title: Alfonso and Estrella
Theater ticket at the Court Theater Weimar 1854

Theater ticket at the Court Theater Weimar 1854

Shape: Great heroic-romantic opera in three acts
Original language: German
Music: Franz Schubert
Libretto : Franz von Schober
Premiere: June 24, 1854 (composed 1822)
Place of premiere: Weimar Court Theater
Playing time: approx. 2 ½ hours
Place and time of the action: Residential city of Oviedo in the Kingdom of León and a nearby mountain range, around 790
people
  • Mauregato, King of León ( baritone )
  • Estrella, his daughter ( soprano )
  • Adolfo, General Mauregatos ( bass )
  • Froila, expelled King of León (baritone)
  • Alfonso, his son ( tenor )
  • Head of the bodyguard Mauregatos (tenor)
  • A girl (soprano)
  • A young man (tenor)
  • Country people, hunters, hunters, servants, warriors ( choir )

Alfonso and Estrella ( D 732) is a three-act "Great heroic-romantic" opera by Franz Schubert based on a libretto by Franz von Schober . It was created in the years 1821/1822 and was premiered on June 24, 1854 in the Weimar Court Theater.

action

The scene and time of the action are not directly specified in the libretto, but can be reconstructed from it. Accordingly, the opera is set at the time of the Reconquista around 790 in Oviedo , the royal seat of the Kingdom of Asturias , which is referred to here with the later historical name of León , and a nearby mountain range.

The old King Froila (baritone) was driven into exile after Mauregato (baritone) and his general Adolfo (bass) dethroned him. Estrella (soprano), the daughter of the new ruler, is promised to the general. She in turn gets to know and love Froila's son Alfonso (tenor) after the hunt wandering around in rock and forest. After the suppression of an uprising of Adolfos, who himself desires Estrella, the kings are reconciled and Alfonsus ascends to the throne.

first act

An idyllic rock valley with the Froilas hut

In the early morning peasants decorate the hut of the old, disempowered King Froila with flowers and wreaths (introduction: “Still the night covers us”). Here in exile Froila has found his peace again, but hopes that his son Alfonso will one day get the throne back (aria: “Greetings to me, oh sun”). The peasants praise his kindness and assure him of their loyalty (choir and ensemble: “Gather yourselves, brothers”). Froila thanks them. When a young man asked him to hand over the insignia of his rule for the following year to his son, who had won all the games, he gave Alfonso the “sword of the leader”. Alfonso just takes it disgruntled. When asked about the reason, he replies that “this happiness” will never be enough for him, since he is not allowed to leave the valley (duet: “Adorned with splendor and victories”). He longs to go out into the world (Aria: "Already when it begins to meet"). Froila explains to him that there is a cruel tyrant in the neighboring country and that their quiet life is protected by the mountain range. But the chains will soon fall (duet: "My scouts are already sneaking up"). As a pledge for this promise, he presented Alfonso with a chain that was later given a special meaning as “Eurichs chain”.

Mauregatos Castle

Estrella, the daughter of King Mauregato, who had driven Froila from the throne at the time, is asked to hunt by her friends (chorus: "To hunt, to hunt!"). But despite the riches surrounding her and the cheerful mood of the others, Estrella's mood is subdued (aria with chorus: "It adorns the wide halls"). Mauregato's general Adolfo appears after a victorious battle. He assures Estrella that only the thought of her gave him the necessary courage (Aria: "But in the turmoil of battle"). He asks her for her love in return. Estrella rejects him and explains that she can only show him respect. Then Mauregato threatens her with violence (duet: "Yes, give, hear my pleading"). After a combative choir of warriors (finale: "Shining weapon delights the warrior"), Adolfo pays homage to King Mauregato. He promises him a reward for his loyalty, which Adolfo is allowed to choose himself, and vows to grant his wish. Adolfo asks him for the hand of his daughter Estrella. She begs her father to spare her from this cold-hearted man. Mauregato does not want to marry his daughter against her will and invokes an old prophecy: "Only those who bring back the chain of Eurichs, which are still missing from the old royal line, will be solemnly married to Estrellen." Alfonso does not want to accept that. He swears revenge. The act ends with battle cries of Adolfo and the warriors, who mingle with the hunting cries of Estrella and her friends, while Mauregato hopes that Estrella can find her calm again.

Second act

Mountain range near Froilas valley

At the request of his son, Froila sings the “Song of the Cloud Girl”, which is about a tragic love story (aria: “The hunter rested poured”). While Froila then returns to the hut, Alfonso wants to indulge in the romantic feelings awakened by the song for a while in the open air. He meets Estrella, who got lost during the hunt (duet: "Surrounded by rock and forest"). Alfonso feels reminded of the cloud girl and falls in love with her on the spot (aria: "When I see you Holde"). Estrella is also pleased and grateful (duet: “You appeared to me to be friendly”). She would like to stay with him longer, but has to go back to her father, who is certainly already worried about her (Aria: “I could stay here forever”). Alfonso gives her the chain he received from his father as a goodbye (duet: "Let yourself be a reminder").

Ruined courtyard in Oviedo

Adolfo has called his supporters together in a conspiracy against the king (choir and ensemble: “Silence, friends, watch out”). His goal is the private vengeance on Mauregato, the robbery of the crown and the marriage to Estrella, but before his friends he claims to want to avenge the exiled King Froila (aria: “Yes, I want to cool my vengeance”).

Mauregatos Castle

Mauregato's people return unsuccessfully from the search for the still missing Estrella (chorus: "Where is she, what are you coming to announce?"). Mauregato suffers from the weight of the crown and cannot really trust anyone. His only consolation was his love for his daughter Estrella (aria: "Only admired by envy"). Her return is finally announced (ensemble: “The princess has appeared!”) And he can hug her again (duet and choir: “May your child hug you?”). Mauregato sees "Eurich's sacred chain" on her neck, which, according to prophecy, should be brought by her future husband. Estrella hopes this saying will come true. Although she does not yet know Alfonso's name, she can see his picture vividly in front of her (aria: “Herrlich auf des Berg's heights”). The leader of Mauregato's bodyguard interrupts the conversation with the news that insurgents led by Adolfo are approaching the palace. Mauregato can hardly believe this betrayal of his favorite. Estrella insists on staying by her father's side to stand with him, and everyone gears up for battle.

Third act

Froila's valley with his hut in the background

An orchestral introduction shows the battle between Mauregatos and Adolfo's troops (introduction: Allegro). A young man and a girl lament the disaster and the many deaths (duet and choir: “Do you hear calling, do you hear noise?”). Adolfo has brought Estrella into his hand and asks her to accept his love and marry him (duet: "You will not escape me!"). When Estrella refuses his request, he draws his dagger and gives her an ultimatum: “Choose life or death!” Estrella calls for help. Their screams bring about Alfonso and his hunters, who manage to overpower Adolfo and beat him in chains (trio and choir: “Help” - “What a voice!”). Alfonso now expects joyful thanks from Estrella - but she worries about her father, the King of León, from whose side she was torn during the battle (duet: “But now be your savior”). Alfonso promises her his rescue. He wants to prove himself worthy of her love (duet: “I see it beautiful and wonderful”). Then the fleeing warriors Mauregato come towards them (duet with chorus: "Woe, my father's troops"). Alfonso stops them and encourages them to continue the fight under his leadership. To do this, he shows them the captured enemy leader and blows the horn to summon his companions. The hunters answer with more horn calls, come over and swear allegiance to him together with the warriors (ensemble: “You heard the call”).

When Froila also appears, Alfonso asks him to take care of Estrella, whom he introduces to him as Princess of León and his lover, until her father is saved. Froila is surprised to meet the daughter of his old enemy Mauregato in her. But he no longer harbors any grudges and, on the contrary, is pleased about this turn of fate. Alfonso, the hunters and warriors set out to fight the other conspirators.

Then Mauregato, plagued by remorse, approaches. At first he thinks Froila is a ghost, asks him for mercy and hands him the stolen crown (aria: "Where can I find the place"). Froila assures him that he is still alive and that he will forgive him (duet: "No ghost, I am alive"). The two make up. Froila brings Mauregato together with his rescued daughter (trio: “I have you again, father!”). Shortly afterwards, Alfonso also returns victorious with the hunters and warriors (finale: "Swinging the swords high"). Alfonso puts his sword at Mauregato's feet - but it refers to Froila, who is now king. All including the defeated Adolfo assure him of their allegiance. Froila leaves the judgment on Adolfo Mauregato, who graciously gives him freedom. Estella tells her father that Alfonso was the one who gave her the necklace. Then Mauregato promises him her hand as a prize. In addition, Froila ceded his royal dignity. Adolfo also swears his allegiance to him. Everyone praises the young couple and the new king (final chorus: “Love has the bow of peace”).

layout

Alfonso and Estrella is Schubert's only fully composed opera. For Kurt Pahlen , it represents an “important step on the way from German game opera to musical drama”. There are no more spoken texts. Instead, longer “dramatic-musical formations” emerge that already lead to Wagner's technique . The arias are designed like songs and dispense with any virtuosity. The different people are characterized by the instrumentation and melody. With these forerunners of leitmotifs , too , Schubert anticipated Wagner. What is also striking is the great importance of the choir, which participates in 15 of the 34 numbers. The orchestral recitatives are closely based on the language. Here Schubert often uses a larger pitch range and larger intervals than in the recitatives of the previous century. Possibly he oriented himself on the finals of Mozart's Magic Flute or on Weber's Freischütz .

Although Liszt praised the work extraordinarily, in which Schubert increased the declamation "to an energy and strength previously not thought possible in the song and glorified masterpieces of poetry with their expression", Alfonso and Estrella, like Schubert's other operas , was considered by music historians "Failed". This sweeping judgment has recently been questioned. Kurt Pahlen, for example, considers it to be extraordinarily progressive in the time it was written and sees one reason for the negative reception in the fact that the opera was no longer so “revolutionary” at the time it was first performed. Ulrich Schreiber counts them, together with Schubert's Fierrabras, among the “most ambitious romantic operas in the German cultural world”. Problematic, however, is Schober's libretto, which is completely composed in rhyming verses without going into the respective dramatic situation - for Schreiber the "negative [...] epitome of a poetically closed form", which Schubert could not do much to counter. The “song-like character” of the music results from the “endlessly even four-four time” as a result of the “linguistic wasteland”. There are also weaknesses in the dramaturgy. Hans-Joachim Hinrichsen cites as examples Adolfo's breach of loyalty, presented too late, which only triggers the actual plot, as well as the implausible conception of the "rather lyrical anti-hero" Alfonso as the conqueror of Adolfo.

On the other hand, the instrumentation, which was extremely differentiated for the time of the composition, is of particular quality. Marius Flothuis described the Estrella / Mauregato / Adolfo trio in the finale of the first act, which is designed as a three-part canon (“What will I now begin”), to which the choir joins in unison, as a “masterpiece” .

  • Autographs

  • Autograph of the song from the cloud girl (Froila), later quoted in "Deception" ( Winterreise )

  • Aria of Adolfo, autograph piano reduction

Instrumentation

The orchestral line-up for the opera includes the following instruments:

Music numbers

The opera contains the following musical numbers:

first act

  • Overture: Andante - Allegro
  • No. 1. Introduction (choir with alto and tenor solo): "Still still covers us the night"
  • No. 2. Aria (Froila): "Greetings to me, oh sun"
  • No. 3. Choir and ensemble (girl, youth, Froila): "Gather yourselves, brothers"
  • No. 4. Duet (Froila, Alfonso): "Adorned by splendor and victories"
  • No. 5. Recitative (Alfonso, Froila): "It is your strict command"
    • Aria (Alfonso): "Even when it starts to meet"
  • No. 6. Recitative (Froila, Alfonso): "You touch me, dear, very"
    • Duet (Froila, Alfonso): "My scouts are already sneaking up"
  • No. 7. Choir: "To the hunt, to the hunt!"
    • Aria with choir (Estrella, women): "It adorns the wide halls"
  • No. 8. Recitative (Adolfo, Estrella): "Stay, O Princess!"
    • Aria (Adolfo): "But in the turmoil of battle"
  • No. 9. Duet (Adolfo, Estrella): "Yes, give, hear my supplication"
  • No. 10. Finale (Adolfo, Mauregato, Estrella, warriors, women): "Shiny weapon delights warriors"

Second act

  • No. 11. Recitative (Alfonso, Froila): "O sing me, father"
    • Aria (Froila): "The hunter rested poured"
  • No. 12. Recitative (Alfonso, Froila): "How do I get touched by your wonderful song"
    • Duet (Estrella, Alfonso): "Surrounded by rock and forest"
  • No. 13. Recitative (Alfonso, Estrella): "Who are you, lovely being"
    • Aria (Alfonso): "When I see you beautiful"
  • No. 14. Duet (Estrella, Alfonso): "You appeared to me kindly"
  • No. 15. Aria (Estrella): "Could I stay here forever"
  • No. 16. Duet (Alfonso, Estrella): "Let yourself be a reminder"
  • No. 17. Choir and Ensemble (Conspirators, Adolfo): "Silence, friends, watch out"
    • Aria (Adolfo): "Yes, I want to cool my revenge"
  • No. 18. Choir: "Where is she, what are you coming to announce?"
    • Aria (Mauregato): "Only admired by envy"
  • No. 19. Ensemble (choir, Mauregato, Estrella): "The princess has appeared!"
  • No. 20. Duet and choir (Estrella, Mauregato): "May your child hug you?"
  • No. 21. Aria (Estrella): "Glorious on the mountain's heights"
  • No. 22. Finale (Mauregato, Estrella, leader of the bodyguard, choir): "Tell me where did he go"

Third act

  • No. 23. Introduction: Allegro
  • No. 24. Duet and choir (girls, youth, women): "Do you hear calling, do you hear noise?"
  • No. 25. Duet (Adolfo, Estrella): "You will not escape me!"
  • No. 26. Trio and choir (Estrella, Alfonso, Adolfo): "Help" - "What voice!"
  • No. 27. Duet (Alfonso, Estrella): "But now be your savior"
  • No. 28. Recitative (Estrella, Alfonso): "Yes, I am, I am saved"
    • Duet (Alfonso, Estrella): "Nice and wonderful I see it meeting"
  • No. 29. Duet with choir (Estrella, Alfonso, Krieger): "Woe, my father's troops"
  • No. 30. Ensemble (Alfonso, warrior, hunter): "You heard the call"
  • No. 31. Recitative and ensemble (Froila, Alfonso, Estrella, Krieger, Jäger): "What is going on here?"
  • No. 32. Aria (Mauregato): "Where can I find the place?"
  • No. 33. Duet (Froila, Mauregato): "No ghost, I am alive"
  • No. 34. Trio and Finale:
    • Recitative (Froila, Mauregato): "Receive now from my hand"
    • Trio (Froila, Mauregato, Estrella): "I have you again, father!"
    • Recitative (Mauregato, Froila): "What do I hear, which sounds?"
    • Finale: "Swinging the swords high"
    • Recitative: “O King! this winning sword "
    • Recitative: "Let, father, be revealed to you"
    • Final chorus: "Love has the bow of peace"

Work history

In September 1821 Schubert left Vienna with his friend, poet Franz von Schober, for a few weeks to work together on the opera Alfonso and Estrella in the St. Pölten countryside . The libretto may be based on a Spanish source, but it has not yet been identified. Even before the composition was finished, Schubert received a request for an opera for the Theater am Kärntnertor . After finishing work, he proposed his new opera. To his disappointment, however, it was rejected by the director, and the two singers who were intended for the title roles, the baritone Johann Michael Vogl , who is a friend of Schubert, and the soprano Anna Milder-Hauptmann , reacted cautiously.

Schubert used the overture in 1823 for his incidental music for the play Rosamunde . He used part of the ballad at the beginning of the second act in 1828 for the song “Deception” in the Winterreise (No. 19 there).

The first performance of an abridged version did not take place until June 24, 1854 - long after Schubert's death - in the Grand Ducal Court Theater in Weimar. The musical director was Franz Liszt , who might have been persuaded by Schober, his temporary secretary. Hans Feodor von Milde (Mauregato), Rosa Aghté-Milde (Estrella and girls), Carl Mayerhöfer (Adolfo), August Höfer (Froila), Eduard Liebert (Alfonso and youth) and August Knapp (leader of the bodyguard) sang . At this performance Schubert's overture was replaced by one by Anton Rubinstein .

A heavily edited version by Johann Nepomuk Fuchs was performed in Kassel in 1881 and was briefly successful. In 1958 a pasticcio version by Kurt Honolka was performed in Stuttgart under the title Die Wunderinsel .

In 1969 there was a performance in Edinburgh. In English, the opera was performed in Reading, UK, in 1977 and Detroit in 1978. On September 28, 1991, a largely unedited version in German was given for the first time in Graz under the direction of Mario Venzago . In 1997 the opera was performed under the direction of Nikolaus Harnoncourt in a production by Jürgen Flimm at the Wiener Festwochen . This production was taken over in 2001 in Zurich.

In 1978 Otmar Suitner recorded the complete version with well-known song singers, including Edith Mathis , Peter Schreier , Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau , Hermann Prey and Theo Adam .

Recordings

literature

  • Franz Liszt : Schubert's Alfons and Estrella . In: Dorothea Redepenning, Britta Schilling, Detlef Altenburg (eds.): Franz Liszt. Complete writings Vol. 5. Dramaturgische Blätter . Breitkopf and Härtel, Wiesbaden 1989, ISBN 3-7651-0236-9 , pp. 62-67.
  • Till Gerrit Waidelich: Franz Schubert, Alfonso and Estrella. An early, well-composed German opera. History and analysis . Schneider, Tutzing 1991, ISBN 3-7952-0693-6 ( limited preview in the Google book search).
  • Bernd Krispin: Franz Schubert's Alfonso and Estrella. A contribution to its reception history. Graz 1994.
  • Helga Lühning: Schubert as a playwright: Alfonso and Estrella. Prejudices, misunderstandings and a few suggestions for a reorientation. In: Michael Kube (Ed.): Schubert and the Biedermeier . Festschrift for Walther Dürr's 70th birthday . Bärenreiter, Kassel 2002, ISBN 3-7618-1523-9 , pp. 25–43.

Web links

Commons : Alfonso and Estrella  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Remarks

  1. ↑ in the version by Johann Nepomuk Fuchs called "Troila"
  2. ↑ in the version by Johann Nepomuk Fuchs called "Edwiga"
  3. ↑ in the version by Johann Nepomuk Fuchs called "Guisto"

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h i Marius Flothuis : Alfonso and Estrella. In: Piper's Encyclopedia of Musical Theater. Vol. 5. Works. Piccinni - Spontini. Piper, Munich and Zurich 1994, ISBN 3-492-02415-7 , pp. 661-663.
  2. ↑ a b c d e f Elizabeth Norman McKay:  Alfonso and Estrella. In: Grove Music Online (English; subscription required).
  3. ↑ a b c d Alfonso and Estrella. In: Kurt Pahlen : The new opera lexicon. Seehamer, Weyarn 2000, ISBN 3-934058-58-2 , p. 646 f.
  4. ↑ a b c Ulrich Schreiber : Opera guide for advanced learners. 19th century. Bärenreiter, Kassel 2000, ISBN 3-7618-1028-8 .
  5. ^ A b Hans-Joachim Hinrichsen : Franz Schubert. CH Beck, Munich 2011, ISBN 978-3-406-62136-9
  6. ↑ Supplement to CD Brilliant Classics 94689.
  7. ↑ a b Alfonso and Estrella. In: Reclam's Opernlexikon. Philipp Reclam jun., 2001. Digital Library, Volume 52, p. 83.
  8. ↑ June 24, 1854: “Alfonso and Estrella”. In: L'Almanacco di Gherardo Casaglia ..
  9. ↑ a b Alfonso and Estrella. In: Harenberg opera guide. 4th edition. Meyers Lexikonverlag, 2003, ISBN 3-411-76107-5 , p. 837 f.
  10. ^ Peter Hagmann: Franz Schubert's castle in the air. In: Neue Zürcher Zeitung of February 27, 2001, accessed on June 26, 2016.
  11. ↑ a b c d e f g h Franz Schubert. In: Andreas Ommer: Directory of all opera complete recordings. Zeno.org , volume 20.