Il Guarany

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Opera dates
Original title: Il Guarany
Title page of the score

Title page of the score

Shape: Opera-ballo in four acts
Original language: Italian
Music: Antonio Carlos Gomes
Libretto : Antonio Scalvini and Carlo D'Ormeville
Literary source: José de Alencar
Premiere: March 19, 1870
Place of premiere: Milan
Place and time of the action: near Rio de Janeiro , around 1560
people
  • Don Antonio de Mariz, old Portuguese hidalgo ( bass )
  • Cecilia, his daughter ( soprano )
  • Pery, chief of the Guaraní -Indianer ( Tenor )
  • Don Alvaro, Portuguese adventurer (tenor)
  • Gonzales, Spanish adventurer ( baritone )
  • Ruy-Bento, Spanish Adventurer (Tenor)
  • Alonso, Spanish adventurer (bass)
  • Il Cacico, chief ( cacique ) of Aymoré -Indianer (Bass)
  • Pedro, gun bearer Don Antonios (bass)
Overture to the opera, played by the United States Marine Band (approx. 7 min.)
Antônio Carlos Gomes, composer of Il Guarany

Il Guarany is an opera ("opera-ballo") in four acts by Antônio Carlos Gomes . The literary model was the novel O Guarani by the writer José de Alencar . The libretto was written in Italian by Antonio Scalvini and Carlo D'Ormeville . Il Guarany is considered to be the first Brazilian opera and belongs to the romantic genre of Indianismo . It is of national importance and is also known beyond the borders of Brazil .

action

«Questo dramma fu tratto dallo stupendo romanzo dello stesso titolo del celebre scrittore brasiliano Josè de Alencar. I nomi di Guarany e Aimorè, sono quelli di due fra le tante tribù indigenous, che occupavano le varie parti del territorio brasiliano prima che i portoghesi vi approdassero per introdurvi la civilizzazione europea. Secondo l'autore del romanzo, Pery era il capo dei Guarany. Questa tribù aveva indole più docile delle altre, al contrario degli Aimorè, che furono semper i più implacabili nemici dei Bianchi. Don Antonio de Mariz, personaggio storico e non ideal, fu uno dei primi che governarono il paese in nome del re di Portogallo e rimase vittima della barbarie degli indigeni. "

“This drama is based on the novel of the same name by the famous Brazilian writer José de Alencar. The Guaraní and Aymoré names are those of two of the many indigenous tribes that populated the various parts of Brazilian territory before the Portuguese came to introduce European civilization. According to the author of the novel, Pery was the chief of the Guaraní. This tribe was more peaceful than others, in contrast to the Aymoré, who were always the most unforgiving opponents of the whites. Don Antonio de Mariz, a non-ideal historical figure, was one of the first to rule the country on behalf of the King of Portugal and fell victim to the barbarism of the natives. "

- Foreword from the libretto

first act

After a hunting trip, the Portuguese Don Alvaro and the three Spanish adventurers Gonzales, Ruy-Bento and Alonso meet at the property of the Portuguese hidalgo Don Antonio de Mariz. Both Don Alvaro and Gonzales are in love with his daughter Cecilia. Don Antonio greets them warmly at first, but then informs them that one of his people accidentally killed an Aymoré Indian and that all attempts to appease the tribe have failed. Only recently Cecilia was attacked by them, but fortunately was saved by the Guaraní Pery. Don Antonio hopes for his help in repelling the Aymoré, which Pery also promises him. However, he does not yet know that Pery and Cecilia have fallen in love with each other. Instead, he accepts Don Alvaro's courtship. When Cecilia refuses, he orders her to obey. While the soldiers withdraw for a consultation before the fight and call the Madonna, Cecilia and Pery confess their love.

Second act

Pery has retired to a grotto in the jungle to reflect. Gonzales and his friends appear. Pery overhears their conversation unnoticed: the adventurers want to seize Antonios' silver mine and kidnap Cecilia. Pery leaves his hiding place and faces them. While the other conspirators flee, there is a duel between Pery and Gonzales, which Pery wins. Pery makes Gonzales swear to leave the country and magnanimously gives him his life.

Gonzales meets his cronies Alonso and Ruy-Bento in the Spaniard's camp and starts the canzone "Del Aventuriere". He doesn't think about keeping his oath. After he has sworn the others with the prospect of the booty to follow, they decide to kidnap Cecilia again.

Cecilia is alone on the balcony of the property and thinks about her love for Pery. Gonzales shows up surprisingly to kidnap her. Pery hears her cry for help. He can intervene in time and wounds Gonzales. He then tells the Hidalgo about the overheard conspiracy, which Gonzales denies. At this moment the Aymoré Indians attack and storm the property. Don Antonio's men come to the defense, but Cecilia is captured by the Indians.

Third act

In the camp of cannibalistic Aymoré wants cacique Cecilia marry her. Pery steps in to free her. However, he is overwhelmed and sentenced to death to be eaten by the tribal elders. Before the execution, the Indians call on their gods with cultic song and dance (ballet performance). In the meantime, Pery and Cecilia confess their love again. Don Antonio and his men arrive just in time and can free the prisoners. Cecilia's admirer Don Alvaro is killed during the fight.

Fourth act

The villainous mercenaries have escaped and decide to team up with the Aymoré to destroy Don Antonio. Gonzales wants revenge above all on Pery. They manage to move the lock. However, Pery knows a secret exit through which he wants to save Cecilia. Since Don Antonio does not want to entrust her to a pagan, Pery is baptized by him. While the couple manage to escape, Don Antonio lights the powder kegs in the vaulted cellar and blows himself up together with the attackers.

layout

Gomes had a penchant for Indian subjects all his life. One of the reasons may have been that one of his Spanish ancestors married an Indian girl from the Guarani tribe. His opera Lo Schiavo , written in 1888, also deals with a conflict between Portuguese and Indians. Although the text by Il Guarani is a typical example of the Indianismo genre , Gomes completely dispenses with Indian themes in the music. The Indians also sing in the Italian style here. The melody of the work is reminiscent of the early to middle Verdi . In addition to the stylistic elements of the Italian belcanto opera, there are features of the French grand opéra , which is particularly noticeable in the sophisticated instrumentation and in the ballet of the third act. The final catastrophe has a parallel in Giacomo Meyerbeer's Le prophète .

In his work, Gomes deals with the history of Brazil in the 19th century: The “capitalist” Don Antonio owns silver mines and is looking for a rich groom for his daughter. There are also white criminal adventurers who want to enrich themselves at the expense of the Indians. The final marriage of the Indian Pery and the entrepreneur's daughter Cecilia seems like a utopia.

Performance history

The Brazilian composer Carlos Gomes went to Milan in 1864 to complete his studies. Il Guarany is his first opera written in Europe. The premiere took place on March 19, 1870 under the direction of Eugenio Terziani at La Scala in Milan . It was a resounding success, performing twelve times in 1870 and another fifteen times the following year. In Brazil, the work was performed on December 2, 1870 in the Teatro Lyrico Fluminense on the occasion of the 45th birthday of Emperor Pedro II under the title O Guarani . The staging of this performance came from the composer himself. The German premiere took place in Bonn in 1994 with a production by Werner Herzog .

At the premiere in Milan in 1870 sang:

role Pitch Singer
Don Antonio de Mariz bass Teodoro Coloni
Cecilia soprano Marie Constance Sass
Pery tenor Giuseppe Villani
Don Alvaro tenor Giuseppe Masato
Gonzales baritone Enrico Storti
Ruy bento tenor Annibale Micheloni
Alonso bass Severino Mazza
Il Cacico bass Victor Maurel
Pedro bass Severino Mazza

The duet Sento una forza indomita for tenor and soprano was part of the repertoire of Francesco Marconi and Bice Mililotti in 1908 . Enrico Caruso and Emmy Destinn sang it in 1914.

The work has also been performed and recorded several times in recent times:

literature

  • Gerard Béhague: Il Guarany. In: Stanley Sadie (Ed.): The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. London 1992, ISBN 0-333-73432-7 .
  • John R. Bennett: Voices of The Past, Volume 2 - A Catalog of Vocal Recordings from THE ITALIAN CATALOGUES of The Gramophone Company (Italy) 1899-1909. The Gramophone Company Limited 1909; Compagnia Italiana Del Grammofono 1909-1912; Società Nazionale Del Grammofono 1912–1925. The Oakwood Press, Lingfield 1957.
  • Mary Jane Phillips-Matz: Washington National Opera 1956-2006 . Washington National Opera , Washington, DC 2006, ISBN 0-9777037-0-3 .
  • Heinz Wagner: Gomes, Antonio Carlos - "The Guarany" (Il Guarany). In: The great manual of the opera , 2nd edition. Florian Noetzel Verlag Wilhelmshaven, 1995, ISBN 3-930656-14-0 , p. 259 f.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Maria Alice Volpe: Remaking the Brazilian Myth of the National Foundation: "Il Guarany" (Fall-Winter 2002). In: Latin American Music Review / Revista de Música Latinoamericana , Volume 23 (2), pp. 179-194.
  2. ↑ Full text information and libretto (Italian) on librettidopera.it
  3. ↑ a b c Gomes - Il Guarany. In: Harenberg Opernführer, 4th edition 2003, ISBN 3-411-76107-5 , pp. 301 f.
  4. ^ A b Arthur Scherle: Antônio Carlos Gomes - A Brazilian opera composer. Supplement to CD Gomes: Il Guarany, 1995, Sony Classical S2K 66 273, p. 18 ff.
  5. ↑ Bennett
  6. ↑ a b c d Antonio Carlos Gomes. In: Andreas Ommer: Directory of all complete opera recordings, Zeno.org , Volume 20, pp. 5649 ff.