Joan of Arc au book

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Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher (Eng. Johanna on the stake ) is a dramatic oratorio in 11 scenes by Paul Claudel (text) and Arthur Honegger (music), which will be premiered in concert on May 12, 1938 in the music hall of the Stadtcasino Basel under the line Paul Sacher with Ida Rubinstein as Jeanne, the Basel chamber Orchestra , the Basel chamber choir and the Basel boys choir experienced as a choir. It had its scenic premiere on June 13, 1942 in the Stadttheater Zurich in the German version by Hans Reinhart . The performance lasts approx. 75 minutes without a break.

History of origin

In 1934, the Russian dancer and actress Ida Rubinstein , inspired by the performance of a mystery play by students at the Sorbonne in Paris, commissioned the Swiss composer Arthur Honegger to write a dramatic musical work that was thematically to deal with the story of Joan of Arc . Paul Claudel had been envisaged as a text poet, but out of awe of the subject, he initially refused to collaborate on the project; a vision that the devout Catholic is said to have had on a train ride to Brussels was an occasion for him to accept the assignment. Within a few weeks he had finished sketching the libretto and in the same year Honegger was able to start working on the composition. Work on the oratorio was completed on August 30, 1935. After France was liberated from the German occupation, the poet and composer added a prologue to the work , praising Jeanne as the savior of France.

occupation

The oratorio is occupied by an orchestra, mixed choir, children's choir, vocal soloists and speakers.

orchestra

  • 2 flutes (one of them alternating piccolo flute)
  • 2 oboes
  • 1 piccolo clarinet in Eb
  • 1 clarinet in B
  • 1 bass clarinet in B
  • 3 alto saxophones in Eb
  • 3 bassoons
  • 1 double bassoon
  • 1 piccolo trumpet in D
  • 3 trumpets in C.
  • 3 tenor trombones
  • 1 bass trombone (alternatively: tuba)
  • 2 pianos
  • Timpani
  • Percussion (2 players)
  • Celesta
  • Ondes Martenot
  • Strings

Speaking parts

  • Joan of Arc (Saint Joan)
  • Brother Dominique (Brother Dominik)
  • Héraut III (3rd Herald)
  • L'âne (the donkey)
  • Bedford
  • Jean de Luxembourg (John of Luxembourg)
  • Hay breeze (mill wind)
  • Un Paysan (a farmer)
  • L'appariteur (the master of ceremonies)
  • Regnault de Chartres
  • Guillaume de Flavy
  • Perrot
  • A priest

(these roles can be played by two speakers in concert)

  • La mère aux tonneaux (mother wine barrel)

Singing parts

  • La Vierge (The Virgin Mary) (Soprano)
  • Marguerite (St. Margaret) (soprano)
  • Catherine (St. Catherine) (Alt)
  • Porcus (tenor)
  • Une Voix (One Voice) (Tenor)
  • Héraut I (First Herald) (tenor)
  • Le Clerc (The Clergyman) (Tenor)
  • Une Voix (One Voice) (Bass)
  • Héraut II (Second Herald) (Bass)

(The tenor and bass solo parts can each be performed by a singer in concert)

  • Une Voix d'Enfant (child's voice)

Procedure / action

The voices of heaven call Johanna to them. Brother Dominik reads to her from the book of her life, when the bestial voices of the earth reach her, accusing and cursing Johanna. She is to be handed over to an animal court, which, in the tradition of the “ Roman de Fauvel ” (Gervais du Bus, ~ 1310), is to decide her fate. Porcus, the pig (French: Cochon), appoints himself chairman; a clear allusion to the Bishop of Beauvais, Pierre Cauchon , who historically actually presided over the trial against Johanna. The sheep act as assessors and the donkey is supposed to be the scribe. Johanna is sentenced by this animal court and finds herself on the stake on the logs. When asked how she got there, her brother Dominik tells about the card game of the kings of France and England and the Duke of Burgundy, which are symbolic of folly, pride and greed. Johanna herself is the stake in the game and she is handed over to the winner, England. Her patron saints Katharina and Margarethe ask for divine assistance and in the security of their patron saints Johanna remembers the coronation of the Dauphin. With cheers and dance music, he moves into Reims , the coronation city. Mühlenwind and mother wine barrel greet each other happily, because the coronation brought about the reunification of the wheat-producing north with the wine-rich south of France. But when Johanna is happy about the success that can be traced back to her, the accusing voices can be heard on earth again. She remembers her childhood, her innocence when she was given the sword with which she liberated France and sang the Trimazô song with the other children. She tries to sing this song again, but the reality into which she is thrown back suffocates her voice. Johanna is at the stake, Brother Dominik left her at the end of her book and her patron saints give her consolation before she goes up in flames in the glory of heaven.

music

The oratorio makes use of the elements of the mystery play, ancient drama, opera, oratorio and cinematography (cinema technology to build up the scenic plot through flashbacks). The partly fictional, partly historical scenes are repetitive and z. Sometimes extremely subtle variations of some characteristic themes and motifs linked together, such as the calling of the hellhound (Ondes Martenot) at the beginning of the piece, the four bell chords that accompany the voices of Joan's patron saint, or the Trimazô song, which symbolizes childlike security . Musical sources, which are used in a multifaceted way, arise from folklore (French folk song "Voulez-vous manger de cesses?"), Choral church singing (antiphon "Aspiciens a longe" and Conductus of the "donkey sequence") or the baroque reception ( transposed BACH motif). The jazz music of the 1935s is musically parodied , e.g. B. by the aria of Porcus and the choir of the animal court, but also the baroque music , z. B. by baroque dances during the card game scene, whereby pieces of metal are placed between the strings in the corpus of the pianos to make them sound like harpsichords .

Reception history

When it premiered in Basel in 1938, the play roused audiences and press with storms of enthusiasm. At its French premiere in Orléans in 1939, however, Ida Rubinstein was booed off the stage by the reactionary and racist audience as a Jew who was not entitled to portray such a pure French national heroine and Christian. Around 1941, however, the “Chantier Orchestral” ensemble toured successfully through over 40 cities in unoccupied France with precisely this work.

Awards

The production by Lorenzo Fioroni in the Staatstheater Kassel in the 2004/2005 season received the Götz Friedrich Prize for directing.

Sources / literature

  • Michael Stegemann: Voices of Heaven and Earth, in: Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher, CD 429 412-2 (booklet), Deutsche Grammophon, Hamburg 1991
  • Harry Halbreich : Jeane d'Arc au book. Anatomy of a masterpiece, ibid.
  • Recorded by Seiji Ozawa, CD 329 412-2, Deutsche Grammophon, Hamburg 1991
  • Reduction Chant et Piano (piano reduction), EMS.8819, Edition Salabert, Paris 1947

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