Le Villi

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Opera dates
Title: The Willis
Original title: Le Villi
N. Besta: Illustration in Gazzetta Musicale di Milano (1884)

N. Besta: Illustration in Gazzetta Musicale di Milano (1884)

Shape: Opera ballo in two acts
Original language: Italian
Music: Giacomo Puccini
Libretto : Ferdinando Fontana
Literary source: Alphonse Karr : Les Willis
Premiere: 1) May 31, 1884
2) December 26, 1884
3) January 24, 1885
4) November 7, 1889
Place of premiere: 1) Milan, Teatro Dal Verme
2) Turin, Teatro Regio
3) Milan, Teatro alla Scala
4) Milan, Teatro Dal Verme
Playing time: Around 1 hour
Place and time of the action: The Black Forest and Mainz , indefinite time
people
  • Guglielmo Wulf, Förster ( baritone )
  • Anna, his daughter ( soprano )
  • Roberto ( tenor )
  • Narrator (speaking role)
  • Mountain residents, women, musicians, the Willis , ghosts, an old man, a girl, Anna's funeral procession ( choir , extras)

Le Villi (dt: Die Willis ) is the first opera (original name: "Opera ballo") by Giacomo Puccini . Ferdinando Fontana wrote the libretto based on the story Les Willis (1835) by Alphonse Karr . It was premiered on May 31, 1884 as a one-act play at the Teatro dal Verme in Milan . Shortly thereafter, Puccini expanded the opera to two acts. The premiere of this version took place on December 26, 1884 in the Teatro Regio in Turin.

action

In the house of the forester Guglielmo Wulf, the engagement of his daughter Anna to Roberto is celebrated. Soon after, Roberto has to travel to Mainz because of an inheritance . There he falls for a seductress and lives with her. Anna feels betrayed by him and dies of grief. Her soul unites with the Willis , the souls of dead women who suffered a similar fate. Guglielmo summons his daughter's ghost to take revenge. Roberto returns full of remorse, is involved in a frenzied dance by the Willis and collapses dead.

The following table of contents is based on the libretto of the last two-act version.

first act

Beginning of the prelude (piano)

A clearing in the forest. On the right in the foreground is Guglielmo's modest house. In the background on the left is a path that leads over stony terrain into the deep forest. A small bridge spans a depression from one side to the other. It's spring. The trees are in bloom and garlands of flowers are hung everywhere. There is a table set with food, bottles and glasses near the house. Roberto's suitcase lies under a chair near the house. Guglielmo, Anna and Roberto are seated at the top of the table. Roberto wears travel clothes.

Scene 1. The mountain residents celebrate Anna and Roberto's engagement (chorus: “Evviva i fidanzati!”). The hitherto destitute Roberto has inherited rich and has to leave for Mainz on the same evening for the formalities. Guglielmo and Anna dance and leave the stage. The others follow them. After a while Anna returns alone with a bouquet of forget-me-nots.

Scene 2. Sad about the departure of her groom, Anna puts the bouquet in his suitcase (scene and romance Anna: “Se come voi piccina”).

Scene 3. Roberto catches her doing it, thanks her and asks her to smile as another souvenir. Anna tells him about premonitions. She had dreamed last night that he died while she was waiting for him (Duet Anna / Roberto: “Non esser, Anna mia, mesta sì tanto”). Roberto calms her down. She should rather doubt God than his love ("Tu dell'infanzia mia").

Scene 4. The mountain inhabitants return with Guglielmo and urge Roberto to leave (chorus: “Presto!… Presto!… In viaggio!”). You want to accompany him to the edge of the forest. Guglielmo begins a prayer in which the others join in (prayer: “Angiol di Dio, che l'ali”). Everyone says goodbye.

Second act

Sketch for the second act
( Adolfo Hohenstein )

Intermezzo 1. Leaving. The narrator reports that Roberto was seduced by a "siren" in Mainz and forgot his love for Anna. She waited in vain and finally died of grief in winter. Behind a veil on the stage, to the singing of an invisible women's choir (“Come un giglio reciso”), the funeral procession from Guglielmo's house across the clearing.

Intermezzo 2. The Witches' Sabbath. The narrator recalls a legend from the Black Forest: Whenever a girl dies of love, witches, the Willis , come out of the forest and dance the unfaithful lover to death. This fate threatened Roberto that night too, because after he was abandoned by his lover he decided to return to the forest.

During the second part, the forest landscape of the first act becomes visible again, but it is winter. It's night. The bare lifeless trees are laden with snow. The sky is clear and full of stars: the moon shines on the dark surroundings. The Willis come to the dance. Wisps precede them. They appear on all sides and hover over the scene.

Scene 1. Guglielmo sits in front of his front door, deep in pain. He longs for revenge on his daughter's unfaithful husband. If she has joined the Willis, may she wait for him at sunset. At the same time he asks God for forgiveness for this thought (Guglielmo: “Anima santa della figlia mia”).

Scene 2. The Willis' voices can be heard behind the stage, waiting for Roberto. When he steps on the bridge, the Willis appear to him, whom he chases away as hallucinations. He remorsefully thinks back to the happier days of his love (Romance Roberto: "Torna ai felici dì"). Then he runs towards the house to knock, but hesitates as if held back by an unknown force. The Willis are calling for him. Roberto tries to say a prayer, but he doesn't want to succeed either. Then he hears Anna's voice behind the stage.

Scene 3. Anna's ghost appears and accuses Roberto of his behavior (Duet Anna / Roberto: “Tu dell'infanzia mia”). He approaches her painfully and obsessively. Anna opens her arms in a hug. The Willis circle them in a wild dance and then disappear.

Scene 4. Behind the stage, the ghosts call to Roberto that they are waiting for him and that he cannot count on mercy (chorus: “Qui noi t'aspettiam, traditor…”). Roberto falls to the ground at Anna's feet and dies. The Willis shout "Hosanna!"

layout

Instrumentation

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

Music numbers

The two-act version of the opera contains the following musical numbers:

  • No. 1. Prelude

first act

  • No. 2. Introduction (choir): "Evviva i fidanzati!" (Scene 1)
  • No. 3. Scene and romance (Anna): "Se come voi piccina" (scene 2)
  • No. 4. Duet (Anna / Roberto): "Non esser, Anna mia, mesta sì tanto" - "Tu dell'infanzia mia" (scene 3)
  • No. 5. Choir: "Presto! ... Presto! ... In viaggio!" (Scene 4)
    • Prayer (Guglielmo, tutti): "Angiol di Dio, che l'ali"

Second act

  • No. 6. Symphonic part, Tempo I: L'abbandono / The leaving (narrator): “Di quei giorni a Magonza una sirena” (Intermezzo 1)
    • Women's choir: "Come un giglio reciso"
  • No. 7. Symphonic part, Tempo II: La tregenda / The Witches' Sabbath (narrator): "V'è nella Selva Nera una leggenda" (Intermezzo 2)
  • No. 8. Prelude (Guglielmo): "No, possibil non è che invendicata" (scene 1)
    • (Guglielmo): "Anima santa della figlia mia" (scene 1)
  • No. 9. Dramatic scene (choir, Roberto): “Ei giunge! Anna! ... Anna! ... Anna! "(Scene 2)
    • Romance (Roberto): "Torna ai felici dì" (scene 2)
  • No. 10. Big scene: "Su! ... Cammina! ... Cammina!" (Scene 2)
    • Final duet (Anna / Roberto): "Tu dell'infanzia mia" (scene 3)
    • Choir: "Qui noi t'aspettiam, traditor ..." (scene 4)

music

Torna ai felici dì

Formally, Le Villi is a number opera. The individual, self-contained pieces, however, merge into one another without any noticeable breaks.

His talent as a melodist and harmonist is already evident in this first opera by Puccini. His typical "melancholy tone" can already be heard here, e. B. in Roberto's romance "Torna ai felici dì" (second act, scene 2). The many instrumental pieces point to an influence of French music such as Jules Massenets . This is also indicated by the name “opera ballo” (“dance opera”), which Carlos Gomez had chosen for his opera Il Guarany in 1870 . Conservative critics accused Puccini of having turned to "Wagnerismo". Other influences come from Amilcare Ponchielli , Alfredo Catalani (Roberto's romance mentioned above) or the French composers Charles Gounod and Georges Bizet (the dance movements). The orchestral solos are again inspired by Massenet, and the final scene is reminiscent of Carl Maria von Weber's Freischütz .

Essential parts of the plot take place outside of the actual opera. Instead, they are performed by a narrator in the two interludes. This method was also used by other composers at Giovane Scuola over the next few years to explain parts of the plot or the state of a person that were difficult to depict, or to create a special mood. The Puccini specialist Norbert Christen pointed out that this was a dramaturgical weakness of Le Villi . Julian Budden also noted that the work was less a drama than a story. An interplay between the individual characters is missing. For example, there is no reaction to Guglielmo's grief or Roberto's remorse.

Work history

Giacomo Puccini's first opera goes back to a composition competition for one-act operas advertised in the magazine Il teatro illustrato , with which the publisher Edoardo Sonzogno wanted to promote young composers in the spring of 1883. The composer Amilcare Ponchielli encouraged Puccini to take part and also brought him together with the Scapigliatura librettist Ferdinando Fontana . They decided to use the German Willis folk tale as a basis. This was already mentioned by Heinrich Heine in his work Elementargeister in 1834 and was brought to the stage with great success in the ballet Giselle by Jules Perrot and Jean Coralli with music by Adolphe Adam . However, the opera is not based on the ballet, but on the story Les Willis by Alphonse Karr, first published in 1835 .

Puccini began composing in September 1883 and completed it on December 31st. However, he received neither an award nor an honorable mention. Perhaps the score had been written down so hastily and illegibly that it could not be examined carefully. Puccini had also presented the work to the composer and librettist Arrigo Boito . At his instigation and with the support of other friends of Puccini, a subscription was started to bring the opera out at Milan's Teatro dal Verme .

The musical direction of the premiere there on May 31, 1884 was Arturo Panizza. Erminio Pelz (Guglielmo Wulf), Rosina Caponetti (Anna) and Antonio de Andrade (Roberto) sang. The composer Pietro Mascagni played the double bass in the orchestra. The performance was also a huge success due to the performance of the participants. The Corriere della Sera wrote, for example:

«Nella musica del giovane maestro lucchese c'è la franchezza della fantasia, ci sono frasi che toccano il cuore perché dal cuore devono essere uscite, e c'è una fattura delle più eleganti, delle più finite, a un punto tale che a quando a quando non pare di aver davanti a noi un giovane allievo, ma un Bizet, un Massenet. "

“There is freshness and imagination in the young maestro's music, there are phrases that touch the heart because they come from the heart, and there is craftsmanship, elegant and so perfect that from time to time we don't see a young student have us, but a Bizet or a Massenet . "

- Antonio Gramola : Corriere della Sera

The music publisher Giulio Ricordi acquired the rights to the opera. He persuaded Puccini to revise it for the second production, which premiered on December 26, 1884 at the opening of the Carnival season 1884 in the Teatro Regio in Turin, and to expand the one-act act, originally called "leggenda in due quadri", to two acts. Puccini added Anna's aria “Se come voi piccina” (first act, scene 3), the women's choir in the first interlude and Roberto's great tenor scene (second act, scene 2). At the end he expanded the soprano aria into a duet. The new pieces are now considered the most important numbers in opera. In the Turin premiere, Agostino Gnaccarini sang the role of Guglielmo. The conductor was Giovanni Bolzoni.

For the next performance on January 24, 1885 at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan (Anna: Romilda Pantaleoni , Guglielmo: Delfino Menotti; conductor: Franco Faccio ) Puccini added Roberto's romance "Torna ai felici dì" (second act, scene 2) . Thus a third version of the work was created. Puccini created the fourth version, which is relevant today, for a new performance at the Teatro Dal Verme on November 7, 1889. In it, he revised and shortened the “Scena drammatica” (No. 9). According to Grove Music , he made final changes to an 1892 edition.

Other important performances were:

Recordings

  • 1952 - Paul Schmitz (conductor), Symphony Orchestra of the Hessischer Rundfunk Frankfurt , Choir of the Hessischer Rundfunk Frankfurt.
    Kurt Gester (Guglielmo Wulf), Maud Cunitz (Anna), Sebastian Feiersinger (Roberto).
    Studio recording; German version.
    Walhall WLCD 0182 (1 CD), Cantus Classics 500925 (2 CD).
  • 1954 - Arturo Basile (conductor), Orchestra della RAI di Torino, Coro Filarmonico di Pesaro.
    Silvano Verlinghieri (Guglielmo Wulf), Elisabetta Fusco (Anna), Gianni Dal Ferro (Roberto).
    Studio recording; First version; without texts from the narrator.
    FONIT CETRA CD: CDON 48, Warner Fonit 0927 43621-2 (1 CD), Cantus Classics 500925 (2 CD).
  • 12, 1967 - Myer Fredman (conductor), BBC Northern Symphony Orchestra, BBC Northern Singers.
    Delme Bryn-Johns (Guglielmo Wulf), Jacqueline Delman (Anna), John Mitchinson (Roberto), Ronald Harvi (narrator).
    Live, in concert from London (?); English version by David Harris.
    Oriel Music Society OMS 316 (2 CD).
  • November 1967 - Juan Emilio Martini (conductor), Orchestra and Choir of the Teatro Colón Buenos Aires.
    Giampiero Mastromei (Guglielmo Wulf), Matilde de Lupka (Anna), Liborio Simonella (Roberto).
    Live from Buenos Aires; without spoken texts (?).
    Omega Opera Archive 1294.
  • Feb. 04, 1972 - Hans-Georg Ratjen (conductor), orchestra and choir of the Teatro Comunale di Firenze .
    Mario Zanasi (Guglielmo Wulf), Mietta Sighele (Anna), Veriano Luchetti (Roberto).
    Live from the Teatro Comunale di Firenze.
    Opera d'Oro OPD 1474 (1 CD).
  • 1972 - Anton Guadagno (conductor), Orchestra of the Vienna Volksoper , Vienna Academic Choir.
    Matteo Manuguerra (Guglielmo Wulf), Adriana Maliponte (Anna), Barry Morell (Roberto), Giancarlo del Monaco (narrator).
    Studio recording; Second version.
    RCA LP: RK 11 566 / 1-2 (2).
  • Mar. 01, 1975 - Antonio Guarnieri (conductor).
    Maurizio Frusoni (Roberto).
    Live from Milan.
  • June 1979 - Lorin Maazel (conductor), National Philharmonic Orchestra London, Ambrosian Opera Chorus.
    Leo Nucci (Guglielmo Wulf), Renata Scotto (Anna), Plácido Domingo (Roberto), Tito Gobbi (narrator).
    Studio recording; Second version; Completely.
    Opernwelt CD tip: "artistically valuable".
    CBS CD: MK 76890, CBS LP: 76890.
  • 1980 (?) - Myer Fredman (conductor), Adelaide Symphony Orchestra , Adelaide Festival Chorale.
    James Christiansen (Guglielmo Wulf), Marilyn Richardson (Anna), David Parker (Roberto).
    Studio recording; without texts from the narrator.
    Chandos ABR 1019 (1 LP).
  • July / August 1994 - Bruno Aprea (conductor), Orchestra Internazionale d'Italia, Bratislava Sluk Chamber Chorus.
    Stefano Antonucci (Guglielmo Wulf), Nana Gordaze (Anna), José Cura (Roberto), Massimo Foschi (narrator).
    Live from Martina Franca; Completely.
    Nuova Era CD: 7218 (2 CD).
  • 1995 - Marcus R. Bosch (conductor), orchestra and chamber choir of the State University of Music Heidelberg-Mannheim .
    Peter Parsch (Guglielmo Wulf), Melanie Diener (Anna), Alejandro Ramírez (Roberto), Annegret Müller (narrator).
    Live from Ludwigshafen.
  • May 7, 1997 - Bruno Bartoletti (conductor), choir and orchestra of the Zurich Opera House .
    Giorgio Zancanaro (Guglielmo Wulf), Mara Zampieri (Anna), Gösta Winbergh (Roberto).
    Live from Zurich.
  • May 20, 2000 - Daniele Giulio Moles (conductor), Orchestra Filarmonica Marchigiana, Coro Lirico Marchigiano V. Bellini.
    Massimiliano Fichera (Guglielmo Wulf), Sonia Corsini (Anna), Salvatore Ragonese (Roberto).
    Live from the Teatro dell'Aquila in Fermo; without texts from the narrator.
    Nicolo NIC 1035 (1 CD).
  • 2001 - Mario Majnaric (conductor), Orchestra of the Teatro Colón Buenos Aires.
    Alberto Cazes (Guglielmo Wulf), Adelaide Negri (Anna), Gustavo López Manzilli (Roberto), Sebastiano de Filippi (narrator).
    Live from Buenos Aires; Texts of the narrator in Spanish.
    New Ornamenti NOM 204 (1 CD).
  • March 2001 - Carlo Palleschi (conductor), Orchestra della Fondazione ICO Tito Schipa di Lecce, Coro Lirico “Mario del Monaco”.
    Antonio Stragapeda (Guglielmo Wulf), Katia Ricciarelli (Anna), Valter Borin (Roberto), Pippo Baudo (narrator).
    Video; live from Lecce.
    Kikko Classics 1 CD, Kikko KC 067. ICD (1 DVD).
  • February 28, 2002 - Marco Guidarini (conductor), Orchester Philharmonique de Radio France , Chœurs du Radio France.
    Ludovic Tézier (Guglielmo Wulf), Melanie Diener (Anna), Aquiles Machado (Roberto), Sylvie David (narrator).
    Live, in concert from Paris.
    Naive V 4958 (1 CD).
  • July 31, 2004 - Pál Tamás (conductor), Orchestra Filarmonica Mediterranea.
    Andrea Rola (Guglielmo Wulf), Halla Margrét Árnadóttir (Anna), Albert Montserrat (Roberto).
    Video; live from the Grandi Termi of Villa Adriana Rome (?).
    Encore DVD 2201.
  • August 18, 2004 - Gabor Hollerung (conductor), Erno Dohnanyi Symphonic Orchestra, Chorus of the Choir Society of the Hungarian Academy of Science, Men's Choir of the Ensemble of the Hungarian Army.
    Martin Bobjak (Guglielmo Wulf), Fatime Szolnoki (Anna), George Oniani (Roberto).
    Live from the Zemplen Arts Festival from Sárospatak .
  • March 2007 - Riccardo Frizza (conductor), orchestra and choir of the Teatro Carlo Felice Genoa.
    Gabriele Viviani (Guglielmo Wulf), Fiorenza Cedolins (Anna), José Cura (Roberto).
    Live, in concert from Genoa.
    Premiere Opera 2594-1 (1 CD).
  • April 12, 2017 - Miguel Ángel Gómez Martínez (conductor), RTVE Symphony Orchestra, RTVE Chorus.
    Vladimir Chernov (Guglielmo Wulf), Carmen Solís (Anna), Leonardo Caimi (Roberto).
    Live, in concert from the Teatro Monumental in Madrid.
    Live broadcast on RTVE's Radio Clásica.
  • 2018 - Mark Elder (conductor), London Philharmonic Orchestra , Opera Rara Chorus.
    Brian Mulligan (Guglielmo Wulf), Ermonela Jaho (Anna), Arsen Soghomonyan (Roberto).
    Reconstruction of the one-act original version of Le Willis and two post-composed arias.
    Opera Rara ORC 59 (CD).

Web links

Commons : Le Villi  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k Norbert Christen: Le Villi. In: Piper's Encyclopedia of Musical Theater . Volume 5: Works. Piccinni - Spontini. Piper, Munich / Zurich 1994, ISBN 3-492-02415-7 , pp. 90-93.
  2. ↑ Le villi. Music numbers on librettidopera.it , accessed April 10, 2017.
  3. ↑ a b c d e f g Julian Budden:  Villi, Le. In: Grove Music Online (English; subscription required).
  4. ↑ Le Villi. In: Scriptorum: musica e parole (Italian) , accessed on April 11, 2017.
  5. ↑ Richard Erkens (Ed.): Puccini Handbook. Metzler, Stuttgart 2017, ISBN 978-3-476-05441-8 (Metzler eBook), p. 207.
  6. ↑ Le Villi (The Willis). In: Reclams Opernlexikon (= digital library . Volume 52). Philipp Reclam jun. at Directmedia, Berlin 2001, p. 2665.
  7. ↑ a b c d Le Villi. In: Harenberg opera guide. 4th edition. Meyers Lexikonverlag, 2003, ISBN 3-411-76107-5 , pp. 682-683.
  8. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Giacomo Puccini. In: Andreas Ommer: Directory of all complete opera recordings (= Zeno.org . Volume 20). Directmedia, Berlin 2005.
  9. ^ Admission by Hans-Georg Ratjen (1972) in the discography of Le villi at Operadis.
  10. ↑ Admission by Mario Majnaric (2001) in the discography of Le villi at Operadis.
  11. ↑ Pál Tamás (2004) was included in the discography of Le villi at Operadis.
  12. ↑ concert information of RTVE , accessed on 28 December 2018th
  13. ^ Anselm Gerhard: New paths. Review of the CD by Mark Elder. In: Opernwelt , December 2019, p. 24.