Macbeth (Chelard)
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| Title: | Macbeth |
Title page of the piano reduction, Munich 1828 |
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| Shape: | Tragédie lyrique |
| Original language: | French German |
| Music: | Hippolyte Chelard |
| Libretto : | Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle |
| Literary source: | William Shakespeare : Macbeth |
| Premiere: | June 29, 1827 |
| Place of premiere: | Paris, Opéra |
| Place and time of the action: | Scotland, 11th century |
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Macbeth is an opera ("Tragédie lyrique") in three acts by Hippolyte Chelard ( music ) with a libretto by Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle . It premiered on June 29, 1827 at the Paris Opéra . A revised version in German translation by Caesar Max Heigel was given in Munich on June 20, 1828, and shortly afterwards it was divided into four acts. The four-act version was also played in Dresden on January 10, 1840. A five-act version, also in German, was performed in Weimar on October 20, 1860.
action
The plot of the opera is only loosely based on Shakespeare's original. Some important characters like Banquo, Macduff and Malcolm are missing, others have been added. Only the first two acts have been taken into account and the course has been greatly modified.
The table of contents described here is based on the German-language libretto of the three-act Munich version from 1828.
First elevator
Macbeth's encampment on a heath. A dark forest rises in the background. In front the general's tent. Steep rocks limit the horizon.
First appearance. There is confusion among the soldiers because their general Macbeth has disappeared without a trace. When trumpets can be heard from the camp, they hurry there.
Second appearance. Douglas, Lenox, Calton, Dougmor, and other nobles, officers, and warriors. Douglas questions Lenox about Macbeth's disappearance and the state of the army. Douglas suspects that Macbeth was kidnapped by witches and orders the soldiers to follow him to their place of residence in order to free him. Everyone rushes away.
Desert terrible cave. In the background a spacious opening through which one can see the densely overgrown forest.
Third appearance. The witches Ruda and Gröma prepare an incantation.
Fourth appearance. The third witch, Nona, appears in the opening and reports that she successfully bewitched Macbeth. He is now on the way to the cave. A magic cauldron rises from the depths, and the witches begin to conjure up the spirits that are supposed to induce Macbeth to commit vice and crime. Finally, they withdraw into the side cavities.
Fifth appearance. Macbeth finds herself exhausted in the cave.
Sixth appearance. The witches greet Macbeth as Thane of Cawdor and prophesy the throne for him. They disappear in a flash.
Seventh appearance. After some scruples, Macbeth succumbs to the lure of the crown. He hallucinates and thinks he sees a crown and a dagger. Horn calls ring out from the forest.
Eighth appearance. The Scottish warriors approach shouting. Macbeth wants to go to meet them.
Ninth appearance. Calton and some warriors come to the entrance of the cave, see Macbeth and call the others over. Macbeth is relieved to see his people again. Calton announces that Douglas, the future son-in-law of King Duncan, is expected.
Tenth appearance. Douglas appears and informs Macbeth that the King has made him Thane Cawdors. The king is now on his way to Macbeth's Inverness Castle to spend the night there. His wife was waiting for him there too. Calton gathers the warriors who cheerfully surround Douglas and Macbeth. The sun rises and everyone leaves singing.
second elevator
Magnificent Gothic hall at Macbeth's Inverness Castle, festively adorned with floral threads. On the sides are tall candlesticks with burning wax torches. In the foreground on the left a royal throne surmounted by a rich canopy. On the right is a door that leads to the king's chamber. The background is closed by high pointed arches; the middle one is covered with a richly woven carpet; Galleries to the left and right lead into the interior of the castle.
First appearance. The king's entourage, Calton, warriors and servants are at the feast. The choir sings about the good life and the wine. All spread out in the galleries.
Second appearance. Lady Macbeth comes out of the gallery. She has no part in the general joy, since she has prepared everything for the murder of the king. A magic potion is supposed to put Duncan and his entourage to sleep. Then let Macbeth do the deed. While the choir praises King Duncan behind the scene, she thinks of his death and her and Macbeth's future power.
Third appearance. Macbeth approaches his wife gloomily. They talk about the behavior of the king, who is completely carefree but wants to leave early the next morning. So the murder has to happen tonight. Lady Macbeth urges her husband to overcome his scruples and reach for the crown. When shawms and the singing of the highlands can be heard in the distance, both hurry away. Girls and youths step into the hall in amazement and admire its rich jewelry, but hardly dare to step forward shyly. The castle bailiff comes out of the gallery on the right.
Fourth appearance. The castellan asks those present to celebrate until the arrival of the king. The compatriots start Scottish dances. A solemn march sounds in the distance. After the castellan, the king's heralds of heraldic crests, musicians with prongs and trumpets, a bevy of warriors, Oscar, Colmal, Haldan and several bards, Scottish nobles with King Duncan, Macbeth and his wife and finally Douglas and his fiancée Moina move in. Scottish greats carry a rich canopy over Duncan. The king's bodyguard and Scottish warriors conclude the move.
Fifth appearance. The king ascends the throne. Everything is in order on both sides. The choir praises the king's virtue. Duncan thanks Macbeth and his wife for the friendly welcome and invites those present to dance. Various dances follow, after which the bards call for prayer. All kneel down. Duncan also descends from the throne, kneels and initiates the prayer, which is received by the bards and the people. Finally, he brings his daughter Moina together with her fiancé Douglas and declares him his son and successor on the throne. While everyone is celebrating, Macbeth and his wife get upset about this development. Those present notice this, and the two of them struggle to pull themselves together. Finally Lady Macbeth invites to the feast. The people are reassured. Only Duncan suspiciously asks Macbeth to swear an oath. Macbeth agrees. At this moment a clap of thunder sounds. The back wall of the canopy on the throne is torn, and in the opening, unseen by all but Macbeth, the witches appear in a glaring magical light.
Sixth appearance. One of the witches carries a cup of poison, the second a dagger, and the third shows Macbeth the shining crown. Macbeth remains frozen. All eyes are on him in amazement. The witches warn Macbeth of the oath and leave. The decision is made for him when Lady Macbeth calls again for dinner. However, the people have become suspicious. Duncan begins to feel the effects of the sleep drink and has premonitions. He asks Douglas to ensure the happiness of his daughter, blesses those present and is continued by Moina and Douglas. While everyone retreats, the bards chant in a low voice and ask for silence for the king. They too finally leave the hall.
Seventh appearance. Lady Macbeth again urges her husband to take action. The castle clock strikes midnight. Since Macbeth still hesitates, she snatches the dagger from him and opens the door to the king's chamber. However, she recoils, pushes the dagger on Macbeth again and leads it to the room. He rushes in. At that moment, a terrible clap of thunder roars through the palace.
Eighth appearance. Macbeth staggered from the king's room, pale as death, with the bloody dagger. Flames billow behind him, and out of them emerges the group of witches with snakes and torches, grinning. He descends on the steps of the throne. The witches shout: “The throne awaits you, Macbeth!” The curtain falls. The thunderstorm continues during the following interlude.
third elevator
The same room as in the previous elevator. The flower threads hang down as if torn by a storm. Almost all the lights are out. The day hardly begins to be dreadful.
First appearance. Princess Moina comes in with ladies and pages carrying torches. She is worried about her father and wants to see him. The entourage leaves at her gesture.
Second appearance. Moina sings about her love for nature.
Third appearance. Douglas enters. He had looked anxiously for Moina. The two swear their love and loyalty.
Fourth appearance. The first reddish morning lights light up the east gallery (left), and soon flutes and shawms are sounding lively songs. Young girls with richly filled flower baskets appear in the portico, accompanied by shepherds with alphorns and other rural instruments. They float in with happy dances to greet the king when he awakens. After common greetings you can hear a soft penetrating groan. Everyone listens and shakes back. You can see a walking light deep in the gallery on the right.
Fifth appearance. Lady Macbeth in her nightgown with flying hair and staring eyes, a dagger in her belt, a candlestick in her hand, walks without noticing through the frozen groups of country folk and warriors who have gathered quietly in the background during the previous choir to the front stage. She evades everything with a shudder. Nightwalking, she puts her light on the table in front of the throne and tries in vain to wipe blood from her hand. Douglas and the others watch her quietly as she ponders her crime and believes she hear the clock strike again at midnight. Moina is concerned about her father and sends Douglas to him. Lady has half heard her words, turns her head and exclaims: “To the king? King Duncan? He's dead by Macbeth. ”Moina hurries to the bedchamber, followed by Douglas and the women. They discover the murdered king. Lady Macbeth wakes up to the general horror and is desperate to recognize her situation.
Sixth appearance. Douglas, Lenox, Calton and the choir call for vengeance.
Seventh appearance. Macbeth appears pale and shaken. He tries hard to hide his anxiety and asks what is causing the noise. Douglas speaks to him about his act. Macbeth initially denies it, but Lady Macbeth firmly confesses. She tears the dagger out of her belt, stabs it in her chest, then shakily hands it to Macbeth and sinks, lifeless, on the lower steps of the throne. Macbeth wants to rush at her, when he is seized with a thirst for revenge. He draws the sword and penetrates Douglas. Everyone tries in vain to defend him, but Macbeths knocks the sword out of his hand. The prince falls to the ground. Macbeth raises his sword in a deathly blow - there is a rumble of thunder and the ghost of King Duncan appears between Douglas and his victor. Macbeth drops his sword and stares at him. He sinks onto the steps of the throne next to the corpse of his husbands. The canopy opens again. The witches step forward and stand in a group on the upper steps of the throne above the corpses of Lady and Macbeth, which they tie around with chains or serpent bands. They laugh: "You have now reached your goal, you were always just a game of hell and now its prey." Everything else cast curses against Macbeth. Meanwhile, Duncan's mind has floated back. The curtain of the central arch rises and reveals a radiant glory that embraces the king and carries him up. Douglas and the rest of them sink to their knees and beg God for protection. The witches tie Macbeth to the steps of the throne and to the corpse of his wife. While the choir celebrates Macbeth's downfall, the steps of the throne shake, sway and sink into the ground with Macbeth, the corpse and the witches. Reddish flames pour out of the earth, while Duncan's spirit still hovers in bright rooms in the far distance.
History of origin
The work was accepted by the Paris Opéra on March 17, 1824 . It was precisely at this time that Rossini's triumphs fell there . According to an initial proposal by the Opera Administration, Macbeth should be performed on April 24, 1825. However, it was then replaced by Rossini's Le siège de Corinthe , whose performance was also delayed. His Moïse et Pharaon also had priority. The dress rehearsal of Macbeth finally took place on June 29, 1827. This failed so that the librettist Rouget de Lisle spoke out in favor of another postponement. However, this was not given in. The world premiere took place on the same evening as planned. His fears were confirmed, however, because the opera was a failure and canceled after only five performances, although top singers had been appointed with Henri-Bernard Dabadie , Prosper Dérivis , Adolphe Nourrit and Laure Cinti-Damoreau .
From 1828, however, the opera was performed in German (translation: Caesar Max Heigel ) with great success in Munich. According to a "Rapport d'Inspection" of the Départements des Beaux Arts on June 30th, the original French libretto was now to be blamed for the failure, as some weaknesses in the French version had been corrected in the translation. The opera was then divided into four acts and played in this form in Dresden on January 10, 1840. A five-act version, also in German, was performed in Weimar on October 20, 1860.
Excerpts from the opera were also arranged by other composers. In 1840 a march to melodies from the opera Macbeth by Chelard appeared: for d. Pianoforte by Hermann Bonn and in 1880 a potpourri of motifs from the opera: Macbeth by AH Chelard.
More recently, the opera was performed in the Munich version from 1828 in October / November 2010 with piano accompaniment, without choirs and with only five soloists from the Opera in Buttonhole in the Stok Theater in Zurich and on the Fasson stage in Lachen. The production came from Matthias Flückiger. The soloists were Robert Braunschweig (Macbeth), Rosina Zoppi (Lady Macbeth), Jean-Pierre Gerber (Duncan), Stephanie Bühlmann (Moina) and Pawel Grzegorz Stach (Douglas). Andrew Dunscombe played the piano.
Web links
- Macbeth (Chélard, Hippolyte André Jean Baptiste) : Sheet music and audio files in the International Music Score Library Project
- Libretto of the three-act version (German), Munich 1829 in the German Digital Library
- Libretto of the four-act version (German), Munich around 1830
- Macbeth (Hippolyte-André (-Jean) -Baptiste Chelard) in the Corago information system of the University of Bologna
Individual evidence
- ↑ Melanie Krämer: The "Macbeth" operas by Giuseppe Verdi and Ernest Bloch. A textual and musical comparison. Tectum, Marburg 2000, ISBN 3-8288-8131-9 , p. 2.
- ^ A b c Reto Müller : Macbeth - a newly discovered opera gem. Report and program of the performance on October 17, 2010 in the Oper im Knopfloch , accessed on October 24, 2015.
- ^ List of the stage works by Hippolyte Chélard based on the MGG in Operone
- ^ Hermann Bonn: March to melodies from the opera Macbeth von Chelard: for d. Pianoforte. Digitized on Google Books .
- ^ Potpourri on motifs of the opera: Macbeth by AH Chelard. Work information on Google Books .