Madame Sans-Gêne (Opera)
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| Title: | Madame Sans-Gêne |
Geraldine Farrar as Catherine Hubscher |
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| Original language: | Italian |
| Music: | Umberto Giordano |
| Libretto : | Renato Simoni |
| Literary source: | eponymous play by Victorien Sardou and Émile Moreau |
| Premiere: | January 25, 1915 |
| Place of premiere: | Metropolitan Opera, New York |
| Playing time: | about 2 hours |
| Place and time of the action: | Paris, August 10, 1792 and Compiègne Castle, September 1811 |
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Madame Sans-Gêne is an opera in three acts by Umberto Giordano with a libretto by Renato Simoni.
action
The action of the opera takes place in France in the years 1792 at the time of the French Revolution and in 1811 at the time of the First Empire .
first act
Paris, August 10, 1792, day of the Tuileries Storm .
Cathérine Hubscher (in the Italian libretto Caterina Hubscher) is a laundress. She is called " Madame Sans-Gêne " because of her charm, her cheerfulness, her originality and her quick-wittedness.
Three women work in Cathérine Hubscher's laundry. The roar of cannons and other noises suggest that there is fighting in the streets. Cathérine enters her laundry and tells the women about her experiences with the fighters in the city. Their bad experiences have cured them of their curiosity to know what is going on outside.
Fouche is also in the laundry, an opportunist who waits here to see how the situation develops and which party, the royalists or the revolutionary people, he should join. Cathérine and Fouché chatter about Napoleon , a Corsican officer who owes Cathérine money for washing clothes. He was so poor that he had to mortgage his watch for food. The good-hearted Madame Sans-Gêne still does his laundry for him and hopes that he will settle his bills in the future.
Cathérine is left alone. Gun shots can be heard. Count von Neipperg, a wounded Austrian officer from the Queen's entourage, enters the laundry and asks to be hidden from his pursuers. Although on the side of the people, Cathérine hides the Count in her bedroom.
The pursuers enter the laundry, led by Sergeant Lefèbvre, Madame Sans-Gêne's fiancé. For a while, Cathérine can distract the pursuers by offering a bottle of wine to drink. Lefèbvre uncorked the bottle and gave a lively account of the storming of the Tuileries.
Lefèbvre notices that his hands are black with powder and wants to wash them in Cathérine's bedroom. He becomes suspicious when he notices that the bedroom door is locked. He wrestles the key from Cathérine, opens the door and enters the room.
Cathérine covers her ears in anticipation that her fiancé will shoot the wounded Count von Neipperg at any moment.
Lefèbvre comes quietly from the bedroom. He tells Cathérine that the man in the bedroom is dead. From her reaction to this communication, Lefèbvre realizes that there is no need to be jealous and that the wounded man is not Cathérine's lover.
So he wants to help her save the man. Cathérine throws herself into his arms. In the streets you can hear shouts, drums and marches. Lefèbvre leaves the laundry with his troop.
Second act
Compiègne Castle , September 1811, in the drawing room.
19 years have now passed and Napoleon Bonaparte is Emperor in the First Empire. Lefèbvre is now marshal and was also appointed Duke of Danzig by Napoleon. Cathérine, now Cathérine Lefèvre , is his wife and duchess. She constantly arouses offense at court by violating court etiquette.
Despréaux, the ball master, Gelsomino, the valet and Leroy, the dressmaker talk about Cathérine and criticize her bad manners.
Cathérine enters the room and, as always, does not behave appropriately. She only performs the courtly ceremonies clumsily. In spite of Despréaux's lessons, she also does not know what is appropriate to receive the emperor's sisters.
Lefebvre rushes in and excites the room. He tells Cathérine that Napoleon takes offense at her behavior and that he expects Lefebvre to divorce Cathérine. However, since he genuinely loves Cathérine, he refuses.
Count von Neipperg, who has become the Austrian ambassador, enters the room. He wants to say goodbye to his old friends. Napoleon had him recalled because he suspected a love affair between von Neipperg and the Empress.
Fouché, who has been promoted to police minister, announces the arrival of Napoleon's sisters - Queen Carolina and Princess Elisa. Again Cathérine offends with her manners and her unrestrained language.
At first, Napoleon's sisters and their entourage smile at Cathérine. But when Cathérine in her displeasure reminds Queen Carolina that her husband, King Murat, used to be a waiter in a tavern, the mutual accusations and insults of the women increase.
Angry, the royal ladies and their entourage leave the room.
De Brigode, the chamberlain, then asks Cathérine to come with him to the emperor, who wants to speak to her. Not at all alarmed, Cathérine salutes those who have remained in the room and follows De Brigode to the emperor.
Third act
Compiègne Castle, September 1811, in the Emperor's cabinet.
Napoleon speaks to his sisters and wants them to take part in the hunt that takes place at dusk. The sisters withdraw.
The arrival of Cathérines is announced. Napoleon Cathérine attacked harshly for her improper behavior.
Cathérine reminds Napoleon of his poor origins, tells of her service for the Napoleonic army and of the arm injury she received on the battlefield. If Napoleon's sisters insulted them, they would insult the Napoleonic army.
As a highlight, Cathérine Napoleon presents a small yellow note. It is the laundry bill still unpaid by Napoleon, from the time Napoleon was a penniless young lieutenant.
Cathérine Napoleon also confesses with great grace that she tried to win his love back then. But he was always too busy and would not have taken any notice of her.
The emperor is enchanted. He kisses the scar on Cathérine's arm that is left from the wound. Cathérine bows and declares: "The Emperor no longer owes me anything!"
Cathérine is about to leave when Count von Neipperg is arrested, who wanted to enter the Empress's apartment. Napoleon is upset and tears the medals from the ambassador's chest and wants to scratch his face with them. Count von Neipperg draws his sword. Officers rush over.
Napoleon orders that Count von Neipperg should be shot before dusk and that Fouché and Lefèbvre are responsible for carrying out the execution.
It's late at night. The candles have burned down, the fire in the stove is dying out. Cathérine and Lefèbvre complain about their powerlessness. You will not be able to prevent the shooting of Count von Neipperg. Cathérine cannot inform the Empress either, in order to obtain her intervention with the Emperor, since her rooms are guarded by order of Napoleon von Roustan, the Mameluk leader.
When Napoleon enters, he is impressed by Cathérine's trust in the empress's loyalty. Therefore, he agrees to a test of his wife's loyalty.
At his command, Cathérine knocks on the Empress's door, pretending that she is Madame de Bülow, the lady-in-waiting, and says: “Your Majesty, Count von Neipperg is here!” Then the Empress hands a letter from the door with the words: "Give him the letter and say goodbye!"
Napoleon takes the letter and breaks the seal. The letter is addressed to the father of the Empress, the Emperor of Austria. In the letter, Napoleon's wife asks her father to find new tasks for von Neipperg in Vienna, since the Empress and the Emperor find his overzealousness bothersome.
Thereupon Napoleon Fouché orders the Count of Neipperg to bring his sword back and let him leave.
“And regarding your divorce,” Napoleon says to Lefèbvre, “my wish is: remain true to her forever! Thank heaven for giving you such a woman! ”He playfully pinches Cathérine's ear.
Hunting horns and the choir of hunters can be heard outside.
Instrumentation
The orchestral line-up for the opera includes the following instruments:
- Woodwind : two flutes , two oboes , two clarinets , two bassoons
- Brass : four horns , three trumpets , three trombones , tuba
- Timpani , percussion : bass drum , snare drum , pool , Triangle , SISTRO, ratchet
- Celesta , harp
- Strings
- Incidental music: two horns, two trumpets, two trombones, bell, snare drum
history
Emergence
The opera's libretto was written by Renato Simoni, one of Giacomo Puccini's librettists . Simoni wrote the libretto based on the comedy of the same name by Victorien Sardou and Émile Moreau.
With the opera Madame Sans-Gêne Umberto Giordano tried to build on his earlier successes Andrea Chénier and Fedora . Based on a comedy by Victorien Sardou and Emile Moreau, an original opera with grateful singing roles was created.
reception
The opera's premiere took place on January 25, 1915, with great success at the Metropolitan Opera in New York . The conductor was Arturo Toscanini , with Geraldine Farrar (as Catherine Hubscher), Giovanni Martinelli (as Lefebvre) and Pasquale Amato (as Napoléon) in the leading roles . Another performance followed on February 28, 1915 in Turin under the musical direction of Ettore Panizza with Maria Farneti, Grassi and Riccardo Stracciari in the leading roles. The German premiere took place in 1930 in Breslau . In the meantime, the opera is rarely found on the repertoire of opera houses.
literature
- Gustav Kobbé : The Complete Opera Book (edited postmortem by Katharine Wright). Putnam and Sons, New York 1919 ( online in Project Gutenberg ).
- Dieter Zöchling: The chronicle of the opera. Chronik Verlag, 1996, ISBN 3-86047-129-5 .
- John Warrack, Evan West: The Oxford Dictionary of Opera. 1992, ISBN 0-19-869164-5 .
- Nicholas Ivor Martin: The Da Capo Opera Manual. 1997, ISBN 0-306-80807-2 .
Web links
- Madame Sans-Gêne : Sheet music and audio files in the International Music Score Library Project
- Libretto (Italian), Milan 1914. Digitized in the Corago information system of the University of Bologna
- Madame Sans-Gêne (Umberto Giordano) in the Corago information system of the University of Bologna
- Action by it at Opera-Guide landing page due to URL change currently not available
- Discography of Madame Sans-Gêne (opera) at Operadis
Individual evidence
- ^ Gustav Kobbé : The Complete Opera Book (edited postmortem by Katharine Wright). Putnam and Sons, New York 1919 ( online in Project Gutenberg ).
- ^ Julia Liebscher: Madame Sans-Gêne. In: Piper's Encyclopedia of Musical Theater. Volume 2: Works. Donizetti - Henze. Piper, Munich / Zurich 1987, ISBN 3-492-02412-2 , p. 398.
- ^ Dieter Zöchling: The Chronicle of the Opera . Chronik Verlag, Gütersloh / Munich, ISBN 3-86047-129-5 , p. 342 .