Manon Lescaut (Puccini)

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Work data
Title: Manon Lescaut
Giacomo Puccini - Manon Lescaut - poster by Vespasiano Bignami - Ricordi, Milan 1900.jpg
Shape: “Dramma lirico” in four acts
Original language: Italian
Music: Giacomo Puccini
Libretto : Giacomo Puccini, Ruggero Leoncavallo , Marco Praga , Domenico Oliva , Luigi Illica , Giuseppe Giacosa , Giulio Ricordi , Giuseppe Adami
Literary source: Abbé Prévost : Histoire du Chevalier Des Grieux et de Manon Lescaut
Premiere: February 1, 1893
Place of premiere: Teatro Regio , Turin
Playing time: about 2 hours
Place and time of the action: France and North America, in the second half of the 18th century
people
  • Manon Lescaut ( soprano )
  • Lescaut, her brother, Sergeant of the Royal Guards ( baritone )
  • the Chevalier Renato Des Grieux, student ( tenor )
  • Geronte de Ravoir, Treasurer General ( bass )
  • Edmondo, student (tenor)
  • the landlord (bass)
  • a musico [= castrato] ( mezzo-soprano )
  • the dance master (tenor)
  • a lantern keeper (tenor)
  • Sergeant of the Archers (Bass)
  • the naval commander (bass)
  • a wig maker ( silent role )
  • two soldiers, guard, sergeant (silent roles)
  • Students, girls, citizens, musicians, older men and abbots, musicians, men and women from the people, citizens, citizens ( choir )
  • Travelers, servants, friends of Gerontes, guards, patrols, prisoners, soldiers, archers, marines, seamen (extras)

Manon Lescaut is an opera (original name: "Dramma lirico") in four acts by Giacomo Puccini , which was premiered in 1893 at the Teatro Regio in Turin. At the libretto several authors were involved: Ruggero Leoncavallo , Marco Praga , Domenico Oliva , Luigi Illica , Giuseppe Giacosa , Giulio Ricordi , Giuseppe Adami and Puccini himself The plot is based on the novel. Histoire du Chevalier des Grieux et de Manon Lescaut (1731) of Abbé Prévost .

action

The introductory texts in italics are based on the German translation by Ludwig Hartmann.

first act

Scene from the first act, Metropolitan Opera

In Amiens

Another place at the Paris Post Office in Amiens. On the right an avenue, on the left a tavern with a vestibule, under which tables and chairs are for those arriving. An external staircase leads to the first floor of the inn. Students, citizens, people, women and girls, soldiers who walk and chat back and forth across the square and go to the avenue and come from there. Others form groups and talk, others sit at the tables and drink and play. Edmondo with other students; later Des Grieux.

In the square in front of the Paris Post Office in Amiens , a crowd is waiting for the stagecoach from Arras . The student Edmondo greets his friends "half funny, half sentimental" with a madrigal (Edmondo: "Ave, sera gentile"). Together they flirt with a group of girls (Edmondo / students: "Giovinezza è il nostro nome"). When their fellow student Des Grieux comes by, they ridicule him as being ignorant of love affairs. Des Grieux proves them wrong with a gallant serenade to the girls (“Tra voi, belle, brune e bionde”). Manon Lescaut, her brother, who is to take her to a monastery at the behest of her father, and the tax farmer Geronte de Ravoir arrive by stagecoach. Des Grieux falls in love with Manon at first sight, speaks to her and learns about her planned future (Des Grieux: "Cortese damigella"). He persuades her to meet him again in the evening. After she went into the house with her brother, Des Grieux fell into raptures (Des Grieux: "Donna non vidi mai") ​​until he was distracted by his friends. Geronte de Ravoir, however, has also had an eye on Manon. After learning from Lescaut about her future in the monastery, he uses money to persuade the landlord to provide a carriage. Edmondo, who overheard the trade, tells Des Grieux about it. At the evening meeting, he was able to convince Manon to flee with him (Manon: “Vedete? Io son fedele”). They both disappear into the carriage rented by Geronte, while Geronte and the drunken Lescaut are mocked by the crowd.

Second act

Stage design for the second act, Turin 1893

In Paris

An elegant salon in the Gerontes house. Large doors in the background. On the right, rich curtains cover the entrance to an alcove. To the left of the window is a luxurious dressing table. Sofa, armchair, table in rich taste. The curtain goes up. Manon sits in front of the toilet, covered with a dressy white powder coat. The barber is busy looking after them. Two boys stand in the back to carry out their orders at once.

After Manon lived for a short time with the destitute Des Grieux in Paris, she was brought to Geronte by her brother Lescaut. He showered them with presents. One morning Manon receives a visit from her brother, who praises her beauty. Despite her current wealth, Manon misses her lover Des Grieux (Manon: "In quelle trine morbide"). Lescaut tells her that he is also longing for her. In order to get the money needed to recapture them, he has since fallen into gambling. Manon's regret quickly fades when she glances in the mirror. A group of powdered choristers enter and play Manon a pastoral madrigal that Geronte composed for them (choristers: “Sulla vetta tu del monte”). She gives Lescaut her wallet to pay for the musicians, but Lescaut pockets the money himself and dismisses the musicians "in the name of true glory". Some of the guests invited by Geronte now appear: elderly gentlemen and clergymen. Quartet players tune their instruments in the background. Geronte himself comes with a dance master, under whose guidance Manon dances a minuet. The guests praise her with fascination, and Manon asks Geronte to dance (Manon: “L'ora, o Tirsi, è vaga e bella”). When the company has left and Manon is preparing to follow them, Des Grieux enters, whom Lescaut has fetched (Manon / Des Grieux: "Tu, amore? Tu?"). Manon throws himself into his arms in order to achieve a reconciliation (Manon: "Io voglio il tuo perdono"). At that moment, however, Geronte returns, realizes the situation and hurries away under threats. Des Grieux urges to flee. But Manon cannot leave her jewelry (Des Grieux: "Ah! Manon, mi tradisce"). Finally, Lescaut returns breathless and reports that Geronte has sued Manon. He also urges you to hurry. Manon snatches a few jewelry items that she wants to take with her. However, the house is already surrounded by soldiers and it is impossible to escape. When a sergeant and two soldiers enter, Manon drops the jewels in shock. She is being arrested. Lescaut can just stop Des Grieux from attacking the soldiers. If he had also been arrested, no one could save Manon.

Third act

Intermezzo sinfonico

An orchestral interlude depicts Manon's captivity and journey to Le Havre, where Des Grieux follows her. A programmatic quote from Prévost's story describes his feelings:

«… Gli è che io l'amo! - La mia passione è so forte che io mi sento la più sfortunata creatura che viva. - Quello che non ho io tentato a Parigi per ottenere la sua libertà! … Ho implorato i potenti! … Ho picchiato e supplicato a tutte le porte! … Persino alla violenza ho ricorso! … Tutto fu inutile. - Una sol via mi rimaneva: seguirla! Ed io seguo! Dovunque ella vada! … Fosse pure in capo al mondo! ... »

"... Here is the beloved. My passion is so strong that I feel like the most unhappy creature on earth. What did I not try in Paris to get Manon's liberation! I pleaded with those in power, knocked on all doors and asked. I even resorted to violence. All in vain. I couldn't save her, so there was only one way left - to follow her. And I follow her - wherever she goes, I follow her; And if it were the end of the world ... I follow her ... "

- Abbé Prévost : Histoire du Chevalier Des Grieux et de Manon Lescaut (German translation by Ludwig Hartmann)
Stage design for the third act, Turin 1893
Scene from the third act: Le Havre

Le Havre

Place at the port. In the background the view of the sea and the ships. Left the corner of a barracks. A window on the ground floor that is barred with thick iron bars. The gate that goes into the square is closed. A guard patrols in front of it. In the back port you can see half of a warship. On the right a house and a piece of sidewalk. In the corner is a dimly lit lighthouse. It is the last hour of the night. The morning begins to dawn. Des Grieux and Lescaut, both from different sides of the barracks.

Manon was sentenced to exile in the American penal colony . Des Grieux and Lescaut plan one last attempt to free them. A security guard bribed by Lescaut first enables a conversation between the lovers, in which Des Grieux informs Manon about the plan. The dawn is already dawning, and a lantern keeper singing out the light in the lighthouse. The two have to part. Suddenly a shot is fired and voices call to arms. The escape plan has failed. Lescaut urges them to hurry, but Des Grieux does not want to flee without Manon. It was only her own pleading that moved him to follow Lescaut. The noise has now attracted a lot of people, between whom the two hide. The embarkation of the exiled prostitutes begins under the supervision of a sergeant and a naval commander. The sergeant calls out one name at a time, each commented on by the crowd. When it is Manon's turn, Lescaut arouses the indignation of those present with a pictorial description of her cruel fate. Des Grieux takes the opportunity to carefully approach Manon. The two tearfully say goodbye until the sergeant roughly tears them apart. With the courage of desperation, Des Grieux persuades the captain to take him with him as a cabin boy (Des Grieux: "No! Pazzo son! - Guardate, pazzo son"). Lescaut stays behind, shaking his head.

Fourth act

Scene from the fourth act: Manon's funeral

In America

An immense plain on the farthest border from New Orleans. The ground is undulating and completely barren and terribly barren. The sky was cloudy gray. The evening is getting dark. Manon and Des Grieux slowly approach from the background, poorly dressed, with a suffering in appearance. Manon is pale emaciated and leans wearily on Des Grieux, who struggles to hold her upright.

During the escape through the desert, Manon becomes weaker and weaker. She sends Des Grieux to look for water. While waiting for his return, she remembers the reason for her flight, confused and exhausted (Manon: “Sola… perduta, abbandonata”): She and Des Grieux were supposed to be separated again after arriving in America. He was embroiled in a bloody fight and the two had to flee. Manon curses her beauty, which she blames for it. When Des Grieux returns without water, Manon - already completely exhausted - protests her eternal love for him and dies in his arms.

layout

orchestra

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

Music numbers

The opera is well composed. In the literature, the following pieces are highlighted (German texts after the translation by Ludwig Hartmann):

first act

  • Edmondo: "Ave, sera gentile" ("Greetings to evening!")
    Madrigal
  • Edmondo / Students: “Giovinezza è il nostro nome” (“Our banner is the happy youth”)
    Madrigal
  • Des Grieux: "Tra voi, belle, brune e bionde" ("Among all you beautiful children")
    "Gallanterie"
  • Des Grieux: "Cortese damigella" ("My gracious Fraulein")
    Des Grieux 'speaks to Manon politely and becomes aware of his feelings
  • Des Grieux: "Donna non vidi mai" ("Where did a being
    live? ") Expression of Des Grieux '"extatic love".
  • Manon: “Vedete? io son fedele ”(“ Now you see! I have faithfully ”)
    the conversation is increasingly turning into“ ecstatic lyricism ”.

Second act

  • Manon: "In quelle trine morbide" ("Oh, in the cold tips there is")
    "pronounced descent melos as an expression for Manon's loneliness in the midst of the cold splendor"
  • Choristers: "Sulla vetta tu del monte" ("You walk on the heights of the mountain, O Chloë")
    Madrigal
  • Manon: "L'ora, o Tirsi, è vaga e bella" ("Hear the hour, Tyrso, lure")
    pastoral Ariette Manons as an example of the "subtle change in semantic references" (Girardi 2000, 91)
  • Manon / Des Grieux: “Tu, amore? Tu? ”(“ You, you! Beloved! ”)
    The great love duet of the opera
  • Manon: "Io voglio il tuo perdono" ("Yes, now you should forgive")
  • Des Grieux: “Ah! Manon, mi tradisce ”(“ Manon! Shameful! ”)
    Des Grieux's premonition of a dark future

Third act

  • Intermezzo sinfonico
  • Des Grieux: “No! pazzo son! - Guardate, pazzo son "(" Woe to me ... I'm great ...! ")
    Expression of Des Grieux's desperation as a" musical snapshot of an exceptional psychological situation "

Fourth act

  • Manon: "Sola ... perduta, abbandonata" ("Alone! - given up by everyone")
    Manon's own description of the state of her soul immediately before her death, fluctuating between "resignation and euphoria"

music

Although there is no longer any recognizable division into scenes, there are traditional and mostly self-contained musical forms in which feelings are expressed and melodies can develop. Six solo pieces with different emotional content are assigned to Des Grieux alone. It is one of the most extensive and demanding tenor roles of Puccini.

In the treatment of the orchestra, Puccini orientated himself clearly on Richard Wagner , which is noticeable in the forward-looking harmonic turns (including the quoted Tristan chord ) and the leitmotif technique used . The love duet in the second act, the “Intermezzo sinfonico” and the fourth act are particularly influenced by this. The title role is assigned its own motif for the words “Manon Lescaut mi chiamo”, which varies greatly over the course of the opera. In the fourth act, the motifs presented in the previous acts are condensed again. Instrumental solos are rarely used. The leitmotifs go far beyond their use as memory motifs by Giuseppe Verdi , but do not yet form a "syntactic-semantic" system.

The vocal themes often appear completely first in the orchestra. In the beginning the soloists take it over in a quasi-recitative in broken form. On the other hand, there are also cantable twists outside of the closed forms. A frequent "doubling of the expressive cantilena in several octave registers" is striking.

Puccini used various older forms to represent the historical coloring of the Ancien Régime . The madrigal, which is actually too old in terms of music history , symbolizes a "free secular canzone". The opening motif of the first act is based on the second of the Tre minuetti for string quartet, a student exercise by Puccini. In the second act there is a reference to the castrato culture of the 18th century with the appearance of the musicians as well as a pastoral madrigal. In this scene both the tuning of the instruments and the playing of the musicians are fully composed. This is followed by a three-part dance scene by Manon called a minuet . From Des Grieux's appearance onwards, the historicizing elements of the music give way to Wagner's style with a variant of the Tristan chord.

libretto

Since Puccini wanted to avoid too great a resemblance of his opera with Massenet's Manon (“bisogna assolutamente evitare Massenet”), both the characterizations and the selection of scenes in both works differ significantly from each other. There are similarities only in the first act in the first meeting of the couple and the escape to Paris. The motif of "love at first sight" is of central importance. The selected episodes are incoherent and not always central to the plot of Prévost's original. Without knowing the novel, what happened is not completely understandable. The effect only arises through the music.

Puccini himself wrote that he felt the subject, which Prévost dealt with “as a Frenchman, with powder and minuet”, “in the Italian way, with desperate passion”. His endeavor was "to shape the historical local color of the 18th century, especially in its sanctimonious and affected features". The poetic language of the 18th century, which is characterized by a “linguistic and metrical archaism”, is found predominantly in the first and the beginning of the second act. From Des Grieux's appearance in the latter, the language becomes more modern and direct, and in the fourth act there is no longer any trace of “French powder”.

Work history

Cesira Ferrani as Manon in the second act. Costume design by Adolfo Hohenstein for the world premiere in 1893.

The libretto of Puccini's opera Manon Lescaut is based on the Histoire du chevalier Des Grieux et de Manon Lescaut from the seventh volume of the Mémoires et aventures d'un homme de qualité qui s'est retiré du monde des Abbé Prévost ( Antoine François Prévost d 'Exiles). Puccini certainly already knew Jules Massenet's setting of the material. His opera Manon had already successfully premiered in Paris in 1884, but was still unknown to the Italian audience. Unlike in his first two operas, Le Villi and Edgar , Puccini now took care of the libretto himself. He justified this with the words: "No idiotic librettist should be allowed to ruin the story - I should definitely have my hands in the creation of the libretto." Over time, seven other people worked on the text besides himself: Ruggero Leoncavallo , Marco Praga, Domenico Oliva, Luigi Illica , Giuseppe Giacosa , Giulio Ricordi and Giuseppe Adami .

Despite the poor success of Puccini's predecessor Edgar , his publisher Giulio Ricordi continued to support him. On April 28, 1889, a week after the premiere, the Gazzetta musicale announced that the two were planning their next operas together. Puccini had received the first reference to the subject of Manon Lescaut in March 1885 from Ferdinando Fontana , the librettist of his first two operas, who drew his attention to an arrangement by Étienne Gosse from 1820. Ricordi's concerns about the proximity to Massenet's opera were rejected by Puccini, stating that a woman like Manon could have several lovers. Since Puccini was dissatisfied with the work of his previous librettist Fontana because of his "pseudo-philosophical ambitions", he decided instead for Marco Praga. He in turn insisted on calling in the young poet Domenico Oliva, with whom he had already worked, for the versification. The contracts were signed in the summer of 1889, and the authors presented a libretto early the following year, the four acts of which were set in Amiens, in the lovers' apartment in Paris, in Geronte's townhouse and in the desert of Louisiana. Puccini then began to work and completed the music for the first act in March 1890. In June, however, he complained about problems that "drove him to despair". In addition, the work was too similar to Massenet's Manon. Puccini now asked for a revision of the text and insisted on a completely new scene for Manon's embarkation in Le Havre. Since Praga refused, Ruggero Leoncavallo created a new action sketch for the second act, which Oliva should work out, on behalf of Ricordi. Due to overwork, Leoncavallo also withdrew. In the autumn of 1891, Luigi Illica took on the task of revising the libretto. Giuseppe Giacosa was hired as a consultant. Illica completed the Le Havre scene and added the lantern keeper's song. The scene in which the captain agrees to take Des Grieux with him comes from Ricordi himself. Puccini also contributed eleven lines for the duet Lescaut / Manon in the Gerontes house, and Leoncavallo wrote two lines at the end of Des Grieux's solo. In the summer of 1892, the original second act, the description of the happy coexistence of lovers, was abandoned and replaced by the first part of the third act. The Le Havre scene now became an act in its own right and received an introductory interlude. Since Oliva now declared that he no longer wanted to be associated with the work, it was agreed to publish the libretto without naming the authors.

Puccini wrote the music of the opera mainly in 1891 and 1892 in Lucca , Torre del Lago and Milan. The third act, composed last, was written in Vacallo in Switzerland. In October 1892 he finished the work. As in some of his other works, he also used older music in Manon . For the madrigal in the second act he used the Agnus Dei of his Messa di Gloria (1880). He took the melody of Des Grieux's aria "Donna non vidi mai" from Mentìa l'avviso (1883). The introduction is an accelerated version of a minuet for string quartet from 1884. Motifs from the string quartet elegy Crisantemi can be found in the third and fourth acts.

In the year of the premiere in 1893, Puccini revised the finale of the first act. He replaced the original pezzo concertato with a dialogue between Lescaut and Geronte and a performance by the students with Edmont. Even later he kept changing the work. Manon's aria “Sola, perduta, abbandonata” in the fourth act was left out for a long time and resumed on December 26, 1922 with a different ending in Milan (text: Giuseppe Adami). The conductor Arturo Toscanini , under whose direction this version was heard for the first time in Milan, suggested further changes to the score, which also remained permanent. This version is considered the definitive version of the opera.

The premiere took place on February 1, 1893 in the presence of the composer in the Teatro Regio in Turin . The stage design came from Ugo Gheduzzi and Alfonso Goldini, the costumes from Adolfo Hohenstein . Alessandro Pomè was the musical director. It sang Cesira Ferrani (Manon Lescaut), Achille Moro (Lescaut), Giuseppe Cremonini (Des Grieux), Alessandro Polonini (Geronte de Ravoir), Roberto Ramini (Edmondo, dancing master and lantern guards), Augusto Castagnoli (host), Elvira Ceresoli-Salvatori (Musico) and Ferdinando Cattadori (sergeant and naval commander). Augusto Ginghini played the wig maker.

The performance was a great success. Critics praised his “stylistic independence” and “the effective treatment of the orchestra”. The director's book (“disposizione scenica”) published by Ricordi became the template for subsequent productions by other companies. The Austrian premiere in Trento was already in June 1893, before the opera was performed in other small and medium-sized Italian theaters in autumn. Puccini was present in almost all of these productions. The revised first final was played for the first time on December 21, 1893 in Novara. The performances in Naples from January 21, 1894 (conductor: Vincenzo Lombardi ; Manon: Eva Tetrazzini , Des Grieux: Fernando Valero, Lescaut: Arturo Pessina) were like the following production in Milan from February 7, 1894 (conductor: Edoardo Mascheroni ; Manon: Olga Olgina, later Hariclea Darclée ; Des Grieux: Giuseppe Cremonini, later Edoardo Garbin) huge successes. The opera stayed in the La Scala repertoire and was staged there at longer intervals, for example in the 1920s by Giovacchino Forzano , in 1934 by Mario Frigerio, in 1957 by Franco Enriquez and in 1978 by Piero Faggioni .

Puccini was now also internationally recognized. Outside Italy, Manon Lescaut was played in Buenos Aires, Rio de Janeiro, Petersburg and Madrid in his first year, in Prague, London, Montevideo, Philadelphia and Mexico in 1894, in Santiago de Chile in 1895 and in Wallack's Theater in New York, Athens and 1898 Amsterdam. Foreign language versions also appeared quickly:

  • 1893: Hamburg - German translation by Ludwig Hartmann; Conductor: Otto Lohse , Director: Franz Bittong; Manon: Berta Foerster-Lauterer, Des Grieux: Willi Birrenkoven
  • 1894: Budapest - Hungarian translation by Antal Rado (conductor: Arthur Nikisch)
  • 1894: Prague - Czech translation by Václav Juda Novotný
  • 1895: Warsaw - Polish translation by Adolf Kitschman
  • 1906: Nice - French translation by Maurice Vaucaire; 1907 also played in Marseille and Antwerp

In addition to La Scala in Milan, other important venues were the Royal Opera House Covent Garden in London and the Metropolitan Opera New York. The first performance in London was on May 11, 1894, as Ricordi only gave the performing rights for Verdi's Falstaff together with those of Manon Lescaut . In 1904 the work was sung here for the first time in English. Puccini was personally present at the premiere at the MET in 1907. Lina Cavalieri (Manon) and Enrico Caruso (Des Grieux) sang here .

Other important productions were:

Recordings

Puccini's Manon Lescaut has appeared many times on phonograms. Operadis lists 85 recordings in the period from 1931 to 2009. Therefore, only those recordings that have been particularly distinguished in specialist journals, opera guides or the like or that are worth mentioning for other reasons are listed below.

Other edits

Based on the same substance:

expenditure

score

  • Ricordi, Milan 1893 (SC 64.E.2A: PN 96389)
  • Ricordi, Milan 1898 (?) (SC 64.E.4A: PN 96389)
  • Ricordi, Milan 1915 (SC 64.E.6: PN 115300)
  • Ricordi, Milan 1924 (SC 64.E.8B: PN 115300)
  • Ricordi, Milan 1958 (SC 64.E.8D: PN PR113)
  • Roger Parker (Ed.), 2013 (PN 139071)

Vocal score

  • Ricordi, Carlo Carignani (Ed.), 1892 (SC 64.E.1: PN 95567, 277 pages)
  • Ricordi, 1893 (SC 64.E.2: PN 95567, 275 pages)
  • Ricordi, 1893 (SC 64.E.3: PN 95567, 262 pages, new Finale I)
  • Ricordi, 1898 (?) (SC 64.E.4: PN 95567, 264 pages)
  • Ricordi, 1909 (SC 64.E.5: PN 95567, 258 pages, without Manon's aria in the fourth act)
  • Ricordi, 1923 (SC 64.E.7: PN 95567, 264 pages)
  • Ricordi, 1924 at the earliest (SC 64.E.8: PN 95567, 263 pages)
  • Ricordi, Mario Parenti (Ed.), 1960 (SC 64.E.8: PN 95567, 263 pages)
  • Roger Parker (Ed.), 2015 (PN 139074)

libretto

  • Ricordi, from 1893 (61 pages)
  • Ludwig Hartmann, 1893 (German)
  • Joachim Popelka, Georg C. Winkler, 1955 (German)
  • Joachim Herz , Eginhard Röhlig (1992)

Director's book ("disposizione scenica")

  • Ricordi, Milan 1893 (No. 96457)

Web links

Commons : Manon Lescaut  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Richard Erkens: Manon Lescaut. In: Richard Erkens (Ed.): Puccini Handbook. Metzler, Stuttgart 2017, ISBN 978-3-476-05441-8 (Metzler eBook), pp. 220-231.
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Norbert Christen: Manon Lescaut. In: Piper's Encyclopedia of Musical Theater . Volume 5: Works. Piccinni - Spontini. Piper, Munich / Zurich 1994, ISBN 3-492-02415-7 , pp. 96-101.
  3. ↑ Manon Lescaut. In: Rudolf Kloiber , Wulf Konold , Robert Maschka: Handbuch der Oper. 9th, expanded, revised edition 2002. Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag / Bärenreiter, ISBN 3-423-32526-7 , pp. 555–558.
  4. ↑ Libretto from it at Opera-Guide target page due to URL change currently not available .
  5. ↑ a b c d e f g h Manon Lescaut. In: Attila Csampai , Dietmar Holland : Opera guide. E-book. Rombach, Freiburg im Breisgau 2015, ISBN 978-3-7930-6025-3 , pp. 959-970.
  6. ↑ a b c d e f g h Julian Budden:  Manon Lescaut (ii). In: Grove Music Online (English; subscription required).
  7. ↑ Manon Lescaut - Brani significativi in the work information on librettidopera.it , accessed on July 2, 2019.
  8. ↑ a b Gabriella Biagi Ravenni, Dieter Schickling (ed.): Giacomo Puccini: Epistolario 1 (1877-1896). Florence 2015.
  9. ^ Giuseppe Adami : Puccini. Milan 1935; German by Lotte Leber. Stuttgart 1943.
  10. ↑ a b c Emanuele d'Angelo: Puccini and the librettists. In: Richard Erkens (Ed.): Puccini Handbook. Metzler, Stuttgart 2017, ISBN 978-3-476-05441-8 (Metzler eBook), pp. 78–80.
  11. ↑ Michele Girardi: Puccini. His International Art (translated from Italian by Laura Basini). Chicago / London 2000. Italian original edition: Michele Girardi: Giacomo Puccini. L 'arte internazionale di un musicista italiano. Venice 1995.
  12. ↑ a b Manon Lescaut. In: Reclams Opernlexikon (= digital library . Volume 52). Philipp Reclam jun. at Directmedia, Berlin 2001, p. 1601.
  13. ^ February 1, 1893: "Manon Lescaut". In: L'Almanacco di Gherardo Casaglia ..
  14. ^ Peter Franken: Robert Carsen, een personal impressie. In: Place de l'Opéra, October 29, 2015, accessed on July 3, 2019.
  15. ↑ a b c d e Manon Lescaut. In: Harenberg opera guide. 4th edition. Meyers Lexikonverlag, 2003, ISBN 3-411-76107-5 , pp. 684-687.
  16. ^ Discography on Manon Lescaut at Operadis.
  17. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j Giacomo Puccini. In: Andreas Ommer: Directory of all complete opera recordings (= Zeno.org . Volume 20). Directmedia, Berlin 2005.
  18. ↑ a b c Puccini’s Manon Lescaut on Gramophone , accessed June 30, 2019.
  19. ↑ Ekkehard Pluta: Truly contra veristic. In: Opernwelt , June 2009, p. 30.
  20. ↑ Review of the DVD by Silvio Varviso on Gramophone , accessed on June 30, 2019.
  21. ↑ Ekkehard Pluta: Faithfulness to the work as an alibi and a challenge. In: Opernwelt , June 2007, p. 55.
  22. ^ Review of the CD by Riccardo Muti. In: Gramophone , 5/2000, accessed June 30, 2019.
  23. ↑ Christoph Vratz: Bright, pale, opulent. In: Opernwelt , June 2016.
  24. ↑ Jürgen Kesting : Limits of beautiful song. In: Opernwelt , January 2017, p. 24.