Servilia (opera)
| Opera dates | |
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| Title: | Servilia |
| Original title: | Сервилия (Serviliya) |
Title page of the libretto, around 1902 |
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| Shape: | Opera in five acts |
| Original language: | Russian |
| Music: | Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov |
| Libretto : | Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov |
| Literary source: | Lev Mei : Servilia |
| Premiere: | October 1st jul. / October 14, 1902 greg. |
| Place of premiere: | Mariinsky Theater , Saint Petersburg |
| Playing time: | approx. 2 ½ hours |
| Place and time of the action: | Rome , AD 67 at the time of Emperor Nero |
| people | |
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Servilia (Russian: Сервилия) is an opera in five acts by Nikolai Rimski-Korsakow (music) with its own libretto based on the tragedy of the same name by Lev Mei from 1854. The opera was on October 1, July. / October 14, 1902 greg. premiered at the Mariinsky Theater in Saint Petersburg .
action
first act
Roman Forum
In the background the Argentaria Basilica, the Emilia Basilica and the Minerva Temple; in the middle a fountain with a statue of the goddess Diana; on the right the house of Senator Soranus Barea .
Scene 1. Roman people gather in the forum . A young boy is selling hot polenta ; a girl offers flowers. The citizens Fulcinius Afer, Caestus, Velox and Mella fear that Avidius Hyspo could slander the tribune Valerius Arulenus Rusticus and the senators Helvidius Priscus , Curtius Montanus, Paconius Agrippinus, Soranus Barea and Thrasea Paetus . They decide to warn their patron .
Scene 2. Afer offers a ragged old man some money, which the latter refuses to his amazement.
Scene 3. A crier dressed as Mercurius announces the opening of the theater and circus in the name of Emperor Nero for the duration of the upcoming festivities in honor of the goddess Minerva . Everyone praises the emperor.
Scene 4. Hyspo incites the crowd against the Christians who are hiding in the catacombs. It is believed that these were child murderers and arsonists and brought hunger and epidemics to the city. Some remember with fondness how Nero had Christians burned as human torches .
Scene 5. Servilia, Soranus' daughter, comes out of the senator's house with her nurse Antonia and two slave girls carrying baskets full of flowers. Hyspo is immediately fascinated by her beauty. To his disappointment, those present inform him that, at her father's request, she will soon be married to old Thrasea.
Scene 6. The solemn procession of the Kanephoren passes: at the top are venerable old men with olive branches, behind them armed fighters, then boys and girls with consecrated baskets and slaves, then musicians and dancers. The conclusion is a small sailing ship accompanied by priests, which symbolizes Minerva's victory over the titans . Everyone present, with the exception of the old man, kneels in awe. In front of Soranus' house, the dancers depict Minerva's fight. Servilia and the slaves throw flowers from the terrace. Then the procession makes its way to the Minerva Temple.
Scene 7. The people wonder why the old man was so indifferent all the time. Some think he's crazy. The man then gets up and accuses those present of serving Satan. He reveals himself to be a Christian, goes to the fountain and smashes the Diana statue with his staff. The crowd furiously demands that he be stoned.
Scene 8. At this moment the tribune Valerius appears and Servilia asks him to prevent the bloodshed in front of her house. Valerius, obviously fascinated by Servilia, has the man brought before the imperial court, where even Jupiter cannot protect him from a death sentence.
Scene 9. While the crowd demands the cruelest punishment for the Christian, the Christian is longing to die as a martyr .
Second act
Agrippa's thermal baths
Splendid marble dining room; at the back of the sides statues of Bacchus and Hygieia .
Scene 1. Senators Montanus, Helvidius and Paconius, threatened by the slander, are looking for countermeasures. Paconius has already tried to find out more about the background through Nero's mother-in-law Valeria Messalina . He was greatly impressed by the lady's taste for art, who received him in a splendid peristyle .
Scene 2. Egnatius, a freedman of Soranus, shows the senators a letter from Hyspos to the prefect Ofonius Tigellinus , in which they themselves, the senators Thrasea and Soranus, the tribune and the citizens Velox, Caestus, Mella and Afer are accused of treason. Caestus had intercepted Hyspo, snatched the letter from him and killed him. For the moment the danger is over, but it is clear that the prefect is still to be feared. The senators decide to inform Nero about his machinations. Egnatius should draw up a corresponding declaration, which they then want to sign.
Scene 3. The senators begin their sumptuous meal with a libation to the goddess Diana. Musicians appear and maenads dance.
Scene 4. Suddenly slaves run onto the stage and interrupt the dances. The library went up in flames and the doors were apparently locked on Tigellinus' orders. Fortunately, Egnatius has a key and everyone can save themselves. A little later Egnatius returns and knocks twice on the pedestal of the Hygieia statue. A secret door opens.
Scene 5. Tigellinus enters. He was able to overhear the conversation of the senators and now asks Egnatius the reason for his devotion to him - revenge, lust for power or jealousy? Egnatius replies that it is love.
Third act
Peristyle in Soranus' house
Sixteen pillars connected by arches form a square on a marble platform; above it a canopy of blooming ivy; Fountains, vases and statues.
Scene 1. Servilia sits at the spinning wheel, unveiled in her light blue sleeveless tunic. Antonia and the slave girls also spin and sew and sing along with them.
Scene 2. Her father Soranus enters and reminds them of the danger they are all in because of the slander. To protect them, he accepted Thrasea's advertisement. The wedding should take place as soon as possible. He also tells Servilia that the old Christian fled with Caestus. Servilia begs her father to reconsider her wedding plans because she loves someone else. Soranus, however, considers love to be an "infectious disease of the soul" and does not want to hear about it. A slave reports the arrival of Thrasea.
Scene 3. Thrasea and Egnatius have brought the prepared scroll with them, which Thrasea and Soranus immediately sign. Egnatius assures them that all of Rome is on their side, and with the writing goes on the way to the other senators.
Scene 4. Thrasea informs Egnatius that he is not going to marry Servilia because his own fate is uncertain, his age does not suit Servilia's youthful beauty and he knows how much Valerius loves her. He persuaded the tribune to come here. The two go to the library.
Scene 5. Servilia enters to water the flowers. Shortly afterwards, Valerius also appears, who watches her unseen for a moment before greeting her. The two declare their love for each other.
Scene 6. Thrasea returns, apologizes to Servilia and Valerius for being hasty and assures them that he and Soranus are okay with their connection. Soranus and Antonia join them, and Soranus gives the couple his blessing.
Scene 7. The slave reports the arrival of a centurion . He announced to those present on behalf of the Senate that Soranus and his friends were accused of treason against Rome.
Fourth act
Reception room in the house of the sorceress Locusta
A black curtain hides the back wall; pillars painted black on the side; on the right a door to the atrium, on the left a small door covered by a column.
Scene 1. Locusta is reading a scroll of magic formulas when Egnatius arrives to make sure her predictions are in line with his plans. He is hiding behind the black curtain.
Scene 2. Servilia hopes that Locusta can enlighten her about her father's fate. As payment, she offers the sorceress her bridal jewelry. Locusta withdraws a moment ago to prepare the necromancy.
Scene 3. Meanwhile, Servilia asks the gods for strength.
Scene 4. Locusta draws back the curtain and her laboratory, littered with skulls, bones, and scrolls, becomes visible. Then she makes a circle with her wand and draws Servilia inside. She throws magic drugs into the fire and summons the goddess Hecate . Ghostly voices can be heard and the appearance of an old woman is seen in the smoke. Servilia asks her about the whereabouts of Valerius and the fate of her father, who has been falsely accused by traitors and hypocrites. The apparition replies that her question would be answered by the one she herself falsely accused and disappears.
Scene 5. While Servilia ponders the meaning of this answer, Egnatius steps forward and claims that he is the one she has accused. But he is not an enemy, but a friend. He tells her about his past: his parents' Germanic village was attacked by barbarians and he himself was kidnapped to Rome as a child and sold into slavery. So he came to her father's house, to whom he was grateful for his kindness, but whom, as a Roman, he nevertheless deeply hated. When he found out about the conspiracy after his release, he decided to use it for his plans for revenge. Now he is in a position where a word to Tigellinus would be enough to achieve the freedom of her father - if she is willing to marry him. Servilia rejects this offer with disgust. With a final threat, Egnatius disappears behind the curtain.
Scene 6. Servilia is left alone and all the doors are locked. Desperate and hopeless, she begs the gods for assistance.
Scene 7. Locusta's slave Nevolia, a Christian, saves Servilia and escapes with her through the secret door. This puts their fate in the hands of the Christian God.
Fifth act
Venus temple with statue and altar as well as a platform for the emperor and dignitaries
Scene 1. A praetor opens the tribunal "to exterminate stoicism " against the senators accused of treason.
Scene 2. Soranus and Thrasea vehemently deny the accusations.
Scene 3. Egnatius accuses Servilia of sorcery. She confesses that she asked a fortune teller for advice. Her father didn't know anything about it.
Scene 4. Meanwhile, Afer and his friends have started a popular uprising in front of the building and are interrupting the session. Afer publicly swears that Servilia is completely innocent. Servilia, Soranus and Thrasea thank him for his speech. Then the praetor announces the verdict: Thrasea and Soranus are banished from Rome forever. Servilia, on the other hand, is handed over to Egnatius and has to prove herself in marriage with him. Then Valerius appears in the door and vetoed .
Scene 5. Followed by a mixed crowd including Caestus, Nevolia, and Antonia, Valerius enters the temple. Servilia lets out a scream and faints. Tigellinus also arrives, and Valerius presents the praetor with a letter from Emperor Nero, in which he announces his arrival the following day. This ends the session. Egnatius asks Tigellinus in vain to intervene and kill Valerius.
Scene 6. Servilia confesses to Valerius that she thought him dead and, in desperation, converted to Christianity, since she had only received consolation from the God of Christians. She makes Valerius swear to forgive his enemies and says goodbye to him. She took a sacred oath to renounce worldly happiness and love from now on. Her voice gets weaker and weaker and she sinks to the ground, dying. Valerius draws his dagger to kill himself, but is prevented by Thrasea with a reference to his oath. Egnatius is shocked to see his guilt and tears his clothes. Then the old man appears and majestically urges everyone to acknowledge the power of the living God. Nevolia and Caestus agree, and they all affirm their new faith with the common “Credo”.
layout
orchestra
The orchestral line-up for the opera includes the following instruments:
- Woodwinds : three flutes (3rd also piccolo ), two oboes (2nd also English horn ), two clarinets , bass clarinet , two bassoons
- Brass : four horns , two trumpets , three trombones , tuba
- Timpani , drums : bass drum , cymbals , triangle , tam-tam
- harp
- Strings
- Incidental music : trumpet
music
Rimsky-Korsakov explained the different meanings of the different roles in the foreword of the score as follows:
“If the number of opera staff is small or for other practical reasons, several solo roles can be taken over by one actor. Distinctive actors require the roles of Thrasea (tenor), Soranus (bass), Valerius (tenor), Egnatius (baritone), Servilia (soprano) and the old man (bass). The roles of Montanus and Fulcinius Afer (tenor), Helvidius, Centurion and Avidius Hyspo (bass), Paconius, Caestus (bass), the herald and the slave (tenor), the Newolja and the flower girl (soprano) can be combined, of Antonia, and Locusta, the spirit, the polenta seller (mezzo-soprano and alto). The roles of Mella and Velox (ad libitum in the 1st and 5th act) are performed in harmony with the tenors and basses of the small choir of the citizens and are therefore dependent. "
While the second and third acts are strictly divided into numbers, the music of the other three acts is designed across the board with the help of a modulation scheme. Christianity is indicated by chorale intonations. The constant threat posed by the tigellinus, which hardly appears in the scene, is musically perceptible through a triplet motif . The role of Servilia is characterized by Italian cantilena and an orchestral section with strings and woodwinds. Additional color is created by allusions to Byzantine or Oriental music , the use of church modes and chromatic scales in the Locusta scene of the fourth act. According to his own statements, Rimsky-Korsakov made "extensive use of the leitmotif technique" here, as in his previous operas .
The Senators' feast (II: 3) is not to be understood here as a wild drinking binge. In contrast to similar scenes in most of the operas, this is not a rough hymn of praise to Bacchus, but rather a moderately artful declamation in the “ modo mixolidico ” offering a sacrifice of thanks to Diana. Rimsky-Korsakov uses both the declamation style and the Mixolydian key in this opera to identify the Neostoics. The short prelude is already in this key.
The largest independent musical number of the work is the aria of Servilia in the third act (“Meine Blumen!”), Whose declamatory style is reminiscent of “Suicidio!” From Amilcare Ponchielli's La Gioconda . The only larger ensemble movement is the quartet at the end of the third act. Rimsky-Korsakov essentially took the music of the final “Credo” from the “Amen” final chorus of the second version of his opera Pskovitjanka .
Musical motifs (selection)
A detailed explanation of the motifs used in the opera can be found in Nikolai van Gilse van der Pals ' book NA Rimsky-Korssakow. Opera and sketch about life and work, from which the following examples are also taken.
- The main motive of Egnatius:
- Motives Servilias:
- Dark mood due to excessive and diminished chords in the summoning scene:
- The final credo:
Work history
Nikolai Rimski-Korsakow had the idea for his opera Servilia in the early 1890s. But it did not become concrete until January 1900. The self-written libretto is based on the tragedy of the same name by Lev Mei published in 1854 . This deals with a historical event from ancient Rome, the resistance of some senators (the "Neostoics") described in the annals (XVI / 21-35) of Tacitus against the arbitrariness of Tigellinus, favored by Emperor Nero , and transferred as a fight against the bourgeois virtues the depravity of the courtiers. Mei referred this to the struggle of the Petraschewzen in Russia of his time. The speech of the likewise historical Servilia is taken almost verbatim from the annals . Rimsky-Korsakov hoped that the Roman subject would give him greater freedom in the possible stylistic devices. In his autobiography Chronicle of My Musical Life , he wrote:
“A material from the life of ancient Rome allowed me an absolutely free choice of stylistic means, with the exception of the obviously contrary to style, such as specifically German, French or Russian. Nothing has come down to us from the music of antiquity, no one has ever heard it, and as a result, provided that the obviously contradicting style was avoided, no one could accuse the composer that his music was not Roman. So it was an almost unlimited freedom that was offered to me here. "
Rimsky-Korsakov tightened the text, reduced the number of people from 43 to 25, and simplified the plot, which he reduced to three essential elements - the ethical superiority of the Christian faith over paganism, the threat to the monarchy from hypocritical subordinates and that from the The intrigue of their opponents ruined the fortunes of the virtuous Servilia. He composed the complete third and fourth act as well as parts of the first and fifth act in the summer of 1900 directly as a score. He completed the work in May 1901 and dedicated it to the memory of Meis, who had already provided the templates for three of his other operas.
The world premiere on October 1st jul. / October 14, 1902 greg. Felix Blumenfeld directed the Mariinsky Theater in Saint Petersburg . Rimsky-Korsakov then particularly praised the achievements of Jefrossinija [Valentina] Iwanowna Kusa (Servilia), Iwan Wassiljewitsch Jerschow (Valerius) and Konstantin Terentewitsch Serebrjakow (Soranus) and considered the production to be excellent overall. Only Leonid Georgijewitsch Jakowlew in the role of Egnatius was "downright impossible again, despite all good will". Nikolaj Andrejevich Markevich (Tigellinus), Gawriil Alexejewitsch Morskoi (Thrasea), Mitrofan Tschuprynnikow (Montanus), Leonid Georgijewitsch Jakowlew (Egnatius), Andrei Markowitsch Labinski (Afer), Nikolaj S. Klimov (Caigspo), Wladimir Iwanowitsch Kastorski (Alter), AI Panina (Antonia), Julija Nikolajewna Nossilowa (Locusta) and YV Slatina (Nevolia) as well as Wladimir Maiboroda and Lev Sibirjakow. The opera was only performed seven times due to its poor success. According to Rimsky-Korsakov, she had only one “respectable success” at the premiere and “none at all in the rights presentations, as it was now customary,” and was removed “without entitlement” after another poorly attended performance.
- Costume sketches by Yevgeny Ponomarjow for the premiere in 1902
Polenta seller
Maenad
Tigellinus
Locusta
In 1904 the work was given under the direction of Nikolai Kotschetow in the Moscow theater by Gavrila Solodownikow with Anton Sekar-Roschansky as Valerius and Nikolai Shevelev as Egnatius. This production was also unsuccessful and only had six performances. One reason for the lack of interest in this theater was that Anton Rubinstein's opera Nero , which had a very similar subject, had only celebrated great success there last year . The audience saw only a weaker reprint in Servilia .
The opinion of the critics, already formed after the premiere, that it was "pale music", persisted for a long time, although later this could hardly be verified due to the lack of new productions. Later, Rimsky-Korsakov himself is said to have described the music of this opera as "pale" ( according to the memories of Ilya Tyumenew). On the other hand, he said that it was "undeservedly" removed from the repertoire. According to Piper's Encyclopedia of Music Theater , like Pan Wojewoda (1904) , he saw it as artistically secondary and as an "intermezzo" within his overall oeuvre. Richard Taruskin called it both his greatest and his most meaningless opera. Sigrid Neef came to a different conclusion when he was aware of existing recordings of Servilia's aria and her duet with Valerius (both in the third act) as well as the score. These suggested "rather colored, high-contrast music". Nikolai van Gilse van der Pals noticed a lack of drama in the work. While Rimski-Korsakow succeeded in characterizing the character in his libretto, “the plot and development, viewed as a whole, were weak”. The main culprit is the "fragmentary libretto, which the composer was not able to rearrange and improve in a sufficient way". The "dryness of many parts" of the work is due to the fact that he had to "first look for suitable means of expression" for the unfamiliar subject. Nevertheless, the opera “should not be judged as worthless”, since it was “in many ways interesting and noteworthy”.
It was not until 2016 that the opera was shown again at the Moscow Chamber Opera (Pokrovsky Theater). The conductor was Gennady Roshdestvensky , the director was Olga Ivanova, the equipment was provided by Viktor Gerasimenko and the choreography by Alexey Ishchuk.
On April 3, 2019, on the occasion of the composer's 175th birthday, there was a concert performance in the concert hall in Saint Petersburg under the musical direction of Valery Gergiev with Angelina Akhmedova as Servilia, Alexander Mikhailov as Valerius, Pavel Shmulevich as an old man, Ilya Bannik as Paconius, Yaroslav Petryanik as Egnatius and Dmitry Grigoriev as Soranus.
Recordings
Official recordings of the entire opera are currently (July 2020) not available. A full live recording of an unspecified performance can only be found on YouTube under the title “servilia RK Martin”.
There are also some recordings of individual arias and duets:
- 1953. Duet Servilia / Valerius (third act) - Olga Piotrowskaja (Servilia) and Georg Nelepp (Valerius). Orchestra of the All-Union Radio Symphony Orchestra Moscow under Onisim Bron. MELODIYA M 10 45849-004.
- 1970. Aria of Servilia (third act) - Galina Pissarenko. Orchestra of the Bolshoi Theater Moscow, conductor: Boris Chaikin. RCD (Russian Compact Disc) Talents of Russia RCD 16008
- 2006. Servilia's aria (third act) - Renée Fleming . Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theater St. Petersburg, conductor: Valery Gergiev. DECCA 475 8069 DH
literature
- Nikolai van Gilse van der Pals : NA Rimsky-Korssakow. Opera and sketch about life and work. Georg Olms Verlag, Hildesheim / New York 1977 (reprint of the Paris-Leipzig 1929 edition), ISBN 3-487-06427-8 , pp. 456–467.
- Servilia. In: Stephen Muir: The operas of NA Rimsky-Korsakov from 1897 to 1904. Dissertation from the University of Birmingham, March 2000, pp. 149-214 ( online at academia.edu).
- Servilia (Serviliya). In: Sigrid Neef : The operas of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (= Musik Konkret 18 ). Ernst Kuhn Verlag, Berlin 2008, ISBN 978-3-936637-13-7 , pp. 253-274.
Web links
- Servilia : Sheet music and audio files in the International Music Score Library Project
- Libretto (Russian) as full text on libretto-oper.ru
- Libretto (English) as full text at OperaGlass. Translation: Stephen Muir
- Screenshots of the Moscow Chamber Opera 2016 sputnikimages.com
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d Richard Taruskin : Servilia [Serviliya]. In: Grove Music Online (English; subscription required).
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i Valeri Kulakow: Serviliya. In: Piper's Encyclopedia of Musical Theater . Volume 5: Works. Piccinni - Spontini. Piper, Munich / Zurich 1994, ISBN 3-492-02415-7 , pp. 276-277.
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k Servilia (Serviliya). In: Sigrid Neef : The operas of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (= Musik Konkret 18 ). Ernst Kuhn Verlag, Berlin 2008, ISBN 978-3-936637-13-7 , pp. 253-274.
- ↑ a b c d e f g h Servilia (Serviliya). In: Sigrid Neef : Handbook of Russian and Soviet Opera. Henschelverlag Art and Society, Bärenreiter 1989. ISBN 3-7618-0925-5 , pp. 451–455.
- ↑ a b c d e f Nikolai van Gilse van der Pals : NA Rimsky-Korssakow. Opera and sketch about life and work. Georg Olms Verlag, Hildesheim / New York 1977 (reprint of the Paris-Leipzig 1929 edition), ISBN 3-487-06427-8 , pp. 456–467.
- ↑ October 14, 1902: "Servilija". In: L'Almanacco di Gherardo Casaglia .
- ↑ Information on the production of the Moscow Chamber Opera 2016 on bolshoimoscow.com, accessed on July 29, 2020.
- ↑ Information on the performance in Saint Petersburg 2019 at mariinsky.ru, accessed on July 29, 2020.
Pskovitjanka (The Pskov Girl, 1873) | Boyarynja Wera Scheloga (The Boyarin Wera Scheloga, 1898) | Maiskaja notsch (The May Night, 1880) | Snegurochka (Snow Maiden, 1882) | Mlada (1892) | Notsch pered Roshdestwom (The Night Before Christmas, 1895) | Sadko (1898) | Mozart i Saljeri (Mozart and Salieri, 1898) | Tsarskaya Nevesta (The Tsar's Bride, 1899) | Skaska o zare Saltane (The tale of Tsar Saltan, 1900 | Servilia (1902) | Kashchei bessmertny ( Kashchei the Immortal, 1902) | Pan Wojewoda (1904) | Skasanije o newidimom grade Kitesche i dewe Fewronii (The legend of the invisible city of Kitez and of the virgin Fevronija, 1907) | Solotoi petuschok (The golden rooster, 1909)