What made the two operas Conlon selected to produce at Ravinia 2012 so special?
I would be amiss not to share the knowledge imparted by Conlon at his two pre-preformance lectures, with the hope that at least a few of you might be tempted to try opera between now and the summer of 2013 when the Ravinia Festival once again offers opera on its agenda.
While "The Magic Flute" was the last great opera Mozart wrote before his passing in 1791, "Idomeneo" was Mozart's first major opera written when only 26 years of age.
"Idomeneo" differs from "The Magic Flute" in that "Idomenio" was written in the Italian language, while "The Magic Flute" is in German. As a young man Mozart traveled to Italy, learned the Italian language and then returned home to Austria to write Italian opera better than a native born Italian opera composer.
Written in the style of an Italian opera, "Idomenio" employs what is known as recitative, where the dialogue or narration is sung instead of spoken in a free vocal style.
As a German opera "The Magic Flute" qualifies as a "singspiel" (literally meaning "song-play"), where the dialogue is spoken instead of sung. app1.kuhf.org/articles/22680-Singspiel.html
Conlon, however, eliminated the singspiel from Ravinia's production
of "The Magic Flute." Instead actor John De Lancie served as the
narrator with his witty and very-up-to-date narrative which enabled the
singers to concentrate fully on their singing.
Mozart's "Idomeneo" as a political statement?
Just
as every story has a plot, the same is true for every.opera. In opera
the plot is conveyed through a series of arias (expressive melodies),
through which singers portray the characters called for in the story
line.
Idomeneo represented Mozart's first commission to
produce a specific work. Richard Strauss, who much admired Mozart's
music, called "Idomeneo" a "youthful burst of youthful energy."
The
opera contains incredibly beautiful music and vocal ensembles, which
was a revolutionary idea introduced by Mozart. Here to fore it was the
norm for singers not to have to share the limelight with another singer
on stage.
To James Conlon's regret, "Idomeneo" is not performed
very often because of the difficulty of assembly a cast of singers all
in one place capable of singing the complex vocal parts written by
Mozart.
The story line of "Idomeneo" has to do with love vs.
duty or loyalty to ones country (or God), as is depicted in the story of
Issac and Abraham in the Old Testament of the Bible. The main
character in "Idomeneo" is faced with the same quandary of love vs. duty
with own his son as Abraham faced with Issac, but the plot of
"Idomeneo" centers on the Trojan War.
I was somewhat offended
when the king's son was portrayed by an attractive woman. To see on
stage a woman expressing deep love and affection toward another woman
who presumably he would marry did not set well with me. Mozart did use
women to portray men in his operas, but they remained as women and
portrayed men only when the plot called for a gender disguise.
Was
the choice of a woman to assume the role of a male character in
"Idomeneo" a political statement on the part of Ravinia?, especially
when informed that Mozart wrote the part to be sung by either a soprano
and a tenor.
The Magic Flute as a fairy tale with ties to Freemasonry?
Turning
to "The Magic Flute," there is a fairy tale aspect to it. An integral
part of the story involves a magic flute and bells. Possessing either
enables those to whom they are given to stay out of trouble.
There
are those who believe that beneath the surface of the fairy tale aspect
of "The Magic Flute" lies veiled references to masonic rituals and
symbols.
Founded in the late 18th century as the moral
alternative to the Roman Catholic Church, freemasonry was very popular
with the intellectually elite during the early 1780's, during which time
Mozart joined a lodge.
biblocality.com/forums/showthread.php?2080-Mozart-was-a-Free-Mason
Others
are of the opinion that "The Magic Flute" was advocating for the
inclusion of women in Masonic lodges, referring to "The Magic Flute" as
the first openly feminist opera because of the way Mozart elevated women
in its plot.
Looking ahead to 2014
Although the
summer season is drawing to a close, likewise are Ravinia Festival
offerings, don't miss an opportunity to attend a Ravinia concert if up
in the area of northern Illinois for an end-of-the-summer outing.
www.ravinia./org/Calendar.aspx
Regarding opera at Ravinia, two
years is not a long time to wait until opera once again makes its
appearance at Ravnia Park. The absence of opera next summer and the
anticipation of its return in the summer of 2014, will make its
bi-yearly appearance at Ravinia an even greater musical treat and one
that is well worth waiting for.
