Pearl Fishers Guide

8/13/2019 Pearl Fishers Guide

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Edmonton OperaEducation Guides2008/2009

Presented By

This guide was prepared byBrianna Wells

Inside this Guide…. Section 1: What is OperaOpera Etiquette …………………………………………………………………... 2What is Opera? …………………………………………………………………….3History ……………………………………………………………………………. 4Activity: Who’s Who in Opera ………………………………………………….5The Operatic Voice..……………………………………………………………… 6Anatomy of Sound ………………………………………………………………. 8Activity: Opera is Everywhere! ...………………………………………………10Activity: Opera is Storytelling ………………………………………………….11

Section 2: The Pearl FishersThe Cast ………………………………………………………………………….. 14Synopsis ………………………………………………………………………….. 15Activity: What is a Pearl Fisher? ………………………………………………. 16Biography ………………………………………………………...……………… 17Activity: Critical Critics ………………………………………………………...19Activity: Historical Context …………………………………………………… 22Activity: Where is Ceylon? ……………………………………………………. 23Discussion Questions ………………………………………………………….... 24

Education GuideThe Pearl Fishers by Georges Bizet

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Opera Etiquette

ALWAYS BE EARLY! Once a performance begins, no one will be allowedinto the theatre until intermission because it will disrupt other patrons. Wesuggest you arrive half an hour early to pick up your tickets, and prepare toenter the auditorium fifteen minutes prior to showtime.

USE THE RESTROOM. Once in the theatre it is courteous to remain seatedand involved in the production until intermission. Please do not leave thetheatre unless there is an emergency.

PLEASE BE COURTEOUS to everyone in the audience and on stage. Theatreis live performance, so any talking, cell-phone use (including texting) or other

noise/light disruption takes away from everyone’s experience at the opera.

APPLAUSE WELCOME ! Opera is spectacle. Your presence in the audienceis essential to complete the whole experience. Enjoy the performance andrespond to what you see. Unlike television or film, every live performance isunique: only you and the performers will share the experience you have in thetheatre. Your warmth and good humour are important to them, so when youlike something, tell them with your applause.

NO FOOD, DRINKS, OR GUM IN THE THEATRE . This rule is strictlyenforced.

NO CAMERAS OR TAPE RECORDERS: the artists’ images andperformances belong to them and we ask you to respect that by refrainingfrom recording their work in any way.


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What is Opera?

The word opera is the plural form of the Latin word opus (which translates quiteliterally as work ). Today we use the word opera to refer to a theatrically based musical art formin which the drama is sung (without microphones!), rather than spoken, and is accompanied bya full symphony orchestra.

Opera was born out of the belief that drama can be better expressed by music and text than bytext alone. One of the unique things about opera is how it combines so many different art forms(music, drama, and visual arts) to create an artistic spectacle. Of course, the use of many artforms means that there are many people involved in the creation and production of an opera.These may include:

Composer: Writes the musicLibrettist: Chooses a story, writes or adapts the words

Conductor: Leads the musiciansDirector: Blocks or stages the entire production

Principal Singers: Have the leading and supporting rolesChorus: Sing as a group

Supernumeraries: Act but do not sing Repetiteur: Accompanies singers during rehearsal, plays the whole orchestral score on

pianoCostume Designer: Designs the costumes for each character

Wardrobe/Costume Staff: fit, clean and repair costumes; help singers put costumes on Wig Staff: Make wigs and prepare make-up

Make-up Staff: Apply make-up for principal singers, assist chorus with make-upSet Designer: Designs the scenery for each scene

Lighting Designer: Designs lighting effects

Prop Builders: Build/buy all the set pieces that are not structuralStage Manager: “Calls the show” -- cues scenery changes, lighting and actors so that

everything happens at the right time.Stagehands: Move scenery; run lighting & sound cues

Front of House Staff: Work in the performance venue: seating patrons, operating coatcheck

Artistic Director: Chooses which shows to produce and which artists to hireAdministrative Staff: Find funding (!); sell tickets; hire artists; take care of the business

side of opera.Audience: Enjoys and appreciates opera from a seat in the hall!

Critic: Writes a critique of performance for newspaper, radio, or TV


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A Short History of Opera

Opera as an art form began with the inclusion of incidental music performed during the tragedies andcomedies popular during ancient Greek times. The tradition of including music as an integral part oftheatrical activities expanded in Roman times and continued throughout the Middle Ages. Traditionalview holds that the first completely sung musical drama (or opera) developed in Florence in the 1570s byan informal group of composers, musicians and artists known as the Florentine Camerata , which led tothe musical setting of Rinuccini’s drama, Dafne, by composer Jacopo Peri in 1597.

In the 17 th century, Italian masters Giulio Caccini and Claudio Monteverdi developed a kind of musicalentertainment where a story – including the events, conversations, and characterizations – is told throughsinging and orchestral accompaniment. Two key components of these entertainments became hallmarksof opera: recitative sections and arias. Recitatives are song-speech, and the words are sung but with littleor no recognizable melody, and with a rhythm that imitates those of speech. Recitatives function tofurther the storyline of the drama. Arias (Italian for “air”) are main songs that reveal both the emotion ofthe characters, and the qualities of the soloists’ voices. Additionally, there were groups of singers calledthe chorus , who played background characters of the story. Their songs were usually a comment on theaction, much like the chorus from ancient Greek drama.

Opera gained popularity throughout Europe in the late 17 th and 18 th centuries and Italian composers

dominated the field (this is why operatic terms are often Italian words). German opera followed the leadof Italian opera through much of the 18 th century, with composers actually producing operas to be sungin Italian. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , an Austrian composer, wrote some of the first German-languageoperas in the mid 18 th century, and also brought the technique of singspiel (“sing play” where spokendialogue is used instead of recitative) to greater attention. Giaochino Rossini was the most popularcomposer at the turn of the 19 th century, and his best-known works were comic operas (known as operabuffa ). Giuseppe Verdi , the most prolific and influential operatic composer in the 19 th century, emergedfrom the Italian bel canto and opera buffa styles to a new kind of opera, which focused on great emotionand dramatic portrayal of character, and began the path to realism in operatic stories.

Also in the 19 th century, German composer Richard Wagner introduced the idea of through-composedoperas, in which the distinctions between aria and recitative were to be blurred entirely. He also usedleitmotif (wherein musical motives and phrases represent characters, ideas, or themes, and are re-introduced throughout the work as a way of musically telling the story). At the turn of the 19 th century,Giacomo Puccini followed his hero Verdi into the world of verismo opera, and told stories of commonpeople with a depth of emotion and transcendence of musical lines that has not been surpassed. InFrance, George Bizet ’s operas likewise focused on realistic characters and plots. Also at the turn of the20th century, Austrian, British, and Spanish composers were extremely popular for their light operas (andoperettas).

Today opera continues to grow, both in new staging and productions, and in the creation of new works.American composers such as John Adams and Philip Glass are credited with breathing new innovationinto the art form, and Aaron Copeland took American history for the sources of his operatic works. JohnEstacio , an Edmonton composer and John Murrell (an Albertan playwright) recently created an operacalled Filumena, which tells the story of the last woman executed in Alberta, and it was performed byEdmonton Opera in 2005. Opera may be 500 years old, but it continues to captivate audiences and tellimportant stories today!


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Student Handout

Activity: “Who’s Who” in the World of Opera

In the boxes below, use the clues to determine which composers fit into each century.Use “A Short History of Opera” to help.

Composers1750 - 1830

• Introduction of singspiel

• Popular opera buffa

Composers

1600-1750

• First “ operas”• Development of

recitative and aria

Composers

1830 – 1890

• Dramatic, emotionalstyle

• Through-composedopera

• Leitmotif

Composers

1890 - 1920

• Verismo opera • Soaring melodies

Composers

1. GeorgesBizet

2. GiulioCaccini

3.

ClaudioMonteverdi

4. W.A.Mozart

5. GiacomoPuccini

6. GiaochiniRossini

7. GiuseppiVerdi

8. RichardWagner


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The Operatic Voice

Being an opera singer is hard work! Singers need to be physically strong and havesuperb technique in order to sustain long phrases (musical thoughts): this means theyhave excellent control of both the inhalation and exhalation of their breath. Likewise,

their voices must maintain a resonance (using the cavities in the face to increase theaudibility of the voice, even when singing quietly) in both the head (mouth, sinuses)and chest cavities. All this resonance is necessary to achieve the volume required to beheard above the orchestra that accompanies the singers. Opera singers do not usuallyuse microphones, so they must project their voices throughout a whole theatre usingonly their muscles and technique! All voices are defined by both the actual voice “type”and the selection of repertoire for which the voice is ideally suited. The range, pitch,and tone of a singer’s voice will determine what kind of role they will play in the opera.Below are a list of the voice types (and ranges) commonly found in operas:

Female Voice Types


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• Soprano (“sopra” = “over”)The highest pitched female voice. Soprano voices vary bysound type: there are coloratura sopranos, whocan sing very high notes and rapid passages with ease,dramatic sopranos , whose voices have great power, andlyric sopranos , whose voices have exceptional beauty and can sustain long passages.Composers often (but not always) write the female lead role in an opera for a soprano.

• Mezzo-Soprano (“mezzo” = “medium”)Lower than the soprano and higher than contralto. Usuallyplays either the character of a young boy (this is called atrouser role) or a complex character with energyand awareness of life, or an evil character. Bizet’s Carmen is one of the most famousmezzo roles in opera, and is a rare lead role for a mezzo.

• Contralto (“contra” = “against” & “alto” = “high”) The lowest pitched female voice, these singers have a deep,well rounded sound. Contraltos more rare than sopranosor mezzos, and they are usually given the role of a maid,mother, or grandmother. Olga in Tchaikovsky’s EugeneOnegin is one such role.



Male Voice Types

• Tenor (“ tenere”= “to hold” - central notes of harmony) The highest sounding male voice: often the leading role.Tenors, like sopranos, can have lyric or dramatic sound

quality. Luciano Pavarotti was one of the world’s mostfamous lyric tenors . Tenors typically play characters thatfall in love with Sopranos, such as Alfredo in Verdi’s La Traviata.

• Baritone (from the Greek term for “deep sounding”) Theses voices are more mellow-sounding and slightlylower than tenors. The roles sung by baritones are usuallyfather figures or counts and other nobles, and these areoften important roles in the story (like Rigoletto in Verdi’sRigoletto).

• Bass (“low”)


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Basses are the lowest sounding human voices, and theyoften play roles of wise and older characters in opera, likekings, emperors, or gods. They can also play profoundlyevil characters, like Satan in Mephistopheles or Faust. Thebasso profundo is the lowest voice in singing, and is commonly heard in Russian opera.One of the most recognizable bass roles in opera is Leporello in W.A. Mozart’sDon Giovanni.

Pol Plancon in the bass role of Ramfis in Verdi's Aida, cartoon by tenor Enrico Caruso



A Sound Anatomy of Opera

There are many different kinds of songs in opera. Performers may sing alone, in couples(duets), trios, or larger groups, and there are also moments when no one sings at all – and eachcomposer develops his or her own preferred combinations of these options. The following arethe major musical components of an opera:

The Overture An opera usually begins with an orchestral piece of music called the overture , which functionsas an introduction to the opera. The overture generally includes themes that will be heardthroughout the opera, and can be anywhere from five to twenty-five minutes long. Before 1800,house lights were not dimmed while the overture played, and audiences would continue totalk, drink, and even play cards. This changed in the nineteenth century when the overturebegan to take its place as an integral part of the operatic performance. Usually, at the end of theoverture, the curtain rises and the story of the opera unfolds through a series of scenes, whichare usually organized into acts.

AriasItalian for “air” or song. Arias are solos performed to the accompaniment of the orchestra. Theyallow the character to express his or her feelings and reflect on the events of the drama. Thefocus of an aria is emotions rather than actions, and provides an opportunity for the singer todemonstrate his or her vocal or artistic skill. Some of the most successful composers of arias,such as Mozart, Verdi and Puccini were able to achieve a remarkable balance betweenmemorable melodies that perfectly suit the human voice, and making the music reflect thedrama of the text.

Recitatives Recitative is a type of singing unique to opera, and is used when characters are conversing, orintroducing an aria. The text is delivered quickly in a musical way that imitates speech, and has

a very limited melodic range. It has no recognizable melody and its rhythms follow those of thespoken word. Recitative is meant to carry the action forward and can be accompanied either bya full orchestra, or, as is often the case in opera written before 1800, by a harpsichord orkeyboard instrument.

Ensemble (“together”) In operas, ensemble singing is when two or more voices of different ranges perform together.These include duets, trios, quartets, quintets, and in one or two instances, even a sextet! In eachof these, the way the composer blends the voices will depend on the dramatic requirements ofthe plot. For instance, in a duet where the characters singing are in love, a composer may showthis musically by having each performer sing different music at different times, and gradually

bring both lines of music together in harmony as the duet culminates. Conversely, if thecharacters are in conflict, their music might never be brought together. Georges Bizet used thistechnique in Carmen: if you listen to the duets sung by Carmen and Don José, you might noticethat their musical lines are never completely blended, and this foreshadows their tragic ends.


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ChorusMost operas include music sung by a large group of singers (sometimes as many as 40 or more)called a chorus. The chorus appears on stage most often in crowd scenes. The chorus canprovide a stunning contrast to solo or ensemble singing. In one opera by Benjamin Britten, thechorus is played by a single male and a single female (this is in the tradition of ancient Greektheatre).

Orchestral MusicThe orchestra is an important part of any opera, and not only because it accompanies thesinging and introduces the opera in the overture. The themes (both musical and emotional) ofthe opera can appear in orchestral introductions and conclusions to arias , recitatives, andchoruses , but sometimes the orchestra becomes a character in the story, and has music to playby itself outside of the overture or introduction. One of the most famous of these instances isthe intermezzo (“in the middle”) from Cavalleria rusticana by Mascagni (this can be found onyoutube.com). In between the scenes of this one-act opera, the orchestra takes up the storythrough incredibly expressive and lyrical (singing-like) melodies, and through the voices ofinstruments rather than singers, brings to life the emotion of the characters, the forebodingconclusion, and also a sense of hope.


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The final (and finale) chorus of Falstaff from our 2007/2008 seasonPhoto credit: Ellis Brothers Photography



Activity: Teacher Resource

Opera is Everywhere!

Background:We don’t called it the greatest and grandest of art forms for nothing… the stories, charactersand music from opera can be found in every corner of Western culture, from books and plays tohip-hop and cartoons.

For students new to opera, a great starting point may be discovering all the places where theymay have heard music from opera without even realizing it.

Activity:Choose a famous piece of operatic music (a list is provided below for help), and go exploringwith your students, to see where the themes, characters, and music appear in our culture today.Good places to start looking are musicals ( Rent, for example, is based directly on La Boheme),cartoons (Bugs Bunny and Mickey Mouse were big opera fans), and movie scores, but the sky isthe limit – you’ll be surprised where you find opera these days! Websites like Wikipedia, theInternet Movie Database, and “Opera goes to the Movies” are a great help, and can help tobegin discussions about how music is performed in and outside of its original context.

Some Questions to ask: What changes when opera is introduced in new places (like ads ormovies)? What stays the same? Even the important question of genre: is it still opera if it’s usedin a car commercial? And if not, what does it become?

Below are some very famous operatic pieces that can easily be found in popular culture(and on youtube) today:

“Largo al Factotum” from The Barber of Seville by Rossini

“Habanera” from Carmen by BizetThe Intermezzo from Cavalleria rusticana by Mascagni“O mio babbino caro” from Gianni Schicci by Puccini

“The Flower Duet” from Lakméby Delibes“Un bel dì vedremo” from Madama Butterfly by Puccini“Non più andrai” from The Marriage of Figaro by Mozart

“La Donna é mobile” from Rigoletto by Verdi“Nessun Dorma” from Turandot by Verdi

“The Anvil Chorus” from Il Trovatore by Verdi“Overture – part 2” from William Tell by Rossini


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Opera is Storytelling!

Background:

One of the most important things about going to see an opera, or any live theatricalperformance, is that each performance is different, even within the run of the sameshow: nothing is every exactly the same twice. The conductor might set a faster orslower tempo, the actors might take more time in moments that worked well or not wellenough the night before, a bat might fly into the auditorium (this actually happened in1966 during an Edmonton Opera performance of La Bohème):part of the magic of theatre is that only the performers onstage and the people there that night will ever be a part of thatexperience.

Even though the music may have been written a long timeago, and the stories can often be much, much older again, eachtime an opera is performed it’s a new telling, and a newexperience. Think back to when you had bed-time stories.Did one person tell it differently than the other? Did ababysitter use special voices for different characters, or mayberead too slowly, not pausing in the right places?

Activity: Selective Storytelling

To illustrate the uniqueness of each operatic telling, create a simple plotline as a class –it can be a fairytale or mystery, or a person or event from a particular time in history –perhaps something that fits into other units coming up or just past.

Jeff Haslam and Renée Brad in H.M.S. Pinafore. Mr. Haslamgot so many laughs in “When I was a Lad” that he got more

and more silly with it each night – on closing night it was muchlonger than it was at the dress rehearsal!

Photo Credit: Ellis Brothers Photography


Then separate into partners or groups, and have students flesh out the plot line eitherthrough a straight retelling, through acting out the story, or creating a design ordiorama to express the feelings of a particular scene. Compare choices made bydifferent groups – who focused on characterization, on a particular tension, or on theimagery and how does this change the feeling of the story?


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Student Handout: Selective Storytelling

Story ________________________________________

Group Focus Result


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The Pearl FishersMusic by Georges Bizet

Libretto by Eugène Common and Michel CarréPremiered on September 29, 1863 in Paris

Setting: Ceylon, in the time of myth

Conductor Robert DeanDirector Brian Deedrick

The Cast

Leila Amy HansenNadir Colin AinsworthZurga Gregory Dahl

Nourabad Andrew Stewart

The Edmonton Opera Chorus as peasants and fishermen, villagers and

The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra

Set Designer Richard SimsLighting Designer Richard SimsCostume Designer Deanna Finnman

Education Dress RehearsalMarch 10, 2009 at 7:00 p.m.

PerformancesMarch 12 & 14, 2009 at 7:30 p.m.

The Winspear Centre for Music

Sung in French with English Supertitles


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Synopsis The Pearl Fishers

The coast of Ceylon, in the time of myth

Act I:

In anticipation of the fishing season, the village chooses Zurga to be their king andbegins the annual vigil to ensure safe seas. Zurga’s friend Nadir arrives. The two havenot spoken since their love for the same woman divided them, but he is welcomed byZurga and they promise each other to never again let a woman come between them.

A veiled woman arrives. Her duty is to stand upon the shore for the entire night, alone,in prayer. Zurga promises her a pearl if she is faithful to her duty, and death if sheviolates the ritual with impurity. As she speaks, Nadir recognizes that she is Leila, thesame woman that both he and Zurga loved so long ago, and he is stirred again by hislove for her.

Act II:

Thinking that Leila stands alone on the beach, Nadir emerges from the shadows andbegs for her love. Leila is torn between her duty and her love for Nadir, but eventuallyembraces him. Nourabad, the village priest, has been watching to see that Leilacompletes her vigil, and instantly alerts the village. When Zurga discovers the lovers,he rages at the betrayal of his friend and condemns them both to death. A storm rolls inand the villagers plead for mercy from Brahma, the god of creation.

Leila comes to the tent of Zurga to plead for her lover’s life. Zurga is still in love with

her, however, and in his jealousy he is unable to forget the betrayal. Leila then givesZurga her amulet, asking him to return it to her parents as proof of her death. After sheleaves, Zurga recognizes that this is the same object he gave to an unknown child manyyears before, in thanks for saving his life. He repents his jealousy and vows to repayher selfless act of courage.

The villagers gather on the shore to watch the execution, but Zurga enters and warnseveryone that the village is on fire. The villagers run to fight the blaze, and Zurga usesthe diversion to set Leila and Nadir free. Nourabad, who once again remains to watch,rallies the men of the village, and they kill Zurga while Leila and Nadir escape.


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Background: What is a Pearl Fisher?

Before the 20 th century, pearl fishers or pearl divers were people who braved deepwaters to search for oysters on the floors of the ocean in coastal regions like the Red Sea,the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Mannar. There were also pearl fishers near thePhillipines, and First Nations people in North America harvested pearls in fresh waterbodies like the rivers and lakes in Ohio, Tennessee, and Mississippi. These divers hadlittle equipment to assist them, and would frequently dive as deep as 12 metres on asingle breath – sometimes even as deep as 40 metres! In the oceanic waters, pearl divers

had to combat hostile creatures and strong waves;drowning after blacking out was a terrible danger.Because of these dangers, most pearl divers werefrom the lower ranks of society and in SouthAmerica, divers were almost always slaves.

Today, most pearls are cultured, which means theyare farmed, but people still dive for pearls. Pearlsfound naturally today are therefore extremely rareand valuable.

Photo from www.pearlsofjoy.com/index.asp?PageAction=Custom&ID=13

Activity: A day in the Life of a Pearl Fisher

Being a pearl fisher is hard work! With partners or groups, research the lives of pearlfishers (commonly known as pearl divers), either in historical or literary accounts, andwrite a skit or create a diorama about the life of a pearl diver. Present it to the class.

Extension: Did you know?

Pearl divers have been inspiration to many artists besides Georges Bizet. JohnSteinbeck, John Keats, Emily Dickenson, and a number of contemporary novelists havealluded to or written about Pearl Divers. What is so entrancing about them?


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Georges Bizet: 1838-1875

Georges Bizet, born October 25, 1838, was named Alexandre César Léopold Bizet.However, he was christened “Georges” and that became the name he used. Like many otherwell known composers he was born into a musical family. His father, Adolphe Bizet, was avoice teacher. His mother came from the famous musical family Delsarte and was an excellentpianist. It came as no surprise when Georges showed signs of musical talent at a very early age.He was admitted to the Paris Conservatory at the age of nine.

He quickly rose to prominence in the school. His most important teacher was JacquesHalévy, who taught Charles Gounod, and was a prominent opera composer. Bizet wasmentored by Gounod as well. At age eighteen he competed for the coveted Prix de Rome. The judges awarded no first prize that year and Bizet won second prize. He entered again thefollowing year, 1857, and won. The Prix de Rome, founded in 1666 by Louis XIV, was ascholarship that could be awarded to musicians, painters, sculptors or architects. In the 1850sthe winner spent time abroad, particularly in Rome, studying in their field. In addition, livingexpenses were provided for five years. At the end of each year the student had to submit aspecified work so that the judges could determine their progress. Other famous Prix winners

were Berlioz, Massenet, Gounod and Debussy.

In 1857, Bizet departed for Rome and spent three years there. He studied the landscape, Italianculture, Italian literature and art. Musically, he studied the scores of the great masters. At theend of the first year he was asked to submit a religious work as his required composition. As aself-described atheist, Bizet felt uneasy and hypocritical writing a religious piece. Instead, hesubmitted a comic opera. Publicly, the committee accepted, acknowledging his musical talent.Privately, the committee conveyed their displeasure. Thus, early in his career, Bizet displayedan independent spirit that would be reflected in innovative ideas in his opera composition.When Bizet returned to Paris and became self-supporting, he composed, gave piano lessons,produced orchestrations and piano transcriptions and wrote operas. Financially, he found his

chosen profession "a splendid art, but a sad trade."

Bizet’s Prix de Rome became an important part of his career, because in the Parisian climate of


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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Georges_bizet.jpg



the 1860’s, all opera theatres were sponsored by the State, and in the only theatre allowed topresent beginners’ works, the stipulation was that new works could only be presented if thecomposer had won the Prix. The Théâtre-Lyrique was run by Leon Carvalho at the time, andafter some of Bizet’s symphonic works were presented publicly in 1862, Carvalhocommissioned the young composer to write Les Pêcheurs de Perles. The opera was written in justsix months, and when the librettists finally heard the music, they remarked that they hadn’tgiven enough credit to the 25-year-old Bizet. The plot was changed several times duringrehearsal, with the burning of the village only being written two weeks before the operaopened. Les Pêcheurs de Perles met with mixed reviews, although critics seemed more displeasedwith Bizet’s overt confidence than with the work itself. Bizet deemed the work a failure, but itled to more commissions and eventually the all-important jump from the “young composers”Théâtre-Lyrique and the more established circles of the Opera-Comique.

As Bizet produced more operas in the 1860’s (none of which are regularly performed today), healso wooed and married Geneviéve Halèvy, daughter of Bizet’s tutor Fromental Halévy. Herfamily and his opposed the match, and the engagement was dissolved, but the two eventurallymarried in 1867. They were happy for the first years of the marriage but Bizet’s lack of serioussuccess and her delicate mental state proved disastrous for the marriage. They had a son,Jacques, who had a tragic career and ultimately commited suicide.

The outset of the Franco-Prussian War in 1870 and the revolution that would end in France’sThird Republic interrupted Bizet’s career, as the entire country was thrown into chaos.After the armistice of 1871, Bizet and Geneviève traveled outside the city to visit her relationsbut her nervous breakdown demanded their immediate return to the city. Based on the successof his earlier works, Bizet was at last commissioned to write for the Opera-Comique, and afterthe failure of Namouna at the Opera-Comique and even while L’Arlésienne was receiving itslukewarm reception, Bizet was preparing for his grandest and most shocking project: Carmen .

Carmen is by far the most famous of Bizet’s operas – and is the only opera besides Les Pêcheurs dePerles extant in the repertory today. Bizet took as his source Mérimée’s novel and convinced thelibrettists that it would work, but the choice horrified one of the directors of the Opera-Comique. De Leuven had never allowed a murder to take place on stage, let alone a gypsyseductress and a factory of cigarette girls. Eventually De Leuvan resigned, and the otherdirector, Du Locle, allowed the project to proceed.

Bizet was constantly working on other projects as he attempted to finish Carmen; partly forfinancial reasons, partly to repay old debts to friends and mentors, and partly because theopportunities for collaboration excited him. Eventually, in 1875, Carmen was ready. Criticshated it and the opening night was seen as a failure, and a scandal. It played for only 30performances. Carmen would later rise to fame as perhaps the best of all French operas, butBizet didn’t live to see the success, dying only 3 months after Carmen’s premiere from a severebout of rheumatism that was exacerbated by swimming in the Seine during his recuperation.


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Background: Critical Critics

19th century Paris was a tough place to be an artist. Competition for having worksperformed was fierce and the fighting wasn’t always fair. Critics were more than eager

to join the fray, and on more than one occasion, they took occasion not with Bizet’smusic but his conducting, appearance on stage, or even his presumed popularity amongthe young composers in Paris. Neither were things better outside of Paris. Bizet’sexotic setting for The Pearl Fishers came under attack after its 1887 London premiere.George Bernard Shaw, a critic and playwright, reviewed the experience in no uncertainterms:

To lovers of poetry the pearl fishers is known as one who “held his breath, and went all naked to thehungry shark.” To the patrons of the Opera he is now familiar as an expensively got-up Oriental, with anelaborate ritual conducted in temples not unlike Parisian newspaper kiosks, the precincts whereof are laidout in the manner of a Brussels tea garden. The chief ceremony is a ballet; and though ehre, if anywhere,

we might expect to find our pearl fisher in the condition mentioned by Keats, such is by no means thecase. He—or rather she – is clothed and, within operatic limits, in her right mind. As to holding hisbreath, he turns that accomplishment to account for the better execution of roulades and fiorituras. Hekeps the hungry shark in order by the prayers of a virgin priestess, who remains veiled and secluded fromall intercourse on a rocky promontory during the oyster season.

Out of these simple and plausible conditions we get a pretty poem. Leila is the priestess. Nadir andZurga fall in love with her. Nadir sacrilegiously serenades her on the promontory. She responds; and thetwo, amid a hideous tempest, are seized and condemned to the stake. Zurga effects a diversion, andenables them to escape by setting Ceylon on fire: an extreme measure. The natives then burn him; andreally, under the circumstances, it is hard to blame them. That is all.

Clearly, Shaw felt the story and the setting were lacking something… and he wasn’tafraid to show it! Reviews, whether literary, musical, or artistic, have long been animportant part of the arts in Europe and North America. They inform potentialaudiences about what’s happening in their community; they can be very politicallydriven; they also trace the history of the art form as it develops. Reviews remind us thatopera is theatre, performance, and above the communal experience of a particularsociety in a particular place and time.

Before Idol producers invited viewers to choose the winners of their television show,members of the public were supporting their favorite plays, music, and operas throughun- and published reviews. Today, most published reviewers have some backgroundin the art form they review, but response from the audience is equally (or even more)important to a company than the published responses.


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Activities: You Be the Judge!

Activity #1: About George Bernard Shaw

Shaw clearly found fault with the London premiere of The Pearl Fishers.• What are the main complaints in his review?• What seems to be the biggest problem with the opera?• Are there any biases revealed in his opinions or writing, and what are they?

Activity #2: Impersonating Shaw

Shaw’s review has a very distinct voice to it; that is, you would be able to spot his toneif you read something else he wrote in the same style, even if you didn’t see his name at

the bottom of it. Can you write like Shaw? Is there something you’ve seen lately, atelevision show or a movie, that seemed to be lacking enough to warrant your disdainas The Pearl Fishers did Shaw’s? Write a review of something you’ve seen and foundlacking, and emulate the voice and tone of Shaw’s review, keeping in mind that goodcriticism, even when it’s critical, takes care to make arguments about what is lackingfrom the performance or experience: no “I didn’t like it” here!

Activity #3 You be the Judge!

George Bernard Shaw certainly wasn’t afraid to show his disdain for the Pearl Fishers.After studying it in class and attending the rehearsal, write your own review.Consider some of these questions in your review:

• What was the best part?• The worst?• Dow did the performers sing and act?• Did anyone stand out?• Was there anything surprising or notable in the staging?• How did the orchestra sound and did the singing blend well?

Before you begin writing, consider how you choose to write. You can find anotherreviewer whose voice seems appropriate for your comments, or develop your ownreviewing style: Are you supportive? Scathing? Sarcastic? Objective? Funny?Serious?


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Activity #4 Judging the Judges

Compare a review of The Pearl Fishers from the 19 th century with a recent one – perhapswith one from Edmonton Opera’s production.

• How are they different?• The same?• What do you think accounts for the differences? The sets? The direction? The singers?

The audience?• Do you think the role of the critic has changed in the past hundred years?

Activity #5 SEND US YOUR FEEDBACK!

We love to hear from both students and educators! Please consider sendingassignments or feedback to the opera.

Did you Know?

Writer and critic George Bernard Shaw, wasrenowned for his rapier wit.

He won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1925, andan Academy Award for his screenplay for

Pygmalion.

Pygmalion was a play based on the Greek myth, andwas later adapted into the musical My Fair Lady.

Shaw, ostensibly hard at workImage from wikipedia.org



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Background: Historical Context

Bizet lived in a period of great political, scientific and cultural change throughout theworld, and the increasing mobility of knowledge and trade in this period may accountfor his habit of setting operas in places that he had never seen. What was happeningin the world when The Pearl Fishers was being written and first performed in 1863?

Activity: Historical Comparison Questions

#1 Compare and contrast the life and works of Bizet and a contemporary musician,politician, or historical figure, either in Canada or elsewhere in the world. How cantheir influence be seen in the 20 th century? Today?

#2 What was happening in Alberta during Bizet’s lifetime (1838-1875?) In Edmonton?


1860’s World Events

• Abraham Lincoln signed the EmancipationProclamation in January of 1863, freeing allslaves in the United States

• Edward Munch, famous painter of “TheScream” was born on December 12, 1863.

• Jacob Grimm, one of the Brothers Grimm,died on September 20, 1863.

• The popular American Civil War song,“When Johnny Comes Marching HomeAgain” was written (it is also known as“The Ants go Marching One by One” innursery rhyme circles).

• 30 000 people died in the United Kingdomfrom an epidemic of scarlet fever in 1863.

1860’s Canadian Events

• In the 1860’s Rugby was first introduced inCanada and quickly gained popularity.

• July 1st, 1867: The Provinces of Canada ,Nova Scotia , and New Brunswick areunited into the Dominion of Canada by theBritish North America Act .

• On November 1, 1869, the CanadianGovernment purchased the entire territoryof the Hudson’s Bay Company, includingall of the land that would later becomeAlberta.

• Father Albert Lacombe founded St. Albert,undertook to evangelize First Nationspeople in Alberta, and successfullybrokered peace between the Cree andBlackfoot tribes in Alberta.


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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Province_of_Canada

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nova_Scotia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Brunswick

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_North_America_Act

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_North_America_Act

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Brunswick

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nova_Scotia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Province_of_Canada




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f

Background: Where is Ceylon?

Ceylon is an island nation in the Indian Ocean and is home to roughly 20 millionpeople. It was known under the name Ceylon as a Portuguese, Dutch, and eventuallyBritish colony. Ceylon was in some state of European colonization from the 16 th centuryuntil 1948, when it gained its independence from British rule. In 1972 Ceylon changedits name to Sri Lanka, officially “ Free, Sovereign and Independent Republic of SriLanka. ” In 1978 the name was changed again to the “Democratic Socialist Republic ofSri Lanka.” Since 1983 there has been an ongoing dispute/ civil war between the SriLankan government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (or LTTE), a separatistmilitant organization whose goal is the creation of an independent Tamil state in theNorth and East of the island. The country has been called into question over humanrights violations and terrorist activities by various U.S. and U.N. organization in thepast 10 years.

Activity: A Closer Look at Ceylon (Sri Lanka)


• Ceylon, or Sri Lanka, was an important exporter ogoods while it was a British Colony. What werethe major exports from the country?

• How did being an exporter colony affect thepeople in Ceylon?

• Compare Ceylon to other British colonies (perhapseven Canada) between 1815 and 1948. What werethe advantages to Britain? To the colonized country? Disadvantages?

• How did Ceylon gain its independence, and how did this differ than some otherindependence movements in the post-war era?

• How has the economy changed since the country gained its independence?



Activity: Pre-Performance Discussion Questions

#1 Opera perceptions: What do students think of when they think “opera”? Whatexpectations do they have of the performance?

#2 How is opera different from other theatrical and musical performances? What is thedifference between a “musical”, an operetta, and an opera? Are there exceptions to thedefinitions?

#3 How is The Pearl Fishers different from other operas that students have seen orstudied? What are some of Bizet’s important contributions to the world of opera?

#4 Speculation: Why would Bizet choose to set this opera in Ceylon? Whatcontemporary political, cultural, or other influences may have had an impact on hischoice?

Activity: Post-Opera Discussion Questions and Activities

#1 What did you think of the sets? The lighting? The Costumes?

#2 Write to one of the characters, offering advice or asking them questions about theirdecisions and actions.

#3 Which was the most important scene in the opera for you and why?

#4 If students have seen another opera, how did the minimalist staging and the acousticquality of the Winspear Centre make the experience of Pearl Fishers different fromothers?

#5 The Pearl Fishers is about a trio of people. Zurga loses both his friend and the womanhe loves. Which do you think is the greater loss for him? How does the opera showthis distinction?

#6 What is the dilemma that Leila must face when Nadir declares his love for her? Doyou think she chooses well? Why or why not?


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Sources

Websites

www.arizonaopera.comOnline Encyclopedia Britannica

www.metropolitanopera.comwww.virginiaopera.comwww.wikipedia.org Books

Curtiss, Mina. Bizet and his World. Westport: Greenwood, 1958.

Forman, Denis Sir. A Night at the Opera. New York: Modern Library, 1998.

Groover, David L. and Cecil C. Connor, Jr. Skeletons from the Opera Closet. Wakefield:

Moyer Bell, 1986.Grout, Donald Jay. A Short History of Opera. New York: Columbia UP, 1988.

Hutcheon, Linda and Michaerl Hutcheon. Opera: Desire, Disease, Death. Lincoln:

Nebraska UP, 1996.

Plotkin, Fred. Opera 101: A Complete Guide to Learning and Loving Opera. New York:

Hyperion, 1994.

Sadie, Stanley. The Billboard Illustrated Encyclopedia of Opera. New York: Billboard Books,

2004.

Please don’t hesitate to contact Edmonton Opera for moreresources or for help with specific questions or topics.

We will do our best to help!


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http://www.arizonaopera.com/

http://www.metropolitanopera.com/

http://www.virginiaopera.com/

http://www.wikipedia.org/

http://www.wikipedia.org/

http://www.virginiaopera.com/

http://www.metropolitanopera.com/

http://www.arizonaopera.com/



Write to us!

Student feedback is a very important part of our EducationProgram, and we welcome any student assignments, projects,letters that you would like to share with us.

Write to use! Student feedback is an

important part of our Education Program.Please send any assignments, letters, orcomments that you’d like to share to:

Edmonton Opera9720 102 AveEdmonton, AB T5J 4B2

OR

[email protected]

Please send student feedbackto Brianna Wells at:

Edmonton Opera9720 102 AveEdmonton, AB T5J 4B2

[email protected]

Thanks!


Pearl Fishers Guide

Documents

Transcript of Pearl Fishers Guide