"In this gentle ribbon"
2. Puccini's Tosca
"For art, for love" and "Tonight the stars shine bright"
3. The Stars Shine Brightly"
3. Puccini "La Bohème"
"My Name is Mimi"
4. Puccini "Gianni Schicchi"
"Ah, My Dear Father "
5. Puccini, "Turandot"
"Princess your cold heart"
6. Verdi, "Aida"
"Aida in Heaven", "The Triumphant Return," "Oh, My Homeland"
7. Verdi, "The Troubadour"
"Be alert! Be vigilant!" , "She's in chains," and one that's a little less than right
8.Verdi's "Forces of Destiny"
"Peace, O Lord"
9.Verdi's "Don Carlo"
"Cursed Beauty"
Obbe's opera Manon Lescaut, composed in 1856, was a work from Obbe's mature period. Its libretto is based on the true story of the French writer Preuil's novel, Le Chevalier de Griau et Manon Lescaut, which was published in Amsterdam in 1731. The plot of Manon Lescaut follows Griot and Manon Lescaut as they fall in love at first sight and elope to Paris, where Manon's cousin Lescaut and the aristocrat Bretigny arrive in pursuit of Manon. Bretigny, in order to get Manon, uses a trick to break up the lovers. Unable to resist the temptation of money and riches, Manon follows Bretigny after losing Grio, who enters the seminary when he learns of Manon's change of heart. Manon rushes to the seminary and the two revive their love and compassion. However, the prodigal Minister of Finance, Guillaume, brings in the police to arrest Grieux and Manon at a casino for revenge. Grieux is released through his father's mediation, but Manon is exiled to the French colony of America, where Grieux finally meets Manon, who is terminally ill. Manon confesses her heartbreak to Grio, and in the midst of a kiss that says, "Our happiness is alive again," Manon stops breathing. This is a famous love tragedy, Aubert's work is not as famous as Puccini and Masnay's works of the same subject, but it has a kind of French legend of the power of tragedy.
In 1893, Puccini wrote an opera of the same name based on the French classic Manon Lescaut, which was performed in Turin. Although this work is not as mature as the opera of the same name written by the French composer J. Massenet, many aspects of the work mark the author's creative personality, artistic style and ideological tendencies are taking shape. As the main representative of Italian realism opera, Puccini devoted himself to express the feelings and destiny of ordinary people in terms of the subject matter and content of his creations, to expose the inequality and injustice of the society in a real way, and to send his sympathy to the little people who are beautiful in their hearts but have suffered from tragedy. His most successful portrayals are a series of emotionally rich and tragic women. The structure of Manon Lescaut is flexible, with the use of a variety of recitative keys and orchestral music interwoven into a string development means, strengthening the expressive power and status of the orchestra, music of strong local color. The author has since become famous.
The three-act opera Tosca was first performed in Rome, Italy, on January 24, 1900, with a libretto by Giacosa based on a libretto by Shardo, one of Puccini's four most famous operatic masterpieces. The plot is: in 1800, the Roman painter Mario Cavaradossi is arrested and tortured for covering the escape of the political prisoner Angellotti. Opera actress Tosca is passionately in love with him. Superintendent of Police Scarpia coerces Tosca to commit to him by executing Mario. Tosca is forced to comply under false pretenses, and the Inspector General promises to stage a fake execution to set Mario free. Tosca stabs the Inspector General to death while he is unaware that he has issued a pass to leave the country. At dawn, Mario is taken to the execution ground, where Tosca tells him that it is only a fake execution. Who realized that it was a trick played by the Inspector General of Police and that Mario was really executed. She has also been exposed for stabbing the Superintendent to death and finally jumps over the wall to commit suicide. The opera exposes the hypocrisy, greed and treachery of the rulers and celebrates the nobility of the oppressed.
The arias in the opera are very famous. The arias chosen here are Tosca's "For Art, For Love" and Cavaradossi's "Starry Night". One of the most famous arias in the play, 'Starry Night', is sung by Cavaradossi in the third act. At dawn, he walks up to the execution platform, about to be executed. The Vatican and St. Paul's Cathedral can be seen in the distance, the sky is clear, the stars are shining, and a dim light heralds the dawn. Cavaradossi sings fondly: "...... Sweet kisses, and that amorous embrace, how it alarms me, her beautiful face and figure under the veil ......" It is the author's fusion of the richest emotions in a perfect form that has made this aria timeless for posterity .
The Career of the Artist, an opera in four acts, also known as La Bohème and The Embroiderer, with a libretto by Giacosa and Illica, premiered in Turin, Italy, on February 1, 1896, conducted by Toscanini.
Plot: The poet Rudolph, the painter Marchello, the musician Sona and the philosopher Colin **** live together in a shabby attic in Paris, living in poverty but full of confidence. One day, Rudolph meets Mimi, an embroiderer, at home and falls in love at first sight, taking her to a tavern where his friends are having dinner. Marchero's past lover, Mousse, brought an old man, Alsandor, who fell in love with her, but wanted to make peace with Marchero, so he managed to get rid of Alsandor and threw himself into Marchero's arms. Months later, their relationship deteriorates and the love between Mimi and Rudolph is on the verge of breaking up. Mimi becomes seriously ill with a lung disease, and when she comes to see Rudolph one last time, she makes up again and plans everything for the future. But Mimi finally becomes very ill and dies, and Rudolph is devastated. Mousse and Machereau are y moved by this and are reunited.
There are many moving and dramatic scenes throughout the play. For example, in the first act, Mimi's beauty captivates the young poet Rudolph, who sings a moving aria, "Cold Little Hands," and then Mimi sings "People Call Me Mimi" in an innocent, lively and heartfelt tune that expresses the joy of her first love. These two arias are two of the most famous cantatas in the entire opera.
Gianni Schicchi, completed in 1918, one-act opera, first performed in New York in the same year.
The plot of the opera is based on a story from the poem "The Divine Comedy - Inferno" by the Italian poet Dante (1265-1321): when Donati, a wealthy merchant, is dying, a group of friends and relatives gather around his deathbed, all of them wanting to inherit his large estate. However, Donati's established will states that the entire estate is to be donated to a certain church, and Donati immediately closes his eyes in peace. The family and friends present were greatly disappointed. One of them, a young man, Rinuccio (who was in love with Lauretta, daughter of Gianni Schicchi, another relative of Donati's who was present), proposed to ask Gianni Schicchi to pretend that Donati was in a state of death, to invite a notary public, and to draw up a new will, which would be shared equally by all the relatives and friends. This plan is embraced by the crowd and is immediately put into effect. The notary arrives. Skiki, lying on his couch, covered with layers of bedding, authorizes in a trembling voice: "My property is to be given to the church for five lire, and for one thousand lire to be given to all my relatives and friends to be divided equally, while the rest of the present sum, together with the mules and horses, the sawmill, the house in Florence, etc., is to be given in full to my dearest Gianni Skiki." The will is recorded, and the notary departs. The crowd was in an uproar. Skiki leapt up from his sickbed, dispersed the crowd with his rod, and said with a smile to his daughters Lauretta and Rinuccio: "Donati's legacy is rightfully mine, and I shall put it to good use in order to console the dead in heaven."
This opera, though also a masterpiece of its author, Puccini, is rarely performed today. But one of the opera's extremely beautiful, heartfelt and moving soprano solos, "Ah! (an aria by Gianni Schicchi's daughter Lauretta) is so y felt that it is a favorite of many of today's leading sopranos, and is often sung alone or as a soundtrack to many film and television productions today. The lyrics of this aria are: "Ah! My dear father, I love that beautiful boy. I would like to go to Puerto Rosa and buy a wedding ring. I'll go anyway, and if you don't say yes, I'll go to the Wick Bridge and plunge into that river. How I suffer, how I grieve. O! O God! I'd rather die! Papa, I beseech you! Papa, I implore you! "
Puccini's Turandot
This 3-act opera is based on a 5-act allegory of the same name by the Italian playwright Carlo Gozzi (1720-1806), with a libretto by Giuseppe Adami and Renato Simoni, and was written in 1921-1924. The play was written by Giuseppe Adami and Renato Simoni in 1921-1924, and only the first half of the third act was completed before his death, the second half being continued by Alfano. The source material seems to have been taken from the Persian "Box of Nymphs", which was introduced to Europe at the end of the 17th century. The play premiered at La Scala Opera House on April 5, 1926, with Toscanini as conductor, and on opening night, when the play reaches the point where Willow kills herself in Act III, Toscanini puts down his baton and says to the audience, "It was here that Puccini put down his pen." The full-length premiere was the following day.
Act I, in front of the Forbidden City in Beijing. Sustained line of panels indicating Turandot's motives. At dusk, assorted people in the square listen to an official reading a bulletin which states that Princess Turandot will be married to the person who guesses three riddles, and will be beheaded if he or she fails to do so. The Prince of Persia was executed when the moon came out because he failed to guess correctly. People are in an uproar, heading for the palace. In the crowd, Liu, a maid, supports Timur, the Tatar Sun King, and when Liu begs for help to lift Timur, who has been pushed down, Timur's son, Karafu, meets his father. As the people are dispersed and the executioner screams that the executioner is going to be carried out, Timur claims that Liu'er has taken good care of him, and Liu'er expresses her heartfelt love by saying, "I've never been able to forget the prince's smile". The executioner sharpens his axe and sings "Oil the axe, sharpen the axe", and the suitor who is about to be executed shouts "Turandot, the cold beauty". The execution is described in an oriental atmosphere, and after the chorus ends, the executioner exits, and the crowd looks up at the night sky in the square and sings "Why doesn't the moon come out yet". After the moon comes out, the crowd sings "The moon is out", and in the distance comes the children's chorus "On the top of the eastern mountain there are storks singing", the melody of which is taken from the Chinese folk song "Jasmine Flower". In the moonlight, the Prince of Persia, who is being sent to the execution ground, looks pale, and the public chorus "Poor young man, please forgive the Princess", while Karafu curses the cold-hearted Princess. In the moonlight, Turandot comes on stage, the crowd kneels, and she silently refuses the pleas of the crowd. Karafu is overwhelmed by the princess's beauty and forgets to say to himself, "Beautiful as heaven, like a dream." After all the people are off, only Pamur, Liu'er and Karafu left, Karafu read Turandot, want to run to the city wall to knock the gong, determined to take part in the riddle. 3 ministers Ping (Ping), Pong (Pong) and Pan (Pang) with the face of the appearance, advice: "What do you want, turn around, or your life is not guaranteed." 3 Everyone said, "A beautiful princess is no more than a woman with one face, two hands and two feet." The maid asked everyone to be quiet because the princess was resting, and the 3 ministers told Karafu that the 3 riddles could not be solved and that it would be better to go back quickly. Karafu states, "Only I am her lover." Pamur sadly says to him, "Do you want to abandon your aged father?" The weeping Willow then sings the aria Signore, ascolta (Hear Me, Prince), begging the prince not to take the risk. Karafu, touched, sings the aria "Non Piangere, Liu" (Don't Cry, Liu), comforting Liu while expressing his firm resolve. Karafu runs under the wall and shouts Turandot's name three times despite everyone's discouragement, and strikes the gong three times to signify his proposal despite Liu's shouts of "death". The orchestra plays the Turandot theme, the high official says it's all over, and Pamur and Liu'er cry over it.
Act II, Curtain Play. The large curtain is decorated with various decorations, and Ping, Peng and Pan each come on with an entourage; Ping sings "Fate's gong rings in the sanctuary," and the three sing a Chinese-flavored trio, who, calculating that thirteen people have already been put to death for solving the riddle, object to taking part in this cruel game. A chorus of "Sharpen the Axe" follows, and the three ministers celebrate the wedding with "Spread a Soft Quilt for Her," a melody said to have been taken from the music of Chinese emperors when they went to temples to pay homage to the Buddha. The clamor rises and the 3 men say that another person is going to be beheaded, changing the scene to the rhythm of a marching song. In the second scene, in the square in front of the palace, eight officials hold a scroll with the answers to Turandot's riddles, the crowd murmurs, and three ministers come on stage, with the elderly emperor sitting on the highest throne. Karafu stands at the bottom of the steps, while Pamur and Liu'er are among the onlookers, and the people fall to their knees in praise of the Emperor. The Emperor persuades Karafu to cancel his proposal, which Karafu refuses. During the march, the maids of honor scatter flowers on the steps, and a song of children's voices comes from behind the stage as Turandot makes her appearance. After a slight glance at Carafo, she sings the aria "In questa Reggia" in a dignified tone, describing the tragic death of her grandmother, who had been abused by invading Tartar captors, and saying that it was in order to avenge her grandmother's death that she had taken the idea of bringing about the death of the foreign suitor. She says that no one can possess her, and sings coldly, "Try the Gentiles, there are three puzzles, and death comes but once." Karafu also replies, "There are three riddles and only one death." The riddles began and the first one was "In the darkness, a phantom dances like a rainbow". The princess said, "This phantom, which everyone dreams of, is born every night and dies early in the morning in order to awaken in everyone's heart." Karafu replied, "Hope." The official opens the answer and indicates that it is correct. Turandot walks to the middle of the dais and utters the second riddle, "Like a flame not a flame, cools when it loses its life, rekindles when it dreams of conquest, is the color of a sunset bright red, and its voice is clearly audible." Karafu thought for a moment and answered, "As soon as you see the princess your eyes burn and agonize with fervor." The answer was correct and everyone cheered. The princess walked angrily down the steps, and the third question was, "Ice gives you flame, and from flame comes colder ice. If you hope for freedom you become a slave, if you want to be a slave you become a king." Karafu fell pale in contemplation, Turandot pressed the question, and a moment later Karafu jumped up and said, "And now the victory belongs to me, and my flame will melt the ice, and that is Turandot!" The crowd celebrates in chorus, rejoicing that the mystery has been completely solved. Turandot kneels before the Emperor and says, "Please do not give an innocent virgin to a stranger," and facing Karafu says, "I will not be yours!" The Emperor, however, says that the oath is sacred, and the crowd echoes. Karafu says, "O unruly princess, I love you with all my heart." He says to Turandot that the only way to break the engagement is to answer a question before dawn and say his name. The people sang the praises of the Emperor and sent him to the palace.
Act III, Inner Court of the Palace. At night, Karafu sings the famous aria "Nessun dorma" (No one sleeps), listening to the voice of "Who can forbid sleep" in the distance, convinced that at dawn, victory will be his. Ping, Pang and Pan came on the stage and pushed a beautiful woman to Karafu, who pandered to him. 3 officials tempted Karafu with money, but when neither the beautiful woman nor the bribe worked, they said to Karafu, "If we don't find out your name, we're all going to be killed, so please get out of here." Karafu insists, "My hope is Turandot," and everyone points their swords at him, trying to force him to give his name. At that moment, cries of "We know!" come from behind the stage, and the soldiers bring Pamuel and Liu Er up, and Turandot appears on stage. Turandot orders Pamur to be tried first, but Liu'er comes forward and says, "I'm the only one who knows his name." Karafu tries to save Liu'er, but is arrested instead, and Liu'er is tortured in front of Karafu. Turandot asks her why she doesn't want to tell his name, and she says, "It's the power of love. As she sings "Tanto amore segreto" (The love hidden in the heart is stronger than the pain), she says to Turandot, "I give you his love in silence, and although I will lose everything, it is the most precious gift of the beloved. At this point the public screams "Kill the head, kill the head!" The executioner appears and Willow sings the aria "Tu che di gel sei cinta" (Your cold heart, Princess), in which she says that when you know love, Princess, your cold heart will be melted by the fire of passion. When the guards are not looking, she draws her sword and kills herself, and this is the end of Puccini's original work. The continuation finishes with a duet between Karafu and Turandot after Pamur* has wept bitterly by the body of Willow and the funeral procession has moved away. Karafu pulls away Turandot's veil and says Icy Princess, you should see the warm blood that has been shed for you. Turandot says even if the veil is taken away, my heart is still in heaven. Karafu forces a kiss and Turandot says to herself, "What is wrong with me? Have I lost?" Her heart finally melts and sheds tears. Beautiful singing comes from behind the stage as people celebrate the dawn and the birth of Karafu's love, and Turandot sings the aria, "Tears in the Rain". Karafu says, "Today the princess has belonged to me, I will give you my name and my life, I am Karafu, Prince of Tartary." Turandot takes his hand and walks towards the square where the public is waiting. Scene 2, Square in front of the Imperial Palace. Early in the morning, to a marching song, the Emperor sits on his throne, and the masses chant Hail. Turandot and Karafu come on, and Turandot says, "Father, I have learned the name of this young man, and his name is Love." Karafu and Turandot embrace, and the crowd congratulates them on their happiness with a chorus of "Sun, life, may everything be forever," as the play ends.
Opera Aida The four-act opera Aida was written in 1871 and performed at the Cairo Theater in December of the same year. It was written by Verdi at the invitation of the Egyptian governor, Paha, in order to celebrate the completion of the Suez Canal project in 1869, and it was performed at the Cairo Theater in December of the same year. The plot is as follows: King Amonasro of Ethiopia sends an army to Egypt to rescue his captive daughter Aida, who has become the maid of the Egyptian princess Anneliese. Aida's lover, Radames, a young captain of the guards, was ordered to meet the invaders and returned in triumph with Amonasro as his hostage. Amonasro used his daughter to spy on the Egyptian army, and Radames inadvertently leaked secrets during a rendezvous with Aida, which was overheard by Aida's rival, Princess Anneliese. Radames is sentenced to death, for which Aida is later martyred.
The most famous piece of music from this play is the music of Radames' triumphant return in Act II, Scene II, later adapted for orchestra and wind ensemble, known as the Grand March or Aida's March, which is often performed separately, and is one of the most familiar of the marches.
This music fully reflects Verdi's subtle musical conception: the massed chorus, the repetitions and the sound of the orchestra are powerful and forceful, and the trumpets blow out the triumphal march in all its majesty and splendor. The most famous part of the music is that the trumpet played by the mighty and majestic, high and bright theme of the Grand March, showing the triumphant return of the soldier's heroic and elegant posture.
There are also many world-famous cantatas in the opera, such as Radames' romance "Pure Aida" and the duet "Love and Trouble" between Aida and Anneliese.
The opera The Troubadour, an opera in four acts, written in 1851-1852, performed in Rome in early 1853 and revised in 1857, with a libretto by Cammarano based on Gutiérrez's play of the same name, is one of Verdi's most famous works, and exemplifies the perfection that Verdi has achieved in his compositional technique.
The plot is that in the 15th century, the father of the Count of Luna in Spain had a gypsy woman burned as a witch. The woman's daughter, Azucena, stole the Count of Luna's baby brother in his infancy, intending to burn him to death to avenge his mother's death, but mistakenly threw her own son into the fire. The Count searched for years for the Gypsies who had taken his brother, but found nothing. When the Spanish War breaks out, the Count is on the royal side and falls passionately in love with the royal lady Leonora, who is y in love with the troubadour Manrico. Luna meets Manrico and learns that he is the leader of the enemy. The two duel and Manrico wins, but spares Luna. Instead of being grateful, Luna sends his guards after Manrico, who is wounded and rescued by his mother Azucena. Later, Manrico rescued Leonora with his troops and was about to celebrate the wedding when he was surrounded by Luna and captured Azucena. Manrico is arrested for saving his mother. Leonora is allowed to release Manrico in exchange for marrying Luna. However, she takes poison and dies in Manrico's arms to preserve her innocence. Luna orders Manrico's execution and asks Azucena to witness her son's death. Azucena tells Luna that Manrico is his brother. But by then the execution was over, and Azuchena collapsed shouting, "Mother, your revenge has been avenged".
The four acts of the work, which Verdi titled: Act 1, The Duel; Act 2, The Gypsies; Act 3, The Gypsy's Son; and Act 4, The Execution. The chorus of the opera contains many of the world's most popular songs. Two of them are chosen here, the "Iron Chorus" sung by the gypsies in Act II when they swing their hammers to strike iron, and the chorus sung by Count Luna's captain of the guard, Ferrando, and his army in Act III.
Opera "Forces of Destiny" The four-act opera "Forces of Destiny," written around 1861-1862 and premiered in Petersburg, Russia, in 1862, was written by the author for a Russian audience.
The opera is based on the play Don Alvaro by the Spanish romantic poet, Duke de Saavedra of Rivas, in which the hero, Alvaro, falls in love with Leonora, the daughter of the noble Marquis of Calatrava, who opposes him. They meet to elope and are again discovered by the Marquis. In an accident, Alvaro kills the Marquis. To escape the vengeance of Don Carlo, the Marquis' son, the lovers had to flee. In their haste, they are separated. To avoid her brother's pursuit, Leonora disguises herself as a man. After searching for her lover and failing to find him, she fled to a cave near a convent. When Alvaro could not find Leonora, he changed his name and joined the army. During the war, Alvaro saved Don Carlo's life, but since they both changed their names and had never met, they did not recognize each other. It was not until Alvaro was wounded that Don Calò realized from his letters that the man who saved his life was the enemy he had been looking for. After Alvaro recovered from his wounds, he sought Leonora to the convent, and Don Calò followed him to the duel. During the duel, Don Carlo is seriously injured, and Alvaro looks for help, but accidentally finds Leonora in a cave. Leonora comes to her brother's side, but the resentful Don Carlo stabs her with his last strength, and both siblings fall in a pool of blood. Finally, Alvaro committed suicide by jumping off a nearby cliff.
The overture to this opera is quite famous and is Verdi's masterpiece. Although it is called an overture, it is actually closer to the form of a prelude, and its performance is not usually before the opening credits, but often after the first scene of the first act. The piece begins with a powerful horn-like fanfare for the brass instruments, suggesting the irreversible power of fate. Then comes the first theme of the play in which the heroine is firm in her convictions. It is soon stopped by the irresistible force of destiny, strikingly brought to life by the resounding tones of the brass. Then, at a slow tempo, the woodwinds play a soft and slightly melancholic tune showing love. The music then moves into a fast tempo, and the mood becomes exciting and dramatic. The entire closing section of the piece is full of tragic and touching power.
The libretto of Don Carlo was first written in France by Meli and Durockele, based on the German poet Schiller's play Don Carlo, which premiered in French on March 11, 1867, at the Paris Opera. It was later translated into Italian by Laugerius, and in 1884, when it was rewritten in four acts, it was again penned by Schaunardini, and premiered in Italian at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan, on the 10th of January of that year. It is now available in both a five-act and a four-act version, the five-act version of which is not the score as it appeared at the French premiere. Rather, the first act has been added to the revised four-act version, with several corrections.
The story is that King Philip II of Spain originally betrothed his son, Don Carlo, to the French Princess Elisabeth, but he later married her as his own queen, but Don Carlo has fallen in love with his "mother" Elisabeth. Roderigo begs Don Carlo to help the oppressed people of Flanders, and the two swear a lifelong friendship. Don Carlo receives a letter asking him to meet him in the Queen's garden at midnight. Don Carlo thinks it is Elizabeth and boldly declares his love, but the letter is actually from Princess April, who is secretly in love with him, and who, upon discovering Don Carlo's secret, becomes vengeful in her jealousy. Don Carlo is arrested and imprisoned for challenging his father's authority. Roderigo visits Don Carlo in prison and informs him that he has taken the crime upon himself and that Don Carlo can continue to help the people of Flandre from oppression. Roderigo is immediately assassinated in prison. After his release, Don Carlo resolves to set sail for Flanders, meeting with Elizabeth to say goodbye before his departure, and is discovered by Philip II and the Inquisition ready to arrest him again. However, an apparition suddenly emerges from the grave of Carlo V and drags Don Carlo into the grave. The King and the Inquisitor share a sense of surprise as they hear what appears to be the voice of the late King Carlo V.