The Art of Opera Today?

[Deleted]

I guess they didn't take the cue from the boos at the Met for Tosca last month.

[john]

Are you sure that you did'nt stumble upon an Amy Winehouse party by mistake?

Seriously, this must have been a hideous experience, just think somebody actually got paid for staging that rubbish.

It reminds me of when my wife and I went to Berlin, we sat through a production of Un Ballo in Maschera at the Statsoper.
The entire Oprea was set in the mess and living quaters of the US Airforce, the singing was ok but the production should have been shot down before it got of the ground.

John

[David]

In the early days of Linda’s forum, the now greatly missed Darkehmen submitted an excellent piece in a topic he entitled: Why the "power" was necessary, which may be even more relevant today than it was in January 2008.

The time has come for this to be resurrected and so I have taken the liberty of copying and repeating Darkehmen’s words below -

“The Jan08 issue of Gramophone magazine, which is dedicated to Karajan, includes a fascinating interview with the conductor from 1967, in which he discusses the creation of the Salzburg festival, and answers a number of probing questions about his approach, including why he directs and produces his operas himself.

(In my opinion, that audio interview is the best and perhaps the only reason to get the issue of the magazine, which otherwise has some rather facile and superficial comments about the conductor.)

But anyway, this topic of Karajan's involvement with every aspect of music creation is an important one, and from what I understand, he's sometimes been criticized for doing too much, and more generally, for accruing too much "power" to himself.

Well, here's a video that I think amply illustrates why acquiring that "power" was absolutely necessary (and thank God he had it), and why today, when conductors lack such "power," the results are pretty disastrous.

It's a clip from a mid-1990s British documentary about the Royal Opera House, and it exemplifies the conflict between traditional, reverential opera productions, and the modernist approach.

It begins with a group of opera traditionalists protesting the house's staging of a modern opera that is marked by its dissonant style. Next we get a glimpse of a postmodern production of The Magic Flute (which proves to be an artistic and commercial failure).

Then, in the highlight of the clip, we see a glorious, traditional production of Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, conducted by Bernard Haitink, which is a bona fide triumph, and wildly popular.

The video concludes with a look at the opera house's plans to stage a ridiculous, revisionist version, bordering on self-parody, of Wagner's Ring.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZkE81_26c8

Now, Bernard Haitink is/was a pretty significant and respected conductor in his own right. What I find especially pertinent in the clip is how you can see that Haitink is clearly repelled by the modernist pseudo-Ring that the opera house is trying to foist on him. It's clear that the public dislikes this approach too. But in the end...he's powerless to stop it.

First, Haitink has to practically beg to see the set designs. Then, the smart-allecks who created this revisionist Ring don't even deign to show up to the meeting to defend their absurd creation. And ultimately, the opera board is intent on ramming this approach down his throat, talking about "persuading" him to get on board with it.

All the time, Haitink knows that the traditional, reverent Meistersinger approach is more popular and more in tune with his own conception, but Haitink almost seems apologetic about his preference for the timeless style. "Maybe I'm too old fashioned," he says. What does what's in or out of "fashion" have to do with staging a great opera? And this, from a great conductor?

This is what happens when a musical creator doesn't have the power that Karajan had. It leaves the public at the mercy of marginal directors with weird tastes for productions that are antithetical to the spirit in which the works were created.

So compared to this kind of cultural helplessness, give me someone with Karajan's confidence in his own Romantic vision (and the power to execute it) any day…”

Thank you Darkehmen, and best wishes -
David

[Deleted]

"With the development of the gramophone, conductors had to learn to listen to their mistakes. Inexorably high standards were set and those who were not prepared to take - or were incapable of taking - their fellow musicians to the limits were left hopelessly behind.

And slowly but surely the conviction took root that a merciless commitment of all one's available forces was a precondition of successful artistic direction."

-HvK

[prahcello]

I agree with Waldstein's comments regarding modern productions of operas. A lot of the time what producers do to a classic opera are downright ridiculous. What I do also have to say is that a modern staging CAN work, if the producer in question respects and knows that a staging can only be successful if he/she respects the music, or rather what it contains, and within the context of the story and the music. Opera, after all, IS a visual medium as much as it is a musical one. And it is a pity that many directors either are not conscious of that or they simply choose to ignore it and be 'provocative' for being provocative's sake...

Paul

[David]

Following on from Waldstein’s recent experience in Dresden as illustrated by the Semperoper photographs, I thought it may be an interesting exercise to take a step backwards in time and display some images from the creations of Günther Schneider-Siemssen for Karajan’s Easter and Summer Salzburg Festival productions - not an Ikea sofa in sight here you‘ll notice!

I suppose that these really should have been included in a new forum topic entitled: The Art of Opera Yesterday (no question mark), but no matter.

Boris Godounov - Summer 1965-1967

The spectacular sets for this legendary 1965 production were Schneider-Siemssen's first for the Salzburg Festival, securing his claim to fame. "It was really a milestone in my life and in my artistic development." His basic concept for the opera was based on the Russian Cross which was always highly visible, and around which the individual scenes were built. Karajan conducted and directed this gigantic and luxurious production that was laden with pageantry. It was received with great international acclaim so that the then Soviet Premier, Nikita Khrushchev even came to Salzburg to see the opera and was deeply impressed.

Das Rheingold - Easter 1968, 1969 & 1973

Die Walküre - Easter 1967 & 1968

Siegfried - Easter 1969

Götterdämmerung - Easter 1970

Fidelio - Easter 1971 & 1978

Tristan and Isolde - Easter 1972 & 1973

Lohengrin - Easter 1976 & 1984

Parsifal - Easter 1980 & 1981

The Flying Dutchman - Easter 1982 & 1983

Karajan with Schneider-Siemssen

Now distant memories, but I realise how fortunate I was to have attended five of these productions:

Boris Godounov - 1967
Das Rheingold - 1968
Die Walküre - 1968
Fidelio - 1971
Tristan and Isolde - 1972

Now I’ve heard murmurings concerning a recent production of Tristan and Isolde at Covent Garden and so decided to investigate further. It’s all so very depressing and now apparent that most of the major houses have been infiltrated by what I can only think of describing as respectable nincompoops. Once again, this arrogant, vain elite force their will on to powerless audiences. The more you dislike it, the happier these intellectual snobs are. There follows a link to a page showing some images from this 'production'. As one contributor to the blog notes, this type of non-concept is an outrage and an insult to the composer. Quite so.

intermezzo.typepad.com/intermezzo/2009/09/pure-theatrical-ikea-christof-loys-flatpack-tristan.html

Condolences to those affected -
David

[sacateca]

i'm glad to have read this thread, and equally relieved from the opinions people have. i am fairly new to listening to classical music "seriously", and not very experienced with operas i'm afraid. The first, and so far only, opera i saw was on tv, by Swedish Royal Opera, Wagner's Siegfried - and it did nothing to ignite an interest in them.

i did my best to have a positive attitude about it, very much liking orchestrations of Wagner's opera music, but i couldn't bring myself to think anything else than that it was rubbish. It was one of these post-modern productions, though not as bad as some of them it seems, with Wotan dressed in a suit and shades and Mime and Siegfried acting like idiots (it seemed like it was more of a comedy). Though i did like the music and the singing, the acting and the sets and everything else truly destroyed it for me.

Then i saw the documentary Karajan Or Beauty As i See It, and what Karajan was doing with the operas there, and realised operas don't need to be like that abomination i survived. Needless to say, i'm looking forward to getting Maestro Karajan's opera DVDs and also audio recordings in the near future.

PS: Thanks for the pictures from the Karajan productions! Beautiful.

[sacateca]

Hello, Waldstein. Thank you for your reply and kind wishes.

Let me too take this opportunity to say that your extensive pontifications regarding musical masterpieces for the stage on this forum have been very interesting and educational for me to read.

i understand the difference between musical drama and opera, at least superficially (and considering that could say that i doubt i have any interest in opera in general.) What came to my mind about this was that opera is a wholeheartedly Italian phenomenan, whereas a musical drama uses the (Italian) vehicles of an opera but with non-Italian intentions. In a way analoguous to a giallo (an Italian detective/crime mystery) compared to something like Sherlock Holmes. But so while the musical drama uses the operatic method aesthetically, it's more essential heritage comes from the Greek tragedies. (By no means do i mean that all opera would be Italian, just that those Germanic/Russian works which remain in the realm of opera rather than music drama have kept their roots in Italy.)

Of Italian opera my knowledge is entirely cursorly, and i can't make any definitive judgments about it's depth or lack thereof, but when i was deciding which musical work for stage to start my explorations with, i found little of interest content-wise in the works of Verdi, or, say, Mozart. (And what it comes to Shakespeare in general, my opinion of his "art" coincides with that of Leo Tolstoy).

So i found Wagner - and what i knew of him by reputation he seemed a promising choise, also. To select Siegfried from his Ring works was just chance (as all the four music dramas are available from the same production, alas). Well not pure chance, i had heard the piece Forest Murmurs from Siegfried, and with my affinity with forests and Wagner's depiction that made the choise for me.

Perhaps by referring to my courage you're trying to tell me with Wagner's masterpieces i am taking too large a bite? i totally agree that i most probably will not be able to appreciate or recognise all the genius and beauty involved, and it would have been different had i started with something less daunting artistically. Perhaps you also mean that it is difficult to learn from such advanced works the basics which one needs to acquire to understand the whole medium more fully, and perhaps this approach even promotes superficial pseudo-understanding. Now my foolhardy courage does show itself to me, too - alas, these are points i failed to consider at all beforehand.

What then, would you recommend?

Best regards,
sacateca

[sacateca]

Hey - thanks for your thoughtful reply.

i can only imagine i was much helped with having heard orchestrated music from Wagner's operas first. Before that, not that i had paid much attention, but whatever operatic music i had heard in small snippets had always sounded entirely unpleasant to me.

We are in total agreement about subjective coming of understanding, and the irrelevancy of experts. What i meant with pseudo-understanding is similar to the usual feeling one gets after having learned a little bit about something - that one has understood something significant about it, only to learn later on that one knew nothing (well, at least that happens to me about many things - for example, music of Beethoven often surprises me showing that i hadn't understood it after all.) And i also referred to my total lack of knowledge about music drama conventions and meanings of technical attributes. And i dind't really ask for a good opera for a beginner from you as an expert, but from you as an individual who seems thoughtful enough to give a sensible recommendation. However, your refusal to recommend says enough - i'll soldier on on the path already chosen what it comes to adventures in the world of music dramas.

i'll get something with full libretto, very good advice (i probably would've settled for a version with merely the text if you hadn't drawn my attention to libretto - to be honest, i had never thought of a libretto before). Of Lohengrin and Tännhauser it seems that i'll choose Lohengrin first.

Regarding opera vs. music drama. Is the debate what is which purely of categorical/academic interest, or is there something of essence to be learned from it? i guess i should read Wagner's writings myself to get to the bottom of it. i mean, i would've thought that all Verdi's "soap operas" would've merited the term opera (again i stumble upon the Italian concept bella figura as their highest principle and the dividing/deciding factor), based upon those storylines that i've read. Many people talk about Germanic heaviness of Wagner's works but it is exactly this quality about them that attracts me - the substance=weight=unpleasantness always for some people - their ties to the myths of old, the heritage of mankind and the ultimately simple truths. On the other hand, you refer to the difference being also in the technical aspects.

Hmm, sorry for this ramble - i'm not sure if i was able to say anything constructive. i'll blame it on the hangover from a nice Italian wine & Karajan's Beethoven symphonies.

[sacateca]

A small change of heart, i decided to go with Karajan's das Rheingold DVD first. It should be easier to appreciate the music and unfolding of the drama without needing to fiddle with a booklet with text and stage direxions at the same time. i trust it has at least the text in subtitles in German (my German is sehr slecht, but knowing the storyline i should be able to follow it approximately) - if not, i'll be again in trouble, ha-ha.

At some point when i'm not too overwhelmed with Wagner's music dramas and all other classical music, i'm sure i'll explore Verdi, too. Your comment about his psychological insight is most promising - though i have a feeling exploring even only Wagner will take some time.

Thanks much for your comments - and sorry to have somewhat derailed your thread.

[Deleted]

www.metoperafamily.org/metopera/news/news_flash.aspx?id=11878

Also found the following on a radio website:

A firestorm of controversy has erupted over news that a school here, is using classical music in a detention area to punish troublesome students. Reason Magazine says the school is “using great achievement to whack people across the head, What [they’re] saying in effect is children don’t like classical music and we will exploit this fact by using it as a punishment against them.” Not only music lovers, but critics of the school system have come out against the practice, claiming that the state school system seems to have abandoned any hope of educating children about great culture and as a result they are felt alienated from classical music. “One critic said, “They probably think of it as posh music for posh people. It’s not only authoritarianism, but it’s backward. It’s contributing to alienation.” (O’Neill) In response to the criticism, the headmaster of the school said that since classical music began to be used as punishment for bad behavior infractions of school rules have dropped by about 60 percent.

[Deleted]

I suppose the maestro is below the EMI logo in the 2nd image in Waldstein's posting (also in the Fidelio cover)

I've been dousing with the non-Ring Wagners for the last 12 months and I am actually finding superiorities in non-Karajan versions. The Bohm 1966 Tristan (with Osborne notes) has better orchestral detail and although almost half an hour faster, the rush isn't detrimental. I do like the 1st measure of Act II in the Karajan though.

I am trying to find a source of musical analysis of Tristan as I am not clear on why the unresolved chord in the Prelude remains unesolved for 4 hours. (33 measures before Act II scene 3, for example). It seems to me the composer abandoned the unresolution for most of the work.

[David]

Günther Schneider-Siemssen – RIP

I was saddened to hear of the recent passing of Günther Schneider-Siemssen.

www.operanews.com/Opera_News_Magazine/2015/6/News/Gunther_Schneider-Siemssen.html

Some examples of his remarkable work for Karajan’s Salzburg productions are still available to view in my earlier posting in this thread dated October 26th 2009.

Regards David

[David]

Osterfestspiele Salzburg 2017

Some most interesting news has recently emerged from Salzburg concerning the 50th anniversary of the Easter Festival in 2017. The Festival’s website contains details of Christian Thielemann’s proposed recreation of the 1967 Karajan/Schneider-Siemssen production of Die Walküre to commemorate the anniversary.

The following is an extract from the site –

When Herbert von Karajan founded the Salzburg Easter Festival 50 years ago, he set artistic standards that remain just as valid today. Under the ideal conditions offered by the Grosses Festspielhaus, Herbert von Karajan succeeded in realizing his dream of a ‘festive play’ within the Festival. The Salzburg Easter Festival revolved around him, just as the Bayreuth Festival had once centred around the person of Richard Wagner, the music dramatist, and just as the early years of the Salzburg Festival had focussed on that impresario and magician of the theatre, Max Reinhardt.

We would like to link up with this great tradition for the jubilee Easter Festival in 2017 by attempting to re-create Karajan’s musico-theatrical vision of Die Walküre from 1967. Our re-creation of this work through the stage designs of Günther Schneider-Siemssen brings the historical original back into focus and at the same time poses the question as to how it may be reinterpreted for our own time. In our revival of the set designs of the 1967 Walküre we are by no means aiming to glorify that era, but are instead asking questions about the stage aesthetic of yesterday, today and tomorrow. An accompanying exhibition and two symposia will trace Herbert von Karajan’s idea of the ‘festive play’, and by contrasting historical and latter-day dimensions we will investigate listening and viewing habits both old and new.

Our programme will also feature Lohengrin, a contemporary chamber opera by Salvatore Sciarrino full of Wagnerian resonances.

The newly founded Herbert von Karajan prize of the Salzburg Easter Festival will be awarded to pianist Daniil Trifonov at the Concert for Salzburg. Trifonov will be our artist in residence at the 2017 Easter Festival.

The Staatskapelle Dresden will in 2017 once again be our marvellous Orchestra in Residence. We are also delighted to be able to welcome both the Vienna Philharmonic and the Berliner Philharmoniker for one guest concert each – both generously supported by Eliette von Karajan – at our jubilee Festival.

We hope that you find the programme of the 2017 Salzburg Easter Festival appealing and we look forward to welcoming you!

Christian Thielemann
Artistic Director of the Salzburg Easter Festival and Principal Conductor of the Staatskapelle Dresden

Prof. Dr. Peter Ruzicka
Managing Director and Intendant of the Salzburg Easter Festival

The above is contained in a PDF of 28 pages in which there is much of interest to view, including several sketches of Günther Schneider-Siemssen’s legendary creation –

www.osterfestspiele-salzburg.at/kontakt/presse-mitteilungen-download.html?file=files/pdf/Presse/Osterfestspiele_Salzburg_2017_web.pdf

Possibly one of the most remarkable parts of Karajan’s entire DG Ring recordings is the first act of Die Walküre where Gundula Janowitz and Jon Vickers as Sieglinde and Siegmund (and the BPO) are truly inspired. Richard Osborne, at the time of the centenary, selected a short extract of about eleven minutes on NPR in the US (National Public Radio) to illustrate the point. I notice that after eight years the link is still available …… It can almost bring tears ……

www.npr.org/player/embed/89146879/89131496

All of this is of particular interest to me as the first of my three visits to the Easter Festival was in 1968, when in addition to two performances of the 1967 Die Walküre, three performances of Das Rheingold were given. As if all of this wasn’t enough, it was also necessary to sit through a performance of the Brahms German Requiem with Gundula Janowitz and Fischer-Dieskau .... such is life ....

A peaceful Easter to one and all –
David

P.S.
Me wonders if next year’s staging would have materialised had Rattle and his Berliners remained in Salzburg ...........

[lee]

Once again, I'm very much in your debt to alerting us all to this, David ! It seems like a fine tribute to me and indeed, would Rattle and the BPO be similarly inclined had they still been in residence ?

Amazing that Eliette can bring in both the BPO and VPO to the party - now that's rich !! But what an honour, likewise.

Will you be going along too, David ? I remember that you managed to go to some of the earlier Festivals, so it would be a double-celebration for you too if you got there !

Warmest regards,

lee