Aquarius (opera)
Encyclopedia
Aquarius is an opera for eight sopranos, eight baritones, and orchestra by Karel Goeyvaerts
It was begun in 1983 and completed in April 1992, to a libretto by the composer in eight languages, incorporating lines from the Revelation of St. John.
's book The Aquarian Conspiracy (which he was given in 1983 by his friend Boudewijn Buckinx
), the astrological theory of epochs
, the Revelation of St. John
, and the Beatos Apocalypse manuscripts
by the 8th-century exegete
Beatus of Liébana
(Pols 1994, 152–57; Verstraete 1994, 185–86).
Because no large, single commission for the entire opera was initially offered, Goeyvaerts set about composing the components separately, often for smaller forces than he intended for the definitive version. In this way, nearly all of his works from 1983 onward are related to Aquarius in one way or another. At last a commission from the Brussels Opera and deSingel, later joined by Antwerp '93, enabled Goeyvaerts to complete the opera in April 1992. When he suddenly died on 3 February 1993, he had not finished correcting the manuscript for publication. This task was carried out by Mark De Smet (Pols 1994, 156–57, 161).
and the Vlaamse Opera
. On 21 June 2009 the production was brought to the Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ
in Amsterdam. The performers were the Radio Filharmonisch Orkest and the Nederlands Kamerkoor, conducted by Alejo Pérez.
. The leading feature of this new society is perfect harmony between everyone’s abilities his/her place in society. Goeyvaerts found the essential issue not to be the arrival of the traditional idea of the Aquarian society, but that a new society will replace the existing one. Aquarius is intended as a kind of initiational ritual into the secrets of this new society for everyone attending a performance (Verstraete 1994, 176, 178). According to the composer, Aquarius is not about the individual's experiences or conflicts, but rather is a drama of society—today's society, viewed as being in a gradual transition to new relationships between people which can already be observed sporadically. Society is represented on the stage by groups of dancers and singers, and the relationships within these groups represent the evolving structure of society (Pols 1994, 164).
like a dance in low gravity: a peaceful dance above invisible ground.
in Madrid.
Karel Goeyvaerts
Karel Goeyvaerts was a Belgian composer.-Life:After studies at the Royal Flemish Music Conservatory in Antwerp, Goeyvaerts studied composition in Paris with Darius Milhaud and analysis with Olivier Messiaen...
It was begun in 1983 and completed in April 1992, to a libretto by the composer in eight languages, incorporating lines from the Revelation of St. John.
History
Aquarius in its final form is an opera, but its composition involved a number of preliminary pieces for various forces, so that Goeyvaerts preferred to speak of the "Aquarius project". Goeyvaerts's inspiration came from principally four sources: Marilyn FergusonMarilyn Ferguson
Marilyn Ferguson was an American author, editor and public speaker, best known for her 1980 book The Aquarian Conspiracy and its affiliation with the New Age Movement in popular culture....
's book The Aquarian Conspiracy (which he was given in 1983 by his friend Boudewijn Buckinx
Boudewijn Buckinx
Boudewijn Buckinx is a Belgian composer and writer about music.Buckinx attended the Antwerp Conservatory, and from 1964 studied composition and serial music with Lucien Goethals in Ghent, where he also studied electronic music at the IPEM...
), the astrological theory of epochs
Astrological age
An astrological age is a time period which astrology postulates parallels major changes in the development of Earth's inhabitants, particularly relating to culture, society and politics. There are twelve astrological ages corresponding to the twelve zodiacal signs in western astrology. At the...
, the Revelation of St. John
Book of Revelation
The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament. The title came into usage from the first word of the book in Koine Greek: apokalupsis, meaning "unveiling" or "revelation"...
, and the Beatos Apocalypse manuscripts
Commentary on the Apocalypse
Commentary on the Apocalypse was originally an eighth century work by the Spanish monk and theologian Beatus of Liébana. Today, it refers to any of the extant manuscript copies of this work, especially any of the 26 illuminated copies that have survived. It is often referred to simply as the Beatus...
by the 8th-century exegete
Exegesis
Exegesis is a critical explanation or interpretation of a text, especially a religious text. Traditionally the term was used primarily for exegesis of the Bible; however, in contemporary usage it has broadened to mean a critical explanation of any text, and the term "Biblical exegesis" is used...
Beatus of Liébana
Beatus of Liébana
Saint Beatus of Liébana was a monk, theologian and geographer from the Kingdom of Asturias, in modern northern Spain, who worked and lived in the Picos de Europa mountains of the region of Liébana, in what is now Cantabria and his feast day is February 19.-Biography:He created an important...
(Pols 1994, 152–57; Verstraete 1994, 185–86).
Because no large, single commission for the entire opera was initially offered, Goeyvaerts set about composing the components separately, often for smaller forces than he intended for the definitive version. In this way, nearly all of his works from 1983 onward are related to Aquarius in one way or another. At last a commission from the Brussels Opera and deSingel, later joined by Antwerp '93, enabled Goeyvaerts to complete the opera in April 1992. When he suddenly died on 3 February 1993, he had not finished correcting the manuscript for publication. This task was carried out by Mark De Smet (Pols 1994, 156–57, 161).
Other works of the Aquarius project
- Aquarius I (Voorspel)—L’ère du Verseau, for orchestra (1983)
- Aquarius-Tango, for solo piano (January 1984)
- De Zang van Aquarius (The Song of Aquarius), for eight bass clarinets (July 1984)
- Zum Wassermann, for 14 musicians (August 1984)
- Les Voix de Verseau, version of De Zang van Aquarius, for soprano, flute, clarinet, violin, cello, and piano (1985)
- Pas à pas, for solo piano (1985, a shortened version of part 4 of Aquarius)
- De Heilige Stad (The Holy City), for chamber orchestra (August 1986)
- De Zeven Segels, for string quartet (December 1986)
- Aanloop en kreet (Run and Cry), for symphony orchestra and chorus (July 1987)
- …want de tijd is nabij (Because the Time Is Near), for male chorus and strings (February 1989)
- Aquarius stage cantata, for eight sopranos and 15 instrumentalists (August–September 1989)
- De Zang van Aquarius, version for symphony orchestra (1991)
- Opbouw (Construction), for orchestra (1991)
Libretto
The libretto does not consist of the conventional succession of vocal monologues, dialogues, and ensembles, and there is no narrative structure to the text. Goeyvaerts wrote most of the text himself, setting out at the beginning of the opera with non-semantic nonsense syllables and onomatopoeias, moving gradually to the use of more suggested and meaningful words until, in the final scene, coherent lines from the Revelation of St. John are sung in eight languages (Latin, Greek, Dutch, French, German, English, Spanish, and Italian). In this way there is a progression of increasing comprehensibility toward the final scene, which is the only part of the entire libretto where one can reasonably speak of the semantic use of language (Pols 1994, 161).Premiere cast
The staged premiere on Tuesday, 9 June 2009, in Antwerp was a co-production of the Holland FestivalHolland Festival
The Holland Festival is The Netherlands' oldest and largest performing arts festival, and takes place every June in Amsterdam. It comprises theater, music, opera and modern dance. In recent years, multimedia, visual arts, film and architecture were added to the festival roster...
and the Vlaamse Opera
Vlaamse Opera
The Vlaamse Opera ' is an opera company in Belgium directed by Aviel Cahn which operates in two different opera houses in two Flemish cities, the Vlaamse Opera Antwerpen at Van Ertbornstraat 8 and the Vlaamse Opera Ghent at Schouwburgstraat 3...
. On 21 June 2009 the production was brought to the Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ
Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ
Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ is a concert hall for contemporary classical music on the IJ in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The building opened in 2005 and is located above the IJtunnel, a ten-minute walk from Amsterdam Centraal station.The building was designed by Danish architects 3XN...
in Amsterdam. The performers were the Radio Filharmonisch Orkest and the Nederlands Kamerkoor, conducted by Alejo Pérez.
Synopsis
Aquarius concerns the search for and experience of a new and better society in the Age of AquariusAge of Aquarius
The Age of Aquarius is either the current or new age in the cycle of astrological ages. Each astrological age is approximately 2,150 years long, on average, but there are various methods of calculating this length that may yield longer or shorter time spans depending upon the technique used...
. The leading feature of this new society is perfect harmony between everyone’s abilities his/her place in society. Goeyvaerts found the essential issue not to be the arrival of the traditional idea of the Aquarian society, but that a new society will replace the existing one. Aquarius is intended as a kind of initiational ritual into the secrets of this new society for everyone attending a performance (Verstraete 1994, 176, 178). According to the composer, Aquarius is not about the individual's experiences or conflicts, but rather is a drama of society—today's society, viewed as being in a gradual transition to new relationships between people which can already be observed sporadically. Society is represented on the stage by groups of dancers and singers, and the relationships within these groups represent the evolving structure of society (Pols 1994, 164).
Prologue
The orchestral prologue represents the stiffness of the strict limitation of personal enthusiasm by a constrained existence within the "letter of the law".Scene 1
The first scene is sung by all sixteen soloists with the orchestra, and represents the kind of spirited outbreak of vitality in an urge for independence characterized by the events of May 1968. Such spirit issues from the growth in awareness of one's own nature.Scene 2
Scene two is for the eight sopranos and orchestra: eight women foresee new forms of society in an intuitive approach. They are a balanced group, pulling close together in eight phases, each is based on a harmonic situation of its own, represented visually by particular relations between the eight characters.Scene 3
A ballet scene with orchestra, presenting a "masculine" approach of the formation of rational constructions: the new society is seen from a rational basis, with new laws.Scene 4 and finale
At first just the orchestra, later joined by the sixteen singers. Up to this point, everything occurs from the viewpoint of "leading" figures: the "prima donna", the "politician'", and so on. Their individual views cause clashes and, in the end, confusion, with a cry for help: "AIUTO!!!"Act 2
In a prologue, the orchestra bursts forth like a whirlwind, accompanied visually by evocative projections on a screen.Scene 1
The 8 sopranos and 8 baritones join the orchestra, as a crowd in an immense room, lifted up by the suction force of the whirlwind.Scene 2
The orchestra accompanies a ballet in a tempo giustoTempo giusto
Tempo giusto is a musical term that means “in exact time,” often directing a return to strict time following a rubato or to play in “strict time” or “suitable time”-General:...
like a dance in low gravity: a peaceful dance above invisible ground.
Scene 3
The sixteen singers (accompanied by the orchestra) explore a new environment, in a realization of connections with the earth, ending in an image of complete peace and radiant harmony.Finale
The singers and orchestra join with the ballet in a concluding tutti, with the themes of "subtlety" and "non-passivity", using images from the Beatus miniatures in the Biblioteca NacionalBiblioteca Nacional de España
The Biblioteca Nacional de España is a major public library, the largest in Spain.It is located in Madrid, on the Paseo de Recoletos.-History:...
in Madrid.
Discography
- Karel Goeyvaerts: Aquarius: L'Ère du verseau. Megadisc Classics MDC 7850/51. Gent: Megadisc, 1997.
- Karel Goeyvaerts: Works for Piano [1964–1990]. Jan Michiels (piano), with Dietmar Wiesner (tape recorder), Trio Ikhoor, Carlos Bruneel (flute), Takashi Yamane (bass clarinet). CD recording. Megadisc Classics MDC 7848. Gent: Megadisc, 1996. Includes Aquarius: Tango (1984), and Pas à pas (1985), both from Aquarius, as well as Piano Quartet with Tape Recorder (1972, two versions), Stuk voor Piano (1964), Voor Harrie, Harry en René (1990), and Litanie 1 (1979).
- Karel Goeyvaerts: String Quartets. De Zeven Segels (1986), Voor Strijkkwartet (1992). Quatuor Danel. Megadisc Classics MDC 7853. Gent: Megadisc, 1996.