Die keusche Susanne
Encyclopedia
Die keusche Susanne is an operetta
in three acts by Jean Gilbert
. The German libretto
was by Georg Okonkowski, based on the play Le fils à papa by Antony Mars and Maurice Desvallières. Jean Gilbert's son, Robert Gilbert
prepared a revised version in 1953.
on 26 February 1910. It was the composer's greatest success, enabling him to move to Berlin to become conductor of the Thalia-Theater.
Adapted into English, by Frederick Fenn and Arthur Wimperis
, it was produced in London in 1912 as The Girl in the Taxi
. Adapted back into French by Mars and Desvallières, it was produced in Paris and then Lyon in 1913 as La chaste Suzanne. It was also successful in South America in Italian (La casta Susana) and in Spanish (La chasta Suzanna). Gilbert conducted the work there two decades later when he was forced to leave Germany and move to Argentina.
Time and place: Berlin, about 1900
s, 2 oboe
s, 2 clarinet
s, 2 bassoon
s, 4 french horns, 3 trumpet
s, 3 trombone
s, 1 guitar
, 1 celesta
, 1 harp
, percussion and strings
.
, starring Lilian Harvey
, Willy Fritsch
, Ruth Weyher, and Hans Wassmann. Novafilm Fernsehproduktion also made a version for television in 1972 directed by Thomas Engel with Maria Schell
as Susanne.
A French-Spanish film production of the Spanish version La casta Susana (French: La chaste Suzanne) was made in 1963 by Luis César Amadori
with Marujita Díaz, Carlos Estrada, Noël Roquevert and Chonette Laurent.
Operetta
Operetta is a genre of light opera, light in terms both of music and subject matter. It is also closely related, in English-language works, to forms of musical theatre.-Origins:...
in three acts by Jean Gilbert
Jean Gilbert
Jean Gilbert was a German operetta composer and conductor. His real name was Max Winterfeld. He adopted the name of Jean Gilbert for the production of his first operetta in 1901.Gilbert was born in Hamburg...
. The German libretto
Libretto
A libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata, or musical. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...
was by Georg Okonkowski, based on the play Le fils à papa by Antony Mars and Maurice Desvallières. Jean Gilbert's son, Robert Gilbert
Robert Gilbert (musician)
Robert Gilbert was a German composer of light music, lyricist, singer, and actor. His father was Max Winterfeld, a composer and conductor who went by the pen name of Jean Gilbert...
prepared a revised version in 1953.
Performance history
It was first performed at the Wilhelm-Theater in MagdeburgMagdeburg
Magdeburg , is the largest city and the capital city of the Bundesland of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Magdeburg is situated on the Elbe River and was one of the most important medieval cities of Europe....
on 26 February 1910. It was the composer's greatest success, enabling him to move to Berlin to become conductor of the Thalia-Theater.
Adapted into English, by Frederick Fenn and Arthur Wimperis
Arthur Wimperis
Arthur Harold Wimperis was an English illustrator, playwright, lyricist and Academy Award-winning screenwriter....
, it was produced in London in 1912 as The Girl in the Taxi
The Girl in the Taxi
The Girl in the Taxi is the English-language adaptation by Frederick Fenn and Arthur Wimperis of the operetta Die keusche Susanne , with music by Jean Gilbert. The German original had a libretto by Georg Okonkowski...
. Adapted back into French by Mars and Desvallières, it was produced in Paris and then Lyon in 1913 as La chaste Suzanne. It was also successful in South America in Italian (La casta Susana) and in Spanish (La chasta Suzanna). Gilbert conducted the work there two decades later when he was forced to leave Germany and move to Argentina.
Roles
| Role | Voice type Voice type A voice type is a particular kind of human singing voice perceived as having certain identifying qualities or characteristics. Voice classification is the process by which human voices are evaluated and are thereby designated into voice types... |
Premiere cast, 26 February 1910 (Conductor Conducting Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble... : Jean Gilbert) |
|---|---|---|
| Susanne Fleuron | soprano Soprano A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody... |
|
| Fleuron, a parfumier, Susanne's husband | baritone Baritone Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or... |
|
| René Wildhagen | tenor Tenor The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2... |
|
| Baron Conrad von Felseneck | bass Bass (voice type) A bass is a type of male singing voice and possesses the lowest vocal range of all voice types. According to The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, a bass is typically classified as having a range extending from around the second E below middle C to the E above middle C... |
|
| Clementine von Felseneck, his wife | contralto Contralto Contralto is the deepest female classical singing voice, with the lowest tessitura, falling between tenor and mezzo-soprano. It typically ranges between the F below middle C to the second G above middle C , although at the extremes some voices can reach the E below middle C or the second B above... |
|
| Pauline von Felseneck, their daughter | soprano | |
| Paul von Felseneck, their son | tenor | |
| Professor Hintzmeyer | baritone | |
| Frau Rosa, his wife | contralto | |
| Krause, head waiter at the Palais de Danse | baritone | |
| Policeman | baritone | |
| A servant | soprano | |
| Professors, students, police, ball guests etc. | ||
Time and place: Berlin, about 1900
Instrumentation
The work is scored for an orchestra consisting of 2 fluteFlute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
s, 2 oboe
Oboe
The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca...
s, 2 clarinet
Clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
s, 2 bassoon
Bassoon
The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family that typically plays music written in the bass and tenor registers, and occasionally higher. Appearing in its modern form in the 19th century, the bassoon figures prominently in orchestral, concert band and chamber music literature...
s, 4 french horns, 3 trumpet
Trumpet
The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
s, 3 trombone
Trombone
The trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
s, 1 guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, 1 celesta
Celesta
The celesta or celeste is a struck idiophone operated by a keyboard. Its appearance is similar to that of an upright piano or of a large wooden music box . The keys are connected to hammers which strike a graduated set of metal plates suspended over wooden resonators...
, 1 harp
Harp
The harp is a multi-stringed instrument which has the plane of its strings positioned perpendicularly to the soundboard. Organologically, it is in the general category of chordophones and has its own sub category . All harps have a neck, resonator and strings...
, percussion and strings
String section
The string section is the largest body of the standard orchestra and consists of bowed string instruments of the violin family.It normally comprises five sections: the first violins, the second violins, the violas, the cellos, and the double basses...
.
Films
A silent film version was made in 1926 by Richard EichbergRichard Eichberg
Richard Eichberg was an German film director and producer. He directed 87 films between 1915 and 1949. He also produced 77 films between 1915 and 1950.He was born in Berlin, Germany and died in Munich, Germany....
, starring Lilian Harvey
Lilian Harvey
Lilian Harvey was a British-born actress and singer, long-based in Germany, where she is best known for her role as Christel Weinzinger in Erik Charell's 1931 film Der Kongress tanzt.-Life:...
, Willy Fritsch
Willy Fritsch
Willy Fritsch was a German theater and film actor, the popular leading man in German silent motion-pictures.-Biography:...
, Ruth Weyher, and Hans Wassmann. Novafilm Fernsehproduktion also made a version for television in 1972 directed by Thomas Engel with Maria Schell
Maria Schell
Maria Margarethe Anna Schell was an Austrian/Swiss actress, who won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress at the Venice Film Festival in 1956 for Gervaise....
as Susanne.
A French-Spanish film production of the Spanish version La casta Susana (French: La chaste Suzanne) was made in 1963 by Luis César Amadori
Luis César Amadori
Luis César Amadori was an Italian - Argentine film director and screenwriter and one of the most influential directors in the Cinema of Argentina of the classic era...
with Marujita Díaz, Carlos Estrada, Noël Roquevert and Chonette Laurent.