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Norma (opera)
Encyclopedia
Norma is a tragedia lirica or opera
in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini
with libretto
by Felice Romani
after Norma, ossia L'infanticidio (Norma, or The Infanticide) by Alexandre Soumet
. First produced at La Scala
on December 26, 1831, it is generally regarded as an example of the supreme height of the bel canto
tradition. "Casta diva" was one of the most familiar arias of the nineteenth century.
that "Romani believes [that this subject] will be very effective, and absolutely ideal for your encyclopedic character, because that is the kind of character Norma has". Indeed, Pasta's vocal and dramatic range was encyclopedic: that March, she had created the very different Bellini role of Amina, the lyrically vulnerable Swiss village maiden, in La sonnambula
.
In the 19th century, it was common for composers to interpolate arias of their own into other composers' operas. Richard Wagner
wrote an aria for bass and men's chorus for an 1837 production of Norma.
The title role is generally considered one of the most difficult in the soprano
repertoire. It calls for tremendous vocal control of range, flexibility, and dynamics. It contains a wide range of emotions: conflict of personal and public life, romantic life, maternal love, friendship, jealousy, murderous intent, and resignation. German soprano Lilli Lehmann
once famously remarked on how the singing of all three Brünnhildes in Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen
in one evening was less stressful than the singing of one Norma. However, her less famous reasoning was that "When you sing Wagner, you are so carried away by the dramatic emotion, the action, and the scene that you do not have to think how to sing the words. That comes of itself. But in Bellini, you must always have a care for beauty of tone and correct emission."
, Claudia Muzio
, and Rosa Ponselle
were each admired in the role. The most prolific Norma of the postwar period was Maria Callas
, with 89 stage performances (several of which exist on recording), along with two studio recordings (made in 1954 and 1960).
In the 1960s, two very different performers started donning the Druidess's robes: the Australian Dame
Joan Sutherland
and the Turk Leyla Gencer
. Following Sutherland's 1964 debut in the title role, Pavarotti
called her "the greatest female voice of all time".
In the 1970s, four other bel canto specialists debuted their Normas: Radmila Bakočević
, Montserrat Caballé
, Beverly Sills
, and Renata Scotto
. Not to be dismissed lightly are Grace Bumbry
and Shirley Verrett
, the two famous African-American divas who began as mezzo-sopranos and eventually started singing soprano repertoire
During the 1980s and 1990s, the role of Norma was performed by such different singers as Katia Ricciarelli
, Anna Tomowa-Sintow
, Marisa Galvany
, Dame Gwyneth Jones, and Jane Eaglen
. Contemporary Normas include Fiorenza Cedolins
, Galina Gorchakova
, Hasmik Papian
, Maria Guleghina
, Nelly Miricioiu
, June Anderson
, and Edita Gruberová
. In 2008, Daniela Dessì
performed as Norma at Teatro Comunale di Bologna.
A secret love unites the seeress Norma with Pollione, the Roman proconsul, by whom she has borne two children. But Pollione has grown tired of the aging druidess and has fallen in love with Adalgisa, a young temple virgin. Despite Adalgisa's piety and virtue, she agrees to flee to Rome with Pollione. Adalgisa innocently tells Norma of her love, and Norma curses Pollione for his treachery.
Norma is about to kill her children, but her love for her children finally confides them to the care of Adalgisa. When Pollione comes to take Adalgisa from the temple, Norma denounces him and he is seized by the Druids, after having refused to give up Adalgisa. Norma proclaims herself equally guilty with him. The pyre is lighted, and ascending it, Norma dies
with her lover.
Act 2
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini
Vincenzo Bellini
Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini was an Italian opera composer. His greatest works are I Capuleti ed i Montecchi , La sonnambula , Norma , Beatrice di Tenda , and I puritani...
with 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...
by Felice Romani
Felice Romani
Felice Romani was an Italian poet and scholar of literature and mythology who wrote many librettos for the opera composers Donizetti and Bellini. Romani was considered the finest Italian librettist between Metastasio and Boito.-Biography:Born Giuseppe Felice Romani to a bourgeois family in Genoa,...
after Norma, ossia L'infanticidio (Norma, or The Infanticide) by Alexandre Soumet
Alexandre Soumet
Alexandre Soumet was a French poet.-Biography:Alexandre Soumet was born at Castelnaudary, département of Aude. His love of poetry began at a early age. He was an admirer of Klopstock and Schiller, then little known in France...
. First produced at La Scala
La Scala
La Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the New Royal-Ducal Theatre at La Scala...
on December 26, 1831, it is generally regarded as an example of the supreme height of the bel canto
Bel canto
Bel canto , along with a number of similar constructions , is an Italian opera term...
tradition. "Casta diva" was one of the most familiar arias of the nineteenth century.
Composition history
In a letter dated September 1, 1831, Bellini wrote to the soprano Giuditta PastaGiuditta Pasta
Giuditta Angiola Maria Costanza Pasta , born in Saronno, Italy, was a soprano considered among the greatest of opera singers, to whom the 20th-century soprano Maria Callas was compared.-Studies and career:...
that "Romani believes [that this subject] will be very effective, and absolutely ideal for your encyclopedic character, because that is the kind of character Norma has". Indeed, Pasta's vocal and dramatic range was encyclopedic: that March, she had created the very different Bellini role of Amina, the lyrically vulnerable Swiss village maiden, in La sonnambula
La sonnambula
La sonnambula is an opera semiseria in two acts, with music in the bel canto tradition by Vincenzo Bellini to an Italian libretto by Felice Romani, based on a scenario for a ballet-pantomime by Eugène Scribe and Jean-Pierre Aumer called La somnambule, ou L'arrivée d'un nouveau seigneur.The first...
.
In the 19th century, it was common for composers to interpolate arias of their own into other composers' operas. Richard Wagner
Richard Wagner
Wilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director, philosopher, music theorist, poet, essayist and writer primarily known for his operas...
wrote an aria for bass and men's chorus for an 1837 production of Norma.
The title role is generally considered one of the most difficult in the 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...
repertoire. It calls for tremendous vocal control of range, flexibility, and dynamics. It contains a wide range of emotions: conflict of personal and public life, romantic life, maternal love, friendship, jealousy, murderous intent, and resignation. German soprano Lilli Lehmann
Lilli Lehmann
Lilli Lehmann, born Elisabeth Maria Lehmann, later Elisabeth Maria Lehmann-Kalisch was a German operatic soprano of phenomenal versatility...
once famously remarked on how the singing of all three Brünnhildes in Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen
Der Ring des Nibelungen
Der Ring des Nibelungen is a cycle of four epic operas by the German composer Richard Wagner . The works are based loosely on characters from the Norse sagas and the Nibelungenlied...
in one evening was less stressful than the singing of one Norma. However, her less famous reasoning was that "When you sing Wagner, you are so carried away by the dramatic emotion, the action, and the scene that you do not have to think how to sing the words. That comes of itself. But in Bellini, you must always have a care for beauty of tone and correct emission."
Performance history
Throughout the 20th century, many singers have attempted the role of Bellini's tormented Druid priestess, with varying degrees of success. The following is a listing of some of the most renowned Normas, each of whom has brought her own strengths and weaknesses to the role. In the early 1920s, Rosa RaisaRosa Raisa
Rosa Raisa was a Polish-born, Italian-trained, dramatic operatic soprano. In 1926 she created the role of Turandot at La Scala, Milan.-Career:...
, Claudia Muzio
Claudia Muzio
Claudia Muzio was an Italian operatic soprano, whose international career was among the most successful of the early 20th century.-Early years:...
, and Rosa Ponselle
Rosa Ponselle
Rosa Ponselle , was an American operatic soprano with a large, opulent voice. She sang mainly at the New York Metropolitan Opera and is generally considered by music critics to have been one of the greatest sopranos of the past 100 years.-Early life:She was born Rosa Ponzillo on January 22, 1897,...
were each admired in the role. The most prolific Norma of the postwar period was Maria Callas
Maria Callas
Maria Callas was an American-born Greek soprano and one of the most renowned opera singers of the 20th century. She combined an impressive bel canto technique, a wide-ranging voice and great dramatic gifts...
, with 89 stage performances (several of which exist on recording), along with two studio recordings (made in 1954 and 1960).
In the 1960s, two very different performers started donning the Druidess's robes: the Australian Dame
Dame (title)
The title of Dame is the female equivalent of the honour of knighthood in the British honours system . It is also the equivalent form address to 'Sir' for a knight...
Joan Sutherland
Joan Sutherland
Dame Joan Alston Sutherland, OM, AC, DBE was an Australian dramatic coloratura soprano noted for her contribution to the renaissance of the bel canto repertoire from the late 1950s through to the 1980s....
and the Turk Leyla Gencer
Leyla Gencer
Leyla Gencer, or Ayşe Leyla Çeyrekgil was a world-renowned Turkish operatic soprano.Known as "La Diva Turca" and "La Regina" in the opera world, Gencer was a notable bel canto soprano who spent most of her career in Italy, from the early 1950s through the mid-1980s, and had a repertoire...
. Following Sutherland's 1964 debut in the title role, Pavarotti
Luciano Pavarotti
right|thumb|Luciano Pavarotti performing at the opening of the Constantine Palace in [[Strelna]], 31 May 2003. The concert was part of the celebrations for the 300th anniversary of [[St...
called her "the greatest female voice of all time".
In the 1970s, four other bel canto specialists debuted their Normas: Radmila Bakočević
Radmila Bakocevic
Radmila Bakočević , is a Serbian operatic soprano who had a major international opera career that began in 1955 and ended upon her retirement from the stage in 1982...
, Montserrat Caballé
Montserrat Caballé
Montserrat Caballé is a Spanish operatic soprano. Although she sang a wide variety of roles, she is best known as an exponent of the bel canto repertoire, notably the works of Rossini, Bellini, Donizetti and Verdi....
, Beverly Sills
Beverly Sills
Beverly Sills was an American operatic soprano whose peak career was between the 1950s and 1970s. In her prime she was the only real rival to Joan Sutherland as the leading bel canto stylist...
, and Renata Scotto
Renata Scotto
Renata Scotto is an Italian soprano and opera director.Recognized for her sense of style, musicality and as a remarkable singer-actress, Scotto is considered one of the preeminent singers of her generation, specializing in the bel canto repertoire with excursions into the verismo and Verdi...
. Not to be dismissed lightly are Grace Bumbry
Grace Bumbry
Grace Bumbry , an American opera singer, is considered one of the leading mezzo-sopranos of her generation, as well as a major soprano for many years...
and Shirley Verrett
Shirley Verrett
Shirley Verrett was an African-American operatic mezzo-soprano who successfully transitioned into soprano roles i.e. soprano sfogato...
, the two famous African-American divas who began as mezzo-sopranos and eventually started singing soprano repertoire
During the 1980s and 1990s, the role of Norma was performed by such different singers as Katia Ricciarelli
Katia Ricciarelli
-Biography:Born at Rovigo, Veneto, to a very poor family, she struggled during her younger years when she studied music.She studied at the Benedetto Marcello Conservatory in Venice, won several vocal competitions in 1968, and made her professional debut as Mimì in La bohème in Mantua in 1969,...
, Anna Tomowa-Sintow
Anna Tomowa-Sintow
Anna Tomowa-Sintow is a Bulgarian soprano who has sung to great acclaim in all the major opera houses around the world in a repertoire that includes Mozart, Rossini, Verdi, Puccini, Wagner, and Strauss. She enjoyed a particularly close professional relationship with conductor Herbert von Karajan...
, Marisa Galvany
Marisa Galvany
Marisa Galvany is an American soprano who had an active international career performing in operas and concerts up into the early 2000s. Known for the great intensity of her performances, Galvany particularly excelled in portraying Verdi heroines...
, Dame Gwyneth Jones, and Jane Eaglen
Jane Eaglen
Jane Eaglen is an English dramatic soprano particularly known for her interpretations of the works of Richard Wagner and the title roles in Bellini's Norma and Puccini's Turandot.-Background:...
. Contemporary Normas include Fiorenza Cedolins
Fiorenza Cedolins
Fiorenza Cedolins, born in Anduins di Vito d'Asio, a village in Friuli, near Pordenone, is an Italian soprano.Cedolins made her operatic debut in 1992 at the Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa in Mascagni's Cavalleria rusticana...
, Galina Gorchakova
Galina Gorchakova
-Beginnings:Gorchakova was born in Novokuznetsk to a musical family. She moved to Novosibirsk in Siberia with her parents who were singers at the opera house there. It was in that city that she attended music school, college and the Conservatoire from which she graduated in 1988...
, Hasmik Papian
Hasmik Papian
- Biography :Hasmik Papian graduated from High Academy in Yerevan first as a violinist, then as a singer. After her debut at the Armenian National Opera, she was invited as a soloist among others by Opera Bonn and Deutsche Oper am Rhein, Düsseldorf, Germany...
, Maria Guleghina
Maria Guleghina
Maria Agasovna Guleghina is a Ukrainian-Russian soprano opera singer, particularly associated with the Italian repertory.-Biography:Maria Guleghina was born in Odessa, Ukraine , to an Armenian father and a Ukrainian mother, where she studied voice at the Music Conservatory with Evgeny Nikolaevich...
, Nelly Miricioiu
Nelly Miricioiu
Nelly Miricioiu is a British operatic soprano of Romanian birth, one of the most versatile artists of recent years, singing a large repertoire ranging from bel canto to verismo with equal success.-Biography:...
, June Anderson
June Anderson
June Anderson is a Grammy Award-winning American coloratura soprano. Originally known for bel canto performances of Rossini, Donizetti, and Vincenzo Bellini, she was the first non-Italian ever to win the prestigious Bellini d'Oro prize...
, and Edita Gruberová
Edita Gruberová
Edita Gruberová , is a Slovak soprano who is one of the most acclaimed coloraturas of recent decades. She is noted for her great tonal clarity, agility, dramatic interpretation, and ability to sing high notes with great power, which made her an ideal Queen of the Night in her early years...
. In 2008, Daniela Dessì
Daniela Dessì
Daniela Dessì Born May 14, 1957, in Genoa, Italy is an Italian lirico-spinto soprano.Daniela Dessì completed her singing studies at the Conservatory of Parma and the Accademia Chigiana of Siena. After having won the first prize at the International Competition organized by RAI TV in 1980, she had...
performed as Norma at Teatro Comunale di Bologna.
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, December 26, 1831 (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... : – ) |
|---|---|---|
| Norma, daughter of Oroveso, High-priestess of the Celts | 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... (soprano sfogato Soprano sfogato In the art of singing, the term "soprano sfogato" designates a singer capable of by sheer industry or natural talent to extend her upper range and be able to encompass the coloratura soprano tessitura... ) |
Giuditta Pasta Giuditta Pasta Giuditta Angiola Maria Costanza Pasta , born in Saronno, Italy, was a soprano considered among the greatest of opera singers, to whom the 20th-century soprano Maria Callas was compared.-Studies and career:... |
| Adalgisa, priest Priest A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities... ess in the grove of the Irminsul statue |
originally soprano, today often sung by mezzo-soprano Mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano is a type of classical female singing voice whose range lies between the soprano and the contralto singing voices, usually extending from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above... |
Giulia Grisi Giulia Grisi Giulia Grisi, also known as Madame De Candia was an Italian opera singer... |
| Pollione, Roman Ancient Rome Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world.... proconsul Proconsul A proconsul was a governor of a province in the Roman Republic appointed for one year by the senate. In modern usage, the title has been used for a person from one country ruling another country or bluntly interfering in another country's internal affairs.-Ancient Rome:In the Roman Republic, a... in Gaul Gaul Gaul was a region of Western Europe during the Iron Age and Roman era, encompassing present day France, Luxembourg and Belgium, most of Switzerland, the western part of Northern Italy, as well as the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the left bank of the Rhine. The Gauls were the speakers of... |
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... |
Domenico Donzelli Domenico Donzelli Domenico Donzelli was an Italian tenor with a robust voice who enjoyed an important career in Paris, London and his native country during the 1808-1841 period.-Biography:... |
| Oroveso, chief of the Druid Druid A druid was a member of the priestly class in Britain, Ireland, and Gaul, and possibly other parts of Celtic western Europe, during the Iron Age.... s |
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... |
Vincenzo Negrini |
| Clotilde, Norma’s friend | soprano | Marietta Sacchi Marietta Sacchi Marietta Sacchi was an Italian operatic soprano who had an active career during the 1820s and 1830s. She mainly performed in comprimario and soubrette roles, and appeared at most of Italy's major opera houses and at His Majesty's Theatre in London... |
| Flavio, Pollione’s companion | tenor | Lorenzo Lombardi |
Act 1
The grove.A secret love unites the seeress Norma with Pollione, the Roman proconsul, by whom she has borne two children. But Pollione has grown tired of the aging druidess and has fallen in love with Adalgisa, a young temple virgin. Despite Adalgisa's piety and virtue, she agrees to flee to Rome with Pollione. Adalgisa innocently tells Norma of her love, and Norma curses Pollione for his treachery.
Act 2
Norma’s apartment.Norma is about to kill her children, but her love for her children finally confides them to the care of Adalgisa. When Pollione comes to take Adalgisa from the temple, Norma denounces him and he is seized by the Druids, after having refused to give up Adalgisa. Norma proclaims herself equally guilty with him. The pyre is lighted, and ascending it, Norma dies
Burned at the Stake
Burned at the Stake is a 1981 film directed by Bert I. Gordon. It stars Susan Swift and Albert Salmi.-Cast:*Susan Swift as Loreen Graham / Ann Putnam*Albert Salmi as Captaiin Billingham*Guy Stockwell as Dr. Grossinger*Tisha Sterling as Karen Graham...
with her lover.
Noted arias
Act 1- SinfoniaSinfoniaSinfonia is the Italian word for symphony. In English it most commonly refers to a 17th- or 18th-century orchestral piece used as an introduction, interlude, or postlude to an opera, oratorio, cantata, or suite...
- Ite sul colle / Dell'aura tua profetica (Oroveso, chorus)
- Meco all'altar di VenereMeco all'altar di Venere"Meco all'altar di Venere" is an aria from the opera Norma by Vincenzo Bellini, sung by the character Pollione in act 1, scene 2.- Libretto :...
(Pollione) - Me protegge, me difende (Pollione)
- Casta diva, cavatinaCavatinaCavatina is a musical term, originally a short song of simple character, without a second strain or any repetition of the air...
of Norma - Ah! bello a me ritorna (Norma, chorus)
- Sgombra è la sacra selva (Adalgisa)
- Va crudele, al dio spietato / E tu pure, ah, tu non sai (Pollione, Adalgisa)
- Sola, furtiva al tempio, (Norma, Adalgisa)
- Oh, non tremare o perfido (Norma, Adalgisa)
- Oh! di qual sei tu vittima / Norma! De' tuoi rimproveri / Oh! qual traspare orribile, (Norma, Pollione, Adalgisa)
Act 2
- Dormono entrambi! / Teneri figli (Norma)
- Deh, con te, con te li prendi / Mira, o Norma / Cedi! Deh, cedi! / Si fino all'ore estreme, (Norma, Adalgisa)
- Guerra, guerra! Le galliche selve (chorus)
- In mia man alfin tu sei (Norma and Pollione)
- Deh! non volerli vittime, finale (Norma, Oroveso, Pollione, chorus)
External links
- Libretto (Stanford UniversityStanford UniversityThe Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
) - Libretto & details, incl. pages from original score (www.librettidopera.it)
- Norma at the Opera Company of PhiladelphiaOpera Company of PhiladelphiaThe Opera Company of Philadelphia is an American opera company in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and is the city's only company producing grand opera. The organization produces four fully staged opera productions annually, encompassing works from the seventeenth through the 21st century...
- Norma at the Detroit Opera HouseDetroit Opera HouseThe Detroit Opera House is an opera house located in Detroit, Michigan. It is the venue for all Michigan Opera Theatre productions and it hosts a variety of other events. It opened on January 22, 1922....
- Further Norma discography