The Golden Cockerel
Encyclopedia
The Golden Cockerel is an opera
in three acts, with short prologue and even shorter epilogue, by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
. Its libretto
, by Vladimir Belsky, derives from Alexander Pushkin's 1834 poem The Tale of the Golden Cockerel
, which in turn is based on two chapters of Tales of the Alhambra
by Washington Irving
. The opera was completed in 1907 and premiered in 1909 in Moscow
, after the composer's death. Outside Russia it has often been performed in French as Le coq d'or.
(1907) to be his final artistic statement in the medium, and, indeed, this work has been called a "summation of the nationalistic operatic tradition of Glinka
and The Five
." However the political situation in Russia at the time inspired him to take up the pen to compose a "razor-sharp satire of the autocracy, of Russian imperialism
, and of the Russo-Japanese war."
Four factors influenced Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov to write this opera-ballet:
Rimsky-Korsakov decided to create a work exposing the disastrous tsarist regime, and in 1906 he started work on his Golden Cockerel opera. It was finished in 1907. The opera was immediately banned by the Palace, and was not allowed to be staged – the resemblance between the Czar and the foolish King Dodon was too close. Rimsky-Korsakov’s health was probably affected by this, and he was dead by the time it was performed two years later.
24 September), 1909, at Moscow's Solodovnikov Theatre in a performance by the Zimin Opera
. Emil Cooper
conducted; set designs were by Ivan Bilibin
. The opera was given at the city's Bolshoi Theatre
a month later, on 6 November, conducted by Vyacheslav Suk
and with set designs by Konstantin Korovin
. London and Paris premieres occurred in 1914; in Paris it was staged as an opera-ballet
, guided by Mikhail Fokin
(Michel Fokine). The United States
premiere took place at the Metropolitan Opera
House on 6 March 1918, with Marie Sundelius
in the title role, Adamo Didur and Maria Barrientos in the actual leads, and Pierre Monteux
conducting.
The Met performed the work regularly through 1945. All Met performances before World War II
were sung in French; during the work's final season in the Met repertory, the Golden Cockerel was sung in English. The work has not been performed at the Met since the war, but it was staged at neighboring New York City Opera
from 1967 to 1971, always in English, with Beverly Sills
singing the Queen of Shemakha opposite Norman Treigle
's Dodon, and Julius Rudel
conducting Tito Capobianco
's production.
Note on names:
Place: In the thrice-tenth kingdom, a far off place (beyond thrice-nine lands) in Russian fairy tales
Note: There is an actual city of Shemakha (also spelled "Şamaxı", "Schemacha" and "Shamakhy"), which is the capital of the Shamakhi Rayon of Azerbaijan. In Pushkin's day it was an important city and capital of what was to become the Baku Governorate. But the realm of that name, ruled by its queen, bears little resemblance to today's Shemakha and region; Pushkin likely seized the name for convenience, to conjure an exotic monarchy.
After quotation by the orchestra of the most important leitmotifs, a mysterious Astrologer comes before the curtain and announces to the audience that, although they are going to see and hear a fictional tale from long ago, his story will have a valid and true moral.
However, his sons are both so inept that they manage to kill each other on the battlefield. King Dodon then decides to lead the army himself, but further bloodshed is averted because the Golden Cockerel ensures that the old king becomes besotted when he actually sees the beautiful Queen. The Queen herself encourages this situation by performing a seductive dance – which tempts the King to try and partner her, but he is clumsy and makes a complete mess of it. The Queen realises that she can take over Dodon’s country without further fighting – she engineers a marriage proposal from Dodon, which she coyly accepts.
Act 2
Act 3
's The Love for Three Oranges
(1921) and Shostakovich
's The Nose
(1930). In this, his last opera, Rimsky-Korsakov had laid "the foundation for modernist opera in Russia and beyond."
Composer's Performance Remarks (1907)
Staging Practices
Early stagings became influential by stressing the modernist elements inherent in the opera. Diaghilev
's 1914 Paris production had the singers sitting offstage, while dancers provided the stage action. Though some in Russia disapproved of Diaghilev's interpretation, and Rimsky-Korsakov's widow threatened to sue, the production was considered a milestone. Stravinsky
was to expand on this idea in the staging of his own Renard
(1917) and Les Noces
(1923), in which the singers are unseen, and mimes or dancers perform on stage.
After his death, A. Glazunov
and M. Shteynberg
(Steinberg) compiled the following orchestral suite:
wrote "Il gallo d’oro" da Rimsky-Korsakov: variazioni frivole con una fuga anarchica, eretica e perversa.
Source: www.operadis-opera-discography.org.uk
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 three acts, with short prologue and even shorter epilogue, by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov was a Russian composer, and a member of the group of composers known as The Five.The Five, also known as The Mighty Handful or The Mighty Coterie, refers to a circle of composers who met in Saint Petersburg, Russia, in the years 1856–1870: Mily Balakirev , César...
. Its 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 Vladimir Belsky, derives from Alexander Pushkin's 1834 poem The Tale of the Golden Cockerel
The Tale of the Golden Cockerel
The Tale of the Golden Cockerel is the last fairy tale in verse by Alexander Pushkin. Pushkin wrote the tale in 1834 and it was first published in literary magazine Biblioteka dlya chteniya in 1835...
, which in turn is based on two chapters of Tales of the Alhambra
Tales of the Alhambra
Tales of the Alhambra is a collection of essays, verbal sketches, and stories by Washington Irving.-Background:Shortly after completing a biography of Christopher Columbus in 1828, Washington Irving traveled from Madrid, where he had been staying, to Granada, Spain...
by Washington Irving
Washington Irving
Washington Irving was an American author, essayist, biographer and historian of the early 19th century. He was best known for his short stories "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle", both of which appear in his book The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. His historical works...
. The opera was completed in 1907 and premiered in 1909 in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, after the composer's death. Outside Russia it has often been performed in French as Le coq d'or.
Composition history
Rimsky-Korsakov had considered his previous opera, The Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh and the Maiden FevroniyaThe Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh and the Maiden Fevroniya
The Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh and the Maiden Fevroniya is an opera in four acts by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. The libretto was written by Vladimir Belsky, and is based on a combination of two Russian legends: that of St. Fevroniya of Murom, and the city of Kitezh, which became invisible...
(1907) to be his final artistic statement in the medium, and, indeed, this work has been called a "summation of the nationalistic operatic tradition of Glinka
Mikhail Glinka
Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka , was the first Russian composer to gain wide recognition within his own country, and is often regarded as the father of Russian classical music...
and The Five
The Five
The Five, also known as The Mighty Handful or The Mighty Coterie , refers to a circle of composers who met in Saint Petersburg, Russia, in the years 1856–1870: Mily Balakirev , César Cui, Modest Mussorgsky, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and Alexander Borodin...
." However the political situation in Russia at the time inspired him to take up the pen to compose a "razor-sharp satire of the autocracy, of Russian imperialism
Imperialism
Imperialism, as defined by Dictionary of Human Geography, is "the creation and/or maintenance of an unequal economic, cultural, and territorial relationships, usually between states and often in the form of an empire, based on domination and subordination." The imperialism of the last 500 years,...
, and of the Russo-Japanese war."
- Pushkin – Rimsky-Korsakov’s other works inspired by Alexander Pushkin's poems, especially Tsar SaltanThe Tale of Tsar Saltan (Rimsky-Korsakov)The Tale of Tsar Saltan is an opera in four acts with a prologue, seven scenes, by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. The libretto was written by Vladimir Belsky, and is based on the poem of the same name by Aleksandr Pushkin...
, had been very successful. The Golden Cockerel had the same magic. - Bilibin – Ivan BilibinIvan BilibinIvan Yakovlevich Bilibin was a 20th-century illustrator and stage designer who took part in the Mir iskusstva and contributed to the Ballets Russes. Throughout his career, he was inspired by Slavic folklore....
had already produced artwork for the Golden Cockerel, and this conjured up the same traditional Russian folk flavours as those in Tsar Saltan. - Russo-Japanese War – Under Tsar Nicholas IINicholas II of RussiaNicholas II was the last Emperor of Russia, Grand Prince of Finland, and titular King of Poland. His official short title was Nicholas II, Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russias and he is known as Saint Nicholas the Passion-Bearer by the Russian Orthodox Church.Nicholas II ruled from 1894 until...
Russia became involved in a warRusso-Japanese WarThe Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
with Japan. This war was highly unpopular amongst the Russian peopleRussiansThe Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
. It proved to be a military disaster, and Russia was eventually defeated. (In the Golden Cockerel, King Dodon foolishly decides to make a pre-emptive strike against the neighbouring State, and there is huge chaos and bloodshed on the battlefield. The king himself gives more attention to his personal pleasures, and comes to a sticky end.) - Russian Revolutionary Activity in 1905 – Many Russian people were not only upset by the Russo-Japanese War, but also by poor living conditions. On January 9, 1905, several thousand people, led by a priest, demonstrated peacefully in the Palace SquarePalace SquarePalace Square , connecting Nevsky Prospekt with Palace Bridge leading to Vasilievsky Island, is the central city square of St Petersburg and of the former Russian Empire...
in St PetersburgSaint PetersburgSaint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
. They tried to hand in a petition asking for better working conditions, an eight hour day, a minimum wageMinimum wageA minimum wage is the lowest hourly, daily or monthly remuneration that employers may legally pay to workers. Equivalently, it is the lowest wage at which workers may sell their labour. Although minimum wage laws are in effect in a great many jurisdictions, there are differences of opinion about...
, and the prohibition of child labourChild laborChild labour refers to the employment of children at regular and sustained labour. This practice is considered exploitative by many international organizations and is illegal in many countries...
. However, more than 1,000 persons were shot by the Tsarist troops, and the date has become known as Bloody Sunday (1905)Bloody Sunday (1905)Bloody Sunday was a massacre on in St. Petersburg, Russia, where unarmed, peaceful demonstrators marching to present a petition to Tsar Nicholas II were gunned down by the Imperial Guard while approaching the city center and the Winter Palace from several gathering points. The shooting did not...
. News of this massacre spread rapidly – there was an uprising in Odessa, where the sailors in the battleship PotemkinThe Battleship PotemkinThe Battleship Potemkin , sometimes rendered as The Battleship Potyomkin, is a 1925 silent film directed by Sergei Eisenstein and produced by Mosfilm...
took over the ship and fired on the headquarters of the tsarist troops. Again, there was a massacre of people on the Odessa stepsPotemkin StairsThe Potemkin Stairs , is a giant stairway in Odessa, Ukraine. The stairs are considered a formal entrance into the city from the direction of the sea and are the best known symbol of Odessa....
. The Students in the St Petersburg Conservatoire also demonstrated against the Czar, and Rimsky Korsakov supported their protest. For this he was dismissed from his post as head of the Conservatoire. Alexander GlazunovAlexander GlazunovAlexander Konstantinovich Glazunov was a Russian composer of the late Russian Romantic period, music teacher and conductor...
and Anatoly Lyadov resigned and left with him. See also Russian Revolution of 1905Russian Revolution of 1905The 1905 Russian Revolution was a wave of mass political and social unrest that spread through vast areas of the Russian Empire. Some of it was directed against the government, while some was undirected. It included worker strikes, peasant unrest, and military mutinies...
.
Rimsky-Korsakov decided to create a work exposing the disastrous tsarist regime, and in 1906 he started work on his Golden Cockerel opera. It was finished in 1907. The opera was immediately banned by the Palace, and was not allowed to be staged – the resemblance between the Czar and the foolish King Dodon was too close. Rimsky-Korsakov’s health was probably affected by this, and he was dead by the time it was performed two years later.
Performance history
The premiere took place on 7 October (O.S.Old Style and New Style dates
Old Style and New Style are used in English language historical studies either to indicate that the start of the Julian year has been adjusted to start on 1 January even though documents written at the time use a different start of year ; or to indicate that a date conforms to the Julian...
24 September), 1909, at Moscow's Solodovnikov Theatre in a performance by the Zimin Opera
Zimin Opera
The Zimin Opera was founded by the Russian entrepreneur Sergei Zimin in Moscow, Russia in 1903.The company staged the premieres of such operas as Rimsky-Korsakov's Golden Cockerel, Gretchaninoff's Beatris Sister and Ippolitov-Ivanov's Izmena...
. Emil Cooper
Emil Cooper
Emil Albertovich Cooper, also known as Emil Kuper was a Russian conductor and violinist, of English ancestry....
conducted; set designs were by Ivan Bilibin
Ivan Bilibin
Ivan Yakovlevich Bilibin was a 20th-century illustrator and stage designer who took part in the Mir iskusstva and contributed to the Ballets Russes. Throughout his career, he was inspired by Slavic folklore....
. The opera was given at the city's Bolshoi Theatre
Bolshoi Theatre
The Bolshoi Theatre is a historic theatre in Moscow, Russia, designed by architect Joseph Bové, which holds performances of ballet and opera. The Bolshoi Ballet and Bolshoi Opera are amongst the oldest and most renowned ballet and opera companies in the world...
a month later, on 6 November, conducted by Vyacheslav Suk
Vyacheslav Suk
Václav Suk, or Váša Suk, or Vyacheslav Suk was a Czech-born Russian violinist, conductor and composer.- Biography :From 1873 to 1879 Váša Suk, who is said to have been related to Joseph Suk, studied...
and with set designs by Konstantin Korovin
Konstantin Korovin
Konstantin Alekseyevich Korovin was a leading Russian Impressionist painter.-Biography:Konstantin was born in Moscow to a merchant family officially registered as "peasants of Vladimir Gubernia". His father, Aleksey Mikhailovich Korovin, earned a university degree and was more interested in arts...
. London and Paris premieres occurred in 1914; in Paris it was staged as an opera-ballet
Ballets de cour
Ballets de cour is the name given to ballets performed in the 16th and 17th centuries at court. Jean-Baptiste Lully is considered the most important composer of music for ballets de cour and was instrumental to the development of the form...
, guided by Mikhail Fokin
Michel Fokine
Michel Fokine was a groundbreaking Russian choreographer and dancer.-Biography:...
(Michel Fokine). The United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
premiere took place at the Metropolitan Opera
Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager...
House on 6 March 1918, with Marie Sundelius
Marie Sundelius
Marie Sundelius was a Swedish-American classical soprano. She sang for many years with the Metropolitan Opera in New York City and later embarked on a second career as a celebrated voice teacher in Boston....
in the title role, Adamo Didur and Maria Barrientos in the actual leads, and Pierre Monteux
Pierre Monteux
Pierre Monteux was an orchestra conductor. Born in Paris, France, Monteux later became an American citizen.-Life and career:Monteux was born in Paris in 1875. His family was descended from Sephardi Jews who came to France in the wake of the Spanish Inquisition. He studied violin from an early age,...
conducting.
The Met performed the work regularly through 1945. All Met performances before World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
were sung in French; during the work's final season in the Met repertory, the Golden Cockerel was sung in English. The work has not been performed at the Met since the war, but it was staged at neighboring New York City Opera
New York City Opera
The New York City Opera is an American opera company located in New York City.The company, called "the people's opera" by New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, was founded in 1943 with the aim of making opera financially accessible to a wide audience, producing an innovative choice of repertory, and...
from 1967 to 1971, always in English, with 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...
singing the Queen of Shemakha opposite Norman Treigle
Norman Treigle
Norman Treigle was an American operatic bass-baritone, who was acclaimed for his great abilities as a singing-actor, and specialized in roles that evoked villainy and terror....
's Dodon, and Julius Rudel
Julius Rudel
Julius Rudel is an American opera and orchestra conductor who emigrated to the United States from Austria at the age of 17 and studied conducting at the Mannes College of Music in New York City. He then forged a 35-year career with the New York City Opera, from 1944 to 1979, and was the Music...
conducting Tito Capobianco
Tito Capobianco
Tito Capobianco is a noted stage director of opera.He made his official debut with Aïda, at the Teatro Argentino, La Plata, in 1953, then worked at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires...
's production.
Instrumentation
- StringsString sectionThe 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...
: ViolinViolinThe violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
s, ViolaViolaThe viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.- Form :The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin. A full-size viola's body is between and longer than the body of a full-size violin , with an average...
s, CelloCelloThe cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
s, Double BassDouble bassThe double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
es - WoodwindsWoodwind instrumentA woodwind instrument is a musical instrument which produces sound when the player blows air against a sharp edge or through a reed, causing the air within its resonator to vibrate...
: 1 PiccoloPiccoloThe piccolo is a half-size flute, and a member of the woodwind family of musical instruments. The piccolo has the same fingerings as its larger sibling, the standard transverse flute, but the sound it produces is an octave higher than written...
, 2 FluteFluteThe 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 OboeOboeThe 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, 1 English HornCor anglaisThe cor anglais , or English horn , is a double-reed woodwind instrument in the oboe family....
, 2 ClarinetClarinetThe 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 (in A-B), 1 Bass ClarinetBass clarinetThe bass clarinet is a musical instrument of the clarinet family. Like the more common soprano B clarinet, it is usually pitched in B , but it plays notes an octave below the soprano B clarinet...
(in A-B), 2 BassoonBassoonThe 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, 1 Double Bassoon - BrassBrass instrumentA brass instrument is a musical instrument whose sound is produced by sympathetic vibration of air in a tubular resonator in sympathy with the vibration of the player's lips...
: 4 French Horns (in F), 2 TrumpetTrumpetThe 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 (in C), 1 Trumpet contralto (in F), 3 TromboneTromboneThe 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 TubaTubaThe tuba is the largest and lowest-pitched brass instrument. Sound is produced by vibrating or "buzzing" the lips into a large cupped mouthpiece. It is one of the most recent additions to the modern symphony orchestra, first appearing in the mid-19th century, when it largely replaced the... - Percussion: TimpaniTimpaniTimpani, or kettledrums, are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum, they consist of a skin called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally made of copper. They are played by striking the head with a specialized drum stick called a timpani stick or timpani mallet...
, TriangleTriangle (instrument)The triangle is an idiophone type of musical instrument in the percussion family. It is a bar of metal, usually steel but sometimes other metals like beryllium copper, bent into a triangle shape. The instrument is usually held by a loop of some form of thread or wire at the top curve...
, Snare DrumSnare drumThe snare drum or side drum is a melodic percussion instrument with strands of snares made of curled metal wire, metal cable, plastic cable, or gut cords stretched across the drumhead, typically the bottom. Pipe and tabor and some military snare drums often have a second set of snares on the bottom...
, TambourinTambourinA tambourin is a piece of music that imitates a drum, usually as a repetitive not-very-melodic figure in the bass.A tambourin itself is a small, two-headed drum of Arabic origin, mentioned as early as the 1080s . It was played together with a small flute .A tambourin, as a dance, hails from Provence...
, GlockenspielGlockenspielA glockenspiel is a percussion instrument composed of a set of tuned keys arranged in the fashion of the keyboard of a piano. In this way, it is similar to the xylophone; however, the xylophone's bars are made of wood, while the glockenspiel's are metal plates or tubes, and making it a metallophone...
, CymbalCymbalCymbals are a common percussion instrument. Cymbals consist of thin, normally round plates of various alloys; see cymbal making for a discussion of their manufacture. The greater majority of cymbals are of indefinite pitch, although small disc-shaped cymbals based on ancient designs sound a...
s, Bass DrumBass drumBass drums are percussion instruments that can vary in size and are used in several musical genres. Three major types of bass drums can be distinguished. The type usually seen or heard in orchestral, ensemble or concert band music is the orchestral, or concert bass drum . It is the largest drum of...
, XylophoneXylophoneThe xylophone is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars struck by mallets... - Other: CelestaCelestaThe 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...
, 2 HarpHarpThe 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...
s
Roles
| Roles | Voice type | Performance cast Zimin Opera 24 September 1909 (Conductor: Emil Cooper Emil Cooper Emil Albertovich Cooper, also known as Emil Kuper was a Russian conductor and violinist, of English ancestry.... ) |
Performance cast Bolshoy Theatre 6 November 1909 (Conductor: Vyacheslav Suk Vyacheslav Suk Václav Suk, or Váša Suk, or Vyacheslav Suk was a Czech-born Russian violinist, conductor and composer.- Biography :From 1873 to 1879 Váša Suk, who is said to have been related to Joseph Suk, studied... ) |
|---|---|---|---|
| King Dodon (Царь Додон) | 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... |
Nikolay Speransky | Vasily Osipov |
| Prince Gvidon (Царевич Гвидон) | 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... |
Fyodor Ernst | Semyon Gardenin |
| Prince Afron (Царевич Афрон) | 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... |
Andrey Dikov | Nikolay Chistyakov |
| General Polkan | bass | Kapiton Zaporozhets | |
| Amelfa, a housekeeper | 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... |
Aleksandra Rostovtseva | Serafima Sinitsina |
| Astrologer | tenor altino | Vladimir Pikok | Anton Bonachich |
| Queen of Shemakha (Шемаханская царица) | 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... |
Avreliya-Tsetsiliya Dobrovolskaya | Antonina Nezhdanova Antonina Nezhdanova Antonina Vasilievna Nezhdanova was a Russian lyric-coloratura soprano. An outstanding opera singer, she represented the Russian vocal school at its best.... |
| Golden Cockerel (Золотой петушок) | soprano | Vera Klopotovskaya | Yevgeniya Popello-Davydova |
| chorus, silent roles | |||
Note on names:
- Pushkin spelled Dodon's name as Dadon. The association of the revised spelling Dodon in the libretto with the bird the DodoDodoThe dodo was a flightless bird endemic to the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius. Related to pigeons and doves, it stood about a meter tall, weighing about , living on fruit, and nesting on the ground....
is likely intentional. - ShemakhaSamaxiŞamaxı is a city in and the capital of the Shamakhi Rayon of Azerbaijan. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence. The city's estimated population as of 2010 was 31,704...
is a noun, denoting a place. Shemakhan is an adjectival usage.
Synopsis
Time: UnspecifiedPlace: In the thrice-tenth kingdom, a far off place (beyond thrice-nine lands) in Russian fairy tales
Note: There is an actual city of Shemakha (also spelled "Şamaxı", "Schemacha" and "Shamakhy"), which is the capital of the Shamakhi Rayon of Azerbaijan. In Pushkin's day it was an important city and capital of what was to become the Baku Governorate. But the realm of that name, ruled by its queen, bears little resemblance to today's Shemakha and region; Pushkin likely seized the name for convenience, to conjure an exotic monarchy.
Prolog
Act 1
The bumbling King Dodon talks himself into believing that his country is in danger from a neighbouring state, Shemakha, ruled by a beautiful queen. He requests advice of the Astrologer, who supplies a magic Golden Cockerel to safeguard the king's interests. When the cockerel confirms that the Queen of Shemakha does harbor territorial ambitions, Dodon decides to pre-emptively strike Shemakha, sending his army to battle under the command of his two sons.Act 2
Act 3
The Final Scene starts with the wedding procession in all its splendour. As this reaches its conclusion, the Astrologer appears and says to Dodon, “You promised me anything I could ask for if there could be a happy resolution of your troubles ... .” “Yes, yes,” replies the king, “Just name it and you shall have it.” “Right,” says the Astrologer, “I want the Queen of Shemakha!” At this, the King flares up in fury, and strikes down the Astrologer with a blow from his mace. The Golden Cockerel, loyal to his Astrologer master, then swoops across and pecks through the King’s jugular. The sky darkens. When light returns, queen and cockerel are gone.Epilog
The Astrologer comes again before the curtain and announces the end of his story, reminding the public that what they just saw was “merely illusion,” that only he and the queen were mortals and real.Principal arias and numbers
Act 1- Introduction: "I Am a Sorceror" «Я колдун» (orchestra, Astrologer)
- Lullaby (orchestra, guards, Amelfa)
Act 2
- Aria: "Hymn to the Sun" «Ответь мне, зоркое светило» (Queen of Shemakha)
- Dance (Queen of Shemakha, orchestra)
- Chorus (slaves)
Act 3
- Scene: "Wedding Procession" «Свадебное шествие» (Amelfa, people)
Analysis
Marina Frolova-Walker points to The Golden Cockerel as the fore-runner of the anti-psychologistic and absurdist ideas which would culminate in such 20th century 'anti-operas' as ProkofievSergei Prokofiev
Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor who mastered numerous musical genres and is regarded as one of the major composers of the 20th century...
's The Love for Three Oranges
The Love for Three Oranges (Prokofiev)
The Love for Three Oranges, Op. 33, also known by its French language title L'amour des trois oranges , is a 1919 satirical opera by Sergei Prokofiev...
(1921) and Shostakovich
Dmitri Shostakovich
Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich was a Soviet Russian composer and one of the most celebrated composers of the 20th century....
's The Nose
The Nose (opera)
The Nose is a satirical opera composed by Dmitri Shostakovich. The libretto by Shostakovich, Yevgeny Zamyatin, Georgy Ionin, and Alexander Preis is based on the story The Nose by Nikolai Gogol. The plot concerns a St. Petersburg official whose nose leaves his face and develops a life of its own...
(1930). In this, his last opera, Rimsky-Korsakov had laid "the foundation for modernist opera in Russia and beyond."
Performance practice
- The composer does not sanction any "cuts."
- Operatic singers are in the habit of introducing interjections, spoken words, etc. into the music, hoping thereby to produce dramatic, comic or realistic effect. Far from adding significance to the music, these additions and emendations merely disfigure it. The composer desires that the singers in all his works keep strictly to the music written for them.
- Metronome marks must be followed accurately. This does not imply that artists should sing like clock-work, they are given full artistic scope, but they must keep within bounds.
- The composer feels it necessary to reiterate the following remark in lyrical passages, those actors who are on the stage, but not singing at the moment, must refrain from drawing the attention of the spectators to themselves by unnecessary by-play. An opera is first and foremost a musical work.
- The part of the Astrologer is written for a voice seldom met with, that of tenor altino. It may however be entrusted to a lyric tenor possessing a strong falsetto, for the part is written in the extremely high register.
- The Golden Cockerel demands a strong soprano or high mezzo-sopranoMezzo-sopranoA 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...
voice. - The dances performed by the King and Queen in the second act, must be carried out so as not to interfere with the singers breathing by too sudden or too violent movement.
Staging Practices
Early stagings became influential by stressing the modernist elements inherent in the opera. Diaghilev
Sergei Diaghilev
Sergei Pavlovich Diaghilev , usually referred to outside of Russia as Serge, was a Russian art critic, patron, ballet impresario and founder of the Ballets Russes, from which many famous dancers and choreographers would arise.-Early life and career:...
's 1914 Paris production had the singers sitting offstage, while dancers provided the stage action. Though some in Russia disapproved of Diaghilev's interpretation, and Rimsky-Korsakov's widow threatened to sue, the production was considered a milestone. Stravinsky
Igor Stravinsky
Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ; 6 April 1971) was a Russian, later naturalized French, and then naturalized American composer, pianist, and conductor....
was to expand on this idea in the staging of his own Renard
Renard (Stravinsky)
Renard, Histoire burlesque chantée et jouée is a one-act chamber opera-ballet by Igor Stravinsky, written in 1916. The Russian text by the composer was based on Russian folk tales from the collection by Alexander Afanasyev.The full Russian name of the piece is: Ба́йка про лису́, петуха́, кота́, да...
(1917) and Les Noces
Les Noces
Les noces by Igor Stravinsky, is a dance cantata, or ballet with vocalists.-History:The ballet was premiered on June 13, 1923 at the Théâtre de la Gaîté, by the Ballets Russes with choreography by Bronislava Nijinska...
(1923), in which the singers are unseen, and mimes or dancers perform on stage.
Derived works
Rimsky-Korsakov made the following concert arrangement:- Introduction and Wedding Procession from the opera The Golden Cockerel (1907)
- Введение и свадебное шествие из оперы Золотой петушок
After his death, A. Glazunov
Alexander Glazunov
Alexander Konstantinovich Glazunov was a Russian composer of the late Russian Romantic period, music teacher and conductor...
and M. Shteynberg
Maximilian Steinberg
Maximilian Osseyevich Steinberg was a Russian composer of classical music born in what is now Lithuania.-Life:...
(Steinberg) compiled the following orchestral suite:
- Four Musical Pictures from the Opera The Golden Cockerel
- Четыре музыкальных картины из оперы «Золотой петушок»
- Tsar Dodon at home (Царь Додон у себя дома)
- Tsar Dodon on the march (Царь Додон в походе)
- Tsar Dodon with the Shemakhan Tsaritsa (Царь Додон у Шемаханской царицы)
- The wedding and the lamentable end of Dodon (Свадьба и печальный конец Додона)
Inspiration for other works
In 1978–79 the English composer Kaikhosru Shapurji SorabjiKaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji
Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji was an English composer, music critic, pianist, and writer.-Biography:...
wrote "Il gallo d’oro" da Rimsky-Korsakov: variazioni frivole con una fuga anarchica, eretica e perversa.
Recordings
Audio Recordings (Mainly studio recordings, unless otherwise indicated)Source: www.operadis-opera-discography.org.uk
- 1962, Aleksey Korolev (Tsar Dodon), Yuri Yelnikov (Tsarevich Gvidon), Aleksandr Polyakov (Tsarevich Afron), Leonid Ktitorov (General Polkan), Antonina Klescheva (Amelfa), Gennady Pishchayev (Astrologer), Klara Kadinskaya (Shemakhan Tsaritsa), Nina Polyakova (Golden Cockerel). Moscow Radio Orchestra and Chorus. ' Aleksey Kovalev & Yevgeny AkulovYevgeny AkulovYevgeny Akulov, first name often spelled Yevgeni or Evgeni, was a Russian conductor. He was noted for his conducting of the opera The Golden Cockerel with Aleksei Kovalev in 1962 and his conducting for the Moscow Radio Large Symphony Orchestra, the USSR TV and Radio Operatic and Symphonic...
(conductor). - 1971 (sung in English, live performance), Norman TreigleNorman TreigleNorman Treigle was an American operatic bass-baritone, who was acclaimed for his great abilities as a singing-actor, and specialized in roles that evoked villainy and terror....
(King Dodon), Beverly SillsBeverly SillsBeverly 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...
(Queen Shemakha), Enrico di GiuseppeEnrico Di GiuseppeEnrico Di Giuseppe was a celebrated Italian-American operatic tenor who had an active performance career from the late 1950s through the 1990s. He spent most of his career performing in New York City, juggling concurrent performance contracts with both the New York City Opera and the Metropolitan...
(Astrologer), Muriel Costa-GreensponMuriel Costa-GreensponMuriel Costa-Greenspon was an American mezzo-soprano who had a lengthy career at the New York City Opera between 1963-1993...
(Amelfa), Gary Glaze (Guidon), David Rae Smith (Afron), Edward Pierson (Polkan), Syble Young (Le Coq d’or). Orchestra and Chorus of the New York City OperaNew York City OperaThe New York City Opera is an American opera company located in New York City.The company, called "the people's opera" by New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, was founded in 1943 with the aim of making opera financially accessible to a wide audience, producing an innovative choice of repertory, and...
. Julius RudelJulius RudelJulius Rudel is an American opera and orchestra conductor who emigrated to the United States from Austria at the age of 17 and studied conducting at the Mannes College of Music in New York City. He then forged a 35-year career with the New York City Opera, from 1944 to 1979, and was the Music... - 1985, Nikolai Stoilov (Tsar Dodon), Ljubomir Bodurov (Prince Gvidon), Emil Ugrinov (Prince Afron), Kosta Videv (General Polkan), Evgenia Babacheva (Amelfa), Lyubomir Diakovski (Astrologer), Elena Stoyanova (Shemakhan Tsaritsa), Yavora Stoilova (Golden Cockerel). Sofia National Opera Orchestra and Chorus, Dimiter Manolov.
- 1988, Yevgeny SvetlanovEvgeny SvetlanovYevgeny Fyodorovich Svetlanov was a Russian conductor, composer, and though less well-known, a pianist.Svetlanov was born in Moscow and studied conducting at the Moscow Conservatory. From 1955 he conducted at the Bolshoi Theatre, being appointed principal conductor there in 1962...
(conductor), Bolshoy Theatre Orchestra and Chorus, Artur Eisen (Tsar Dodon), Arkady Mishenkin (Prince Gvidon), Vladimir Redkin (Prince Afron), Nikolay Nizinenko (General Polkan), Nina Gaponova (Amelfa), Oleg Biktimirov (Astrologer), Yelena Brilova (Shemakhan Tsaritsa), Irina Udalova (Golden Cockerel)
Videos
- 1986 Grigor Gondjian (Tsar Dodon), Ruben Kubelian (Tsarevich Gvidon), Sergey Shushardjian (Tsarevich Afron), Ellada Chakhoyan (Queen of Shemakha), Susanna Martirosian (Golden Cockerel), Haroutun Karadjian (General Polkan), Grand Aivazian (Astrologer). Alexander Spendiaryan State Academic Theatre Orchestra, YerevanYerevanYerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country...
, Aram Katanian. - (in French) Kent NaganoKent Nagano__FORCETOC__Kent George Nagano is an American conductor and opera administrator. He is currently the music director of the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal and the Bavarian State Opera.-Biography:...
External links
- Full Text of the Pushkin tale is available at Fairy Tale Fridays: The Golden Cockerel
- http://www.archive.org/details/lecoqdor Metropolitan Opera House libretto of Le Coq d'Or
- Libretto at Google Books
- Pushkin's tale of The Golden Cockerel
- Commentary on Pushkin's poem
- KBAQ FM analysis of a 2002 performance