The Jacobin
Encyclopedia
The Jacobin is an opera
in three acts by Antonín Dvořák
to an original Czech libretto
by Marie Červinková-Riegrová. Červinková-Riegrová took some of the story's characters from the story by Alois Jirásek
, "At the Ducal Court", but devised her own plot around them. The first performance was at the National Theatre
, Prague
, 1889. Červinková-Riegrová revised the libretto, with Dvořák's permission, in 1894, notably in the last act. Dvořák himself revised the music in 1897. The composer felt great affection for the subject of the opera, as the central character is a music teacher, and Dvořák had in mind his former teacher Antonin Liehmann, who had a daughter named Terinka, the name of one of the opera's characters.
John Clapham has briefly discussed the presence of Czech musical style in the opera. H.C. Colles has described this opera as "the most subtle and intimate of his peasant operas", and noted "how clearly its scenes are drawn from life".
s. To everyone's surprise, the Count himself now appears, confirming that he no longer regards Bohuš as his son, and that his heir will be his nephew Adolf. Adolf and the Burgrave rejoice, while Bohuš and Julie, hidden among the crowd, are horrified at the turn that events have taken.
s and had been condemned to death by the Jacobins. She now reveals that Bohuš is in prison and that she is his wife, but the celebrations are about to start, and she leaves.
The children and townsfolk rejoice, and the Count announces that he will present his successor to them. Adolf is overjoyed, but the Count first enquires of him and the Burgrave whether there are any prisoners that he can pardon as part of the festivities. They reluctantly admit that there are, and Bohuš and Jiří are summoned. The Burgrave realises that the game is up as the Count denounces the scheming Adolf and embraces Bohuš and Julie. Bohuš praises the loyalty of Jiří and Terinka, and the Count joins their hands. Benda gives them his blessing, and the opera ends with a minuet
, a polka
and a chorus praising the Count and his new-found happiness with his son and his family.
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 by Antonín Dvořák
Antonín Dvorák
Antonín Leopold Dvořák was a Czech composer of late Romantic music, who employed the idioms of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia. Dvořák’s own style is sometimes called "romantic-classicist synthesis". His works include symphonic, choral and chamber music, concerti, operas and many...
to an original Czech 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 Marie Červinková-Riegrová. Červinková-Riegrová took some of the story's characters from the story by Alois Jirásek
Alois Jirásek
Alois Jirásek was a Czech writer, author of historical novels and plays. Jirásek was a secondary-school teacher until his retirement in 1909. He wrote a series of historical novels imbued with faith in his nation and in progress toward freedom and justice...
, "At the Ducal Court", but devised her own plot around them. The first performance was at the National Theatre
National Theatre (Prague)
The National Theatre in Prague is known as the Alma Mater of Czech opera, and as the national monument of Czech history and art.The National Theatre belongs to the most important Czech cultural institutions, with a rich artistic tradition which was created and maintained by the most distinguished...
, Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, 1889. Červinková-Riegrová revised the libretto, with Dvořák's permission, in 1894, notably in the last act. Dvořák himself revised the music in 1897. The composer felt great affection for the subject of the opera, as the central character is a music teacher, and Dvořák had in mind his former teacher Antonin Liehmann, who had a daughter named Terinka, the name of one of the opera's characters.
John Clapham has briefly discussed the presence of Czech musical style in the opera. H.C. Colles has described this opera as "the most subtle and intimate of his peasant operas", and noted "how clearly its scenes are drawn from life".
Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast, 12 February 1889 (Conductor: - ) |
|---|---|---|
| Count Vilém of Harasov | bass | Karel Cech |
| Bohuš, his son | 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... |
Bohumil Benoni |
| Julie, Bohuš's wife | 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... |
Berta Foersterová-Lautererová Berta Foersterová Berta Foersterová was a Czech operatic soprano active in Germany. The wife of composer Josef Bohuslav Foerster, she met him while appearing at the Hamburg State Opera... |
| Benda, the schoolmaster and choirmaster | 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... |
Adolf Krössing Adolf Krössing Adolf Krössing was a Czech operatic tenor, stage director, and actor of both the stage and film. Possessing a smaller voice, Krössing impressed audiences not with his vocal prowess but with his dramatic gifts. A master of improvisation and comic timing, he excelled in character roles... |
| Terinka, his daughter | soprano | Johanna "Hana" Cavallerová-Weisová |
| Jiří, a young gamekeeper | tenor | Karel Veselÿ |
| Filip, the Count's Burgrave (chief-of-staff) | bass | Vilém Heš Vilém Heš Vilém Heš was a Czech operatic bass. He notably enjoyed a close artistic partnership with Gustav Mahler, singing in his opera company's in Hamburg and Vienna. He was blessed with a beautiful rich vocal tone, although at times his voice would take on a harsher quality in heavier repertoire.Heš... |
| Adolf, the Count's nephew | baritone | Václav Viktorin |
| Lotinka, the keeper of the keys at the castle | 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... |
Ema Maislerová-Saková |
Act 1
Bohuš has returned to his home-town, incognito, with his wife Julie. His mother is dead and his father, the Count, has disowned him and has become a recluse. Meanwhile, the Count's Burgrave pays court to the schoolmaster Benda's daughter, Terinka, who is, however, in love with Jiří. The Burgrave is suspicious of Bohuš and Julie, especially as they have come from Paris, where the Count's son is said to be allied with the JacobinJacobin Club
The Jacobin Club was the most famous and influential political club in the development of the French Revolution, so-named because of the Dominican convent where they met, located in the Rue St. Jacques , Paris. The club originated as the Club Benthorn, formed at Versailles from a group of Breton...
s. To everyone's surprise, the Count himself now appears, confirming that he no longer regards Bohuš as his son, and that his heir will be his nephew Adolf. Adolf and the Burgrave rejoice, while Bohuš and Julie, hidden among the crowd, are horrified at the turn that events have taken.
Act 2
In the school, Benda rehearses a chorus of children and townsfolk, together with Terinka and Jiří as soloists, in a cantata which will celebrate Adolf's new position. After the rehearsal, Terinka and Jiří declare their love, but Benda returns and announces that his daughter must marry the Burgrave. An argument develops, but suddenly the people return, alarmed at the rumour that sinister Jacobins have arrived in the town. The townsfolk run away in terror as Bohuš and Julie arrive to ask Benda if he can accommodate them for a few days. He is inclined to refuse, but when they reveal that they are Czechs who have sustained themselves in foreign countries through singing the songs of their native land, he, Terinka and Jiří are overcome with emotion and are happy to shelter them. The Burgrave comes to woo Terinka, but she rejects him. When Jiří defies him, the Burgrave threatens to force him into the army, but suddenly Adolf enters, wanting to find out if the "Jacobin" (Bohuš) has been arrested. The Burgrave prevaricates, but Bohuš himself arrives and reveals who he is. He and Adolf quarrel, and Adolf orders Bohuš's arrest.Act 3
At the castle, Jiří tries to see the Count to tell him that his son has been imprisoned, but is himself arrested at the behest of Adolf and the Burgrave. Lotinka admits Julie and Benda, and goes to fetch the Count. Julie hides, and Benda tries to prepare the old man for a reconciliation with Bohuš. The Count, however, is still angry with his son for marrying and leaving Bohemia and for his alleged Jacobin sympathies. Benda departs, and the Count laments his lonely life and wonders whether he has, after all, misjudged his son. Offstage, Julie sings a song that the late Countess used to sing to Bohuš when he was a child, and the Count, recognising it and overcome with emotion, asks Julie where she learnt it. Once he discovers that it was his son who taught it to her, his anger returns, but Julie is able to convince him that Bohuš, far from being a Jacobin, supported the GirondinGirondist
The Girondists were a political faction in France within the Legislative Assembly and the National Convention during the French Revolution...
s and had been condemned to death by the Jacobins. She now reveals that Bohuš is in prison and that she is his wife, but the celebrations are about to start, and she leaves.
The children and townsfolk rejoice, and the Count announces that he will present his successor to them. Adolf is overjoyed, but the Count first enquires of him and the Burgrave whether there are any prisoners that he can pardon as part of the festivities. They reluctantly admit that there are, and Bohuš and Jiří are summoned. The Burgrave realises that the game is up as the Count denounces the scheming Adolf and embraces Bohuš and Julie. Bohuš praises the loyalty of Jiří and Terinka, and the Count joins their hands. Benda gives them his blessing, and the opera ends with a minuet
Minuet
A minuet, also spelled menuet, is a social dance of French origin for two people, usually in 3/4 time. The word was adapted from Italian minuetto and French menuet, and may have been from French menu meaning slender, small, referring to the very small steps, or from the early 17th-century popular...
, a polka
Polka
The polka is a Central European dance and also a genre of dance music familiar throughout Europe and the Americas. It originated in the middle of the 19th century in Bohemia...
and a chorus praising the Count and his new-found happiness with his son and his family.
Selected recordings
- Supraphon 11 2190-2 612: Karel Průša, Karel Berman, Ivana Mixová, Vilém Přibyl, Beno BlachutBeno BlachutBeno Blachut was a lauded Czech operatic tenor. An icon in his own nation, Blachut drew international acclaim through his many commercial recordings of Czech music. He was an instrumental part of the post-World War II school of Czech opera singers that were responsible for popularizing Czech opera...
, Václav ZítekVáclav ZítekVáclav Zítek is a Czech opera singer. A lyric baritone with a beautiful timbre and a wide vocal range, he was one of the leading Czech singers of the postwar generation. He particularly excelled in portraying Janáček and Smetana heroes...
, René Tuček, Daniela Šounová-Brouková, Marcela Machotková; Kühn mixed choir; Children's chorus of the Brno Philharmonic Orchestra-Kantilena; Brno Philharmonic Orchestra; Jiří Pinkas, conductor
External links
- Upcoming performances from Operabase.com