| Operas by Modest Mussorgsky |
|---|
 Salammbô (1866) |
The Fair at Sorochintsï (Russian: Сорочинская ярмарка, Sorochinskaya yarmarka, Sorochintsï Fair) is a comic opera in three acts by Modest Mussorgsky, composed between 1874 and 1880 in St. Petersburg, Russia. Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky (Моде́ст Петро́вич Му́соргский Modest Petrovič Musorgskij) ( March 21 March 9 1839 &ndash March Salammbô title '''''The Libyan''''' ( Russian: Саламбо) is an unfinished opera-project in 4 acts by the Russian composer Modest Zhenitba ( Женитьба, Zhenit'ba, Marriage) is an unfinished Opera begun in 1868 by Modest Mussorgsky to his own Libretto Boris Godunov ( Борис Годунов, original Orthography Борисъ Годуновъ, Borís Godunóv) is an Opera by Mlada ( Млада, the name of a main character was a project originally envisioned as a ballet to be composed by Alexander Serov and choreographed by Marius For the 1960 Soviet film based on this opera see Khovanshchina (film. Russian ( transliteration:,) is the most geographically widespread language of Eurasia, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages Velyki Sorochyntsi (Великі Сорочинці Великие Сорочинцы or Большие Сорочинцы tranlit Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky (Моде́ст Петро́вич Му́соргский Modest Petrovič Musorgskij) ( March 21 March 9 1839 &ndash March Year 1874 ( MDCCCLXXIV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Year 1880 ( MDCCCLXXX) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year Saint Petersburg ( tr: Sankt-Peterburg,) is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending The composer wrote the libretto, which is based on Nikolay Gogol's short story of the same name, from his early (1832) collection of Ukrainian stories Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka. A libretto is the text used in an extended Musical work such as an Opera, Operetta, Masque, sacred or secular Oratorio and Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol (Никола́й Васи́льевич Го́голь Nikolai Vasilevich Gogol;; Микола Васильович Гоголь Year 1832 ( MDCCCXXXII) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Evenings on a Farm Near Dikanka (Вечера на хуторе близ Диканьки Vechera na khutore bliz Dikan'ki) is a collection of short stories by Nikolai The opera remained unfinished and unperformed upon Mussorgsky's death in 1881. Year 1881 ( MDCCCLXXXI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common
Contents |
Composition history
(1809—1852)
Mussorgsky worked on the opera between 1874 and 1880, in competition with his work on Khovanshchina (1872–1880); both were incomplete at the time of his death in 1881. Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol (Никола́й Васи́льевич Го́голь Nikolai Vasilevich Gogol;; Микола Васильович Гоголь Year 1874 ( MDCCCLXXIV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Year 1880 ( MDCCCLXXX) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year For the 1960 Soviet film based on this opera see Khovanshchina (film. Year 1872 ( MDCCCLXXII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year Year 1881 ( MDCCCLXXXI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common He reused some music that he had written previously (such as the "Market Scene" from Act II of the ill-fated Mlada of 1872, used for the opening scene of Fair). Mlada ( Млада, the name of a main character was a project originally envisioned as a ballet to be composed by Alexander Serov and choreographed by Marius Year 1872 ( MDCCCLXXII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year Incorporation of the music of Night on Bald Mountain as a dream sequence involving the hero was a late addition to the scenario in the course of composition, despite the fact that such an episode is not suggested by the original story. A Night on the Bald Mountain usually refers to one of two compositions—either a seldom performed early (1867 ' musical picture ' by Modest Mussorgsky, A scenario (from Italian, that which is pinned to the scenery) is a synthetic description of an event or series of actions and events Although Mussorgsky managed to complete some numbers and even some of the orchestration, significant portions of the scenario were left without any music at all or only in bare sketches. A scenario (from Italian, that which is pinned to the scenery) is a synthetic description of an event or series of actions and events
Several subsequent composers and editors (cited below) played partial or maximal roles in bringing the work into a performable state. The first staged performance, with spoken sections, occurred in 1913; beginning in 1917, the first of several fully sung versions reached the stage. Year 1913 ( MCMXIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common
Performance history
Completed versions
| Date | City | Opera House | Conductor | Version |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 Oct 1913 | Moscow | Free Theatre | Saradzhev | |
| 13 Oct 1917 | Petrograd | Theatre of Musical Drama | Fitelberg | Cui |
| 17 Mar 1923 | Monte Carlo | Cherepnin | Cherepnin | |
| 10 Jan 1925 | Moscow | Bolshoy Theater | Golovanov | Sakhnovsky |
| 12 Dec 1931 | Leningrad | Little Opera Theater | Samosud | Shebalin |
| 03 Nov 1942 | New York | Kuper |
Roles and setting
Source: 100 Опер, Издательство «Музыка», Ленинград
Roles
| Russian | English | Voice |
|---|---|---|
| Черевик | Cherevik | bass |
| Хивря, жена Черевика | Khivrya, Cherevik’s wife | mezzo-soprano |
| Парася, дочь Черевика, падчерица Хиври | Parasya, Cherevik’s daughter, Khivrya’s stepdaughter | soprano |
| Кум | Kum | bass-baritone |
| Грицько, парубок | Gritsko, a peasant lad | tenor |
| Афанасий Иванович, попович | Afanasiy Ivanovich, a priest’s son | tenor |
| Цыган | The gypsy | bass |
| Чернобог | Chornobog* | bass |
| Кащей, Червь, Чума, Топелец, Смерть | Kashchei*, Worm*, Plague*, Topelets*, Death* | silent roles |
| Торговки, торговцы, цыгане, евреи, парубки, казаки, дивчата, гости, бесы, ведьмы, карлики | Market-women, merchants, Gypsies, Jews, lads, Cossacks, lasses, guests, demons*, witches*, dwarfs* | chorus, silent roles |
Note: Roles marked with an asterisk (*) are supernatural characters appearing only in the Shebalin Edition, which incorporates the Dream Vision of the Peasant Lad (Сонное видение паробка) [see Mussorgsky's A Night on the Bare Mountain]. Events 314 - Roman Emperor Licinius is defeated by his colleague Constantine I at the Battle of Cibalae, and loses Year 1913 ( MCMXIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Moscow (Москва́ romanised: Moskvá, IPA: see also other names) is the Capital and the largest city of Year 1917 ( MCMXVII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Saint Petersburg ( tr: Sankt-Peterburg,) is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River Grzegorz Fitelberg ( 18 October 1879, Daugavpils, Latgalia – 10 June 1953 in Katowice, Poland) was César Antonovich Cui ( Цезарь Антонович Кюи, Tsezar' Antonovič Kjui) ( - March 13, 1918) was a Russian of French Events 45 BC - In his last victory Julius Caesar defeats the Pompeian forces of Titus Labienus and Pompey the Younger Year 1923 ( MCMXXIII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Monte-Carlo ( Occitan: Montcarles, Monégasque: Monte-Carlu) is one of Monaco 's various administrative areas sometimes erroneously Year 1925 ( MCMXXV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Moscow (Москва́ romanised: Moskvá, IPA: see also other names) is the Capital and the largest city of The Bolshoi Theatre (Большой театр Bol'shoy Teatr Great Theatre) is a historic theatre in Moscow, Russia, designed by famed architect Golovanov (in Russian Голова́нов, feminine form Голова́нова) is a Russian surname Year 1931 ( MCMXXXI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1931 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Saint Petersburg ( tr: Sankt-Peterburg,) is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River Vissarion Yakovlevich Shebalin (Russian Виссарион Яковлевич Шебалин June 11, 1902, Omsk &ndash May 29, 1963 Events 644 - Umar ibn al-Khattab, the second Muslim Caliph, is killed by a Persian slave in Medina. Year 1942 ( MCMXLII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous This article is related to a series of articles under the main article Voice type. This article is related to a series of articles under the main article Voice type. A bass-baritone is a high-lying bass that shares certain qualities with the Baritone Voice type. The tenor is the highest male voice within the Modal register, just above the Baritone voice Chernobog (also spelled Crnobog, Czernobóg, Černobog or Zernebog from the Russian Чернобог, each name meaning "black In Russian folklore, Koschei (Коще́й Koshchey, also Kashchei or Kashchey or Kościej (Polish is an evil person of ugly senile In English Death is often given the name the " Grim Reaper " and shown as a skeletal figure carrying a large Scythe, and wearing a midnight black gown robe The Romani people (singular Rom, plural Roma as a Noun; also known as Romanies or Roma people) are an ethnic group with origins PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ The Cossacks (Каза́ки́ Kazaki; Козаки́ Kozaki; Kozacy are a group of martial people living in the southern Steppe regions of Eastern Witchcraft, in various historical anthropological religious and mythological contexts is the use of certain kinds of Supernatural or magical powers DWARF is a widely used standardized Debugging data format. DWARF was originally designed along with ELF, although it is independent of Object file A Night on the Bald Mountain usually refers to one of two compositions—either a seldom performed early (1867 ' musical picture ' by Modest Mussorgsky,
Setting
- Time: Beginning of the 19th century.
- Place: The village of Velikiye Sorochintsі, near Poltava. Velyki Sorochyntsi (Великі Сорочинці Великие Сорочинцы or Большие Сорочинцы tranlit Poltava (Полтава Połtawa is a City in central Ukraine.
Synopsis
Note: Those scenes not completed by Mussorgsky are given in italic type. The composer originally intended the Dream Vision of the Peasant Lad to end Act 1,[1] and it is designated Act 1, Scene 2 in his manuscript. [2] In the Shebalin edition, this intermezzo is relocated to Act 3.
Act I
At the fair, merchants are peddling their wares to the crowd of visitors arriving from all around. The Gypsy makes reference to a red jacket that the devil is looking for, while the lad Gritsko woos Parasya. Her father, Cherevik, at first is indignant at this forwardness, but, after realizing that Gritsko is the son of a close friend, he agrees to let Gritsko marry his daughter. The two men go into the tavern to celebrate, as evening settles and the people disperse.
Cherevik and his buddy, Kum, comes out of the tavern in a drunken state. After they wander around in the dark, Khrivya, Cherevik's wife, comes out of their house, and he announces Parasya's engagement. But Khivrya objects, and, while Gritsko overhears, drunken Cherevik concedes that the wedding will not happen. Gritsko, alone, bemoans his sadness. The Gypsy enters, and the two make a pact: Gritsko will give the Gypsy his oxen for fifteen rubles if the latter can make Cherevik change his mind.
Intermezzo: Dream Vision of the Peasant Lad: Alone, Gritsko falls asleep and has a dream involving witches and devils. They are dispelled by church bells.
Act II
Inside Kum's house, where they are lodging, Khivrya quarrels with Cherevik, getting him to leave, so that she may keep her secret rendezvous with Afanasy Ivanovich, the son of the village priest. When the latter arrives, she offers him her culinary delicacies, which he devours. In the midst of their amorous encounter a knock is heard at the door. Afanasy hides on a shelf, and in walk Cherevik and Kum, with friends, alarmed by a rumor that someone has seen the red jacket and the devil. Kum begins to give more of the legend, concluding with the remark that the devil appears every year at the fair with a pig's face, looking for the red jacket. Suddenly a pig's snout is seen in the window, and everyone runs about in confusion.
Act III
Scene 1
On a street, as a result of the superstitious confusion of the previous scene, Cherevik and Kum are being chased by the Gypsy and some lads. The latter accuse the two older men of stealing a mare, and tie them up. Gritsko enters, extracting a promise from Cherevik to have the wedding to Parasya the next day, and the two older men are released.
Act III
Scene 2
On a street in front of Kum's house, Parasya at first is sad about Gritsko, but then cheers herself up with a little hopak, in which Cherevik joins without her noticing. Kum and Gritsko enter, and Cherevik blesses the two lovers, only to be met by Khivrya's rage, which prompts the Gypsy to call on the lads to restrain her. The people celebrate the wedding with a gopak.
Principal arias and numbers
- Introduction: "A Hot Day in Little Russia", «Жаркий день в Малороссии» (Orchestra)
Act 1
Act 2
Act 3
- Aria: Parasya's Dumka, Думка Параси «Ты не грусти» (Parasya)
- Finale: Gopak, Гопак (Chorus)
Versions by other hands
In 1881 Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov suggested that Lyadov finish composition of the work, the libretto to be completed by Mussorgsky's old friend A. Hopak (Гопак also referred to as Gopak, is a Ukrainian dance. Year 1881 ( MDCCCLXXXI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov ( Николай Андреевич Римский-Корсаков, Nikolaj Andreevič Rimskij-Korsakov) also Nikolay Anatoly Konstantinovich Lyadov or Liadov (Анатолий Константинович Лядов ( May 11 (old style April 29) 1855 St Petersburg - A. Golenishchev-Kutuzov. However, Liadov orchestrated only five numbers (published in 1904) and did not finish the opera. Year 1904 ( MCMIV) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year starting on Vyacheslav Gavrilovich Karatygin later edited some fragments of Mussorgsky's manuscripts, which were orchestrated by Lyadov and performed in 1911. Year 1911 ( MCMXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year The next year Vladimir Alekseevich Senilov published his orchestration of Parasya's dumka from Act III. Year 1912 ( MCMXII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year starting WikipediaWikiProject Indian cities for details --> Dumka is a city and a Municipality in and headquarters of Dumka district in the state Yury Sergeevich Sakhnovsky edited and orchestrated some fragments which, together with material edited by Liadov, Karatygin, and Rimsky-Korsakov (i. e. , the Night on Bald Mountain music) constituted a staged "premiere" of sorts, performed at the Moscow Free Theatre on 8 October 1913 (Old Style), with spoken dialogue inserted for scenes without music by Mussorgsky. A Night on the Bald Mountain usually refers to one of two compositions—either a seldom performed early (1867 ' musical picture ' by Modest Mussorgsky, Old Style (or OS) and New Style (or NS) are used in English language historical studies either to indicate that the start of the Julian year
In commemoration of his late comrade from The Mighty Handful, César Cui became the first to create a complete version of The Fair at Sorochintsï during 1914-1916. The Five, also known as The Mighty Handful (Могучая кучка Moguchaya kuchka) refers to a circle of Composers who met in Saint Petersburg César Antonovich Cui ( Цезарь Антонович Кюи, Tsezar' Antonovič Kjui) ( - March 13, 1918) was a Russian of French Year 1914 ( MCMXIV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Year 1916 ( MCMXVI) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year This fully sung version – but without the Night on Bald Mountain sequence – was staged on 13 October 1917 (Old Style) at the Theatre of Musical Drama in Petrograd. Year 1917 ( MCMXVII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Saint Petersburg ( tr: Sankt-Peterburg,) is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River The foreword to Cui's edition, dated October 1916, explains the state of affairs at the time, and translates thus:
The comic opera Sorochintsi Fair was begun by Mussorgsky in 1875 [sic], was composed slowly and in fragments, and after the composer's death in 1881 remained unfinished. Year 1916 ( MCMXVI) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year Originally only five excerpts were published: the Introduction to the opera (adapted according to the preliminary draft by A. K. Lyadov), the Lad's Dumka (ed. by Lyadov), the Gopak, the Scene of Khivrya expecting Afanasiy Ivanovich, and Parasya's Dumka (the orchestral edition of all five numbers belongs to Lyadov). Mussorgsky's manuscripts nevertheless still afforded a substantial quantity of musical material, namely, the "scene of the fair" which begins the opera and the first half of the second act. This material was adapted by V. G. Karatygin, supplemented and orchestrated by C. A. Cui. Nevertheless the remainder, in particular the scene of Cherevik and Khivrya and the scene of the Lad and the Gypsy in Act 1, 2nd half, and all of the third [act], with the exception of Parasya's Dumka and the Gopak, is added and orchestrated by C. A. Cui, and consequently Mussorgsky's posthumous labor is completed.
Repertory status
The Fair at Sorochintsï is not a part of the standard operatic repertoire in the West. The best-known numbers from Fair are the orchestral Introduction and the closing Gopak, both of which were composed by Mussorgsky, who also arranged the Gopak for piano solo. An orchestra is an instrumental ensemble, usually fairly large with string brass woodwind sections and possibly a percussion section as well Hopak (Гопак also referred to as Gopak, is a Ukrainian dance. The piano is a Musical instrument played by means of a keyboard that produces sound by striking steel strings with Felt covered hammers In Music, a solo (from the Italian solo, meaning alone) is a piece or a section of a piece played or sung by a single performer
Two of the Ukrainian folk tunes that Mussorgsky incorporated into this opera (Act I) were used also by Rimsky-Korsakov in his own Christmas Eve, which was likewise based on a story by Gogol. Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov ( Николай Андреевич Римский-Корсаков, Nikolaj Andreevič Rimskij-Korsakov) also Nikolay
Discography
- Hubad, Lubjana Opera, 1956, Philips
- Aranovich, Moscow Radio Orchestra and Chorus, 1969, Melodiya Angel
- Esipov, Chorus and Orchestra of the Stanislavsky Theater, 1983, Le Chant du Monde
Notes
References
- 100 опер: история создания, сюжет, музыка. [100 Operas: History of Creation, Subject, Music. ] Ленинград: Издательство "Музыка," 1968, pp. 318-322.
- Abraham, Gerald. "The Fair of Sorochintsy and Cherepnin's Completion of It," his On Russian Music. London: W. Reeves, 1939; rpt. New York: Books for Libraries, 1980.
- _______. "Modest Musorgsky," The New Grove Russian Masters 1. New York: W. W. Norton, 1986, p. 129.
- Bernandt, G. B. Словарь опер впервые поставленных или изданных в дореволюционной России и в СССР, 1736-1959 [Dictionary of Operas First Performed or Published in Pre-Revolutionary Russia and in the USSR, 1836-1959]. Москва: Советский композитор, 1962, pp. 279-280.
- Calvocoressi, M.D., Abraham, G. Michel Dimitri Calvocoressi ( 1877-10-02 in Marseilles France &ndash 1944-02-01 in London United Kingdom was a music writer and music critic of Greek descent , Mussorgsky, 'Master Musicians' Series, London: J. M. Dent & Sons, Ltd. , 1946
- Catalog of autographs of M. P. Mussorgsky in the manuscript department of the St. Petersburg Conservatory [in Russian] (Accessed October 30, 2007), <http://biblio.conservatory.ru/Today/Public/Miller02.htm>
- "Double Bill Given by the New Opera," New York Times, 4 November 1942.
- Gusin, I. L. Editorial commentary in Cui, Избранные письма [Selected Letters]. Ленинград: Гос. муз. изд-во, 1955, p. 694.
- Mussorgsky, Modest. Сорочинская ярмарка (по Гоголю): опера в 3-х действиях. Издание посмертное, закончено в 1916 г. Ц. Кюи. Вновь исправленное издание. [Sorochintzy Fair (after Gogol). Posthumous edition, finished in 1916 by C. Cui. Newly corrected edition. ] Москва: Гос. изд-во, музыкальный сектор.
- _______. Сорочинская ярмарка: опера в трех действиях по Гоголю, недостающие сцены досочинил В. Шебалин. Клавираусцуг. [The Fair at Sorochintsy: opera in three acts after Gogol, missing scenes composed by V. Shebalin. Piano-vocal score] (Soviet ed. , rpt. New York: E. F. Kalmus, [n. d. ]). (With editorial notes by P. Lamm. )
- Taruskin, Richard. "Fair at Sorochintsï, The", Grove Music Online (Accessed 17 December 2005), <http://www.grovemusic.com> (subscription required)
External links
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