 Carmen is a French opera by Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Meilhac and Halévy, based on the story of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was premiered at the Opéra Comique of Paris on March 3, 1875. For a year after its premiere, it was considered a failure, denounced by critics as "immoral" and "superficial". Today, it is one of the world's most popular operas[1]. In fact, Opera America claims it to be the fourth most-performed opera in North America. The story concerns the eponymous Carmen, a beautiful gypsy with a fiery temper. Not careful with her love, she is responsible for the downfall of many men. She woos the corporal Don José, leading him to mutiny against his superior. His infatuation causes him to join a band of smugglers, of which Carmen is a member. He is happy with Carmen for a brief period, but is driven to madness when she turns from him to the bullfighter Escamillo. Several well-known pieces from this opera have taken on a life separate to the work: the Prélude (overture), the Toréador Song, and the Habanera. History
Du Locle, the artistic director of the Opéra-Comique commissioned Bizet to write an opera based on Mérimée's novel in early 1873 to be premiered at the end of the year. However, difficulty in finding a leading lady caused rehearsals not to begin until August 1874. Bizet bought a house at Bougival on the Seine, where he finished the piano score in the summer of 1874, and took a further two months to complete a full orchestration[2]. The difficulty in casting the title role arose from the scandal that erupted when the libretto was published. The artistic community almost universally condemned the story, denouncing it as "immoral". The scandal led at least one famous (unnamed) singer to refuse the role. However, the famous mezzo-soprano Galli-Marié accepted it in December without having seen the score. During rehearsals, Du Locle's assistant De Leuven voiced his discontent about the opera's plot, and pressured Bizet and the librettists to alter the tragic ending. De Leuven felt that families would not dare to go to see such a "debauched" opera. The Comique had a reputation as a family-friendly theatre, with many boxes used by parents to interview prospective sons-in-law. The librettists agreed to change the ending, but Bizet refused, which led directly to De Leuven's resignation from the production in early 1874. Full rehearsals finally began in October, and continued for an unexpected five months. The Comique's orchestra declared the score unplayable, and the cast were having difficulty following Bizet's directions. However, the greatest opposition came from Du Locle[3], who liked Bizet personally, but hated the opera. At this stage, the Comique was in dire financial straits, leading Du Locle to believe the opera would topple the ailing company, which had failed to produce a true success since Gounod's Faust. The librettists, for whom Carmen was merely a sideshow, secretly tried to induce the singers to over-dramatise in order to lessen the impact of the work. However, much to Bizet's delight, the final rehearsals seemed to convince the majority of the company of the genius of the opera. The first performance took place on March 3, 1875 the same day Bizet was presented with the Légion d'honneur. The four principals were:
According to Halévy's diary, the premiere did not go well. Act I was fairly well received and the entr'acte to Act II was applauded. However, with the exception of Micaëla's aria in Act III, the Acts II, III and IV were greeted with deafening silence. The critics were scathing, claiming that the libretto was inappropriate for the Comique. Bizet was also condemned by the musical community for following Wagner in making the orchestra more important than the human voices[4]. However, a few critics, such as the poet Théodore de Banville, praised the work for its innovation. Banville lauded the librettists for writing characters that were more realistic than those normally acted at the Comique. Nevertheless, the negative reviews caused the opera to only have 48 performances in its first year. Towards the end of its run at the Comique, the management was selling tickets wholesale in a vain attempt to make a profit. Afterwards, the principals, particularly Galli-Marié, became unemployable. Bizet did not live to see the success of his opera: he died On June 3, just after the thirtieth performance. Over the following century it has become a staple of the standard operatic repertoire. Although the title role was written for a Mezzo-soprano, many famous sopranos[5] have performed and recorded the role, causing much debate over the best vocal type for the role. Not only must the singer have a great range, capable of frequently going to the bottom of her voice range, but also exhibit superior dramatic skills in order to portray Carmen's complex character, and beyond all that be an extremely good dancer. Synopsis
Setting: Seville, Spain c. 1830 Note: in the Oeser version, Acts III and IV are played as Act III scene i and Act III scene ii respectively Act IA beautiful square in Seville with a cigarette factory, a guard house, and a bridge. Morales and the soldiers are on guard, very bored ("Sur la place, Chacun passe"). Micaëla appears seeking José, her fiancé, but is accosted by the impudent soldiers who desire her company, causing her to run away . As José approaches with the new guard, he and the soldiers are imitated by the street-children ("Avec la garde montante"). The cigarette girls emerge from the factory, greeted by their men ("La cloche a sonné"). Carmen appears, and all the men ask her when she will love them ("Quand je vous aimerai?"). She replies that she loves the man that does not love her. ("L'amour est un oiseau rebelle").When asked to choose a lover, she throws a flower in front of José ("Carmen! sur tes pas, nous nous pressons tous!"). José is temporarily transfixed until Micaëla brings him a letter and kiss from his mother ("Parle-moi de ma mère!"). José longingly thinks of his home. As soon as she leaves, screams are heard from the factory and the women run out, singing chaotically. Don José and his superior, Zuniga find that Carmen has been fighting with another woman, and slashed her face with a knife ("Au secours!"). Zuniga attempts to interrogate Carmen who impudently sings a folk song, ignoring him. Zuniga instructs José to arrest her, and escort her to the gaol. Carmen seduces José with a Seguidilla ("Près des remparts de Séville"), and convinces José to let her escape. José is arrested for letting Carmen escape. Act IIEvening at Lillas Pastia's inn, frequented by smugglers. Carmen and her friends Frasquita and Mercedes sing and dance ("Les tringles des sistres tintaient" - Gypsy Song). Zuniga attempts to woo Carmen, but she can only think of José. The Matador Escamillo is greeted with great enthusiasm by the patrons ("Vivat, vivat le Toréro"). He sings the Toreador song ("Votre toast, je peux vous le rendre") and also attempts to woo Carmen. Carmen refuses him as well. The smugglers Dancairo and Remendado discuss plans with Carmen and her gypsy friends ("Nous avons en tête une affaire" - Quintet). Carmen refuses to accompany them, for she only can think of José. José arrives singing a folk song ("Halte l ! Qui va l ! Dragon d'Alcala!"), and he and Carmen are left alone. Carmen vexes him with stories of her dancing. She then dances for him alone ("Je vais danser en votre honneur"), but is interrupted by the trumpets calling the soldiers to the barracks. Carmen's temper flares when José begins to leave, causing him to pledge his devotion to her in the Flower Song ("La fleur que tu m'avais jetée"). Carmen asks him to join the smugglers if he really loves her ("Non, tu ne m'aime pas"). He refuses and begins to leave when he is surprised by Zuniga. He draws his sword upon his superior officer, but the gypsies disarm both of them and take away Zuniga ("Mon cher monsieur"). José is forced to flee with Carmen ("La bas dans le montagne"). Act IIIA rocky gorge, where the smugglers ply their trade. José arrives with the smugglers ("Écoute, écoute, compagnon"), but Carmen loves him no longer. Her inconstant heart now turns to Escamillo. Carmen, Frasquita and Mercedes read the cards ("Mêlons! Coupons!"). Frasquita and Mercedes foresee love and romance, wealth and luxury in their cards; but Carmen's cards foretell death for her and José ("En vain pour éviter les réponses amères"). The smugglers plan their actions ("Quant au douanier, c'est notre affaire"). Micaëla arrives with a guide seeking José ("Je dis, que rien ne m'épouvante"), and hides in the rocks. Escamillo arrives and tells José that he is infatuated with Carmen. A fight between José and Escamillo over Carmen is narrowly averted by the smugglers ("Hol , hol José"). Escamillo leaves, but invites Carmen and the smugglers to the bullfights. Micaëla emerges and tells José that his mother wishes to see him. At first he refuses to go ("Non, je ne partirai pas!"), until Micaëla tells him that his mother is dying. Vowing that he will return to Carmen, he leaves. As he is leaving, Escamillo is heard singing in the distance. Carmen rushes to the sound of his voice. Act IVA square before the arena at Seville. The general populace prepare for the bull fight ("A deux cuartos!") (In the ballet version, "A deux cuatros" is "Dansez, dansez") and they see the cuadrilla arrive ("Les voici! voici la quadrille"). Carmen promises herself to Escamillo if he returns victorious ("Si tu m'aimes, Carmen"). Frasquita and Mercedes warn Carmen that José is in the crowd ("Carmen! Prends garde!), and that he intends to kill her. Before she can enter the arena she is confronted by the pale and despairing José ("Cest toi! Cest moi!"). For the last time he demands her love and fidelity. When she throws back the ring that he gave her ("C'est bague, autrefois), he stabs her to the heart ("Eh bien, damnée") and she dies at the moment that Escamillo triumphs in the arena. The spectators exit the arena and José, completely broken, confesses his action to all, exclaiming: "Ah! Carmen! ma Carmen adorée!". Dramatic elementsCarmen was extremely innovative in its drama: no longer was French Opera confined to one-dimensional comic characters. The two lead characters in the work are some of the most profound in all operatic literature. The descent of Don José from a faithful lover and soldier to an obsessed lunatic is wonderfully portrayed through both music and libretto. The music also ensures that Carmen does not become a destructive figure like Elektra or Lulu: she does not chase men, they run after her[6]. Because Bizet shied away from the traditional image of an operatic femme-fatale, Carmen became a difficult character to understand (or portray on stage). She is fatalistic and hedonistic, living entirely in the present moment. Her beauty unintentionally entraps men, who are then led to their downfall by their own misguided ideas of love. Carmen's character is best illustrated in the card-playing scene, in which she accepts the premonition of death as unavoidable. José is ill-suited to Carmen's whims, desiring constancy in the form of fidelity: upon hearing that Carmen danced for the men in Act II, he becomes greatly distressed. The inconstancy of her character is anarchy to José, and being a soldier, he removes it. Carmen and José have three duets, which represent three stages of their relationship. The first in Act I is the seduction, the second in Act II is the conflict, and the last in Act IV is the tragic resolution. Musically, the duets are not in the style of the traditional French or Italian duets, where two voices become one. They show the incompatibility of Carmen and José, as they almost never sing together. The supporting characters, Micaëla and Escamillo, are not as developed as the two protagonists, and are used to reflect upon the leads. Micaëla represents José’s naïve past, whereas Escamillo represents Carmen's exciting future. Micaëla is from Gounod's lyric operas, whereas Escamillo is from the traditional opera buffa. Micaëla has a slight aria in Act III which shows her significance in the story is not great: she was created to be Carmen's opposite. Escamillo has the most well-known song in the score. Bizet knew that the song would be popular, but he secretly despised it, saying “They want their trash, and will get it”. Musical elementsWhen asked if he would visit Spain to research his score, Bizet replied "No, that would only confuse me." Bizet elegantly works elements of Spanish music into the score, though keeping the music obviously French. However, several pieces, especially the Seguidilla and the Gypsy Song make great use of the elements of flamenco music. Also, the Act IV entr'acte seems to be influenced by a Spanish song by Manuel Garcia, incorporating elements of gypsy music. Bizet worked several popular Spanish songs directly into the score. These include El arreglito which became the habanera, and the folk-song Carmen impudently sings when interrogated by Zuniga; both written by Yradier[7]. The habanera was written to replace an aria that Galli-Marié disliked, and Bizet supposedly wrote over ten revisions.[3] Bizet uses a very slight leitmotif system, preferring to use new material for each scene. There are two motifs associated with Carmen. The first is Carmen Fate motif, and owes its augmented 2nds to Spanish music. It is ominously heard directly after the Prelude, and predetermines the ending of the opera. It is heard in this form when Carmen chooses José as her lover , at the beginning of the Flower Song, and during the opera’s final moments. It is also heard in a sped up form, first heard at the entrance of Carmen. This theme is more often heard in the strings, and is used when the slower version would stop the flow of the music. It is notably heard during the card playing scene (No.20). The other theme associated with Carmen represents her influence over José. It is heard after José is chosen as Carmen’s lover, and when Carmen is taken away by the police to José and Zuniga. This soaring theme is, like Carmen, both beautiful and tragic. In a sequence cut from the original edition, placed in the frenzied chorus of women in Act I, the two themes are played contrapuntally. RevisionsBizet’s original design of Carmen had dialogue in place of recitative. After Bizet's death, the musical community felt it would be more appreciated in the form of Grand Opera rather than opéra comique. Bizet’s friend Ernest Guiraud wrote recitatives for the Vienna premiere performance in 1875, that were used up until the 1960s. (Except at the Opéra-Comique, where the dialogue Carmen remained in reperatory into the 1950s.) They are today seen as damaging to the work as a whole. The recitatives destroyed Bizet’s careful pacing, and disrupted the process of characterization significantly. The recitatives do seem to be coming back into fashion in large theaters, like the Metropolitan, where spoken dialogue is difficult to project. A new edition in 1964 edited by Fritz Oeser claimed to have restored Bizet’s original vision by including material previously cut from the premiere as well as restoring the dialogue. Unfortunately, Oeser did not realise that a great deal was cut by Bizet himself, and subsequently included several sections that were not required. He also made great changes to the stage directions and rewrote some of the libretto. Today, the only adequate score is a vocal score by Bizet himself, published in 1875. There is still no accurate full score, and each production is judged on the skills of the conductor in choosing a score. Most recordings since the publication of Oeser juggle the Opéra-Comique, Oeser and Guiraud versions. Fruhbeck's 1970 version (pure Opéra-Comique) contains a pantomime scene with Moralés and chorus that was cut from the original production but remained in the score. In 2003, a recording was made with Angela Gheorghiu and Roberto Alagna that features an earlier variant of Carmen's Habanera, as well as the familiar one. CharactersAs listed in the New Grove Dictionary of Opera.
Arias, duets, choruses etc.The more popular pieces from the opera include:
Recordings
AdaptationsFantasiesA number of classical composers have used themes from Carmen as the basis for works of their own. Some of these, such as Pablo de Sarasate's Carmen Fantasy (1883) for violin and orchestra, Franz Waxman's Carmen Fantasie for violin and orchestra and Vladimir Horowitz's Variations on a theme from Carmen for solo piano are virtuoso showpieces in the tradition of fantasias on operatic themes. Ferruccio Busoni wrote a Sonatina (No.6) for piano named Fantasia da camera super Carmen (1920), which uses themes from the opera. There are also two suites of music drawn directly from Bizet's opera, often recorded and performed in orchestral concerts. FilmIn 1915, Cecil B. DeMille directed a 59-minute silent film version of the opera. In the United States, it was adapted by Oscar Hammerstein II into an African-American setting as Carmen Jones, which was a success both as a stage production and in 1954 as a feature film. In 1983, Carlos Saura made a dance film inspired by the opera, with flamenco dances choreographed by Antonio Gades In 1983, Jean-Luc Godard directed another film version, Prénom Carmen. In 1984, a film version was produced. This motion picture stars Julia Migenes as Carmen and Plácido Domingo as Don José, with Lorin Maazel conducting the Orchestre National de France. The powerful cast and traditional direction made it popular with audiences. It was the first film version to use Bizet's spoken dialogues in place of the recitatives. The entire soundtrack was released on CD. MTV also made a version, Carmen: A Hip Hopera, starring Beyoncé Knowles as Carmen, in 2001. A recent adaptation was U-Carmen e-Khayelitsha (2005), set in Khayelitsha, South Africa; and sung in Xhosa. The film received the Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival. Another African adaptation Karmen Gei (2001), set in Dakar, Senegal was sung in French and Woluf. OtherRodion Shchedrin wrote a Carmen ballet (1967) directly based on the opera. The British comedy television series the Two Ronnies did a Cockney adaptation of the opera called Tooting Carmen. As old as the subject it describes, is this parody: "Toreadori / Don't spit on the floor / Use the cuspidor / That's what it's for". Notes
References
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