''Arlecchino'', ''oder Die Fenster'' (''Harlequin, or The Windows'', is a one-act
opera
Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...
with spoken dialog by
Ferruccio Busoni
Ferruccio Busoni (1 April 1866 – 27 July 1924) was an Italian composer, pianist, conductor, editor, writer, and teacher. His international career and reputation led him to work closely with many of the leading musicians, artists and literary ...
, with a
libretto
A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...
in
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
, composed in 1913. He completed the music for the opera while living in
Zurich in 1916. It is a
number opera A number opera (; ) is an opera consisting of individual pieces of music ('numbers') which can be easily extracted from the larger work."Number opera" in ''New Grove''. They may be numbered consecutively in the score, and may be interspersed with r ...
written in
neo-classical style
Neoclassical architecture is an architectural style produced by the Neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century in Italy and France. It became one of the most prominent architectural styles in the Western world. The prevailing style ...
and includes ironic allusions to operatic conventions and situations typical of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It even includes a
parody
A parody, also known as a spoof, a satire, a send-up, a take-off, a lampoon, a play on (something), or a caricature, is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satiric or ironic imitation. Often its subj ...
of a
duel
A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people, with matched weapons, in accordance with agreed-upon Code duello, rules.
During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the r ...
.
Performance history
The premiere performance was on 11 May 1917 at the
Stadttheater, Zürich.
[Chapter XIII ''Arlecchino'' in Beaumont (1985), p. 219.] Busoni's two-act opera ''
Turandot
''Turandot'' (; see below) is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini, posthumously completed by Franco Alfano in 1926, and set to a libretto in Italian by Giuseppe Adami and Renato Simoni. ''Turandot'' best-known aria is " Nessun dorma", ...
'' was also performed on the program as part of a double-bill.
The first British staged performance of ''Arlecchino'' was in 1954 at
Glyndebourne
Glyndebourne () is an English country house, the site of an opera house that, since 1934, has been the venue for the annual Glyndebourne Festival Opera. The house, located near Lewes in East Sussex, England, is thought to be about six hun ...
. However,
Edward Clark had produced a concert version in London in 1939, using an English translation by
Edward Dent.
[Music Web International: Denis ApIvor, ''Memories of the Warlock Circle'']
/ref> It was conducted by Hyam Greenbaum
Hyam 'Bumps' Greenbaum (12 May 1901 – 13 May 1942) was an English conductor, violinist and composer, who, in 1936, became the world's first conductor of a television orchestra. He was friendly with many of his English music contemporaries, incl ...
on 12 February 1939 and televised by the BBC.
Background
The opera is in four movements with a corresponding representation of Arlecchino in each of them:
:I. ARLECCHINO als Schalk rlecchino as Rogue(Allegro molto)
:II. ARLECCHINO als Kriegsmann rlecchino as Warrior(Allegro assai, ma marziale)
:III. ARLECCHINO als Ehemann rlecchino as Husband(Tempo di minuetto sostenuto)
:IV. ARLECCHINO als Sieger rlecchino as Conqueror(Allegretto sostenuto)
The roles in ''Arlecchino'' are derived from the Italian ''commedia dell'arte
(; ; ) was an early form of professional theatre, originating from Italian theatre, that was popular throughout Europe between the 16th and 18th centuries. It was formerly called Italian comedy in English and is also known as , , and . Charact ...
''. It is unusual in that the title role of Arlecchino
Harlequin (; it, Arlecchino ; lmo, Arlechin, Bergamasque pronunciation ) is the best-known of the ''zanni'' or comic servant characters from the Italian ''commedia dell'arte'', associated with the city of Bergamo. The role is traditionally ...
is primarily a speaking role. The composer has said that ''Arlecchino'' "has a tendency to ambiguity and hyperbole in order to place the listener momentarily in a position of slight doubt." Ronald Stevenson
Ronald James Stevenson (6 March 1928 – 28 March 2015) was a Scottish composer, pianist, and writer about music.
Biography
The son of a Scottish father and Welsh mother, Stevenson was born in Blackburn, Lancashire, in 1928. He studied at the ...
has described it as an "anti-opera," and an "anti-war satire."
Guido Gatti
Guido Maggiorino Gatti (1892–1973) was an Italian music critic and the founder of the journal ''Il Pianoforte'', which changed its name to ''La Rassegna Musicale '' in 1928.
He was director of the Turin Theater from 1925 to 1931 and general di ...
has commented that the opera itself illustrates Busoni's own particular ideas about opera as not depicting "realistic events," and also making use of music not continuously, but instead when it is needed and words are insufficient alone to convey the ideas of the text. Larry Sitsky
Lazar "Larry" Sitsky (born 10 September 1934) is an Australian composer, pianist, and music educator and scholar. His long term legacy is still to be assessed, but through his work to date he has made a significant contribution to the Austra ...
describes the music as "tightly integrated" and "largely based on the 'row' f tones
F, or f, is the sixth Letter (alphabet), letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the English alphabet, modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is English alphabet#Let ...
which appears as a fanfare at the commencement of the opera." And Henry Cowell has characterised this composition as "the only opera to betray knowledge of Schoenberg's early style before ''Wozzeck
''Wozzeck'' () is the first opera by the Austrian composer Alban Berg. It was composed between 1914 and 1922 and first performed in 1925. The opera is based on the drama '' Woyzeck'', which the German playwright Georg Büchner left incomplete at ...
''."
Because ''Arlecchino'' was too short in duration for a full evening's entertainment, Busoni composed his two-act opera ''Turandot
''Turandot'' (; see below) is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini, posthumously completed by Franco Alfano in 1926, and set to a libretto in Italian by Giuseppe Adami and Renato Simoni. ''Turandot'' best-known aria is " Nessun dorma", ...
'' to serve as an accompanying work.
Roles
Instrumentation
Orchestra: 2 flute
The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...
s (both doubling piccolo
The piccolo ( ; Italian for 'small') is a half-size flute and a member of the woodwind family of musical instruments. Sometimes referred to as a "baby flute" the modern piccolo has similar fingerings as the standard transverse flute, but the so ...
), 2 oboes
The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range.
A ...
(2nd doubling English horn), 2 clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound.
Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...
s (2nd doubling bass clarinet
The bass clarinet is a musical instrument of the clarinet family. Like the more common soprano B clarinet, it is usually pitched in B (meaning it is a transposing instrument on which a written C sounds as B), but it plays notes an octave bel ...
in C), 2 bassoon
The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuo ...
s (2nd doubling contrabassoon
The contrabassoon, also known as the double bassoon, is a larger version of the bassoon, sounding an octave lower. Its technique is similar to its smaller cousin, with a few notable differences.
Differences from the bassoon
The reed is consi ...
); 3 horn
Horn most often refers to:
*Horn (acoustic), a conical or bell shaped aperture used to guide sound
** Horn (instrument), collective name for tube-shaped wind musical instruments
*Horn (anatomy), a pointed, bony projection on the head of various ...
s, 2 trumpet
The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...
s, 3 trombone
The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the Standing wave, air column ...
s; timpani
Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a membrane called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionall ...
, 3 percussion
A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...
(glockenspiel
The glockenspiel ( or , : bells and : set) or bells is a percussion instrument consisting of pitched aluminum or steel bars arranged in a keyboard layout. This makes the glockenspiel a type of metallophone, similar to the vibraphone.
The glo ...
, triangle
A triangle is a polygon with three Edge (geometry), edges and three Vertex (geometry), vertices. It is one of the basic shapes in geometry. A triangle with vertices ''A'', ''B'', and ''C'' is denoted \triangle ABC.
In Euclidean geometry, an ...
, tambourine
The tambourine is a musical instrument in the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zills". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, though ...
, military drum
Military drums or war drums are all kinds of drums and membranophones that have been used for martial music, including military communications, as well as drill, honors music and military ceremonies.
History
Among ancient war drums that ...
, bass drum
The bass drum is a large drum that produces a note of low definite or indefinite pitch. The instrument is typically cylindrical, with the drum's diameter much greater than the drum's depth, with a struck head at both ends of the cylinder. Th ...
, cymbals
A cymbal is a common percussion instrument. Often used in pairs, cymbals consist of thin, normally round plates of various alloys. The majority of cymbals are of indefinite pitch, although small disc-shaped cymbals based on ancient designs soun ...
, tam-tam
A gongFrom Indonesian and ms, gong; jv, ꦒꦺꦴꦁ ; zh, c=鑼, p=luó; ja, , dora; km, គង ; th, ฆ้อง ; vi, cồng chiêng; as, কাঁহ is a percussion instrument originating in East Asia and Southeast Asia. Gongs ...
, celesta
The celesta or celeste , also called a bell-piano, is a struck idiophone operated by a keyboard. It looks similar to an upright piano (four- or five-octave), albeit with smaller keys and a much smaller cabinet, or a large wooden music box ( ...
); strings
String or strings may refer to:
*String (structure), a long flexible structure made from threads twisted together, which is used to tie, bind, or hang other objects
Arts, entertainment, and media Films
* ''Strings'' (1991 film), a Canadian anim ...
(8 violin
The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...
s I, 8 violins II, 6 viola
The viola ( , also , ) is a string instrument that is bow (music), bowed, plucked, or played with varying techniques. Slightly larger than a violin, it has a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of ...
s, 6 cello
The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a Bow (music), bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), t ...
s, 6 double bass
The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...
es). Stage music: 2 trumpets, timpani.[ Beaumont (1985), p. 219.]
Synopsis
The opera, which is in one act, consists of a prologue and four movements. It is set in Bergamo
Bergamo (; lmo, Bèrghem ; from the proto- Germanic elements *''berg +*heim'', the "mountain home") is a city in the alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from Switzerland, the alpine lakes Como ...
, Italy, around about the 18th century.
Prologue:
Arlecchino
Harlequin (; it, Arlecchino ; lmo, Arlechin, Bergamasque pronunciation ) is the best-known of the ''zanni'' or comic servant characters from the Italian ''commedia dell'arte'', associated with the city of Bergamo. The role is traditionally ...
, in mask and motley costume, appears in front of the curtain to the sound of a fanfare and delivers a brief speech about the ensuing action.
''The curtain rises to reveal a meandering and hilly street in the upper city. It is just before evening. The door to Matteo's house is front left; the entrance and sign of a wine pub are further along the street, upper right.''
First movement: Arlecchino as Rogue
''1. Introduction, Scene, and Arietta.'' Ser Matteo, the tailor, sits in front of his house sewing and silently reading. He becomes more animated and begins to read aloud in Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
the story of the illicit love of Paolo and Francesca from the Fifth Canto of Dante's ''Inferno''. Ironically, through a window above, Arlecchino can be seen making love to Matteo's beautiful young wife, Annunziata. Matteo thinks of Don Juan
Don Juan (), also known as Don Giovanni ( Italian), is a legendary, fictional Spanish libertine who devotes his life to seducing women. Famous versions of the story include a 17th-century play, ''El burlador de Sevilla y convidado de piedra'' ...
as he contemplates the prospect of the two lovers being condemned to hell, and the orchestra softly quotes the "Champagne Aria" from Mozart's ''Don Giovanni''. Finishing with Annunziata, Arlecchino
Harlequin (; it, Arlecchino ; lmo, Arlechin, Bergamasque pronunciation ) is the best-known of the ''zanni'' or comic servant characters from the Italian ''commedia dell'arte'', associated with the city of Bergamo. The role is traditionally ...
leaps from the window, landing in front of Matteo, and recites the next line from Dante: ''Quel giorno più non vi leggemmo avanti'' ("We read no more that day"). He quickly tells the confused tailor, that war has broken out, and the barbarians are at the gate. Grabbing the tailor's scissors to hoist his coat as a banner, Arlecchino filches the house key from a pocket, and hustling Matteo inside, locks the door. Soon after he departs, from off-stage, we hear him singing an extended and defiant "la-la-le-ra!"
''2. Duet
A duet is a musical composition for two performers in which the performers have equal importance to the piece, often a composition involving two singers or two pianists. It differs from a harmony, as the performers take turns performing a solo ...
.'' The abbot
Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The fem ...
and doctor come strolling down the road in front of the house. They are deep in conversation on "professional" matters. To a series of outrageous pronouncements, the orchestra provides an accompaniment consisting of a set of variations on a pleasing Mozartian theme. Abbate Conspicuo, noticing they are in front of the lovely Annunziata's house, which is however all locked up, calls out several times to Matteo but receives no response. Finally Matteo cautiously opens the window partway to ascertain their identity.
''3. Trio.'' Feeling reassured, Matteo reveals the sinister news of war and the imminent arrival of the barbarians. Panic ensues. The abbot recites the names of his ten daughters, fearful of their fate. ''Das gibt zu denken'' ("Something to consider"), says the doctor. Pausing for a moment's reflection, the doctor and the abbot offer to inform the mayor. Leaving on their errand, they soon stray into the neighboring inn to cogitate over a glass of Chianti
A Chianti wine (, also , ) is any wine produced in the Chianti region of central Tuscany. It was historically associated with a squat bottle enclosed in a straw basket, called a ''fiasco'' ("flask"; ''pl. fiaschi''). However, the ''fiasco'' is ...
.
Second movement: Arlecchino as Warrior.
''4. March
March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the second of seven months to have a length of 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of Marc ...
and Scene.'' In the company of two constables ( it, sbirros) Arlecchino returns in military attire and informs Matteo he has been called up and has three minutes in which to get his house in order. While away Arlecchino has made a copy of the key, and surreptitiously returns the original. The dumbfounded tailor appears in a ridiculous improvised uniform, requests and receives permission to carry along his beloved Dante, and sadly goes off, accompanied by the two constables. his bit evokes a sad event in Italian history. In 1499 the French captured Milan and imprisoned the leader of the city, Ludovico Sforza (who was also a close friend of Leonardo da Vinci). He was allowed one book: Dante's Divine Comedy, ''La divina Commedia''.]
Third movement: Arlecchino as Husband.
''5a. Scene and Aria
In music, an aria (Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompanime ...
.'' To Arlecchino's consternation, his wife Colombina
Columbina (in Italian Colombina, meaning "little dove"; in French and English Colombine) is a stock character in the ''commedia dell'arte''. She is Harlequin's mistress, a comic servant playing the tricky slave type, and wife of Pierrot. Rudli ...
appears just as he is trying to use his new key to open up Matteo's house. Not recognizing him initially, she asks the presumed Captain to protect her as an abandoned wife. As he turns round to face her, she suddenly realizes that the "Captain" is actually Arlecchino and begins reproaching him for his faithlessness, only pausing to powder her face. In response Arlecchino delivers a short speech concerning his views on marriage and fidelity: ''Die Treue, Madame, ist ein Laster, das meiner Ehrsamkeit nicht ansteht.'' – "Fealty, madame, is a vice which does not apply to my respectability."
''5b. Arietta.'' Arlecchino concludes by asking Colombina how ''she'' sleeps. Colombina changes her tune. Singing in alternating 3/4 and 2/4, she attempts to flatter Arlecchino, describing how other women envy her position as his wife. She then sings of her own virtues as a wife: she can dance and sing, and play the tambourine. As Colombina nestles up to him, Arlecchino, not taken in by her ploy, says: ''O Colombina, siehst du jenen Stern?'' - "Oh Colombina, dost thou see yonder star?" As Colombina gazes up at the night sky, he quickly makes his escape.
''6. Scene for two, then three characters.'' The sweet tenor
A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...
voice of the cavalier
The term Cavalier () was first used by Roundheads as a term of abuse for the wealthier royalist supporters of King Charles I and his son Charles II of England during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration (1642 – ). It ...
Leandro is heard singing a ''romanza'': ''Mit dem Schwerte, mit der Laute, zieht des Wegs der Trovador'' ("With sword and lute the troubadour
A troubadour (, ; oc, trobador ) was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages (1100–1350). Since the word ''troubadour'' is etymologically masculine, a female troubadour is usually called a ''trobairit ...
roams"). He soon appears, with his lute and sword and wearing a feather cap. Neither slim nor young, he is a typical Italian operatic tenor. Colombina resumes her role as the abandoned woman, and Leandro launches into a classic Italian vengeance aria (''Contro l'empio traditore la vendetta compierò'' - "Against the impious traitor shall I exact revenge"). At its conclusion he turns and bows smiling to the audience.
Colombina, however, is skeptical and poses as Elsa of Brabant
''Lohengrin'', WWV 75, is a Romantic opera in three acts composed and written by Richard Wagner, first performed in 1850. The story of the eponymous character is taken from medieval German romance, notably the ''Parzival'' of Wolfram von Esc ...
(''Könnt' ich jemals einem Manne noch trauen!'' – "Could I ever again trust a man!") and Leandro assumes the role of Lohengrin
Lohengrin () is a character in German Arthurian literature. The son of Parzival (Percival), he is a knight of the Holy Grail sent in a boat pulled by swans to rescue a maiden who can never ask his identity. His story, which first appears in Wolf ...
. The orchestra accompanies with a Wagner
Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...
ian parody: string tremolandi, dense woodwind
Woodwind instruments are a family of musical instruments within the greater category of wind instruments. Common examples include flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, and saxophone. There are two main types of woodwind instruments: flutes and reed ...
chords
Chord may refer to:
* Chord (music), an aggregate of musical pitches sounded simultaneously
** Guitar chord a chord played on a guitar, which has a particular tuning
* Chord (geometry), a line segment joining two points on a curve
* Chord ( ...
, and pointless fanfare rhythms. A '' bel canto'' parody follows (''Venus sieht auf uns hernieder'' – "Venus looks down upon us") complete with portamento
In music, portamento (plural: ''portamenti'', from old it, portamento, meaning "carriage" or "carrying") is a pitch sliding from one note to another. The term originated from the Italian expression "''portamento della voce''" ("carriage of the v ...
and a stretta. According to Beaumont, the stretta's "prototype lies somewhere between Cimarosa, Mozart, or Rossini but its harmonic language, with abrupt changes of key
Key or The Key may refer to:
Common meanings
* Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm
* Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock
* Key (map ...
and symmetrical chromaticisms, is pure Busoni."
Arlecchino, back in his motley costume, has been watching Colombina and Leandro through his lorgnette
A lorgnette () is a pair of spectacles with a handle, used to hold them in place, rather than fitting over the ears or nose. The word ''lorgnette'' is derived from the French ''lorgner'', to take a sidelong look at, and Middle French, from ''lor ...
. He now springs forward, congratulating Colombina for educating herself in his school, and escorts her to the inn. Returning to Leandro, he challenges him to a duel
A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people, with matched weapons, in accordance with agreed-upon Code duello, rules.
During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the r ...
, fells him, and disappears into Matteo's house.
Fourth movement: Arlecchino as Victor.
''7. Scene, Quartet and Melodrama.'' Colombina, Abbate and Dottore emerge from the inn. The two men are stumbling about and bump into Leandro lying in the road. Dottore pronounces the body dead. Colombina wails and throws herself on the prostrate Leandro, but soon realizes he is alive. Dottore disputes her diagnosis, but Abbate declares a resurrection
Resurrection or anastasis is the concept of coming back to life after death. In a number of religions, a dying-and-rising god is a deity which dies and is resurrected. Reincarnation is a similar process hypothesized by other religions, which ...
. Many faces had appeared in the windows of the neighboring houses after all the commotion, but when Abbate calls for aid, they disappear, and the windows close. A donkey cart and carter appear from around the corner, so they decide to put Leandro on the cart. As Abbate calls for prayer, Leandro revives and joins in making a quartet and a parody suggestive of ''Rigoletto
''Rigoletto'' is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi. The Italian libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on the 1832 play ''Le roi s'amuse'' by Victor Hugo. Despite serious initial problems with the Austrian censors who had cont ...
''.
Finally, as they load Leandro on the cart and the sad little group leaves the stage heading for the hospital, Arlecchino appears at the attic window of Matteo's house and bids them adieu. Climbing onto the roof he ecstatically declares:
He slides down a drain pipe, opens the door, embraces the waiting Annunziata, and the two of them leave the stage.
''8. Monologue.'' Matteo returns and enters the house. He appears at a window with a lamp in one hand and a piece of paper in the other, which he reads aloud. It is a note from Annunziata claiming she has gone off to Vespers
Vespers is a service of evening prayer, one of the canonical hours in Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Catholic Church, Catholic (both Latin liturgical rites, Latin and Eastern Catholic Churches, Eastern), Lutheranism, Lutheran, and Anglican ...
and will soon return. Matteo emerges from the house with the lamp and his Dante, and resumes sewing at his workplace, while waiting for her return. A drop-curtain is slowly lowered, and two trumpeters in traditional theater uniforms take positions left and right.
''9. Procession and Dance. (Finale.)'' In procession the other characters, Leandro and Colombina, Dottore and Abbate, the donkey and the cart, the two constables, and finally Arlecchino and Annunziata, cross the stage and bow to the audience. Arlecchino removes his mask and addresses the audience, explaining the new disposition of the couples, which shall last "until something new happens?" He and Annunziata join in a dance as they leave the stage. The drop-curtain rises and Matteo can be seen, still reading and waiting.
Recordings
''Note:'' Select the catalog number link for additional recording details.
;Busoni: ''Arlecchino'' & ''Turandot'' - Chorus & Orchestra of the Opéra de Lyon[Review of the Nagano recording i]
''The Gramophone'', November, 1993, p. 139.
Retrieved on 2 February 2009.
*Conductor: Kent Nagano
Kent George Nagano GOQ, MSM (born November 22, 1951) is an American conductor and opera administrator. Since 2015, he has been Music Director of the Hamburg State Opera and was Music Director of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra from 2006 to 202 ...
*Principal singers: Ernst Theo Richter (Arlecchino); Susanne Mentzer (Colombina); Thomas Mohr (Ser Matteo del Sarto); Wolfgang Holzmair (Abbate Cospicuo); Philippe Huttenlocher (Dottor Bombasto); Stefan Dahlberg (Leandro)
*Label: Virgin Classics VCD7 59313-2 (2 CDs
The compact disc (CD) is a digital optical disc data storage format that was co-developed by Philips and Sony to store and play digital audio recordings. In August 1982, the first compact disc was manufactured. It was then released in Octo ...
)
;Busoni: ''Arlecchino'' - Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra
The Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra (''Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin'') is a German symphony orchestra based in Berlin. In Berlin, the orchestra gives concerts at the Konzerthaus Berlin and at the Berliner Philharmonie. The orchestra has also ...
*Conductor: Gerd Albrecht
Gerd Albrecht (19 July 1935 – 2 February 2014) was a German conductor.
Biography
Albrecht was born in Essen, the son of the musicologist Hans Albrecht (1902–1961). He studied music in Kiel and in Hamburg, where his teachers included Wilhel ...
*Principal singers: Peter Matič (Arlecchino, spoken)/Robert Wörle (Arlecchino, sung); René Pape
René Pape (born 4 September 1964) is a German operatic bass. Pape has received two Grammys, was named "Vocalist of the Year" by Musical America in 2002, "Artist of the Year" by the German opera critics in 2006, and won an ECHO award (the German ...
(Ser Matteo del Sarto); Siegfried Lorenz (Abbate Cospicuo); Peter Lika
Peter Lika (born 1947) is a German bass in opera and concert, focused on both oratorio singing as on historically informed performances.
Life
Lika was born in Augsburg in 1947. He began his singing career as a boy soloist with the Regensburger ...
(Dottor Bombasto); Robert Wörle (Leandro); Marcia Bellamy (Colombina, sung)/Katharina Koschny (Colombina, spoken)
*Label: Capriccio 60 038-1 (1 CD)
Downloadable score
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References
Notes
Sources
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arlecchino (Opera)
Operas set in the 18th century
German-language operas
Operas by Ferruccio Busoni
Operas
One-act operas
1916 operas
Operas set in Italy
Harlequin
Commedia dell'arte