Bluebeard's Castle
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''Duke Bluebeard's Castle'' ( hu, A kékszakállú herceg vára, link=no, or ''The Blue-Bearded Duke's Castle'') is a one-act
expressionist Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it rad ...
opera by Hungarian composer
Béla Bartók Béla Viktor János Bartók (; ; 25 March 1881 – 26 September 1945) was a Hungarian composer, pianist, and ethnomusicologist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century; he and Franz Liszt are regarded as H ...
. The
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 ...
was written by
Béla Balázs Béla Balázs (; 4 August 1884 in Szeged – 17 May 1949 in Budapest), born Herbert Béla Bauer, was a Hungarian film criticism, film critic, aesthetics, aesthetician, writer and poet of History of the Jews in Hungary, Jewish heritage. He was a ...
, a poet and friend of the composer, and is written in Hungarian, based on the French literary tale '' La Barbe bleue'' by
Charles Perrault Charles Perrault ( , also , ; 12 January 1628 – 16 May 1703) was an iconic French author and member of the Académie Française. He laid the foundations for a new literary genre, the fairy tale, with his works derived from earlier folk tales ...
. The opera lasts only a little over an hour and there are just two singing characters onstage: Bluebeard (), and his new wife Judith (); the two have just eloped and Judith is coming home to Bluebeard's castle for the first time. ''Bluebeard's Castle'', Sz. 48, was composed in 1911 (with modifications made in 1912 and a new ending added in 1917) and first performed on 24 May 1918 at the Royal Hungarian Opera House in Budapest.
Universal Edition Universal Edition (UE) is a classical music publishing firm. Founded in 1901 in Vienna, they originally intended to provide the core classical works and educational works to the Austrian market (which had until then been dominated by Leipzig-bas ...
published the vocal (1921) and full score (1925). The
Boosey & Hawkes Boosey & Hawkes is a British music publisher purported to be the largest specialist classical music publisher in the world. Until 2003, it was also a major manufacturer of brass, string and woodwind musical instruments. Formed in 1930 throu ...
full score includes only the German and English singing translations while the Dover edition reproduces the Universal Edition Hungarian/German vocal score (with page numbers beginning at 1 instead of 5). A revision of the UE vocal score in 1963 added a new German translation by Wilhelm Ziegler, but seems not to have corrected any errata. Universal Edition and Bartók Records has published a new edition of the work in 2005 with a new English translation by , accompanied by an extensive errata list.


Composition history

Balázs originally conceived the libretto for his roommate
Zoltán Kodály Zoltán Kodály (; hu, Kodály Zoltán, ; 16 December 1882 – 6 March 1967) was a Hungarian composer, ethnomusicologist, pedagogue, linguist, and philosopher. He is well known internationally as the creator of the Kodály method of music edu ...
in 1908, and wrote it during the following two years. It was first published serially in 1910 with a joint dedication to Kodály and Bartók, and in 1912 appeared with the prologue in the collection "Mysteries". Bartók was motivated to complete the opera in 1911 by the closing date of the
Ferenc Erkel Ferenc Erkel ( hu, Erkel Ferenc , german: link=no, Franz Erkel; November 7, 1810June 15, 1893) was a Hungarian composer, conductor and pianist. He was the father of Hungarian grand opera, written mainly on historical themes, which are still o ...
Prize competition, for which it was duly entered. A second competition, organised by the music publishers Rózsavölgyi and with a closing date in 1912, encouraged Bartók to make some modifications to the work in order to submit it to the Rózsavölgyi competition. Little is known about the Ferenc Erkel Prize other than that ''Bluebeard's Castle'' did not win. The Rózsavölgyi judges, after reviewing the composition, decided that the work (with only two characters and a single location) was not dramatic enough to be considered in the category for which it was entered: theatrical music. It is thought that the panel of judges who were to look at the musical (rather than the theatrical) aspects of the competition entries never saw Bartók's entry. In 1913 Balázs produced a spoken performance at which Bartók played some piano pieces on a separate part of the program. A 1915 letter to Bartók's young wife, Márta, (to whom he dedicated the opera) ends: "Now I know that I will never hear it in this life. You asked me to play it for you—I am afraid I would not be able to get through it. Still I'll try so that we may mourn it together."


Performance history

The success of the ballet ''
The Wooden Prince ''The Wooden Prince'' ( hu, A fából faragott királyfi), Op. 13, Sz. 60, is a one-act pantomime ballet composed by Béla Bartók in 1914–1916 (orchestrated 1916–1917) to a scenario by Béla Balázs. It was first performed at the Budapest O ...
'' in 1917 paved the way for the May 1918 première with the same conductor,
Egisto Tango Egisto Tango (13 November 1873, in Rome – 5 October 1951, in Copenhagen) was an Italian conductor, whose premieres included '' The Wooden Prince'' and ''Bluebeard's Castle'' by Béla Bartók. His career was launched in Venice and he conducte ...
.
Oszkár Kálmán Oszkár Kálmán (19 June 1887 - 17 September 1971) was a Hungarian bass, remembered as the first Bluebeard. He was Jewish and born in Kisszentpéter (in present day Romania) and in 1913 made his debut as Sarastro at the Royal Opera House in Bud ...
was the first Bluebeard and the first Judith. Following Balázs' exile in 1919 and the ban on his work there were no revivals until 1936. Bartók attended rehearsals and reportedly sided with the new Bluebeard,
Mihály Székely Mihály Székely (May 8, 1901 in Jászberény – March 22, 1963) was a Hungarian bass singer famous for Mozartian roles. His name in Hungarian form is ''Székely Mihály'', his original family name was ''Spagatner''. He debuted as Ferrando ('' ...
, over the new conductor Sergio Failoni, who was insisting on fidelity to the printed score. Productions in Germany followed in Frankfurt (1922) and Berlin (1929). ''Bluebeard's Castle'' was first performed in Italy at the
Maggio Musicale Fiorentino The Maggio Musicale Fiorentino (English: Florence Musical May) is an annual Italian arts festival in Florence, including a notable opera festival, under the auspices of the Opera di Firenze. The festival occurs between late April into June annual ...
on 5 May 1938. The production was conducted by Sergio Failoni and starred
Mihály Székely Mihály Székely (May 8, 1901 in Jászberény – March 22, 1963) was a Hungarian bass singer famous for Mozartian roles. His name in Hungarian form is ''Székely Mihály'', his original family name was ''Spagatner''. He debuted as Ferrando ('' ...
in the title role and Ella Némethy as Judith. The
Teatro di San Carlo The Real Teatro di San Carlo ("Royal Theatre of Saint Charles"), as originally named by the Bourbon monarchy but today known simply as the Teatro (di) San Carlo, is an opera house in Naples, Italy, connected to the Royal Palace and adjacent t ...
mounted the opera for the first time under
Ferenc Fricsay Ferenc Fricsay (; 9 August 1914 – 20 February 1963) was a Hungarian conductor. From 1960 until his death, he was an Austrian citizen. Biography Fricsay was born in Budapest in 1914 and studied music under Béla Bartók, Zoltán Kodály, E ...
on 19 April 1951 with
Mario Petri Mario Petri (21 January 1922 – 26 January 1985) was an Italian operatic bass-baritone particularly associated with Mozart and Rossini roles. Life and career Petri was born in Perugia and began his career after World War II, making his stage d ...
and
Ira Malaniuk Ira Malaniuk ( uk, Ірина Маланюк; ''Iryna Malanyuk''; 29 January 1919 – 25 February 2009) was an Austrian operatic Mezzo-soprano of Ukrainian descent. She sang a wide range of roles, from Mozart to contemporary works. Life ...
. The work's
La Scala La Scala (, , ; abbreviation in Italian of the official name ) is a famous opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the ' (New Royal-Ducal Theatre alla Scala). The premiere performan ...
debut occurred on 28 January 1954 with Petri and Dorothy Dow. This was followed by several other productions at major opera houses in Italy, including the
Teatro Regio di Torino The Teatro Regio (Royal Theatre) is a prominent opera house and opera company in Turin, Piedmont, Italy. Its season runs from October to June with the presentation of eight or nine operas given from five to twelve performances of each. Several bu ...
(1961),
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma The Teatro dell'Opera di Roma (Rome Opera House) is an opera house in Rome, Italy. Originally opened in November 1880 as the 2,212 seat ''Costanzi Theatre'', it has undergone several changes of name as well modifications and improvements. The pre ...
(1962),
Teatro Comunale di Bologna The Teatro Comunale di Bologna is an opera house in Bologna, Italy. Typically, it presents eight operas with six performances during its November to April season. While there had been various theatres presenting opera in Bologna since the early 1 ...
(1966),
La Fenice Teatro La Fenice (, "The Phoenix") is an opera house in Venice, Italy. It is one of "the most famous and renowned landmarks in the history of Italian theatre" and in the history of opera as a whole. Especially in the 19th century, La Fenice beca ...
(1967), and the
Teatro Regio di Parma Teatro Regio di Parma, originally constructed as the Nuovo Teatro Ducale (New Ducal Theatre),Martini, "Before the Teatro Regio", pp. 56 is an opera house and opera company in Parma, Italy. Replacing an obsolete house, the new Ducale achieved pro ...
(1970). The first American performance was by the
Dallas Symphony Orchestra The Dallas Symphony Orchestra (DSO) is an American orchestra based in Dallas, Texas. Its principal performing venue is the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center in the Arts District of downtown Dallas. History The orchestra traces its origins to a ...
broadcast on NBC Radio's ''Orchestras of the Nation'' on 9 January 1949, followed by a concert performance at the Music Hall at Fair Park in Dallas, Texas, on 10 January. Both performances were led by conductor
Antal Doráti Antal Doráti (, , ; 9 April 1906 – 13 November 1988) was a Hungarian-born conductor and composer who became a naturalized American citizen in 1943. Biography Antal Doráti was born in Budapest, where his father Alexander Doráti was a vi ...
, a former Bartók student. Other sources mention a 1946 concert performance in Dallas. The first fully staged American production was at the
New York City Opera The New York City Opera (NYCO) is an American opera company located in Manhattan in New York City. The company has been active from 1943 through 2013 (when it filed for bankruptcy), and again since 2016 when it was revived. The opera company, du ...
on 2 October 1952 with conductor
Joseph Rosenstock Joseph Rosenstock (, ; in Kraków in New York City) was an American conductor. Career Early years He worked at the State Theatre in Darmstadt, where, on , he conducted '' Hagith'' by Karol Szymanowski, and at the State Opera in Wiesbaden, w ...
and singers
James Pease James Pease (9 January 1916, in Indianapolis – 26 April 1967, in New York City)“Pease, James” in ''Baker’s Biographical Dictionary of 20th Century Classical Musicians'', ed. Laura Kuhn. Schirmer Books, 1997. was an American bass-baritone ...
and Catherine Ayres. The
Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is operat ...
mounted the opera for the first time on 10 June 1974 with conductor
Sixten Ehrling Evert Sixten Ehrling (3 April 1918 – 13 February 2005) was a Swedish conductor and pianist who, during a long career, served as the music director of the Royal Swedish Opera and the principal conductor of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, a ...
and singers David Ward and
Shirley Verrett Shirley Verrett (May 31, 1931 – November 5, 2010) was an American operatic mezzo-soprano who successfully transitioned into soprano roles, i.e. soprano sfogato. Verrett enjoyed great fame from the late 1960s through the 1990s, particularly we ...
. The South American premiere was in Buenos Aires's
Teatro Colón The Teatro Colón (Spanish: ''Columbus Theatre'') is the main opera house in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It is considered one of the ten best opera houses in the world by National Geographic. According to a survey carried out by the acousti ...
, 23 September 1953 conducted by
Karl Böhm Karl August Leopold Böhm (28 August 1894 – 14 August 1981) was an Austrian conductor. He was best known for his performances of the music of Mozart, Wagner, and Richard Strauss. Life and career Education Karl Böhm was born in Graz. T ...
. ''Bluebeard's Castle'' received its French premiere on 17 April 1950 in a radio broadcast on
Radiodiffusion-Télévision Française Radiodiffusion-Télévision Française (RTF; ''French Radio and Television Broadcasting'') was the French national public broadcaster television organization established on 9 February 1949 to replace the post-war "''Radiodiffusion Française''" ...
.
Ernest Ansermet Ernest Alexandre Ansermet (; 11 November 1883 – 20 February 1969)"Ansermet, Ernest" in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 435. was a Swiss conductor. Biography Ansermet ...
conducted the performance, which featured
Renée Gilly Renée Gilly (19 April 1906 – 31 March 1977) was a French operatic mezzo-soprano. She was a long-time principal member of the Opéra-Comique, where she performed leading roles such as Massenet's Charlotte, Mascagni's Santuzza, and Bizet ...
as Judith and Lucien Lovano as Bluebeard. The first staged production of the work in France was at the
Opéra national du Rhin The Opéra national du Rhin is an opera company which performs in Alsace, eastern France. It includes the Opéras in Strasbourg, in Mulhouse, where the Ballet de l'Opéra national du Rhin, also known as the Ballet Du Rhin, is based, and in Colmar, ...
on 29 April 1954 with
Heinz Rehfuss Heinz Julius Rehfuss (25 May 1917 – 27 June 1988) was a Swiss operatic bass-baritone, who later became an American citizen. He was particularly associated with the title roles in '' Don Giovanni'' and '' Boris Godunov'', and Golaud in '' Pelléa ...
in the title role,
Elsa Cavelti Elsa Cavelti (4 May 1907 – 10 August 2001) was a Swiss operatic contralto and mezzo-soprano, temporarily also a dramatic soprano, who worked at German and Swiss opera houses and as an international guest. She was an academic voice teacher in Fran ...
as Judith, and conductor
Ernest Bour Ernest Bour (20 April 1913 - 20 June 2001) was a noted conductor. Born in Thionville, Moselle (in north-eastern Lorraine, then part of Germany), Bour studied at both the University and the Conservatoire of Strasbourg. His conducting teachers inc ...
. The first performance in Paris was at the
Opéra-Comique The Opéra-Comique is a Paris opera company which was founded around 1714 by some of the popular theatres of the Parisian fairs. In 1762 the company was merged with – and for a time took the name of – its chief rival, the Comédie-Italienne ...
on 8 October 1959Béla Bartók: Le Château de Barbe-Bleue. In: Kaminski, Piotr. ''Mille et Un Opéras''. Fayard, 2003, p57. with soprano
Berthe Monmart Saint Bertha or Saint Aldeberge (c. 565 – d. in or after 601) was the queen of Kent whose influence led to the Christianization of Anglo-Saxon England. She was canonized as a saint for her role in its establishment during that period of E ...
and bass
Xavier Depraz Xavier Depraz, ''né'' Xavier Marcel Delaruelle (22 April 1926 – 18 October 1994) was a French opera singer and actor. Life Born in Albert ( Somme), Depraz was a bass at the Paris Opéra until 1971. He took part in the premieres of operas by ...
. The production was directed by Marcel Lamy and used a French translation by
Michel-Dimitri Calvocoressi Michel-Dimitri Calvocoressi (2 October 1877 – 1 February 1944) was a French-born music critic and musicologist of Greek descent who was an English citizen and resident from 1914 onwards. He often promoted Russian composers, particularly Modes ...
. The London première took place on 16 January 1957 at the
Rudolf Steiner Theatre Rudolf Steiner House is a Grade 2 listed building near Regent's Park, London, which is the home of the Anthroposophical Society of Great Britain. It is a cultural hub and contains a library, bookshop, cafe, 220-seat theatre, and a therapy and wel ...
during the English tour of Scottish composer
Erik Chisholm Erik William Chisholm (4 January 1904 – 8 June 1965) was a Scottish composer, pianist, organist and conductor sometimes known as "Scotland's forgotten composer". According to his biographer, Chisholm "was the first composer to absorb Celtic ...
directing the
University of Cape Town The University of Cape Town (UCT) ( af, Universiteit van Kaapstad, xh, Yunibesithi ya yaseKapa) is a public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university statu ...
Opera Company whose
Désirée Talbot Professor Désirée Talbot (born 24 October 1926, Cape Town, South Africa – 24 July 2020) was a South African opera soprano and one of the founding members of the UCT Opera Company. Early life and education She was educated at Collegiate G ...
was Judith. A few years earlier, Chisholm had premièred this work in South Africa at the Little Theatre in Cape Town. The work was first performed in Japan on 29 April 1954 by the Youth Group of the Fujiwara Opera Company (under conductor Yoichiro Fukunaga with piano accompaniment). The opera was presented with full orchestra in the 348th regular concert of the
NHK Symphony Orchestra The is a Japanese broadcast orchestra based in Tokyo. The orchestra gives concerts in several venues, including the NHK Hall, Suntory Hall, and the Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall. History The orchestra began as the ''New Symphony Orchestra'' o ...
on 16 March 1957. The opera's Austrian premiere took place at the
Salzburg Festival The Salzburg Festival (german: Salzburger Festspiele) is a prominent festival of music and drama established in 1920. It is held each summer (for five weeks starting in late July) in the Austrian town of Salzburg, the birthplace of Wolfgang Amad ...
on 4 August 1978 with conductor
George Alexander Albrecht George Alexander Albrecht (15 February 1935 – 21 December 2021) was a German conductor and composer, who also worked as a musicologist and academic teacher. A prolific composer at a young age, he was Generalmusikdirektor (GMD) of the Staatsope ...
, Walter Berry and Katalin Kasza. In Israel, the opera premiered on 15 December 2010 at the New
Israeli Opera The Israeli Opera, formerly known as the New Israeli Opera, is the principal opera company of Israel. It was founded in 1985 after lack of Israeli government funding led to the demise of the Israel National Opera. Since 1994 the Tel Aviv Performi ...
in Tel Aviv. Vladimir Braun was Bluebeard and Svetlana Sandler sang Judith. Shirit Lee Weiss directed and Ilan Volkov conducted. The sets, originally used in the
Seattle Symphony The Seattle Symphony is an American orchestra based in Seattle, Washington. Since 1998, the orchestra is resident at Benaroya Hall. The orchestra also serves as the accompanying orchestra for the Seattle Opera. History Beginnings The orchestra ...
's 2007 performance were designed by glass artist Dale Chihuly. In 1988 the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
broadcast an adaptation of the opera as ''Duke Bluebeard's Castle'' directed by
Leslie Megahey Norman Leslie Megahey (22 December 1944 – 27 August 2022) was a British television producer, director and writer. Born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, the son of Thomas Megahey (a minister) and Beatrice (née Walton), Leslie Megahey was educated ...
. It starred Robert Lloyd as Bluebeard and Elizabeth Laurence as Judith. The Taiwanese première, directed and conducted by Tseng Dau-Hsiong, took place in the National Theater in Taipei on 30 December 2011. In January 2015, the Metropolitan Opera presented its first production of ''Bluebeard's Castle'' in the original Hungarian, starring Mikhail Petrenko as Bluebeard and
Nadja Michael Nadja Michael (born 1969) is a German opera singer with an active international career singing leading soprano roles. Her mother's great-aunt was the soprano Erna Sack. Early life and education She was born near Leipzig in Wurzen, then East G ...
as Judith. In 2022 the
Teatro Colón The Teatro Colón (Spanish: ''Columbus Theatre'') is the main opera house in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It is considered one of the ten best opera houses in the world by National Geographic. According to a survey carried out by the acousti ...
of Buenos Aires broadcast a staging directed by
Sophie Hunter Sophie Irene Hunter (born 16 March 1978) is an English theatre director, playwright and former actress and singer. She made her directorial debut in 2007 co-directing the experimental play ''The Terrific Electric'' at the Barbican Pit after her ...
.


Roles

Bartók includes the Castle on the
dramatis personæ Dramatis personae (Latin: 'persons of the drama') are the main characters in a dramatic work written in a list. Such lists are commonly employed in various forms of theatre, and also on screen. Typically, off-stage characters are not considere ...
page.


Synopsis

:Place: A huge, dark hall in a castle, with seven locked doors. :Time: Not defined. Judith and Bluebeard arrive at his castle, which is all dark. Bluebeard asks Judith if she wants to stay and even offers her an opportunity to leave, but she decides to stay. Judith insists that all the doors be opened, to allow light to enter into the forbidding interior, insisting further that her demands are based on her love for Bluebeard. Bluebeard refuses, saying that there are private places not to be explored by others, and asking Judith to love him but ask no questions. Judith persists, and eventually prevails over his resistance. The first door opens to reveal a torture chamber, stained with blood. Repelled, but then intrigued, Judith pushes on. Behind the second door is a storehouse of weapons, and behind the third a storehouse of riches. Bluebeard urges her on. Behind the fourth door is a secret garden of great beauty; behind the fifth, a window onto Bluebeard's vast kingdom. All is now sunlit, but blood has stained the riches, watered the garden, and grim clouds throw blood-red shadows over Bluebeard's kingdom. Bluebeard pleads with her to stop: the castle is as bright as it can get, and will not get any brighter, but Judith refuses to be stopped after coming this far, and opens the penultimate sixth door, as a shadow passes over the castle. This is the first room that has not been somehow stained with blood; a silent silvery lake is all that lies within, "a lake of tears". Bluebeard begs Judith to simply love him, and ask no more questions. The last door must be shut forever. But she persists, asking him about his former wives, and then accusing him of having murdered them, suggesting that their blood was the blood everywhere, that their tears were those that filled the lake, and that their bodies lie behind the last door. At this, Bluebeard hands over the last key. Behind the door are Bluebeard's three former wives, but still alive, dressed in crowns and jewellery. They emerge silently, and Bluebeard, overcome with emotion, prostrates himself before them and praises each in turn (as his wives of dawn, midday and dusk), finally turning to Judith and beginning to praise her as his fourth wife (of the night). She is horrified and begs him to stop, but it is too late. He dresses her in the jewellery they wear, which she finds exceedingly heavy. Her head drooping under the weight, she follows the other wives along a beam of moonlight through the seventh door. It closes behind her, and Bluebeard is left alone as all fades to total darkness.


Symbolism

The Hungarian conductor István Kertész believed that we should not relate this to the fairy tale on which it was based, but that Bluebeard was Bartók himself, and that it portrays his personal suffering and his reluctance to reveal the inner secrets of his soul, which are progressively invaded by Judith. In this way he can be seen as
Everyman The everyman is a stock character of fiction. An ordinary and humble character, the everyman is generally a protagonist whose benign conduct fosters the audience's identification with them. Origin The term ''everyman'' was used as early as ...
, although the composer himself was an intensely private man. Here the blood that pervades the story is the symbol of his suffering. The Prologue (often omitted) points to the story that is portrayed as occurring in the imagination of the audience. While Kertész felt Judith is a villain in this sense, Christa Ludwig, who has sung the role, disagrees, stating that she only voices all that she has heard about Bluebeard. She refers repeatedly to the rumours (''hír''), ''Jaj, igaz hír; suttogó hír'' (Ah, truthful whispered rumours). Ludwig also believed that Judith was telling the truth every time she says to him, ''Szeretlek!'' (I love you!). Another Judith,
Nadja Michael Nadja Michael (born 1969) is a German opera singer with an active international career singing leading soprano roles. Her mother's great-aunt was the soprano Erna Sack. Early life and education She was born near Leipzig in Wurzen, then East G ...
, had a somewhat different more symbolic interpretation. In a broadcast from the
Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is operat ...
on 14 February 2015, she stated that it does not matter who Judith is, she symbolises a human being who has to face up to all the fears that she brings from her past. In 2020, the Bayerische Staatsoper presented a transformed staging of Bluebeard's Castle into a work they titled "Judith.
Link to archived page.
The opera is preceded by a film that sets up the revised drama, using Bartok's "Concerto for Orchestra" as the audio backdrop. Judith is a Police Detective and expert in undercover work. Instead of becoming Bluebeard's next victim, she frees the three previous wives and kills the perpetrator. The reinterpretation has received many positive review
including this one


Staging

Traditionally, the set is a single dark hall surrounded by the seven doors around the perimeter. As each door is opened, a stream of symbolically colored light comes forth (except in the case of the sixth door, for which the hall is actually darkened). The symbolic colors of the seven doors are as follows: # (The torture chamber) Blood-red # (The armory) Yellowish-red # (The treasury) Golden # (The garden) Bluish-green # (The kingdom) White (the stage directions read: "in a gleaming torrent, the light streams in", "blue mountains") # (The pool of tears) Darkness; the main hall is darkened, as if a shadow had passed over # (The wives) Silvery (stage directions: "silver like the moon") The slow orchestral introduction to the work is preceded by a spoken prologue, also by Balázs, published as "Prologue of the Bard" independently of the play. This poses to the audience the questions "Where is the stage? Is it outside, or inside?" as well as offering a warning to pay careful attention to the events about to unfold. The prologue warns the audience that the morals of the tale can apply to the real world as well as to that of Bluebeard and Judith. The character of the bard (or "regős" in the Hungarian language) is traditional in Hungarian folk music, and the words of the prologue (notably its opening lines "Haj, regő, rejtem") are associated with traditional Hungarian "regősénekek" (Regős songs), which Bartók had previously studied. The prologue is frequently omitted from performances. The stage directions call also for occasional ghostly sighs that seemingly emanate from the castle itself when some of the doors are opened. Productions implement these in different ways, sometimes instrumentally, sometimes vocally.


Music and instrumentation

The most salient characteristic of the music from ''Bluebeard's Castle'' is the importance of the
minor second A semitone, also called a half step or a half tone, is the smallest musical interval commonly used in Western tonal music, and it is considered the most dissonant when sounded harmonically. It is defined as the interval between two adjacent no ...
, an interval whose dissonance is used repeatedly in both slow and fast passages to evoke aching sadness/disquiet or danger/shock respectively. The minor second is referred to as the 'blood' motif, for it is used whenever Judith notices blood in the castle. Overall the music is not atonal, although it is often polytonal, with more than one key center operating simultaneously (e.g. the leadup to the climactic opening of the fifth door). However, there are some passages (for example, door 3) where the music is tonal and mostly consonant. Many critics have found an overall key plan, as one would find in a tonal piece of music. The opera starts in a mode of F, modulating towards C in the middle of the piece (tonally, the greatest possible distance from F), before returning to F towards the end. The text and setting at these points has suggested to some that the F-C dichotomy represents darkness/light. The vocal parts are very challenging due to the highly chromatic and speech-rhythm-inflected style that Bartók uses. For non-native speakers, the Hungarian-language libretto can also be difficult to master. These reasons, coupled with the static effect of the stage action, combine to make staged performances of the opera a comparative rarity; it more often appears in concert form. To support the psychological undertones, Bartók calls for a large orchestra. The instrumentation is as notated below: 4
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 (3rd and 4th doubling two
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 ...
s), 2
oboe 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 ...
s,
cor anglais The cor anglais (, or original ; plural: ''cors anglais''), or English horn in North America, is a double-reed woodwind instrument in the oboe family. It is approximately one and a half times the length of an oboe, making it essentially an alto ...
, 3
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 in A and B (1st and 2nd doubling two E clarinets, 3rd 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 ...
), 4
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 (4th doubling
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xylophone The xylophone (; ) is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars struck by mallets. Like the glockenspiel (which uses metal bars), the xylophone essentially consists of a set of tuned wooden keys arranged in the ...
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. In addition, Bartók calls for ''Musica di scena'' ('Stage music') of an extra 4 trumpets and 4 alto trombones.Universal Edition published score (UE 13641)


Translations

The original German translation by Wilhelm Ziegler appears in the 1921 first edition of the vocal score. In 1963 a revised singing translation by Wilhelm Ziegler replaced it. The English translation printed in the 1963 miniature score is by Christopher Hassall. The one in the full score is by
Chester Kallman Chester Simon Kallman (January 7, 1921 – January 18, 1975) was an American poet, librettist, and translator, best known for collaborating with W. H. Auden on opera librettos for Igor Stravinsky and other composers. Life Kallman was born in ...
. Another singing translation is that made by John Lloyd Davies for the
Scottish Opera Scottish Opera is the national opera company of Scotland, and one of the five national performing arts companies of Scotland. Founded in 1962 and based in Glasgow, it is the largest performing arts organisation in Scotland. History Scottish Op ...
in 1989 (in British National Opera Guide No. 44, 1991). A reasonably faithful version in French is that of Natalia and Charles Zaremba (', 1992).


Film adaptation

''
Herzog Blaubarts Burg ''Herzog Blaubarts Burg'' ("Duke Bluebeard's Castle") (1963) is a film of the opera ''Bluebeard's Castle'' by the Hungarian composer Béla Bartók, written in 1911 to a symbolist libretto by the poet and later film theorist Béla Balázs. The fi ...
'', a 1963 film version directed by
Michael Powell Michael Latham Powell (30 September 1905 – 19 February 1990) was an English filmmaker, celebrated for his partnership with Emeric Pressburger. Through their production company The Archers, they together wrote, produced and directed a serie ...
, sung in German.


Recordings


References


Bibliography

* * .


Further reading

* Antokoletz, Elliott. ''Musical Symbolism in the Operas of Debussy and Bartók: Trauma, Gender, and the Unfolding of the Unconscious'', with the collaboration of Juana Canabal Antokoletz. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press. * Kroó, György. 1981. "Data on the Genesis of ''Duke Bluebeard's Castle''". ''Studia Musicologica Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae'' 23:79–123. (Includes facsimile of 1912 ending, amongst other things.) * Leafstedt, Carl S.: ''Inside Bluebeard's Castle.'' Oxford and New York:
Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...
.


External links

*
English libretto
from the 1965 DECCA recording, to accompany the German film of the opera, ''
Herzog Blaubarts Burg ''Herzog Blaubarts Burg'' ("Duke Bluebeard's Castle") (1963) is a film of the opera ''Bluebeard's Castle'' by the Hungarian composer Béla Bartók, written in 1911 to a symbolist libretto by the poet and later film theorist Béla Balázs. The fi ...
''
Hungarian libretto
by Nicholas Vazsonyi, ''The Hungarian Quarterly'', vol. XLVI, no. 178, Summer 2005 (includes literal translation of prolog) *, the 1989
Prix Italia The Prix Italia is an international Television, Radio-broadcasting and Web award. It was established in 1948 by RAI – Radiotelevisione Italiana (in 1948, RAI had the denomination RAI – Radio Audizioni Italiane) in Capri and is honoured with the ...
winning
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
production with Robert Lloyd in the title role {{Authority control Hungarian-language operas Operas by Béla Bartók Operas One-act operas 1911 operas Expressionist music Music for orchestra and organ Operas based on works by Charles Perrault Bluebeard Works set in castles