''L'Île Enchantée'' (literally, The Enchanted Island) is an 1864 ballet by Arthur Sullivan written as a

divertissement ''Divertissement'' (from the French 'diversion' or 'amusement') is used, in a similar sense to the Italian 'divertimento', for a light piece of music for a small group of players, however the French term has additional meanings. During the 17th and ...

at the end of

Vincenzo Bellini Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini (; 3 November 1801 – 23 September 1835) was a Sicilian opera composer, who was known for his long-flowing melodic lines for which he was named "the Swan of Catania". Many years later, in 1898, Gius ...

's ''

La Sonnambula ''La sonnambula'' (''The Sleepwalker'') is an opera semiseria in two acts, with music in the ''bel canto'' tradition by Vincenzo Bellini set to an Italian libretto by Felice Romani, based on a scenario for a ''ballet-pantomime'' written by Eu ...

'' at Covent Garden. It was choreographed by H. Desplaces."Review from ''The Orchestra'', 21 May 1864"
reprinted at the Gilbert and Sullivan Archive, 27 July 2010, accessed 2 February 2016

Background and history

Arthur Sullivan was the organist for the Royal Italian Opera at Covent Garden, precursor to the Royal Opera, under the direction of Sir Michael Costa. He had made a sensation at

The Crystal Palace The Crystal Palace was a cast iron and plate glass structure, originally built in Hyde Park, London, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. The exhibition took place from 1 May to 15 October 1851, and more than 14,000 exhibitors from around th ...

with his incidental music to '' The Tempest'' in 1862. In the

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...

, it was customary for opera companies, when performing a shorter opera, to present a short ballet as an

afterpiece An afterpiece is a short, usually humorous one-act playlet or musical work following the main attraction, the full-length play, and concluding the theatrical evening.p24 "The Chambers Dictionary"Edinburgh, Chambers,2003 This short comedy, farce, ...

on the programme. As Sullivan was its house organist, the Royal Italian Opera looked to him to compose a ballet to follow its production of ''

La sonnambula ''La sonnambula'' (''The Sleepwalker'') is an opera semiseria in two acts, with music in the ''bel canto'' tradition by Vincenzo Bellini set to an Italian libretto by Felice Romani, based on a scenario for a ''ballet-pantomime'' written by Eu ...

'' starring

Adelina Patti Adelina Patti (19 February 184327 September 1919) was an Italian 19th-century opera singer, earning huge fees at the height of her career in the music capitals of Europe and America. She first sang in public as a child in 1851, and gave her la ...

, and so Sullivan's second major composition became ''L'Île Enchantée''.Shepherd, Marc
"L'Ile Enchantée, ballet (1864)"
The Gilbert and Sullivan Discography, 29 October 2001, accessed 2 February 2016 It was first performed on 16 May 1864, just after the composer's 22nd birthday, and enjoyed 13 performances in all, also appearing after Flowtow's ''Stradella'', Rossini's '' Otello'', Donizetti's '' La Figlia del Reggimento'' and '' L'Elisir d'Amore'', and Verdi's '' La Traviata'',Tillett and Spencer
"Sullivan's ballet “L'Ile Enchantée”"
Forschung, 1997, accessed 2 February 2016 and it was presented in concert at

in 1865.Information about the ballet and its restoration and later presentations
/ref> The choreographer, H. Desplaces danced the role of the Mariner, Mdlle. Salvioni was the Queen of the Fairies, and other dancers included Mdlle. Carmine, Mdlle. Navarre, Mdlle. Assunta and Mr. W. H. Payne. The scenic designer was William Beverley. The ballet consists of thirteen different numbers that break down into a total of approximately 30 independent melodic sections. A review in ''The Orchestra'' dated 21 May 1864 called the music "unusually picturesque and beautiful." After three years, the full

autograph score An autograph or holograph is a manuscript or document written in its author's or composer's hand. The meaning of autograph as a document penned entirely by the author of its content, as opposed to a typeset document or one written by a copyist o ...

was lost, although the surviving orchestra parts have permitted a reconstruction of the piece. Parts of the music in the ballet were reused in several of Sullivan's later works including: '' Thespis'' (1871), ''

The Merchant of Venice ''The Merchant of Venice'' is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. A merchant in Venice named Antonio defaults on a large loan provided by a Jewish moneylender, Shylock. Although classified as ...

'' (1871), '' The Merry Wives of Windsor'' (incidental music; 1874), '' Macbeth'' (1888), and his other ballet ''

Victoria and Merrie England ''Victoria and Merrie England'', billed as a "Grand National Ballet in Eight Tableaux" is an 1897 ballet by the choreographer Carlo Coppi with music by Arthur Sullivan, written to commemorate Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee, commemorating her s ...

'' (1897). In June 1990, the Sir Arthur Sullivan Society Festival staged the first performance since 1867.

Description of the ballet

On a sea-shore, satyrs enter and wake sleeping nymphs. A storm frightens the fairies away and washes on shore an exhausted shipwrecked sailor. He awakes to find himself on an island whose residents are mythical creatures. He is enchanted by The Fairy Queen, who brings him to the magical fairy bower. The sailor encounters other nymphs who test his faithfulness. After scenes of jealousy involving the characters' former lovers, the Queen of the Fairies and the sailor fall in love, leaving the jilted lovers behind. The Fairy Queen and the sailor finally kiss, transforming the Fairy Queen into a mortal, and she bestows her hand upon him.

Musical numbers

*No. 1 Prelude *No. 2 Dance of Nymphs and Satyrs - Pas de Châles *No. 3 Galop *No. 4 Storm - Entrance of the Gnomes - Entrance of Fairy Queen *No. 5 Pas de deux *No. 6 Mazurka *No. 6a Variation *No. 7 Scène des disparitions *No. 8 Tempo di valse *No. 8a Variation for Mlle. Carmine *No. 9 Pas de trois *No. 10 Scène de jalousie *No. 11 *No. 12 Galop *No. 13 Finale

Recordings

The ballet was recorded in 1992 by the

RTÉ Concert Orchestra The RTÉ Concert Orchestra is one of the two full-time professional radio orchestras in Ireland that are part of RTÉ, the national broadcasting station. Since its formation as the Radio Éireann Light Orchestra in 1948, the RTÉ Concert Orchestr ...

, conducted by Andrew Penny, for Marco Polo. It was recorded by

BBC Concert Orchestra The BBC Concert Orchestra is a British concert orchestra based in London, one of the British Broadcasting Corporation's five radio orchestras. With around fifty players, it is the only one of the five BBC orchestras which is not a full-scale sym ...

, conducted by John Andrews, and released in 2022 by

Dutton Vocalion Dutton Vocalion specialises in re-issuing on CD music recorded between the 1920s and 1970s, and in issuing albums of modern digital recordings. It was established by British recording and re-mastering engineer Michael J. Dutton. Dutton Laborator ...

."Arthur_Sullivan_–_''L'Île_Enchantée'':_ballet_in_one_act,_"Procession_March",_"Day_Dreams",_''The_Sapphire_Necklace
'':_Overture.html" ;"title="The Sapphire Necklace">"Arthur Sullivan – ''L'Île Enchantée'': ballet in one act, "Procession March", "Day Dreams", ''The Sapphire Necklace
'': Overture">The Sapphire Necklace">"Arthur Sullivan – ''L'Île Enchantée'': ballet in one act, "Procession March", "Day Dreams", ''The Sapphire Necklace
'': Overture Dutton Vocalion (2022) Nick Barnard wrote for MusicWeb International:

Penny understands the Sullivan idiom ... but this new performance edges it out. ... In the intervening years Sullivan’s original score has been found allowing a couple of brief extra movements to be reinstated and generally a more critical edition of the score to be created. ... The Dutton recording is in their undemonstratively sophisticated SACD sound made in the generous acoustic of the Watford Colosseum. The playing from both orchestras is neat and nimble but the BBC players are given more of an opportunity to shine. ... Conductor John Andrews sensibly keeps the music light and the textures clean."Barnard, Nick
"Sir Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900); ''L’île Enchantée'' (1864); 'Procession March' (1863); 'Day Dreams' (1863, orch. 934, Herman Finck); ''The Sapphire Necklace'' – Overture (1863–64)"
MusicWeb International, August 2022

Critique

Barnard also wrote:

e music ... shows both Sullivan’s strengths and limitations as a composer. ''L’île Enchantée'' was his first experience of writing a ballet. ... Part of the concept of 19th Century Grand Opera was the inclusion of a ballet. .... Given that the opera alone is a good two and a half hours, tacking fifty minutes of a new ballet on afterwards would test the concentration of any audience. The general acclaim the score received – it was performed thirteen times within the season – would indicate that the audiences ereentertained. ... The orchestrations are always effective, the melodic flow attractive and indeed often memorable. ... What it lacks – and what it did not really need in its original context – is emotional and dramatic weight. This is just what it says on the tin – a divertissement. e music has little if any dramatic context – there is a storm sequence and a ''Scène de jalousie'' but otherwise this is simply a vehicle to display the dancing talents of the performers. ... Mendelssohn is the predominant influence. Intriguingly there are little glimpses in the galops especially of the kind of nimble patter songs that would be such a key part of the Gilbert & Sullivan legacy. The music is always fluent, certainly enjoyable, skillfully and aptly written in a way that few if any of Sullivan’s British contemporaries could match. But ... ay from the ilbert and Sullivanoperettas that have ensured his enduring fame Sullivan was rather too content to write in styles and genres that supported rather than challenged convention.

Notes

References

*“The Ballets of Arthur Sullivan – A survey written and compiled by Selwyn Tillett” (1997) Coventry: The Sir Arthur Sullivan Society *

External links

score
at IMSLP
List of musical numbers
{{DEFAULTSORT:L'ile Enchantee Ballets by Arthur Sullivan 1864 ballet premieres