Elisabeth von Schultz-Adaïewsky - Pianistin

''Neprigozhaya'' ( Russian ''Непригожая'', English ''The Ugly Girl''), also known by its German language title ''Die Tochter des Bojaren (The

Boyar A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the Feudalism, feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including Kievan Rus', Bulgarian Empire, Bulgaria, Russian nobility, Russia, Boyars of Moldavia and Wallachia, Wallachia and ...

's Daughter)'', 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 ...

of 1873 by

Ella Adayevskaya Ella Georgiyevna Adayevskaya (Ella Adaïewsky; russian: Элла (Елизавета) Георгиевна Адаевская; 26 July 1926) was a Russian-German composer, pianist, and ethnomusicologist. Adayevskaya wrote vocal music (includin ...

(the pseudonym adopted by the composer Elizaveta von Schultz).

Composition

The opera, which was listed by Adayevskaya as her Op. 5, has a libretto by Rudolf Minzlow (also known as Muntzloff) (1811-1883) adapted by Georg von Schultz and translated from its original German into Russian by Peter Ivanovich Kalashnikov, who translated many lyrics for Adayevskaya's songs. The opera was composed in the period 1872/3, but was frequently revised by the composer up until the 1920s.Hüsken, 309 The libretto in Russian was printed in St. Petersburg in 1873. The manuscript piano score bears the title, in German, ''Salomonida, die Tochter des Bojaren''.Hüsken, 310

Synopsis

The opera is set in a castle near

Novgorod Veliky Novgorod ( rus, links=no, Великий Новгород, t=Great Newtown, p=vʲɪˈlʲikʲɪj ˈnovɡərət), also known as just Novgorod (), is the largest city and administrative centre of Novgorod Oblast, Russia. It is one of the ol ...

at the beginning of the 16th century. The story is a fantasy based on the marriage of Tsar

Vasili III Vasili III Ivanovich (russian: Василий III Иванович, 25 March 14793 December 1533) was the Grand Prince of Moscow from 1505 to 1533. He was the son of Ivan III Vasiliyevich and Sophia Paleologue and was christened with the name ...

and his historical wife, Solomonia Saburova. In the opera, Salomonida, the daughter of a boyar, is a victim of the prejudices of her father, who believes that his beautiful wife had once been unfaithful to him and has refused to even the evidence which would disprove this slander. He persuades his daughter that she is ugly, and even fills the castle with

distorting mirror A distorting mirror, funhouse mirror or carnival mirror is a popular attraction at carnivals and fairs. Instead of a normal plane mirror that reflects a perfect mirror image, distorting mirrors are curved mirrors, often using convex and concave sec ...

s to reinforce this idea in the mind of Salomonida. However, the Tsar is wandering in the neighbourhood disguised as a merchant. Seeing Salomonida, he immediately falls in love with her, and disabuses her (with the aid of a real mirror) of the lie about her ugliness. Demanding her hand from her father, Vasili also disproves the rumours about Salomonida's mother, and all ends happily.Hüsken, 108

Performances

No complete performances are documented. A

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...

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 ...

from the opera was performed in the mid 1870s in St.Petersburg by an unrecorded soloist with an orchestra conducted by

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov . At the time, his name was spelled Николай Андреевичъ Римскій-Корсаковъ. la, Nicolaus Andreae filius Rimskij-Korsakov. The composer romanized his name as ''Nicolas Rimsk ...

. On 23 April 1877, the overture and a number of extracts were performed at the Théâtre des Italiens in Paris. Participating were the

alto The musical term alto, meaning "high" in Italian (Latin: ''altus''), historically refers to the contrapuntal part higher than the tenor and its associated vocal range. In 4-part voice leading alto is the second-highest part, sung in choruses by ...

Mlle. Schulz, the

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 ...

Ottavio Nouvelli, and the

mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; ; meaning "half soprano") is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A below middle C ...

Adelaide Borghi-Mamo Adelaide Borghi-Mamo (9 August 1826 – 29 September 1901) was an Italian operatic mezzo-soprano who had an active international career from the 1840s through the 1880s. She was married to tenor Michele Mamo and their daughter, soprano Erminia ...

.Hüsken, 311

References

;Notes ;Sources *Hüsken, Renate (2005). ''Ella Adaïewsky (1846-1926): Pianistin – Komponistin – Musikwissenschaftlerin''. Cologne: Dohr. {{ISBN, 3-936655-18-9. Operas 1873 operas Operas set in Russia Russian-language operas Operas by Ella Adayevskaya One-act operas Operas set in the 16th century Operas based on real people Cultural depictions of Russian monarchs Cultural depictions of female monarchs