''Tom Jones'' is a

comic opera Comic opera, sometimes known as light opera, is a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending and often including spoken dialogue. Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a ne ...

in three acts by

Edward German Sir Edward German (17 February 1862 – 11 November 1936) was an English musician and composer of Welsh descent, best remembered for his extensive output of incidental music for the stage and as a successor to Arthur Sullivan in the field of ...

founded upon

Henry Fielding Henry Fielding (22 April 1707 – 8 October 1754) was an English novelist, irony writer, and dramatist known for earthy humour and satire. His comic novel '' Tom Jones'' is still widely appreciated. He and Samuel Richardson are seen as founders ...

's 1749

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...

, ''

The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling ''The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'', often known simply as ''Tom Jones'', is a comic novel by English playwright and novelist Henry Fielding. It is a ''Bildungsroman'' and a picaresque novel. It was first published on 28 February 1749 in L ...

'', 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 ...

Robert Courtneidge Robert Courtneidge (29 June 1859 – 6 April 1939) was a British theatrical manager-producer and playwright. He is best remembered as the co-author of the light opera ''Tom Jones (Edward German), Tom Jones'' (1907) and the producer of ''The Arc ...

and

Alexander M. Thompson Alexander Mattock Thompson (9 May 1861 – 25 March 1948), sometimes credited as A. M. Thompson, was a German-born English journalist and dramatist. From the 1880s, Thompson wrote for socialist newspapers and journals, co-founding '' The Clarion'' ...

and lyrics by

Charles H. Taylor Charles H. Taylor may refer to: * Charles Taylor (North Carolina politician) (born 1941), US congressman from North Carolina * Charles H. Taylor (Michigan politician) (1813–1889), American politician who served as the Michigan Secretary of State ...

. After a run in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

, England, the opera opened in London at the

Apollo Theatre The Apollo Theatre is a Grade II listed West End theatre, on Shaftesbury Avenue in the City of Westminster, in central London.

on 17 April 1907 for an initial run of 110 performances. It starred

Ruth Vincent Ruth Vincent (born Amy Ruth Bunn, 3 December 1873 Hayden Coffin Charles Hayden Coffin (22 April 1862 – 8 December 1935) was an English actor and singer known for his performances in many famous Edwardian musical comedies, particularly those produced by George Edwardes. Hayden achieved fame as Harry Sh ...

as Tom Jones. The piece also had a provincial tour and a popular

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

run in 1907. It then disappeared from the professional repertory but eventually became very popular with amateur groups.

Background and productions

The impresario

, noting the bicentennial of Fielding's birth in 1907, decided to adapt Fielding's novel as a comic opera. He commissioned Thompson and Taylor to collaborate on the libretto and German to write the music. The eroticism of the novel was reduced for Edwardian audiences. The influences of German's predecessor,

Arthur Sullivan Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan (13 May 1842 – 22 November 1900) was an English composer. He is best known for 14 comic opera, operatic Gilbert and Sullivan, collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including ''H.M.S. Pinaf ...

can be seen in the opera's

patter song The patter song is characterised by a moderately fast to very fast tempo with a rapid succession of rhythmic patterns in which each syllable of text corresponds to one note. It is a staple of comic opera, especially Gilbert and Sullivan, but it ...

s and the pseudo-madrigal, "Here’s a paradox for lovers". However, the extended finales and much of the other music, as well as the orchestration shows German's own more romantic style.Detailed liner notes and information about the 2009 recording
/ref> The opera premiered at the Prince's Theatre in

, England, on 3 April 1907, opening in London at the

Apollo Theatre The Apollo Theatre is a Grade II listed West End theatre, on Shaftesbury Avenue in the City of Westminster, in central London.

on 17 April 1907 for an initial run of 110 performances. It starred

as Tom Jones.

Carrie Moore Carrie Moore (31 July 1882 – 5 September 1956) was an Australian actress who achieved fame on the Australian and British stage. She was born Caroline Ellen Moore in Geelong, Victoria, on 31 July 1882, the third of the nine children of R ...

played Honour, and the comedian Dan Rolyat played Partridge. The producer's daughter,

Cicely Courtneidge Dame Esmerelda Cicely Courtneidge, (1 April 1893 – 26 April 1980) was an Australian-born British actress, comedian and singer. The daughter of the producer and playwright Robert Courtneidge, she was appearing in his productions in the West E ...

, made her professional début in the small rôle of Rosie. Costume designs were by

C. Wilhelm William John Charles Pitcher (21 March 1858 – 2 March 1925), known as Wilhelm or C. Wilhelm, was an English artist, costume and scenery designer, best known for his designs for ballets, pantomimes, comic operas and Edwardian musical comedies. Li ...

. Audiences and critics both received ''Tom Jones'' enthusiastically. The critic

Neville Cardus Sir John Frederick Neville Cardus, CBE (2 April 188828 February 1975) was an English writer and critic. From an impoverished home background, and mainly self-educated, he became ''The Manchester Guardian''s cricket correspondent in 1919 and it ...

wrote, "Next morning I heard over and over again in my head most of the melodies ... I savoured the orchestration ... I returned to ''Tom Jones'' night after night; I sold several of my precious books to obtain admission". ''Tom Jones'' was still playing strongly at the Apollo when it closed after 110 performances. It would have run longer, but Courtneidge had already booked a provincial tour with the same cast. The piece also had a popular Broadway run at the Astor Theatre beginning on 11 November 1907, which interpolated the song "King Neptune" from German's 1902 comic opera, '' Merrie England'', into the third act. It then disappeared from the professional repertory. Due to the perceived raciness of the original novel even into the 20th century, the opera was initially avoided by amateur performing groups, but eventually reached a level of popularity comparable to ''Merrie England''. A few modern performing groups such as the

Shaw Festival The Shaw Festival is a not-for-profit theatre festival in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada. It is the second largest repertory theatre company in North America. The Shaw Festival was founded in 1962. Originally, it only featured production ...

have found the libretto to be an excessively diluted version of the original novel and have produced rewritten versions with revised lyrics and dialogue.

Richard Traubner Richard Traubner (November 24, 1946 – February 25, 2013) was an American journalist, author, operetta scholar and historian, and lecturer on theatre and (mostly musical) film. His best-known book, ''Operetta: A Theatrical History'', was first pu ...

asked in ''

Opera News ''Opera News'' is an American classical music magazine. It has been published since 1936 by the Metropolitan Opera Guild, a non-profit organization located at Lincoln Center which was founded to engender the appreciation of opera and also support ...

'':

But does a ''Tom Jones'' that pleased a refined Edwardian clientele still hold up, especially after
Tony Richardson Cecil Antonio "Tony" Richardson (5 June 1928 – 14 November 1991) was an English theatre and film director and producer whose career spanned five decades. In 1964, he won the Academy Award for Best Director for the film ''Tom Jones (1963 film ...
's famous 1963 film version...? I'm not so sure. The libretto is almost devoid of ribaldry, many of the lyrics are a sorry collection of Latin locutions and/or olde-English fa-la-las, and the
patter song The patter song is characterised by a moderately fast to very fast tempo with a rapid succession of rhythmic patterns in which each syllable of text corresponds to one note. It is a staple of comic opera, especially Gilbert and Sullivan, but it ...
s are pallid lists. That leaves Edward German's music, which is for the most part very accomplished, beautifully orchestrated and redolent of both the English countryside (Somerset) and London's pleasure gardens (Ranelagh) in the eighteenth century. Somehow, this composer of antique incidental music for the stage ... feels more at home in the operetta world with the Elizabethan setting of his patriotic '' Merrie England''. One wants a saucier treatment for ''Tom Jones'', perhaps along the lines of ''
The Beggar's Opera ''The Beggar's Opera'' is a ballad opera in three acts written in 1728 by John Gay with music arranged by Johann Christoph Pepusch. It is one of the watershed plays in Augustan drama and is the only example of the once thriving genre of satiri ...
''. But that would deprive us of hearing German's fine martial songs; his convoluted, challenging chorus writing; some very catchy ditties for the soubrette, Honour; the famous coloratura waltz-song for the heroine, Sophia; and most important, his sweeping finales, which have a breadth that occasionally just touches
Ralph Vaughan Williams Ralph Vaughan Williams, (; 12 October 1872– 26 August 1958) was an English composer. His works include operas, ballets, chamber music, secular and religious vocal pieces and orchestral compositions including nine symphonies, written over ...
territory. You may ... tire of so many jigs and other intrusive country dances, but that's Edward German for you, exactly. Traubner, Richard
"German: ''Tom Jones''"
''
Opera News ''Opera News'' is an American classical music magazine. It has been published since 1936 by the Metropolitan Opera Guild, a non-profit organization located at Lincoln Center which was founded to engender the appreciation of opera and also support ...
'', February 2010, vol. 74, no. 8, accessed December 1, 2010

The opera is best known for a suite of three of its dance numbers for orchestra and the act 3 waltz song, which can be found on numerous recordings. A 2009 recording by Naxos was the first complete professional recording of the opera, conducted by

David Russell Hulme David Russell Hulme (born 19 June 1951) is a Welsh conductor and musicologist. He is an Emeritus Reader and the former Director of Music at Aberystwyth University and is known for his research and publications on the music of Arthur Sullivan, t ...

Roles and original cast

*Tom Jones, ''a

Foundling Foundling may refer to: * An abandoned child, see child abandonment * Foundling hospital, an institution where abandoned children were cared for ** Foundling Hospital, Dublin, founded 1704 ** Foundling Hospital, Cork, founded 1737 ** Foundling H ...

'' (high

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...

) –

Hayden Coffin Charles Hayden Coffin (22 April 1862 – 8 December 1935) was an English actor and singer known for his performances in many famous Edwardian musical comedies, particularly those produced by George Edwardes. Hayden achieved fame as Harry Sh ...

*Mr. Allworthy, ''a

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

shire Magistrate'' (

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

) – John Morley *Blifil, ''his Nephew'' (baritone) – Arthur Soames *Benjamin Partridge, ''a Village Barber'' (comic baritone) – Dan Rolyat *Squire Western, ''a "fine Old English Gentleman"'' (baritone) – Ambrose Manning *Gregory, Grizzle and Dobbin, ''his Servants'' (baritones) –

Jay Laurier James Alexander Chapman (31 March 1879 – 8 April 1969), known by his stage name, Jay Laurier, was an English actor. Early in his career he was a music hall performer, but by the late 1930s he was playing in the works of Shakespeare at the S ...

, Bernard Gorcey and Henry Turpin *Squire Cloddy, Pimlott, and Tony, ''friends of Squire Western'' (non-singing) *''An Officer'' (

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 ...

) –

Harry Welchman Harry Welchman (24 February 1886 – 3 January 1966) was an English star of musical theatre. He made several appearances in non-musical plays, but was remembered as, in the words of ''The Times'', "perhaps the most popular musical comedy hero on th ...

*''Two Highwaymen'' and a "Post Boy" (non-singing) *''Waiter'' (non-speaking) *Colonels Hampstead and Wilcox (non-singing) *Tom Edwards (non-singing) *Sophia, ''

Squire In the Middle Ages, a squire was the shield- or armour-bearer of a knight. Use of the term evolved over time. Initially, a squire served as a knight's apprentice. Later, a village leader or a lord of the manor might come to be known as a " ...

Western's daughter'' (

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 ...

) –

Ruth Vincent Ruth Vincent (born Amy Ruth Bunn, 3 December 1873 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 ...

) –

*Miss Western, ''Squire Western's Sister'' (non-singing) – Marie Daltra *Lady Bellaston, ''a Lady of Quality'' (soprano or mezzo-soprano) – Dora Rignold *Etoff, ''her Maid'' (non-speaking) –

Dorothy Ward Dorothy Ward (26 April 1890 – 30 March 1987) was an English actress who specialised in pantomimes, playing the principal boy roles, while her husband Shaun Glenville would play the dame roles. She had a successful 52 year career and played in ...

*''Hostess of the Inn at Upton'' (soprano) – Florence Parfrey *Bessie Wiseacre, Lettie Wheatcroft, and Rosie Lucas (

), ''Friends of Sophia'' (non-singing) *Susan, ''Serving Maid at Upton'' (non-singing) *Betty and Peggy, ''Waiting Maids'' (soprano and mezzo-soprano) *Chorus of Ladies, Gallants, Huntsmen, Soldiers, etc.

Synopsis

Act 1 – The Lawn at Squire Western's Tom Jones, a foundling adopted in infancy by Mr Allworthy, is popular for his geniality and sportsmanship. Tom is in love with Sophia, Squire Western's daughter, but her father wishes her to marry Blifil, Allworthy's nephew and heir. Tom's feelings for Sophia are reciprocated. Western's trouble-making sister accuses Tom of impropriety with Sophie's maid, Honour, but this false accusation is rebutted and Honour pairs up with Gregory, a local youth. Blifil also attempts to slur Tom's honourable reputation, but Honour outwits him. Blifil proposes to Sophia, but is rejected. He and Tom come to blows, and Tom knocks him down. Western angrily rejects Tom's plea for Sophia's hand. Allworthy disowns Tom, and Sophia is in disgrace with Squire Western. Act 2 – The Inn at Upton Sophia, accompanied by Honour, has run away, intending to seek refuge with Lady Bellaston, her cousin, in London. Blifil and Squire Western arrive at the inn in pursuit. There they meet Benjamin Partridge, the village barber and quack-doctor, who, it emerges, knows something about the foundling Tom's birth. Sophia and Honour arrive, but they and their pursuers remain unaware of each other's presence. Next to arrive is Tom, with Lady Bellaston, whom he has rescued from highwaymen. She is much taken with her gallant rescuer, and Sophia, believing Tom to be false, leaves at once. He sets off in pursuit of her. Act 3 – Ranelagh Gardens Sophia has gone to live with her cousin, Lady Bellaston, and is well established in London society. Tom finds Sophia, who eventually realises that she has been mistaken in doubting his fidelity to her. Partridge has told Western the secret of Tom's birth: he is Allworthy's elder nephew and heir, and Western now gladly consents to Tom and Sophia's marriage.

Musical numbers

*Introduction Act 1 *1. "Don't you find the weather charming?" (Chorus) *2. "On a Januairy Morning" (Squire Western, Chorus) *3. "West Country Lad" (Tom, chorus) *4. "To-day my spinet" (Sophia) *5. "Wisdom says 'Festina Lente'" (Sophia, Honour, Tom) *6. "The Barley Mow" (Honour and Gregory, with Betty, Peggy, Dobbin, Grizzle) *7. Madrigal: "Here's a paradox for lovers" (Sophia, Honour, Tom, Allworthy) *8. Finale act 1 (Ensemble) Act 2 *9. "Hurry, Bustle! Hurry, bustle!" (Chorus, Hostess, Officer) *10. "A person of parts" (Partridge, chorus) *11. "Dream o' Day Jill" (Sophia) *12. "Gurt Uncle Jan Tappit" (Gregory, chorus) *12a. "My Lady's coach has been attacked" (Chorus, Hostess) *13. "As all the Maids" (Honour) *14. Laughing Trio: "You have a pretty wit" (Honour, Gregory, Partridge) *15. "A soldier's scarlet coat" (Tom, chorus) *16. "Love maketh the heart a garden fair" (Sophia, chorus) *17. Finale act 2 (Ensemble) Act 3 *18. Introduction to act 3,

Morris Dance Morris dancing is a form of English folk dance. It is based on rhythmic stepping and the execution of choreographed figures by a group of dancers, usually wearing bell pads on their shins. Implements such as sticks, swords and handkerchiefs may ...

*18a. Gavotte: "Glass of Fashion, Mould of Form" (Chorus) *19. "The Green Ribbon" (Honour, male chorus) *20. "If love's content" (Tom) *21. Barcarolle: "Beguile, beguile, with music sweet" (Trio of female voices, chorus) *21a. Recitative and Waltz Song: "Which is my own true self?" ... "For Tonight" (Sophia) *22. "Says a well-worn Saw" (Honour, Partridge, Gregory) *22a. Melos *23. Finale act 3: "Hark! The Merry Marriage Bells" (Ensemble) Additional musical numbers cut from the original production but included on the Naxos 2009 recording *Song: A Foundling Boy (Tom) *Song: By night and day (Sophia) *Trio: Come away with me my deary (Sophia, Honour, Tom)

References

External links

Vocal score

''Tom Jones''
at The Edward German Discography
in ''The Play Pictorial''
at The Guide to Light Opera and Operetta

with photos * ttp://www.naxos.com/mainsite/blurbs_reviews.asp?item_code=8.660270-71&catNum=660270&filetype=About+this+Recording&language=English Naxos liner notesbr>Review
in ''The Outlook''

* {{Authority control Operas by Edward German English-language operas English comic operas Operas 1907 operas Operas set in London Operas set in England Operas based on novels Adaptations of works by Henry Fielding