''Violet'' is a 2005

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 ...

Roger Scruton Sir Roger Vernon Scruton (; 27 February 194412 January 2020) was an English philosopher and writer who specialised in aesthetics and political philosophy, particularly in the furtherance of traditionalist conservative views. Editor from 1982 t ...

about

Violet Gordon-Woodhouse Violet Gordon-Woodhouse (23 April 18729 January 1948) was a British keyboard player. She specialised in the harpsichord and clavichord, and was influential in bringing both instruments back into fashion. She was the first person to record the ha ...

, a British

keyboard player A keyboardist or keyboard player is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instr ...

. It is the second of Scruton's two operas. He wrote words and music. Scruton said that the opera "tells the remarkable story of this woman who lived with four men – it was a story about the history of music, the history of England, about sex, and the difference between the old culture of sex and the new one, and how it all came together in the life of this peculiar woman". The two-act opera was given the first of two performances on 30 November 2005 at

Guildhall School of Music and Drama The Guildhall School of Music and Drama is a conservatoire and drama school located in the City of London, United Kingdom. Established in 1880, the school offers undergraduate and postgraduate training in all aspects of classical music and jazz ...

in London, directed by Tess Gibbs and conducted by Clive Timms.

Background

The opera is based on the life of the

harpsichord A harpsichord ( it, clavicembalo; french: clavecin; german: Cembalo; es, clavecín; pt, cravo; nl, klavecimbel; pl, klawesyn) is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. This activates a row of levers that turn a trigger mechanism ...

ist Violet Gordon-Woodhouse. Violet is described in

Grove Music Online ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language ''Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and theo ...

as follows: "A woman of wealth and social standing (somewhat imperilled by her irregular private life), she did not lead a very active public professional life, but made a considerable impression on the intellectual and artistic circles of the day". An important source for 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 ...

is the biography of Violet by her great-niece, Jessica Douglas-Home (Douglas-Home, Jessica, "Violet : The Life and Loves of Violet Gordon Woodhouse", 1997). Jessica appears as a character in the opera. Scruton was largely self-taught as a composer, and is better known as a philosopher and writer.Sir Roger Scruton website ''Violet'' is the second of Scruton's two operas – it was preceded by the one-act ''The Minister'' (1998).Review by Hilary West in ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'', 6 May 1998, cited in Roger Scruton website (n.d.) According to ''

critic Hilary Finch, Scruton's first opera was influenced by

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976, aged 63) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, other ...

, whereas according to a review by David Conway, ''Violet'' is influenced by

Leoš Janáček Leoš Janáček (, baptised Leo Eugen Janáček; 3 July 1854 – 12 August 1928) was a Czech composer, musical theorist, folklorist, publicist, and teacher. He was inspired by Moravian and other Slavic musics, including Eastern European fol ...

, a composer whom Scruton was known to admire. The score includes a number of references to music of other composers (including

Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...

and

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 ...

), as well as to

folksong Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...

. The composer has written "In Violet’s world high culture, eccentric life-style, and aristocratic manners achieved a never-to-be-repeated synthesis. And when that world was swept away by the First World War, a part of the English soul was lost".Scruton (2013) According to the programme note of the premiere performance, ''Violet'' epitomises "the sad magnificence of human folly".Conway (2005) The cast of the opera includes Violet, her husband Gordon (with whom she had a ''

mariage blanc Mariage blanc (from the French, literally "white marriage") is a marriage that is without consummation. The persons may have married for a variety of reasons, for example, a marriage of convenience is usually entered into in order to aid or resc ...

'') and a circle of relatives and friends including the

lesbian A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...

composer

Ethel Smyth Dame Ethel Mary Smyth (; 22 April 18588 May 1944) was an English composer and a member of the women's suffrage movement. Her compositions include songs, works for piano, chamber music, orchestral works, choral works and operas. Smyth tended t ...

(whose role is sung by a

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 ...

) and three of Violet's male admirers.

Roles

Synopsis

The opera is set in the Gloucestershire home of the Woodhouses,

Nether Lypiatt Manor Nether Lypiatt Manor is a compact, neo-Classical manor house in the mainly rural parish of Thrupp, near Stroud in Gloucestershire. It was formerly the country home of Prince and Princess Michael of Kent and is a Grade I listed building. D ...

. Jessica (in the present day), reading her great-aunt's papers, recreates the

Edwardian The Edwardian era or Edwardian period of British history spanned the reign of King Edward VII, 1901 to 1910 and is sometimes extended to the start of the First World War. The death of Queen Victoria in January 1901 marked the end of the Victori ...

world of Violet and her 'husbands' – Gordon, Max Labouchere, Bill Barrington (later 10th

Viscount Barrington Viscount Barrington, of Ardglass in the County of Down, was a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1720 for the lawyer, theologian and politician John Barrington. He was made Baron Barrington, of Newcastle in the County of Limeri ...

), Dennis Tollemache and Ethel. In real life, the ''ménage'' appears not to have been sexless, but according to the composer/librettist, Violet had a dream in which "love means purity and passion stops at the garden gate". The characters extol Violet and dine together. In the second act we learn that Max has died in the trenches in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. Jessica, mourning what she sees as the loss of an innocent world, decides to sell the house.

References

Notes Sources *Conway, David (2005)
"Violetta for Me – Roger Scruton's ''Violet'' at the Guildhall School of Music"
in ''

Social Affairs Unit The Social Affairs Unit is a right-leaning think tank in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1980 as an offshoot of the Institute of Economic Affairs, it publishes books on a variety of social issues. Its website notes that "many SAU supporters are inc ...

'' website, accessed 25 January 2015. * Dehn, Georgia (2012)
"World of Roger Scruton, writer and philosopher"
''

Daily Telegraph Daily or The Daily may refer to: Journalism * Daily newspaper, newspaper issued on five to seven day of most weeks * ''The Daily'' (podcast), a podcast by ''The New York Times'' * ''The Daily'' (News Corporation), a defunct US-based iPad new ...

'' 27 January 2012, accessed 26 January 2015. *Salter, Lionel (n.d.)
"Gordon Woodhouse (née Gwynne), Violet (Kate)"
in

, accessed 25 January 2015. *Scruton, Roger (2013)
"Violet – an opera by Roger Scruton"
in ''Clarion Review'' 23 March 2013, accessed 25 January 2015. With the libretto, a recording of the debut, and an introductory essay by the composer. *Scruton, Roger (n.d.)

o

accessed 25 January 2015. * Scruton, Roge
Sir Roger Scruton website
accessed 20 October 2018 {{DEFAULTSORT:Violet Operas 2005 operas English-language operas Operas set in England Operas by Roger Scruton Operas set in the 20th century Operas based on real people Cultural depictions of classical musicians Cultural depictions of British women Guildhall School of Music and Drama