that more musical analysis of the pearl fishers

 I swear I'm not trying to act like Damon, but this is my more musical take on my orginal post from here: http://fantasmicalteal.blogspot.com/2012/09/the-pearl-fishers.html

For my concert, I went to the San Jose Opera’s rendition of Georges Bizet’s The Pearl Fishers.  It is an opéra tragédie – as opposed to a comedie / opera comique, where there are happier songs & a usually happy ending [however this does not mean that the comédie is free from struggle or sorrowful parts; they are just happier in comparison.]

Bizet is a French Romantic composter.  & during the Romantic period, especially in the visual arts, French & other European artists were discovering the “Orient” – or the “Other” that was not European.  Romantic paintings were full of “Oriental” women in lavish silks, lying sexually on their sides – like Ingre’s Grande Odalisque & Delacroix’s The Women of Algiers [although more lavish silks, less sexualizing.]  Sometimes the “Orient” was of a Middle Eastern setting, with scarves & headdresses & tanner [yet still European-looking] women.  & sometimes it was more East Asian, with kimono-like dresses, porcelain skin, red lips, & black hair curled up into intricate buns with hairpins.  This opera deals with the “Orient” of an Indian island, where the villagers make their living by diving into the sea to collect the pearls.  The costumes were of a slightly “Indian” nature, although most of the townspeople’s costumes were very plain.  They wore tunics & baggy pants with a few scarves & possibly bracelets.  But the virgin priestess was adorned with gold jewelry & wore azure colored clothing that shone in the light. 

I went into it with an open mind.  When I went to go see Tosca many months back, I went in expecting the world.  & afterward, I was actually a bit disappointed [although that also might have been me comparing it to La bohème the entire performance, too].  But I went into this opera with no expectations.  & it delivered.  The set design was very beautiful – especially the backlighting on the set.  They were able to capture sunsets & sunrises so beautifully, with all of the different colors seamlessly fading into each other – the purples & reds & blues just blending together so nicely.  & there were great stone textures on the walls that adorned the 2 stories of the set.  There was one level that overlooked the sea & the other, down the steps, was ground level.

Of course the music & singing were fantastic.  Although because of this class, I was paying attention to the music a bit more than I normally do.  Usually I concentrate more on the vocal soloists, but because this is a music class, sometimes I had to sacrifice attention from them to the instruments in order to @ least identify consciously what the background accompaniments were.  Luckily for me, sometimes the orchestra would stop & the singer would be truly alone to fill the stage with their voice [thank you, arias.]

I would like to hope that I was a perceptive listener.  I’m not a person that demands complete & absolute perfection in things I view [I don’t know enough to judge what complete & utter perfection is & what isn’t anyway] because frankly that’s just exhausting & that takes away from the organic production of music.  Humans make mistakes sometimes; if you want TRUE perfection, you’d create flawless beings to play the instruments, but where’s the passion in that?  I could truly FEEL the passion in the San Jose Opera.  It’s not a large opera, but it’s a respected establishment.  & even though it’s small [there is nowhere NEAR 100 members in that orchestra pit; I doubt it’s even over 40], they play the notes near flawlessly & from their souls.  They balance Apollo & Dionysus very well.   But I’m still not very good @ identifying patterns & distinct rhythms & harmonies yet.  & it was hard for me to concentrate on the patterns because then I wouldn’t pay attention to the singing - & the singing is almost a bit MORE important in an opera, @ least for the plot’s sake.  So I’m probably still a very casual listener.

Sometimes my mind wandered a little bit [sometimes comparing the singers of the company’s performances to past performances that they did – Nadir also played Pagliacci; one of the priests was The Devil in Faust – & then getting a bit referential as I remembered where I was sitting during those performances & how the mood was & other emotions that day], but I stayed pretty much there through all the different acts.  Although something that DID detract from the performance [& this isn’t any of the performers’ faults @ all] was that one of the people behind me was a rather elderly woman.  I guess her throat was dry because she kept making clucking noises & sucking noises during the entire 1st half of the 1st Act.  It was horrible because those noises competed with the pulses from the instruments & the melodies of the singers; it drove me to near insanity because it was completely out of tune from their notes.  But again, it’s not their fault.

Moving on, because of the strong “Orient” feel, there was a lot of deeper cello sounds & the usage of specific woodwinds, especially the oboe, clarinet, flute, & piccolo.  Also adding to the feel was the harp & the various percussion instruments [I heard a triangle, a gong, a tambourine, a bass drum, & timpani.]  There were also the 1st & 2nd violins. 

The Pearl Fishers featured 3 acts & each “piece” is a specific scene / song.  All of the pieces are in the artistic “classical” style.  The first piece is a grand forte party: “Sur la grève en feu.”  Dancers skip along the stage to a merry tune with a vivace pace.  The drums of the orchestra stomp @ the same time that the dancers stomp around the floor with their bare feet.  The flutes & violins ascend & descend with the drunken people ascending & descending.  & with the full chorus – or @ least a large amount of voices in addition to a large number of instruments – the volume can go from forte to fortissimo very fast, especially when ALL the voices are singing @ full blast.  The next is the duet between the two male characters: “Au fond du temple saint.”  It is a beautiful & famous harmonizing of Nadir, the tenor & the returning man from his long travels, & Zurga, the baritone, newly appointed king, & Nadir’s old friend.  The baritone truly does have the range of BOTH a tenor & a bass; the man easily went up & down the scales, going to higher C’s & lower C’s easily.  But Nadir / the tenor really had such lovely tonal & emotional ranges in his voice.  The accompanying instruments sometimes halted to showcase their voices proclaiming a new pact between the two of them.  Yet afterward, the priestess comes.  The violins & choir voices hush, playing & singing @ a pianissimo rate.  There is a faint triangle as she descends down the steps, in tune.  She is holy & everyone is in awe – that’s why their voices & the instrument’s voices are so soft.  But as soon as the priestess starts to take her vows, we ascend up in pitch, volume, & tempo.  Zurga’s baritone voice mixes with the higher pitches of the priestess – a soprano.  Next in “Je crois entendre encore”, the mood is suddenly so very serious, since Nadir sees that the priestess is really someone dear to his heart - & someone who drove his friendship with Zurga apart.  The tenor swells with emotion, ascending & descending in pitches as he is accompanied by intense violins & oboes.  The pace is furious & he goes from being calm with his oath to overcome with love.  & it goes soft when he speaks of her – she is here @ last & he will be with her.  & when he’s so overcome, dreaming nearly, the flutes flutter ever so softly, so pianissimo.  But this is soon contrasted with Léïla. The drums thunder & quake as the soprano’s voice go into the highest registers, pleading for Siva to protect the villagers. Everything is forte – loud violins, loud woodwinds, loud percussion.  But then it turns soft again when she realizes that Nadir is there.   “O Dieu Brahma,” she switches to.  Her voice is softer because she saw her love, too.  & she serenades the darkness with her voice, along with the gentle strumming of the harp & the easing of the violin.  But she cannot break her vows & as she tries to come back to her own reason, the instruments swell, as more are added.  She can’t fall into sin.  But she loves him.  & she performs vocal acrobatics as the instruments stop, going up & down the scale, leading me to believe that you could classify the singer as more of a colbratura soprano because I heard some very HIGH notes.  & her projection was so overwhelming.  I was seated near the back of the first / orchestral level & I could feel the vibration of her voice hit ME square in the chest & linger there @ Row Q.  She was so powerful & the notes that she hit made me tear up in my seat.

Act II.  The bass-toned priest reminds her of her vows, but Léïla also remembers a vow she once made: “J’étais encore enfant.”  She is accompanied by the full orchestra: the violins; clarinets; drums; & flutes as she travels back in time, remembering how she saved a fugitive.  When she describes the immediate danger she was in [a knife being held at her face, demanding information from her – information she would not give], the music swells, along with her voice in this sforzando, this fortissimo cacophony of noise full of violins screeching & oboes yelling.  & afterward it all fades down [morendo], as she is reminded to stay in the NOW.  Next in “Comme autrefois dans la nuit sombre,” she cannot sleep.  & she is greeted by Nadir.  When she sees him, her voice raises & she is frantic.  The pace is allegretto as they duet; Nadir wants so desperately for her to return his love, while Léïla wants him to desperately leave – for if anyone sees the two of them like this, they will be put to death & the village will be cursed.  & the two voices clash together, the low & the high soaring in anger & in desperation, pleading & begging & crying & screaming.  The 2 contrasts mingle well together & the lows & highs of the orchestra match it: the loud tension of the cellos & bass drums, mixed with the higher violas, violins, & flutes.  The instruments continue a vivace pace as the 2 run around, pushing each other away, & then running into each other’s arms.  But they’re spotted.  “Brahma divin Brahma” is the next piece.  The two are pleading to their god, while the rest of the villagers are in a blood frenzy.  There are so many different melodies & harmonies blending together, since everything is being sung & played @ the same time, layered one over the other.  Léïla’s high notes are full of sorrow as she accepts her fate; the tenor, Nadir, laughs @ those who want to kill him; yet the rest of the crowd is overwhelming, chillingly drowning them out.  The music soars, fortississimo – all of the instruments, all of the singers belting out @ the highest volume, filling the entire opera house with conflicting noises: the pleading; the bloodthirsty; & the instruments building so much tension, rising & rising & rising & rising until the curtain drops & the instruments descend & fade.

Then the last act.  Zurga knows that his best friend is condemned & that troubles him – “L’orage est calmé.”  His baritone voice goes into the tenor range, as well as the bass as it goes through anger [with soaring, raging violins] & then regret & sadness [with softer violins & more woodwinds.]  Léïla comes to beg for Nadir’s life, but does more harm than help – “Je suis jaloux;” I have picked this song to further analyze.  The villagers are still bloodthirsty.  & they’re drunk now “Dès que le soleil.”  The return to the merry beats [although a bit twisted & perverted, probably in minor keys] comes back as they await the deaths of the 2 sinners.  The ascending nature of the instruments builds tension as we get to the execution.  Every instrument, especially the woodwinds & violins, reach a sforzando when Zurga declares that there is a fire.  It turns out that he started it to help his friends escape.  But now his fate is in the balance “Plus de crainte… Rêves d’amour, adieu!” because he is now cursed.  The tempo is fierce & Zurga is stabbed.  Afterward, the entire movement starts to unwind.  The pace, that was so furious, & the volume, that was ascending & ascending never to fall again, fizzles out.  The baritone’s voice is soft, croaking his good-byes as the townspeople follow him up the steps, all in unison, all wanting him to die.  But a final climax.  A final ascension of all of the instruments – all of the violins; all of the violas; all of the oboes & bassoons & flutes; every single instrument as Zurga plunges himself into the sea.  & the instruments fall with him & plummet down.  & the curtain plummets down.  The opera is over.

The tension of the opera is @ one of its highest points during “Je suis jaloux.”  The jealous & beseeching natures contrast each other – selfishness & selflessness; the baritone voice with its lower registers & the soprano voice reaching a near high F; the cellos & the violins; the bass drum & the piccolo. 

[I had to cheat a little bit & hear some other recordings to remember how the melodies & tempos were like.  Because @ the night when I viewed it, I still wasn’t sure what those words meant.  & I waited until I went over them myself before continuing along with the rest of the report.]

Storywise, Léïla is desperate to save the man she loves from Zurga.  But the truth is Zurga loves her, too, & thus is green with envy.  His jealousy builds & the dynamics of the entire piece waver with their emotions.  This piece also boasts a wide range: from the lowest registers of the baritone’s voice, to the deep thumpings of the bass; & from the highest registers of the soprano, to the highest notes of woodwinds & strings.  The piece starts with an opening, not quite part of the main section / music idea.  The violins are rapid in their rhythm, their tempo - @ an allegro / vivace rate.  They are paired with strong trumpets, forte in their nature.  Everything is foreboding & that foreshadows what is to come – Zurga will not give into Léïla, despite his love for her.  Actually in spite of that love because the reason Nadir must die is BECAUSE Nadir has her while he does not.  The largest measure of contrast is the pure range of the baritone versus the pure range of the soprano; it is the male’s low to the female’s high; the adamant no to the pleading yes.  & the violins change their pitch from pleading high to deafening low, depending on who they are accompanying; they rise & fall WITH them.

But as we move into the main section, where the 2 exchange with each other, the violins rapidly descend from that higher pitch; the melody descends as we move into a section rich of double meter [as heard by the strong & steady thumping of the bass.]  The horns are particularly strong whenever Zurga is singing.  The violin families swell to forte & hit jagged pitches, repeating over & over again.  There’s constant drum rolling, adding to his anger.

But when Léïla sings, the tempo completely changes [although the meter does not.]  The violins slow down their rate, gently rising up & down & skipping, in disjunct pitch.  The violins compliment her pleading with their own pleading.  & when Zurga returns her pleads, the violins also reply with conjunct, rapid notes.  They echo that he is quick to say no because of his jealousy.  & his voice pushes the pace as the violins struggle to keep up to his allegro pace.  This back-&-forth interchange will continue for a bit.  Whenever Leila answer, the violins go from allegro to something much more andante – although more of a gliding along than a walking pace.

After a few of these exchanges, we get to a point in the song that differs – a pause from their rapid exchanges & a chance for Léïla to really plead her case.  She will hit those notes that sound like a near high F.  & immediately afterward, there’s a rapid decrescendo before she sustains those high notes for too long.  The violins & brass fall down; the melody descends in pitch dramatically.  & then we continue the exchanges from before.  & Léïla will continue to hit those higher notes, still trying to bargain.  She will leap into the higher registers, doing some acrobatics with her voice.

But as we near the end, & as we move away from the characteristic back & forth banter @ a predictable rate, the tempo of their voices pick up.  They sing faster to each other, rapidly arguing.  Their voices now reach an allegretto pace.  The violins swell.  Pause.  Swell.  Pause.  Then ascend & descend rapidly.  Léïla goes into higher registers as the violins rapidly ascend & descend, with pitch repetition.  Finally she curses Zurga & as she does so, the violas are @ a low pitch, repeating rapidly & ominously.

& we depart from the last of the sections as we draw to the song’s finale.  The soprano & the baritone hold their last notes together; the soprano high, the baritone low.  The violins upwardly ascend @ an unsustainable rate of allegro & fortissimo, repeating & holding their notes.  The brass section accompanies the violins with pitch repetitive steps, helping the violins step higher & higher up in comparison.  & then everything crashes down.  The drums rumble & the song comes to a close.

But honestly I thought it was fabulous.  & the soprano who played Léïla @ the San Jose opera was so much better than the version I listened to as a little refresher; there was just no comparison.  Cecilia Violetta López is a goddess.  Unfortunately by the time I submit this, the tour will be over.