Halting Places in the Romanian Opera and Operetta

Home , Luca Caragiale, Puss in Boots (opera)

American Journal of Humanities and Social Science (AJHSS) Volume 7, 2020

Consuela Radu-Țaga Department of Blowing Instruments, Percussion, and Canto, ”George Enescu” National University of Arts, Iași, Romania

Abstract “George Enescu” National University of Arts from Iași (Romania) marked the historical events of 2019th year, events related to the establishment of the Romanian Modern State and the official use of autochthonous language through the medium of two artistic manifestations. The meeting between the beautiful voices, the compelling opera acting, and the Romanian repertory crossed the border to a contemporary form of expression: Lyrical Laboratory. We would like to emphasize that the Romanian repertory of opera and operetta is waiting to be investigated, studied, and (re)interpreted in the deepest layers, whilst the Romanian melos and ethos deserve to be played and made known by Romanian performers, the deep understanding of the Romanian music being less expected from musicians that come from another cultural space and speak another language. In the process of training and educating young performers it is necessary to insist on the aspects of knowledge and authenticity, restoring the treasure trove of universal values, but alsoautochthonous.

Keywords: Laboratory, Opera, Operetta, Romanian repertory, Students

Introduction The year 2019 was a very important one for the Romanian spirituality and culture, because it came immediately after the Centenary of the Great Union, the celebration of the 160th from the Little Union followed, and at the same time, 100 years have passed since the official use of the Romanian language. So here are at least three reasons to get closer and to get know the Romanian repertory, which more than 100 years of creative accumulations, it has been offered world-renowned opera singers, but also works of big value. Two artistic events performed by students and Master studentswere dedicated to the mentioned events, by approaching Romanian opera repertory. Configured in the manner of Lyrical Laboratories, the experiments of the Opera Class within Faculty of Performance, Composition and Theoretical Musical Studies by GeorgeEnescuNational University of Arts from Iași (Romania) continued and developed the idea of presenting some show type recitals. The two shows took place in Eduard CaudellaHall (BalșHouse), the first bearing the main titlePages of RomanianOpera, and the second was called Romanian LyricalSonorities.

Pages of Romanian Opera, January 23rd 2019 The first presentment happened Wednesday, January 23rd 2019, and it was performed by the Master students who wanted to mark the anniversary of those 160th since the establishment of the United Principalities1 (Little Union), and also the recent centenary of the GreatUnion2,

1Personal Union of Moldavia and Wallachia, which later became Romania.

American Journal of Humanities and Social Science (AJHSS) Volume 7, 2020 performing arias and duets from works signed by Romanian composers. The pageant on the meridians of the autochthonous musical theater started from the historical opera, it passed through the dramatic accents imposed by the popular drama, advancing chronologically to the frothy genre of the operetta. There was no shortage of children opera, nor the intimate sonorities of chamber opera. The piano accompaniment was performed by assistant professor PhD RalucaEhupov, the thematic concept and musical guidance belonged to Mrs. Lecturer PhD. Consuela Radu-Țaga, and the stage direction was signed by Mrs. lecturer PhD. DumitrianaCondurache. The evening was opened by Cătălina-MihaelaNanu-Vicovanwith Domnicaʼs aria, La umbră de mândreflori3from the first act of Tudor din Vladimiri(Fântânaînsângerată)4, opera composed by TeodorBratu. Graduated from CiprianPorumbescuConservatory5 and member within the Union of Composers and Musicologists from Romania, TeodorBratu wrote nine operas, seven of them being performed over the time on the stages of the opera houses from Romania. We particularly want to say to you that the audience from Iași enjoyed the premiere of the children opera Punguța cu doibani6, in 1971, and also the premiere of the historical opera Din vremeaUnirii(SărutulluiVodă)7, staged in 1978.

Fig. 1.Cătălina-MihaelaNanu-Vicovan, CantissimoChoir – Domnicaʼs Aria,

2When was added Transylvania, the third Romanian Principality. 3In the shade of proud flowers (t.a.C.R.T.) 4Tudor from Vladimiri(The Bloody Fountain) 5Become today CiprianPorumbescuNational University of Music from Bucharest (Romania). 6The Bag with two coins 7Since the Time of the Union (Voivodeʼs Kiss)

American Journal of Humanities and Social Science (AJHSS) Volume 7, 2020

La umbră de mândreflori, first act, opera Tudor din Vladimiriby TeodorBratu

Tudor din Vladimiri, opera in three acts and six tableaus, on a libretto belonging to the composer, was written in 1982, the premiere taking place one year later at the Lyrical Theater from Craiova. The opera was awarded with George EnescuPrize of the Romanian Academy in 1983. In the first tableau of the opera we are on the Eve of the New Year. Domnica, the daughter of the GrigoreBrâncoveanuban8, and her friends are gathering at Sfat de taină9. Thus a lyrical scene is born, where a carol theme is hearing: La umbră de mândreflori. The aria of Domnica has been accompanied by a group of girls detached from CantissimoChoir (students from canto section in the first or the second year of their undergraduatestudies). CosminaGrigoraș-Cruceru brought to the stage the waltz sonorities of Dochițaʼs aria, Te- aidus iubite10, from the second act of CiprianPorumbescuʼs operetta. The birth certificate of Romanian operetta was signed by Crai Nou11, the operetta where the joy is combined with poetry, in an extremely tonic Romanian atmosphere, developing a popular myth which says that the New Moon can bring happiness to the young lovers. Two major areas of creative influence that converge are distinguished in the musical substance of the operetta CraiNou: the first, that of the Romanian folklore, which CiprianPorumbescu valued so much, and the second, that of the classical Viennese operetta. Diana-Maria Urdeș also kept us under the spell of the waltz, with Berthaʼs aria from the second act of the operetta Lăsați-măsă cânt12, by GheraseDendrino, one of the most representative creations of the Romanian repertory. Evoking the struggle for liberation under the rule of the Habsburg Empire and the desire to assert the national values, in the center of the operettaʼs action is CiprianPorumbescu. Bertha Gorgon was the great love of the composer, for which he had been breeding the best feelings, and to whom he dedicated the song Teiubesc…13 A show full of joy, operetta Ana Lugojanaby Filaret Barbu proposes a real authentic Romanian feast, specific to the traditional former village. The score always impresses by strength and harmony of traditional melodic inspiration, because Filaret Barbuhas established himself as a true continuator of Banat and Transylvania folklore. The flowing and expressive atmosphere was accomplished by Maria Galațki, who sang the aria Mereu la tine fi-vagândul meu14 from the first act, finally reaching the desiredC6. From the operetta we slipped slightly to a genre loved by the little ones, but also by the older ones: children’s opera. The story of the naughty cat who uses countless tricks to gain power, wealth, and … the hand of a Princess for his Master, it has conquered not only theater and film directors over the time, but also on composers who wrote remarkable operas, starting from Perrault’s fairy tale. Such are, for example those signed by names like César Cui (1913), Xavier Montsalvatge (1948), but also Cornel Trăilescu, who composed Motanul încălțat15in1961, on a libretto made by Tudor Mușatescu and Nina Stoiceva.Played for the first timeat

8 Foremost state function in Wallachian political hierarchy, except for the ruler. 9Mystery Council(t.a.C.R.T.) 10Honey, you were gone 11New Moon 12Let me sing 13I love you 14My thoughts will always be with you

American Journal of Humanities and Social Science (AJHSS) Volume 7, 2020 15Puss in Boots

American Journal of Humanities and Social Science (AJHSS) Volume 7, 2020 the Romanian National Opera from Bucharest, in 1964, the show became one of the longest- running creations from the repertory of this institution.Vlad Bîrgu played Ionică, singing the aria Râule cu apeline16, from the beginning of the third act, and Diana-Elena Vornicu delighted us with the aria EusuntMotanul Cotoșman17, from the end of the first act. For an outlining that was intended to be as wide as possible, the musical pageant also stopped into the chamber opera area, with the help of Bianca Sava. Embodying the character of the Singer from the opera Întâlnire cu George Enescu18, Bianca Sava brought on the stage the music of DoruPopovici, encyclopedic personality, which through its ability to cover several areas, and especially by the way he illustrated them, the composer recalls the spirit of the Renaissance.If in his youth the composer could be included in the avant-garde aesthetic movements, being a promotor of the Romanian twelve-tone, gradually he turned to the traditions of Byzantine music and Romanian folklore,treated in a spirit that rather refers to a classical artistic horizon. Like Paul Hindemith, in the second part of his creative activity, DoruPopovici was oriented with predilectionto the chamber music and thus his chamber operas took shape.From the operaÎntâlnire cu George Enescu, composed in 2002, bearing the opus number 154, we extracted a musical moment by inward difficulty, where the character of the Singer emphasizes the Christ mission of the art’screator. Since the beginning of the existence of the Romanian Lyrical Theater, the love of country and historical issues were two main themes of its aesthetics. Romanian popular literature and folk music served Gheorghe Dumitrescuas his main sources of inspiration, leading him to the exploring of the archaic folklore. Composed in 1954, Decebalis his second opera, from which we extracted the aria of Drigisa, Decebalʼs wife. Full of harmonics, the mezzo-soprano voice of Florena-Lucia Radu sang with deep drama the aria Ah, soartăblestemată19, from the end of the fourth act,amelodic discourse of a thrillingtragedy. Remaining in the sphere of historical opera, we did not avoid the creations of NicolaeBretan, composer, singer (baritone), and opera stage director, who wrote six operas, the best known being Horia. Composed in 1937, the opera has three acts. The opening night held in Cluj- Napoca, under the composer’s baton. Horiais an opera of inner freedom, it is the ideology of the French Revolution translated into the Transylvanian space; it is a love anthem dedicated to the humanity, from which we extracted the aria Dațiloc, creștini20, act four, scene eight, aria belonging to the character Ileana, Horiaʼs daughter, and which was performed with a great drama by the sopranoAndreeaGhidu. With spinto voice of Maria Miler the Verismo accents of Sabin Drăgoiʼs music were heard. Ancaʼs aria, Vreasăplece21, from the third act of the popular drama Năpasta22, on a libretto signed by the composer, after the homonymous play of Ion Luca Caragiale, launched a strong conflict from the world of Romanian village, on the end of the 19th century. Anca, with her thirst for revenge, shemusically manifests through her own into national sphere, and the dramatic tension and tragedy of events is rendered by the specific elements of lyrical theater, even if Sabin Drăgoi was a great choral composer.

16River with smooth water 17I am the Puss in Boots 18Meeting with George Enescu19A, damn fate! 20Christians, make way! 21He wants to leave 22The Plague

American Journal of Humanities and Social Science (AJHSS) Volume 7, 2020

The next musical stop transposed us to Bucharest at the end of the 19th century, when neo- Greek culture was in full bloom, and the melismatic style was tributary to the oriental influences. Paul Constantinescuʼs opera O Noaptefurtunoasă23 marks a moment of grace in the Romanian genre creation. O Noaptefurtunoasăis the first Romanian musical comedy in connection with large-scale, composed in a modern spirit, of the twentieth century,having artistic virtues through the comic and scenic effects never seen before in the autochthonous creation. The manifestations of the feeling-states of the characters are musically communicated through a language that oscillates between parlandoand singing style, in a caricature way, with yelling, buffasliding of the voices. Cutlines, the fluency of the texts based on the dialogue, and the declamation musically transposed on the typology of the accents in Romanian language,reformulate the atmosphere from the script of the playwright Ion Luca Caragiale. Three of the seven characters of Stormy Nightwerepresent on the stage: Zița, Veta, and Chiriac. Zițaʼs aria, Angel radios24, from the first act, was played by soprano Diana-Elena Vornicu, and the duet between Veta and Chiriac from the end of the first act reiterated the tandem Bianca Sava – VladBîrgu. It is no coincidence that in the end we opted for a file detached from the history of Moldovia. It is about the first opera of Gheorghe Dumitrescu: Ion-vodăcelCumplit25, opus 37, written in 1955. Most of Romanians have heard of Ioan-vodăcelCumplit from DumitruAlmaşʼs story. He was the one that the horses had broken in four. The character is a fascinating one, maybe unique in the Romanian history. The History books dedicate a few lines to him, especially remembering of the cowardly way in which he was killed by the Turks. In his short reign he did many remarkable things, being the ruler who changed the capital from Suceava to Iași. From the opera Ion-vodăcelCumplitwe presented a carol, ÎnzoriPetru s-a sculatu26(act two, first scene), an aria of Roxanda, the nanny of the voivodeʼs son. Robert-PetruBondar, schoolboy at OctavBăncilăNational College of Arts from Iași, played Petruț27, soprano Sabina Gurgu performed the role of Roxanda, and student girls from the first and the second year of the singing section accompanied the whole moment with the best class of tender tones.

Romanian Lyrical Sonorities May 21st 2019 The Romanian lyrical routes were continued, developed and enriched in the second performance of the Opera Class, show entitled Romanian Lyrical Sonorities. The event took place on May 21st 2019and was included in the 7th International Festival of Education. The singing exclusively in Romanian marked the 100th anniversary of the official use of the Romanian language.If in the first show type recital with Romanian thematic, only the singers from Master degree expressed themselves vocally, students and Master students gathered in the second one, the piano accompaniment benefited from the first collaboration between assistant professor PhD RalucaEhupov and the newcomer Laura-IoanaTurtă-Timofte, assistant professor PhD too, and the tandem between lecturer PhD Consuela Radu-Țaga and lecturer PhD DumitrianaCondurache proposed a new artisticteam.

23A Stormy Night 24Radiant Angel 25Voivode John, the Terrible 26At the daylight Peter got up 27 The Romanian diminutive of the first name Peter.

American Journal of Humanities and Social Science (AJHSS) Volume 7, 2020

The show was opened with DorulIlenii28, an aria that is part of the third act of the operaPetruRareș, composed by Eduard Caudella. Among the classics of Romanian music, the name of Caudella carries the significance of the first musical works. From vaudeville and operetta to the historical opera PetruRareș, the composer born in Iași has come a long way. Trough all its specific data, the opera PetruRareșfits into the patterns of the romantic creation, evolving in the direction characteristic of the European musical cultures, known as the National Schools. Imprisoned, Ileana, sister of voivode PetruRareș, heroically endures the torture, waiting longingly and mournfully to be released. The Romanian sonorous images were outlined with emotion and sensitivity by IonelaPapuc. Irinaʼs Romance followed, musical number derived from the lyrical-dramatic poem Fata de la Cozia29, composed by Emil Monția, starting from the lyrics of DimitrieBolintineanu. The action of the opera captures an episode from the fights of Vlad Țepeș30for the removal of the Turkish yoke. To be able to accompany her lover on the battlefield, Irina disguises herself on a soldier. Left alone on the encampment, Fata de la Coziasings her love: Înadânculsufletului meu31. Irinaʼs Romance proposed to IoanaSecuto discover the secrets of the travestirole, stylistic issue that has a long history in the world of theopera. From the neo-Romantic direction of Gheorghe Dumitrescuʼs opera we turned again to the historical opera Decebal, and we reopened the score, stopping this time at the role of Argesa, Decebalʼs daughter. Musician with literary endowment, author of his own libretti, Gheorghe Dumitrescu gave priority to the vocal forms.The moment of ȘtefaniaMaftei raised a prayer to the godZalmoxis32. The national coloring received the heroic accents of the opera EcaterinaTeodoroiu, written by Emil Lerescuin 1967, on a libretto of NicolaeTăutu. In the bright figure of the heroine from Jiu, the virtues of the peasant girl, capable of patriotic sacrifices, came to life, throwing into the fire of the battle, followed by the loss of the life, and strengthened the belief that the war for the liberation of the ancestral land will be crowned of success. The patriotic song Ție, țara mea33, ennobled by a strong drama, it is not shy to resort to a dense vocal writing, in a large range, sprinkled with long sustained high pitches. It is a difficult aria, which Oana- Romina Ibănescu managed to solve it from a vocal point of view and to support it dramatically. The Romanian Lyrical Sonorities (re)launched musical files forgotten on the library shelf, also displaying replays of musical moments that received new interpretative configurations. So the aria of Dochița from operetta CraiNouwas sung by IonelaPapuc, Diana-Maria Urdeș performed Ana Lugojana, and Berthaʼs aria from operetta Lăsați-măsăcântwas up to Marina Chiperciuc.

28Ileanaʼs longing 29The Girl from Cozia 30 Known all over the world like Dracula. 31In the depths of my soul 32 The supreme god of the Dacian. 33To You, my country!

American Journal of Humanities and Social Science (AJHSS) Volume 7, 2020

Fig. 2. The team of the Lyrical Laboratory, May 21st 2019, Eduard CaudelaHall (Balș House) (from the left to the right: IoanaSecu, Marina Chiperciuc, Vlad Bîrgu, Eliza-Maria Timofte, ȘtefaniaMaftei, Bianca Sava, assistante PhD. RalucaEhupov, lecturer PhD. Consuela Radu-Țaga, assistante PhD. Laura- IoanaTurtă-Timofte, lecturer PhD. DumitrianaCondurache, Diana-Maria Urdeș, Vlad Sîrbu)

Conclusions We want to put more and more value on the national specific, on a strong individuality in art, emphasizing and supporting that also the opera and operetta has contributed and continues to contribute at the creation of the Romanian national peculiarities. The mid-twentieth century marked the beginning of the modern period of the Romanian Composition School, when the most valuable works were created, where the folklore played a prominent part. The way in which opera composers used it made a difference in the value of the creations, and established theirhierarchy. In the process of training and educating young performers it is necessary to insist on the aspects of knowledge and authenticity, restoring the treasure trove of universal values, but also autochthonous. It is like painting in old churches, about to deteriorate. The painting needs to be restored and preserved, and the Romanian repertory of opera and operetta worth to be researched, studied, and (re)interpreted with great carefulness, passion, and involvement in the deepest layers. We all have a debt to our predecessors, and the feeling of the national belonging stimulates us to make the Romanian opera and operetta as well-known as possible, both at the level of the musicians and of the opera lovers from all over the world.