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University of Huddersfield Repository Wheat, Clare Of Revivals and Delayed Premieres: Performing Thomas Dunhill’s Forgotten Opera, Something in the City Original Citation Wheat, Clare (2021) Of Revivals and Delayed Premieres: Performing Thomas Dunhill’s Forgotten Opera, Something in the City. Doctoral thesis, University of Huddersfield. This version is available at http://eprints.hud.ac.uk/id/eprint/35573/ The University Repository is a digital collection of the research output of the University, available on Open Access. Copyright and Moral Rights for the items on this site are retained by the individual author and/or other copyright owners. 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For more information, including our policy and submission procedure, please contact the Repository Team at: [email protected]. http://eprints.hud.ac.uk/ OF REVIVALS AND DELAYED PREMIERES: PERFORMING THOMAS DUNHILL’S FORGOTTEN OPERA, SOMETHING IN THE CITY CLARE REBECCA MARY WHEAT A thesis submitted to the University of Huddersfield in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Volume 1 of 2 University of Huddersfield School of Music, Humanities and Media May 2021 Copyright Statement i. The author of this thesis (including any appendices and/ or schedules to this thesis) owns any copyright in it (the “Copyright”) and s/he has given The University of Huddersfield the right to use such Copyright for any administrative, promotional, educational and/or teaching purposes. ii. Copies of this thesis, either in full or in extracts, may be made only in accordance with the regulations of the University Library. Details of these regulations may be obtained from the Librarian. Details of these regulations may be obtained from the Librarian. This page must form part of any such copies made. iii. The ownership of any patents, designs, trademarks and any and all other intellectual property rights except for the Copyright (the “Intellectual Property Rights”) and any reproductions of copyright works, for example graphs and tables (“Reproductions”), which may be described in this thesis, may not be owned by the author and may be owned by third parties. Such Intellectual Property Rights and Reproductions cannot and must not be made available for use without permission of the owner(s) of the relevant Intellectual Property Rights and/or Reproductions. 2 Abstract Conceived in response to the discovery of a hitherto unperformed comic opera by Thomas. F. Dunhill and the consideration of performing practice issues surrounding a potential staging of this work, this thesis examines aspects of historically-informed performance relevant to the genres of British Light Opera. An investigation of vocal technique and style, including voice production, phrasing, breathing, pronunciation and rubato, as heard in recordings of singers known to have performed in comic operas by Dunhill and his contemporaries, will seek to establish a paradigm for vocal performance in this genre. Dunhill’s unperformed opera, lacking an established performance tradition in the manner of the Savoy Operas of Gilbert and Sullivan, provides a valuable opportunity for the adoption of fresh perspectives in performance. Much valuable research has been undertaken in recent years into nineteenth- century historical vocal performance. The present study, whilst informed by such research, will highlight similarities and differences between performance techniques in opera and the collaboration of genres which make British Light Opera. This will be done through the use of detailed analysis, drawing on audio and audio visual evidence, such as that available through Pathé films of performers such as Trefor Jones (tenor lead in Dunhill’s Tantivy Towers under the composer’s supervision) to comprehensively address issues of physicality in performance. This thesis is accompanied by audio and video recordings of a concert version of the comic opera Something in the City, performed in St. Paul’s Hall, University of Huddersfield on 27th January 2019. These recordings provide examples of a performance of the opera using historically appropriate approaches to style and technique. Additional recorded material demonstrating experimentation with related vocal music is also included as a precursor to the opera. 3 Contents Volume 1 Abstract 3 List of Musical Examples 9 List of Figures 13 List of Tables 13 Acknowledgements 14 Introduction 15 Chapter One: British Light Opera in Context 24 1.1. Historically-Informed Performance Contexts 24 1.1.1. Vocal Contexts 29 1.1.2. Approaches to the Analysis of Recordings: 37 Issues and Methodologies 1.2. British Light Opera in Cultural and Social Contexts 41 1.2.1. Gilbert and Sullivan 46 1.2.2. Musical Comedy 51 1.2.3. Revue, Operetta(e), Romantic Light Opera 53 and Romantic Music-Drama 1.3. Thomas F. Dunhill and British Light Opera 56 1.3.1. Tantivy Towers in context: Nigel Playfair 59 and The Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith Chapter Two: Towards an Understanding of Current Perspectives 63 on British Light Opera Performing Practices 1870-1945 2.1. Performing Practices in Light Opera Genres 63 2.2. Theatrical Origins of the Gilbert and Sullivan Tradition 65 2.2.1. Performing Practices and the Concept of Tradition 70 in the D’Oyly Carte Company 4 2.2.2. Observations of Vocal Characteristics in D’Oyly Carte 75 Performances 2.2.3. The ‘Irresponsibilities’ of Musical Comedy 81 2.3. Pedagogy, BLO and the concept of bel canto 85 2.3.1. The Pedagogical lineage of BLO 90 2.3.2. Current Perspectives on Nineteenth-Century Pedagogies 97 Chapter Three: Analysis of Performing Practices 99 3.1. Methodology for the Analysis of Recorded Sources 100 3.1.1. Dramatis Personae: Supporting Cast 103 3.1.2. Dramatis Personae: Principals 106 3.2. Observations from the analysis of recordings 110 3.2.1. Breathing 111 3.2.2. Observations of Breathing from Analyses of 123 Filmed Performances 3.2.3. Breathing, Phrasing and Expression 128 3.2.4. Tone Quality 138 3.2.5. Phonology 145 3.2.6. Placement and Characterisation of Words 152 3.2.7. Tempo Rubato and Rhythmic Alteration 154 3.2.7.1. Transposed Rhythms 155 3.2.7.2. Shortening of unstressed words 159 3.2.8. ‘Tripletised’ Rhythms 160 3.2.9. Structural Rubato 161 3.2.10. Melodic Variation 163 3.2.11. Summary 170 3.3. Experimental Recordings 173 3.3.1. Experiment 1: An Old Violin 173 3.3.2. Experiment 2: Breathing and Larynx Height 176 Chapter Four: Tantivy Towers and Something in the City: 180 Background and Reception 4.1. Tantivy Towers: Performance History 180 4.2. Something in the City - Work Biography 185 5 Chapter Five: Preparing and Performing Something in the City 192 5.1. Theory into Practice 201 5.1.1. Initial Preparation and Rehearsals 208 5.1.2. Issues within Rehearsals and Key Elements of 209 Performing Practices 5.2. Issues within Rehearsals and Key Elements of Performing Practices 212 5.2.1. Costumes 214 5.2.2. Recording Format and Issues 215 5.3. Performance Evaluation 215 5.4. Research Conclusion 224 Conclusion 227 Bibliography 234 Filmography 252 Discography 254 Volume 2 Appendix 1: Dunhill Festival Programme 261 Appendix 2: Table of Performance Characteristics in Recordings 273 Appendix 3: Table of Light Opera Recordings 276 Appendix 4: Princess Ida score extract (Trio, No. 5) 282 Appendix 5: Princess Ida score extract (No. 7) 287 Appendix 6: Table of Performances: Tantivy Towers 300 6 Appendix 7: Tantivy Towers Programme (Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith, 1931) 301 Appendix 8: Observations of Performing Practices – Principals 308 8a. Ann Burgess: Sanderson, The Little Brown Owl 310 8b. Vera Florence: Fisher, An Old Violin 315 8c. Steuart Wilson: Arr. Sharp, The Keys of Canterbury 320 8d. John McCormack: Marshall, I Hear You Calling Me 322 8e. Trefor Jones: Novello, Shine Through My Dreams 326 8f. Maggie Teyte: Purcell, When I am Laid in Earth 330 8g. Elsa Stenning: Nevin, Mighty Lak’ A Rose 333 8h. Roy Henderson: Speaks, Sylvia 335 8i. Maggie Teyte: Messager, Philomel 338 Appendix 9: Observations of Performing Practices – Supporting Cast 346 9a: Isabel Jay: Sullivan, Poor Wandring One 349 9b. Gertie Millar: Monckton, Quaker Girl 354 9c. Amy Augarde: Sullivan, I’m Called Little Buttercup 358 9d. Walter Passmore: Sullivan, On a Tree by a River 361 9e. Henry Lytton: Sullivan, I Am the Monarch of the Sea 364 9f. Henry Lytton: Sullivan, When I Was a Lad 367 9g. Ruth Vincent: Bishop, Home, Sweet Home 369 9h. Ellaline Terriss: Fitz, The Honeysuckle and the Bee 371 9i. Hippolyte Belhomme: Auber, A la voix Séduisante 374 9j. Louis Cazette: Messager, J’aimais la Vieille Maison 376 9k. Geraldine Farrar: Offenbach, Barcarolle 379 9l. Charles Dalmores: Offenbach, A Vivre Deux 385 9m. Marie Tempest: Delibes, Les Filles de Cadix 389 9n. Marie Tempest: Philp, The Jewel of Asia 397 9o. Phyllis Dare: Monckton, Bring Me a Rose 400 9p. Phyllis Dare: Monckton, The Girl with the Brogue 405 7 9q. Florence Smithson: German, Waltz Song 411 9r. W. Louis Bradfield: Stuart, I Want to be a Military Man 417 9s. Mizzi Günther: Lehár, Vilja Lied 427 9t. Fritz Werner: Lehár, Ich bin der Graf von Luxembourg 431 9u. Louis Treumann: Lehár, Pallikarenlied 435 Appendix 10: Observations of Performances – The Cloths of Heaven Comparison 437 10a. John McCormack: Dunhill, The Cloths of Heaven 437 Appendix 11: Something in the City Director’s Score 440 Appendix 12: Something in the City Programme 563 Appendix 13: Something in the City Performance Guidance 13a.