Putting Puccini to Rest: A comparison of Alfano and Berio’s finales to

By Matt Pollock

On April 25 th , 1926 ’s final opera ‘Turandot’ was premiered at La Scala in Milan. At the height of the dramatic third act, at which point Liù kills herself and is carried offstage, conductor laid down his baton and announced to the crowd in a quiet voice that at this point in the composition of the opera the composer had died, and the curtain lowered on the stage. 1 Accounts vary as to what exactly Toscanini said, but Puccini’s wishes had been made clear by his own words: “If I do not succeed in finishing the opera, someone will come to the front of the stage and say, ‘Puccini composed as far as this, then he died.’” 2 The opera was a major success, but many felt that for Turandot to truly come to life, the final duet between the Prince and Turandot would need to be completed. Little did the public know, two versions by the Italian composer Franco Alfano had already been composed, but neither held enough validity in Toscanini’s mind that he chose to end it with Puccini’s contribution rather than tarnish his old friend’s image. 3

A group of close friends of Puccini’s had gathered including Toscanini, the librettist

Adami, several members of the Ricordi publishing group, and Puccini’s son Tonio. 4 A few major composers were discussed as possible candidates, specifically Puccini’s contemporaries Riccardo

Zandonai and Franco Vittadini , but Tonio objected on the grounds of their popular status in the

1 Ashbrook and Powers, Puccini’s Turandot p. 153 2 Adami, Letters of Giacomo Puccini , p. 255 3 Ashbrook/Powers, p. 152-3 4 Fairtile, Duetto a tre": Franco Alfano's Completion of "Turandot" p. 167 community. 5 The job then came to Alfano, a contemporary of Puccini’s who was an experienced but less famed composer of opera. The Ricordi representatives were particularly happy with this decision as Alfano was already a member of the Ricordi roster, which would make contracting less of an issue.6

Alfano had some difficult shoes to fill, as well as some very barebones sketches from which to work. His completed version was flatly refused by the hard-to-please Toscanini, and he was sent back to work on a second draft after Toscanini made several cuts of his own.7 In

Alfano’s defense, he actually did not even see Puccini’s original orchestration of the first two acts until shortly before finishing his first draft. 8 Although this draft is used today, Toscanini himself never conducted what he saw as an inadequate finale to Puccini’s challenging opera. 9

Alfano’s edited version has been the standard for the years since Puccini’s death, but another finale was commissioned by the Festival de Musica de Gran Canarias and sanctioned by the

Puccini family in 2001 from what some saw as an unlikely option: the famed Italian composer

Luciano Berio. 10 Berio, a composer who was in the forefront of experimental electronic music as well as a practitioner (at least at times) of dodecaphonic composition, was seen by more traditional musicians as a radical and unfit for the job. However, Berio was a connoisseur of

Italian tradition and had extensive experience working with historical musical materials. His finale was premiered in 2002 to mixed reviews. They are both used today, although the general tendency is towards Alfano’s time-tested rendition. Perhaps even more intriguing in this

5 Fairtile, p. 169 6 Fairlite, p. 169 7 Phillips-Matz, Puccini p. 308 8 Ashbrook/Powers, p. 153 9 Ashbrook/Powers, p. 153 10 Uvietta, È l'ora della prova': Berio's finale for Puccini's "Turandot" p. 187 scenario is the challenge of the libretto itself. After a tale depicting the merciless nature of

Turandot, the heartless Chinese princess is suddenly changed by a single kiss from the Prince and everyone allegedly lives happily ever after. Puccini’s correspondence with the librettist,

Giuseppe Adami, reveals his discontent with the manner of the finale and his fear of how he would ever possibly set it convincingly.11

The challenge that both Alfano and Berio faced with the libretto was painfully clear well before Puccini’s death. Puccini’s perfectionism and forwardness about any changes he desired resulted in the final act being redrafted by Adami at least five times. 12 Regardless, the libretto had to be dealt with and each composer did it in his own way. As mentioned above, Puccini completed through the end of Liu’s death scene, but had written much of the vocal confrontation between the Prince and Turandot following this. As far as libretto differences go, they are almost exclusively cuts that Berio has made; his finale is shorter in text than Alfano’s.

One of the most obvious changes that Berio makes from Alfano’s ending text is the removal of possessive statements on the part of Calaf. For instance, at rehearsal 38 in Alfano’s version,

Calaf states “Ti voglio mia!” (thou art mine), which Berio removes. 3 bars later Calaf reiterates this, and Berio again omits it. 9 bars after rehearsal 44 in Alfano’s version, Turandot states “Ah!

Vinta, più che dall’alta prova, da questa febbre che mi vien da te!” (Conquered, not as much by the enigmas as the fever which I get from thee!), to which Calaf responds “Sei mia!” (Thou art mine!). 13

11 Adami, Giuseppe Letters of Giacomo Puccini George G. Harrap & Co. 1931 p.254-318 12 Uvietta, p. 188 13 For all libretto changes, see Puccini, Giacomo Turandot, completamento (del terzo atto) di p. 14-58 and Puccini, Giacomo Turandot Lyric Drama in Three Acts & Five Scenes (Alfano completion) p. 353-84 Berio seems to avoid these possessive declamations for a couple reasons: First, society has changed quite drastically between 1926 and 2001, and love is not considered a trait based in ownership as it perhaps may have been in the early 20 th century. Although women were seen as possessions in the male-dominant society of Puccini or Alfano’s time, Berio lived in the more egalitarian society we know today and removed these lines to avoid being not only outdated, but also to avoid being offensive. However, even in the sexist atmosphere of the 1920s these possessive characteristics seem out of place in Alfano’s libretto. Turandot is a proud and heartless princess, and the idea of Calaf simply “winning”, putting her on his trophy shelf, and marching home triumphantly does not fit with the tense interpersonal relations throughout the opera. It may be that Puccini also found this a dramatically weak resolution to the opera’s main conflict, which could explain his demand for several revisions and his hesitation to approach the final duet.

The largest single cut in Berio’s version from Alfano’s libretto occurs during Turandot’s

“Del primo pianto.” Alfano continues on with “ Con angoscia ho sentito il brivido fatale di questo male supremo! Quanti ho visto morire per me! E li ho spregiati ma ho temuto te! C’era negli occhi tuoi la luce degli eroi!” (I felt anguish of that fatal quiver, of that supreme pain! Death’s pallor I beheld with scorn on those that died for me, and yet for thee I trembled! Within thine eyes there shone the light of heroes!”) Berio completely omits this, in what again seems to be his avoidance of the classic 19 th century heroic image that relates to the possessive love concept he previously removed. They rejoin on the following line, “c’era negli occhi tuoi la superb certezza.”

Another important contrast in approach to the libretto is the final moments of the opera. In the version finished by Alfano, following Turandot’s declamation that “the name of the stranger is love”, there is a final chorus that exalts the power of love: that “The light of the world is love” and “With smiles and song our infinite happiness greets the sun! Glory be to thee!” This coincides with his related musical ending, which reflects this somewhat superficial happiness that defies earlier events in the plot. Berio on the other hand reiterates “is love! Is love!” repeatedly between Calaf and Turandot, before giving way to a wordless “ah” in the chorus as the final vocal moment. 14 His choice to give less of a resolution to the earlier conflict between these two complex characters is also reflected in his more ambiguous musical ending.

Both of these endings will be discussed later in this paper.

There are several other small libretto differences, but they only serve to reinforce the points made above. Berio above all seems to be cutting anything questionable in the libretto, making it as concise (at least textually) as possible. This allows him to minimize the amount of material that he has to freely compose, but also gives room for slight interludes based on

Puccini’s original sketches which serve to deal with the challenging plot twist from a musical standpoint rather than through dialogue. Alfano seems to be dealing with the plot twist through dialogue, requiring more freely composed music for the text that Puccini did not leave indications for but also sticking to the dialogue outlined by Puccini. The question of how they dealt with music is just as important, and particularly how they approached the existing sketches in relation to what they would have to freely compose themselves.

Puccini’s longest sketch outlined the vocal parts for much of the musical section following Liu’s death and the Prince and Turandot’s confrontation. Although there a few subtle rewordings and minute melodic differences, the first major difference (and perhaps the most

14 Puccini/Berio p. 49-58, Puccini/Alfano p. 379-84 contrasting of the whole finale) occurs at the moment of the famed kiss. Alfano underscores this moment with 5 large orchestral hits, followed by a grand pause. 15 Then, with a short bar and half of a rising string figure, he continues on into Turandot’s transformation. Berio’s approach is vastly different. Following the kiss, Berio launches into an interlude over 50 bars in length. 16 This is not based on a Puccini plan, but it does include many references to earlier music from the opera, as well as several external musical examples. The most important of these is an allusion to the “longing” motif from Tristan und Isolde. This reference to a well- known opera helps capture the mood of this strange final scene: a torturous, strained love that cannot hide the darker side of its nature. Here Berio attempts to deal with in musical terms what the libretto cannot: An ice-cold princess who is responsible for the death of Liu in the previous scene now sees the light of love with no textual explanation for her change of heart, beyond Calaf’s solving of the three enigmas. Puccini himself had thought about this quite a bit, as evidenced in his letters by words such as “The duet...must contain some great, audacious, and unexpected element and not simply leave things as they were in the beginning.” 17

Berio has received much criticism over this decision, mostly from the standpoint of staging. Many see this as an awkward situation for Calaf and Turandot, who following the kiss have no stage instructions, which leaves them locked in a 2 minute embrace during the interlude. However, this could easily be dealt with by some staging decisions, as Berio was a composer and not a director. In this sense Berio’s version provides the director with more options; Alfano’s simply delivers the kiss and moves on. Alfano’s succinctness avoids the

15 Puccini/Alfano, p. 360 16 Puccini/Berio p. 17-28 17 See Adami, Letters of Giacomo Puccini p. 254-320 necessity of staging decisions, but at the same avoids trying to deal with the complexity of the dramatic situation at hand.

A particularly interesting layer of completing another composer’s work is that of orchestration. Berio’s orchestration displays a variety of techniques. He frequently uses the traditional Italian approach of doubling melodic vocal lines with orchestral instruments, although sometimes with interesting instrumental choices: Bel Canto composers would typically double a soprano melody with violin or oboe, whereas Berio at rehearsal 36 for example, doubles Calaf’s singing with double bass. Contrasting to this, he also includes some polyphonic moments that are different than an orchestrator during Puccini’s time would have considered. Moments such as the descending clarinet line 6 and 7 bars after rehearsal 37 elevate other lines to the same status as the voice, creating a texture that would not typically be seen in Italian opera. These kinds of moments, particularly the interlude following the kiss, are evidence of Berio’s modern style and hint at the polyphonic complexity of the third movement of his orchestral work “Sinfonia.” Berio also tends to make use of powerfully soft moments, drawing the audience in through delicate dynamic work. Although Berio’s occasional use of highly chromatic sonorities may seem like a purely contemporary device, Puccini’s own style had been heading in a similar direction: His use of whole tone, pentatonic, and other non-

Western scale constructions are visible earlier in this same work. In fact, Puccini had been interested in the music of Schoenberg and had attended a performance of Pierrot Lunaire in

Torre del Lago in early 1924. 18 Alfano’s experience in orchestrating in the thick late 19 th century

Italian style is clear. His treble-balanced approach to the orchestra emphasizes the lyrical

18 Tedesco/Sachs From a Lifetime of Music p.151 nature of the vocal lines, and is relatively consistent with the style of Puccini’s earlier operas.

He does not make use of nearly as much dynamic contrast at poignant moments as Berio, but the extreme attentiveness to dynamic variation is more a product of the late 20 th century. Both composers are clearly experienced in orchestration, and one can see clearly the different decisions in light of the stylistic periods they lived in.

The other most contrasting moment in the completed versions is the very ending of the opera. Alfano’s version is a bold, massively orchestrated final chorus. This includes the text mentioned above that praises the power and glory of love. 7 bars from the end a thickly orchestrated I64-V chord moves down to the IV, where “Gloria a te! “ is repeated by the chorus over a plagal prolongation. 19 At the last syllable of “Gloria” it resolves to the tonic at subito piano, which builds and ends with a short, powerful iteration of the tonic (in other words, a fairly classic 19 th century ending).

Berio’ ending is quite different, largely by omitting this final chorus all together.

Following Turandot and Calaf’s declamation of love, a wordless chorus takes over with an eerie sonority (C, E, F sharp). His outro is yet another instrumental prolongation, which ascends in the strings and high winds at pianissimo to a final E flat triad, with the added ambiguity of a tam- tam hit. Although a small addition, this tam-tam hit both makes reference to Chinese culture and adds a rather ominous wash of overtones on this delicate final chord. Berio’s less-than- traditional ending seems to raise this question “Is everyone really going to live happily ever after?” His approach seems to question the notion that this opera can simply end happily without any sort of resolution of the travesties that occurred in the same act. Alfano on the

19 Puccini/Alfano p. 384 other hand, goes with the classic 19 th century operatic finale, but does it quite effectively. One could argue, drama aside, that Alfano’s ending is a more satisfying ending to a general audience, at least in the period that he knew and loved. However, Berio’s ending does seem to delve a little deeper into the turbulent nature of the drama. Both of these endings have their own value, and to understand why they were approached in the manner they were one must understand both their views of drama and the context of the times that they lived in.

In terms of social context, Alfano’s life experiences were much closer to that of Puccini.

Alfano was a generation younger than Puccini, but they lived in the same era and experienced many of the same things. They were friends, and would give honest feedback about each other’s work. During this time, the musical world was changing rapidly, as was of course the industrial world. For example, in his letters to Adami, Puccini mentions his “motor-boat that does over twenty-five miles an hour” and invites Adami to come for a ride with him. 20

Interestingly, Alfano’s musical and textual interpretation of the finale to Turandot seems to be more drawn from older ideals, despite his younger age than Puccini. His changes to the libretto are based on the 19 th century ideals of heroism and tradition. This explains his addition of domineering statements on the part of Calaf, the more black and white depiction of the love transformation, and the concepts of “conquering” and “victory”. His music also reflects time- tested ideals: his orchestration, harmonic concepts, and his final bars of the opera all well represent 19 th century Italian opera.

20 Adami, p. 300 One cannot underestimate the effect that 75 years between two composers’ completion of the opera can have. In 2001, Berio’s removal of Calaf’s declamations to the

Princess wasn’t just artistic interpretation; it was a necessity for a work to be taken seriously in the 21 st century. Similarly, Berio’s more extended use of music as a dramatic device and staging concepts are undeniably influenced by the world of cinema. In addition, 75 years of constant musical evolution occurred between 1926 and 2001, and despite Berio’s experience with recomposing older musical material he could not possibly have removed the context of his musical era, and it is clear that he did not attempt to. Which version Puccini would have approved of (most likely neither, due to his perfectionist nature) is a pointless question. What matters today is what is needed to achieve a truly dramatic representation of this challenging tale, and both versions bring things to the table that the other does not. Berio may have applied musical solutions to problems that Alfano neglected to face, but Alfano represented the Italian tradition that Puccini came out of. Even if he wasn’t exactly true to Puccini’s intentions or stylistic evolution, he applied his knowledge of the Italian tradition in a way that he knew would appeal to a wide audience. Although neither version is perfect, or as true to Puccini’s wishes at they perhaps could be, they have both withstood criticism and proved their own viability though repeated performance, recording, and analysis.

Sources

-Adami, Giuseppe Letters of Giacomo Puccini George G. Harrap & Co. Ltd. 1931

-Adami, Giuseppe and Simoni, Renato Turandot Ricordi & Co. 1926 (libretto)

-Ashbrook, William and Powers, Harold Puccini’s Turandot Princeton University Press 1991

-Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Mario and Sachs, Harvey From a Lifetime of Music: Puccini, Schoenberg, Stravinsky, & Others Grand Street, Vol. 9, No. 1 (Autumn, 1989), pp. 150-165

-Fairtile, Linda Duetto a tre": Franco Alfano's Completion of "Turandot" Cambridge Opera Journal, Vol. 16, No. 2 (Jul., 2004), pp. 163-185

-Gatti, Guido/Baker, Theodore The Musical Quarterly , Vol. 9, No. 4 (Oct., 1923), pp. 556-577

-Phillps-Matz, Mary Jane Puccini: A biography Northeastern University Press, 2002.

-Puccini, Giacomo and Alfano, Franco Turandot Ricordi & Co. 1942

-Puccini, Giacomo and Berio, Luciano Turandot (completamento di Luciano Berio) Ricordi & Co. 2001

-Sadie, Stanley Puccini and his operas St. Martin’s Press, 2000

-Sciannameo, Franco Turandot, Mussolini, and the Second String Quartet: Aspects of Alfano The Musical Times, Vol. 143, No. 1881 (Winter, 2002), pp. 27-41

-Uvietta, Marco È l'ora della prova': Berio's finale for Puccini's "Turandot" Cambridge Opera Journal, Vol. 16, No. 2 (Jul., 2004), pp. 187-238