CHAN 10120 Book Cover.qxd 20/4/07 2:51 pm Page 1 CHAN 10120(2) CHANDOS VAUGHAN WILLIAMS VAUGHAN THE POISONED KISS THE POISONED CHAN 10120 BOOK.qxd 20/4/07 3:01 pm Page 2 Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872–1958) The Poisoned Kiss premiere recording Lebrecht Collection Lebrecht An opera in three acts. Libretto by Evelyn Sharp and Ralph Vaughan Williams. Cast (in order of appearance) Angelica, Tormentilla’s Maid and Companion..............................Pamela Helen Stephen mezzo-soprano Gallanthus, the Prince’s Attendant ......................................................................Roderick Williams baritone Hob John Graham-Hall tenor Gob the Magician’s Hobgoblins..................................................................................Richard Suart baritone Lob } Mark Richardson bass Dipsacus, a Professional Magician...................................................................................Neal Davies baritone Amaryllus, the Prince, Son of the Empress...................................................................James Gilchrist tenor Tormentilla, the Magician’s Daughter.........................................................................Janice Watson soprano First Medium Gail Pearson soprano Second Medium the Empress’s Assistants............................................................Helen Williams soprano Third Medium } Emer McGilloway mezzo-soprano Empress Persicaria, Reigning Sovereign in Golden Town ......................................Anne Collins contralto Chorus of Day and Night Voices, Hobgoblins, Witches and Forest Creatures, Milliners and Messenger Boys, Flower Girls, Lovers. Adrian Partington Singers BBC National Orchestra of Wales James Clark leader Ralph Vaughan Williams Richard Hickox Aidan Oliver assistant conductor 3 CHAN 10120 BOOK.qxd 20/4/07 3:01 pm Page 4 COMPACT DISC ONE Time Page COMPACT DISC TWO Time Page 1 Overture 7:09 65 Act II (continued ) 1 Act I No. 20. Chorus: ‘Tormentilla! Tormentilla!’ 2:23 155 2 No. 21. Song and Duet. Torme 2 No. 2. Opening Chorus: ‘Secret are the sounds…’ 2:43 65 ‘There was…’ 5:40 155 3 No. 3. Scena. Gallan 3 No. 22. Ensemble. Amaryllus: ‘Twas here it bade…’ 4:08 159 ‘What’s that?’ 1:38 67 4 No. 23. Serenade. Amaryllus: 4 No. 4. Scena. Angelica: ‘Day is dawning’ 5:54 69 love, behold…’ 3:07 165 5 No. 5. Duet. Gallanthus 5 No. 24. Duet. Tormentilla: ‘Sleeping or waking’ 1:27 167 really time…’ 3:07 75 6 Tormentilla: ‘You must n 6 No. 6. Ensemble. Hob, Lob and Gob: ‘Here we come…’ 2:24 79 kiss me’ 4:23 167 7 No. 7. Duet and Chorus. Dipsacu 7 No. 26. Finale. Tormentilla: ‘Too dark for me…’ 2:56 173 a sorcerer bold’ 1:54 83 8 No. 8. Duet. Amaryllus: ‘It’s true I’m inclined…’ 2:41 89 Act III 9 No. 9. Ensemble. Tormentilla: ‘H 8 No. 27. Introduction 1:13 175 lovely cobra’ 2:04 95 9 No. 28. Trio. Mediums: ‘Be 10 Amaryllus: ‘Desist, lest you die!’ 0:59 99 our mystic…’ 3:25 175 11 No. 10. Duet. Amaryllus: ‘I kn 10 No. 29. Ensemble. Empress: ‘Monstrous vision!’ 1:28 181 we see…’ 0:10 105 11 No. 30. Ballad. Empress: ‘W 12 Amaryllus: ‘Blue larkspur in a garden’ 3:01 105 was young…’ 2:48 183 13 No. 11. Ensemble. Dipsacus: ‘W 12 No. 31. Ensemble. Empress: ‘You can leave us’ 0:43 185 in my forest?’ 0:15 109 13 No. 32. Duet. Tormentilla: ‘Is 14 Dipsacus: ‘North wind, south wind’ 1:01 109 love alive?’ 0:28 189 15 Tormentilla: ‘Angelica?’ 14 Empress: ‘Love breaks all rules…’ 3:25 191 0:29 111 15 No. 33. Invocation. Empress: ‘ 16 Amaryllus and Gallanthus: ‘O, come to our arms’ 2:37 111 and Demons’ 2:24 191 17 No. 12. Song. Tormentilla: ‘O, 16 No. 34. Ensemble. Empress: ‘Come, O gentle powers’ 5:36 195 would be…’ 2:49 123 17 No. 35. Duet. Empress: ‘Can yo 18 No. 13. Finale. Dipsacus: ‘All is ready!’ 3:10 127 you remember’ 2:40 201 Act II 18 No. 36. Quartet. All: ‘Love in a hut…’ 1:21 207 4 5 CHAN 10120 BOOK.qxd 20/4/07 3:01 pm Page 6 Hawthorne’s short stories, Rappaccini’s Daughter, Interestingly, Sharp had opted for characters with which includes many themes developed in his better- botanical names, echoing Hawthorne’s luxurious Vaughan Williams: The Poisoned Kiss known book The Scarlet Letter: love, fate, troubled garden, and had introduced a neat symmetry in the and feverish emotions, temptation and passion. characters. As Frank Howes has pointed out, each Vaughan Williams began writing The Poisoned Kiss, tradition of ‘slight texture and invariable spoken Richard Garnett’s study takes up Hawthorne’s notion main character has an equal and opposite: his fourth opera, in 1927. He was also working on his dialogue instead of recitative’. of a beautiful maiden who lives on poisons, but Tormentilla – Amaryllus Falstaff opera, Sir John in Love, and had begun With The Poisoned Kiss – a spoken comedy of a invests it with a gentle irony that is both engaging Angelica – Gallanthus sketching the first scenes for Job. He was at the slight texture interspersed with songs and an absence and humorous. This short story ends happily, for ‘the Empress – Dipsacus height of his musical powers, yet The Poisoned Kiss of recitative – Vaughan Williams was clearly writing an kiss of love is the remedy for every poison’. Three Hobgoblins – Three Mediums has remained largely unperformed, unrecorded and opera in the English tradition as he saw it. In Vaughan Williams knew the Garnett story well and Sharp and Vaughan Williams had agreed from the unknown. The reason for this neglect lies mainly in correspondence with his librettist, Evelyn Sharp, he believed that it had the makings of a light opera. He outset to introduce spoken dialogue into the libretto. the rather dated and contrived text, especially the points to ensembles in The Mikado and Yeomen of chose Evelyn Sharp (1869–1955) as his librettist. The outline of Garnett’s story was there: revengeful lengthy sections of spoken dialogue (omitted in this the Guard as illustrating his requirements, and says he Why? She had been a journalist on the Manchester magician father, young lovers, clever use of antidotes, premiere recording). It did not help that the composer has been studying Polly (John Gay’s sequel to The Guardian, had contributed to the Yellow Book (a the initial fear that the poisoned kiss would be the and the librettist were uncertain about the balance Beggar’s Opera), with its short tunes, spoken controversial 1890s literary magazine) and was also a lovers’ doom, happy reconciliation at the end as love between comedy and drama in the opera, a dilemma dialogue, dances and interludes, as preparation for his writer of fairytales and children’s books. She had unites. To this simple tale, Sharp added many that led to major revisions of the work by Vaughan fourth opera. written a short story, The Spell of the Magician’s contemporary references, mainly in the spoken Williams in 1936 and again in 1956–7. In the final Other musical influences are equally worthy of note. Daughter, which was published in a book of Victorian dialogue, including comments on the Oedipus version the composer’s lyricism has the upper hand It is likely that Mozart’s ‘sing-spiel’ The Magic Flute fairytales in 1902 and was full of ‘poisoned kiss’-type complex, the cricketer Jack Hobbs (who was featured and we are treated to an extraordinary wealth of was one such; Vaughan Williams had been impressed allusions. This, and her use of satire and symbolism, in Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack in 1926), women MPs expressive and heart-felt music which does not by the pioneering staging of it at Cambridge in 1911, would have suggested to Vaughan Williams that Sharp and even the London Underground. deserve to be thus ignored. in the English translation by his friend, Edward Dent. was well suited to developing Garnett’s gentle fable By early August 1927, Vaughan Williams was In 1914, Vaughan Williams had reflected on the The composer also admired Bizet’s Carmen and the into a full libretto. Moreover, as a politician and taking a stronger line regarding the libretto. While history of English opera in The Music Student: flavour of this opera, its origins and spoken dialogue suffragette (she had been arrested and imprisoned insisting: ‘I don’t believe in dictating to other people’, From 1720 to 1860, all through this period of Italian can be detected in The Poisoned Kiss. Finally, and twice), Sharp could be relied upon to invest the he was suggesting what each character should say, opera and fashionable Italian singers… there flowed a thin closer to home, Vaughan Williams had already adopted libretto with contemporary wit and relevance. Last but how each character was to be delineated, the order of but very distinguishable stream of English opera. We can this formula of songs interspersed with spoken not least, Evelyn was also the sister of Cecil Sharp, a events and the type of metre he wanted. He also date this period of English opera to the year 1727, when dialogue in his own incidental music for Aristophanes’ close friend of Vaughan Williams’s and fellow folksong affirmed: ‘We want some pure and lyric romantic The Beggar’s Opera was produced. The Beggar’s Opera is The Wasps (composed in 1909). Its wit, satire and collector, and therefore to be trusted; shared sadness movements, I think, to give the poor sentimental old what we should call a ‘musical comedy’ and what the contemporary feel show that it, too, was a precedent at Cecil’s death in 1924 may have drawn composer composer a chance.’ Germans call ‘sing-spiel’. That is, a spoken comedy for the present work. and future librettist closer together. Subsequent correspondence between the composer interspersed with songs. The libretto originated from a short story, The So far, so good. By July 1927 Evelyn Sharp had and librettist shows Vaughan Williams making ever Vaughan Williams added that the famous comic Poison Maid, by Dr Richard Garnett (1835–1906).