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Music, Drama and Folklore in Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's Opera Snegurochka [Snowmaiden]

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Music, Drama and Folklore in Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's Opera Snegurochka [Snowmaiden] MUSIC, DRAMA AND FOLKLORE IN NIKOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV'S OPERA SNEGUROCHKA [SNOWMAIDEN] DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Gregory A. Halbe, B.A., M.A., M.M. ***** The Ohio State University 2004 Dissertation Committee: Approved by: Professor Margarita L. Mazo, Adviser Prof. Lois Rosow ___________________________ Professor George Kalbouss Advisor School of Music Graduate Program ABSTRACT Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s third of his fifteen operas, Snegurochka [Snowmaiden], is examined here from historical and analytical perspectives. Its historical importance begins with the composer’s oft-expressed preference for this work. It was by far his most popular opera during his lifetime, and has endured as a staple of the operatic repertory in Russia to this day. Rimsky-Korsakov’s famous declaration that he considered himself for the first time an artist “standing on my own feet” with this work, Snegurochka also represents a revealing case study in the dissolution of the Russian Five, or moguchaia kuchka, as a stylistically cohesive group of composers. The opera’s dramatic source was a musical play by the same name by Aleksandr Ostrovsky, with music by Piotr Tchaikovsky. Rimsky-Korsakov solicited and received Ostrovsky’s permission to adapt the script into an opera libretto. Primary sources, including the composer’s sketchbooks, the first editions of the score and the subsequent revisions, and correspondence with Ostrovsky and others, reveal how he transformed the dramatic themes of Ostrovsky’s play, in particular the portrayal of the title character. Finally, the musical themes and other stylistic features of this opera are closely analyzed and compared with those of Richard Wagner’s music dramas. Although Rimsky-Korsakov had not yet seen or studied Der Ring des Nibelungen when he worked on Snegurochka, he was acquainted with Wagner’s early works and his theoretical ii writings. Comparison of these two composers’ representations of dramatic themes through music is not only appropriate, but necessary for a full appreciation of Snegurochka in its historical context. Far from the pedantic conservative that others have described, this study reveals Rimsky-Korsakov to have been a profoundly innovative composer. Disenchanted as he was with the naturalistic prosody that characterized his comrade, Modest Musorgsky’s most well-known works (as well as Rimsky-Korsakov’s own first opera, Pskovitianka [The Maid of Pskov]), Rimsky-Korsakov blended melodic recitative, Russian folksong, and late Romantic chromaticism into a distinctively new musical language. In so doing, he established a reputation as one of Russia’s foremost composers of opera, a distinction that survives to this day. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS All dissertations are dauntingly large projects, but the chronological scope of this endeavor may be unprecedented. Throughout this long ordeal, I was blessed by the love, support and encouragement of a host of guardian angels. Without their unflinching faith in me, this document would never have reached its conclusion. My parents, Glen and Beverly Halbe, and my sister, Rebecca, have sustained me through countless disappointments, and prodded me to maintain a focus I never could have managed on my own. My church family at First Congregational United Church of Christ, Columbus, OH, has earned my undying love and gratitude, which I intend to at least partially express with some lavish celebration in the months ahead. In particular, I look forward to popping a cork or two with my mentor and friend, Donald Streibig. My friends and colleagues in Rusalka Slavic Folk Chorus have earned a celebration or two as well. More than anyone else, though, I look forward to repaying the love and support of my fiancée, Janet Seeds, and her children, Dakota and Samantha Miller. Finally, I owe a huge debt to several for direct and indirect contributions to this project. Prof. Olga Haldey has provided valuable insight and friendly criticism, and secured the microfilms of the sketches from the Rossiiskaia National’naia Biblioteka. My long walks with Prof. Vladimir Marchenkov have been a source of endless inspiration. iv Prof. Lois Rosow’s critical eye, gracious humor and abiding support are gifts I will never fully repay. Prof. George Kalbouss’s boundless enthusiasm for Russian culture has been my constant inspiration, and his faith in me has sustained me more than I could ever express. This project’s beginning, its progress, and its conclusion, all flow ultimately from the wellspring of critical insight and undying support that is Prof. Margarita Mazo. I would not be the scholar I am today without her tutelage, guidance, and support. She and her husband, Matanya Ophee, have welcomed me as family into their home. My lifelong love of Russian culture has blossomed more than I could have imagined, thanks to the opportunities, lessons, and guidance she has provided me. All that is praiseworthy in this document I dedicate with gratitude to her. All that is deficient I hope she will forgive. v VITA October 28, 1956......................................Born – Chicago, IL 1978..........................................................B.A., Music, Carleton College, Northfield, MN 1980..........................................................M.A., Russian Culture, University of Kansas 1985..........................................................M.M., Musicology, University of Kansas 1984-85 ....................................................Graduate Teaching Assistant, Musicology, The Ohio State University 1988-present.............................................Director, Rusalka Slavic Folk Chorus, The Ohio State University 1990-94 ....................................................Graduate Administrative Associate, Undergraduate Advising, The Ohio State University 1994-present.............................................Academic Advisor and Staff Assistant, Newark Campus, The Ohio State University 1996-present.............................................Adjunct Instructor, Musicology, Newark Campus, The Ohio State University 2004..........................................................Director, Newark Campus Choir, The Ohio State University PUBLICATIONS “Khachaturian, Aram,” Book of Days, 1988 (Ann Arbor, 1988). FIELDS OF STUDY Major Field: Music History vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Abstract............................................................................................................................ ii Acknowledgments........................................................................................................... iv Vita.................................................................................................................................. vi List of Tables ................................................................................................................ viii List of Figures.................................................................................................................ix Chapters: 1. Introduction.................................................................................................................1 2. Snegurochka in Russia and Beyond..........................................................................16 3. Snegurochka’s Birth on the Russian Stage ...............................................................40 4. From Play to Libretto................................................................................................53 5. From Sketches to Final Version................................................................................93 6. Folklore and Fantasy in Music................................................................................117 7. Snegurochka’s Thematics and the Case of Wagner................................................152 8. Conclusion ..............................................................................................................175 Bibliography .................................................................................................................180 vii LIST OF TABLES Table Page 2.1 Productions of Snegurochka outside Russia and the Soviet Union ....................30 4.1 Cuts and revisions involving the villagers..........................................................70 4.2 Structure of Iarilo Eve celebration (Act 3) .........................................................79 4.3 Revisions in Act One, Scene 3............................................................................84 4.4 Text selection for Snegurochka’s Arioso, Act 3.................................................87 5.1 Fond 640, no.177 ................................................................................................97 5.2 Fond 640, No. 178 ..............................................................................................98 5.3 Fond 640, nos. 179-191 ......................................................................................99 5.4 Text comparison: Snegurochka’s Prologue aria, 1st sketch .............................103 6.1 Form and modulatory scheme in Vesna's Aria .................................................132 6.2 Borrowed melodies cited in Letopis' and by Bachinskaia ................................136 viii LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 5.1 Initial sketch of Snegurochka’s Aria.................................................................101 5.2 Initial sketch of Lel’s 2nd Song........................................................................101
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