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Home , Adina (opera), Bel canto, Cabaletta, Cavatina, Opera house

Experiencing

Getting deep into the style

By Júlia Pérez Arquillo

Name of the institution: Stockholm University of the arts Course: Maister Hp: 10 credits Program: Personal Project Year: Course 2020-21 Supervisor: Wilhelm Carlsson Examiner: Wilhelm Carlsson

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Abstract

One of the styles that has influenced opera the most through history has been Bel canto. This work is a recompilation of personal research about its history, characteristics and one of its major exponents, G. Rossini. At the same time, it includes a personal approach on the topic of how to create and perform a character and some exercises aimed to improve the in the mentioned style.

Key words: Bel Canto, Rossini, opera and singing technique.

2 INDEX

Introduction 5

1. The theoretical ...... 6

1.1. Bel canto and its characteristics...... 6 1.2. G. Rossini: The father of Bel Canto...... 10

2. The practical...... 15

2.1. The Roles ...... 15 ...... 19 L’Elisir d’Amore...... 20 Development of the characters on : ...... 24 2.2. Creating a warm-up routine notebook ...... 25

Conclusions…………………………………………………………………………………………26

Bibliography...... 28

3 Introduction

Description

This project focuses on Bel canto and it is articulated into two parts: the theoretical and the practical one.

Regarding the theoretic part, it is in based in the style and its characteristics, taking into account that I am a singer and not a musicologist or an historian. The part concerning Rossini deals not only with his personal style, but also with his personal life since it helps to understand some of his artistic decisions. A short biography of Domenico Barbaja is also added, since there would have been no career for Rossini without him. Both were people with eclectic and fascinating lives.

For practical part, I have studied, reflected and developed two characters of different (as well as some of their gestures on stage). I have also watched after some experts on the field to get familiar with the style and phrasing. Finally, in an effort to improve my daily training I have created a recompilation of exercises that come in handy when facing roles of Bel canto.

Justification of the object of study

Often singing students have to prepare loads of repertoire of many different styles in a short period of time. As consequence, they rarely get deep into period or the composer style.

In an attempt to avoid this issue I have decided to focus in one of my favorite classical singing styles, which is Bel canto. Before I started this personal process of research and trying new music, Bel canto was a term I had heard of but knew very little about. Some of my teachers and repertorists had recommended it to me; they agreed it was suitable for my voice. However, when I tried to sing it, I was faced with many technical difficulties. I lacked air to make the phrases last until the end, my register was not uniform, I could not play with dynamics in my high register, etc. Even though the challenge was enormous, and sometimes frustrating in the

4 rehearsing rooms and lessons, the slow but constant improvements I achieved made this choice absolutely worth it. Apart from technique, I was also lacking good Italian diction, connection between the vowels, lots of in the phrases, etc. To fill a full the sound must be well projected but so has to be the text. Sometimes I thought I was exaggerating it too much, especially the consonants and doppie (double consonants. Ex. Legittima, sorella, effetto). But as some teachers have said to me, if there is a doppia you have to think it triple.

To make the practical part of the project efficient and realistic, I decided to focus on a principal role of two different composers, which are more adequate to my singing moment: Rossini and Donizetti.

General Goals

• To acquire deeper knowledge of the Bel canto style and create my own notebook warming up exercise. • To learn how to perform the pieces accordingly to their period and composer style. • To study two whole roles. Develop characters personality and acquire the tools for studying an opera in a fast and efficient way. • To face the challenge of singing and exploring the Bel canto technique, which is very demanding: long fiatos, well-conducted phrases, expressiveness, witty , etc. • To discover new operas and possible roles while founding new and inspirational singers

5 1. The theoretical

This part comprises a research of Bel canto different meanings, its innovations and famous structures and examples of singers that I consider are plenty in style. It also contains brushes of Rossini’s professional and personal life for a better understanding of his personality and work.

1.1. Bel canto and its characteristics

The “Bel canto”, which means literally “Beautiful singing” in Italian, is a musical term that was first used in the mid XIX century to talk about two concepts: ! The singing technique and its school that emerged in by the end of the XVI century ! The Italian romantic compositional style and art. Its three major exponents where: G. Rossini, G. Donizetti y V. Bellini

Currently the term is often used for referring to the singing style between 1600 and 1850. However, the truth is that it wasn’t until the mid XIX century when, faced with the vocal decadence of its own time, these two words started to symbolize the loss of the ancient Italian vocal technique1.

Some of its characteristics are: the prevalence of technique over volume, perfect tuning, brilliant and flowery passages, purity of sound in the melody, long cadences, fast scales, the search for uniformity in the whole register of the sung voice, elegance in the phrasing, agility and flexibility, ... in short, absolute control of the technique in order to achieve virtuosity. However, what undoubtedly characterizes this style is legato, the ability to go from one musical phrase to another with no interruption2. The capacity to produce a pure, clean, stable and even legato is one of the greatest treasures of Bel canto style. In my opinion, the technique to master it is complex and demanding and requires a technical control rarely found in any other vocal musical style, which usually focus on making the voice sound more powerful (to overcome a

1 Toft, Robert. Bel Canto: A Performer’s Guide. New York. Oxford University Press. 2013. p. 4. 2 Ibid

6 big orchestra), to express feelings in the most realistic way and there so letting the search of beauty aside, singing with no to focus more on the text, etc.

The Italian language plays an important role in the development of this technique, because unlike German, Italian vowels create long and fluid lines when singing, very much in accordance with the style needs. Furthermore, with its characteristic phonetic, correctly spoken Italian activates the resonators of the facial structures, allowing an easy projection.

Innovations

Some of the innovative elements in operas of this style were: the mixture of spoken and sung voice, the demand for perfect harmony between vocal and theatrical interpretation, the limits’ exploration of the high register, the voice’s homogeneous colour throughout the whole register and the consolidation of “the Bel canto aria structure” par excellence: -- -Coda.

In order to elevate the feelings to their maximum expression, composers used different resources such as: legato, , , flowery passages, embellishments, sudden changes of dynamics, accents, sudden changes of tempo, etc. Since Bel canto sought homogeneity of sound as well as a perfect articulation, vibrato was not in fashion, because it broke this harmony.

To achieve a greater naturalness and expressiveness in , ensembles and ’ lyrics, the singers had to mix their sung and spoken voice (“Sing as you speak”3). It was hugely important that the singer merged with the character and felt the same as him/her in order to express those very same feelings on stage. Most of the times, in spite of an excellent interpretation of a singer, if the audience hadn’t been emotionally touched, the critics were very hard on the performers. Two deeply admired feminine singers for their character’s internalization were Gertrud Marta and Angelica Catalani4. Today this demand might seem

3 Ibid 4 https://www.academia.edu/3769518/Bel_Canto_The_Old_Italian_Vocal_Technique_and_Its_Golden_Age

7 obvious, but we should consider that previously the “theatrical” performance was not so valued in operas, so it marked a before and an after. Young talented singers regularly made their debut in their late teens after just a few years of training, and documents from the period describe the fierce rivalry between teachers5.

Another innovative element from Bel canto was the exploration of the high register limits, especially of male voices, being tenors6 the most affected. In addition, due to the argument, the importance of emotions’ expression and the search for a "spoken" voice (typical of the style), voices with a particular sweetness and the ability to sound homogeneously throughout the register (without the change from head to being noticed) were sought.

The structure Recitative-Cantabile-Cabaletta-Coda in an aria This structure reached its peak at the end of the 19th century. The Cantabile part used to have a slower tempo than the second; the Cabaletta on the other hand, was livelier and often introduced an intensification or complication into the plot of the opera. Often, the Cabaletta was similar to its preceding part, but with quite a few variations and more ornamentation. The coda was in most cases for singers to show off, as was the Cabaletta. All in all, this kind of arias were exhausting and demanding.

Here there is a list of 3 arias, each one has the structure mentioned before and belongs to one of the exponents of Bel Canto:

- “Non più mesta" from La Cenerentola by G.Rossini (1817). Performed by Teresa Berganza in 1969: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lU79hAqUS-E. - “Vien dilecto, è in ciel la luna" by by V. Bellini (1835). Performed by in 1959: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ap-Z7Ey4Hj8. - "O luce di ques'anima" by Linda di Chamounix by G. Donizetti. (1842). Performed by Lucia Alberti: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=byPm0KDEzlk.

5 https://www.academia.edu/3769518/Bel_Canto_The_Old_Italian_Vocal_Technique_and_Its_Golden_Age 6 https://www.academia.edu/938718/An_aural_analysis_of_bel_canto . Page 15

8 A term that was redefined in Italian romantic operas was the (an Italian diminutive of cavata, the tone produced by an instrument, plural cavatine). Originally, the term was used to mention a short aria with no repetitions, in style, of a simple character. On the contrary, in Italian romantic operas it was used to refer to a main character presentation’s aria, which served the spectator to familiarize with it, and often, with its goals and skills. It was not usually dramatic, but long and complex as an aria with a Recitative-Cantabile-Cabaletta structure. Examples of cavatina:

- "Come per me sereno" by Amina in by V. Bellini. Performed by Mariella

Devia in 1992: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_HTi1fIe0c8. - “Una voce poco fa" by Rosina in Il barbiere di Seviglia by G. Rossini. Performed byTeresa Berganza in 1972: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvW9cUCuPQI.

- “Benedette queste carte” by Adina in L’elisir d’amore by G. Donizetti. Performed by Angela Gheorghiu in 2005. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8f731QLS8ak.

Regarding notation, pieces could rarely be performed as they were written because composers did not write down their ideas exactly as the intended them to be expressed. Performers could alter pieces in order to enhance their effect and make them suitable to their vocal skills and show off during the performances. As a result, singers were needed to recreate rather than simply interpret scores.

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1.2. G. Rossini: The father of Bel Canto

This section is not a detailed biography of Gaetano Rossini, but a compilation of information that I have found especially relevant, enriching or simply interesting to understand him as a person and as a composer.

Family: He came from a family that had once been aristocratic but had fallen into disgrace by the time Rossini was a teenager. His father, Giuseppe Rossini, was as vivacious as it was fiery. He worked in a local band as town crier and as an inspector of Slaughterhouses. His mother was a dressmaker and a mezzo-soprano with no musical education. She had a train of admirers but at the age of 19 got married with Giuseppe and the 29th February 1792 they had a child that they spoiled outrageously7.

Education: Back to 1805 in Bologna when he was a student in the Liceo Musicale, he proved to have a great voice and sung often in churches and theaters where he served as chorus-master. This would explain his excellent understanding and use of voice in his compositions. His father taught him to play the horn and he quickly mastered the cello, viola and cembalo. He had a prodigious memory for remembering a whole piano score by heart after only one hearing. He had indeed a natural talent for music.

Influences: He loved Mozart and Haydn. That earned him the nickname of “Il Tedeschino”(The little German). He admired Cimarosa’s operas, which influenced his own. At the age of 20 he finished his musical education.

7 Harding, James. The Great Composer Rossini. . Publishing House Faber and Faber limited. 1971. Chapter 2.

10 Italian musical ambiance during Rossini’s career: By the time Rossini wrote his first opera for , most Italian towns with any civic pride held opera seasons at their local theaters. Singers traveled from town to town and spent log hours bumping along dusty roads in carriages. One of the richer citizens usually made him responsible for assembling a troupe of singers. Then he would search out a poet to write a and find a composer to provide the notes. The business manager, it has been told, was often some shady lawyer who contrived to enrich himself on the process. For weeks ahead the town would bubble with scandals about the primma donna’s love affairs and backstage intrigues. In the absence of any other entertainment the operas were anticipated with intense eagerness. Audiences’ reactions were ruthless and voluble. They were as likely to bellow “Bravo, ” as they were to damn the luckless performers with jeers8.

Personal hobbies and his relationship with singers. His enjoyment of social life gave little time for writing. He loved woman and they loved him. He composed astonishingly quickly, he could compose anywhere at any time, but his favorite place to do so was his bed. When the people of a town commissioned him to write an opera, he would first make a brief visit to their and meet the troupe with whom he had been engaged. A few chords on the piano and a few scales from singers, were enough to give him an idea of the companies’ abilities9.

Process of composition: The “public” was his master and he had to please it to live. Scenes were adapted or dropped, arias replaced and adjusted, in the light of the audience reaction. This explains why the same tunes occasionally occur in operas which are completely different from each other and why whole often do duty several times over. For example La Cenerentola and share the same . So do, Aurelino in

Palimira, Il Barbiere di Siviglia and Elisabetta, Regina d’Inghilterra.

Fame: Few composers have known success so early and so abundant as Rossini. At the age of twenty he was rich, famous and admired. He had a completely lack of vanity and recognized his

8 Ibid. Chapter 5. 9 https://www.academia.edu/9336477/Rossini_and_his_Neapolitan_operas

11 coetaneous work, he once said to Bellini: Young man, you are starting your career at the point where many “great” end it.

His Overtures and its characteristics His instantly recognizable overtures sometimes are even more famous than the operas they belong to10.

• In the early past century (XIX) it was not a rule that overtures should contain melodies that occur in the opera itself. However in Guillaume Tell, his last opera, for the first time in his career he wrote one which is recognizably linked to the story and which mirrors important events in it. That set a precedent that many would follow. • Overtures were used as a reminder that the opera was about to start. The first chord or passage had to be loud enough to still a chattering audience yet interesting enough to arouse expectation. Ex: ’s ouverture. It starts with two sudden drum rolls as an introduction to one of the cockiest marches ever written. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjDXNqG0Deg.

Performed in 2015. • Rossini often used the device of gradually loudening the music so that excitement reached fever pitch in the end. It earned him the not very friendly nickname of “Signor Crescendo”. • He had a mastery in orchestration, an instinct for which instrument could best be used for a certain passage, especially for the wind section, offering individual players a chance to shine.

Domenico Barbaja (1777-1841): It is not possible to talk about Rossini’s career without mentioning the biggest Bel canto business man, the rough and illiterate Barbaja, who in

10 Ibid. Chapter III: Rossini and the Overture.

12 spite of not having studies got further than many of them and catapulted Rossini to stardom. His first job consisted of washing dishes in a café. Then he invented a new type of coffee-cream which he christened Barbajata11 and sold it in great quantities. With the money he made he set up as a supplier of goods to the army and grew richer, he took over the gambling’s rooms attached to in . Not long afterwards he was wealthy enough to buy the Scala itself and later San Carlo theater too. In 1815, in spite of the hard and uncertain political and economical times, Barbaja decided to offer the composer a position in . With him, Barbaja lead the Napolitan theatre to their greatest artistic height, and fully develop the gambling franchise, enabling him to grow even richer 12 . Rossini liked the business man and appreciated the self-made impressario’s earthy with and shrewd realism. Moreover Rossini was allowed a share of the large sums taken at Barbaja’s gaming table. By the same time he met Barbaja, he met his future wife and Barbaja’s ex lover, a Spanish mezzo-soprano called Isabella Collbran (1784-1845), charming but temperamental, physically resembling to Rossini’s mother. Her singing was passionate and she had very expressive acting skills13. Elizabetta, regina d’Inghilterra was Rossini’s first job in Naples and he composed the main rol specifically for her. Fortunately it pleased Collbran and lots of Neapolitans too. After La Cenerentola (1816) he wrote no more genuine comic operas. Between 1817 and 1822 he composed more than half a dozen serious works intending to display the talents of her beloved and absorbent Isabella Collbran. It was probably due to her influence that he deserted the field of comic opera, which was a huge mistake just as Beethoven remarked to Rossini in the only meeting they have ever encountered: “Never try to write anything else but comic opera. To try to succeed in another style would harm your personality”.

11 Eisenbeiss, Philip. Domenico Barbaja: Il padrino del Belcanto. Roma. Publishing House EDT Libri. 2015. Chapter I. From Coffe Waiter to Croupier. 12 Ibid. Chapter IV: Rossini and Roulette (1813-1816). 13 Harding, James. The Great Composer Rossini. London. Publishing House Faber and Faber limited. 1971. Chapter IV. Enter the Barber.

13 Later years: He spend his last time in surrounded by friends and rushing parties every Saturday at his flat, where important public personalities where invited. After 1829 he never composed any other opera even though he lived until 1868.

14 2. The practical

This part is organized in two sections. The first one is putting into practice what I have learned from the style by studying two whole roles and play them without prejudices and avoiding clichés. The second is developing a personal exercise notebook for improving my skills as a singer. I have done both, but regarding the first task, I have had to focus vocally on just one character for reasons that I will explain later.

2.1. The Roles

Taking into account that I still don’t have a “lyric” , I am still quite a soubrette soprano, dramatic roles had to be left aside and so was Bellini. Since Rossini has a predilection for principal mezzo-soprano roles it wasn’t easy to find suitable one and I chose a secondary role highly commercial nowadays, looking forward to the future, but without leaving aside the aim of challenging myself and getting deep into the style.

G. Rossini: La Cenerentola – Clorinda G. Donizetti: L’Elisir d’Amore – Adina

Regarding Donizetti, It has been a long time since I wanted to prepare Adina, and it has proved very suitable for the voice development moment.

I have chosen these two roles because: a) They are adequate to my voice moment and could be useful in a future for contests, opera studios and casts. b) The characters have contrasting goals and purposes and that has made the learning process more enriching.

At this point I think it is in convenient to explain the difference between a lyrics singer and a lyric soprano. A lyrics singer is the one who has an adequate voice to sing Opera. The 15 term ”lyrics” comes from an ancient instrument in the Old Greece that was used to accompany the singers in the representations. However, there are different categories in the lyrics voices. In for example there are the dramatics/lyrics (with voluminous voices), leggeras (with a high range), soubrette, (able of doing fast flourished passages), etc. In classical music, specifically in opera, the term soubrette is used for referring to a type of voice and a type of role as well.

The role of a soubrette is mostly seen in comic operas or operettas (specially German ones). They usually portray youthful, good-looking, smart, flirtatious girls. Normally they are not seen in big roles because they are unable to carry over larger orchestras in larger halls.

Regarding its , it has a light and bright colour, a sweet and a (range) that usually goes for c4 to a high D6, but lacks and extensive coloratura. Many young sopranos don’t stay soubrettes throughout their entire career, their voice matures and they are reclassified in other types of voices. Judging by my abilities, I think I will become a lyric . Right now I already don’t fit completely into the soubrette label because I can do extensive coloratura and my range is a little lower and a little higher than a soubrette.

16 How to conceive a character

After developing Adina I have realized how important it is to keep an open mind and let our own wishes or prejudices aside for this task. That is a task that should not be taken lightly, because many times it is done unconsciously. It is imperative to know the character’s background, prior and future aspirations to the play, friends/family/enemies, …

At the beginning of my journey, I misjudged Adina and it was only through the music and performance, by becoming her in my body, that I realized how sincere and deep she is. For that reason I chose to project several of the adjectives that represent her (the ones that I used to think that suited her and the currently ones), in the final aria of Adina (Prendi, per me sei libero). Even though, adjectives are just labels, and some of them are even contradictory in the “Video-presentation”, they help to conceive depth in Adina: cold- hearted, stubborn, beautiful, arrogant, intelligent, independent, proud, frank, capricious, rich, attention seeker, snooty, vindictive, curious, impulsive, sweet, cultured, bossy, cheerful and determined.

I have found especially useful to have a mindset of what is the character’s goal in every single scene and be present so that every performance feels like a new one. I don’t imitate what I did in a prior rehearsal/show, I rather re- create, constantly. That way I conceive a character that is in its own emotional and sensory world. It is the same concept of “The Illusion for the First Time in acting” that William Gilette developed so wisely 14.

14 Gilette 1915. https://sites.google.com/a/books-now.com/en4387/9780341671299-68recaGEprosci57

17 As Lee Strasberg used to say “All acting takes place in the character’s present moment, as well as in the actor’s own present moment”. The “Relaxation Exercise” described by Lola Cohen in her book The Method Acting Exercises Handbook, is straight related the importance of setting oneself aside in the character’s benefit.

“During Relaxation you make an effort to search out for areas of the body that hold the tension which impedes the flow of impulses and inhibiting you from controlling your behavior. It permits you to identify and break self-sabotaging unconscious habits that impede your expression; it gives you access to new forms of expression. By studying your own actions closely, you became aware of those confining habits that can control you. It’s likely that your character won’t have your mannerisms or habits, so it’s incumbent upon you to be able to get rid to hem in order to consciously take on the mannerisms of the character”15.

15 Cohen, Lola. The Method Acting Exercises Handbook. New York, Routledge. 2017. Chapter 2: The Relaxation Exercise.

18 La Cenerentola

The plot of “La Cenerentola” is the classic Cinderella story, not the Disney version nor the Grimm brother’s tale, it has its own particularities but in general lines the story remains the same. In my opinion, the characters are a bit cartoonized in the libretto because it is a comic fairy tale (opera giocosa). However among all the characters there is only one that does not remain plain as expected in this kind of tells, that is Clorinda.

At the end of the opera, when she is forced to beg for forgiveness or live in poverty for the rest of her life, she leaves her pride aside and decides to finally embrace Cenerentola as her sister and superior. Moreover, she realizes her value as a “young” woman who can still find a suitable husband, a spouse she intends to control for keeping up her expensive life style. On the contrary, Tisbe does not yield and remains full of bitterness, just as Don Magnifico. Clorinda’s change can be seen in the aria “Sventurada mi credea”, in which the older sister embraces the changes in her life with a positive attitude.

Unfortunately after practicing that aria through thick and thin, I have come to the conclusion that it is not suitable for me. Clorinda is a shameless, active and extroverted character that requires lots of scenic presence. Since this year I have changed my singing technique, it was hard for me to focus on the acting and the singing at the same time, in the end the acting dragged me back to the old habits which were a small voice, with Spanish nasal diction and not that much support and coverage. Furthermore, I found it especially hard to repeatedly practice the of ”Sventurata, mi credea”, perhaps because the aria was not written by Rossini? Maybe I needed to rest coloraturas during this in-between process? Anyway, I made the decision to focus my daily practice in Adina and it turned out to be a good choice. Perhaps in the future I will retake the role and discover that the old difficulties are gone.

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L’Elisir d’Amore

For the study of this character I have done a deep research about the opera and Adina’s personality to develop my own vision of her. Even though it is a happy ending story and it resembles with a tale, I think deeper characters can be found when compared to “La Cenerentola”. For approaching Adina it has been my choice to maker her self-secure and decisive without falling into making her sarcastic, without malice or bitter, just mistrustful of romantic and lasting love because she is very young and has never felt it or let herself feel it before. I would like to highlight that Adina is a rounded character that goes through a personal grow process.

For the representation of this role I will sing 4 pieces:

1. – Benedette queste carte. Is the Cavatina (1st aria of the character), where the public sees a young girl who is well educated, has a good relation ship with the villagers and does not believe in love fairy tales. My performance of the cavatina: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ebcL4Fa35Kw

2. – Caro Elisir sei mio, sí tutto mio. Duetto with Nemorino. For the first moment in the opera the love she has taken for granted has suddenly disappeared and that upsets her for some reason that she is still unable to understand. She is experiencing something new and so is Nemorino, who is feeling empowered by the certainty that she will fall for him the very next day. For all those reasons I believe this duetto is a good one to play for the project. Our performance of the duetto (: Mattias Gunnari): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPREHvfgGbo

3. – Come sen va contento... Quanto amore. Duetto with Dulcamara. Adina founds out the enormous sacrifice that Nemorino has done for her and realizes that she also loves him. When the seller tries to play her, she gracefully answers that all she needs to win Nemorino’s heart back are her woman weapons. This duetto could not be performed for reasons beyond my control. However, I could rehearse it several times with a pianist and the .

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4. – Prendi, per me sei libero. Last aria of Adina where she sets free Nemorino, and tells him with the music and her feelings, not with words, that she loves him too. It is a tender moment where the sensible Adina grasps the surface. My performance of the aria: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1H3jY5mOzSs

In the process of embracing Adina’s character, she has become very close to me, I have even found in her a reflection of myself. I like the fact that she is not like several sopranos that fall instantly in love with a tenor and from that moment on, they don’t think about anything else. I appreciate her self-love, her independence and her skills for reading music and books. She is a young woman thirsty for knowledge. Moreover she is friendly with people that work for her. All in all, I think she can be performed in an outside of the box format, out of the typical "good girl", "frivolous woman" or “bitter old lady” of most operas, although it is of course, a bit pigeonholed in the second category.

21 Plot The action takes place in the XVIII century at a small town in , where Adina belongs to the most important landowner family of the town.

Act I Adina, reads to her workers the fairy tail of Tristan and Isolda. Nemorino, a poor peasant villager who is deeply in love with her, listens to it and decides to obtain the magic potion mentioned in the story to make her fall in love with him. Then, the Sergeant Belcore and his troops make their way to Adina. Belcore flirts with her and finally proposes to her in front everyone. She, casually and politely, tells him that she will think it over. Back in the town’s piazza arrives Dr. Dulcamara (a travelling salesman). The lovesick Nemorino buys a love potion similar to the “Tristan and Isolda”(ordinary wine) for all the money that he has in his pockets to Dulcamara, who explains that the potion will take effect in one day, when he will have already left. Adina becomes angry at Nemorino's new confident attitude and decides to punish him by marrying the sergeant that very same day. The desperate tenor calls out for the seller.

Act II By the wedding time, Adina, upset that Nemorino has not yet appeared, has waited as long as she could and enters the chapel with the notary and the rest of the crowd to sign the marriage contract. Nemorino begs Dulcamara for a love potion with instant effect, but he has no money left and travelling salesman refuses to help. Then Nemorino signs up for the army to immediately get a signing bonus and thus afford the elisir. That same evening, Gianetta spreads the news that Nemorino’s uncle has died and he is the hair to a great sum of money. Immediately women flock to his side leading him to think the potion is working. A surprised Adina asks Dulcamara about the sudden change of women in town, he explains to her that the foolish boy has spent all his money and even joined the army to buy a love potion for some woman. In that moment she realises she is the woman, how much he loves her and that she is in love with him too. The wedding is cancelled, the two lovers live happily ever after and Dulcamara sells dozens of “love potions” before leaving the small town.

22 How is Adina described by: The libretto: A beautiful and wealthy landowner. Her age is not specified but she is supposed to be very young, between 15 and 16.

Herself: “…che capricciosa io sono, e non v'ha brama che in me tosto non muoia appena è desta” (… capricious I am, and there is no longing that in me does not die as soon as it is awakened) She is a proud free woman who does not like to be tied down.

“…ti dirà che è in lei natura l'esser mobile e infedel” (… will tell thee that it is in her nature to be mobile and unfaithful)

“Per guarir da tal pazzia, ché è pazzia l'amor costante…” (To heal from such madness, for constant love is madness...) Once more she is expressing her despise for “constant” love.

“Vo' vendicarmi, vo' tormentarlo, vo' che pentito mi cada al piè.” (I want to avenge myself, I want to torment him, I want him to fall at my feet in repentance) Her proud has been hurt with indifference and she claims revenge.

“Non è, non è sì facile Adina a conquistar” (It is not that easy Adina to seduce) She is self-aware of her value and demands her pretenders to make an effort and impress her.

Other characters: Nemorino: Beautiful and adorable. As he sings in his Cavatina: Essa legge, studia, impara… (She reads, studies and learns,…)

Villagers: …ma è volpe vecchia (but she is an old fox) They know she is smart and will not fall for the Sergeant’s traps.

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Development of the characters on stage:

Even though they are of similar age and status, they have their own peculiarities. Both belong to well-standing families; however we know nothing about Adina’s parents or siblings, she is probably a single child. By the play we can deduce that she has no pressure to get married, she is free and allowed to be independent, in other words, she can be herself. On the other hand, Clorinda lost her mother when Tisbe and her were young and they have lived ever since with a violent and foolish father who treats them with disrespect and not much affection. As a result Clorinda has developed a competitive and extrovert character to be noticed by everyone around. Both seek and feel comfortable being the centre of attention for different reasons. To portray their inner prior stories and personalities of this woman, I have developed some characteristic gestures for both of them.

Clorinda: Since she is the older sister and thinks she has to keep up with the expectations put on her, she walks with a proud step, that is with a straight back and tight shoulders, the chin a little bit high (which automatically gives the feeling of her looking over the shoulder). Her standing position includes loosen wrists, to make her look poshy and ungraceful. Eventually she could wrinkle her nose when she is bored or, in an attempt to flirt, open excessively her eyes.

Adina: Agile and graceful. Agile because she is young, curious, full of energy and eager to see the world. Graceful because her manners and movements should clearly indicate her high social status, that gives its members a self-security and slow moving tempo. She owns the stage as she owns the town. Due to her youth, sometimes she uses more childish gestures such as: holding her hands down and raise her shoulders at the same time, smile for indicating that she wants to play or provoke, pout when something doesn’t pleases her, etc

“Chiedi all’aura lusinghiera perché vola senza posa, ti dirà che è in lei natura l’esser mobile…”(Ask the flattering aura why she flies without ceasing, she will tell you that it is in her nature to be mobile...)

24 2.2. Creating a warm-up routine notebook

For this section I have chosen three exercises that I’ve learned during this course. They have turned out very useful for improving fiatto, coloraturas and range.16

Exercise 1:

The main goal of this exercise is to improve fiatto and be able to hold a high note with quality, as well as organize the pressure release (also known as dosing). The fiatto (which means whisper or breath in Italian) is used in singing for referring to the ability to hold the air while singing and produce a sound with quality and harmonics for a long time.

Through practice I have learnt that the first note should be short and light in order to reach the octave easily and then develop it, not in dynamic, but in energy so that it is in constant move and it doesn’t fall flat. If the octave has been correctly prepared, it is possible to play with dynamics, such as a messa di voce. This term literally means a table of voice and it is an expressive resource that consists on attacking a note very piano an make it big, hold it and then make it piano again. In Bel canto it was very typical to add one little accent before letting the note dye. In the exercise is important to administer the air and know when is the right time to do the third interval note with quality and come back to the tonic.

Exercise 2: Since coloraturas are the daily bread in Bel canto, it is important to learn how to do them fast, articulated and light, and for that the diaphragm has to be very active, the neck relaxed and the

16 The notes and range are just an example and should under any circumstances be taken as compulsory. They should be adapted to every singer’s convenience. 25 tongue completely free to move at the speed required. I highly recommend to do the first note very short and start practicing this exercise slow for achieving a higher precision in tuning. A good trick so to think of a small accent in the beginning of every triplet. Keep the energy until the end the line.

Exercise 3: To make sure that the voice can travel free through the range no matter how wide or how many passagios it has to go through, I have been practicing this exercise for releasing the tensions and making sure that high notes are well supported and strainless. For the beginning of this long musical sentence, it is adequate to start with a K, which sets a good activation of the diaphragm. After that, we produce an “i”, which sets the tongue in a good high inner position for the following vowel, the u (an economic one that doesn’t require lot of air). Then we close our lips to an “f” without interrupting the flow of the air and start going one octave up. In order to hit the second one, we have to feel that the body is ready enough for the effort that this will require. The higher the note the more energy will be required. No stretch should be felt inside the neck or in the abdominal section; it should be a small but in tune high note. While going down, the high space inside the mouth should remain intact to keep the color of the line.

26 Real Examples

Example 1 This is a fragment of Adina’s Cavatina where she a sings in a big range and uses coloraturas for the ascending scales.

1st Illustration: Benedette queste carte (L'Elisir d'Amore) - G. Donizetti

Since are a big topic in Bel canto, I strongly recommend adding to the daily practice sessions chromatic and ordinary ascending and descending scales. One of those could be the one in this fragment:

2nd Illustration: Prendi per me sei libero (L'Elisir d'Amore) - G. Donizetti

27 Conclusions

After doing research on Bel canto, I have become more familiar with its history and style which has led me to a better understanding of the composers who brought this musical style to its zenith as well as its music. However, I believe this research is a never-ending process guided by one's own motivation and curiosity, which I plan to keep on doing. The community of Bel canto lovers is a small one and I have the feeling It has become part of my identity as a singer, although many other professionals avoid it because it is highly virtuous and most definitely not suitable for dramatic voices. By becoming more familiar with its characteristics, its application in my daily practice and performances has been easier and more efficient. At the beginning it was hard for me to keep the lines, the coloraturas were not clear enough or reached the same register that nowadays. Furthermore, I have become more aware of my breath and diaphragm, which has led to a more relaxed jaw and an easier to combine singing and acting. This high self-demand has built up my confidence and strengths. I know, though, that many things need to be worked on, but I strongly believe it is a style that will help me grow and develop my voice of soubrette into another category.

Regarding the practical section of the project, I have improved my singing and acting skills and prepared important roles for my future that will provide professional opportunities. It has been a marvellous opportunity to learn by doing and being able to specialize in this style. By doing so I have discovered some mannerisms that I know I have to be careful with while acting and also, transcend my initial perspective of Adina. I have also discovered new warming up routines that made my daily practices more challenging and appealing, which allowed me to avoid the habitual monotony.

All in all, it has been an enriching project that has made me discover new roles, increase my curiosity for Bel canto operas and developed my skills into a more professional level.

28 Bibliography

• Cohen, Lola. The Method Acting Exercises Handbook. New York, Routledge. 2017.

• Donizetti, Gaetano. L’elisir d’amore. Ópera completa per canto e pianoforte. Milán. Publishing House Casa Ricordi. 2005.

• Eisenbeiss, Philip. Domenico Barbaja: Il padrino del Belcanto. Roma. Publishing House EDT Libri. 2015.

• Gilette, William. The Illusion of the first time in acting. 1915. https://sites.google.com/a/books-now.com/en4387/9780341671299- 68recaGEprosci57 .

• Gómez Amat, Carlos - Turina Gómez, Joaquín. Little History of Music. . Publishing House Alianza Cien. 1995.

• Harding, James. The Great Composer Rossini. London. Publishing House Faber and Faber limited. 1971.

• Hugill, Robert. Rossini and his Neapolitan operas. https://www.academia.edu/9336477/Rossini_and_his_Neapolitan_operas.

• Kirkham, Airlie Jane. An Aural Analyis of Bel Canto. The University of Adelaide. May 2010.

• Snowman, Daniel. The Opera: A Social History. Madrid. Publishing House EL Ojo del Tiempo Siruela.2009.

29 • Spinato, Gianluca. The Old Italian Vocal Technique and Its Golden Age. https://www.academia.edu/3769518/Bel_Canto_- _The_Old_Italian_Vocal_Technique_and_Its_Golden_Age.

• Toft, Robert. Bel Canto: A Performer’s Guide. New York. Oxford University Press. 2013.

• Kareol. Página Web. http://www.kareol.es

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