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La Navarraise

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La Navarraise /v// ooo.djo La Navarraise Campttlnos navarros, d« “El Oasit", de J. Mané y Plaquer (187d) Cofradía Gastronómica del Pimiento Seco Puente la Reina, 6 de jumo de 1976 UNIVERSIDAD DE NAVARRA BIBLIOTECA D!; HUMANIDADES "La Navarralsa” es una ópera de J. MasMnet ••trenada «n «I Covent Qarden lomU> n«nse el 20 cíe junio de 1894. Opera en dos actos y un .Intermedio — “Nocturno” en la partitura— , con libreto de Henri Caín sobre “La Cigarette’% -novela de Julee- Claretle (1840-1913), Masseoet (1842-1912) la dedicó “A mi mu)er”, acaso como r ^ r ^ ó n conyugal tras el asunto del compositor con Sybll Anderson. Tuvo éxlt6 en Londres y la Reina Victoria hizo representarla en WIndsor. En Franda la opinión de crítica y público le fue adversa. Atiora, en el aparente Interés por la producción del músico Massenet, han desempolvado la breve obra La acción se desarrolla durante la guerra carlista. No hay en et libreto Indicio alguno que permita identificar de qué guerra se trata, pero se supone que es la segunda. Todo ccurre en un pueblecito de las afueras de Bilbao, anónimo e inverosimii: “En el fiorl- zonte se ven los Pirineos, sus cumbres cubiertas por ía nieve. Son las seis de la tarde de un día de primavera y todavía hay luz del día”, dice la acotación escénica InidaL Anita, huérfana pamplonesa, está enamorada del sargento AraquIL El padre de Araquil, Remigio, “terrateniente respetado”, ve con malos ojos los amores y advierte a la moza —“advenediza, extranleral”, le increpa— que no consentirá la boda, si no aporta dote igual a ia de su hijo: dos mir duros. Araquil es promovido a teniente. Anlta oye por ca> sualidad un comentarlo dei General Garrido: pagarla una fortuna a quien acabase con ▼uccárraga, “carlista maldito” oue le arrebató Bilbao. Anita prende la ocasión al vuelo, ella matará a Zuccárraga a cambio de dos mil duros. Sale del campamento cristíno, aíraviesa las filas enemigas, llega ante Zuccárraga y le da muerte. Araquil, mientras tanto, dolido por la negativa paterna, reclama a su amada. Un compañero de armas, Ramón, le escucha y le aconseja que olvide a la muchacha navarra: “Je m’en défle”. 14o se fía porque le han visto Cegar a los carlistas. O es una espfa o una traidora. Araquil piensa que Zuccárraga es el amante de Anlta. Se lanza a buscar a la muchacita. Anita vuelve, envuelta en sangre, a exigir los duros de su hazaña. Cuando ya los ha cot>rado, llega Araquil malamente hcri<^o. El teniente acusa a su novia de venderse a Zucárraga, pero sntes de morir comprende el verdadero origen del dinero: “Le prix du SangI Ho> rreuri”. Doblan las campanas por Zuccárraga. Araquil pregunta: “Pérel Pour qui sonnent ces cloches? Est-ce pour notre amour ou bien, est>ce pour moi?”. Araquil muere y su Dadre despacha a la chica: “Va>Ven, la Navarraise!”. Anlta agradece a su Virgen la pro* lección y la dote y que le haya devuelto a Araquil, a quien anima a caminar hada la Igle­ sia: “A'lons, l’églisQ est pleine. C’est te bonheuri’*. lia locura de la enamorada es ma> riflesta y todos los presentes retroceden llenos “de un superstldoso terror”. Artlta toma la cabeza de Araquil, clava la mirada en el rostro inerte, “lanza una salvaje risotada y, comlnada por la Msteria, se desploma, sin sentido, sobre ei cuerpo de Araquil”. Garrido, el cienerai, concluye: “La fdle! La follet”. Desde su primera representación. “La Navarraise” le valió a Massenet juidos deslgua> ■09. í?egún unes, Massenet no quiso ser menos que Mascagnl, cuyo éxito fu'guranie, “CaV'^' eria Rusticana” data de 1890. Massenet siguió el esquema de Mascagnl y “1^ Navarraise” fue rebauHzada, maliciosamente, “Caval'ertc Espai\ola”. Para otros, Massenet afronta por vez primera un tema ambientado en el siglo XIX y io hace con éxito. En la novela original, Araquil envenena a Zuccárraga. En la versión operística, es­ trenada oor la cantanie para la que se pensó, Emn>a Calvé, el cambio era necesario, porque la soprano gozaba de una presenda dominante indiscutida. Años más tarde cuando “La Navarraise” se repuso en el Metropolitan neoyorquino, Henry Krehblel re­ su m ió q u e <i\ cambio )>e había hecho “para dar a una mujer la oportunidad que anhel?ba c<e revolcarse en la sangre y en la suciedad con que los jóvenes verístas italianos amon­ tonaban sus r^ramáOcos caros de fcasura hace un cuarto de siglo”. Este afán verista fue s^r'an'mte der^unclado ñor los comentaristas franceses: “La vlolenda reina sobre todo, y Ja vlo'ercla no es e! o f^’ro para un comcositor francés”. “Esta obra lírica (?) ataca los rervlos con su violencia, con sti brutalidad. Este es el teatro de los puñetazos, -que es mejor dejar para los músicos mediocres de Italia”. Y Henri Gautliler-Vlllars zahería “la extraña .'nodes<’a” ¿ r M?ss¿nct. cuya facilidad hab^a creado “numerosos ruidos escéni­ cos, tales como palmas, panderetas, castañuelas, trompetas campanas, fuego de caño- »^es. tiros r^fle. cIstoM tazos. etc. M e p a re ce q u e un d ire c to r e s c é n ic o p o d l^ haber rea’tsa^o esta tarea y no hi¿biera habido necesidad de molestar, por tan poco, a ur míemtrv“» de! IrstlU^to” . Poro es evidente que “La Navarraise” tiene música ^ además de tos efectos escéniccs pro;>los de la guerra en que se sitúa. BastaHa recordar la página orquestal con que abre la obra^ en un re menor que debe de sugerir ia destrucdón y la LB. Ñ.. zn.oct-)- ntu«rte, y comprobar la habilidad de Massenet para dominar ios matices de una TnUfga rom ántica. El personaje centrai de la ópera es Anita. Ella misma declara que es ‘ De Pampelune, où tous les miens sont morts. Je n’al plus de parents. Je travailie -et j’espére...” Y ante Remigio, los dos enamorados recuerdan cómo se conocieron: Araquii.— Depuis deux ans je i’alme Anita.— Et c'est à Loyola, te jour de la Romérla un clier lundi de Pâques, que nous nous sonunes vus pour la première fois. Araquii.— Avec de Navarrais Anita.— H jouait à la paume. i! les avait battus, j’ apiaudissais. -. El puis à ta course des novillos Araquit.— Je ne la quittais pas des yeux! A — Le soir Araquii.— El!e et mol, nous dansâmes Anita.— Olé L’air de cette Jota \ je t’entendrai toujoisrs!” La moza navarra, “la beüe fille, brune comme la nuit, avec des yeux d'etoltes”, ttene en su orfandad dos agarraderos: Araquii y úna estatuilla: “Et pour me protéger j’avais une Vierge sainte; Bonne Vierge de F^omb plus precleuse que l’orl”. Anita, enamorada dei vencedor de los pelotaris ^ navarros y del corredor ante los novillos, demuestra su fifra valiente desde la primera adversidad. “Tristemente, pero con valentía”, exige ia acotación del texto cuando la muchacha explica a Remigio quién es ella. Sería excesivo decir que “La Navarraise” es una ópera carlista. NI los personajes lo son, ni aparece para nada la ideología carlista. Massenet, que escribió esta ópera en el verano provenzal de 1893, visitó con frecuencia a F. Mistral, próximo ai caHlsmo^ y fer* voroso cantar de 0^ Blanca ^ Pero no se ve qué Influencia o consejos de amblentaclón pudo dar el poeta al músico. Los ingredientes folklóricos que asoman en la obra no tienen color político alguno y son tópicos. En rcs imcf«, ima ópera personificada en una mujer navarra fuerte, enamorada, de­ cidida y foca n,>r tnor. FERNANDO PEREZ OLLO (1) Hay dos versiones discográficas. Una, con Marilyn Horne, Pfácido Domingo, Sherrill Milnes, Nicoia Zaccaria, Gabriel Bacquier, Rytand Davies y Leslie Fyson, Coros de la Opera Ambrosiana y Orquesta de Londres, dirigida por Henry Lewis. (RCA, Arl 1-1114). Otra, con Lucía Popp, Alain Vanzo, Gerard Souzay, Vicente Sardinero, Michel Sénéchal y Claude Meloni, con tos mismos coros y orquesta, dirigidos por Antonio de Almeida. CBS, S 73403. (2) Pueden verse abundantes opiniones en “Jules Massenet” de André Coquis. Ed. Seghers, París 1965, págs. 124-128. También, la opinión de Camille Le Senne en la “Encyclopédie de la musique” de A. Lavignac. (3) “Le second tableau de “La Navarraise” ne renferme peut-être pas dix mesures qui soient de la musique”. G. Beltaigne, en “La revue de Deux Mondes”, 15 de octubre de 1895. Í4) A decir verdad, la música del trío a cargo de Remigio, Anita y Araquii aprovecha un motivo español, pero no es aire de jota. (5) “Paume” también lo traducen "bolos”. (8) Cfr. la correspondencia de F. Mistral con Alberto de Quintana en el folleto de A. Camdessus "Mistral étart-il carliste?”, Bayonne, Imprimerie du Courier (9, Rue Jac- ques-Laffitte, 9), 1932. Págs. 52. También recoge estrofas de su oda a Blanca. (7) D‘ Blanca de Borbón o María de las Nieves de Braganza, esposa del infante don Alfonso, hermano de don Carlos, era la reina, tras la muerte de D. Jaime. Cfr. capítulo XXI de “Don Jaime, el Príncipe Caballero” de Francisco-Carlos de Melgar. Papeles de la Cofradía Gastronómica del I^nüento Seco N . " 8 S i 00083 Tirada: 100 «iempUrM.
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