Parisina (Mascagni)
Encyclopedia
Parisina is a tragedia lirica, or opera
, in four acts by Pietro Mascagni
. Gabriele D'Annunzio
wrote the Italian
libretto
after Byron's poem Parisina
(1816).
It was first performed at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan
on December 15, 1913.
. With this opera
he overcame at least 70 rival composers to win the Sonzogno competition in 1888. The ensuing fame encouraged a prolific career remembered for the vibrant melodies first heard in Cavalleria Rusticana
. Indeed Mascagni was also well known abroad. In England he conducted his own operas in Covent Garden
's 1892 Italian Season. He also embarked on a tour of North America in 1902 returning the following year. Unfortunately his prolific compositional career seemed to exhaust his inventiveness a little and a fair few of his premieres were widely criticised by the public and critics alike. Most notably Le maschere
which was premiered simultaneously in seven theatres across Italy, the only success being in Rome where Mascagni himself was conducting.
In a bid to regain his previous success Mascagni produced the ‘cultured’ Parisina with the help of the librettist Gabriele D’Annunzio who adapted Byron's poem of the same title (1816). Mascagni was drawn to the libretto, which was initially meant to be the second part of a trilogy (the first being Francesca da Rimini
and the third Sigismondo, which was never even started), by the powerful tragic atmosphere and the brilliance of D’Annunzio to create convincing characters. Within a month of D’Annunzio finishing the libretto Mascagni had begun composing the opera; such was his enthusiasm for the project. His only concern expressed was that of the length of the work. He adored the “transparent simplicty” of the “ringing, melodious verses” which “set his mind on fire” and made his “pulses throb”. Unfortunately the creative juices were somewhat stifled when his wife found out about an affair with Anna Lolli and forced him to leave. On his return though he made great progress and finished the opera at the beginning of February 1913 (just 11 months after the libretto was completed). The roles created in Parisina were very demanding both vocally and emotionally. The sweeping phrases are dramatic and accompanied often by equally emotive accompaniment in the orchestra. The swift changes of mood and character are effective and the declamato-arioso style is achieved with brilliance.
“Inordinate length: if this flaw is not set to rights, it could only weigh down on Parisina’s sound. Independent of any judgement on the intrinsic value of the new opera, the Maestro’s most fanatic advocate must express one hope: cut, cut, cut!”. This last sentence has subsequently been indefinitely linked with Parisina. Parisina is rarely revived but when it is, the fourth act which (according to Stivender and others) contains the best music is generally restored.
The Marquis’ son, Ugo, is interrupted by his mother Stella dell’Assassino in the middle of an archery session. Stella, who has recently been replaced by Parisina Malatesta as the matriarch in the family home, is out for vengeance. Assuming that her son is in the same mindset she urges him to do her dirty work.
Devotional songs are heard from the sanctuary and from sailors on the Adriatic. Parisina prepares to offer the Virgin her most elegant piece of clothing.
A friend of Ugo d’Este (Aldobrandino) appears to declare that Ugo is close to a victory over the Esclavons. On his return, his stepmother leads him to the sanctuary to kneel together. Ugo gives his sword as an offering to the Virgin. Ugo, bloody and exhausted from battle, stains Parisina’s tunic during an embrace. Overjoyed from his victory, Ugo is carried away by his emotions and they kiss amidst the songs of devotion heard before his arrival.
Parisina becomes mad with worry after confusing the book she is reading (Tristan and Iseult) with reality. In the book Francesca da Rimini is found by her husband with another man. Ugo enters and the couple greet each other. Suddenly Parisina’s maid LaVerde bursts in to announce the return of Nicolo d’Este from his hunting trip. The Marquis discovers his own son in bed with his mistress and condemns them both to be beheaded.
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
, in four acts by Pietro Mascagni
Pietro Mascagni
Pietro Antonio Stefano Mascagni was an Italian composer most noted for his operas. His 1890 masterpiece Cavalleria rusticana caused one of the greatest sensations in opera history and single-handedly ushered in the Verismo movement in Italian dramatic music...
. Gabriele D'Annunzio
Gabriele D'Annunzio
Gabriele D'Annunzio or d'Annunzio was an Italian poet, journalist, novelist, and dramatist...
wrote the Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
libretto
Libretto
A libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata, or musical. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...
after Byron's poem Parisina
Parisina
Parisina is a poem written by Byron. It was published on 13 February 1816 and probably written between 1812 and 1815.It is based on a story related by Edward Gibbon in his Miscellaneous Works about Niccolò III d'Este, one of the dukes of Ferrara who lived in the fifteenth century...
(1816).
It was first performed at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
on December 15, 1913.
Background
Pietro Mascagni (b Livorno, 7 Dec 1863; d Rome, 2 Aug 1945) achieved success early on in his compositional life with one of his most famous operas, Cavalleria RusticanaCavalleria rusticana
Cavalleria rusticana is an opera in one act by Pietro Mascagni to an Italian libretto by Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti and Guido Menasci, adapted from a play written by Giovanni Verga based on his short story. Considered one of the classic verismo operas, it premiered on May 17, 1890 at the Teatro...
. With this opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
he overcame at least 70 rival composers to win the Sonzogno competition in 1888. The ensuing fame encouraged a prolific career remembered for the vibrant melodies first heard in Cavalleria Rusticana
Cavalleria rusticana
Cavalleria rusticana is an opera in one act by Pietro Mascagni to an Italian libretto by Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti and Guido Menasci, adapted from a play written by Giovanni Verga based on his short story. Considered one of the classic verismo operas, it premiered on May 17, 1890 at the Teatro...
. Indeed Mascagni was also well known abroad. In England he conducted his own operas in Covent Garden
Covent Garden
Covent Garden is a district in London on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St. Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit and vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist site, and the Royal Opera House, which is also known as...
's 1892 Italian Season. He also embarked on a tour of North America in 1902 returning the following year. Unfortunately his prolific compositional career seemed to exhaust his inventiveness a little and a fair few of his premieres were widely criticised by the public and critics alike. Most notably Le maschere
Le maschere
Le maschere is an opera in a Prologue and three acts by Pietro Mascagni to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica.The work was Mascagni's homage to Rossini and to the Italian opera buffa and commedia dell'arte traditions...
which was premiered simultaneously in seven theatres across Italy, the only success being in Rome where Mascagni himself was conducting.
In a bid to regain his previous success Mascagni produced the ‘cultured’ Parisina with the help of the librettist Gabriele D’Annunzio who adapted Byron's poem of the same title (1816). Mascagni was drawn to the libretto, which was initially meant to be the second part of a trilogy (the first being Francesca da Rimini
Francesca da Rimini
Francesca da Rimini or Francesca da Polenta was the daughter of Guido da Polenta, lord of Ravenna. She was a historical contemporary of Dante Alighieri, who portrayed her as a character in the Divine Comedy.-Arranged marriage:...
and the third Sigismondo, which was never even started), by the powerful tragic atmosphere and the brilliance of D’Annunzio to create convincing characters. Within a month of D’Annunzio finishing the libretto Mascagni had begun composing the opera; such was his enthusiasm for the project. His only concern expressed was that of the length of the work. He adored the “transparent simplicty” of the “ringing, melodious verses” which “set his mind on fire” and made his “pulses throb”. Unfortunately the creative juices were somewhat stifled when his wife found out about an affair with Anna Lolli and forced him to leave. On his return though he made great progress and finished the opera at the beginning of February 1913 (just 11 months after the libretto was completed). The roles created in Parisina were very demanding both vocally and emotionally. The sweeping phrases are dramatic and accompanied often by equally emotive accompaniment in the orchestra. The swift changes of mood and character are effective and the declamato-arioso style is achieved with brilliance.
Reception
Unfortunately Mascagni’s fear of the length of the opera was well founded. The opera, in four acts, lasted 3 hours and 40 minutes, which was far too long for the Italian public and critics. The length was condemned by Giovanni Pozza, the most influential Italian critic, in his comment on the first performance. After mentioning the numerous qualities in the work he wrote:“Inordinate length: if this flaw is not set to rights, it could only weigh down on Parisina’s sound. Independent of any judgement on the intrinsic value of the new opera, the Maestro’s most fanatic advocate must express one hope: cut, cut, cut!”. This last sentence has subsequently been indefinitely linked with Parisina. Parisina is rarely revived but when it is, the fourth act which (according to Stivender and others) contains the best music is generally restored.
Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere cast, 15 December 1913 (Conductor: - ) |
|---|---|---|
| Parisina Malatesta | soprano Soprano A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody... |
Tina Poli-Randoccio |
| Ugo d'Este | tenor Tenor The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2... |
Hipolito Lazaro Hipólito Lázaro Hipólito Lázaro was a Spanish/Catalan opera singer. Lázaro was born in Barcelona, Spain.... |
| Stella dell'Assassino | mezzo-soprano Mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano is a type of classical female singing voice whose range lies between the soprano and the contralto singing voices, usually extending from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above... |
Luisa Garibaldi |
| Nicolò d'Este | baritone Baritone Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or... |
Carlo Galeffi Carlo Galeffi Carlo Galeffi was a leading Italian baritone, particularly associated with the operatic works of Giuseppe Verdi and the various verismo composers.- Life and career :... |
| Aldobrandino dei Rangoni | bass Bass (voice type) A bass is a type of male singing voice and possesses the lowest vocal range of all voice types. According to The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, a bass is typically classified as having a range extending from around the second E below middle C to the E above middle C... |
|
| La Verde | mezzo-soprano | |
Act 1
In the villa of Marquis Nicolo d’Este.The Marquis’ son, Ugo, is interrupted by his mother Stella dell’Assassino in the middle of an archery session. Stella, who has recently been replaced by Parisina Malatesta as the matriarch in the family home, is out for vengeance. Assuming that her son is in the same mindset she urges him to do her dirty work.
Act 2
In the Loreto sanctuary.Devotional songs are heard from the sanctuary and from sailors on the Adriatic. Parisina prepares to offer the Virgin her most elegant piece of clothing.
A friend of Ugo d’Este (Aldobrandino) appears to declare that Ugo is close to a victory over the Esclavons. On his return, his stepmother leads him to the sanctuary to kneel together. Ugo gives his sword as an offering to the Virgin. Ugo, bloody and exhausted from battle, stains Parisina’s tunic during an embrace. Overjoyed from his victory, Ugo is carried away by his emotions and they kiss amidst the songs of devotion heard before his arrival.
Act 3
In the Belfiore palace.Parisina becomes mad with worry after confusing the book she is reading (Tristan and Iseult) with reality. In the book Francesca da Rimini is found by her husband with another man. Ugo enters and the couple greet each other. Suddenly Parisina’s maid LaVerde bursts in to announce the return of Nicolo d’Este from his hunting trip. The Marquis discovers his own son in bed with his mistress and condemns them both to be beheaded.