Prix de Rome Cantatas (Berlioz)
Encyclopedia
The French
composer Hector Berlioz
made four attempts at winning the Prix de Rome
music prize, finally succeeding in 1830. As part of the competition, he had to write a cantata
to a text set by the examiners. Berlioz's efforts to win the prize are described at length in his Memoirs. He regarded it as the first stage in his struggle against the musical conservatism represented by the judges, who included established composers such as Cherubini, Boieldieu and Berton
. Berlioz's stay in Italy
as a result of winning the prize also had a great influence on later works such as Benvenuto Cellini
and Harold en Italie
. The composer subsequently destroyed the scores of two cantatas (Orphée and Sardanapale) almost completely and reused music from all four of them in later works. There was a revival of interest in the cantatas in the late 20th century, particularly La mort de Cléopâtre, which has become a favourite showcase for the soprano
and mezzo-soprano
voice.
in Rome
. It also entitled him to a five-year pension. The prize was adjudicated by the Paris Conservatoire. Entrants had to submit a fugue
as proof of their compositional skills and the four successful candidates were then required to write a dramatic cantata
to a text chosen by the judges.
") (1827) Text by Berton. For tenor
, chorus and orchestra. Berlioz's result: failed
") (1828) Text by Pierre-Ange Vieillard. For soprano
and orchestra. Result: second prize.
The theme from the first movement was later used as the idée fixe in the Symphonie fantastique
of 1830.
") (1830) Text by J.-F. Gail. For tenor, chorus and orchestra. Result: joint first prize.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
composer Hector Berlioz
Hector Berlioz
Hector Berlioz was a French Romantic composer, best known for his compositions Symphonie fantastique and Grande messe des morts . Berlioz made significant contributions to the modern orchestra with his Treatise on Instrumentation. He specified huge orchestral forces for some of his works; as a...
made four attempts at winning the Prix de Rome
Prix de Rome
The Prix de Rome was a scholarship for arts students, principally of painting, sculpture, and architecture. It was created, initially for painters and sculptors, in 1663 in France during the reign of Louis XIV. It was an annual bursary for promising artists having proved their talents by...
music prize, finally succeeding in 1830. As part of the competition, he had to write a cantata
Cantata
A cantata is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir....
to a text set by the examiners. Berlioz's efforts to win the prize are described at length in his Memoirs. He regarded it as the first stage in his struggle against the musical conservatism represented by the judges, who included established composers such as Cherubini, Boieldieu and Berton
Henri Montan Berton
Henri Montan Berton was a French composer, teacher, and writer, and the son of Pierre Montan Berton.-Career:...
. Berlioz's stay in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
as a result of winning the prize also had a great influence on later works such as Benvenuto Cellini
Benvenuto Cellini (opera)
Benvenuto Cellini is an opera in two acts with music by Hector Berlioz and libretto by Léon de Wailly and Henri Auguste Barbier. It was the first of Berlioz's operas. The story is loosely based on the memoirs of the Florentine sculptor Benvenuto Cellini. The opera is technically very challenging...
and Harold en Italie
Harold in Italy
Harold en Italie, Symphonie en quatre parties avec un alto principal , Op. 16, is Hector Berlioz' second symphony, written in 1834.-Creation:...
. The composer subsequently destroyed the scores of two cantatas (Orphée and Sardanapale) almost completely and reused music from all four of them in later works. There was a revival of interest in the cantatas in the late 20th century, particularly La mort de Cléopâtre, which has become a favourite showcase for the 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...
and 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...
voice.
Berlioz and the Prix de Rome
The Prix de Rome was an award for composers allowing the winner to spend a year studying at the Villa MediciVilla Medici
The Villa Medici is a mannerist villa and an architectural complex with a garden contiguous with the larger Borghese gardens, on the Pincian Hill next to Trinità dei Monti in Rome, Italy. The Villa Medici, founded by Ferdinando I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany and now property of the French...
in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
. It also entitled him to a five-year pension. The prize was adjudicated by the Paris Conservatoire. Entrants had to submit a fugue
Fugue
In music, a fugue is a compositional technique in two or more voices, built on a subject that is introduced at the beginning in imitation and recurs frequently in the course of the composition....
as proof of their compositional skills and the four successful candidates were then required to write a dramatic cantata
Cantata
A cantata is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir....
to a text chosen by the judges.
La mort d'Orphée
La mort d'Orphée ("The Death of OrpheusOrpheus
Orpheus was a legendary musician, poet, and prophet in ancient Greek religion and myth. The major stories about him are centered on his ability to charm all living things and even stones with his music; his attempt to retrieve his wife from the underworld; and his death at the hands of those who...
") (1827) Text by Berton. For 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...
, chorus and orchestra. Berlioz's result: failed
Herminie
Herminie ("ErminiaErminia
Princess Erminia was a character in the epic poemLa Gerusalemme liberata by Torquato Tasso. In this tale she falls in love with the Christian knight Tancred, and betrays her people to aid him. Once she discovers that Tancred is in love with Clorinde, however, she returns to join the Muslims...
") (1828) Text by Pierre-Ange Vieillard. For 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...
and orchestra. Result: second prize.
- Recitative: Quel trouble te poursuit, malheureuse Herminie!
- Aria: Ah! si de la tendresse
- Recitative: Que dis-je?
- Aria: Arrête! Arrête! Cher Tancrède
- Aria: Venez! Venez! Terribles armes! -and prayer: Dieu des chrétiens, toi que j'ignore
The theme from the first movement was later used as the idée fixe in the Symphonie fantastique
Symphonie Fantastique
Symphonie Fantastique: Épisode de la vie d'un Artiste...en cinq parties , Op. 14, is a program symphony written by the French composer Hector Berlioz in 1830. It is one of the most important and representative pieces of the early Romantic period, and is still very popular with concert audiences...
of 1830.
La mort de Cléopâtre
La mort de Cléopâtre ("The Death of Cleopatra") (1829) Text by Pierre-Ange Vieillard. For soprano and orchestra. Result: no first prize awarded.Sardanapale
Sardanapale ("SardanapalusSardanapalus
Sardanapalus was, according to the Greek writer Ctesias of Cnidus, the last king of Assyria. Ctesias' Persica is lost, but we know of its contents by later compilations and from the work of Diodorus...
") (1830) Text by J.-F. Gail. For tenor, chorus and orchestra. Result: joint first prize.
All four cantatas
- Cantatas Béatrice Uria-Monzon (Cléopâtre), Michèle Lagrange (Herminie), Daniel Galvez-Vallejo (Orphée, Sardanapale). Jean-Claude Casadesus cond., Pas de Calais Choeur Régional Nord, Lille National Orchestra. CD, DDD, TT: 1h00m, NaxosNaxos RecordsNaxos Records is a record label specializing in classical music. Through a number of imprints, Naxos also releases genres including Chinese music, jazz, world music, and early rock & roll. The company was founded in 1987 by Klaus Heymann, a German-born resident of Hong Kong.Naxos is the largest...
. Cat. No: 8.555810, Barcode: 0747313581023
Herminie
- Herminie (with Les nuits d'été) Mireille DelunschMireille DelunschMireille Delunsch is an opera soprano. She was born in Mulhouse, France, and studied musicology and voice at the Conservatoire de Strasbourg. Her debut was at the Opéra du Rhin in Mulhouse, in Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov....
, Paris Champs-Elysées Orchestra, Philippe HerreweghePhilippe HerreweghePhilippe Herreweghe is a Flemish conductor.In his school years at the University of Ghent, Herreweghe combined studies in medical science and psychiatry with a musical education at the Ghent Conservatory, where Marcel Gazelle, Yehudi Menuhin's accompanist, was his piano teacher... - Herminie (with Symphonie fantastique) Aurélia Legay, Mahler Chamber OrchestraMahler Chamber OrchestraThe Mahler Chamber Orchestra is a professional touring chamber orchestra founded by Claudio Abbado and former members of the Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra in 1997....
/ Les Musiciens du LouvreLes Musiciens du LouvreLes Musiciens du Louvre is a French period instrument ensemble, formed in 1982. Originally based in Paris, since 1996 it has been based in the Couvent des Minimes in Grenoble. The Guardian considers it one of the best orchestras in the world.- History:Founded by Marc Minkowski in 1982, the...
, Marc MinkowskiMarc MinkowskiMarc Minkowski is a French conductor of classical music, especially known for his interpretations of French Baroque works. His mother is American, and his father was Alexandre Minkowski, a Polish-French professor of pediatrics and one of the founders of neonatology...
Cléopâtre
- Cléopâtre (with other works by Berlioz): Janet BakerJanet BakerDame Janet Abbott Baker, CH, DBE, FRSA is an English mezzo-soprano best known as an opera, concert, and lieder singer.She was particularly closely associated with baroque and early Italian opera and the works of Benjamin Britten...
, London Symphony Orchestra, Sir Alexander Gibson (EMI, 1969) - Cléopâtre (with Les nuits d'été): Véronique GensVéronique GensVéronique Gens is a French soprano. She has spent much of her career recording and performing Baroque music....
, Lyon Opera Orchestra, Louis Langrée (Virgin, 2000) - Cléopâtre (with Symphonie Fantastique): Olga BorodinaOlga BorodinaOlga Vladimirovna Borodina is a leading dramatic mezzo-soprano, known for her roles in Russian operas at her home company, the Mariinsky Theatre, and for her international performing and recording career in a varied repertoire.Borodina made her debut in Samson and Delilah at the Royal Opera House...
, Wiener Philharmoniker, Valery Gergiev (Philips, 2003) - Cléopâtre (with Symphonie Fantastique): Susan GrahamSusan GrahamSusan Graham is an American mezzo-soprano.Raised in Midland, Texas, she is a graduate of Texas Tech University and the Manhattan School of Music. She studied the piano for 13 years...
, Berliner Philharmoniker, Sir Simon Rattle (EMI, 2008)
Sources
- David Cairns: Berlioz: The Making of an Artist (the first volume of his biography of the composer) (André Deutsch, 1989)
- Hugh Macdonald: Berlioz ("The Master Musicians", J.M.Dent, 1982)
- Berlioz: Memoirs (Dover, 1960)