ABOUT GEORGES BIZET
Georges (Alexandre César Léopold) Bizet – France
25 October 1838, Paris – 3 June 1875, Bougival
Georges Bizet was born in a family of musicians. At the age of nine, he enrolled at the Paris Conservatory, and at thirteen, he was already recognized for the best pianist there. He was awarded the Prize of Rome, which gave him the possibility for 2-year specialization in Italy and 1-year specialization in Germany. After the first successes and the recognition came also the difficulties – the struggle for permanent work, for the daily bread. Bizet was writing dance music, he was teaching. At the age of twenty-five he created his first opera masterpiece – “Les pêcheurs de perles”, based on a modern for its time Eastern plot. But the critique defined him as... epigone of Wagner! Bizet was desperate. To go out of the crisis helped him the old Maestro Charles Gounod. He wrote him: “Go your own way, my son. The only thing, which you can do now, is to follow yourself and create. So that you reach tomorrow the dream of each creator: around you to turn the entire world!“ After “Les pêcheurs de perles” Bizet wrote “La jolie fille de Perth”, based on Walter Scott’s novel of the same name, “Djamileh”, “Don Procopio” and a series of symphonic and chamber works. Among them outlines the suite “L’Arlésienne” after Alphonse Daudet, created initially as theatre music, and now it is considered for one of the tops of French symphonism. On 3 March 1875, the Parisian audience saw and heard one of the opera masterpieces of all times – “Carmen”. It saw and heard it, but it couldn’t understand it! The premiere was a real flop for the author. Bizet couldn’t stand it and only three months later he died from a heart attack, only at the age of 37. “Carmen” opened a new page in the history of the genre. On the opera stage appeared ordinary people, and not aristocrats or gods, and enacted real passions – human, real. With its clear, classical forms “Carmen” is a bright ray from the Mediterranean countries in contrast to the twilight and the mystic from the operas of Wagner’s epigones – at that time in fashion in France and Europe. Today Bizet’s work is one of the most repertoire and loved ones by the audience in the world.
Под снимката: Illustration to “Carmen” in one of the Paris magazines of the age, 1875
Под снимката: The first Carmen – Célestine Galli-Marié – Opéra Comique, Paris, 1875
Carmen
Opera in 4 acts
Libretto: Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy (based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée)
First performance: 3 March 1875, Paris
First performance in Bulgaria: 9 March 1912, Sofia
Characters:
Don José, Corporal of Dragoons – tenor
Escamillo, Toreador – baritone
Le Dancaïre, smuggler – baritone
Le Remendado, smuggler – tenor
Zuniga, Lieutenant of Dragoons – baritone
Micaëla, A Fiancée of Don José – soprano
Carmen, A Gypsy Girl – mezzo-soprano
Frasquita, A Gypsy Girl – soprano
Mercédès, A Gypsy Girl – mezzo-soprano
Lillas Pastia, an Innkeeper – without singing
A Guide in the mountains – without singing
Place and time of action: Seville, Spain, and surroundings (Spain), 1820
Synopsis
Act I
A square in Seville. In front of the barracks stand soldiers and comment the citizens passing by. Micaëla appears, seeking José. He will be here later, when the guard changes. The soldiers are trying in vain to arrest the little beauty from Navarra – she runs away. The change of the guard arrives – with it is also Don José. Lieutenant Zuniga is interested in what kind of girls are working in the cigarette fabric nearby, but José cannot answer this question: he loves Micaëla and has nothing to do with them.
From the fabric is heard a bell, announcing the lunch break. In the square emerges a loud crowd of young female workers. The last one of them, surrounded by countless admirers, is Carmen.
Only one man is indifferent to the beautiful gipsy – corporal José. Carmen is affected by the neglect. She provocatively throws a flower to him and runs away. The bell announces the end of the break.
Remained alone in the square, José doesn’t move his look from the rose. If in the world there were still magicians, perhaps this girl is one of them! Micaëla comes back. She has brought a letter from José’s mother, a small sum of money and a kiss, which she gives him with love. Micaëla goes away. From the fabric resounds a piercing cry. The workers again fill in the square. Zuniga sends José to learn the reason for this tumult. José comes back soon. He brings the tied Carmen and reports that the girls were quarrelling and in the row the gipsy has drawn out a knife and has wounded one of the workers. The lieutenant orders José to send Carmen in prison. The beauty doesn’t waste her time. While Zuniga prepares the order, she offers her heart to José. Her words don’t go to hell. José sets out with her towards the jail, but in a convenient moment he gives her a chance to run away. Because of Carmen he himself falls under arrest.
Act II
Lillas Pastia’s Inn is a refuge for the smugglers of Seville. Here are Carmen and her friends. Zuniga arrives. From him the gipsy understands that José has served his punishment. Carmen is firmly convinced that the corporal will go after her.
From the crowd are heard the cries of the jubilant crowd. Accompanied by a torchlight procession, appears Escamillo, the famous toreador from Grenada. He notices Carmen right away and doesn’t remain indifferent to her charm. But the beauty rejects his courting. The toreador leaves together with the noisy crowd. In the inn remain only the smugglers. They are trying to convince Carmen to join them like in the past, to accompany them on the dangerous way. But she refuses – she will wait for her José to thank him for the sacrifice. The corporal arrives. Carmen is dancing, singing, amusing his beloved one. But when from the distant barracks is heard the signal trumpet for retreat, in the soldier outweighs the feeling of duty – he decides to go away. Carmen bursts out: she doesn’t want any more a man, for whom the service, the barracks are more important than love. José gives way to her supplications. He reminds her of the rose she gave him – the only consolation during the hard hours in the arrest. Meanwhile Zuniga returns. He orders José to come back in the barracks and starts wooing the gipsy. José is out of himself from jealousy, he takes out his sabre and is ready to kill the lieutenant. The smugglers, who come to the aid at the place of the quarrel don’t allow a bloodshed. The lieutenant is disarmed and driven away, and José has no other chance, but to set out with them and to become a smuggler.
Act III
The smugglers are climbing up the rocky mountains near Seville. They stop in one cave for a short break. Don José cannot get used with his new life. He constantly thinks about his mother and the previous bright days, which won’t come back. Carmen notices his worries – she is gloomy and seeks an answer for her future in the cards, which bode her an early death. The smugglers prepare themselves to set out again. José remains at post to guard the pack mules. Unexpectedly, among the rocks appears Micaëla – she has followed the smugglers with the hope to meet José.
A shot is heard and the young girl hides scared. José appears. He has shot at Escamillo. The toreador has fallen in love with the beautiful gipsy and has followed her, but here he meets his rival. They both start a hand-to-hand fighting. José has fast gained a victory over Escamillo, when Carmen runs over and stands between both men, saving the toreador.
Escamillo isn’t worried that he was defeated – he knows that Carmen is already his and before going away he invites her together with everybody to the bullfight in Seville. The gipsy is ready to follow him right away, but José bars her way.
At this moment, they discover the hidden Micaëla. She has come to this dangerous place to tell José that his mother was dying. The young man sets out with Micaëla to his home. Meanwhile from the valley resounds Escamillo’s song. Carmen is already in love with the beautiful and courageous toreador.
Act IV
In front of Seville’s arena the crowd is welcoming the toreadors, who will take part in the forthcoming bullfight. At last, arm in arm with Carmen, arrives Escamillo.
Mercédès and Frasquita warn their friend to be careful of the jealous José, who is hiding in the crowd. But she doesn’t listen to them – she waits until everyone has taken their places and at last she makes for the arena. In this moment before her appears the highly moved and tortured José. He hasn’t stopped loving Carmen and is ready to forgive her, if she returns to him. But the gipsy is already not loving him – her heart belongs to the toreador. She rejects José and in the end, having lost patience, she returns the engagement ring to him.
When he understands that his supplications are in vain, José takes out a knife and plunges it into Carmen’s heart.
On 3 March 1875 the audience of Opéra Comique in Paris
saw and heard one of the opera masterpieces for all times – “Carmen”. It saw and heard it, but it couldn’t understand it! The premiere was a real flop for the author. The critique found the plot for “immoral”! The music – for “crude” and “loud”. The too sensitive and touchy Bizet could not stand what happened and after two successive infarcts, only three months afterwards he died, hardly at the age of 37.
It can be definitively said that “Carmen” opened a new page in the history of the genre.
On the opera stage appeared ordinary people, and not aristocrats or gods, and enacted real passions – human, real. With its clear, classical forms “Carmen” is a bright ray from the Mediterranean countries in contrast to the twilight and the mystic from the operas of Wagner’s epigones – at that time in fashion in France and Europe. The great Tchaikovsky predicted that only after some twenty years “Carmen”, together with Verdi’s ‘La traviata”, will become “the most popular opera in the world”. Prophetic words! Today Bizet’s work is one of the most repertoire and loved by the audience patterns in the world.
Под снимката: Nadia Krasteva in Acad. Plamen Kartaloff’s production at the Stara Zagora Festival in 2003
The history of “Carmen” in Bulgaria is also long and rich,
although the opera made its way later in our country – the Turkish yoke delayed our cultural development, but later the opera quickly gathered strength and “Carmen” became an irrevocable part of the repertoire of the Sofia Opera and of the other music theatres.
On 9 March 1912 – in the year of the Balkan war – was its premiere on the Sofia stage. Conductor was Todor Hadjiev, the father of Parashkev Hadjiev, and stage director – Dragomir Kazakov, who also performed the role of the toreador Escamillo – they both were among the founders of the Sofia Opera. The first Bulgarian Carmen was Bogdana Ghiuzeleva-Vulpe. Don José was the tenor Dimitar Popivanov, and Micaëla – the soprano Maria Vassileva. Till the war, in Sofia “Carmen” was produced in 1924 with Konstantsa Kirova, in 1942 with Tanya Tsokova, and after the war – in 1948 with the charming Ilka Popova – three wonderful singers actresses. A marvellous Carmen was also the highly talented Ana Todorova, one of our first singers with world recognition. After 1944, with the opening of the opera houses in Varna, Stara Zagora, Ruse, Plovdiv, Burgas and Pleven – Bizet’s masterpiece became an irrevocable part of the playbill of these stages. Very strong were the productions of Prof. Jean Rânzescu and Romeo Raychev in 1958 in Ruse with the remarkable Ana Georgieva, of Prof. Dragan Kardjiev in 1963 in Sofia with the temperamental Rada Gaeva.
In 2003, Academician Plamen Kartaloff realized two imposing productions of “Carmen” in the Antique Theatre of Stara Zagora and in the square in front the Mausoleum in the Capital with the participation of the remarkable Nadia Krasteva. His was also the set design.
So far, “Carmen” was produced on Bulgarian stage 38 times! On the Sofia stage – 10 times.
To the constellation of Bulgarian Carmencitas
we can add the names of Alexandrina Milcheva, Ana Angelova, Alice Bagdasaryan, Stefka Mineva, Hristina Angelakova and still many other younger performers and reach to the world-known today opera primas Nadia Krasteva and Vesselina Kasarova. According to the critique, among the best performers of Don José are shining the names of Dimitar Uzunov, Ivan Dimov, Mihail Martinov, Todor Kostov, Nikola Nikolov, Yordan Znamenov, of the Toreador – Hristo Brambarv, Kiril Krastev, Assen Selimski, Sabin Markov, Stoyan Popov, Aleksandar Krunev, Petar Danailov, and in the soprano part of Micaëla – Katia Popova, Penka Marinova, Blagovesta Karnobatlova, Valentina Aleksandrova, Violeta Shahanova, Lyudmila Hadjieva…
Ognyan Stamboliev