CHARACTERISTICS OF THE 19TH CENTURY FRENCH OPERA REFLECTED IN THE WORKS OF SAINT-SAËNS AND BIZET

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.11

Keywords:

opera, French, Saint-Saëns, Bizet, mezzo-soprano.

Abstract

The present paper aims to reveal the essential features of 19th century French opera, highlighting those aspects which contributed to the eventual crystallization of a dramatic work seeking to reflect the characteristics of French music and culture. The manner in which melody, harmony, rhythm, dynamics, tempo and timbres are used is analysed, focusing on two representative works of the French Romanticism: Saint-Saëns’ Samson et Dalila and Bizet’s Carmen. Harmonic innovations, floating melodies, strong rhythmic patterns along with the marked influence of folklore and Oriental culture contribute to the distinguishing of 19th century French opera. Finally, attributes of the French singing school and the role of the mezzo-soprano voice in the compositions of the 19th century French operas are revealed.

References

Bizet, Georges, Carmen, G. Schirmer, Inc., New York, 1895.

Brion, Marcel, Pictura romantică (Romantic Painting), Editura Meridiane, București, 1972.

Constantinescu, Grigore, Diversitatea stilistică a melodiei în opera romantică (The Stylistic Diversity of Melody in Romantic Opera), Editura Muzicală, București, 1980.

Lacombe, Hervé, The Keys to French Opera in the Nineteenth Century, University of California Press, Berkeley – Los Angeles, 2001.

Locke, Ralph P., Constructing the Oriental ‘Other’: Saint-Saëns’s “Samson et Dalila”, Cambridge Opera Journal, Vol.3, No.3, Nov. 1991, pp. 261-302.

Saint-Saëns, Camille, Samson et Dalila, A. Durand et Fils, Éditeurs, Paris, ca. 1895.

Saint-Saëns, Camille, Musical Memories, Small, Maynard & Company Publishers, Boston, 1919.

Stark, James A., Bel Canto: A History of Vocal Pedagogy, University of Toronto Press Incorporated, Toronto Buffalo London, 2008.

STUDIA UBB MUSICA, Volume 63 (LXIII), No. 2, December 2018

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Published

2018-12-17

How to Cite

KARÁCSONY, N. (2018). CHARACTERISTICS OF THE 19TH CENTURY FRENCH OPERA REFLECTED IN THE WORKS OF SAINT-SAËNS AND BIZET. Studia Universitatis Babeș-Bolyai Musica, 63(2), 133–142. https://doi.org/10.24193/subbmusica.2018.2.11

Issue

Volume 63, No. 2, December 2018

Section

Articles

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Copyright (c) 2018 Studia Universitatis Babeș-Bolyai Musica

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