Le roi malgré lui

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Le roi malgré lui
Opéra comique by Emmanuel Chabrier
Poster for the premiere by Jules Chéret
TranslationKing in Spite of Himself
Librettist
LanguageFrench
Premiere
8 May 1887 (1887-05-08)
Opéra-Comique, Paris

Le roi malgré lui (King in Spite of Himself or The reluctant king) is an

repertory
.

Eric Blom wrote that the tragic fate of the opera was to be written a quarter of a century too soon.[2] However, the music has been greatly admired by composers including d'Indy, Ravel and Stravinsky.[3]

Composition history

Around May 1883 Chabrier wrote to his publishers that for his next stage work he was hoping to create something like Offenbach's successful 'grand fantaisie'

Marguerite-Louise Virginie Ancelot (1792–1875), by Ancelot's daughter Mme Lachaud.[6] However, Joncières passed the play to Chabrier, and also introduced Chabrier to Léon Carvalho, to whom Chabrier played some 'audition' pieces, which convinced the Opéra-Comique director to stage his work.[7]

The title page of the vocal score of Le roi malgré lui

An article by Theodore Massiac

spices". Although much criticized, the stage situations of Najac and Burani are "dexterously handled and reveal a sense of variety and climax".[2]

The work is dedicated to Madame Victorin de Joncières. It was one of several works by Chabrier to benefit from a poster by Jules Chéret.[10]

Performance history

Fire at the second Salle Favart on 25 May 1887 (engraving).

The premiere was on 18 May 1887 at the Opéra-Comique (Salle Favart) in Paris. After two more performances, on 21 and 23 May, the Opéra-Comique theatre was ravaged by fire on 25 May, although the full score and orchestral parts were saved.[11] The fourth performance was on 16 November in a revised version[12] at the Salle des Nations, where it had further performances up to 29 April 1888. This was the second time a premiere run of one of Chabrier's operas had been disrupted - Gwendoline had closed when the theatre went bankrupt.

The German premiere was in Karlsruhe on 2 March 1890 under Felix Mottl who also led a performance on 5 March at Baden, and this was followed by productions in Dresden on 26 April 1890 under Ernst von Schuch, and in Cologne on 15 October 1891 under Julius Hofmann. The opera was produced on 9 March 1892 in Toulouse under Armand Raynaud.[13]

In 1929 after a 41-year absence from the Opéra-Comique repertoire,

French television in 1979, with Michel Philippe, Georges Liccioni, Michel Trempont, Françoise Garner
and Michèle Le Bris in the principal roles.

The American stage premiere was on 18 November 1976 at the

Edinburgh Festival.[20]

More recently, an

Bard Summerscape in 2012, a co-production seen later that year at the Wexford Festival Opera
.

Roles

Role Voice type Premiere Cast,[3]
18 May 1887
(Conductor: Jules Danbé) 		Revised Paris premiere,
6 November 1929
(Conductor: Louis Masson)
Henri de Valois, ‘'King of Poland'’ baritone Max Bouvet Roger Bourdin
Comte de Nangis, a friend of Henri tenor Louis Delaquerrière Marcel Claudel
Minka, slave girl of Laski soprano Adèle Isaac Yvonne Brothier
Alexina, Duchess of Fritelli
and niece of Laski 		soprano Cécile Mézeray Jeanne Guyla
Laski, a Polish noble, Minka's master
bass
 Joseph Thiérry Jean Vieuille
Duc de Fritelli, an Italian noble,
husband of Alexina, chamberlain
to the King 		baritone Lucien Fugère[21] Louis Musy
Basile, innkeeper tenor Barnolt Paul Payen
Liancourt, a French noble tenor Victor Caisso Mathyl
d'Elboeuf, a French noble tenor Michaud Alban Derroja
Maugiron, a French noble baritone Collin Émile Roque
Comte de Caylus, a French noble baritone Étienne Troy Roland Laignez
Marquis de Villequier, a French noble bass Charles Balanqué André Balbon
A soldier bass Cambot Raymond Gilles
Six servant girls soprano, mezzo Mary, Auguez de Montaland, Blanche Balanqué,
Esposito, Baria, Orea Nardi 		Jany Delille, Quénet,
Pages, French nobles, Polish nobles, Soldiers, Serfs and Servants, People

Synopsis

Act 1

A castle outside Kraków, in 1574

The Polish people have elected a French noble, Henri de Valois, to become their king. In a castle near Kraków he awaits incognito his coronation.

French nobles are idly waiting for news from Kraków. Nangis, a friend of Henri, returns from the city, where he had been sent to drum up support for the future king. Although the ordinary people had been well-disposed towards Henri, the nobility, led by Count

Albert Laski
, seemed to be joining together to oppose him and support the other claimant to the throne, the Archduke of Austria.

However, the Duke of Fritelli, a Venetian living in Poland, has managed to become Henri's chamberlain while remaining in league with Laski. He enters, busy with preparations for the coronation, pretending to Nangis that he does not know Laski, and, on learning of the king's continued homesickness, cannot resist airing his views on the differences between the Poles and the French in a comic song.

After Fritelli has gone, Nangis confesses to his friends that during the eight days he has been away trying to raise an army, he has fallen in love with a charming girl, Minka, who unfortunately is a slave in Laski's household. Minka now enters, avoiding a pursuing sentry; she tells Nangis that she has only come for a moment, but when Nangis takes this to mean that she does not love him anymore, she gently rebukes him and asks him to be patient. She promises to return later that day, but as she is about to leave, the king himself arrives and Nangis only has time to hide her in an

anteroom
.

The homesick king sings of his love for France and says that he would do anything not to be king of Poland. Nangis reminds him that he has not always been so ill-disposed to the Poles; there was a certain lady Henri had known in Venice... Henri's fond memories are interrupted by the return of Fritelli, and it soon becomes apparent that the lady with whom Henri had a liaison in Venice soon after became the wife of Fritelli in order to cover up the scandal of that affair.

When Henri and Nangis leave, Fritelli is naturally more determined than ever to rid Poland of Henri. His frenzy is cut short by the arrival of his wife, Alexina, who says that all is ready for Henri's departure: all Fritelli has to do is kidnap Henri and Laski's men will do the rest. When the frightened Fritelli says he does not want glory - just a bit of affection, Alexina brushes his objections aside and they leave.

Minka comes out of hiding, but she bumps into the king (whom she doesn't know). She says she loves Monsieur Nangis but is worried that there is a plot against the king. Henri can hardly contain his delight, which increases more when she says that Fritelli is implicated. When Minka has left, Henri sends for Fritelli, and after some initial resistance he confesses the plot to Henri and tells him all he wants to know. Fritelli is astonished when Henri says that he too wishes to join the conspiracy; Fritelli is to introduce him to Laski as the Count de Nangis.

Trumpets sound and the French courtiers assemble. Henri has Nangis arrested, so as to be able to use his identity to conspire against the king. Nangis is led away.

Fritelli presents Henri (as Nangis) to his wife, Alexina, who recognizes him as the Frenchman with whom she had had the affair in Venice years before. Minka's lone voice is heard off-stage, and as the curtain falls, Nangis manages to let slip his captors, jump out of a window and escape.

Act 2

The ballroom of the palace of the Count Albert Laski

Henri de Valois in Polish dress

That evening, a ball is being held at Laski's house, under the cover of which Laski and his co-conspirators wish to complete the details for Henri's departure. When the dancing is over, the Duke and Duchess of Fritelli arrive and introduce a new conspirator as the Count de Nangis (in reality the king in disguise). Henri (as Nangis) tells them he is no longer Henri's friend but his greatest enemy.

Alone with Fritelli, Henri is astonished to discover for the first time that Alexina is married to Fritelli, but before he gets any further, Minka and other slave girls enter singing, during which the voice of the real Nangis (who should be under lock and key) is heard outside. Minka believes that Henri has become a traitor to the king but does not yet know his true identity. When she tries to leave to warn the real Nangis, Henri orders Fritelli to lock her up in an anteroom.

Alexina returns and Henri, to be alone with her, hurriedly sends her husband away. Alexina is still furious that Henri left her in Venice without a farewell, but during the ensuing duet, he gradually wins her round, and their feelings are rekindled. They are interrupted first by Fritelli, then by Laski and the Poles, who have come to swear in Henri as a conspirator. Henri assures Laski that there will be no problem in getting hold of the king - he will be here soon; all Henri needs is a few moments to arrange this.

Alone, Henri summons Minka and tells her that Nangis must come at once. Minka calls him - and he shortly climbs in through a window and is immediately arrested. Everyone, including Minka, is convinced he is the king, and they behave accordingly. Nangis himself is mystified until - in asides - Henri commands him to play the part, which he does with relish. Henri tells Nangis that they are resolved that the king leave Poland forthwith. Laski then orders Nangis and Minka to leave. To the horror of the conspirators, he tells them that the only way to ensure that the king does not return is to kill him that very night. They draw lots and Henri is chosen to do the deed, but at that moment Minka re-enters, and boldly announces that she has set Nangis (they think: the King) free, and the act closes with the fury of the Polish nobles and with Henri once again swearing that he will get rid of the king.

Act 3

An inn between Krakow and the Polish frontier

The innkeeper, Basile, and his staff are preparing to receive the new king of Poland. Fritelli arrives and informs them that the new king will not be Henri but the Archduke of Austria. Basile says it's all the same to him. Their cries of 'long live the archduke' are echoed by a stranger who has entered: Henri, making his escape from Poland. Fritelli, who recognizes him, is mystified by Henri's enthusiasm for the archduke.

Henri, introducing himself to Basile as Nangis, sent in advance of the king, is stunned when he hears that he won't be able to complete his escape, as all the coaches were sent off to meet the Archduke, so he has to settle for a cart and an old nag, with a servant girl to show him the way.

Henri hears a coach approach outside and hides. It is Alexina, who has arrived looking for her husband. She tells him that she has changed sides and sent the Archduke back to Austria by telling him that the conspiracy has been discovered. Fritelli is not happy and accuses her of changing sides so as to continue her Venetian affair in Poland. A marital squabble ensues, after which Fritelli tells Alexina that her beloved 'Nangis' is disfigured after his murder of the king and leaves.

Minka arrives; Alexina is not able to tell her about the king's fate, and they join in a duet in which they worry about the fate of the men they love. Alexina finally tells her that the king is murdered and Minka, believing that this means her beloved Nangis is dead, collapses. Basile arrives to say that the servant girl he had promised 'Nangis' to guide his way has gone to the Basilica to watch the coronation and Alexina determines to take her place.

Convinced that Nangis has been killed, Minka sings a lament for her lover – only for him to enter at its climax. After convincing her that he is not an apparition, the two join in an ecstatic duet. Minka tells Nangis that Alexina thinks the king has been killed. Nangis – believing that she means the real king – drags her off to find him.

Alexina enters dressed as a servant girl and meets Henri; Fritelli hurries them on their way, content to be rid of his rival, but his pleasure is short-lived as he learns that the servant-girl was his wife, and he rushes off in pursuit of them both. Minka is mystified by all this until Nangis finally tells her who the real king is. Henri is shortly brought back in, reconciled to becoming king and receiving the acclamation of the pages, lords and soldiers assembled.

History and fiction

Departure of Polish envoys for Henry Valois

Rheims Cathedral
. He never returned to Poland, and was assassinated in 1589.

Albert Łaski was a Polish courtier at the time of his brief reign. Nangis is a small town around 60 km south-west of Paris.

In

Alexandre Dumas, père
conjures up the coronation of Henri in Kraków, and his unhappiness at being king.

Musically Chabrier entirely ignores the sixteenth century environment of the plot.[2]

The music

The opening bars Le roi malgré lui, which according to Ravel "changed the course of French harmony"

The music has been greatly admired by musicians such as

Stravinsky.[22] Ravel claimed that "the premiere of Le roi malgré lui changed the course of French harmony".[23] Harmonic progressions which were completely new in French music at the time, are used – most notably the use of unprepared and unresolved chords of the seventh and ninth, such as the very first chords of the Prelude.[24] The 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica declared it "one of the finest opéras comiques of modern times".[25] Blom stated "we discover in it the germs of much that we have come to look upon as belonging essentially to French music of the [20th] century".[2]

Bizet, rests on a superbly crafted structure. The balance between romantic and comic episodes, a striking feature of all Chabrier's opera, is at its most perfect in Le roi malgré lui."[1]

Chabrier's music shows the evidence of the two paths of the composition, of both libretto and music – from opérette to opéra-comique. The original plan, around 1884, a light work in the style of L'étoile was reinvigorated by Carvalho in 1886, into something grander and more dramatic with greater love interest.[26]

Broadly comic passages typical of operetta remain – especially the couplets for Fritelli – but the work by Richepin on both dialogue and lyrics improved the literary tone of the work. However the mutation from opérette to opéra-comique gave Chabrier the chance to provide music of a serious harmonic intent, such as Minka and Alexina's nocturne in Act 3 (described by Huebner as "one of the most beautiful numbers in fin-de-siècle French opera"), which flows lyrically over a large harmonic canvas. Likewise, in Act 1 Henri introduces himself through an air with has the character of a pavane.[26]

"Danse slave"
Performed by the United States Air Force Band
Problems playing this file? See media help.

Early changes to the score after the first performance included removing Alexina's demanding air "Pour vous je suis ambitieuse" in Act 1[13] and re-casting a rondeau for Henri and Alexina in Act 3 as a duet for Fritelli and Alexina in Act 1.[26]

Musically the most diverse role is that of Minka; from the romance-like shape of her Act 1 entrance solo "Hélas, à l'esclavage" by way of the roulades, chromaticism and wide leaps of her 'Chanson tzigane' in Act 2, to the powerful operatic duet in Act 3 with Nangis.

La Damnation de Faust.[13]

Huebner concludes his exploration of Le roi malgré lui by proposing that the collision of the traditions of opérette and opéra-comique results in "an explosion of pastiche, quotation, allusion, archaisms, dance rhythms of all kinds, Wagnerian chromaticisms, modernist parallel chords, patter singing", and for musical pleasure brackets Le roi malgré lui with Verdi's Falstaff.[26] Paulson offers a comprehensive analysis of the music of the opera, arguing that these characteristics, among others, contribute to a sophisticated discourse of musical humour that operates on multiple structural and intertextual levels.[27]

The opera was not to the taste of Cosima Wagner, who attended an 1890 performance in Dresden. She wrote to Felix Mottl: "What vulgarity and lack of ideas. No performance in the world could conceal for an instant these trivialities."[3]

Cover of transcription of the Fête polonaise

Two orchestral extracts from the opera have from time to time found their way onto concert programmes and recordings : the Fête polonaise and the Danse slave.

Orchestration

Strings, 2 flutes (2 piccolos), 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 4 horns, 3 cornets à piston, 3 trombones, timpani, percussion (bass drum, cymbals, triangle, side drum), 2 harps.

Chabrier confided to Lecocq that the score of Le Roi was much better orchestrated than Gwendoline (although this did not prevent Ravel proposing to Chabrier's sister-in-law, at the time of the 1929 revival, that he re-orchestrate the Fête polonaise).[13]

Recordings

Radio broadcasts of the opera have included:

References

Notes

  1. ^ a b Forbes E. "Le roi malgré lui", The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. Macmillan, London and New York, 1997.
  2. ^ a b c d Blom, Eric. Stepchildren of Music. G T Foulis & Company Ltd, London, 1923. XVI. The Tragedy of a Comic Opera, p173-179.
  3. ^ a b c d Opéra de Lyon Programme book. 2004.
  4. ^ Delage,Emmanuel Chabrier, p.355.
  5. ^ First seen at the Théâtre du Palais-Royal on 19 September 1836
  6. ^ Maddocks F. "Le roi malgré lui:Grange Park Opera", Opera, September 2003, pp. 1130-31. For the 2003 production at Grange Park Opera the dialogue was prepared by Simon Callow from the original Ancelot play.
  7. ^ Delage R. Chabrier, Iconographie musicale. Minkoff Lattès, 1982, p. 167.
  8. ^ Gils Blas, (29 September 1886) quoted in Delage, Emmanuel Chabrier, pp. 371-3.
  9. ^ Delage, Emmanuel Chabrier, pp. 374-5.
  10. ^ Delage R. Chabrier, Iconographie musicale. Minkoff Lattès, 1982; see p. 170 for the Le roi malgré lui poster, p. 183 for Joyeuse Marche.
  11. ^ Probably by the conductor Danbé (Delage R, p. 402).
  12. ^ Delage R. Emmanuel Chabrier. Paris, Fayard, 1999, p. 408.
  13. ^ a b c d Delage, Emmanuel Chabrier.
  14. ^ Wolff S. Un demi-siècle d'Opéra-Comique (1900–1950). André Bonne, Paris, 1953.
  15. ^ Loewenberg A. Annals of Opera. London, John Calder, 1978.
  16. ^ Jacono J-M. Marseille en liberté surveillée ? Les ambigüités de la vie musicale. In : Myriam Chimènes (ed.) : La vie musicale sous Vichy, Paris, 2001.
  17. ^ Baeck E. André Cluytens: Itinéraire d’un chef d’orchestre. Editions Mardaga, Wavre, 2009.
  18. ^ Pitt, Charles. Report from Toulouse. Opera, July 1978, p706-08.
  19. ^ Juilliard website
  20. ^ Maycock, Robert. Make love, not war: Robert Maycock on Le Roi malgré lui at Edinburgh Festival. The Independent, Monday, 5 September 1994.
  21. ^ Aged over 80, Fugère recorded the 'Couplets du polonais' and 'Couplets des gondoles' in May 1930 for Columbia; these recordings have been reissued on CD.
  22. ^ Stravinsky I. Chroniques de ma vie. Editions Denoël, 2000.
  23. ^ Poulenc F. Emmanuel Chabrier. La Palatine, Geneva and Paris, 1961.
  24. ^ Myers R. Emmanuel Chabrier and his Circle. J M Dent & Sons, London, 1969.
  25. ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Music § Recent Music—France" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 97 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 82.
  26. ^ a b c d e Huebner S. French opera at the fin-de-siècle (Chapter 18 : Le roi malgré lui). OUP, Oxford, 2006.
  27. ^ Paulson, J. "Riddled Constructs: A Study of Musical Humour in Emmanuel Chabrier's Comic Operas." PhD diss. University of British Columbia, 2011.
  28. ^ Loppert, Max. On Radio: Le Serpent à Plumes (Delibes), Radio 3 , 3 August, Le Roi malgré lui (Chabrier), Radio 3, 12 August. Opera, November 1973, Vol.24 No.11, 1039-1042.

Sources

External links
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