{"id":88,"date":"2012-07-11T10:43:15","date_gmt":"2012-07-11T14:43:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/esm4.esm.rochester.edu\/debussy\/?page_id=88"},"modified":"2012-09-18T11:43:18","modified_gmt":"2012-09-18T15:43:18","slug":"theatrical-debussy","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/esm4.esm.rochester.edu\/debussy\/theatrical-debussy\/","title":{"rendered":"Theatrical Debussy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Pell\u00e9as Redux<\/em>: excerpts from Pell\u00e9as et M\u00e9lisande <\/em>with projections by P. Craig Russell<\/strong>
\nFriday, October 26, 8 PM, Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

A small ensemble of classical and jazz musicians, led by Eastman theory professor Matthew Brown (author of Debussy Redux – The Impact of His Music on Popular Culture<\/em>), jazz professor Dariusz Terefenko, and Eastman alumnus Christopher Winders, offers Pell\u00e9as Redux<\/em>: a bold, new version of Debussy’s great opera with illustrations by famed comicbook artist P. Craig Russell.<\/p>\n

\n

Given its importance, Pell\u00e9as et M\u00e9lisande<\/em> clearly demands to be center stage in any celebration of Debussy and his music. The work is, in fact, based on a play by the celebrated Belgian writer Maurice Maeterlinck (1862-1949). Born in Ghent and trained as a lawyer, Maeterlinck caught the literary bug in the mid 1880s. He was clearly influenced by the writings of Poe, Baudelaire, and the Symbolist movement: he not only visited Paris for a few months in 1885, where he met Villiers de l\u2019Isle-Adam, but he also met St\u00e9phane Mallarm\u00e9, who was to become a staunch ally, in Ghent in 1890. Following the early success of Serres chaudes<\/em>, a collection of poetry published in 1889, Maeterlinck turned his attention to the theater, completing a string of Symbolist plays: La Princesse Maleine<\/em> (1889), L\u2019Intruse<\/em> (1890), Les Aveugles<\/em> (1890), Pell\u00e9as et M\u00e9lisande<\/em><\/a> (1892), Alladine et Palomides<\/em> (1894), <\/em>Int\u00e9rieur<\/em> (1895), Aglavaine et S\u00e9lysette<\/em> (1896), and Ariane et Barbe-bleue<\/em> (1899). Whereas these works are preoccupied with fatalism, mysticism, and death, Maeterlinck\u2019s later works are more diverse in nature and range from dramas, such as Joyzelle<\/em> (1903) and L\u2019Oiseau bleu<\/em> (1909) to entomological works, such as his studies of bees (1900), termites (1927) and ants (1930). He was awarded the Nobel Prize in literature in 1911.<\/p>\n

First published by Paul Lacomblez in Brussels in May 1892 and first staged by Aur\u00e9lien-Fran\u00e7ois Lugn\u00e9-Poe and the Th\u00e9\u00e2tre de l\u2019\u0152uvre in May 1893, the story is a macabre interpretation of the classic love triangle. The triangle is set up in Act 1. Heir to the throne of Allemonde, Golaud encounters M\u00e9lisande while hunting in the forest. She seems aristocratic and has dropped her crown in a well. Golaud questions her but she discloses nothing about her past. They marry and return to his ancestral home to meet his grandfather, King Arkel, his mother Genevi\u00e8ve, his half-brother Pell\u00e9as, and his son Yniold. Pell\u00e9as is planning to visit his sick friend Marcellus, but delays his departure when he encounters M\u00e9lisande. The triangle starts to breakdown in Acts 2, 3, and 4. When Golaud notices that Pell\u00e9as and M\u00e9lisande are spending time together, he becomes jealous and warns them to stop meeting; he threatens Pell\u00e9as in the castle vaults (Act 3, scene 2) and abuses M\u00e9lisande in front of King Arkel (Act 4, scene 2). The triangle is finally ripped apart at the end of Act 4. Pell\u00e9as and M\u00e9lisande meet one last time outside the castle (Act 4, scene 4). Golaud discovers them and stabs Pell\u00e9as with the sword that M\u00e9lisande found on his prayer stool. When Pell\u00e9as collapses beside \u2018Blindman\u2019s Well,\u2019 M\u00e9lisande betrays him. Golaud has also wounded her and she flees into the forest. Golaud chases her, after unsuccessfully trying to kill himself. Finally, Act 5 shows M\u00e9lisande on her deathbed, having given birth to a baby girl. Golaud is at her bedside, a confused and broken man.<\/p>\n

For his part, Debussy became acquainted with Pell\u00e9as et M\u00e9lisande<\/em> early in 1893 and attended the play\u2019s premiere at the Th\u00e9\u00e2tre des Bouffes-Parisiens<\/a> in May 1893. He was clearly impressed and, through the intervention of Henri de R\u00e9gnier, approached Maeterlinck about setting it as an opera. Maeterlinck gave his blessing on 8 August 1893. Debussy immediately began to map out Act 4, scene 4 and completed the first draft in September and October, though he subsequently revised the score in May 1895. His immediate goal was apparently to set Maeterlinck\u2019s original play as faithfully as possible, but Debussy soon realized that changes were needed and discussed the matter with the playwright on a visit to Ghent in November 1893. No one knows what was said, but Debussy ended up cutting four entire scenes. He then spent the next two years drafting the rest of the opera, starting with Act 1, scenes 1-3 in December 1893-February 1894 and ending with Act 2, scenes 1-3 in June-August 1895.<\/p>\n

Although Debussy fussed with the draft over the next few years, he focused his energy on arranging a stage performance with Pierre Larochelle\u2019s Th\u00e9\u00e2tre Libre and Lugn\u00e9-Poe\u2019s Th\u00e9\u00e2tre de l\u2019\u0152uvre. But both of them fell through, as did performances at the Comte de Montesquiou\u2019s Pavillon des Muses and the Th\u00e9\u00e2tre de la Monnaie in Brussels. In 1900, however, the Op\u00e9ra-Comique expressed interest and Debussy set about completing the piano\/vocal score. Despite further delays, the event eventually occurred on 30 April 1902: it was produced by Albert Carr\u00e9 and conducted by Andr\u00e9 Messager with Jean P\u00e9rier as Pell\u00e9as, Mary Garden as M\u00e9lisande, Hector Dufranne as Golaud, F\u00e9lix Vieuille as Arkel, Mm. Gerville-R\u00e9ache as Genevi\u00e8ve, Mm. Gerville-R\u00e9ache, Blondin as Yniold, and M. Vigui\u00e9 as the doctor. Fromont subsequently published the piano\/vocal score in 1902 and the orchestral score in 1904; Durand published revised versions of the former in 1905 and the latter in 1907.<\/p>\n

Pell\u00e9as Redux<\/em> celebrates the accomplishments of Maeterlinck, Debussy, and P. Craig Russell by adapting Russell’s version of Pell\u00e9as & M\u00e9lisande<\/em> for the big screen. As regards the images, Christopher Winders has taken all of Russell\u2019s illustrations and used various cinematic techniques to present them in the form of a motion comic. As regards the musical score, Matthew Brown and Dariusz Terefenko have shrunk Debussy’s score down to under two hours, the standard time frame for concert performances. The process of removing music has not been an easy one and has involved trimming some scenes more heavily trimmed than others. As far as possible, the resulting score includes music for every scene with that music appearing in its original order with only minor additions of new material. Dariusz Terefenko has then reorchestrated the music for a chamber ensemble consisting of piano, violin, alto saxophone, trumpet, cello, bass, electric guitar, and synthesizer. To fill out the textures and add even more tension to the performance, this arrangement also includes electronic sounds of one sort or another. The ensemble features faculty, alumni, and friends of the Eastman School of Music: Charles Castleman (violin), Griffin Campbell (alto sax), Clay Jenkins (trumpet), Albert Kim (piano), Ken Lurie (cello), Jason Titus (electric guitar), and James VanDemark (bass), with Dariusz Terefenko (music director, keyboards) and Christopher Winders and Matthew Brown (sound and projections).<\/p>\n

Matthew Brown
\nProfessor of Music Theory<\/p>\n

\n

\"Pelleas<\/a><\/p>\n

PELL\u00c9AS REDUX SITE<\/p>\n

Renowned comic-book artist P. Craig Russell has published an artful version of Debussy\u2019s beloved opera, in his own powerful style. The Eastman School\u2019s presentation on Friday October 26 in Kodak Hall will include a newly reimagined version of Debussy\u2019s score for a small mixed ensemble of instruments with live electronics, all illustrated by panels from that comic-book version. (The video available below gives a sense of the visuals but uses other music.)<\/p>\n

Visit Pell\u00e9as Redux<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

Act IV, scene iv ( \u201cC\u2019est le dernier soir . . .\u201d ) from P\u00e9ll\u00e9as et M\u00e9lisande<\/em> (opera; 1893-95, 1901-02)
\nexcerpt from Eastman Audio Archive call no. AM9274 : AM9279<\/p>\n

Performed on May 7, 1987 in the Eastman Theatre by Eugenia P. Garrity, soprano, in the role of M\u00e9lisande, and John Kramar, baritone, in the role of P\u00e9ll\u00e9as, and the members of the Eastman Philharmonia, conducted by David Gilbert.
\nDr. Garrity is now a recitalist and voice teacher based in Lakeland, Florida. Mr. Kramar is Associate Professor of Voice, Chair of the Department of Vocal Studies, and Director of the East Carolina University Opera Theater at the East Carolina University School of Music in Greenville, North Carolina. Maestro Gilbert currently serves as Resident Conductor at the Manhattan School of Music in New York City.<\/p>\n[audio:https:\/\/esm4.esm.rochester.edu\/debussy\/files\/04-Act-IV-Scene-IV.mp3|titles=Act IV – scene iv]\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Pell\u00e9as Redux: excerpts from Pell\u00e9as et M\u00e9lisande with projections by P. Craig Russell Friday, October 26, 8 PM, Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre A small ensemble of classical and jazz musicians, led by Eastman theory professor Matthew Brown (author of Debussy Redux – The Impact of His Music on Popular Culture), jazz professor Dariusz Terefenko,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"onecolumn-page.php","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-88","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","description-off"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/esm4.esm.rochester.edu\/debussy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/88","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/esm4.esm.rochester.edu\/debussy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/esm4.esm.rochester.edu\/debussy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/esm4.esm.rochester.edu\/debussy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/esm4.esm.rochester.edu\/debussy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=88"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/esm4.esm.rochester.edu\/debussy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/88\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/esm4.esm.rochester.edu\/debussy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=88"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/esm4.esm.rochester.edu\/debussy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=88"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}