I must say that I have a new, greater excitement for our
upcoming concert. This is mostly due to a little research I did on our closing
number: The Gondoliers Finale (Dance
a Cachucha). Out of all Callista Chorale’s songs, this one intrigued me the
most from the start, as it requires two people on the same piano (making the
sheet music look quite scary to be honest) and also because it has been the
most difficult for me to pick up and learn.
The Gondoliers is
very much so an opera on the satire of class distinctions. Written in 1889 by
Arthur Sullivan and W.S. Gilbert, it follows the wife of the Prince of
Barataria (a fictional kingdom), the Prince himself, a drunken gondolier, and
his son. The Prince has been in hiding since he was a child, for protection,
and a Venetian Gondolier took him in as his own to care for him. The gondolier
had a child of his own around the same age as the Prince, and with time forgot
who was who, as in he cannot remember which is the Prince and which is his
biological son (Don't give him a hard time, he’s drunk a lot). With the King of
Barataria dead, there is a newfound need to identify the Prince so he may rule
his inherited kingdom. In order to identify him, his wife, whom was married to
him while the two were both babies, figures she will be able to tell the
difference. She travels to Venice to be reunited with her “husband,” only she
realizes she is in love with another. But its ok, because so is the Prince. And
so is the gondolier’s son, who is kind of the Prince’s brother in a way.
The entire opera is confusing, illogical, and yet magnificently
brilliant in every way. Its farcical, funny, and well written based on the
snippets I was able to watch on youtube. Knowing its background and story makes
me all the more excited to be singing the finale from this opera.
I know that with practice, this number will come together
immensely well, and I cannot wait to join the tenors of community choir and
sing away at our part.
(Here’s a link to my favorite version of this
song I could find on youtube, by Hasting’s College choir: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qF98nnBlTh8
I totally agree with you. Gondoliers is probably the most difficult song to sing this concert for Callista Chorale (at least I think so). It's interesting to hear about what the opera is about, and now I want to watch it! I think the description of the opera as confusing and brilliant also applies to the song. There's a lot of confusing parts in the number, but it is very interesting. The sheet music is shocking, along with the difficult changes. but these things also make it brilliant. Based on your assessment of the opera, it is interesting to think that this number is a possible representation of the entire opera. I like how the song is the finale of the opera encompasses all of the qualities of the entire lay; something that I think finales should do. I also think that, by understanding what the opera is about, we all can try and sing with that idea in mind. Your entry really helped me with understanding what the song is about in relation to its opera. It makes me more interested in the song and more excited to sing this song at the concert! Thank you for the information!
ReplyDeleteI was so happy when Ms. Hughes split the sopranos in half, because I was squeaking my way through the melody. I love this song because it feels like the Act One finale of this huge, extravagant show, before everything goes horribly wrong in Act 2. This sounds almost like a musical Shakespeare play. Also, I had no idea that Gilbert and Sullivan wrote operas, which I probably should have. For some reason, I've always associated them with musicals. I realize now that that is VERY WRONG. The music itself feels more American somehow. That explains why it's written in English with little bits of other languages. I should have guessed that it would be the finale of the show because it's the finale of our show, but I didn't make that connection. After reading your description of the plot, the song makes a lot more sense, just because while there is a climax and story and all that, it is sort of all over the place. I think that's part of the brilliance of it, because the finale of the show shouldn't be straightforward. It should leave the audience thinking, and almost discombobulated, but also satisfied. I think this song really achieves that, and it will be really powerful with all of the choirs singing together.
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