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56-495: Jewel Song may refer to: "Ah! Je ris de me voir", from Charles Gounod's opera Faust "Air de bijoux" Alternative name for Facing the Music (1933 film) , 1933 British musical comedy film Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Jewel Song . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change

112-453: A ballet had to be inserted (into the first scene of the final act) before the work could be played at the Opéra : it became the most frequently performed opera at that house. With the change from spoken dialogue to sung recitatives, plus the musical and balletic additions, the opera was thus finally transformed into a work following the conventions of grand opera . It was Faust with which

168-452: A choir . He curses hope and faith , and asks for infernal guidance. Méphistophélès appears (duet: "Me voici") and, with a tempting image of Marguerite at her spinning wheel , persuades Faust to buy Méphistophélès's services on Earth in exchange for Faust's in Hell. Faust's goblet of poison is magically transformed into an elixir of youth , making the aged doctor a handsome young gentleman;

224-617: A brief ballet and an elaborate march. The opera was eventually transformed by the composer to L'étoile du nord . In many German-language houses, especially in Vienna, where Eduard Hanslick and later Gustav Mahler championed Meyerbeer and Halévy respectively, the operas continued to be performed well into the 20th century. The growth of anti-Semitism in Germany, especially after the Nazi Party obtained political power in 1933, spelled

280-727: A consequence, as did Richard Wagner with his attempt to stage a revised Tannhäuser as a grand opera in Paris in 1861, which had to be withdrawn after three performances , partly because the ballet was in act 1 (when the dancers' admirers were still at dinner). The most significant development, or transformation, of grand opera after the 1850s was its handling by Giuseppe Verdi , whose Les vêpres siciliennes (1855), proved to be more widely given in Italy and other Italian-language opera houses than in France. The taste for luxury and extravagance at

336-474: A far wider range of musical theatre effects than traditional Italian opera. Moreover, Il crociato with its exotic historical setting, onstage bands, spectacular costumes and themes of culture clash, exhibited many of the features on which the popularity of grand opera would be based. What became the essential features of 'grand opéra' were foreseen by Étienne de Jouy , the librettist of Guillaume Tell , in an essay of 1826: Division into five acts seems to me

392-438: A place in the operatic repertoire. Even the pieces that are rarely staged are increasingly being resuscitated for compact disc recordings, and many are revived at opera festivals and by companies such as Palazetto Bru Zane . After virtually disappearing from the operatic repertory worldwide in the 20th century, Meyerbeer's major grand operas are once again being staged by leading European opera houses. French grand opera

448-578: A principal of the Opéra-Comique, Joseph-Théodore-Désiré Barbot, shortly before the opening night. After a successful initial run at the Théâtre Lyrique the publisher Antoine Choudens, who purchased the copyright for 10,000 francs , took the work (now with recitatives replacing the spoken dialogue) on tour through Germany, Belgium, Italy and England, with Caroline Miolan-Carvalho repeating her role. Performances in Germany followed, with

504-442: A prison Méphistophélès and Faust are surrounded by witches ("Un, deux et trois"). Faust is transported to a cave of queens and courtesans , and Méphistophélès promises to provide Faust with the love of the greatest and most beautiful women in history. An orgiastic ballet suggests the revelry that continues throughout the night. As dawn approaches, Faust sees a vision of Marguerite and calls for her. Méphistophélès helps Faust enter

560-501: A pure child of nature. Méphistophélès brings in a decorated box containing exquisite jewelry and a hand mirror and leaves it on Marguerite's doorstep, next to Siebel's flowers. Marguerite enters, pondering her encounter with Faust at the city gates, and sings a melancholy ballad about the King of Thule ("Il était un roi de Thulé"). Marthe, Marguerite's neighbour, notices the jewellery and says it must be from an admirer. Marguerite tries on

616-408: A rousing, irreverent song about the golden calf ("Le veau d'or"). Méphistophélès predicts Wagner will not return from the war and maligns Marguerite, and Valentin tries to strike him with his sword, which shatters in the air. Valentin and friends use the cross-shaped hilts of their swords to fend off what they now know is an infernal power (chorus: "De l'enfer"). Méphistophélès is joined by Faust and

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672-489: A voice on high sings "Sauvée!" ("Saved!"). The bells of Easter sound and a chorus of angels sings "Christ est ressuscité!" ('"Christ is risen!"). The walls of the prison open, and Marguerite's soul rises to heaven . In despair Faust follows it with his eyes; he falls to his knees and prays. Méphistophélès is turned away by the shining sword of the archangel . Although the Walpurgisnacht ballet sequence from act 5

728-405: Is a social outcast. She sings an aria at her spinning wheel ("Il ne revient pas"). Siebel stands by her. The scene shifts to the square outside Marguerite's house. Valentin's company returns from the war to a military march ("Déposons les armes" and "Gloire immortelle de nos aïeux", the well-known "soldiers' chorus"). Siebel asks Valentin to forgive Marguerite. Valentin rushes to her cottage. While he

784-467: Is inside Faust and Méphistophélès appear, and Méphistophélès, knowing that Marguerite is not in there alone, sings a mocking burlesque of a lover's serenade under Marguerite's window ("Vous qui faites l'endormie"). Valentin takes the bait and comes out of the cottage, now knowing that Faust has debauched his sister. The two men fight, but Faust is reluctant to hurt the brother of the woman he adores. Méphistophélès blocks Valentin's sword, allowing Faust to make

840-726: Is particularly applied (sometimes specifically used in its French-language equivalent grand opéra , pronounced [ɡʁɑ̃t‿ɔpeʁa] ) to certain productions of the Paris Opéra from the late 1820s to around 1860; 'grand opéra' has sometimes been used to denote the Paris Opéra itself. The term 'grand opera' is also used in a broader application in respect of contemporary or later works of similar monumental proportions from France, Germany, Italy, and other countries. It may also be used colloquially in an imprecise sense to refer to 'serious opera without spoken dialogue'. Paris at

896-520: Is still frequently produced today. Götterdämmerung , as noted by George Bernard Shaw , shows clear traces of some return by Wagner to the grand opera tradition, and a case could also be argued for Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg . Meyerbeer's only mature German opera, Ein Feldlager in Schlesien is in effect a Singspiel , although act 2 has some of the characteristics of grand opera, with

952-511: Is usually omitted from modern staged performances of Faust , it is frequently performed separately as a concert work or part of a ballet program, e.g. George Balanchine 's Walpurgisnacht Ballet . Grand opera Grand opera is a genre of 19th-century opera generally in four or five acts, characterized by large-scale casts and orchestras . The original productions consisted of spectacular design and stage effects with plots normally based on or around dramatic historic events. The term

1008-576: The Dresden Semperoper in 1861 being the first to bill the work as Margarethe rather than Faust . For many years this custom – or alternatively, staging the opera as Gretchen – continued in Germany. Some sources claim this was out of respect for part 1 of Goethe's poetic drama, which the opera follows closely. Others claim the opposite: that the retitling was done to emphasise Gounod's opera's reliance on Goethe's characters, and to differentiate it from Louis Spohr 's Faust , which had held

1064-604: The Metropolitan Opera in New York City opened for the first time on 22 October 1883 . It is the eighth most frequently performed opera there, with 753 performances through the 2012–2013 season. It was not until the period between 1965 and 1977 that the full version was performed (and then with some minor cuts), and all performances in that production included the Walpurgisnacht ballet. A recording

1120-470: The 1880s and even 1890s, but with less frequency; examples being Marchetti's Don Giovanni d'Austria (1880) and Ponchielli's Il figluol prodigo (also 1880). French grand operas were regularly staged by German opera houses; an early article by Richard Wagner depicts German opera managers hurrying to Paris to try to identify the next hit. The Dresden performances of Le prophète (in German) in 1850 were

1176-513: The Emperor. Other factors which led to Parisian supremacy at operatic spectacle were the ability of the large Paris Opéra to stage sizeable works and recruit leading stage-painters, designers and technicians, the long tradition of French ballet , and the art of stagecraft. The first theatre performance lit by gas, for example, was Aladin ou La lampe merveilleuse at the Opéra in 1823. The theatre had

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1232-531: The French theatre declined after the 1848 revolution, and new productions on the previous scale were not so commercially viable. The popular Faust (1859) by Charles Gounod started life as an opéra comique and did not become a grand opera until rewritten in the 1860s. Les Troyens by Hector Berlioz (composed 1856–1858, later revised), was not given a full performance until nearly a century after Berlioz had died, although portions had been staged before, but

1288-517: The Opéra. He was to write or be associated with many of the libretti of the most successful grand operas which followed. La muette ' s reputation was enhanced by it being the touchpaper for a genuine revolution when it was produced in Brussels in 1830. In 1829, this was followed by Rossini's swansong Guillaume Tell . The resourceful Rossini, having largely created a style of Italian opera to which European theatre had been in thrall, recognized

1344-493: The Revolution, the new regime determined to privatize the previously state-run Opéra and the winner of the contract was a businessman who acknowledged that he knew nothing of music, Louis-Désiré Véron . However, he soon showed himself extremely shrewd at discerning public taste by investing heavily in the grand opera formula. His first new production was a work long contracted from Meyerbeer, whose premiere had been delayed by

1400-449: The Revolution. This was fortunate for both Véron and Meyerbeer. As Berlioz commented, Meyerbeer had "not only the luck to be talented, but the talent to be lucky." Meyerbeer's new opera Robert le diable chimed well with the liberal sentiments of 1830s France. Moreover, its potent mixture of melodrama, spectacle, titillation (including a ballet of the ghosts of debauched nuns), and dramatic arias and choruses went down extremely well with

1456-506: The beginning of its second act. This was required, not for aesthetic reasons, but to satisfy the demands of the Opera's wealthy and aristocratic patrons, many of whom were more interested in the dancers themselves than the opera. These individuals also did not want their regular meal-times disturbed. The ballet therefore became an important element in the social prestige of the Opéra. Composers who did not comply with this tradition might suffer as

1512-585: The characteristics of size and spectacle that are normally associated with French grand opera. Another important forerunner was Il crociato in Egitto by Meyerbeer , who eventually became the acknowledged king of the grand opera genre. In Il crociato , which was produced by Rossini in Paris in 1825 after success in Venice , Florence and London. Meyerbeer succeeded in blending Italian singing-style with an orchestral style derived from his German training, introducing

1568-467: The composer's first success (produced Dresden , 1842) is totally Meyerbeerean in style. Wagner was at that time a sincere admirer of the older composer, who assisted him in arranging performances of Rienzi and Der fliegende Holländer in Dresden and Berlin. As described above, Wagner attempted in 1860/1861 to recast Tannhäuser as a grand opera, and this Paris version , as later adapted for Vienna,

1624-541: The description. They constituted an evolution of grand opera. Verdi's Aida , despite having only four acts, corresponds in many ways to the grand opera formula. It has a historical setting, deals with 'culture clash' and contains several ballets as well as its extremely well known Grand March. It was a huge success, both at its world premiere in Cairo in 1871 and its Italian premiere in Milan in 1872. It led to an increase in

1680-463: The fatal thrust. With his dying breath Valentin blames Marguerite for his death and condemns her to Hell before the assembled townspeople ("Ecoute-moi bien Marguerite"). Marguerite goes to the church and tries to pray there but is stopped, first by the sadistic Méphistophélès and then by a choir of devils. She finishes her prayer but faints when she is cursed again by Méphistophélès. The Harz mountains on Walpurgis Night / A cavern / The interior of

1736-418: The heroine precipitates herself, embodied the musical and scenic sensationalism which were to be grand opera's hallmark. The libretto for La muette was by Eugène Scribe , a dominant force in French theatre of the time who specialized in melodramatic versions, often involving extremes of coincidence, of historical topics which were well-tailored for the public taste of the time. This was his first libretto for

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1792-458: The innovative designers Duponchel , Cicéri and Daguerre on its staff as well. Several operas by Gaspare Spontini , Luigi Cherubini , and Gioachino Rossini can be regarded as precursors to French grand opera. These include Spontini's La vestale (1807) and Fernand Cortez (1809, revised 1817), Cherubini's Les Abencérages (1813), and Rossini's Le siège de Corinthe (1827) and Moïse et Pharaon (1828). All of these have some of

1848-523: The jewels and is captivated by how they enhance her beauty, as she sings in the famous aria , the Jewel Song ("Oh dieu! Que de bijoux ... Ah! je ris de me voir si belle en ce miroir"). Méphistophélès and Faust join the women in the garden and romance them. Marguerite allows Faust to kiss her ("Laisse-moi, laisse-moi contempler ton visage"), but then asks him to go away. She sings at her window for his quick return, and Faust, listening, returns to her. Under

1904-546: The last successful French grand operas was by an unfamiliar composer, Émile Paladilhe : Patrie! (Paris, 1886). It ran up nearly 100 performances in Paris, and quite a few in Belgium, where the action takes place, but has since disappeared without a trace. The expensive artifacts of grand opera (which also demanded expensive singers)— Les Huguenots was known as 'the night of the seven stars' because of its requirement of seven top-grade artistes—meant that they were economically

1960-429: The link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jewel_Song&oldid=674594921 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Faust (opera) The original version of Faust employed spoken dialogue, and it

2016-653: The most suitable for any opera that would reunite the elements of the genre: [...] where the dramatic focus was combined with the marvellous: where the nature and majesty of the subject [...] demanded the addition of attractive festivities and splendid civil and religious ceremonies to the natural flow of the action, and consequently needed frequent scene changes. The first opera of the grand opera canon is, by common consent, La muette de Portici (1828) by Daniel François Auber . This tale of revolution set in Naples in 1647, ending with an eruption of Mount Vesuvius into which

2072-514: The most vulnerable as new repertoire developed. Hence they lost pride of place at the Paris Opéra (especially when many of the original stage sets were lost in fire in the late 19th century). However, as late as 1917, the Gaîté-Lyrique devoted an entire season to the genre, including Halévy's La reine de Chypre . Some of these works – Guillaume Tell , La favorite , Les vêpres siciliennes and Don Carlos , for instance – continue to have

2128-448: The new leaders of taste, the affluent bourgeoisie. The success of Robert was as spectacular as its production. Over the next few years, Véron brought on Auber's Gustave III (1833, libretto by Scribe, later adapted for Verdi 's Un ballo in maschera ) , and Fromental Halévy 's La Juive (1835, libretto also by Scribe), and commissioned Meyerbeer's next opera Les Huguenots (1836, libretto by Scribe and Deschamps), whose success

2184-427: The occasion for a series of articles by Wagner's disciple, Theodor Uhlig , condemning Meyerbeer's style and crudely attributing his alleged aesthetic failure to his Jewish origins, inspiring Wagner to write his anti-Jewish diatribe Das Judenthum in der Musik ("Jewishness in Music"). Meyerbeer himself was German by birth, but directed nearly all his mature efforts to success in Paris. Richard Wagner 's Rienzi ,

2240-469: The potential of new technology which included larger theatres and orchestras and modern instrumentation. He proved in this work that he could rise to meet them in this undoubted grand opera. However, his comfortable financial position, and the change in political climate after the July Revolution , persuaded him to quit the field. Therefore, Guillaume Tell was his last public composition. After

2296-434: The premiere of Giuseppe Verdi 's first opera for Paris, Jérusalem , an adaptation, meeting the grand opera conventions, of his earlier I Lombardi alla prima crociata . For production statistics of grand opera in Paris, see List of performances of French grand operas at the Paris Opéra . A notable feature of grand opera as it developed in Paris through the 1830s was the presence of a lavish ballet, to appear at or near

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2352-471: The prison where Marguerite is being held for killing her child. They sing a love duet ("Oui, c'est toi que j'aime"). Méphistophélès states that only a mortal hand can deliver Marguerite from her fate, and Faust offers to rescue her from the hangman , but she prefers to trust her fate to God and His angels ("Anges purs, anges radieux"). At the end she asks why Faust's hands are covered in blood, pushes him away, and falls down motionless. Méphistophélès curses, as

2408-458: The same venue in English, Gounod took a theme from the prelude to the opera and wrote a new aria for the star baritone Charles Santley in the role of Valentin, 'Even bravest heart may swell' (with words by Henry Chorley ). This number was then translated into French for subsequent productions as "Avant de quitter ces lieux" and has become one of the most familiar pieces from the opera. In 1869

2464-514: The scale of some of the works by other composers that followed it. This was particularly noticeable in works by Gomes ( Fosca in 1873, and his Salvator Rosa in 1874); Marchetti (especially Gustavo Wasa in 1875); Ponchielli: ( I Lituani in 1874) and La Gioconda (Milan, 1876, revised 1880)); and Lauro Rossi ( La Contessa di Mons , premiered in Turin in 1874). Other operas on this scale continued to be composed by Italian composers during

2520-400: The spirit of this work is far removed from the bourgeois taste of the grand opera of the 1830s and 1840s. By the 1860s, taste for the grand style was returning. La reine de Saba by Charles Gounod was rarely given in its entirety, although the big tenor aria, "Inspirez-moi, race divine", was a popular feature of tenor recitals. Meyerbeer died on 2 May 1864; his late opera, L'Africaine ,

2576-513: The stage for many years in Germany and had recently appeared (1851) in a three-act revision. It is also possible that the 1861 Dresden title change was out of respect for Spohr's close and long association with the city. The opera was given for the first time in Italy at La Scala in 1862 and in England at Her Majesty's Theatre , London (in Italian) in 1863. In 1864, when the opera was given at

2632-403: The strange companions then set out into the world. At the city gates A chorus of students, soldiers and villagers sings a drinking song ("Vin ou Bière"). Valentin, leaving for war with his friend Wagner, entrusts the care of his sister Marguerite to his youthful friend Siebel ("O sainte médaille ... Avant de quitter ces lieux"). Méphistophélès appears, provides the crowd with wine, and sings

2688-813: The tradition of grand opera but often broke its melodramatic boundaries. The influence of Wagner's operas began to be felt, and it is a moot point whether these works can be simply called grand opera. Jules Massenet had at least two large scale historical works to his credit, Le roi de Lahore (Paris, 1877, assessed by Grove as "the last grand opera to have a great and widespread success". ) and Le Cid (Paris, 1885). Other works in this category include Polyeucte (Paris, 1878) by Charles Gounod and Henry VIII by Camille Saint-Saëns (Paris, 1883). Ernest Reyer had started to compose his Sigurd years earlier, but, unable to get it premiered in Paris, settled for La Monnaie in Brussels (1884). What may have been one of

2744-408: The turn of the 19th century drew in many composers, both French and foreign, especially those of opera. Several Italians working during this period, including Luigi Cherubini , demonstrated that the use of recitative was suited for the powerful dramas that were being written. Others, such as Gaspare Spontini , wrote works to glorify Napoleon . These operas were composed on a suitably grand scale for

2800-458: The villagers in a waltz ("Ainsi que la brise légère"). Marguerite appears and Faust declares his admiration, but she refuses Faust's arm out of modesty , a quality that makes him love her even more. Marguerite's garden The lovesick boy Siebel leaves a bouquet for Marguerite ("Faites-lui mes aveux"). Faust sends Méphistophélès in search of a gift for Marguerite and sings a cavatina ("Salut, demeure chaste et pure") idealizing Marguerite as

2856-428: The watchful eye and malevolent laughter of Méphistophélès, it is clear that Faust's seduction of Marguerite will be successful. Marguerite's room / A public square outside her house / A cathedral [ Note: The scenes of act 4 are sometimes given in a different order and portions are sometimes shortened or cut in performance. ] After being made pregnant and seemingly abandoned by Faust, Marguerite has given birth and

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2912-545: Was generally well received in Italy, where it was always performed in Italian translation. Italian operas with their own ballet started to become relatively common in the late 1860s and 1870s. Some of these, such as Il Guarany by the Brazilian composer Antônio Carlos Gomes were designated as "opera ballo" (i.e. 'danced opera'). Others, such as La Gioconda by Amilcare Ponchielli were not, although they qualified for

2968-399: Was in this form that the work was first performed. The manager of the Théâtre Lyrique, Léon Carvalho cast his wife Caroline Miolan-Carvalho as Marguerite and there were various changes during production, including the removal and contraction of several numbers. The tenor Hector Gruyer was originally cast as Faust but was found to be inadequate during rehearsals, being eventually replaced by

3024-749: Was made in 2018 of the 1859 version, by Les Talens Lyriques conducted by Christophe Rousset , which endeavoured to present the opera as first performed at the Théâtre Lyrique "closer in kinship to the traditional opéra comique in its interleaving of musical numbers with spoken passages". The recording, produced by Bru Zane, featured Véronique Gens , Benjamin Bernheim and Andrew Foster-Williams in principal roles. Faust's cabinet Faust , an aging scholar, determines that his studies have come to nothing and have only caused him to miss out on life and love ("Rien! En vain j'interroge"). He attempts to kill himself (twice) with poison but stops each time when he hears

3080-423: Was premiered posthumously in 1865. Giuseppe Verdi returned to Paris for what many see as the greatest French grand opera, Don Carlos (1867). Ambroise Thomas contributed his Hamlet in 1868, and finally, at the end of the decade, the revised Faust was premiered at the Opéra in its grand opera format. During the 1870s and 1880s, a new generation of French composers continued to produce large-scale works in

3136-600: Was to prove the most enduring of all grand operas during the 19th century. Having made a fortune in his stewardship of the Opéra, Véron cannily handed on his concession to Henri Duponchel , who continued his winning formula, if not to such financial reward. Between 1838 and 1850, the Paris Opéra staged numerous grand operas of which the most notable were Halévy ’s La reine de Chypre (1841) and Charles VI (1843), Donizetti 's La favorite and Les martyrs (1840) and Dom Sébastien (1843, librettos by Scribe), and Meyerbeer's Le prophète (1849) (Scribe again). 1847 saw

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