Julien (opera) explained

Julien, ou La vie du poète
Genre Header:Opera
Composer:Gustave Charpentier
Librettist:Gustave Charpentier
Language:French
Premiere Location:Salle Favart, Paris

Julien, ou La vie du poète (Julien, or The Poet's Life) is a poème lyrique, or opera, by composer Gustave Charpentier. The work is devised in a prologue and four acts and uses a French libretto by the composer. Julien is a sequel to Charpentier's Louise (1900) and describes the artistic aspirations of Louise's suitor Julien. The opera premiered in Paris at the Salle Favart on 4 June 1913.[1]

Background and performance history

Like that of Louise, the plot of Julien is semi-autobiographical and requires many characters and chorus roles; in Julien, the female lead portrays four smaller characters in addition to the role of Louise. The opera integrates elements of an earlier composition, La vie du poète, a symphony-drama of 1888–1889. The chorus consists largely of filles du rêve ("girls of the dream"), fairies, and chimeras as well as various men's roles, mainly different kinds of working class men. Charpentier stated that, except in the prologue, "Louise and the various characters who surround Julien are not so much real people as an exteriorized realization of their inner souls".August 2020.

The opera was not well received at its premiere, although it did gain Gabriel Fauré's admiration for its expressionist qualities.[2] Apart from two productions in 1914, one of which was at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City with Geraldine Farrar and Enrico Caruso in the main roles, it had not been revived until 3 December 2000, when it had its German premiere. That production, at the Theater Dortmund, was directed by John Dew and conducted by Axel Kober.[3]

There are no full-length recordings of the opera. However, Julien's aria "La voix de la nuit", sung by Maurice Dutreix, appears as the final track on the 1935 abridged recording of Louise (re-released in 2003 on Naxos Records).[4]

Roles

!Role!Voice type!Premiere cast, 4 June 1913
Conductor: Albert Wolff
JulientenorCharles Rousselière
Louise/Beauty/homeless woman/young girl/old womansopranoMarguerite Carré
Hiérophante/peasant/magebaritoneRaymond Boulogne
PainterbaritoneAndal
Bell ringertenorMaurice Cazeneuve
AcolytetenorGeorges-Louis Mesmaecker
StudentbassÉloi de Roqueblave
A bourgeoisesopranoBerthe Marietti
A bourgeoistenorDaburon
First grisettemezzo-sopranoPla
Second grisettemezzo-sopranoMarguerite Julliot
Voice from the abyss/officertenorEugène de Creus
First comrade/Another voice from the abyss/stone breaker/bassErnest Dupré
Second comrade/logger/bohemiantenorMaurice Capitaine
Third comradetenorDonval
Fourth comradetenorPasquier
First café waiterbaritoneCorbière
Second café waiterbaritonePierre Deloger
First dream ('Chimère')sopranoMadeleine Ménard
Second dreamsopranoLe Fontenay
Third dreammezzo-sopranoGermaine Gallot
Fourth dream/country-womanmezzo-sopranoGermaine Philippot
Fifth dreammezzo-sopranoCécile Thévenet
Sixth dreammezzo-sopranoAlavoine
First girl of the dreamsopranoMarie Tissier
Second girl of the dreamsopranoMarie-Louise Arné
Third girl of the dreamsopranoGermaine Carrière
Fourth girl of the dreamsopranoJeanne Calas
Fifth girl of the dreamsopranoMarguerite Villette
Sixth girl of the dreamsopranoMarini
Voice offstagemezzo-sopranoReynald
GirlsopranoPesier

Synopsis

Time: 19th century

Place: Initially in Rome; then several others

Prologue

Enthousiasme ("Filled with enthusiasm")

Julien, as a Prix de Rome winner, is studying in Rome at the Villa Medici. This resembles the life of Charpentier as he too was a Prix de Rome winner. However, after this point, the opera moves from the real world into the imagination until the final tableau, set in Montmartre, returns the plot to reality.

Act 1

Au pays du rêve ("In dreamland")

It contains three settings: the Holy Mountain, followed by a setting in the Accursed Valley, and lastly the Temple of Beauty.

Act 2

This takes place in the Slovakian countryside and follows Julien as he experiences doubts in creating his artwork.

Act 3

Impuissance ("Impotence")

This is located in Brittany's wild countryside.

Act 4

Ivresse ("Intoxication")

Set in Montmartre, it closes in the Place Blanche with the sudden appearance of the Temple of Beauty.[2]

External links

Notes and References

  1. [Warrack, John]
  2. Richard Langham Smith: "Julien", Grove Music Online ed. L. Macy (Accessed February 19, 2009)
  3. Libération (5 December 2000). "Charpentier exhumé à Dortmund.". Retrieved 5 September 2014 .
  4. Louise, recording (abridged)