Donizetti`s Lucia di Lammermoor

Contents
Special thanks to our education community partners:
Characters | 3
Synopsis | 4
Composer | 6
A short history of Lucia di Lammermoor | 7
Listening guide | 8
Additional resources | 10
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Photo: Robert F. Reynolds | Seattle Opera
Characters
Lucia | soprano
She is in love with Edgardo, but cannot marry him as their
families are feuding.
(In order of vocal appearance)
Normanno | tenor
Head of the Lammermoor guard.
Alisa | mezzo-soprano
Lucia’s companion.
Enrico Ashton | baritone
Lord of Lammermoor and Lucia’s brother. He arranges the
marriage between Arturo and Lucia.
Edgardo | tenor
Lord of Ravenswood. He is in love with Lucia.
Raimondo Biedebent | bass-baritone
A Calvinist chaplin.
Arturo Bucklaw | tenor
Lucia’s bridegroom.
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Synopsis
Libretto by Salvatore Cammarano, after Sir Walter Scott’s novel
The Bride of Lammermoor.
Premiered Sept. 26, 1835, at Teatro San Carlo, Naples
while Lucia was walking near her mother’s grave, a wild bull
charged at her. Suddenly, a shot rang out and the bull lay dead
at her feet. Lucia was saved and fell in love with the stranger
who shot the bull, who Normanno believes to be their sworn
enemy, Edgardo. The guards come in, saying they have spotted
a man on horseback and it was indeed Edgardo. Enrico swears
a vengeance.
The setting is Scotland toward the end of the 17th century.
There is unrest in Scotland, with political factions fighting for
supremacy and producing bitter feuds between noble houses.
Among the men involved are Enrico Ashton of Lammermoor
and Edgardo of Ravenswood, the last of his line, both who have Scene II
been at odds for a long time.
Lucia and her companion Alisa are waiting in the courtyard
by the old fountain. Awaiting her lover, Lucia sings of an
During the most recent political upheaval, Edgardo’s party
apparition she believes she has seen, of a young woman long
triumphed and Enrico found himself on the verge of financial
ago murdered by one of the Ravenswoods (“Regnava ne
ruin, as well as being in danger of execution for treason. In
silenzio” / “Enveloped in silence”). While she is waiting, she
order to save his fortune and himself, he arranges a marriage
thinks of Edgardo (“Quando rapita in estas”). When Edgardo
between his sister, Lucia, and the powerful Lord Arturo
appears it is with the news that he has been ordered to France.
Bucklaw, his ally.
He suggests that he go to Lord Arturo and confess his love for
Lucia, but Lucia insists it would be futile. They pledge their
Act I
mutual faithfulness and with a promise to write. They exchange
Scene I
rings and the lovers bid each other a passionate farewell
The scene opens in the gardens of Lammermoor Castle, with a (“Verranno a te sull’ azure” / “Borne by gentle breezes”).
group of guards and the head guard, Normanno, talking about
whether or not some stranger is prowling around the estate. He Act II
suspects the intruder is Edgardo. While the guards are looking Scene I
for the intruder, Enrico complains to the cleric Raimondo that Several months have passed. In the meantime, Enrico has
his sister Lucia refuses to marry Arturo Bucklaw. Raimondo
made all the arrangements for Lucia’s marriage to Arturo. Lucia
replies she is still grieving over the death of her mother and
has not heard from Edgardo because her brother has been
cannot think of marriage at this time. Normmano, returning
intercepting her lover’s letters. She still refuses to marry Arturo,
from the search, corrects Raimondo — he tells them that
so Enrico forges a letter from Edgardo, saying that he has
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Scene II
Edgardo is at his family’s cemetery. Grief and despair have
broken his heart, so he decides to take his own life. With his
last reflections, he hears the brokenhearted Lammermoor folk
and some of the castle guests approach, singing about a death.
Raimondo appears and tells Edgardo that Lucia’s madness has
resulted in her own death. Edgardo promises that they will
never be parted again (“Tu che a dio spiegasti l’ali”) then stabs
himself and dies.
found a new love. Distraught and upset, Lucia leaves the room.
Scene II
In the castle’s great hall, guests are assembled for the marriage
of Lucia and Arturo. After the shock she has just received,
Lucia enters in a daze. She reluctantly signs the marriage
contract, stating she has just signed her death warrant, and
which now makes her Arturo Bucklaw’s wife.
The ink is barely dry on the marriage contract when Edgardo
appears to claim Lucia. The famous sextet, “Chi mi frena in tal
momento” (“Who restrains me at such a moment?”) is about
the shock of Edgardo’s arrival. Enrico and Arturo draw their
swords to threaten him. Edgardo then confronts Lucia, who
admits she has already signed the marriage contract. When
Edgardo realizes how ruthlessly he has been treated, he curses
the whole Lammermoor family and rushes away.
Act III
Scene I
It is the wedding night and the guests are celebrating the
nuptials (“Oer te d’immenso giubilo”). Raimondo appears with
the ghastly news that Lucia has slain her husband and gone
mad (“Dale stanze, ove Lucia”). Just as Raimondo finishes
telling the guests of this tragedy, Lucia appears in a long white
gown. She raves, unaware of her surroundings (mad scene:
“Ardon gl’incensi). In her madness, she believes that her
brother Enrico is Edgardo and she tells him that she is ready
to marry him now. Enrico, mortified, instructs Raimondo and
Alisa to take care of Lucia.
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He could compose quite quickly —
in 1832, the manager of a theatre in
Milan asked for an opera that could be
performed at an opening scheduled in
two weeks. The manager suggested that
Donizetti take old material and repurpose
it into a new piece, but Donizetti asked his
librettist, Felice Romani, to produce a new
libretto inside of a week. The following
week, Donizetti wrote the score and
completed L’elisir d’amore in time for the
requested opening.
Composer
Gaetano Donizetti
1797 – 1848
Considered one of the greatest bel canto
opera composers alongside Rossini and
Bellini, Gaetano Donizetti would be one
of the greatest influences on the operas
that Verdi would eventually write.
Born Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti
on Nov. 29, 1797, in Bergamo, Italy, he was
the youngest of three sons in a working
class family.
His music education included studying
under Simon Mayr and later Padre Mattei,
in Bologna. Donizetti’s father wanted him
to return to Bergamo to teach music, but
Donizetti didn’t like that idea and instead
enlisted in the army.
His first two operas, composed while
enlisted, were great successes, and after
the success of his second opera, he was
discharged and exempt from further
service so he could compose full time.
Even though Donizetti’s bel canto
works are widely recognized, he wrote
Donizetti enjoyed a successful professional
life, although his personal life saw more
tragedy — his wife, Virginia Vasselli, died
in 1837 during a chlorera outbreak, and
none of their three children survived more
than a few days of infancy.
for all styles of opera, in addition to
composing 16 symphonies, 19 quartets,
193 songs, 45 duets, three oratorios
and 28 cantatas. His early operas were
usually written for the talents of a
particular singer, but as he matured, his
compositions focused on building and
reaching dramatic heights.
Starting in 1822, he worked in Naples for
16 years, where he produced operas at a
rapid pace; usually three or four per year.
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Later in his life, he spent some time in Paris
and Vienna, but by 1845 he became quite
ill. He was placed in a French sanatorium
for 17 months before being transferred to
Bergamo (by this point, he was paralyzed,
disorientated and rarely spoke).
He died on April 8, 1848, in Bergamo,
and was buried in the Valtesse cemetery.
Late in the 19th century, his body was
moved to Bergamo’s Basilica of Santa
Maria Maggiore.
A short history of “Lucia di Lammermoor”
Courtesy Virginia Opera
Bel canto, the art of beautiful singing, was in full flower when
Donizetti wrote his opera, Lucia di Lammermoor, which premiered
at the San Carlo Opera House in Naples, Italy, on Sept. 26,
1835. Two other composers who had dominated the bel canto
stage, Gioacchino Rossini and Vincenzo Bellini, were no longer
actively composting. Rossini, having achieved great renown and
considerable fortune, had retired to Paris, and the 33-year-old
Bellini had died only three days earlier, on Sept. 23, 1835. Donizetti
was at the midpoint of his career.
The libretto for Lucia was written by Salvatore Cammarano, based
on Sir Walter Scott’s novel, The Bride of Lammermoor. The opera
reflects the somewhat violent nature of Scott’s subject matter,
and is full of melodramatic circumstances. The music of Lucia is
designed with care and attention, which was not always the case
with Donizetti’s operas. There is a robustness and energy to the
work and the frequent use of ensembles. The chorus is used to
great effect, sometimes for dramatic reasons and at other times
to add volume and spirit to the setting. Another musical device
successfully employed in the opera is singing in unison, both by
singers during a duet and by the chorus during times of high drama.
Lucia di Lammermoor was greatly admired for its Mad Scene,
both by singers and the opera-going public. A mad scene was an
extended vocal scena in which the heroine has a mental collapse
and loses touch with reality. Donizetti included mad scenes in
many of his operas, influencing French opera in this manner, but
none have achieved the longstanding fame or popularity of the
Mad Scene from Lucia. This lengthy scene is considered a tour de
force for coloratura soprano requiring a wide range both vocally
and dramatically, and makes very effective use of melodic material,
which recall earlier moments of the opera. The Mad Scene made a
huge impact on contemporary audiences, often reducing them to
tears. Lucia was destined to become one of the most popular operas
of the century.
In its ideal form bel canto singing required a pure sound and
impeccable physical technique. It was an outgrowth of the 18th
century’s love of improvisation, but also a modern day reflection
of the vocal abilities of the castrati. The singer was expected to
embellish and ornament what the composer had written, but to do
so with a sense of style and taste. The musical vehicle for singers to
demonstrate the full range of their abilities was through the device
of the cavatina and cabaletta. The cavatina was slow-paced and
melodious, showing the singer’s ability to sustain the long line with
beautiful tone and coloration, while the cabaletta moved swiftly,
displaying the singer’s technical skill and vocal flexibility.
Donizetti believed in the supremacy of the voice in opera and
composed music the singers delighted in singing. Roles in his operas
were highly sought after by the great singers of the day because his
music provided a platform for the showcasing of their vocal abilities.
He wrote his music with flair and style and had a gift for writing
melodies that the public could easily remember and whistle on the
street after the performance.
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Of the three most famous bel canto composers, Donizetti had the
greatest influence on Giuseppe Verdi, the next major force in Italian
opera, and the composer who brought Italian romantic opera to its
highest pinnacle. Verdi’s early operas reflect the fluency of Donizetti
combined with the greater sweep and expressive force of the Verdi style.
Listening guide
Courtesy Virginia Opera
The opening measures of the orchestral prelude immediately
depict a somber tone. The mysterious solo tympani opening
combined with the mournful quality of the French horns exude
the aura of melancholy which will permeate the drama which is
to unfold. The 33-measure prelude is brief, yet powerful. After
building to a tutti forte climax, the melody quickly subsides
into a repetition of the opening motive.
The quiet prelude is immediately followed by an energetic
Allegro giusto in 6/8 meter, a galloping cabaletta which so
accurately depicts the arrival of Normanno and his men in
pursuit of an intruder on the grounds of the Lammermoor
castle.
In the opening measures of Enrico’s aria from the first scene,
the repetitive triplet figure of the accompaniment creates
a solid foundation for the baritone’s melody as well as
representing the forward driven motion of Enrico’s emotional
state. In the first vocal scena of the evening, Donizetti utilized
the popular bel canto form of slow aria (cavatina) followed by
brilliant cabaletta.
From Lucia’s first aria, “Regnava nel silenzio” (Sleeping in
Silence) we hear the use of the clarinet in an arpeggiated
chord accompaniment to Lucia’s mournful melody. Though
the arpeggiated figure serves to accompany one of Donizetti’s
brilliant bel canto melodies, it also vividly depicts the rippling
of the water in the well in which Lucia has seen the menacing
shadow of a long dead Lammermoor lass.
Lucia’s first entrance is preceded by an extended virtuosic solo
for the harp, accompanied by the strings and woodwinds. The
use of the delicate harp in such an extended solo passage was
a unique innovation on the part of Donizetti. But what other
instrument of the orchestra could so accurately depict the
fragile and delicate nature of the title character?
The use of coloratura permeates the cabaletta, “Quando
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rapito in estasi,” which closes Lucia’s first vocal scena. Wide
leaps and fioratura must be executed by the soprano. This
lilting Moderato in duple time during which Lucia anticipates
the arrival of her lover Edgardo is in direct contrast to the
immediately preceding mournful Larghetto.
Scene is comprised by the unusual juxtaposition of myriad
musical forms. Before the scena ends with Lucia near death, the
soprano will negotiate through a musical maze which includes
an Andante arietta, a manic Allegro Vivace, and Andante
arietta, and Allegro recitativo accompagnato, a Larghetto aria
(w/chorus) and Allegro trio with Enrico, Raimondo and full
chorus, a two-verse Moderato aria and a Piu Allegro Coda. No
wonder that the scene is acclaimed as one of the most difficult
in the repertory for any voice.
Donizetti wrote for two voices utilizing the coloratura in a
free-form cadenza. The absence of orchestral accompaniment
allows the two singers the freedom to join together in an
almost improvisatory nature while they both execute the florid
writing. A sample comes from the Act II scene during which
Enrico demands that Lucia forsake Edgardo and save the
Lammermoor future by marrying Arturo.
The opening measures of the sextet begins with the enemies
Edgardo and Enrico expressing identical emotions. The
arpeggiated accompaniment figure is played by the complete
string section without their bows (pizzicato), which creates a
sound very similar to the lute or guitar. The inspired melody
is taken up by Lucia, Raimondo, Arturo, Alisa, the choral
ensemble and the entire orchestra as it develops to a stirring
climax. This sextet is perhaps one of the best known ensembles
in the operatic repertory.
A clue to the desperate nature of Lucia’s mental state is seen in
Andante Arietta, which opens her infamous Mad Scene. While
the plaintive solo flute echoes a theme first heard during her
Act I love duet with Edgardo, Lucia relives their meeting in her
mind, imagining that Edgardo is with her and that she can hear
his voice.
The vocal tour-de-force scena which is known as Lucia’s Mad
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Additional resources
Lucia di Lammermoor costumes (this production from Seattle
Opera will be seen in Edmonton)
http://seattleopera.org/tickets/2010-2011/lucia/videos/costumes.aspx
A discussion with musicologist Stephan Bonfield, about the
opera’s musical elements and literary influences is available as a
podcast on iTunes.
https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/edmonton-opera/
id966998136?mt=2
How to listen to bel canto (Seattle Opera blog)
http://www.seattleoperablog.com/2010/09/how-to-listen-tobel-canto.html
Videos from Opera 101, which features a panel discussion of
experts in the fields of sociology, language, music, history and
more, will be available starting the week of April 6. Previous
lectures can be viewed on Edmonton Opera’s YouTube channel. Questions with Simone Osborne (performing the role of Lucia)
https://www.youtube.com/user/operaedmonton
• http://www.coc.ca/ExploreAndLearn/NewToOpera/OnlineLearningCentre/ParlandoTheCOCBlog.aspx?EntryID=24259
Listening guide (Metropolitan Opera): A close look at unison
• http://vancouveropera.blogspot.ca/2008/09/twenty-queshttp://www.metopera.org/metopera/about/education/educations-with-simone-osborne.html
torguides/content.aspx?customid=6040
Questions with Megan Latham (performing the role of Alisa)
The mad aria in Lucia di Lammermoor
http://vancouveropera.blogspot.ca/2010/04/twenty-questionshttp://www.theguardian.com/music/2010/jan/28/lucia-di-lam- with-megan-latham.html
mermoor-donizetti
Canadian Opera Company listening guide (part of their educaSeattle Opera podcasts (particularly relevant are tracks “Speition guide, page 11)
ght’s Corner Uncut” and “Lucia preview podcast.”)
http://files.coc.ca/studyguides/LuciaDiLammerhttp://www.seattleopera.org/audio_player/lucia_06.aspx
moor2013StudyGuideCOC.pdf
Lucia di Lammermoor set (this production from Seattle Opera
will be seen in Edmonton)
http://www.seattleopera.org/tickets/2010-2011/lucia/videos_
sets.aspx
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