TASK 8.4: Perform in La Bohème!

La Bohème
An Opera by Giacomo Puccini
Resource Pack for Teachers
Written by David Knotts and Julian West
Edited by Lucy Brown
An Introduction
Dear colleague,
This resource pack is designed to support the forthcoming production of Puccini’s opera La Bohème at
Blackheath Concert Halls.
Getting involved with a production of La Bohème is a great introduction to opera because it’s the one of the
most popular pieces in the genre. It’s also full of great music! Puccini’s operas are so popular because of his
ability to portray strong emotions through his music. This particular opera was a great vehicle for this
composer to show what he could and he explores just about every emotion there is; from love, excitement
and joy, to sadness, jealousy and misery.
Although the contents of this pack are music-orientated, there are also links to other areas of the National
Curriculum including English, Art and Design, Mathematics, Geography, History, Science and Citizenship.
The music tasks are written with the non-music specialist in mind although there is plenty of scope for music
specialists as well. Content is aimed at Key Stage 2 level children in Years 5 and 6.
A Note on Resources
This pack is designed with a busy teacher and the photocopier in mind so you can copy appropriate pages to
hand out to your class. It’s designed to dip in and out of, so don’t feel that you have to work doggedly through
from one unit to the next. We would recommend that you get a recording of La Bohème so that you and your
class can get to know the wonderful music. The highlights of the opera should be easy to find in a CD
compilation. We’ve also suggested internet links for specific listening tasks. You’ll find these as foot notes on
the relevant pages. They are, we hope, nearly foolproof!
Rather than clutter up the pack itself, there is a table included which shows how particular activities in the
pack link up with specific areas in the curriculum.
Good luck and happy music making!
David Knotts & Julian West
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Contents
The pack is divided into sections as follows:
1. Opera: what is it and who gets involved?
2.
La Bohème: “The Bohemian One”!
3.
The Story of La Bohème
TASK 1.1: All about Opera!
TASK 2.1: Where In The world?
TASK 3.1: Who Is Who?
TASK 3.2: Tell Me Who You Are!
4. Health & Tuberculosis
TASK 4.1:Vaccinations
TASK 5.1: Wants and Needs
5. Setting the Opera: Paris in 1968
6.
TASK 5.2: Become a Designer
a) Musetta’s Waltz
TASK 6.1: Quando m’en vo!
TASK 6.2: Write your own Waltz
DIAGRAM: Puccini Waltz
6. b) Strictly Come Bohème
TASK 6.3: Old and New
TASK 6.4: Wartime Dancing
TASK 7.1:Lifestyle
7. Café Culture
TASK 7.2: Setting a Scene
TASK 8.1: Different Voices in La Bohème
8.
Singing: how voices work, and how they are different
TASK 8.2: How do our Voices Work?
TASK 8.3: Remembering Who’s Who!
TASK 8.4: Perform in La Bohème!
TASK 9.1: Emotions in Music
TASK 9.2: Instrument Families
9. The Orchestra
DIAGRAM 1: Instrument Family Card
DIAGRAM 2: Instrument pictures
DIAGRAM 3: Orchestra Seating Chart
10. Blackheath Concert Halls
TASK 10.1: All about Blackheath Halls!
11. Curriculum Links
National Curriculum and QCA links
12. Glossary and Useful Information
Explanation of terms, useful resources etc
13. Other project information
The Blackheath Halls Opera Project
Details on the partners involved and who to
14. Organisations & Contacts
contact for further information.
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1. Opera: what is it and who gets involved?
What is an Opera?
An opera is a bit like a play – it is a story which is usually acted out on a stage. Unlike an ordinary play
however, an opera uses music to tell all (or almost all) of the story. So instead of using actors, an opera is
performed by a group of singers.
Who gets involved?
Opera is one of the biggest musical spectacles ever created and so lots of different people do lots of different
kinds of jobs.
The musical jobs include:
Solo singers
People singing on their own. They usually have the biggest voices.
Chorus singers
These singers work together in small groups.
Repetiteur
Orchestra
Conductor
This fancy French word is for the person who plays the piano during
rehearsals.
An orchestra is a group of musicians who play together.
This person has the job of trying to keep everyone together. He usually
waves a white baton to keep everyone in time.
The theatre jobs include:
Director
Choreographer
The director’s job is to organise how the opera works on the stage. This
includes deciding where the performers stand and how they move around.
Many operas include lots of movement and dancing. A choreographer helps
people to learn the steps.
Stage managers make sure that live stage performances run smoothly.
Stage Manager
They organise practical and technical things like scene changes, props,
lighting and sound, and make sure that all the performers and crew are in
the right place at the right time.
Stage Designer
Prop Maker
Stage designers create the overall look of the theatre and the stage,
planning the design style for sets and props.
Prop makers are responsible for producing the props (short for ‘properties’)
that are used on stage.
Makeup
It’s important that the singers’ faces show up well on stage so there is
always a team of makeup artists on hand.
Often, singers have to change quickly from one costume to another. A
Dressers
dresser will help them to get changed and will make sure that the costume is
on the right way round!
Prompter
Box Office
A prompter sits in a box at the front of the stage and tells the singers what
lines are coming up so they don’t forget what to sing!
The box office is made up of a team of people who organise and sell tickets
for the show.
Many operas contain fight scenes which can involve hand to hand combat
Fight Director
and work with pretend guns and swords. The fight director makes sure no
one gets hurt.
This person is like a fashion designer who designs what people will wear on
Costume Designer
stage. Sometimes costumes are especially made for a production and
sometimes they are hired from costume companies.
Lighting Designer
A lighting designer plans how the opera will be lit and with which lights.
Is an opera very expensive to put on?
Sometimes, yes. There are lots of different things to think about, practice, buy, build and organise in order to
make an opera exciting and spectacular. As we’ve already mentioned, lots of different people are needed to
make this happen and at very big opera houses there are often many more jobs than the ones we’ve talked
about here.
Where can you see opera in London?
There are two big opera companies in London, the Royal Opera (who perform at the Royal Opera House in
Covent Garden) and English National Opera (who perform at the Coliseum near Trafalgar Square).
What was the first opera and where was it performed?
The first opera was performed in 1607 at a place called Mantua in Italy. It was called Orfeo and is about a
husband who tries to rescues his wife from the underworld. Orfeo was written by an Italian composer called
Claudio Monteverdi. Italy is considered to be the birthplace of opera and many of the greatest opera singers
are Italian – you might have heard of Pavarotti.
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TASK 1.1: All about Opera!

English and History Links
See what you can remember about what an opera is and who gets involved!
1 Who are the people who tell the story in an opera? Are they singers, actors or stage designers?
.
2 How is an opera different from an ordinary play?
.
3 Can you name three different MUSICAL JOBS?
.
4 Can you think of three THEATRE JOBS?
.
5 What does a solo singer do?
.
6 What does a fight director do?
.
7 What was the first opera ever performed called and who composed it?
.
8 The first opera was performed in 1607. Can you work out how many years ago this was?
.
9 What country was the first opera performed in?
.
1 Can you name the two big opera companies in London?
0
.
EXTRA….. What can you find out about the two big opera companies who perform in London?
2. Background to La Bohème – “The Bohemian One”!
La Bohème is one of the most popular operas there is. The story is set in Paris at a time when writers,
musicians, actors and painters where choosing to live in a way that put their Art first. This meant that they
were more concerned with doing what they loved than earning lots of money. They chose to share flats
together because that is a cheaper way to live. These unconventional lifestyles made people think of them
as a bit like gypsies, and gypsies were thought to come originally from Bohemia.
The Composer: Giacomo Puccini.
Puccini was born in Lucca, in Italy in 1858. His full name
was Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria
Puccini, which is quite a long name! Puccini’s family was
quite musical, and he studied at first with his uncle, who
apparently thought he was quite a poor and badly
behaved pupil!
While he was still young, he and his brother Michel once
walked 30 kilometres to Pisa see a performance of the
opera Aida, by Verdi. This must have had a great effect
on him, as he decided to be a composer of operas
himself.
Puccini’s works are some of the most popular operas ever written, and they are still performed regularly all
over the world. People love them because Puccini had a great sense of what would work well on the stage,
and he was gifted when it came to writing great melodies. Puccini’s operas are often set in real life situations
that people can maybe imagine being in themselves, and the characters have the feelings, problems, loves
and losses that we can identify with. This style of opera is called Verisimo, which is Italian for Realism.
Puccini’s operas are often set in exotic locations. Although Puccini himself lived not far from where he was
born for nearly his whole life, his operas are set in places all over the world:

Manon Lescault is set in Paris, but finishes with her being deported to America.

La Bohème is again set in Paris

In Tosca, the story is back in Puccini’s home country, Italy, in Rome.

Madam Butterfly takes place in Nagasaki in Japan.

The Girl of the Golden West all happens in the Wild West in California, America.

Turandot is about a cruel Princess, who’s heart is eventually melted by love, set in Peking (the old name
for Beijing) in China. This opera contains one of the most famous arias of all time, Nessum Dorma,
which was made famous by the great Italian opera singer Pavarotti. It was used as the theme music for
the World Cup in 1990, when it reached number 2 in the UK singles chart, the highest ever place for a
piece of classical music.

TASK 2.1: Where in the world?
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Geography Links
Using an atlas or a map of the world, or maybe the internet, find the different places where Puccini’s operas
are set. Maybe if you use a world map, you could mark the places with a flag? Don’t forget to find Lucca in
Italy where Puccini was born.
The World’s Favourite Opera?
The opera you will be singing and acting in is maybe the most performed opera ever written. At any one
time, it is probably being performed in several big cities around the world. Around the same time that you will
be performing the piece, it is also being performed in Milan in Italy, at the Royal Opera House in London, in
Dresden in Germany, and in Miami in America. And that’s just the big opera houses! Who knows how many
other productions will be going on?!
Composers and writers…
Composers sometimes write the music AND the words for their operas. However, they can also decide to
work with a writer who will create the words for the composer to set to music.
When he wrote La Bohème, Puccini worked with two writers:
Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa, who also worked together to write the librettos for some of Puccini’s other
operas. A libretto is like the script for a play, and contains the words which a composer sets to music.
This is Luigi Illica. (Left) Apparently, in photographs he is always shown like
this, with is head slightly turned to one side because he lost his ear in a duel
over a woman. Maybe his own life inspired some of his writing!
Giuseppe Giacosa (Right) trained at first as a lawyer (maybe to please his father
who was a magistrate), but he made his career as a writer, writing poems and
plays, as well as librettos for Puccini’s operas.
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Together, Illica and Giacosa used a play by an earlier writer, Henri Murger, and adapted it so that it could
work as the text for an opera. Illica, Giacosa and Puccini aren’t the only people to use this play as the basis
for their pieces – both the musical Rent, and the film Moulin Rouge! are more recent examples of people
using Murger’s story.
Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor in Moulin
Rouge!
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3. The Story of La Bohème
ACT I.
It is Christmas Eve in Paris. In their small flat, the painter
Marcello and poet Rodolfo try to keep warm by burning
pages from Rodolfo's latest play that he has just written.
They are joined by their friends — Colline, a young
philosopher, and Schaunard, a musician who has landed a
job and brings food, fuel and money! But while they
celebrate their unexpected good luck, the landlord, Benoit,
arrives to collect the rent. The friends trick Benoit by
getting him a bit drunk, and manage to get him out of the
flat. They decide to go out to celebrate at the nearby Café
Momus, but Rodolfo promises to join them soon, staying
behind to finish writing an article. There is a knock at the
door: a neighbour, Mimi, says her candle has gone out on
the drafty stairs. Offering her a drink when she feels faint,
Rodolfo relights her candle and helps her to the door.
Mimi realizes she has dropped her key, and as the two
search for it, both candles are blown out. In the moonlight
the poet takes the girl's shivering hand, telling her his
dreams. She then recounts her solitary life, embroidering
flowers and waiting for spring. Drawn to each other, Mimi and Rodolfo leave to join their friends at the café.
ACT II.
Amid shouts of street traders, Rodolfo buys Mimi a bonnet near the Café
Momus before introducing her to his friends. They all sit down and order
supper. A toy vendor, Parpignol, passes by, chased by children. Marcello's
ex-girlfriend, Musetta, arrives with her new boyfriend Alcindoro, who is
much older than her, and very rich. She still likes Marcello really, and to get
his attention she sings a song about how popular she is. Complaining that
her shoe is pinching her foot, Musetta sends Alcindoro off to fetch a new
pair. When he has gone, she then falls into Marcello's arms. Joining a
group of marching soldiers, the Bohemians leave Alcindoro to face the bill
when he returns.
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ACT III.
Some time has passed, and it is dawn outside a tavern on the snowy outskirts of Paris. Musetta and some
of her friends can be heard still partying inside. Soon Mimi walks by, searching for the place where the
reunited Marcello and Musetta now live. When Marcello appears, she pours out her distress: Rodolfo is
jealous all the time, thinking that she is not happy with him, and would prefer to be with someone else. It is
best they split up, she says. Rodolfo, who has been asleep in the tavern, is heard, and Mimi hides; Marcello
thinks she has left. Rodolfo tells Marcello he wants to separate from Mimi. When Marcello questions him
about it, he breaks down, saying Mimi is dying; her ill health can only worsen if they stay together, living in
the poor conditions they share together. Overcome, Mimi stumbles forward to bid her lover farewell as
Marcello runs back into the tavern to investigate Musetta's raucous laughter. While Mimi and Rodolfo recall
their happiness, Musetta quarrels with Marcello. The painter and his mistress part in fury, but Mimi and
Rodolfo decide to stay together until spring.
ACT IV.
Some months later, Rodolfo and Marcello are back in their flat, miserable about how they miss Musetta and
Mimi. Colline and Schaunard bring a meager meal. The four stage a dance, which turns into a pretend fight.
The fun and games are ended when Musetta bursts in, saying Mimi is downstairs, too weak to climb up. As
Rodolfo runs to her, Musetta tells how Mimi has begged to be taken to see Rodolfo before she dies. While
Mimi is made comfortable, Marcello goes with Musetta to sell her earrings for medicine, and Colline leaves to
pawn his cherished overcoat. Alone, Mimi and Rodolfo remember their first days together, but she is
suddenly seized with coughing. When the others return, Musetta gives Mimì a muff to warm her hands and
prays for her life. Mimi dies quietly, and when Schaunard discovers she is dead, Rodolfo runs to her side,
calling her name.
TASK 3.1: Who’s Who?

English Links
The story of La Bohème is like may other operas, in that it is about people falling in and out of love, being
jealous, and sometimes dying. It is interesting that many of the programmes we watch on TV today, like
Eastenders and Coronation Street are called soap operas. What do you think they have in common with
operas like La Bohème?
Let’s go back over the story of La Bohème – see if you can fill in the blanks!
Fit these names into the story below:
RODOLFO MIMI MARCELLO MUSETTA COLLINE SCHAUNARD
The writer __________ and his friend __________ share a small flat in Paris. Their two friends are called
__________ and __________. Rodolfo falls in love with __________, who lives upstairs. Later at the café,
__________ and __________ get back together, and everyone is set for a very happy Christmas! A few
months later, things aren’t so happy because __________ is very ill. All of the characters are reunited as
they try to help her, but she sadly dies.
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TASK 3.2: Tell Me Who You Are!

English/Drama
Links
Perhaps the most famous moment in La Bohème is the moment when the two main characters, Rodolfo and
Mimi first meet each other and fall in love. Mimi lives in the flat upstairs, and she comes down to ask her
neighbours to light her candle because she has run out of matches. Rodolfo’s flat mates are all on their way
out, but Rodolfo stays behind to help Mimi. In the conversation they have, they introduce themselves to each
other, and talk about what is important to them in their lives:
Rodolfo: I am, well, who? I am a poet.
What am I doing? Writing!
How do I live then? Somehow!
I am not rich; every verse of poetry is full of treasure.
In dreams and flights of fantasy and castles in the air,
I am a millionaire!
Mimi:
I’m always called Mimi, but my name is Lucia.
My story is a short one:
I earn my living by sewing and embroidery.
Working gives me pleasure;
In my free time I make lilies and roses.
I love those flowers.
They delight and enchant me,
They speak to me of love and springtime.

What do we find out about the two characters from their arias?

Write a short speech, telling someone about yourself, something you love doing, and how it makes you
feel.

Team up with a partner – read your speeches to each other. Could you find a way to perform them?
Imagine you are two strangers – where are you when you meet each other? Why do you meet? How do
you react to each other? Do you share some of the same thoughts, or are you very different from each
other?
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4. Health & Tuberculosis
In many productions of La Bohème, the illness that Mimi dies from is tuberculosis – one of the symptoms of
this disease is the coughing that Mimi suffers from, especially in the final act of the opera. It is a disease that
mostly attacks the lungs. The disease used to be known as “consumption”, as one of the other symptoms is
a wasting away of the person who has it – losing weight and energy.
Some of the things that put people at risk of catching and developing tuberculosis are:
•
Living in crowded conditions
•
Not being able to afford to eat properly, or keep warm
•
Being “run down”, so that your body’s immune system isn’t able to fight off the bacteria which cause
the disease.
How tuberculosis is spread
The bacteria that cause tuberculosis are spread through the air when someone who has the disease coughs
or sneezes. Another person might then breathe the bacteria in. You cannot catch tuberculosis by shaking
hands with an infected person, or by touching things like cutlery or other shared items.
History of Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis has been around for thousands of years – the bacteria have even been found in the remains of
pre-historic people, and mummies from ancient Egypt. It wasn’t until relatively recently that people began to
understand the disease, and how it was spread from one person to another. In the 1800’s doctors began to
understand how to help people with tuberculosis, realising that they needed fresh air, lots of rest, and good
food in order to get better. They sent people to sanatoriums which were often by the sea, or up in the
mountains so they could be looked after and hopefully recover. This helped to fight the disease, also
because it meant that people with tuberculosis were not mixing with healthy people and passing it on. This is
called isolation, and is an important part of fighting many diseases.
Treating Tuberculosis
While the sanatoriums were good for helping people to recover, doctors still didn’t have a way to fight the
disease. Some things were tried:
•
Collapsing the lungs. This sounds extraordinary to us today, but the idea was that by decreasing the
size of the lungs, the disease would be “starved”. This is NOT a treatment which is used any more!
•
The invention of chemotherapy was an important step, but the chemicals used turned out not to work
against some types of the disease.
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The Breakthrough
In 1943, an American doctor called Selman A. Waksman developed
a substance called Streptomycin that worked against tuberculosis.
At last, there was an effective medicine to fight the disease. He
called it an antibiotic. He was awarded a Nobel Prize for his work in
1952.
Vaccination
Another very important discovery in medicine was vaccination. In 1796, an English man called Edward
Jenner did an experiment to test an idea he had. He had heard that women who had caught a disease
called cowpox, which didn’t do them any harm other than getting some blisters on their arms, never caught
smallpox, a much more dangerous and often deadly disease. He worked out that something the body did to
protect itself against cowpox also protected against smallpox. His experiment was to inject a boy with fluid
from the blisters of someone with cowpox. He did
this for a few days, and then injected the boy with
the smallpox bacteria. Although the boy was a bit
poorly for a few days, he made a full recovery.
Because his body had been fighting the cowpox
bacteria, it could also fight off smallpox.
Edward Jenner’s discovery was a huge step
forward in medicine, as he had discovered
vaccination, a way of preventing people from
catching some of the most dangerous diseases.
The BCG
These days, a vaccination is available against tuberculosis. It used to be that everyone at school was given
this vaccination, known as the BCG, but in 2005 this changed to it only being given to children who might be
at risk of catching the disease.
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Tuberculosis today
Despite all the knowledge and treatments we have for TB, it is still a big problem in some parts of the world,
where people still suffer from living in poor conditions, and without easy access to medicine. The World
Health Organisation estimates that about 8 million people develop TB each year, and about 2 million die as a
result.
TASK 4.1: Vaccinations

History/Science
Links
Until vaccinations were discovered, many people suffered from a range of other illnesses during the time
Puccini was writing his opera.

See if you can find out other illnesses/diseases that vaccinations started to treat successfully.

What factors cause diseases to spread? Consider how this occurs in developing countries.
15
5. Setting the Scene: Paris in 1968
The director of the production of La Bohème that you will be involved with has decided to set the story in the
year 1968. Often in opera and in theatre, directors choose to move the story to a different place or time,
because they see similarities that will highlight things in the story.
In
the
spring of 1968 , a group of poets and musicians, along with some students at university in Paris protested
about what they thought was unfair treatment of poorer people in France, and the way in which the
government tried to control what was taught in universities. The protests grew and spread over the next few
months until in May 1968, when there was a very big demonstration which the police dealt with harshly,
using tear gas and wielding batons.
While the crowd broke up, it didn’t stop there, and some of the
protestors built barricades across the streets out of whatever they could find. Over the next few days, things
got more and more heated, and other workers came out on strike in support of the students and in protest at
the government’s heavy-handed reaction.
By the end of May, nearly two thirds of French workers were on strike. This is a poster
encouraging workers to go on strike and occupy the factories.
This poster compares people who wanted everything to go back to
normal to sheep, who don’t think for themselves.
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The protestors had demanded the resignation of the President, General de Gaulle, and while they didn’t get
what they wanted completely, their actions did result in a big change in thinking in France around the issues
of human rights, feminism and equality. The impact of May 1968 was felt all over the world.
TASK 5.1: Wants and Needs

Citizenship Links
The students and workers in Paris in 1968 felt very strongly about people being treated equally, the rights of
women and more general human rights.
•
What are some things that you want, and what are the things that you need? What is the difference?
•
Can you make a Charter of Rights – a list of the things you think every child needs and should have?
•
If you have a right to something, does that also come with a responsibility? For example, if we are
all entitled to a home, we also have to look after it.
•
The United Nations has a Convention on the Rights of the Child. How do your charters compare?*
*A simplified copy of the UN Convention of the Rights of the Child is available to download from this site:
http://www.unicef.org.uk/tz/resources/resource_item.asp?id=31
The Race to the Moon, and Flower Power!
1968 was also the year before the first men went to the Moon. People were very excited about this, as you
can imagine! They imagined what life might be like in the future.
Some of the ideas for fashions were quite outrageous for the time:
This is a design for a house made in 1968 by a
designer from Finland called Matti Suuronen. It is
what he imagined houses might be like in the future.
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Blackheath’s Setting of La Bohème
The late 1960’s and early 1970’s were also a time when a movement
that became known as “flower power” was popular.
It was about
peaceful protest non-violence.
The designer of this production of La Bohème has found an image of
flowers from this time, and is using it as inspiration for his design for the
piece. Flowers are important to Mimi in La Bohème, so they are also a
significant theme in the piece.
When a designer is working on a piece, they make small scale versions of what they think the stage will look
like for the show. These are called model boxes. The following page shows some pictures of the designer’s
model boxes for the Blackheath production of La Bohème. As
you
can see, the flowers are there, and also some of the posters that
were
used during the protests in Paris in 1968.
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TASK 5.2: Become a Designer

History/
Art & Design Links
It is the designer’s job to decide on what the costumes and scenery will look like.
When and where would you set a production of La Bohème?
Stage designers
Choose one of the scenes from La Bohème and design the set. How can you show the time and place?
Think carefully about how it might be decorated, the furniture, and the things they have around them. You
might want to choose your own scene or you could use one of these examples:
•
The flat that Rodolfo and Marcello live in at the beginning of the opera, in the middle of winter. How
might it look different towards the end of the opera, when it is moving towards Spring?
•
The café on Christmas Eve
Costume designers
Choose one of the characters and design a costume for them:
•
What kind of clothes would Musetta wear? Remember, she’s a bit of a show off! What are the
shoes like that she complains are hurting her feet?
•
Rodolfo the poet isn’t very well off – how might you show this in the clothes he wears?
•
What does the hat look like that Rodolfo buys for Mimi? What kind of hat would she like?
You could even transfer your design to a model version, using a shoebox to build your set in.
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6a. Musetta’s Waltz
Musetta is a singer in the opera and one of the most famous moments in La Bohème is Musetta’s Waltz
Song. While Mimi is having dinner at the café with the Rodolfo and Marcello, Musetta arrives with the elderly
government minister, Alcindoro. Musetta doesn’t like Alcindoro very much but he is very wealthy and keeps
on taking her out to fancy places. She’s really in love with Marcello. Musetta sings her waltz song to gain
Marcello’s attention and to show off a bit! Musetta can be a real prima donna and she pretends that her
shoes are pinching so that she can send Alcindoro off to the shoe mender and get rid of him. She wants to
spend some time alone with Marcello. She really is a bit of a madam!

TASK 6.1: Quando m’en vo
Music Links
Listen to Musetta’s Waltz song, Quando m’en vo. You’ll find a recording here:
http://www.last.fm/music/Giacomo+Puccini/_/Quando+M'en+Vo
Her song has all of the ingredients of the waltz. Listen out for these three elements:
1.
The waltz has three beats in the bar; the first beat of the three is the strongest one:
One 2 3 ‫ ׀‬One 2 3 ‫ ׀‬One 2 3 ‫ ׀‬One 2 3 ‫ ׀‬One 2 3 ‫ ׀‬One 2 3 ‫ ׀‬One 2 3 ‫ ׀‬One 2 3 ‫׀‬
2.
Um-Cha-Cha accompaniment:
The bass note on the first beat on the bar and other notes on the second and third.
3.
Ternary Form:
This is a kind of musical sandwich. The first section is repeated at the end with a contrasting tune in the
middle. We sometimes call this A B A form. Here are some of the words from her song. You can follow
them as you listen:
Quando men vo soletta per la via,
When I walk all alone in the street
La gente sosta e mira
People stop and stare at me
E la bellezza mia tutta ricerca in me
And look at how beautiful I am
Da capo a pie'...
From my head to my toes.
Ed assaporo allor la bramosia
And then I see how they look at me,
Sottil, che da gli occhi traspira
see how much they like me.
E dai palesi vezzi intender sa
Everyone wants to be with me.
Alle occulte beltà.
I capture their hearts
Così l'effluvio del desìo
With my magical charm.
tutta m'aggira, felice mi fa!
It makes me happy!
•
What do you think Musetta’s song tells us about her and her character?
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6b. Strictly Come Bohème
Musetta’s Waltz song is quite unusual because it is a song
and a dance at the same time. By choosing to make it a waltz,
Puccini is suggesting how much Musetta likes going out to
parties where she can dance with men and have fun.
The Waltz began life as a peasant dance in Austria and
Bavaria. The word Waltz is German in origin coming from the
word "waltzen," which means "to turn." The turn is the
essence of the waltz step. Some of you may have watched
the popular television programme Strictly Come Dancing.
You’ll have seen the waltz – in this dance, couples spin round
and round the dance floor.
The dance became really popular in Viennese dance halls in
late eighteenth century and caused lots of controversy
because it was one of the first dances were partners touched
and held each other as they moved around the floor. Before
that, dances were more like line dancing or country dancing.
Many church leaders thought the waltz very dangerous for young people. By the middle of the 1800's, Paris
had fallen in love with the waltz which is why Puccini uses it in the opera.
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TASK 6.2: Write your own Waltz

Music/Maths Links
You are going to write your own Waltz based on Musetta’s famous song.
Divide yourself into groups of two.
STEP 1 – Listen and follow
Listen again to the first part (section A) of Musetta’s Waltz song. As you listen, follow the music:
Each bar adds up to three beats to give a waltzing feel. Lines 1 and 3 of the music have longer note values: lines 2
and 4 have shorter note values to give a nice contrast. Notice that lines 1 and 3 move down gradually by step: lines
2 and 4 move more quickly and curl around each other. You’ll also notice that Puccini uses a lot of repetition to
make the melody memorable.
•
Can you spot which lines are similar to each other?
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STEP 2 – Design the rhythm
Divide into groups of 2. Each pair will need:
•
A piano, keyboard, glockenspiel, xylophone or other melody instrument.
•
Pencil and rubber (one with black and white notes)
•
A copy of the Puccini Waltz Worksheet (which follows)
These are the different note values which Puccini uses with their names. These provide the rhythm of the piece.
Remember how he contrasts longer note values with shorter ones.
Using these note values, design the rhythm of your waltz – that’s the top line of each pair on the Puccini work
sheet. Remember:
•
You have 16 bars to fill up – each bar contains 3 beats which can be compiled as shown above
•
How many dotted minims are in 16 bars of music? (1 minim is 3 beats, so 16 x 1)
•
How many quavers are in 16 bars of music? (1 quaver is a half beat, so 6 quavers fit a bar, so 16 x 6)
Remember to repeat some patterns in your design. Have a look at how Puccini does it if you get stuck.
STEP 3 – Melody Making
A melody is a combination of 2 different musical elements: rhythm and pitch which is how the music uses high
and low notes.
You have written the rhythm. Now you need to combine it with pitch to make your melody. Here are the pitches
which Puccini uses to create his melody from the lowest to the highest.
Look at Puccini’s melody: sometime he uses patterns which move by step; at other time, he creates curving
shapes; there are a couple of places where the melody jumps from note to note. All of this variety makes his
melody interesting. Also notice that his melody begins on a high C and finishes on a low C. This is the home note
of the melody: we call this the tonic.
•
Add different pitches to your rhythm to create your melody.
•
Remember, repeating some elements will make your waltz more memorable.
•
Try out your melody as you go. Write it into the lines marked ‘melody’.
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STEP 4 – Finishing Touches
Have a go at playing the melody which you have created from beginning to end.
•
Do you need to change anything?
•
Add a title and put your names in the box.
•
Have you included some repetition to make your waltz memorable.
•
What is your home note or tonic?
•
See if you can add an un-chah-chah accompaniment to emphasize the 3-in-a bar feel.
•
Be sure to perform it to the rest of the class
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25
Extension Activities

TASK 6.3: Old and New
Music Links
Musetta’s Waltz Song from La Bohème was so popular that some pop singers
made new versions of it. One of the most famous was a hit record for the singer
Della Reese in 1959 called Don’t You Know? It became Della Reese’s biggest
hit reaching number 2 on the U.S. pop charts and number 1 on the U.S. Black
Singles Charts (now called the R&B charts. The song helped Reese get a
nomination for a Grammy award.
Listen to the song recorded by Della Reese. You can find it here: http://www.last.fm/music/Della+Reese
Compare the two different versions which you have listened to and then ask the children to list three
similarities and three differences between the two as shown:
Similarities
Differences
1.
1.
2.
2.
3.
3.

TASK 6.4: War Time Dancing
History Links
During the second world war, dancing was extremely popular. It boosted people’s morale and gave them a
chance to forget the misery of the war for a few hours. The BBC has been collecting people recollections of
the war. This article by Frank Mee called The Dancehall, Wartime Escape is very evocative. Read his story
here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/ww2peopleswar/stories/61/a2553761.shtml
•
Is there anyone in your family or school community who remembers going to a dance in the
second world war?
•
Why not collect people’s thoughts and recollections about dancing?
•
The waltz is a very popular ballroom dance. Can you find out something about these other
dances: Rhumba, Cha-Cha, Tango, Foxtrot, Jitterbug, Jive
26
7. Café Culture
Act II of La Bohème is set in Café Momus in the heart of Paris. Café
Momus is a real place situated on the right bank of the river Seine near
to the church of Saint-Germaine-l'Auxerrois. Henri Murger who wrote the
original story of the Bohemians spent a lot of time here and it became a
popular meeting-place for poor writers, poets, painters and musicians.
These cafés were incredibly important to the Bohemian artists because
they were a place where ideas could be formed and shared.
Henri Murger was born in Paris in 1822. He wrote books and poems
but struggled for a along time to make any money from them. He based
the story of La Bohème on his own experiences as a desperately poor
writer living in a Parisian attic. He met with a group in Café Momus who called themselves the water drinkers
because they never had enough money for coffee or wine!

TASK 7.1: Lifestyle
Art Links
Many painters depicted the bohemian café culture and it often inspired some of their best pictures like this
picture by Manet painted in 1878. See if you can find café images from
this period by other painters such as:
•
Toulouse Lautrec
•
Renoir
•
Van Gogh
•
Monet
Cafés are important places today to us to meet up with friends, chat and share ideas. The American TV
series Friends often has scenes set in the café, Central Perk.
•
Can you think of any other TV series or soap operas which have a café?
•
Why do you think so many of them have a café?
27

TASK 7.2: Setting a Scene
English Links
Imagine you are spending an evening at the Café Momus in Paris. You are a painter, a musician or a writer
and you are talking with your bohemian friends. None of you has very much money. Write a short scene
which describes you and your friends. What do you talk about? How do you feels about the people in the
café who have lots of money and can afford to eat and drink?
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8. Singing: How voices work, and how they are different
Opera is all about singing - if the words weren’t all sung, then it would be like going to see a play, where the
actors just speak their lines.
Because the words are all sung, we can often tell more about how the
characters are feeling, because what we hear in the music tells us about them.
Different kinds of voice in La Bohème…
Each of the characters in La Bohème has a different kind of voice:
•
Mimi and Musetta are sopranos; this is the highest kind of voice.
•
Rodolfo is a tenor. This is a higher male voice, which can sound very exciting sometimes.
•
Marcello and Schaunard are baritones. This is a high but rich voice. A baritone sings music which is
lower than Rodolfo’s.
•
Alcindoro and Benoit are basses. This is the lowest voice. These voices often sound serious. Puccini
uses this voice for the landlord and the government official.
TASK 8.1: Different voices in La Bohème
•

Music Links
Puccini chose a different kind of voice for each of the main characters in La Bohème. Why do you think
he did this? What was he trying to tell the audience about them?
•
What characteristics do we associate with a character who sings with a high voice like Musetta or Mimi?
•
What characteristics do we associate with a character who sings with a lower voice like Alcindoro or
Benoit?
How do our voices work?
When we sing or speak, air from our lungs passes up our wind pipe,
and though our vocal chords. As the air passes through them, they
vibrate together to make a sound.
Our voices are all different because we are all different shapes and
sizes – that’s why some singers are sopranos and others are mezzos.
To change the pitch of our voices, we loosen or tighten the muscles in the larynx (or Adam’s Apple) in our
throat – when we yawn, our larynx is very relaxed, and so the sound of a yawn is low. To change the
29
volume, we change the amount of air that passes through the vocal chords – the more air, the louder the
sound.
Opera singers train very hard to learn how to control all the different muscles that
affect their voices. They are like Olympic athletes, training every day. That’s why
they can sing so loudly when they need to – their voices have to be able to fill an
opera house, with no microphone, and the audience needs to hear every word.
FACT - If you sang loudly for 8 years, 7 months and 6 days, you would have
produced enough sound wave energy to heat one cup of coffee!
TASK 8.2: How do our voices work?
•

Music and Science
Links
Hold two thin pieces of paper very closely together and blow between them. Can you get a sound?
Your vocal chords work in the same way. Let’s see if we can feel our own vocal chords vibrate…
•
Sing a long note, and put your hand gently on your larynx (or Adam’s apple) in your throat. Can you feel
it vibrating?
TASK 8.3: Remembering who’s who!

Music Links
The names of the characters in an opera are often sung so we get to know who’s who. Often, it’s like a
musical tag or motif. If we hear a character’s motif, we know that they are about to arrive or do something
important. You’re going to make up a song based on the names of the following characters in the opera:
Mimi Musetta
•
Rodolfo Marcello
In a small group, get together with this list of character names and a pitched instrument like a piano,
xylophone, keyboard of glockenspiel.
•
Begin by thinking about who has the higher or lower voice in the opera and then make a short musical
motif that fits with their name and represents them. As a starting point, think about how many syllables
there are in each name. Give each syllable a different note. You can then decide the order to play the
notes. This is your motif.
•
Practice singing each of your motifs as a group. By putting the motifs together, you have created a
melody
•
Experiment with loud and soft singing and high and low notes to represent the spirit of each character.
•
Once you are sure about which motif represents each character, you might want to try putting them
together and singing them all in a round. This means that some of you in the group start after the others.
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TASK 8.4: Perform in La Bohème!

Music/English
(drama)/Art Links
You are going to form part of the cast for a production of La Bohème at Blackheath Halls. As you will now
know, the production will be set in Paris in 1968. All of you will perform in Acts II and IV and some of you will
also perform in Act III. You will sing the Children’s Chorus and wear various costumes to be part of the
action! You will also help with some of the design work.
•
Leigh O’Hara is the MUSICAL DIRECTOR for this production. He will help you to learn the chorus and
get you ready to perform it on stage.
•
The DIRECTOR, Ian Rutherford and the ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR Donna Stirrup will visit your school to
help “stage” your involvement. They will show you what to do and where to stand during the
performances to make the opera look effective!
•
You will also work with the DESIGNER, Aaron Marsdon who will also visit your school and start you off
on the design work you will be doing. You will be painting flowers to bring on to the set for a spring
scene.
Listen to a recording of the Children’s Chorus and think about the following:

When does it happen in the opera?

Is anything else happening at the same time?

What is the chorus about?
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9. The Orchestra
Puccini uses quite a big orchestra to accompany the singers in La Bohème. Puccini belongs to a period in
musical history which we call the Romantic era. Like other composers of his generation, he employs a big
orchestra which is very powerful in being able to portray vivid and strong emotions.

TASK 9.1: Emotions in Music
•
Music and English
(drama) Links
Read over the story of La Bohème and make a list of the different emotions which the characters feel at
different times in the opera. Puccini is an expert in being able to put these emotions into music.
The orchestra is divided into different groups or families. You can find out more about the different
instrumental
families
which
make
up
the
orchestra
by
referring
to
www.dsokids.com
or
www.nyphilkids.org

TASK 9.2: Instrument Families
Music Links
See if you can group some of the instruments from the orchestra into the correct instrument families.
Enlarge the instrument family cards that follow (Diagrams 1 and 2) to help you do this. This can be done as
a whole class activity or copies of the resources can be made for individuals. Some of the instruments
mentioned here are pictured, along with other additional members of the orchestra. Diagram 3 is a complete
seating chart showing the families sitting together.
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DIAGRAM 1: Instrument Family Cards
STRINGS
BRASS
WOODWIND
PERCUSSION
33
DIAGRAM 2: Instrument Pictures (to cut and match to the correct family card)
Cymbals
French Horn
Violin
Cello
Clarinet
Bassoon
Cor Anglais
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Triangle
Piccolo
Bass Drum
Timpani
Oboe
Viola
Tambourines
Bass Clarinet
Trombone
Double Bass
Flute
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Trumpet
DIAGRAM 3: Orchestra Seating Chart
10. Blackheath Concert Halls
This performance of Puccini’s La Bohème will take place at Blackheath Concert Halls.
Here are few facts about the Concert Halls….
•
They were built in 1895 in response to lots of local music making both professional and amateur
•
They have a fantastic acoustic which means that all kinds of music sounds great when performed there!
•
Many London orchestras come to the Halls to rehearse including the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and
the London Philharmonic Orchestra. The English National Opera, one of London’s big opera companies,
also rehearses at the halls and lots of records have been recorded there because of the good acoustic
•
There are 2 halls, 1 large (The Great Hall) and 1 smaller (The Recital Room)
•
The halls are highly decorated with musical motifs in the high Victorian style
•
The halls have had a turbulent 20th century. For many years the building was used as a DHSS office!
After being saved once from bankruptcy by local residents in the nineties, the Halls were bought by
Trinity College of Music in 2003 and now run with support from the local councils
•
Today the Halls host lots of concerts in many different genres, a film club, tea dances, jazz nights,
literary evenings, children’s holiday workshops, and children’s theatre. There is a Blackheath Halls
Community Orchestra and finally, Carmen will be staged there!
TASK 10.1: All about Blackheath Halls!

History and
Geography Links
Blackheath Concert Halls are over 100 hundred years old and have had a very varied and interesting life!
What can you find out about the halls and about their history?
Things to think about…
•
Why were the halls built?
•
Who designed and built them?
•
What different uses have the halls been put too?
•
What sorts of people have used the halls?
•
Have any famous people, groups and ensembles performed at the halls?
•
How are the halls used today? How do local people feel about them?
11. Curriculum Links
KS2 Music
Links to QCA Schemes of Work
Unit 15. Ongoing skills
Links to National Curriculum
1. Controlling sounds through singing and playing – performing skills
Unit 16. Cyclic patterns - Exploring rhythm and pulse
Pupils should be taught how to:
Unit 17. Roundabout - Exploring rounds
a) Sing songs, in unison and two parts, with clear diction, control of pitch, a
Unit 18. Journey into space - Exploring sound sources
sense of phrase and musical expression
Unit 19. Songwriter - Exploring lyrics and melody
b) Play tuned and un-tuned instruments with control and rhythmic accuracy
Unit 20. Stars, hide your fires - Performing together
c) Practice, rehearse and present performances with an awareness of the
Unit 21. Who knows? - Exploring musical processes
audience
2. Creating and developing musical ideas – composing skills
Pupils should be taught how to:
a) Improvise, developing rhythmic and melodic material and musical ideas when
performing
b) Explore, choose, combine and organise musical ideas within musical
structures
3. Responding and reviewing - appraising skills
Pupils should be taught how to:
a) Analyse and compare sounds
b) Explore and explain their own ideas and feelings about music using
expressive language and musical vocabulary
c) Improve their own and others’ work in relation to its intended effect
4. Listening and applying knowledge and understanding.
Pupils should be taught:
a) To listen with attention to detail and to internalise and recall sounds with
increasing aural memory.
b) How the combined musical elements of pitch, dynamics, tempo, timbre,
texture and silence can be organised within musical structures (for example
ostinato) and used to communicate different moods and effects.
d) How time and place can influence the way music is created, performed and
heard (for example, the effect of occasion and venue).
5. Breadth of study.
Pupils should be taught knowledge, skills and understanding through:
a) A range of musical activities that integrate performing, composing and
appraising.
b) Responding to a range of musical and non-musical starting points.
c) Working on their own, in groups of different sizes and as a class.
e) A range of live and recorded music from different times and cultures.
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KS2 History
Links to QCA Schemes of Work
Unit 18. What was it like to live here in the past?
Links to National Curriculum
1. Chronological understanding
Unit 20. What can we learn about recent history from studying the life of
Pupils should be taught to:
a famous person?
a) Place events, people and changes into correct periods of time
b) Use dates and vocabulary relating to the passing of time, including ancient,
modern, BC, AD, century and decade
2. Knowledge and understanding of events, people & changes in the past
Pupils should be taught:
b) About the social, cultural, religious and ethnic diversity of the societies
studied, in Britain and the wider world
4. Historical Enquiry
Pupils should be taught:
a) To find out about events and people from a range of sources of information,
including ICT based sources (for example, documents, printed sources, CDROMS, databases, pictures and photographs, music, artefacts, historic buildings
and visits to museums, galleries and sites)
b) To ask and answer questions, and to select and record information relevant to
the focus of the enquiry
5. Organisation and Communication
Pupils should be taught to:
c) Communicate their knowledge and understanding of history in a variety of
ways (for example, drawing, writing, by using ICT)
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KS2 Citizenship
Links to QCA Schemes of Work
Unit 1. Taking Part – developing skills of communication & participation.
Links to National Curriculum
1. Developing confidence and responsibility and making the most of their
Unit 3. Animals and us
abilities
Unit 5. Living in a diverse world
Pupils should be taught:
Unit 11. In the media - what's the news?
a) To talk and write about their opinions, and explain their views, on issues that
affect themselves and society
2. Preparing to play an active role as citizens
Pupils should be taught:
a) To research, discuss and debate topical issues, problems and events
c) To realise the consequences of anti-social and aggressive behaviour, such as
bullying and racism, on individuals and communities
e) To reflect on spiritual, moral, social, and cultural issues, using imagination to
understand other people’s experiences
j) That resources can be allocated in different ways and that these economic
choices affect individuals, communities and the sustainability of the environment
4. Developing good relationships and respecting the differences between
people
Pupils should be taught:
b) To think about the lives of people living in other places and times, and people
with different values and customs
f) That differences and similarities between people arise from a number of
factors, including cultural, ethnic, racial and religious diversity, gender and
disability
5. Breadth of Study
41
During the key stage, pupils should be taught the knowledge, skills and
understanding through opportunities to:
g) Consider social and moral dilemmas that they come across in life (for
example, encouraging respect and understanding between different races and
dealing with harassment)
42
KS2 Art and Design
Links to QCA Schemes of Work
Unit 6B. What a performance
Links to National Curriculum
1. Exploring and developing ideas
Unit 9 gen. Visiting a museum, gallery or site
Pupils should be taught to:
a) Record from experience and imagination, to select and record from first-hand
observation and to explore ideas for different purposes
b) Question and make thoughtful observations about starting points and select
ideas to use in their work
5. Breadth of study
During the key stage, pupils should be taught the knowledge, skills and
understanding through:
a) Exploring a range of starting points for practical work
b) Working on their own, and collaborating with others, on projects in two and
three dimensions and on different scales
KS2 Geography
Links to QCA Schemes of Work
Unit 24. Passport to the world
Links to National Curriculum
2. Geographical enquiry and skills
In developing geographical skills, pupils should be taught:
c) To use atlases and globes, and maps and plans at a range of scales (for
example, using contents, keys, grids)
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KS2 English
SPEAKING AND LISTENING
1. Speaking
To speak with confidence in a range of contexts, adapting their speech for a range of purposes and audiences, pupils should be taught to:
c) Choose material that is relevant to the topic and to the listeners
d) Show clear shape and organisation with an introduction and an ending
2. Listening
To listen, understand and respond appropriately to others, pupils should be taught to:
a) Identify the gist of an account or key points in a discussion and evaluate what they hear
b) Ask relevant questions to clarify, extend and follow up ideas
c) Recall and re-present important features of an argument, talk, reading, radio or television programme, film
e) Respond to others appropriately, taking into account that they say
3. Group discussion and interaction
To talk effectively as members of a group, pupils should be taught to:
a) Make contributions relevant to the topic and take turns in discussion
b) Vary contributions to suit the activity and purpose, including exploratory and tentative comments as discussion moves to conclusions or actions
c) Qualify or justify what they think after listening to others’ questions or accounts
d) Deal politely with opposing points of view and enable discussion to move on
e) Take up and sustain different roles, adapting them to suit the situation, including chair, scribe and spokesperson
f) Use different ways to help the group move forward, including summarising the main points, reviewing what has been said, clarifying, drawing others in,
reaching agreement, considering alternatives and anticipating consequences
4. Drama
44
To participate in a wide range of drama activities and to evaluate their own and others’ contributions, pupils should be taught to:
a) Create, adapt and sustain different roles, individually and in groups
Breadth of Study
Reading
The range should include:
8a) Reading aloud
Listening
The range should include opportunities for pupils to listen to:
9a) Live talks / readings / presentations
9c) Others in groups
Groups discussion and interaction
The range of purposes should include:
10a) Investigating, selecting, sorting
10b) Planning, predicting, exploring
10c) Explaining, reporting, evaluating
WRITING
1. Composition
Pupils should be taught to:
a) Choose form and content to suit a particular purpose
c) Use language and style that are appropriate to the reader
d) Use and adapt the features of a form of writing, drawing on their reading
e) Use features of layout, presentation and organisation effectively
Breadth of Study
9a) The range of purposes for writing should include to imagine and explore feelings and ideas, focusing on creative uses of language ad how to interest
45
the reader
12) The range of forms of writing should include narratives, poems, play scripts, reports, explanations, opinions, instructions, reviews, commentaries
READING
2. Understanding texts
Pupils should be taught to:
a) Use inference and deduction
b) Look for meaning beyond the literal
4. Literature
To develop understanding and appreciation of literary texts, pupils should be taught to:
a) Recognise the choice, use and effect of figurative language, vocabulary and patterns of language
d) Recognise the differences between author, narrator and character
e) Evaluate ideas and themes that broaden perspectives and extend thinking
f) Consider poetic forms and their effects
h) Respond imaginatively, drawing on the whole text and other reading
i) Read stories, poems and plays aloud
Breadth of Study
Literature
The range should include:
8e) Texts drawn from a variety of cultures and traditions
8g) Play scripts
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KS2 Science
1. Ideas and evidence in science
Pupils should be taught:
a) That science is about thinking creatively to try to explain how living and non-living things work, and to establish links between causes and effects
b) That it is important to test ideas using evidence from observation and measurement
KS2 Mathematics
1. Using and applying number
Pupils should be taught to:
a) Make connections in mathematics and appreciate the need to use numerical skills and knowledge when solving problems in other parts of the
mathematics curriculum
b) Break down a more complex problem or calculation into simpler steps before attempting a solution; identify the information needed to carry out the tasks
d) Find different ways of approaching a problem in order to overcome any difficulties
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12. Glossary and Useful Information
Musical Terms…
Beat
The regular pulse of music.
Ostinato
A repeating phrase or rhythm.
Pitch
The degree of highness or lowness of a sound: lower pitches are
produced by slower vibrations, higher pitches by faster vibrations.
Dynamics
How loud or soft musical passages are played.
Soprano
The highest female voice
Mezzo Soprano
A lower female voice
Tenor
A higher male voice
Bass-Baritone
A lower male voice
Large instrumental ensemble including string, brass, woodwind and
Orchestra
percussion sections. Famous British orchestras include the London
Symphony Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the BBC
Symphony Orchestra.
For example strings (violin, viola, cello, double bass), woodwind (flute,
Instrument families
clarinet, oboe, bassoon etc), brass (trumpet, trombone, tuba etc) or
percussion (cymbals, snare, timpani etc)
Tempo
How fast or slow a piece is played.
Baton
The white ‘stick’ used by a conductor to direct the orchestra.
Opera: General Information…
Based at the Royal Opera House, the Royal Opera is one of Britain’s
Royal Opera
leading opera companies. Note the ‘learning’ section of this website.
www.royalopera.org
English National Opera
Orfeo
Tosca
Madame Butterfly
Turandot
People…
Based at the Coliseum, ENO is one of Britain’s leading opera
companies. Note the ‘education’ section of this website. www.eno.org
Written by Italian composer Claudio Monteverdi. Orfeo is credited as
being the ‘first’ opera.
Other operas by Puccini, who wrote La Bohème.
Giacomo Puccini
19th Century Italian composer, La Bohème was completed in 1896.
Writer and librettist. He worked with his partner Giuseppe Giacosa to
Luigi Illica
create the libretto for Puccini’s La Bohème, using a play by the writer
Henri Murger as a source.
Writer and librettist. He worked with his partner Luigi Illica to create
the libretto for Puccini’s La Bohème, using a play by the writer Henri
Giuseppe Giacosa
Murger as a source. He trained as a lawyer initially but made his
career as a writer, writing poems and plays as well as librettos for
Puccini’s operas.
Henri Murger
Murger’s play was the inspiration for the libretto for Puccini’s opera.
16th / 17th Century Italian composer. He composed Orfeo, which is
Claudio Monteverdi
credited as being the ‘first’ opera.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claudio_Monteverdi
Very famous operatic tenor! He is perhaps best known for his
Luciano Pavarotti
performance of Nessum Dorma, an aria from another Puccini opera,
Turandot. www.lucianopavarotti.com
Supporting Resources…
Puccini: La Bohème
1.
Berlin Philharmonic with Mirella Freni, Luciano Pavarotti, Herbert
von Karajan, Elizabeth Harwood, Rolando Panerai and Niccolai
Ghiaurov
1990 Decca
Puccini: La Bohème
2.
Covent Garden Royal Opera House Chorus, Covent Garden
Royal Opera House Orchestra, Katia Ricciarelli, José Carreras,
La Bohème Recordings
Ashley Putnam and Ingvar Wixell conducted by Sir Colin Davis
1994 Philips
Puccini: La Bohème
Cynthia Hayman, Dennis O’Neill, Marie McLaughlin, Alan Opie,
Kay Children’s Choir, Mitchell Choir, Philharmonia Orchestra
3.
conducted by David Parry
1999 Chandos
This recording contains the translation being used for the
Blackheath performance
Education website for the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. Includes
Dallas Symphony Orchestra
useful activities and printable worksheets etc.
www.dsokids.com
49
Education website for the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. Includes
New York Philharmonic Orchestra
useful activities and printable worksheets etc.
www.nyphilkids.org
50
13. Other Project Information
The Blackheath Halls Community Opera Project:
PERFORMANCE DATES: 15, 17, 18 July at 7pm and 20 July at 2pm
Blackheath Halls’ Community Opera Project has been designed to give the local community and schools a
chance to be involved in the making of an opera. Puccini’s wonderful opera, La Bohème has been chosen
for the performance because of the many chorus numbers and for its popular and well-loved tunes.
The project aims…
•
To give members of the local community an opportunity to take part in the making of an opera
•
To give local school children the chance to take part in the making of an opera and have a wider
knowledge of opera
•
To give local professional and amateur musicians the chance to perform in Blackheath Halls
•
To bring live opera to a different audience
•
To counter the myth that opera is an elitist art form
•
To create a flexible and exciting production
•
To allow the local community and schools to access Blackheath Halls
How are local schools involved?
Children from 4 local primary schools will be involved in the opera, in a range of ways. Each school will take
part in two of the four performances. Visits to Blackheath Halls and workshops in school will support this
involvement. Teachers from participating schools will be able to attend an INSET session led by David
Knotts and Julian West to support this pack.
Cast, Orchestra and Crew…
Costume Requirements…
•
Director: Ian Rutherford
The children will need to provide two
•
Associate Director: Donna Stirrup
different costumes as follows:
•
Musical Director: Leigh O’Hara
•
Assistant Musical Director: John Flinders
•
Designer: Aaron Marsdon
•
Lighting Designer: Marc Rosette
•
Costume Assistants: Claire Wincott, Lauren McCarthy
The second is the same for all
•
Rodolfo: James Edwards
children and needs to be blue denim
•
Mimi: Mary Plazas
•
Marcello: Grant Doyle
•
Musetta Imogen Roose
•
Other soloists are local young professional singers
•
Chorus: local amateur singers
•
Orchestra: Blackheath Halls Community Orchestra
•
Children’s chorus: Children from 4 local primary
The first will be on a Christmas
theme – each school will be given
different requirements.
jeans, short-sleeved clean white tshirt, light coloured trainers, no
labels/logos and not smart!
14. Organisations & Contacts
www.tcm.ac.uk
In August 2001, Trinity College of Music moved to the World Heritage Site of the Old Royal Naval College at
Greenwich, the King Charles Court.
The college has been described as ‘one of the most dynamic
conservatoires in Europe’. Collaboration is key to a variety of opportunities unique to Trinity and the college
actively works with schools and the community, developing music programmes for young people and adults
whilst at the same time enabling students from the college to develop skills for successful future careers.
www.tcm.ac.uk/education&community
Raising the Roof is Trinity’s music education programme for schools in the London Boroughs of Greenwich &
Lewisham.
The programme brings together the expertise of Trinity’s Senior and Junior Colleges and
Blackheath Halls, in partnership with Greenwich & Lewisham Music Services.
Working closely with its
partners, the programme delivers a cohesive and progressive widening participation and education
programme for young people at Lewisham and Greenwich schools. Raising the Roof supports the music
curriculum and provides opportunities for young people to join together, exploring music opportunities within
their local environment. The programme delivers a range of projects and activities, including music making
and performances, ticket offers, visiting musicians, INSET and teacher resources. As part of the college’s
successful Professional Skills Department, the programme places students on Raising the Roof projects to
further inspire young participants, in turn highlighting opportunities for further music study.
www.blac
kheathhall
s.com
Blackheath Halls is South East London’s premiere music venue hosting acts as wide ranging as Glenn
Tilbrook and the Brodsky Quartet. Blackheath Halls is also dedicated to other art forms, hosting literary
events and a Film Club and much, much more. Blackheath Halls, in its association with Trinity College of
Music and Laban, contemporary school of dance, offers a vibrant array of performances by students
including many concerts and an annual fully staged opera.
53
For further information, please contact:
Lucy Brown
Rose Ballantyne
Education & Community Manager
Community Development Officer
Trinity College of Music
Blackheath Halls
King Charles Court
23 Lee Road
Old Royal Navel College
Blackheath
Greenwich
London
London
SE3 9RQ
SE10 9JF
Tel: 020 8305 4379
Tel: 020 8318 9758
Email: lbrown@tcm.ac.uk
Email: rose.ballantyne@blackheathhalls.com