Translated material
DEAL WITH FAUST
Every time I see everyone around me greedily grabbing tickets for the next performance of Charles Gounod’s opera “Faust,” I reassure myself with a funny fact that for some reason is not often mentioned.
The first performance of the opera “Faust” in public is a story rather not from the field of art, but from the field of “the art of business”.
They ambitiously planned four performances in London at once. Of course, no one bought tickets.
And then the “producer” did the following - instead of reducing the number of performances, he took absolutely all the tickets from the box office for the first three evenings, leaving only the final fourth, and ordered an article in the Times newspaper, dryly informing that the first three performances of “Faust” were already completely sold out, everything was sold out.
Without advertising the tickets for the first three evenings (and at that time there was no Internet yet), he distributed them free of charge to residents of the London suburbs, who readily accepted the idea of brightening up their leisure time by going out (and someone, of course, was enterprising in selling their unexpected luck).
Of course, the fourth, and in fact the only performance for which tickets were sold, was sold out.
But what's the end result?
The audience's response to the opera on the first evening was friendly and appreciative, but not particularly enthusiastic.
The audiences of the second and third are more or less the same.
But at the final, fourth performance, people who had been hunting for tickets and had been waiting for this evening for so long exploded with adoration for this opera.
Now attention!
Due to numerous (!) requests (!) the producer extended the performance of “Faust” for four more evenings.
Since then, this opera has always been a hit. Recently, she even closed the top three most frequently performed operas in the world.
But as much as I enjoy gloating over this story, I have to admit that it tells absolutely nothing about the quality of the music (both good and bad).
And no matter how my personal receptors are irritated by this opera (and they are irritated by excessive melody, and by excessive sensuality, and by the focus on the lyrical-everyday aspect, and by the deliberately demonstrative rejection of all the allegorical and philosophical cumbersome structures that Goethe once erected, and especially by the edifying preaching), there is reason to deny that “Faust” is not just one of the most popular, but also one of the most significant operas in terms of its structure, I don’t have it.
Therefore, from time to time, following the Faustian “spirit of knowledge,” I go to this lyrical and everyday drama, richly seasoned with religious piety. I go to either finally see the light and feel (and not just understand) the greatness of this music. Or, on the contrary, find a rational justification for your irritability and prove something to someone.
Exactly such an attempt to make a deal with one of his personal devils, today's concert performance of the opera in the Concert Hall. P.I. Tchaikovsky became for me.
And in the first seconds it became clear that it would not be boring.
Conductor Michael Güttler's careful handling of the musical material, his consistency and moderation of tempos only made the performers more voluminous. If someone blossoms on this parched soil, he invariably begins to enchant in contrast. And in many ways it was because of some of the performers that I decided to make another deal.
And almost from the very beginning I was fascinated by the noticeable deep, rich, typically German string sound that Güttler brought to this opera from his usual and characteristic repertoire. This probably saddened many, but personally I was even happy at first. I hoped that German musical reflectivity would make something more voluminous in this French sensual music...
And of course I did!
Of course, she made exactly the same sensual music!
I realized this 10 minutes later, horrified that at least three more hours of reckoning awaited me. The reckoning is undoubtedly melodic, sensual and supported by wild delight.
But the soloists appeared and everything began to play.
Tenor Stephen Costello enjoyed showing that he was at the top of his game, bringing out the full range of his rich range and famously round, colorful sound. But its value turned out to be different. He suddenly decided to make Faust not only an attractive, but also a repulsive character.
Costello showed almost immediately that he came on stage not only to please, but also to irritate. And this decision instantly captivated me. At the same time, making the “moral” of the whole story more convincing, and adding texture to the hero’s sensual arias.
And as if in contrast to such a Faust, Anita Hartig demonstrated a heartbreaking and vocally rich Margarita. She removed the usual “fragility” of the heroine from the image and literally sang herself until her death, without holding back in her vocal means.
The images of two lyrical heroes suddenly began not only to sing about the difficult choice between love and God, but also to impose this choice.
And then they came in handy with a completely ideal devil - Luca Pisaroni , who suddenly decided to embody not only Gounod’s Mephistopheles, but also to resurrect Goethe’s Mephistopheles. He managed to be both elegant and disheveled at the same time, demonically playing with these contrasts.
But, of course, his main achievement is that while you listen to him and follow the development of the image, you completely forget that right now he is luring this very Faust to eternal death.
The devilish temptation covers not so much the heroes as the audience.
The interpretation turned out to be so unexpected and fresh that at the end a discovery suddenly occurred. It may be obvious to some, but I’ve never thought about it before!
This performance took place as part of the “Opera Masterpieces” program, and I couldn’t help but remember how a couple of months ago “Masterpieces” opened with an absolutely enchanting performance of the opera “Don Giovanni”.
And suddenly I understood!
It is in this interpretation, precisely in this performance, that “Faust” suddenly begins to resemble “Don Juan.” Tracing the parallels further, I was generally horrified - both of them have a supposedly real prototype, which no one really remembers, passing the legend about it from mouth to mouth. Both of them, thoughtlessly or deliberately (here, whoever likes to think more) challenge hell.
And both actually achieve it.
In general, if only to see “Don Giovanni” in “Faust,” it was worth making this deal!
And if you love the music itself (or at least have nothing against it), then the soloists will turn your head without any doubt!
Fortunately, the performance was broadcast, and the recording is now available at the link: http://www.meloman.ru/concert/sh-guno-faust
And the full text of the libretto in Russian is waiting for you here: http://libretto-oper.ru/gounod/faust
In the decline of days with deep sorrow
I realized the powerlessness of science
and all earthly knowledge! I don't believe them!
I don't believe them! No! No!
___________
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