Ariadne auf Naxos, quarantined
We are doing a quarantine dive into Ariadne auf Naxos to honor Arizona Opera, who had to cancel their production this season.
Need to Know
Richard Strauss (1864-1949), who’s operas dominated the first four decades, is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century. We remember him as a great composer, but he was also an accomplished conductor and in his time held positions at the opera houses in Munich, Weimar, Berlin, and Vienna.
In addition to opera, R. Strauss is also remembered for his contributions to other musical genres including lieder (art songs) and symphonic poems. One of his greatest symphonic poems is Don Quixote, listen to the Berlin Philharmonic play it here.
His first great opera success came with his setting of Oscar Wilde’s one act play, Salome (1905). The opera was quickly followed by an opera about an even darker heroine, Elektra (1908) and also started his successful collaboration with librettist Hugo von Hofmannsthal. With Hofmannsthal, the team would create nine operas together including what is considered Strauss’ greatest opera, Der Rosenkavalier (1911).
Did you know Strauss was married to a difficult soprano? It’s a wonder he got any instrumental music written at all. His Last Songs were written for a soprano, but it was Flagstad he had in mind - not his wife. Click here to read 15 facts about Richard Strauss from Classic FM.
Dueling ArtFORMs
Quoting from the Britannica, “Strauss had two musical gods, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Richard Wagner, and in his work they struggle for possession of his artistic soul. The battle is fought most persuasively and equally in the opera Ariadne auf Naxos, in which Strauss’s light, parodistic vein and his heroic style are blended and reconciled.”
We hear these two styles (Romantic and neo-Classical) throughout the opera with the major arias highlighting each genre. Here are some links to the arias.
To hear Strauss’ late romantic (heroic) sounds: Jessye Norman singing Ariadne’s aria, “Es gibt ein Reich” or Joyce DiDonato singing the Composer’s aria, “Sein wir wieder gut!”
To hear Strauss’ neo-classical sounds: Edita Gruberova singing Zerbinetta’s aria “Grossmächtige Prinzessin…” or Harlekin’s aria “Lieben, Hassen, Hoffen, Zagen”. The Zerbinetta is a remarkable feat of coloratura (fast, high notes!).
Richard’s Muse
Just like Levi Strauss has a jean to fit every style, Richard Strauss composes for a soprano of every “fach” (Voice classification, click here to learn more).
Strauss is highly regarded for how he set music for the soprano voice, both operatically and in his lieder. He composed some of the strongest (and hardest to sing) female roles in the opera genre, Salome, Elektra, Daphne, Helen of Troy, just to name a few. Who can we thank for this inspiration? His wife, Pauline Maria de Ahna. She was a trained operatic soprano who sang roles such as Pamina in Die Zauberflöte and Elisabeth in Tannhäuser.
Their grandson, Christian Strauss, said “She was his muse, lover, his enemy. She was everything.” Read more about the women who inspired it all in this article by odyssey opera.
Strauss didn’t only showcase the soprano voice in opera. You can hear his love of this voice type in his lieder (songs). Here are a few links for you to explore: Leontyne Price singing Vier Letzte Lieder (Four Last Songs)/ Renée Fleming singing Morgen and Zueignung.
Bubbly with some Sass!
In honor of R. Strauss' Ariadne auf Naxos, your pre-opera cocktail is a "Zerbinetta (Aperol) Spritz". It's light and bubbly and a little sassy, like Strauss' heroine. Watch John mix it up here!
Ingredients: 2 oz Aperol, 3 oz Prosecco, 1 oz Club Soda, Orange wedge for garnish Directions: Add Aperol, prosecco, and club soda to a glass with ice and give a gentle stir. Add the orange garnish. Enjoy!
Synopsis
Quick Overview
Ariadne auf Naxos takes place in 18th century Vienna and is broken into two sections, the Prologue and the Performance. We learn in the Prologue that “the richest man in Vienna” is having a party and has two musical groups setting up before their performance that evening. One group is employed to sing a very serious opera, “Ariadne auf Naxos,” and the other group consists of a comedic troupe singing Italian Opera. Dinner runs long and the original order of events (Serious Opera/Comedy/ Fireworks) gets changed and both music groups are asked to perform simultaneously so the fireworks can start on time. Begrudgingly, both groups perform together and we get a show that’s a little bit serious, a little bit funny, and altogether a riot!
Click here for the full synopsis.
So many characters!
Many of the singers in Ariadne have two roles. Click here to get a clear idea of who is who in the show!
See the Opera!
Here is an older production from Weimar.
Here is a 2012 production at Baden Baden.
Here is the Met’s production staring Jessye Norman and Kathleen Battle. (Rent for $3.99)
And a little more with feeling!
Strauss was an early achiever (140 pieces written by 20) and a college dropout after one year.
The 18th century librettist-turned-New York grocer da Ponte wrote some of Strauss's favourite libretti, and in part inspired Elektra and Die Frau ohne Schatten. Remember him? Mozart’s favorite?
Strauss got so racy, one of his operas was banned. Salome, inspired by Oscar Wilde, featured a striptease and a kiss planted on the lips of the beheaded John the Baptist. Because of the shock factor, showings of Salome were banned in several cities across the world, including Chicago and New York. It therefore quickly became the must-see opera, enticing audiences from all corners of the world.
Strauss has a murky history with the Nazi party. Some say he sympathized, some say he went along with them to protect his Jewish family members. In 1933, Strauss agreed to chair the Reich Music Chamber of the Nazi regime. He was removed as president in 1935, but the stigma of his role in the Reich Chamber, as well as his decision to remain in Germany for the entire duration of the Second World War, blemished his reputation.
Tone poems (symphonic through-written pieces that told a story) were a specialty of Strauss’. The famous “Also Sprach Zarathustra” contains the theme from Stanley Kubrick’s film “2001: Space Odyssey”.
Strauss is regarded as one of the greatest orchestrators who ever lived. His major revision of Berlioz’ textbook on the subject influenced generations of future composers. He was far from modest about his abilities, once telling a singer in New York, “I can translate anything into sound. I can make you understand by music that I pick up my fork and spoon from this side of my plate and lay them down on the other side.” Symphonia Domestica (1903) describes a day in the Strauss household, with his baby crying, a fight with his wife, and a torrid love scene.