Carmen: Opera

“Carmen”, as one of the most famous operas in the world, has been performed many times in many different troupes. This 4-act opera represents the highest achievement of the 19th century French opera-comique. After Bizet died, “Carmen” finally became the classical performance canonized by the professionals and music fans.
George Bizet (1838 – 1875) was a French composer and Pianist of Romantic era, whose the most prominent work being “Carmen”. In his young age he went to the Paris Conservatory of Music to learn music. His most famous composition, “Carmen” written in 1875 the same year before he died. It was performed again after Bizet died, and achieved one of the best operas and the mostly performed opera in the opera history.
Carmen is
one of the most prominent opera heroines. The character is a personification of passionate temperament, female invincibility, and independence. The interpretation of Bizet's Carmen features of tragic grandeur, her right to freedom of love she proves with her death.
“Carmen”, opens with a prelude in ternary form (ABACA). The first characteristic of Carmen is given in the overture with the same melody as in the prelude, where there is the main idee fixe of the opera - the theme of "fatal passion." Sharply contrasting the entire previous music, this theme is perceived as a symbol of fateful predestination of love of Carmen and Don Jose. It is distinguished by the exigencies of increased tempo and with the lack of cadenza. The idee fixe of "fatal passion" subsequently appears in the most important moments of the drama: the scene with flower, in a duet of Carmen and Don José in Act II, before the "prediction of cards" and in the finale of the opera. The same theme is accompanied in the first appearance of Carmen in the opera, employing, however, quite a different tone: brisk pace, dance elements give her the temperamental character, fiery, dramatic, which march the appearance of the heroine.
First solo by Carmen Habanera - a Spanish dance, which resembles the modern tango.
In this piece, Bizet creates an image of languid, sensual, passionate affect aided by the decrescendo of the chromatic scale, which moves in free rhythm. This is not only a portrait of Carmen, but also the presentation of her position in life, a kind of "declaration" free love. Up to the third act characteristic of Carmen is sustained in the same - the dance genre - plan. It is given in a series of songs and dances penetrated by intonations and rhythms of Gypsy folklore. In the interrogation scene Carmen sings a Spanish song, and performs it unaccompanied, boldly and mocking in the form couplet, as in the Habanera.
The most significant characteristic of Carmen is in action I – Seguidilla, the dance song. Seguidilla distinguishes Carmen with unique Spanish flavor, which employs major and minor tonality with guitar accompaniment. This number is not purely a solo due to the inclusion of replicas by Jose, which turns it into dialogic scene. The finale of Act I replays the same melody as in Habanera. The Entracte employs adagio tempo military melody it employs the same melody that was introduced in Prelude. The music features solo bassoons, clarinet, flute; and all sharing the same
theme.
The next appearance of Carmen with a gypsy song and dance opens Act II. Orchestration with a tambourine, cymbals and triangles delivers the flavor of folk music. Continuous crescendo in dynamics, tempo and in range create an image of temperamental, mischievous, and energetic melody. In the duet scene of Carmen and Don Jose her song is preceded by a soldier Jose in the backstage, on which the intermission of this act builds. The duet is built in the form of free scenes involving dialogue, recitatives, arias and ensemble singing. The beginning of the duet is filled with joyful interection: Carmen entertains Jose with the song and dance. The song, Carmen sings without any words. Jose admires her, but the enjoyment does not last long - a military signal with flute reminds Jose on military duty. For Carmen military duty does not validate the early termination of early goodbye, she resents Jose. In response to her hail reproach and ridicule Jose talks about his love in the form of aria. Then the leading role in the duo goes to Carmen, who is trying to captivate the interest of Jose with in the mountains in freedom. This scene starts with song singing between Carmen and Jose and moves to the dancing. The entr’acte for transition to the third act employs harp and flute joining in the end. The music is solemn and has romantic character.
In the Act III, together with the deepening of the conflict, the character of Carmen changes. The deeper grows her drama, the more the variations of song and dance elements are replaced dramatically. The turning point in this process is a tragic aria from the scene of prediction with cards. As a player in the past, trying to conquer and subjugate all around, Carmen for the first time thinks about her life. The scene prediction with cards built on three sections: outer sections are about cheerful friends where the music is happy and bubbly. The middle part presents aria by Carmen, here the music becomes solemn and chromatic. The character in this aria is different from previous characters of Carmen. First of all, there is no connection with the dance music. The tonality is in Minor accompanied by gloomy orchestra due to trombone, ostinato rhythms and all these create a feeling of mourning affect. Here she presents pessimistic outlook and that the fates are sealed for her and Don Jose.
The opening of act IV relates to both Prelude and Toreador music oboe solo and piccolo instrumentations. In this act Carmen is involved in two duets: first with Escamillo, he is imbued with happiness and agreement and she interacts with Jose in a tragic duel, which is the culmination of the whole opera. This duo is essentially a monologue: Jose pleads desperateness and threatens Carmen for her stubbornness. Here again the orchestra reintroduces the idee fixe of tragic passion. The development follows the line of the steady rise of drama, cheers of the crowd from the circus break into the duet intermittently, each time with a higher pitch. Carmen dies while people glorify the winner, Escamillo. The tragic idee fix here is directly counter posed with the festive sound of marching theme of bullfighter.
In the end of the opera all themes of the overture become symphonic. The theme of tragic passion is performed in major tonality in the very last time with the themes of a national holiday, the first theme of the overture and with the theme of the bullfighter.