Hänsel og Gretel opera af Humperdinck

Hänsel og Gretel, tysk Hänsel und Gretel, opera af den tyske komponist Engelbert Humperdinck (med en tysk libretto af sin søster, Adelheid Wette), der havde premiere i Weimar, Tyskland, den 23. december 1893.

Baggrund og kontekst

Humperdinck, der begyndte sin karriere som assistent for Richard Wagner, brugte Wagners harmoniske teknikker, skønt et lettere touch egnet til det eventyrlige emne han tilpassede. Rollerne som Gretel og Hänsel synges henholdsvis af en voksen sopran og en voksen mezzosopran.

Humperdinck begyndte at arbejde på Hänsel og Gretel i 1890, da hans søster anmodede om et sæt på fire sange baseret på eventyret fra brødrene Grimm for hendes børn at udføre. Fra det sæt sange udvidede Humperdinck stykket til et singspiel og derefter til sidst til en fuld opera. Humperdinck og Wette præsenterede en blødere og lettere version af historien: Hänsel og Gretels mor snarere end at sende børnene væk for at dø, som hun gør i Grimms 'original, kun beordrer dem til at gå ud og plukke jordbær for at forhindre dem i at forårsage problemer i huset. Venlige nye figurer - inklusive Sandman, Dew Fairy og 14 engle, der beskytter børnene, mens de sover - blev tilføjet til historien, ligesom fromme udtalelser om bøn.

En premiere blev arrangeret for München sent i 1893. En sangeres sygdom tvang imidlertid til at annullere den produktion, så den første forestilling faldt til Richard Strauss, der som komponistens ven allerede havde planlagt at dirigere Hänsel og Gretel i en jul- sæson løb i Weimar. Operaen blev en øjeblikkelig succes. I det første år alene blev det præsenteret i snesevis af tyske teatre.

Castede og vokale dele

• Hänsel, en dreng (mezzosopran)

• Gretel, hans søster (sopran)

• Peter, deres far, en kvastproducent (baryton)

• Gertrude, deres mor (mezzosopran)

• Heksen (mezzosopran eller tenor)

• The Sandman (sopran)

• The Dew Fairy (sopran)

• Engle, pepperkagebørn, ekkorang.

Indstilling og historisk oversigt

Handle jeg

Et fattigt sommerhus i udkanten af ​​en skov.

Once upon a time, a brother and sister named Hänsel and Gretel lived with their father and mother, Peter and Gertrude, at the edge of a huge forest. When the story opens, they are alone in their poor cottage, hard at work at their chores, and quite hungry. Gretel teases Hänsel for being a grump and promises to tell him a secret if he will cheer up: there is milk in the jug and their mother will make them a nice pudding when she comes home. Hänsel sneaks a taste of the milk, but Gretel warns him that their mother will be angry if they do not get back to work. Hänsel refuses; he prefers to dance. Gretel is infected with her brother’s high spirits, and both begin to dance (“Brüderchen, komm tanz’ mit mir”).

In the middle of all the fun, Gertrude comes home in a very bad mood, angry at them for not having finished their work. She gets a stick to hit them, and, as they escape, she accidentally knocks over the jug, spilling all the milk. She furiously orders them out of the house to pick strawberries. Then she despairs and begs God for help in feeding her children. Exhausted, she falls asleep.

Peter is heard singing in the distance. He reels into the house and gives Gertrude a big kiss. She is not amused and accuses him of being drunk. He ignores her nagging and playfully asks for supper. She tells him that they have nothing to eat. To her surprise, he pulls out a sackful of food. He reports that he had gone to town to sell his brooms, and because he happened upon a festival, he managed to make a huge profit. Gertrude toasts his success, and, as they begin to dig into the food, he realizes that the children are absent. Gertrude reports that Hänsel and Gretel were misbehaving and that she broke the milk jug trying to punish them. Peter laughs heartily at this, and Gertrude cannot help joining in. He asks again where they are, and she replies, “For allI know, at the Ilsenstein.” Peter is struck with horror, for the Ilsenstein is the mountain abode of a horrible witch who rides on a broomstick, lures children to her gingerbread house, and bakes them into gingerbread. The two rush out of the house in search of the children.