THE IMAGE OF CARMEN IN ART
1. At music lessons, we got acquainted with the opera Carmen by Georges Bizet and the ballet Carmen Suite by Rodion Shchedrin. There was bright catchy music. I had a desire to find out if there are other types of art in which the image of the gypsy Carmen is embodied and what attracts everyone to this image. So there wasresearch topic"The Image of Carmen in Art".
2. I put in front of me target : to systematize ideas about the integrity of the artistic image of Carmen.
Solve problems:
- unravel the concept artistic image»;
- analyze Carmen's artistic image various types arts;
- to do experimental work to identify color associations of the image of Carmen;
- introduce comparative analysis color representations of the artistic image of Carmen.
Practical significanceresearch is that the work considers ways of perceiving the image of Carmen by means of literature, music, fine arts, choreography.
3. On Wikipedia we read that "An artistic image is any phenomenon creatively recreated in work of art". The artistic image is created on the basis of one of the means of the art form or a combination of several. Under the artistic image in art withwith the help of means and techniques, an idea is created about the hero, the phenomenon of a work of art.
In literature, the artistic image is created on the basis of the word, in music - through sound, in fine arts- based on colors, in choreography - with the help of movements, etc.
4. The image of Carmen originated in literature. Invented the character Prosper Merimee. The writer tells the love story of a young gypsy woman and a soldier, full of passion and drama. Carmencita has a hypnotic influence on José. Because of her, he breaks the law and deserts from the army. She draws him into a gang of smugglers, and their life becomes full of dangers and unforeseen situations. Carmen is not used to limiting herself in anything, and anyone who tries to fit her life into strictly established limits becomes her enemy.
The image of Carmen is presented from the words of three men.
The traveler narrator sees in her something exotic, alien to his world. He does not understand her extravagant behavior, but is amazed by her "strange and wild" beauty. Carmen simultaneously frightens and fascinates a respectable scientist, he compares her either with a wolf or with a chameleon.
To the second narrator, the robber and smuggler Jose Navarro, Carmen is portrayed as a witch, the devil himself, or even a “pretty girl”. But the irresistibly attractive, criminal, unpredictable and mysterious gypsy is still alien to him.
The third, from whose words we draw a portrait of Carmen, is the author. He does not describe or express his attitude towards it, allowing the reader to draw his own conclusions.
In the short story, Carmen is freedom-loving, cruel, unfaithful girl with a quick temper, for which deceit and cunning are part of life.
5. world fame Prosper Mérimée's short story received thanks to the immortal opera "Carmen" by Georges Bizet and is still one of the most popular in the world.In the opera, Carmen is ennobled. The composer also presents her as freedom-loving, cruel, independent, temperamental, but the librettists excluded her cunning, thieving, everything petty and mundane.
6. The first performer of the role of Carmen in the opera was Galli-Marie.
The audience liked the image of a young beautiful gypsy woman, it was taken up with pleasure by artists, choreographers, directors and made it collective. Carmen eventually "penetrated" into many areas of art.
7. There is a "Carmen Suite" - a one-act ballet on mMusic by Georges Bizet, orchestrated by Rodion Shchedrin. Carmen in ballet beautiful girl, charming, seeking true love. She strives for mutual understanding with people, but the people around her are hostile to her.
8. The first performer of the role of Carmen in Rodion Shchedrin's ballet was his wife Maya Plisetskaya.
9. Alexander Blok has a cycle of 10 poems of the same name. Nikolai Gumilyov and Marina Tsvetaeva wrote about the gypsy. The image of Carmen at Blok is endowed divine features raising it to the level of the ideal. Marina Tsvetaeva's perception of Carmen is more human, feminine and passionate.
10. The artists were not only interested in the image of the passionate Carmen, they were eager to portray the actresses who played her role. For example, Vrubel has "Portrait of Tatiana Lubatovich in the role of Carmen",
11. And Edouard Manet has Emilia Ambre.
Each artist "sees" Carmen in his own way, but in no portrait does she look like a "villain". Artists painted Carmen with a sad, slightly tired look, the colors of her clothes are not flashy, but eye-catching.
12. The Polish surrealist Rafal Olbinski portrayed Carmen on opera posters in an original, expressive and abstract way.
13. To date, there are more than ten film incarnations of the image of Carmen.
14. There are several film productions in Russia and abroad.
15. As well as film adaptations of opera and ballet, and even cartoons.
16. In unusual technique the works of the Polish animator Alexandra Koreyvo were made - sand animation, in which the pattern is created with colored salt (bright iridescent and abstract images).
After analyzing the features of the image of Carmen in various types of art, we can say that the desire to improve and elevate it has been revealed.
17. In honor of the heroine, an asteroid discovered in 1905 was named.
18. The second part of my work is experimental, which was carried out at GBOU secondary school No. 3 p.g.t. Smyshlyaevka Volzhsky Samara region in the 7th grade in three stages: ascertaining, forming and final. The method used was a survey.
The progress of the experiment.
At the ascertaining stage of the experiment, its participants were identified - students of grades 7A and 7B in the amount of 50 people.
At the formative stage of the experimental work, color associations of the image of Carmen in different types art.
At the music lesson, together with the teacher, a survey was conducted.
The students were given questionnaires with excerpts from the short story by P. Merimee, poems by A. Blok and M. Tsvetaeva. After reading the relevant passages, the children were asked to choose the colors that, in their opinion, are the most suitable for the image of Carmen according to the read text.
Then excerpts from the opera "Carmen" by Georges Bizet and from the ballet "Carmen Suite" by Rodion Shchedrin were offered. It was proposed to again choose several colors with which the image of Carmen was associated.
19. The reflection of the image of Carmen is presented in a bar chart.
It can be seen from the diagram that there is a dynamic of “elevating the image of Carmen to the ideal” in Blok’s poetry and Shchedrin’s Carmen Suite.
On final stage was held detailed analysis obtained data and conclusions:
the color associations of the image of Carmen become lighter as they move away from the short story "Carmen" by Prosper Merimee;
the main colors that the students indicated are red, yellow, black;
the most light colors noted in Blok's poetry (the image of Carmen becomes sublime) and in Rodion Shchedrin's ballet Carmen Suite (more yellow and red, less black);
girls have a wider range of colors than boys (schoolchildren chose a wide range of colors (purple was considered as blue, brown as black, orange as yellow, pink as red).
20. The production of the ballet was created by Shchedrin for his beloved wife Maya Plisetskaya. Perhaps that is why negative traits(cunning, thieves' efficiency) are eliminated, the image is ennobled. Alexander Blok intuitively elevates the image to the level of a deity, using the genre of poetry that brings the image of Carmen closer to perfection. They have Carmen - the goddess of love, beauty, freedom.
The performed research shows the solution to the problem of the embodiment of the image of a gypsy in various types of art and its integrity.
In the course of work, I realized that Carmen, a bright representative of her people, is depicted as the embodiment of vice. Her image attracts everyone with her courage and strength of character.
21. The last slide of the presentation presents the sources that I used.
Thank you all for your attention!
References and sources
Prosper Merimee. Short stories (translated from French) [Text]. - Fiction, 1978. 371 p.
Bizet, G. Opera "Carmen" production Mariinsky Theater. [Video]
Shchedrin, R.K. Ballet "Carmen Suite" [Video]
Block A. Cycle "Carmen". [Website]. -http://er3ed.qrz.ru/index.htm?blok-carmen.htm
Illustrations of portraits of Carmen. [Website]. -http://arts-all.ru/otechestvennye-xudozhniki/vrubel-karmen.html
Tsvetaeva M. Poems about love. Poetry Library. [Website].- hyyp://cvetaeva.ouc.ru/karmen.html
Carmen, whose name means “blessed Madonna of Mount Carmel,” does not in any way coincide with the image of a pure and immaculate virgin. A gypsy who has been earning a living by deceit since childhood, easily seduces men without thinking about the consequences. And even realizing the inevitable disaster, the beauty is not ready to retreat. The desire for profit in the girl's heart is too strong.
History of creation
The author of the short story about the rebellious beauty is a French writer. The first thoughts about writing a short story, in which human tragedy and the biography of the Spanish people intertwined, visited the author of "Carmen" in Spain. The man spent a year and a half in a sunny country and deeply studied the customs and habits of the local population.
The work "Gypsies" had no less influence on Merimee's inspiration. French writer Since childhood, he studied Russian, so he easily translated the poet's work. The man was especially impressed by the sincerity and love of freedom. actors works.
In 1845, the short story was presented to the public, and in 1875 the premiere of the opera Carmen took place, the composer of which was.
Both the opera and the short story did not make a positive impression on critics. But it was the devastating reviews that appeared in the newspapers that attracted the public. Musical composition flooded the stage, bringing Bizet incredible popularity. Wherein literary source opera went unnoticed by many of Merimee's contemporaries.
"Carmen"
A reliable biography of the gypsy Carmencita has been known since the appearance of the girl in the city of Seville. The beauty worked at a tobacco factory, where, in addition to the heroine, 400 more women rolled cigars. However, unlike other workers, Carmen did not make friends, as she had an explosive temper and a sharp tongue.
“Her skin, though impeccably smooth, closely resembled copper in color. Her eyes were slanted, but wonderfully carved; the lips were a little full, but beautifully defined, and behind them were visible teeth, whiter than peeled tonsils. Her hair, perhaps a little coarse, was black, with a blue tint like a raven's wing, long and shiny.
Opera "Carmen" Once a skirmish with a factory worker reached a stabbing - offended by bad joke Carmen slashed the face of a familiar woman. Due to the seriousness of the injuries, the authorities decide to send the gypsy to prison, and Jose Lisarrabengoa is trusted to accompany the arrested woman.
The young man, who was not impressed by the first meeting with Carmen, started a conversation with the girl. The troublemaker told the inexperienced soldier that she was born in Etchalar, from where the gypsies took her away. In the homeland of the beauty, a single mother remained, and the girl worked in a factory in order to save money for the way home.
During a sincere conversation, the seductress persuaded José to help her escape. The girl pushed her new acquaintance in the chest, and while he pretended to lose his balance, she disappeared from sight. Despite her impudent nature, Carmen did not forget her assistant. Upon learning that Jose was in prison because of complicity in escaping, the gypsy sent bread to the man, in which she hid a file and money. However, the soldier did not take advantage of such kindly provided assistance.
The next meeting of young people took place in the house of the colonel, where José was sent after being demoted from the officers. A company of gypsies came to entertain the military guests. And among the noisy camp, Jose saw the charming Carmen.
Already leaving the holiday, the beauty whispered an appointment to the soldier. As soon as Jose arrived at the meeting place, Carmen took the already fallen in love man for a walk. Wandering the streets, the gypsy, with childish spontaneity, spent all the money of her boyfriend, after which she took José to an old house, where the couple spent a day and a half in unrestrained fun and amorous amusements.
Soon Carmencita herself escorted the man out. In a fit of revelation, the girl asked Jose not to think about her anymore, because such a relationship would end badly for young man. Alas, the soldier is already too in love to think about the future.
For some time, Carmen disappeared from the city, and attempts to find her beloved did not lead to anything. A new meeting of Jose with a gypsy took place next to a breach in the wall through which the smugglers passed.
For help in transporting illegal goods, Carmen promised the man in love another passionate night, and José, tormented by remorse, gave up. The gypsy, whose temper was notable for inconstancy, tormented the soldier for a long time. The girl then swore in love, then drove her lover away.
A tragic turn of history was the collision of Jose with an opponent. Carmen, who did not know about the arrival of her lover, brought a new boyfriend to a love date. The scene of jealousy ended in murder. Bandaging the wounds, the cunning seductress invited José to join her team. The girl described to the former soldier all the charm of the life of a smuggler, and he Once again believed beauty.
Now José opened up the other side of Carmen. The girl worked in a gang as a scout and better than men coped with the job. The beauty became more affectionate with her lover, but carefully concealed own attitude to a man with other smugglers. However, there was an explanation for this behavior.
Carmen has long connected life with another. And while Jose was earning money, the woman seduced the prison doctor in order to rescue her husband, who was sitting under lock and key. But the cunning gypsy did not plan to again bind herself with obligations to the gypsy who was disgusted with her.
Illustration for the novel "Carmen" The woman released her husband only to pull off a couple of thefts and get rid of the objectionable man. For these purposes, Carmen moved to Gibraltar, citing gypsy affairs. A true master of reincarnation, the gypsy posed as an aristocrat and turned the head of an English officer who was assigned the role of bait.
The only one whom the beauty dedicated to her own plan is Jose. Indeed, without the help of a faithful spineless assistant, Carmencita would not have coped. The plan went even better than the woman planned. Jose did not wait for an opportunity and killed the gypsy's husband himself.
Now Carmen was free from any obligations. But the movement of the beauty was limited by the former soldier, who decided that he now has all the rights to the beauty. This attitude irritates the extravagant Carmen.
In Granada, a gypsy met a picador named Lucas. Constant quarrels between two irreconcilable lovers only heated up the situation. Carmen, accustomed to doing everything contrary to others, became more and more fond of Lucas. Driven to despair, Jose made a last attempt to improve relations with his beloved, but the stubborn gypsy stood her ground: she no longer loves former soldier and is not going to live with him.
Realizing that such words only bring her death closer, Carmen does not back down. Cruelty breeds cruelty. Jose, who was tired of fighting for the attention of his beloved, stabbed the beauty with the knife of a former rival.
Screen adaptations
One of the first to transfer the Spanish passion story to television screens was the Italian director Gerolamo Lo Savio. In 1909, the premiere of the black-and-white film Carmen took place, in which the main role was played by actress Vittoria Lepanto.
A year later, the Americans presented their own adaptation of the novel. The film "Cigarette from Seville" was a revised short story by Mérimée. The role of the cynical and cruel Carmen went to Madame Pilar-Morin.
Released in 1959 musical film"Carmen from Ronda". The film was created in two versions: French and Spanish. The first version differs from the original in several added scenes. main role played by actress and singer Sara Montiel. The artist independently sang the songs that the gypsy sings in the frame.
In 1989, at the Venice Film Festival, the French director presented his own vision of the image of Carmen. The film "Name: Carmen" is a combination of Merimee's short story and the musical "Carmen Jones". The role of the gypsy was played by Maruska Detmers.
Another one crime drama"Carmen" was released in 2003. The plot of the film develops in modern Russia. The tape is a free interpretation of a classic work. The image of a criminal nicknamed Carmen was embodied by an actress.
Quotes
“You see that I am a gypsy: do you want me to tell you fortune?”
"A dog on the go will always find food."
“I pay my debts! I pay my debts! Such is the law of the Kales!”
“You know, son, I think I love you a little. But it won't be for long."
Impressed by yesterday's performance "Carmen" by the Vologda Puppet Theatre. Award-nominated performance" golden mask". Of course, I did not see the performances of the "rivals" for the award, but I already gave my vote for the performance of the Vologda residents. The performance was brightly theatrical, stylishly musical, very emotional and imaginative. Petersburg director Boris Konstantinov (by the way, already a laureate of the Golden Mask). And even those who are not accidentally familiar with the names Carmen, Merimee or Bizet will still understand the passionate love story played by puppets and wonderful theater actors. "The special charm of the performance (I quote one of the reviews, with which I completely agree) is that it is not clear where the actor ends and the puppet begins and vice versa." As the director said in an interview: "At some point, already at the rehearsal, I noticed that it was not the actors who led the doll, but she led them. She decides where to go, where to watch, who to love ..."
Scenes from the play "Carmen" by the Vologda puppet theater "Teremok".
If we add to this that there is practically no text in the performance - only the exclamations of characters, plastic and music. If we note that musical score, the basis of which are Spanish songs and melodies, is very rarely and very precisely "flavored" with the themes of Bizet's brilliant music. If you say that you, as a child, are surprised and delighted by the scenery rearrangements from simple sticks and cartwheels, the images and symbols that arise during the performance, then all this still cannot describe the feeling of what you see. At the same time, the performance turned out to be both festival and international - it will be understood in any corner of the planet.
I decided to go over the museum galleries to see how the image of Carmen is displayed in painting. I realized that the topic can be explored endlessly, so I collected two opening days - classics and contemporary authors dedicated to the gypsy Carmen. By the way, female name Spanish origin Carmen (Carmen) is formed from the epithet of the Virgin "Madonna of Mount Carmel", where Her appearance took place. Now let's look at the pictures!
Artist unknown Poster for Carmen's premiere. 1875
Édouard Manet (French, 1832-1883) Émilie Ambre as Carmen. Philadelphia Museum of Art
Valentine Cameron Prinsep (British, 1838-1904) Carmen. 1885
Mikhail Alexandrovich Vrubel (1856-1910) Portrait of T.S. Lubatovich as Carmen. 1895 Tretyakov Gallery
Alexander Yakovlevich Golovin (1863-1930) Portrait of Maria Nikolaevna Kuznetsova-Benois as Carmen. 1908 Theater Museum them. A.A. Bakhrushina
Alexander Yakovlevich Golovin (1863-1930) Woman suit for the actress Pavlova to the opera "Carmen" by G. Bizet.
Alexander Yakovlevich Golovin (1863-1930) Carmen. Costume design for the opera by G. Bizet. 1908 Theater Museum. A.A. Bakhrushina
Marc Zakharovich Chagall (1887-1985) Carmen. 1966
Tatyana Georgievna Bruni (1902-2001) Sketch theatrical costume Carmen.
Pavel Aleksandrovich Skotar (b. 1920) Irina Arkhipova as Carmen in G. Bizet's opera Carmen.
Savva Grigoryevich Brodsky (1923-1982) Carmen, illustration for Merimee's one-volume series BVL. 1968
Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881-1973) Carmen. 1949
Alexander Nikolaevich Benois (1870-1960) Costume design for Carmen opera of the same name J. Bizet. 1931
Ernesto Fontana (Italian, 1837-1918) Carmen. 1886
And finally, a few watercolors, which are attributed on auction sites as the work of Prosper Mérimée himself, the author of the short story about Carmen. However, this is not surprising, since the writer's father, Jean-François-Leonor Mérimée (September 16, 1757 - September 26, 1836) was an artist and art historian. To be honest, it seems to me that only the first and last illustrations belong to Merimee, the rest are frankly naked, in style and manner they are not similar to mid-nineteenth century. Although, who knows, who knows ... As the saying goes, "for what I bought - for that I sold."
Prosper Mérimée (French, 1803-1870) Carmen.
Prosper Mérimée (French, 1803-1870) Carmen suivi de la course de taureaux (Carmen after the bullfight).
Prosper Mérimée (French, 1803-1870) Carmen et Don José. 1845 Bibliothèque nationale de France.
G. Bizet opera "Carmen"
The plot of the opera by G. Bizet "Carmen" is taken from novel of the same name P. Merimee. At the center of the cycle of events is a beautiful, passionate and freedom-loving gypsy woman, who changes the lives of the people around her with her lifestyle and actions. This is the composer's last opera thorny path to fame and stages of world theaters. It is considered the culmination of Bizet's work and his fiasco in life.
Summary of Bizet's opera "Carmen" and many interesting facts read about this work on our page.
|
Characters |
Description |
|
| mezzo-soprano | andalusian gypsy | |
| Don Jose | tenor | Dragoon Sergeant |
| Michaela | soprano | country girl, Jose's fiancee |
| Escamillo | baritone | bullfighter |
| Frasquita | soprano | Gypsy |
| Mercedes | mezzo-soprano | Gypsy |
| Morales | baritone | officer, sergeant dragoon |
| Zuniga | bass | officer, lieutenant of the dragoons |
| Remendado | tenor | smuggler |
| Dancairo | baritone | smuggler |
Summary
The action of the opera takes place in Spain, in the first half of the 19th century. Carmen is a beautiful, passionate, temperamental gypsy who works in a cigarette factory. She noticeably stands out among other workers - as soon as this burning beauty appears on the street, all admiring male glances immediately rush to her. Carmen, with particular pleasure, mocks the men around her and their feelings. But the temperamental girl does not like the fact that Jose is indifferent to her, she is trying in every possible way to attract his attention. Having failed, the gypsy, along with other girls, returns to work. However, a quarrel flares up among them, which instantly turns into a fight. The culprit of the conflict is Carmen. She is sent to a cell, where she languishes in anticipation of a warrant under the supervision of José. But the insidious seductress makes the sergeant fall in love with herself, and he helps her escape from custody. This reckless act completely turns his life upside down: Jose loses everything - his girlfriend, family, respect, rank and becomes a simple soldier.
And all this time, Carmen continues to lead an idle life - together with her friends, she wanders around the taverns, where she entertains visitors with her songs and dances. At the same time, the girl manages to cooperate with smugglers and flirt with the bullfighter Escamillo. Soon Jose appears in the tavern, but not for long - it's time for him to return to the barracks for an evening check. However, the gypsy turns on all her charm so as not to let the soldier go. Jose is fascinated by her, and the captain's order means nothing to him now. He becomes a deserter and is now forced to be with Carmen and the smugglers. But soon the feelings of the burning beauty fade away - Jose is bored with her. Now she was seriously carried away by the bullfighter, who even promised to give a fight in her honor. And the soldier in love is forced to temporarily leave her - from his ex-lover he learns that his mother is dying, and he hurriedly goes to her.
The square in Seville is preparing for a bullfight. The gypsy is preparing to join the feast, but Jose appears on her way. He begs the girl to be with him again, confesses his love, threatens, but all in vain - she is cold to him. In a fit of anger, he takes out a dagger and plunges it into his beloved.
Photo:
Interesting Facts
- Surprisingly, but Georges Bizet never been to Spain. Therefore, to create the necessary musical atmosphere, he reworked folk melodies, giving them the desired Spanish flavor.
- In 1905, scientists discovered a new asteroid, which was named Carmen.
- The famous German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck was present under various circumstances at the show of "Carmen" 27 times.
- English musicologist Hugh MacDonald wrote that French opera knows no more fatalist than Carmen. Outside France, her descendants could be "Salome" by Richard Strauss and "Lulu" by Alban Berg.
- The play premiered on March 3, 1875 and ended in complete failure. And exactly 3 months after it, the composer himself died. The cause of his death is still debated. According to one version, Bizet could not survive the fiasco of "Carmen" and the "immorality" in which he was accused after the premiere. The opera seemed indecent to the public, because its heroes were bandits, smoking factory workers, smugglers and simple soldiers. And when characterizing the main character of the opera, art connoisseurs were not at all shy in expressions - she was the true embodiment of vulgarity and dirt.
- The opera was designated by the composer as a comic one. And the first performance took place at the Opera-Comic. And what about the comic, you ask? Everything is simple. By tradition French theater, all works in which the main characters are simple people, ranked as a comedy genre. It is for this reason that musical numbers alternate with conversational dialogues in the opera - all comic operas in France were built according to this scheme.
- Shortly before his death, J. Bizet signed a contract with the Vienna State Opera for the production of Carmen. Despite some edits and differences from the author's original, the performance was a huge success. "Carmen" won praise not only from ordinary viewers, but also from such prominent composers as Johannes Brahms and Richard Wagner. This was the first serious success of the creation of J. Bizet on the way to world recognition.
- On October 23, 1878, the first premiere took place at the New York Academy of Music. this work in USA. In the same year, the opera appeared before the audience in St. Petersburg.
- One of the co-directors of the Opera Comic had to leave his position because of this work. Adolphe de Leuven believed that in such a genre as a comic opera, there should absolutely be no murder, especially such a terrible and sophisticated one. In his opinion, violence absolutely does not fit into the norms of a decent society. He tried in every possible way to convince the authors of this, repeatedly invited librettists to his conversation, persuading them to make Carmen's character softer and change the ending. The latter was required in order for the audience to leave the theater at good mood. However, they never reached an agreement, and as a result, Adolf was forced to leave his post. This has become a kind of protest against the performance, which promotes the murder.
- "Carmen" has become latest opera staged on the stage of the Bolshoi (Stone) Theater. It was with this work that the theater decided to end its history - after the last performance it was closed, then transferred to the RMO, and then completely demolished. In 1896, the building of the St. Petersburg Conservatory was erected in its place.
The text was completely ready by the spring of 1873, and at the same time the composer set to work. The opera was completely finished in the summer of 1874.
However, the rejection of this opera appeared long before it was staged, as soon as the idea was voiced - the abundance of dramatic events and the intensity of passions were not suitable for the stage in which the first production was planned. The thing is that the Opera Comic was considered a secular theater, which was visited only by representatives of the wealthy class. Going to the theater, they knew in advance that they would see an easy genre with an abundance of funny situations. This audience was far from frenzied passions, and certainly, bloody murders. In the opera, heroes and passions unacceptable to the public were presented - girls not burdened with morality, cigarette factory workers, robbers, military deserters.
The image of the young Spanish gypsy Carmen was originally described in the short story of the same name by P. Merime in 1845. Big Picture the character of the fatal beauty is made up of male book narratives.
The narrator meets a gypsy on the embankment. The Frenchman has mixed feelings when looking at the maid dark forces. He looks at her with an interest that veers into fear and alienation. Gloomy light, the background of a dark night river, give tragedy and a gloomy atmosphere that will haunt the characters throughout the story.
Georges Bizet, creating an opera
Bizet began work on the opera in 1874. "Carmen" stage subsequently underwent major changes. The libretto was full of drama and deep emotional contrasts, the acting characters became more vivid. A colorful folk gypsy theme was added to the opera. The premiere of the story of the life and love of a Spanish woman took place in 1875, but was absolutely unsuccessful, since the concepts of morality of that time differed from those laid down in the opera.
The first to appreciate the image of the girl was Tchaikovsky. According to him, this masterpiece of Bidet reflects everything musical goals era. After 10 years, the picture "Carmen" is gaining more and more popularity and wins the hearts of the audience.
Opera Bizet brought in the appearance of a gypsy folk traits character. To do this, the composer moved the scene of the events to the square and the unimaginable beauty of the mountainous expanses. Wild gorges and gloomy urban slums have been replaced by the sunny streets of Seville. Bizet created a Spain full of joyful life.
He placed in all places a mass of people, which is in constant motion, depicting happy life. An important shade of the opera was the inclusion of folk episodes. The gloomy features of the drama took on the appearance of an optimistic tragedy of what is happening.
Bizet invested in the idea of the opera the importance of affirming the rights of people to express the freedom of feelings. The opera was a clash of two points of view psychological development humanity. If Jose defends only the patriarchal view, then the gypsy is trying to prove that life in freedom, which is not constrained by the norms and dogmas of accepted morality in society, is much better and more beautiful.
Gypsy image of Carmen in the opera "Carmen"
The gypsy is one of the brightest heroines opera life. Passionate temperament, female irresistibility and independence - all this literally screams in the image of Carmen. She has almost nothing to do with her literary heroine in description. All this was done intentionally in order to open more passion in the heroine and remove the cunning and thieving manners of the book character. Moreover, Bizet gave her the opportunity to seek the right to gain her freedom with the tragic condition - the loss of her own life.
The opera overture is initial description musical image Carmen. A fatal passion is played out between a gypsy and a Spaniard, Jose. The music is reminiscent of the leitmotif from the bullfighters' festival, it is sharp and quick-tempered. Subsequently, this motif returns in dramatic scenes.
Spaniard portrait
The full image of Carmen is revealed through the famous spanish dance habanera, which is the progenitor of tango. Bizet created a whole range of languid, sensual, passionate movements to the real melody of Cuban freedom. This is not just a portrait of a hot gypsy, but also a story in motion about her desire to be free in her love - this is her life position.
The characterization of the girl is kept in the dance variation until the third act. This is a series of scenes with songs and dancing Spanish rhythms. Gypsy folklore completes the picture when the interrogation episode comes. In it, Carmen sings a playful gypsy song, she taunts and defiantly, singing one verse after another.
Hispanic gypsy character
More meaningful description the image of Carmen appears in Spanish folk dance Seguidilla. Under the virtuoso playing, the gypsy shows her peculiar Spanish character, and the composer compares the minor and major scales.
Cymbals, a tambourine and a triangle in the next act return the gypsy look to the image of Carmen. The growing dynamics of the tempo gives the girl a perky, energetic and temperamental look.
The image of Carmen in a duet
Military guy Jose, in love with a gypsy, follows with joy in his eyes her songs and dances using a castanet. The melody is simple enough that Carmen sings it without using words. Jose admires the girl, but remembers his military duty as soon as he hears the call to muster.
However, the freedom-loving Carmen does not understand this attachment, even after Jose's declaration of love, she does not stop reproaching the guy. After that, the duet turns into a solo gypsy who wants to lure a young military man into her life full of freedom. Here you can see a very simple and frivolous image of a passionate gypsy.
Big solo exit
Her solo performance takes great place at the opera. It is built on the themes of farewell to one's duty and escape to one's native land. The second theme is accompanied by a tarantella dance, and the first theme is accompanied by song motifs. As a result, all this turns into a kind of hymn to freedom.
However, the conflict is aggravated, and the more the girl's experience grows, the deeper and more dramatic the image of Carmen becomes. Crucial moment occurs only during the aria in the divination scene. Carmen finally realizes that having only selfish intentions to bend others to her will, she loses her own "I". For the first time, a gypsy thinks about how she burns her life.
End of opera
In the divination scene, the characterization of Carmen's image has three forms. The first and last are funny songs with girlfriends, the second is a separate aria of a gypsy. The expressiveness of the performance of the aria is hallmark image of Carmen in this phase of the opera. The song was originally set to be performed in minor, without dance accompaniment. The low tones of the orchestra part, in which a gloomy color is achieved thanks to the sound of trombones, bring an atmosphere of mourning. The wave principle of vocals is adjacent to the rhythmic pattern of musical accompaniment.
The gypsy performs the last act in duets with Escamillo, who brings an imprint of love into the image of Carmen. The second duet is embodied with Jose, it resembles a tragic duel full of sorrow - it is the culmination of the entire opera "Carmen". The image of Carmen is adamant to the entreaties and threats of José. She dryly and succinctly answers the melodic songs of the military. The theme of passion reappears in the orchestra.
The development of events takes place along a dramatic line with the intrusion of the cries of outsiders. The finale of the opera ends with Carmen's death while Escamillo is honored as the winner. Born in freedom, the gypsy decides to commit suicide and prove that she is also free in this choice. The festive sound of the theme of the march of the bullfighters is compared with a fatal motive.
