[Transcriber's Note: The Complete Opera Book has been an important opera reference work since its first publication in 1919. It has been revised and updated a number of times, most famously by George Lascelles, 7th Earl of Harewood, and most recently in 1997.
This e-book was prepared from the 1919 first edition. Gustav Kobbé was killed in a sailing accident in 1918 and apparently did not have the opportunity to make corrections before the book was published. There are consequently numerous typographical, spelling, and formatting errors and inconsistencies in the first edition, the most obvious of which have been corrected without note in this e-book. Ambiguous errors are noted in a [Transcriber's Note] where they appear. The author's deliberate interchanges of foreign words or names and their equivalents in English or other languages have been preserved as they appear in the original. Misplaced Table of Contents and index entries have been moved to their proper places.
Photograph illustrations have been moved so as not to break up the flow of the text.
Italic text is marked with underscores, and bold text with =equal signs=.]
The Complete Opera Book
The Stories of the Operas, together with 400 of the Leading Airs and Motives in Musical Notation
By
Gustav Kobbé
Author of "Wagner's Music-Dramas Analysed," "All-of-a-Sudden Carmen," etc.
Illustrated with One Hundred Portraits in Costume and Scenes from Opera
G.P. Putnam's Sons New York and London =The Knickerbocker Press= 1919
COPYRIGHT, 1919 BY GUSTAV KOBBÉ
=The Knickerbocker Press, New York=
By Gustav Kobbé
All-of-a-Sudden Carmen The Complete Opera Book
FOREWORD
Through the thoughtfulness of William J. Henderson I was asked to supply material for The Complete Opera Book, which was missing at the time of Mr. Kobbé's death.
In performing my share of the work it has been my endeavor to confine myself to facts, rather than to intrude with personal opinions upon a work which should stand as a monument to Mr. Kobbé's musical knowledge and convictions.
KATHARINE WRIGHT.
NEW YORK, 1919.
Contents
PAGE
Schools of Opera 1
Opera before Gluck 4
Christoph Willibald Gluck, 1714-1787 8 Orpheus and Eurydice Armide Iphigenia in Tauris
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, 1756-1791 21 Marriage of Figaro Don Giovanni Magic Flute
Ludwig van Beethoven, 1770-1827 54 Fidelio
Carl Maria von Weber, 1786-1826 63 Freischütz Euryanthe Oberon
Why Some Operas are rarely given 77
From Weber to Wagner 79
Richard Wagner, 1813-1883 81 Rienzi Flying Dutchman Tannhäuser Lohengrin Ring of the Nibelung Rheingold--Walküre--Siegfried--Götterdämmerung Tristan and Isolde Meistersinger Parsifal
Gioachino Antonio Rossini, 1792-1868 293 Barber of Seville Semiramide William Tell
Vincenzo Bellini, 1802-1835 318 Sonnambula Norma Puritani
Gaetano Donizetti, 1797-1848 334 Elisire d'Amore Lucrezia Borgia Lucia di Lammermoor Daughter of the Regiment Favorita Linda di Chamounix Don Pasquale
Giuseppe Verdi, 1813-1901 376 Ernani Rigoletto Trovatore Traviata Ballo in Maschera
Before and After "Ballo in Maschera" 433 Luisa Miller Sicilian Vespers Force of Destiny Don Carlos Aïda Othello Falstaff
Arrigo Boïto, 1842- 474 Mephistopheles Nero
Amilcare Ponchielli, 1834-1886 481 Gioconda
French Opera 493
Méhul to Meyerbeer 495
Étienne Nicholas Méhul, 1763-1817 495 Joseph
François Adrien Boieldieu, 1775-1834 495 Caliph of Bagdad Jean de Paris Dame Blanche
Daniel François Esprit Auber, 1782-1871 496 Masaniello Fra Diavolo
Louis J.F. Hérold, 1791-1833 497 Zampa
Adolphe Charles Adam, 1802-1856 497 Postilion of Longumeau
Jacques François Fromental Élie Halévy, 1799-1862 498 Juive
Giacomo Meyerbeer, 1791-1864 499 Robert le Diable Huguenots Prophet L'Africaine Star of the North Dinorah
Hector Berlioz, 1803-1869 535 Benvenuto Cellini Beatrice and Benedict Trojans Damnation of Faust
Friedrich von Flotow, 1812-1883 546 Martha
Charles François Gounod, 1818-1893 561 Faust Romeo and Juliet
Ambroise Thomas, 1811-1896 580 Mignon Hamlet
Georges Bizet 586 Carmen Pearl Fishers Djamileh
Italian Opera Since Verdi 607
Pietro Mascagni, 1863- 610 Cavalleria Rusticana Maschere Friend Fritz Iris Lodoletta Isabeau
Ruggiero Leoncavallo, 1858- 627 Pagliacci
Giacomo Puccini, 1858- 638 Villi Manon Lescaut Bohème Tosca Madam Butterfly Girl of the Golden West Rondine Sister Angelica Tabarro Gianni Schicchi
Riccardo Zandonai 680 Francesca da Rimini
Franco Leoni, 1864- 686 L'Oracolo Rip Van Winkle Raggio di Luna Ib and Little Christina
Italo Montemezzi, 1875- 690 Love of Three Kings Giovanni Gallurese Hélléra
Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari, 1876- 698 Jewels of the Madonna Donne Curiose Secret of Suzanne Doctor Cupid
Umberto Giordano, 1867- 707 Madame Sans-Gêne André Chénier Fedora Siberia
Modern Italian Opera 715
Luigi Mancinelli 715 Ero e Leandro
Riccardo Zandonai 716 Conchita
Alberto Franchetti 717 Cristoforo Colombo
Luigi and Federico Ricci 718 Crispino e la Comare
Alfred Catalani 719 Loreley
Umberto Giordano 720 Fedora
Alberto Franchetti 721 Germania
Modern French Opera 723
Jacques Offenbach 723 Tales of Hoffmann
Delibes 724 Lakmé
Saint-Saëns 725 Samson et Dalila
Lalo 727 Roi d'Ys
Massenet 727 Grisélidis Thaïs Manon Le Cid Don Quichotte Cinderella Navarraise Jongleur de Nôtre Dame Werther Hérodiade Sapho Cléopâtre
Gustave Charpentier 750 Louise
Reyer 752 Salammbô
Debussy 752 Pelléas and Mélisande
Pierre Louÿs 756 Aphrodite
Alfred Bruneau 758 Attack on the Mill
Paul Dukas 759 Ariadne and Blue-Beard
Henri Février 761 Monna Vanna Gismonda
Henri Rabaud 763 Marouf
Sylvio Lazzari 764 Grasshopper
Xavier Leroux 765 Queen Fiammette Wayfarer
Raoul Gunsbourg 767 Old Eagle
Modern German and Bohemian Opera 769 St. Elizabeth
Peter Cornelius 770 Barber of Bagdad
Herman Goetz 772 Taming of the Shrew
Karl Goldmark 773 Queen of Sheba Cricket on the Hearth
Engelbert Humperdinck 776 Königskinder Hänsel and Gretel
Brüll 779 Golden Cross
Blech 781 Sealed In
Viktor E. Nessler 784 Trumpeter of Säkkingen
Wilhelm Kienzl 787 Evangelist Kuhreigen