Dantes Divine Comedy inspires Puccini Gianni Schicchi is a comic opera in one act by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Giovacchino Forzano, composed in 1917–18. The libretto is based on an incident mentioned in Dantes Divine Comedy. The work is the third and final part of Puccinis Il trittico (The Triptych)—three one-act operas with contrasting themes, originally written to be presented together. Although it continues to be performed with one or both of the other trittico operas, Gianni Schicchi is now more frequently staged either alone or with short operas by other composers. The aria O mio babbino caro is one of Puccinis best known, and one of the most popular arias in opera. Puccini had long considered writing a set of one-act operas which would be performed together in a single evening, but faced with a lack of suitable subjects and opposition from his publisher, he repeatedly put the project aside. However, by 1916 Puccini had completed the one-act tragedy Il tabarro and, after considering various ideas, he began work the following year on the solemn, religious, all-female opera Suor Angelica. Gianni Schicchi, a comedy, completes the triptych with a further contrast of mood. The score combines elements of Puccinis modern style of harmonic dissonance with lyrical passages reminiscent of Rossini, and it has been praised for its inventiveness and imagination. When Il trittico premiered at New Yorks Metropolitan Opera in December 1918, Gianni Schicchi became an immediate hit, whereas the other two operas were received with less enthusiasm. This pattern was broadly repeated at the Rome and London premieres and led to commercial pressures to abandon the less successful elements. Although on artistic grounds Puccini opposed performing the three operas except as the original triptych, by 1920 he had given his reluctant consent to separate performances. Gianni Schicchi has subsequently become the most-performed part of Il trittico and has been widely recorded. A man named Gianni Schicchi is only briefly referred to in Dantes Inferno Canto XXX. In that canto, Dante visits the Circle of Impersonators and sees a man savagely attacking another. Dante is told that the attacker is Schicchi, condemned to Hell for impersonating Buoso Donati and making his will highly favorable to Schicchi. The plot used in the opera derives from an 1866 edition of The Divine Comedy by philologist Pietro Fanfani, which contained an appendix with commentary attributed to an anonymous Florentine of the 14th century. In this version, Buoso wishes to make a will, but is put off doing so by his son, Simone. Once it is too late, Simone fears that Buoso, before his illness, may have made a will unfavourable to him. Simone calls on Schicchi for advice, and Schicchi has the idea of impersonating Buoso and making a new will. Simone promises Schicchi he will be well rewarded, but Schicchi takes no chances, leaving a considerable sum and Buosos mule to himself (though most goes to Simone), and makes the bequests conditional on Simones distributing the estate within fifteen days, otherwise everything will go to charity. Both Schicchi and Buoso Donati were historical characters. Dantes verses, and the opera, are based on an actual incident that took place in 13th century Florence. Dante had several reasons for his harsh treatment of Schicchi: Dantes wife, Gemma, was of the Donati family; the poet himself was of pure Florentine descent. He despised members of the peasant class such as Schicchi. Dantes class prejudice displays itself in several episodes in the Inferno: in one, three noble Florentines, who have died and gone to Hell, ask Dante for news of their home city. A disgusted Dante tells them that the city is now dominated by the nouveau riche. According to Burton Fisher, Puccini and Forzano borrowed heavily from the commedia dellarte tradition in Gianni Schicchi. Schicchi himself recalls the roguish Harlequin, while his daughter Lauretta, whose romance is nearly foiled by Buosos relatives, resembles Columbina. Simone is drawn from Pantaloon, while the poverty-stricken Betto recalls the buffoonish valet Zany. Doctor Spinelloccio recalls the classic doctor from the commedia dellarte, Balanzone even to his Bolognese origin. The Moor whose death momentarily scares the relatives, and his captain, are stock characters from commedia dellarte.
Posted on: Sat, 13 Sep 2014 18:54:20 +0000
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