Famous American Writer of Modern Women's Movement, Poet & Novelist
Brief biography of famous American Poet and Novelist Sylvia Plath – her life and works - still shrouded with controversy due to her suicide at young age of 30.
Sylvia Plath, born in Boston, Massachussetts on October 27, 1932, was a renowned American poet whose brilliant career was cut short by her tragic suicide, February 11, 1963, aged 30. Nearly 20 years after her death, in 1982, she was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for her Collected Poems.
Plath's father, a German immigrant and biology
professor, died when she was eight. She was close to her father as evident in her poetry. Her mother was a secondary school teacher. From an early age, Plath had a drive to achieve. After the trauma of her father's death, she published
her first poem. By the time she was 18, she had published poetry and stories, and won a scholarship to Smith College.
While still at Smith College, she had bout with depression, and had a mental breakdown which became the subject of her autobiographical novel, The Bell Jar. Despite her illness, she returned to Smith and graduated with honours, then went to Cambridge University on a Fulbright Fellowship. At Cambridge, she met and married the English poet, Ted Hughes. Plath retained her maiden name.
The couple lived briefly in the US after graduating from Cambridge, and taught at Smith. At age 28, she gave birth to a daughter and also published her poetry collection, The Colossus. The same year, they returned to England and she had a son two years later.
French Composer famous for songs 'Habanera' and 'The Toreador's Song' from Opera Carmen
Georges Bizet's brief biography – his life and works. Best known for his masterpiece 'Carmen,' one of best-loved opera consistently performed.
French composer Georges Bizet (1838-1875) is best celebrated for his masterpiece Carmen, popular to this day. Bizet, born in Paris on October 25 1838, was trained by his parents who were musical, his father a pianist and a voice teacher.
He was admitted to the Paris Conservatoire
before his 10th birthday. There he studied counterpoint with Zimmerman and Gounod and composition with Halevy. Under Marmontel’s tuition he became a brilliant pianist. In particular, Halevy (composer of La Juive) and Gounod (composer of Faust) had strong influence on his career.
His exceptional strengths as a composer were
apparent from his conservatory years, especially his Symphony in C (1855). This was followed by his operetta, Le Docteur Miracle (The Miracle Doctor),the start of his operatic career.
During his three years in Rome, Bizet started many compositions but shortly after his return to Paris, in September 1861, his mother died. He was devastated and consoled himself with his parents’ maid by whom he had a son.
Bizet lived Paris during a time when opera in Paris was at its height, with almost all 19th-century opera composers including Wagner and Verdi, wanted to perform their works in Paris Opéra.
In 1863, he produced the opera Les pecheurs de perles (The Pearl Fishers).
With more abortive works and his quinsy, the
year 1868 was a crisis for Bizet. It was also during this time that he re-examined his religious beliefs. He was convinced that in Djamileh he had found his true path.
He produced the incidental music and his most
popular orchestral work L’Arlesienne (The Girl from Arles),
followed by his operatic masterpiece Carmen in 1874. From Carmen's inspiration, he reached new levels in his depiction of musical character and atmosphere. However, his Carmen was condemned for its ‘obscene’ libretto, and the music was criticized as undistinguished, obscure, and without taste. This reception left Georges Bizet devastated, acutely depressed. He fell victim to another attack of quinsy, and with two heart attacks from which he died on 3rd of June 1875, in Bougival.
Sadly, Georges Bizet never knew the success of his
masterpiece Carmen, as his death
occurred exactly three months after its world premiere, 3rd of March 1875. Only then was his true
stature appreciated.
George Bizet's Major Works:
1855 Symphony in C
1856 Operetta, Le Docteur Miracle ('The Miracle
Doctor')
1863 Opera, Les pecheurs de perles ('The Pearl
Fishers')
1866 Opera, La jolie fille de Perth, based on the novel by Sir Walter
Scott
1871 Opera, Djamileh
1871 Jeux d'enfants for piano duet, orchestrated as
'Petite Suite'
1872 Incidental music to Alphonse Daudet's play
L'Arlésienne Suites 1 & 2 ('The Girl from Arles')
1875 Opera in four acts, Carmen.
Suggested
CD:
Carmen, Erato 2292-45207-2. J. Migenes (Carmen) and P. Domingo (Don José)
Image Credit:
Georges Bizet. Public Domain.
Resources:
Georges Bizet. en.wikipedia.org.
Sadie, Stanley, Ed. The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 2nd
Ed. London: Macmillan Publihsers. 2000.
Note: I published my original article for www.suite101.com in 2007 prior this amended piece. / Tel
(c) September 2007. Tel. Inspired Pen Web. All rights reserved.
Libretto: Joseph F. Sonnleithner based on a libretto by Jean-Nicolas Bouilly, later, revised by G.F.
Treitschke. Also revised by Beethoven with premieres on March 29, 1806 and May
23, 1814. The work has a long and complicated history of composition. It went through three versions during Beethoven's career. However, there are four versions of the overture. The composer spent more time writing
the overture to Fidelio than Rossini and Donizetti spent on an entire
opera, overture included. Beethoven wrote a total of four overtures to this, his only opera.
Language: German
First performance: Vienna, Theater an der Wien, November 20,
1805. Final version performed at the Theater am Karnthnertor, Vienna, May 23, 1814.
Setting: 18th century Spain, a fortress near Seville.
Opera in Two Acts.
For all of
Beethoven's many works including symphonies, concertos, chamber music and
songs, the master only produced one opera, Fidelio.
The plot of Fidelio is simple: love triumphs over
injustice, in particular, marital love. By this time he was writing this, Beethoven
was beset with hearing problems and eventually deafness.
Fidelio carries Beethoven's
musical signature, a powerful orchestration, and therefore requires equally powerful
vocalists to blend with the orchestra. Fidelio
exhudes that glorious music displayed both in the exquisite aria opening, for
example, by Florestan in Act 2 in his dark solitary dungeon, as well as the
prisoners' chorus at the end of Act 1.
Enjoy this video I found from YouTube. Leonard Bernstein conducts the Vienna State Opera, with Gundula Janowitz and Lucia Popp singing. Directed by Otto Schenk. Uploaded by Stanley Chang. Accessed 23 May 2021.
The Characters / Roles in Fidelio
Florestan, A Spanish nobleman (tenor)
Leonore / Fidelio, His wife, in disguise as Fidelio(soprano)
Don Pizarro, Governor (bass
baritone)
Rocco, The jailer (bass)
Marzelline, Rocco's daughter (soprano)
Jaquino, The porter (tenor)
Don Fernando, The Minister (bass)
Plot
Summary / Synopsis of Fidelio
Act
1.
Scene 1. A room in Rocco's jail quarters
The jailer's daughter Marcelline, loves
Fidelio and ignores the advances of the porter Jaquino. Fidelio is the poor young
man hired by her father as an assistant. What Marcelline does not suspect is
that Fidelio is really Leonora, a woman in disguise, who came out in search for
her husband Florestan. Rocco the jailer is most impressed with Fidelio and
plans to offer him his daughter Marcelline. Fidelio/Leonora persuades Rocco to
let her help him with his work in prison. Meanwhile, Rocco tells them about a
mysterious political prisoner whom he has been starving on the orders of overseer
Don Pizarro. This mysterious prisoner is none other than Florestan.
Scene 2. The courtyard of a state prison
Pizarro has wrongly imprisoned Florestan
and plots to murder him. He is worried when he learns that the minister
Fernando is coming. When Rocco refuses to kill Florestan, Pizarro decides to do it himself. Marcelline
and Leonora persuade Rocco to let the prisoners go out for a walk. Pizarro
arrives, furious at Rocco's lenient treatment of the prisoners.
Act
2.
Scene 1: Florestan's dark dungeon
Leonora still disguised as Fidelio, has come to
find Florestan. When Rocco and Fidelio/Leonora enter Florestan's cell and dig
out an old well for a makeshift grave, Leonora immediately recognizes Florestan.
She and Rocco give him food and reveal that Pizarro is the overseer of the
jail. When Pizarro tries to stab Florestan, Leonora reveals her identity and
draws a pistol. Pizarro rushes out and husband and wife embrace.
Scene 2: On the ramparts before the castle
The prisoners and guards are jubilant and hail
Don Fernando's arrival and their liberation. The minister is surprised and
pleased to learn that Florestan is alive. Upon learning from Rocco what has
happened, Fernando frees Florestan and has Pizzaro arrested. All hail Leonora's
courage and devotion.
Resources:
Martin, Nicholas Ivor. The
Da Capo Opera Manual . Da
Capo Press (1997)
