Italian composer Vincenzo Bellini entered the history of musical culture as an outstanding master of belcanto - a special style of performance in Italian opera, which emerged in the mid-seventeenth century. and retained its charm and influence for several centuries, writing one of the finest pages in the development of Italian opera. On the back of one of the gold medals, issued in honor of W. Bellini during his lifetime, carved a short inscription: "Creator of Italian melodies." Even the genius of G. Rossini could not overshadow his fame. Bellini's unusual melodic talent allowed him to create original and full of mysterious lyric intonation, able to influence a wide range of listeners. Bellini's music was loved by M. Glinka, F. Chopin and F. Liszt, and she made an unforgettable impression on J. Goethe and M. Stankevich. T. Granovsky, T. Shevchenko. Peter Tchaikovsky recalled: "I have always had great sympathy for Bellini. As a child, I cried because of the power of feelings that aroused in me graceful, always imbued with melancholy melodies of his. Such outstanding vocalists of the 19th century as Polina Viardo, sisters Julia and Judith Grisi, Maria Malibran, Judith Pasta, Giambattista Rubini, and Antonio Tamburini sang brilliantly in the composer's works.
After the first operas written by Bellini, he was recognized by the Italian public, and later the composer gained European fame. In his work he went on to create a lyrical musical drama, full of humanism, democratic in content and musical language, based on melody.
Vincenzo Bellini was born on November 3, 1801 in Catania and "the first thing his children's eyes saw was the sea, the waves of which, washing the walls of Athens, die with melodic noise off the coast of Sicily, this second Greece, and the fabulous ancient Etna, near which the myths of Ovid and the poem of Virgil are still alive even eight hundred years later. No wonder Bellini was the most poetic nature imaginable; his very talent, which should be perceived through the prism of feeling, and not according to the canons of science, is only a primordial song, tender and sad as a memory, only an echo, like that dozing in the mountains and forests and whispering something barely audible while his will not arouse the cry of passion or pain (the short story "Pascal Bruno" by Alexandre Dumas).
The future composer was born in a family where the profession of musician was passed down from generation to generation. Bellini's grandfather was the conductor, organist and composer, and his father was a composer and music teacher. Unable to study in his hometown, Bellini, an extremely musically gifted young man, moved to Naples, where he entered the College of San Sebastiano, which united the Neapolitan conservatories and was at the time the most prestigious music school in Italy.
The musical life of Naples captivated a vulnerable young man. Here he could listen to operas by N. Tsingarelli, J. Tritto - his conservative teachers, operas by composers of the new generation - G. Pacini and J. Mercadante. Naples also hosted the premiere of many of Rossini's operas, which helped revive the genre, which was in crisis at the time. One of the main shortcomings of the opera of that time was the lack of dramatic integrity and weakness of the libretto. Most of the musical and stage works were nothing more than a series of musical numbers, conditionally united by a plot. Opera arias were saturated with virtuoso passages that did not correspond to the nature of the stage image and content. It was G. Rossini who introduced heroic themes into the opera, which was in tune with the events of that time in both Italy and Europe.
The life and work of Vincenzo Bellini passed in the turbulent era of the early Risorgimento (1780-1831, Risorgimento - revival) - a period of national liberation movement in Italy for the creation of a single independent state. Its initial period was marked by natural unrest, speeches of patriots. The march of Napoleon's army to Italy, the creation of republics in the territories liberated from the Austrian Empire, raised the people's spirit and aroused in the people a "thirst to become a nation" (Stendhal).
Risorgimento's sprouts also appear in musical theater. These are the last operas of D. Chimaroza, a participant in the Neapolitan revolution of 1799. After the fall of the republics in Italy, the absolutist regime was restored. The fifteen-year period of Napoleon's reign was not easy. But despite numerous persecutions, the age-old political stagnation was over. A new generation of people with national democratic ideas has emerged. The awakening of national self-consciousness was manifested in the organization of secret societies, which after 1815 directed their activities against monarchical regimes and Austria, for national independence. In the Kingdom of Naples (Italy then consisted of eight states) began the Carbonari movement, which spread throughout Italy.
The atmosphere of pre-revolutionary Naples also affected the life and work of young Bellini. Overwhelmed with patriotic feelings, the composer and his friend Florimo (later a music writer) joined one of the Carbonari vents - a landmark act for which one of the conservatory's directors threatened students with expulsion and a statement to the police.
Risorgimento's ideas gave rise to a new trend in literature and art - romanticism. Italian romanticism, full of heroic pathos and the pursuit of a common goal - the liberation of the homeland, was also vividly expressed in the opera - a genre of great emotional influence. The founder of the Italian Romantic Musical Theater was G. Rossini (1792-1868). Following Rossini and other composers, they turned to the heroic pages of history and, most importantly for romantic opera, to the world of human feelings. The next step in the development of romantic opera in Italy was made by Rossini's younger contemporaries - G. Mercadante (1790-1870), G. Donizetti (1797-1848) and W. Bellini.
During his studies at the conservatory, Bellini wrote three symphonies, a concerto for oboe and string orchestra, and several chamber vocal and spiritual works. His symphonic work went beyond student works – these were real masterpieces. The vocal style of his future operas was developed in romances and chamber works of those years. In the last student work of the composer - the opera "Adelson and Salvini" (1825), which he made his debut at the Conservatory of Naples, the lyrical talent of the composer was clearly shown. His name became known in Naples. The way to the stage of the famous San Carlo Theater was open.
Usually the city theater included in the repertoire of works written by the most talented students of the conservatory. Bellini was also honored with this honor. As an exception, he was allowed to write an opera slightly larger in size than was customary. This opera was "Bianca and Fernando" (1826), about which, present at the play G. Donizetti said: "The work is beautiful, the most beautiful, especially for those who write for the first time."
After a successful debut at the Teatro San Carlo, Bellini was recommended to the management of Milan's La Scala Theater, for which he was contracted to write an opera for the new season. In Milan he met Felice Romani (1788-1865), a prominent Italian librettist of the first half of the 19th century. F. Romani wrote operas by G. Rossini, G. Mercadante, G. Donizetti, and later the young J. Verdi. The librettist was distinguished by creative imagination, his texts were of high literary quality, marked by the musicality of recitation.
The premieres of the operas The Pirate (1827) and The Stranger (1829) were held with great success at La Scala. Later, analyzing the peculiarities of Bellini's melody, J. Verdi wrote: "Even in his least popular operas, such as" Alien "," Pirate ", there are melodies that pour, pour, pour; they are written in a way that no one has written before him. "
In 1828, on the occasion of the opening of the Carlo Felice Theater in Genoa, a new edition of the opera "Bianca and Fernando" was staged. At the Bellini Theater, he first met Judith Turin, the wife of a Genoese businessman with whom the composer had a close relationship for many years and who inspired Bellini to work.
After a rather mediocre public perception of the opera Zaire (1829) in Parma, the composer wrote Capuletti and Montecchi (1830). The opera, performed for the first time on the stage of the Venetian La Fenice Theater, was greeted with admiration by the audience.
The composer's fame grew even more after the premiere of "Somnambula" (1831), which took place at the Carcano Theater in Milan with the participation of prominent singers Judith Pasta and Giambattista Rubini. M. Glinka, who was in Milan at that time, heard "Somnambula" and personally met Bellini -… I often met Bellini, with whom I became somewhat close. Although he was born at the foot of Mount Etna, in Catania, he was blond, white and very pleasant-looking, slender.
The composer's fame extends beyond Italy. In 1833, the composer traveled to London, where with the participation of famous singers J. Pasta and J. Rubini was shown "Somnambulus" at the Royal Theater, and soon at the Italian Theater in Paris.
In a severe state of nervousness, which overwhelmed the composer due to intrigue and rivalry between Milan's "big" La Scala theater and "small" Carcano, in which Bellini was not voluntarily involved, the composer began work on "Norma". On December 26, 1831, the La Scala Theater opened the winter season with this opera. The main parts were performed by Juditta Pasta (Norma), Vincenzo Negrini (Orovez), Domenico Donzelli (Pollion), Julia Grisi (Adalgiza). The performance of the opera was accompanied by shouts and whistles. As Bellini said, there was a "brilliant failure." The composer, realizing that the work did not deserve such a reception, was in despair. He wrote to his friend Florimo: "In spite of everything, I tell you frankly only that the introduction, the exit, the cavatine of Norma, the duet of two women with the next trio, the finale of Act I and then another duet of women, the whole finale of Act II, beginning with the anthem of war. all these are fragments of music that I like so much that I would be happy if I could create something similar in my future artistic life. "
Many researchers of Bellini's work have written about the hostile situation surrounding the "Norma" associated with the intrigues of influential people about the rivalry between composers (meaning between Bellini and Pacini). But there were other reasons for misunderstanding and rejection of the work. The Italian public of the time did not immediately understand its innovative nature: the complexity of the dramatically rich overture, the unusual construction of the scenes, the image of Norma, shrouded in mysterious light. The deep psychological finale of Act II, written without the usual pomp, caused complete surprise.
Meanwhile, the following performances of "Norma" were held with increasing success. The audience began to get used to the nature of the opera's musical drama and the novelty of its language. Shortly after performing in Italy, "Norma" toured the stages of many European theaters.
The source of the opera's libretto was the tragedy "Norma" by the playwright A. Sume triumphantly staged at the Odeon Theater in Paris (1831). The action takes place during Roman rule in ancient Gaul, in northwestern Europe, inhabited by Celtic tribes. In the first century. the Celtic tribes were conquered by the Romans and were called Gauls. The libretto "Norma" is one of the best works of Felice Romani. The Italian musicologist D. de Paoli wrote that "this is a real" tragedia lirica ", in the creation of which such a connoisseur of classical literature as Romani was undoubtedly guided by the examples of Greek tragedy."
According to this libretto, W. Bellini created a musical tragedy, unlike the opera series, based on new principles of musical drama. The strength of the influence of "Norma" in its sublimity and sincerity of human relations. There are no descriptive pages, no "decorative touches" in the opera's score, everything is aimed at revealing the state of mind of the heroes. "I want to find an idea that is both a prayer and a curse, a threat and a passion," Bellini told his librettist Romani. The pathetic heroic scenes, where the dreams of the enslaved people about freedom are embodied, are far from external spectacularity. The main protagonists of the opera - Pollion, Roman proconsul in Gaul; Orovez is the high priest of the Druids, Norma, his daughter, is a soothsayer, and Adalgiza, a servant in the Druid temple. The idea of the liberation struggle against foreign oppression is skillfully intertwined with melodrama, with love intrigue - an all-consuming feeling that comes into conflict with responsibilities. Norma must signal to his countrymen before the uprising against the hated Romans. But the soul of the priestess is filled with conflicting feelings: she loves the enemy of her people - the Roman Pollion, for whom she broke her vow of chastity and who became the father of her two sons. In the first picture of the opera, she still does not dare to call on her compatriots to revolt and war against Rome: by preserving peace, thereby saving the life of her beloved. However, Norma feels that Pollion has cooled down to her, and suffers from jealousy, sadness, anxiety, not yet knowing that her rival - Adalgiza. The classic love triangle leads to a tragic outcome. Norma, sacrificing herself, solemnly descends to the sacrificial fire. Passion flares up in Pollion's proud heart again. Impressed by the nobility and strength of Norma's soul, he follows her. They are forever connected by an all-consuming flame.
In "Norma" W. Bellini multifacetedly revealed the character of the main character - a strong, passionate woman who loves hot and unconditionally and suffers deeply. The pearl of the opera was the aria of Norma "Casta diva" - one of the best melodies ever created in the history of musical art. "Casta diva" is a prayer of the moon, a goddess whose face looks from the night sky. The cult of the Druids provided for the sacred rite of harvesting mistletoe bushes with a golden sickle on a moonlit night. The music of the aria conveys a complex range of feelings that change each other. The main mood is prayerful, strict and clear. This character of the music is enhanced by the choir of priests who take part in the ceremony together with Norma and sing along to her. However, in the major music of the aria, stormy notes, tense and tragic intonations break through from time to time, conveying the heroine's mental anguish. The subtlety and psychological complexity of the cavatine is that Norma can not reveal his feelings to anyone - except his goddess, the moon. Concluding the prayer and the rite, Norma hopes to believe in a happy fate, cutting off the branches of the sacred mistletoe with a golden sickle and thus ordering to keep the peace. With its sublime simplicity, the melody of the aria is reminiscent of Ave Maria, prayer songs in honor of the Blessed Virgin, of which there are so many in Italian music. Love is timid, love full of doubts, which is heard in the first part of the melody, in the second part of it turns into a solemn hymn. Such intensity of musical "events" in one melodic aria is extremely rare. The meaning of Norma's aria goes beyond music alone. It shows forever how timid earthly love turns into heavenly love; this aria reveals the beauty, power and immortality of human feelings, not subject to petty passions and earthly temptations.
The Norma part is an excellent example of operatic belcanto and one of the most difficult in the soprano's repertoire. It was written for Judith Pasta, who also sang Amina in Sleepwalker. At the first rehearsal of "Norma" the singer refused to sing the cava "Casta diva" due to vocal difficulties. Disputes with the diva lasted a long time, but W. Bellini defended his position. During the twentieth century, only a few singers had enough skills to cope with Norma's party - Rosa Poncelle (early 1920s), then Joan Sutherland (1960s), Montserrat Caballe. Maria Callas was the most famous Norma. She performed it 89 times, and made official recordings in 1954 and 1960. Brilliant partners on the stage of the famous singer were Franco Corelli (Pollion) and Christa Ludwig (Adalgis).
Quite a significant role of choral singing in "Norma". Choral scenes with druids and warlike Gauls are impressive. The declamatory manner, the sharpness of the dotted rhythms, the strict and strong-willed nature of the music - all this unites the choral scenes of "Norma" with the tradition of Italian madrigal songs. In this spirit are sustained, for example, the warrior choir, the scene of the call to revolt and others.
It is known that during the performance of "Norma" at the La Scala Theater on January 10, 1859, a riot broke out. There were many Austrian officers in the hall. When the choir from the last act "To the battle, to the battle!" Sounded, the audience rose from their seats and, standing, repeated the same words in full voice.
This opera was highly valued by G. Donizetti. R. Wagner repeatedly conducted "Norma". J. Bizet, who adored "Norma", tried to re-orchestrate it. But he had to give it up because it turned out better than Bellini… but it didn't turn out to be the "Norma".
In the following years, Bellini wrote two more operas - in 1833, "Beatrice di Tenda", which was expected to fail, and in 1835 - "Puritans", which were a resounding success.
Bellini died on September 24, 1835 in the town of Puteaux near Paris at the age of 34. According to some sources, the composer died of dysentery, according to others - was poisoned, as evidenced by the unexplained circumstances of the last days of life and Bellini's disease. The composer was buried in the Pere Lachaise cemetery in Paris, but in 1876 his ashes were transported to his homeland, the city of his childhood Catania.
The composer managed to raise Italian lyric and dramatic opera to a new artistic level, largely anticipating the achievements of Verdi and Italian verists. In the foyer of the La Scala Theater in Milan, a marble figure of W. Bellini is installed, in his hometown of Catania, the opera house is named after him. But the main monument was created by the composer himself - it was his wonderful operas, which still do not leave the stages of many musical theaters around the world.
Bellini's operas were first performed in Kyiv in 1845-1847 during the Italian seasons. Kievans had the opportunity to listen to "Somnambula", "Capuletti and Montecchi", "Puritans" and, of course, "Norma". On the stage of the National Opera of Ukraine the production of "Norma" was performed for the first time by Mykola Dyadyura (conductor), Anatoliy Solovyanenko (director), Lev Venediktov (choirmaster), Andriy Zlobin (artist) and Anna Ipatieva (costume designer).
