Recording: Pier Luigi Pizzi and Marchigiana Philharmonic Orchestra at Arena Sferisterio, Macerata, Italy
Score: vocal score and piano reduction (from IMSLP)
Lecture points
Review sheet for Madama Butterfly
Imperialism and exoticism
- imperialism across the globe: British India, French Indonesia, invasions of China (opium wars)
- “gunboat” diplomacy opens isolated Japan to American interests (Matthew Perry, 1854)
- fascination with foreign cultures in Europe, the “Orient” represents everything to the east
- meanwhile, newly formed nations in Europe/America seek economic and political power alongside Britain, France…
- also note, Italy becomes a nation in 1861
Puccini
- verismo: opera moves away from comedy and classical dramas to realism, contemporary stories
- Giuseppe Verdi is most notable composer of verismo opera, his music championed Italian nationalism
- Puccini was a younger contemporary of Verdi’s, was very popular, but not so political
- Puccini’s exotic settings and Oriental trappings are more escapist, although his stories are still verismo (darker)
Madama Butterfly
- institution of a geisha, “wife” for sale
- culture clash, tradition versus foreign influence
- exoticism in music: the use of musical devices that suggest a foreign land or culture
- note the presence of the traditional song Sakura when Cio-Cio-San brings out her ancestral treasures (Vieni, amor mio!)
- in contrast, Puccini represents Pinkerton with the American national anthem (Dovunque al mondo)
- pentatonic scale: an example of musical exoticism, attempting to imitate Japanese musical style
- is Madama Butterfly a veiled critique of imperialism? or a sensational tale?