THE NEW OPERA.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10055, 28 May 1910, Page 3

THE NEW OPERA.

PECULIARITIES OF PUCCINI

As already announced," Madam* Butterfly,"the must celebrated oper; of the day, will be performed a the Maaterton Town Hall on Satar day, June 4th, and it should provid< ' a musical treat fur those who are fortunate enough to witness its produc tion here. In "La Boheme" the Italian composer is sentimental and melodious. In "Butterfly" he is dramatic and to some extent, sensational, 'lhe character of the music in the new opeia is Italian and in the style of the latterday Verdi —The Verdi who gave the world "Otheilo" and "Falstaif." The elaborate orchestral scheme of the opera is on Wagneriau lines, and there is a large and liberal use of the "leading motive/' or typical themes. Iu this Puccini [has followed Wagner with something of slavish imitation. Still, the "leading motive" trick or devce make the work of the orchestra very interesting throughout th 6 performance ot "Butterfly." As an aesthetic principle Wagner contends that music is a medium —not the aim and end of dramatic expressionHolding the view that the written text in the lyric drama is of moro importance than the musical setting, the German genius reversed the order of the dramatist and composer, and made operatic music dependent for form, spirit, and character on the poetry. In elaborating his theory this master of music used the orchestra to convey in a general way the meanings and intentions of the dramatic story, while the singers on the stag 3 had their scope and service limited, so to epaak, to the straightforward narrative and action. This is what Puccini has done in "Butterfly." In justification of bis habitual use of the leit-motive in his music dramas especially those which form the "Ring" series, Wasner explained that "when a mental mood recurred for which he had found thematic expression, that expression was repeated." Wagner, however, diJ not limit the leit-motive to the "picturing" of moods. He extended the device to the whole apparatus of the musical drama—its secret impulses, its purposes, and even the external and material'agencies. Wagner's system rests upon the development of these leading themes or typical phrases not according to the laws of the symphony, but in harmony with the dramatic spirit of the" text. The[,Wagner orchestra is the mouthpiece or medium of this development. It is pre-eminently the interpretative medium of the drama, and it takes part in the action to reveal or announce what the singers on the stage are unable to express without the aid of the many-voiced orchestra. Puccini in this opera certainly does follow Wagner by using the ear simply as one of the gateways to the , higher faculties —aiming to quicken the imagintion and stir the emotions —appealing through the ear to the imagination and the emotions. A great deal of music is direct in its influence upon the emotions, and it is chiefly by the associations of ideas in clearly defined forms that we recognise its expressiveness £or significance. In this regard it should go without saying that minor harmonies, slow movements, and dark tonal colourings combine to put a musically susceptible person in a mood which reflects thoughts of surrow and death, while major harmonies, quick movements, and brilliant tonal Colorings suggest happiness and a sunlit world. The orchestral coloring in "Butterfly" is the chief charm and characteristic of the opera. -