Levi's Berlin Write-Up

Levi Lindsey
Honors Berlin
21 September 2008

Opera: a comparison between Seattle and Berlin

Project Question and Abstract

Opera intrigues me in that these beautiful words and these fascinating pieces of music are sung and played again and again all over the world exactly as they were written so many years ago; and yet, all other characteristics of a given opera can, and do, fluctuate remarkably with each new production. The intent of my research has been to focus on exactly how these “other characteristics” tend to vary from Seattle to Berlin. Simply stated, my question was “how do operas compare from Berlin to Seattle?”

When I began my research, I understood that Berliners tend to modernize their operas more than Seattleites. This, specifically, is something I wished to investigate. When I use the word “to modernize” in this essay, I am referring to the practice of producing an opera in a setting which is vastly more contemporary than the setting in which it was customarily performed around the time of its composition, or to modify any specific aspect or aspects of an opera in an unorthodox – or unclassical – thought-provoking manner.

Background

A key debate with operas in today’s world is whether or not to modernize. The classical and modern approaches to producing an opera both have their distinct benefits.

In Seattle, operas tend to be performed in a more classical style. Many musicians feel that all music, including opera, should be performed as the composer had intended. This means that a performer should pay close attention to all the descriptions and details of notation in a musical score and that a piece of music should be performed with the same sentiment and in the same manner in which it would have been performed at its time of composition. Also, this ensures that all the beauty which the composer originally intended a piece of music to hold will still be present with each new performance. This is the dominant opinion in Seattle opera.

In Berlin, operas tend to be performed in a modernized style or with some hugely unorthodox and thought-provoking aspect. Modernizing an opera allows it to grow and to be something completely new and exciting with each new production. The same opera can be much more exciting if a new and unusual twist is allowed. Modernization allows opera to evolve in order to better fit the demands of today’s evolving society. Today’s audience has completely different expectations and ideas of entertainment than the audiences which most operas were written for, so why should an opera not mold to these new expectations? As Charles Robert states in his article “Modernizing Opera,” in which he addresses the modernization of German opera, “As opera itself is the essence of artificiality, the introduction of modern appliances in order to heighten and intensify this primary condition can only be welcomed” (Robert 221).

Context

This topic is naturally relevant in the opera world. Whether or not and how to modernize an opera, is perhaps the most important decision today’s opera director makes. Of course, such things as which stellar soprano or tenor to hire for which role are important, but how the story is presented is far more interesting and lasting to the audience. Any normal opera-goer or even most audience members with a “highly trained ear” are not going to have a hugely different experience if the star tenor sings or if his lowly understudy fills in for the night; the music will almost unfailingly still be beautiful. However, if the story of The Flying Dutchman (or Der fliegende Holländer) is produced in the settings of a computer firm’s main office and a beauty salon – without even a hint of a nautical prop during the entire production – the audience will notice and will have an entirely different experience. They will be scratching their heads at the oddity; it will make them think. The unique treatment of a familiar story will leave a greater and more lasting impact.

Personally, I have had great interest in this project and it has broadened my understanding of opera significantly. The reason of my strong interest in this topic is, of course, due to my musical background. As a singer, I can choose many different career pathways, and opera is, in a way, the pinnacle of the classical, vocal performance pathway I have chosen. Studying opera in Berlin has opened my eyes as to just how different the construct of opera can be, while maintaining all the specifications of the original score. Also, I’ve learned how extensively Berliners prefer modern looks at opera over the preferred classical perspectives of Seattleites.

Problems

Once I had the details of my topic decided, I encountered only minor problems in my research. My first problem – buying tickets – actually occurred before I arrived in Berlin. I could not purchase half of the tickets I needed to, because the Deutsch Oper Berlin had bugs in their online ticket sales process. Moreover, one of the performances which I did manage to purchase tickets for – at the Staatsoper Unter Den Linden – was later selected as one of our group performances for the whole class to see, and, therefore, the ticket I had purchased was a waste of money. So I was frustrated when I arrived in Berlin with the fact that I only had a confirmed ticket to one additional opera; seeing as actually attending operas was crucial for my research, this was a problem. Fortunately, I was relieved to discover that the operas I intended to see hadn’t sold out by the time I went to buy tickets in person.

Methods of Investigation

I performed my research of operas in Berlin through two methods: attending and carefully analyzing live performances, and researching published articles on the topic. I attended five operas in Berlin: Tristan und Isolde, Fidelio, Die fliegende Holländer, Rigolletto, and Il Barbiere di Siviglia. My knowledge of Seattle operas, which I used to compare the two cities’ treatment of opera, I have acquired in the last few years while studying opera in the UW School of Music and from attending most of the Seattle Opera’s performances over the last two years

I thought carefully about contacting the Staatsoper Unter Den Linden and requesting an interview with someone knowledgeable of Berlin opera in attempts to acquire an additional outlet for my research; however, ultimately I concluded that an interview wouldn’t actually provide me with information relevant to my research; I needed to see the operas myself and actually witness all the aspects of the productions. Things I could only discover through interview – such as how much money goes into a Berlin opera, how much training a Berlin opera singer usually has or ticket sales information – simply weren’t pertinent to what I was looking at. I needed to attend and experience opera in order to observe which aspects of performance, presentation, and production differ from those of Seattle operas.

There were a few minor limitations to relying so heavily on this one particular method of research. I was frustrated to discover that, during our stay in Berlin, the opera season was just starting up, and so I had a very limited selection of operas to attend. Albeit, I do feel that I was able to see a fair representation of operas from multiple opera houses. Another small issue I had with analyzing opera was that I could only see the opera once; unless, of course, I wanted to waste a lot of time and money – assuming another performance was even scheduled. With only one viewing there was always the possibility that I would miss something important. I am fairly confident, however, that the very detailed notes I took during each performance captured all the aspects which were important to my research.

When planning my research for these performances, I wrote long lists of details to look for – everything from lighting, to sets, to audience behavior and applause. I suppose that some of the things I was looking for were based off of assumptions I had developed, but any assumptions or biases I had, quickly dissolved from the shock of so many contrasts I had not anticipated.

My other method of collecting information, researching articles regarding Berlin operas and modernization – although much less significant than attending operas – was very helpful and informative. I found and made use of articles reviewing past modernized productions in Berlin and articles directly addressing the issue of opera modernization in Germany. These sometimes helped to clarify issues I had questions of and sometimes offered insights as to what exactly I should be looking into more. The only limitation I encountered with this method of research was that – due to the language barrier – online searching was the only practical way of finding useful articles and even most online articles were not available in English.

Analysis

Through my research in Berlin I learned vast amounts about opera – in Berlin and in general – and I feel that the question I had posed in the beginning of this program was answered in full by the time of the program’s close.

I was pleased to discover that each of the operas I attended was indeed modernized in some form. Tristan und Isolde’s set – more than anything else – was what differentiated it from the norm. This massive five and a half hour long experience took place all in one scene with only one minor prop. The set was a titanic statue of a fallen angel with a broken wing, which had the appearance of being carved from solid stone. From one scene to the next, the only change of the stage was accomplished by rotating the statue. By ignoring classical expectations of scene changes and buildings or chambers being represented by the set and using instead this huge, stark, unchanging statue, the unusual set cast a dominating aura of solemn foreboding which was very much in sync with the sentiment of the opera.

In its production of Fidelio, the Staatsoper Unter Den Linden demonstrated modernization primarily though both its set and its costumes. The set consisted primarily of an odd slanted floor with rectangular holes set symmetrically in it. These holes symbolized the cells of a prison and effectively allowed the audience to see all of the inmates during chorus scenes. The costumes were very contemporary – one man wore an old leather jacket over a puke green sweater, and another wore a smart, modern suit.

The Deutsch Oper Berlin made their production of Die fliegende Holländer more modern than any other opera I saw – or have ever seen. This story of a phantom ship which ferries the dead to the afterlife was portrayed in two different scenes: a computer firm and a beauty salon. Even without being able to understand most of the words, what I could make out about “captains” and “ships” seemed very discontinuous with the scene around the actors. This interpretation certainly pushed the bounds of what one expects to see in an opera.

Il Barbiere di Siviglia was produced more classically than the other operas I saw in Berlin. All the actors were dressed in very classical costumes and they employed very traditional props such as old renaissance-style musical instruments. The unique aspect of this opera was the set. The background and floor of the stage was all pure white and the set consisted of curtain facades which portrayed buildings and streets and were simply pulled back to change scenes.

Each of these operas helped in turn to further clarify how operas are vastly more modern in Berlin than in Seattle. Seeing as each one of them broke the classic mold in some manner, the obvious answer to my topic question would be:
Whereas Seattleites enjoy seeing opera produced in a traditional scheme, Berliners want their operas to be daring and employ some manner of a unique element which classically would not fit in an opera.
Of course, each opera I saw helped answer this question with its own specifics, but all of the details support this one, unifying answer.

The composition element of the course certainly affected our research. Writing a report or giving a speech about a project is something we’ve all done and seen countless times before. The introduction of this new and very unique medium which we’ve been exposed to in this course for communicating one’s thoughts and ideas benefited our research in two ways: it made us reassess how we collect and evaluate the information we were to present, and it made us more interested in the presentations of our peers’ information. It allowed us to digest information on a deeper level.

Being required to present and embody a specific character in our compositions made me look more carefully at the specific people involved with the operas I was researching. This allowed me to notice simple subtleties which I may have missed otherwise, such as the fact that Berlin opera singers seem to gesture with their arms more than Seattle opera singers. It helped to bring the focus of my research from a more general and all-encompassing perspective to a more detailed and useful view of the production of Berlin opera.


Continuation

This research could be continued or furthered in a number of different manners. My original intent was to see at least one opera in Berlin which I had seen previously performed in Seattle, but, sadly, the season was too limited during my time in Berlin for this to occur. Comparing the production of specific operas between the two cities would, naturally, provide more in-depth data regarding the contrasts of opera interpretation. Also, being able to compare a specific opera produced during multiple occasions or by different opera houses in Berlin would be very informative; it would demonstrate numerous ways in which in which one opera could be interpreted. This could perhaps allow the development of a “modernization gradient.” Certainly, even between Berlin operas, some are more modernized than others.

The Group Dynamic

The act of synthesizing our research with the very different topics and conclusions of our fellow group members proved challenging and led to very interesting mosaics of information. For instance, if we had been instructed to each present our information in an individual composition lasting five minutes, the performances would have been significantly less thought-provoking, and I imagine that they would have, to a much greater degree, resembled standard English-class-type presentations. Also, instructing other members of our group in how to best represent our discoveries helped us each to better interpret and understand or own discoveries. This is very similar to the phenomenon of teaching a concept to another person. Through the process of teaching a concept, we ourselves come to a better understanding of that concept. The group dynamic both solidified and furthered the information which we had already collected.

Works Cited

Robert, Charles. “Modernizing Opera” The Musical Times, Vol. 79, No. 1141. Musical
Times Publications Ltd. Mar., 1938, pp. 221-221