Page 264 - Vinkler, Jonatan, in Jernej Weiss. ur. 2014. Musica et Artes: ob osemdesetletnici Primoža Kureta. Koper: Založba Univerze na Primorskem.
P. 264
musica et artes
Act Two moves from a baroque structure to one that is mainly classical-ro-
mantic. Berg conceives the five scenes as parts of a five-part symphony: Al-
legro, in the form of a sonata, fantasy and fugue, Largo, Scherzo, Rondo mar-
ziale con Introduzione. The modern redefinition of classic forms is obligatory,
given that all of them, headed by the sonata, are structures dependent on the
harmonic relations of a tonality; but the sonata becomes something else here,
not just because of the atonal composition, but above all because of its being
adapted to the operatic stage. For example, instead of the two (traditional)
themes that generate the material, Berg invents three themes, each symbol-
ising one member of the family: Marie, the Child, Wozzeck. Likewise, three
themes–embodying the Captain, the Doctor and Wozzeck–make up the nu-
cleus of the Fantasy and Fugue that bring polyphonic rigour to Act Two, al-
though they sooner suggest the burlesque and then grotesque nature of the
scene in question. The seriousness of the old fugue form is preserved in the
compositional technique, but not in the message of the music, which makes
fun of the Captain’s self-pity (he is moved by the thought that people will
say he was »a good man« after he dies) and gradually becomes tragic (when
Wozzeck becomes aware, from the Captain’s and the Doctor’s mocking allu-
sions, that Marie is unfaithful to him).
In Act Two the axis of symmetry is a Largo, a lied form with subtle
thematic analogies (recollections and presentiments), which potentiates the
growing tension between the two main characters, whose final lines are high-
ly suggestive: Marie – »Better a knife in the heart than your hand on mine«,
Wozzeck – »Man is an abyss, and whoever tries to look therein grows dizzy«
(here is the explanation of the abyss I mentioned above). The tension seems to
be defused at the beginning of the following scene, set in the tavern, a scene
that seems suited to a dancing scherzo, in the landler and waltz style, inter-
spersed with a number of sections (named trios in traditional classic fashion).
In fact, beneath the surface of the folk dances, the drama increases in inten-
sity, and this seems all the more obvious in the trio sections: be it in the di-
alogue of the two apprentices about sadness, liquor and money, be it in the
seemingly innocent choir of workers and soldiers, be it in the melodrama of
the apprentice who makes a speech about human vanity. The dance, accom-
panied by an instrumental ensemble on stage (additional to the orchestra in
the pit) interrupts these pseudo-philosophical moments and casts Wozzeck’s
shadow over the festivity all the more ominously. The (knowledgeable) lis-
tener will be able to detect musical allusions in the waltz movement (Marie’s
erotic theme, the musical motif for the Drum Major), as well as the contrast
between the folk sources of some melodies (the hunters’ choir) and the ex-
262
Act Two moves from a baroque structure to one that is mainly classical-ro-
mantic. Berg conceives the five scenes as parts of a five-part symphony: Al-
legro, in the form of a sonata, fantasy and fugue, Largo, Scherzo, Rondo mar-
ziale con Introduzione. The modern redefinition of classic forms is obligatory,
given that all of them, headed by the sonata, are structures dependent on the
harmonic relations of a tonality; but the sonata becomes something else here,
not just because of the atonal composition, but above all because of its being
adapted to the operatic stage. For example, instead of the two (traditional)
themes that generate the material, Berg invents three themes, each symbol-
ising one member of the family: Marie, the Child, Wozzeck. Likewise, three
themes–embodying the Captain, the Doctor and Wozzeck–make up the nu-
cleus of the Fantasy and Fugue that bring polyphonic rigour to Act Two, al-
though they sooner suggest the burlesque and then grotesque nature of the
scene in question. The seriousness of the old fugue form is preserved in the
compositional technique, but not in the message of the music, which makes
fun of the Captain’s self-pity (he is moved by the thought that people will
say he was »a good man« after he dies) and gradually becomes tragic (when
Wozzeck becomes aware, from the Captain’s and the Doctor’s mocking allu-
sions, that Marie is unfaithful to him).
In Act Two the axis of symmetry is a Largo, a lied form with subtle
thematic analogies (recollections and presentiments), which potentiates the
growing tension between the two main characters, whose final lines are high-
ly suggestive: Marie – »Better a knife in the heart than your hand on mine«,
Wozzeck – »Man is an abyss, and whoever tries to look therein grows dizzy«
(here is the explanation of the abyss I mentioned above). The tension seems to
be defused at the beginning of the following scene, set in the tavern, a scene
that seems suited to a dancing scherzo, in the landler and waltz style, inter-
spersed with a number of sections (named trios in traditional classic fashion).
In fact, beneath the surface of the folk dances, the drama increases in inten-
sity, and this seems all the more obvious in the trio sections: be it in the di-
alogue of the two apprentices about sadness, liquor and money, be it in the
seemingly innocent choir of workers and soldiers, be it in the melodrama of
the apprentice who makes a speech about human vanity. The dance, accom-
panied by an instrumental ensemble on stage (additional to the orchestra in
the pit) interrupts these pseudo-philosophical moments and casts Wozzeck’s
shadow over the festivity all the more ominously. The (knowledgeable) lis-
tener will be able to detect musical allusions in the waltz movement (Marie’s
erotic theme, the musical motif for the Drum Major), as well as the contrast
between the folk sources of some melodies (the hunters’ choir) and the ex-
262
