Page 225 - Weiss, Jernej, ur. 2019. Vloga nacionalnih opernih gledališč v 20. in 21. stoletju - The Role of National Opera Houses in the 20th and 21st Centuries. Koper/Ljubljana: Založba Univerze na Primorskem in Festival Ljubljana. Studia musicologica Labacensia, 3
P. 225
the italian “national oper a” imagined from a souther n slavic viewpoint
Verdi was better than other composers in representing national music un-
til he fell into the Wagnerian school network. Following this premise, the
authentic folk source survived in the opera Cavalleria rusticana, regarded
by Kuhač as a renewed supra-national tradition. This was a longtime mis-
understanding of the image of Italy, given that the large spread of arias, ro-
manze, or choral music drawn from operas are not comparable to the folk-
songs of some Italian regions, where peasants, living away from the towns,
had very conservative traditions unrelated to opera.
Verdi, the genial and extraordinary prolific Italian composer, re-
garding the musical context of twenty years before, represented the
symbol of the Italian people. Not only did he compose in a true Ital-
ian spirit, he also improved the Italian music art tradition. […] Af-
ter the appearance of Wagner, this lucky artist betrayed his peo-
ple in such an unforeseen manner […]. He rejected music for which
Italians were the rulers, clergy, aristocrats, scholars, rich men and
audience […] and then he became a servant of Wagner. Mascag-
ni’s Cavalleria rusticana achieved an outstanding success due to
the following causes: Mascagni did not become a slave of Wagner
or of his followers, and then he did not disguise his Italianness; he
was able to use all new achievements of musical progress, and he
coined a musical phraseology by means of selected ideas. Mascagni
did not imitate the infinite melody, whose parts, each other, do not
correspond either to the melody or to the rhythm. Further, he did
not adopt the modulation of extreme Wagnerian followers.13
Compelling evidence occurs in the analysis of harmonies related to
some scenes of Cavalleria. In contrast, it is astonishing the prejudice Kuhač
felt for some nations he considered unable to preserve their own folk music.
This is the case of Germany, Great Britain, and some peoples like the Gyp-
sies, and the Jews:
The peoples in Europe having an authentic traditional music […]
are the Slavic, Italian, French, Spanish, Hungarian and Turkish.
German, British, Jew and Gypsy peoples have not traditional music
[…]. German folk melodies are not created in the spirit of Germa-
ny […]. When the Germans talk about a German school, instead of
13 Kuhač, “Nova glazbena struja njemačka i sadašnji talijanski kompozitori,” 20.
223
Verdi was better than other composers in representing national music un-
til he fell into the Wagnerian school network. Following this premise, the
authentic folk source survived in the opera Cavalleria rusticana, regarded
by Kuhač as a renewed supra-national tradition. This was a longtime mis-
understanding of the image of Italy, given that the large spread of arias, ro-
manze, or choral music drawn from operas are not comparable to the folk-
songs of some Italian regions, where peasants, living away from the towns,
had very conservative traditions unrelated to opera.
Verdi, the genial and extraordinary prolific Italian composer, re-
garding the musical context of twenty years before, represented the
symbol of the Italian people. Not only did he compose in a true Ital-
ian spirit, he also improved the Italian music art tradition. […] Af-
ter the appearance of Wagner, this lucky artist betrayed his peo-
ple in such an unforeseen manner […]. He rejected music for which
Italians were the rulers, clergy, aristocrats, scholars, rich men and
audience […] and then he became a servant of Wagner. Mascag-
ni’s Cavalleria rusticana achieved an outstanding success due to
the following causes: Mascagni did not become a slave of Wagner
or of his followers, and then he did not disguise his Italianness; he
was able to use all new achievements of musical progress, and he
coined a musical phraseology by means of selected ideas. Mascagni
did not imitate the infinite melody, whose parts, each other, do not
correspond either to the melody or to the rhythm. Further, he did
not adopt the modulation of extreme Wagnerian followers.13
Compelling evidence occurs in the analysis of harmonies related to
some scenes of Cavalleria. In contrast, it is astonishing the prejudice Kuhač
felt for some nations he considered unable to preserve their own folk music.
This is the case of Germany, Great Britain, and some peoples like the Gyp-
sies, and the Jews:
The peoples in Europe having an authentic traditional music […]
are the Slavic, Italian, French, Spanish, Hungarian and Turkish.
German, British, Jew and Gypsy peoples have not traditional music
[…]. German folk melodies are not created in the spirit of Germa-
ny […]. When the Germans talk about a German school, instead of
13 Kuhač, “Nova glazbena struja njemačka i sadašnji talijanski kompozitori,” 20.
223
