few words of introduction to frame "Turandot" in terms of historical music. This is the last work of Giacomo Puccini left unfinished because the author's death on 28 November 1924. Some say that it is only the latest work by Puccini, but the last work tout court in the history of that kind of spectacle, drama and music at the same time, which is called opera or opera. This is not true: operas (and good) were written later and continue to write, because most of the musicians is always fascinated by this genre. But certainly it is the last work popular in the history of opera. "Popular" in the sense of musical works accessible to a wide audience, and thus is often performed in theaters all over the world. Among other things, beyond his great musical value, it is spectacular work lends itself to being represented in the great outdoors, just "popular", such as the Arena of Verona.
When Puccini died, he missed the finale to music, or the great love duet between Prince Calaf and Turandot. But until that point, or the death of the slave Liu, the work was ready for the press, and then fully instrumented. We shall see later that the fact that Puccini was unable to compose This duet of love can lend to some interesting psychological considerations.
"Turandot" is a work of great interest both in terms of form, or musical, both in terms of content, namely in relation to the history (in this case the story) that is told. characteristic of Puccini's creativity has always been, not in his short career (he died at 66 years), to seek continual renewal of its language and new ways of expression. Unlike many colleagues who once found their way, rest on the result achieved
(often their creativity turns into a parable), Puccini has always looked forward. From the formal point of view we are faced with a linear rise, as has happened in the Green: If we compare in "Nabucco" and "Falstaff" we seem to be faced with two different authors. So if we listen to what I consider the two works by Puccini, "La Boheme" and "Turandot," We realize now the difference of the sound field between the two creations. In fact, Puccini, not closed in the provincialism of Italian culture, has always kept informed of the European musical avant-garde expressions. Just think of the declared admiration for Debussy (which can be traced to obvious influences in "La fanciulla del West"), not to mention Richard Strauss and especially Stravinsky. "Turandot", right from the start, is crossed by discord, bitonal, polytonality (to Stravinsky). Just to give you an example of the opening of the new Puccini, in April 1924 - then, as we shall see, when it was already in poor health - the composer takes the car and went to Florence for the first listen of "Pierrot Lunaire "Schoenberg. It should be recognized, and Schoenberg gave him the sheet music with dedication.
However it is not that in Puccini's "Turandot" betray his calling, give up its melodic language, in fact: he writes one of the most famous arias of the operatic repertoire, "Nessun dorma," sung by Prince Calaf. But it is especially in Liu's two arias, both musically and psychologically that is closest to its earlier heroines. The great melody Puccini is then present. Simply put, the composer plays with orchestral colors that the sensitivity of the time required in relation to the evolution of musical language.
So a new musical language, but also a new subject. After the Triptych of 1919 (think "The cloak" a masterpiece of musical theater of the twentieth century), claimed that Puccini was tired or sentimental subjects drawn from everyday reality. In Italy he had not yet concluded that both literary and musical aesthetic movement called "realism," which took in the scene news stories daily or feelings of ordinary people, once over the period in which the opera had celebrated the exploits of the mythical or historical heroes (Verdi and Wagner). So, while he was looking for a new entrant to music, when Renato Simoni (drama critic and playwright) the reference to a fairy tale, that of Princess Turandot, written by the Venetian Gozzi in 1700, Puccini realized he had found what he sought: a fact that should take place outside of time, or better "at the time of fables." And he started to work. This work became a dream to achieve, certainly his most ambitious project. In fact the work was the drafting of which pledged its author more than any other, from 1920 to end of 1924. And of course it was also the most troubled gestation. Just read an interesting correspondence c librettist Giuseppe Adami to realize what the composer was often demanding and insoddisfatto.Quando the beginning of 1924 his health problems became apparent, to complete the work needed was the love duet final .
Two words about the composer's last months, so closely linked to the anguish of not being able to finish Turandot. Puccini was always an avid smoker, and then nothing was known about the harmful effects of smoking. Since January 1924, warned persistent sore throat. Do not care, feels very committed to his work, but in March he decided to visit their doctor that diagnoses "Rheumatic inflammation" and recommended a stay of treatment in Salsomaggiore. Puccini goes unwillingly. The cures are slow to take effect, the pain never went out, deteriorates by the day, eats very little but most do not feel more than writing music. Skip
a sad summer. In early September to be in Milan to discuss the forthcoming first Toscanini. But it is completely worn out and sore throat continues to haunt him. Finally, without saying anything to anyone, he went to Florence a famous ENT specialist who diagnoses a papilloma epiglottis. He speaks with his son, held a consultation and concluded that because the cancer has advanced and become inoperable, the only hope is the new treatment with X-ray They are the earliest radiotherapy, and Europe are made only in a specialist clinic in Brussels. On November 4, Puccini
part in Brussels, has with him a book of music notes. Log in to the clinic on 7. First, the applications are external beam radiotherapy with a collar, but then this should be done internally in the tumor tissue. Seven shove needles into the tumor. There is optimism. " Puccini en were chosen," says the chief of the clinic. But suddenly, Nov. 29, the heart and gives the composer died. In the room, sheet music scattered with some sketch of the duet that he hoped to write during his convalescence.
Today Turandot is incomplete because it represented at the suggestion of Toscanini, who conducted the first and then at La Scala in 1926, the composer Franco Alfano was given the task of music for the missing text. Alfano rightly did nothing but take melodic themes of the earlier acts and to adapt to the text. So the music is by Puccini, but not the new tune, one he had in mind to create for this end. He should have and wanted to write something really new: the thaw of Turandot. We know, as evidenced by her letters, which Puccini had always considered this final duet, the most important part of the whole work. At this point, it becomes legitimate to ask why he waited until the last, because they wrote it before, because they do not necessarily following an author composes in parallel text. When he was obliged to do so, came the illness and death. Because this removal? On his musical inspiration, it was more natural to the sacrifice of Liu, who in fact is the last page he wrote, and that is logically connected and musically to the deaths of Manon, Mimi, Tosca, Butterfly, Sister Angelica. The audience still wanted this from him. Puccini, as we saw, but wanted to renew. It was found Turandot. But the task was probably the largest of its possibilities. The image of women that challenge the man on his own ground, as it does today, it was still premature at the time. And Puccini himself was tied to a traditional conception of women, that we find in Liu. We can say that the opera ends with the death of Liu, a typical Puccini heroine. Turandot was a mirage, just a fairy tale. Perhaps Puccini was aware of not having the technical means or the inspiration for something radically new, which he had guessed, for the finale, in his imagination. He felt within himself that limit, and put off in hopes of finding an illuminating inspiration. At the end of the unconscious helped him to make him prefer the silence with death.
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