Class 10: "Der Rosenkavalier"

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10. Der Rosenkavalier. Dreaming in waltz time. After the violence of the one-act Expressionist masterpieces Salome (1905) and Elektra (1909), Richard Strauss (1864–1949) and his librettist Hugo von Hofmannstahl (1824–1929) relaxed into the charm of 18th-century Vienna with their expansive three-act comedy, Der Rosenkavalier (The Rose Bearer, 1911). Although quite anachronistic, Strauss upped the ante on Gemütlichkeit by drenching the score with the lilt of Viennese waltzes of a century later. The two most famous scenes are the Presentation of the Rose near the start of Act Two, and the Trio for three female voices near the end of Act Three. We will hear them both, together with the music that immediately precedes and follows them, plus three shorter clips to provide context. rb.

There is a brief synopsis in the handout. Other resources will be posted immediately after class.

Handout Class Script

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VIDEO LINKS

The only clip from the London production preserved on YouTube is the Trio at the end—but if you are to have only one thing, that is surely to one to choose. Other than that, I have chosen two excellent complete performances cued to the excerpts we saw in class. The Salzburg one may date from 1962, but the quality is excellent, and the performances have become iconic. If the subtitles look strange, go into settings and switch to the other set marked as English. The other complete video is the current Met production by Robert Carsen; we saw several stills from it in class. Again, select English subtitles re-translated from Portuguese: strsnge, but they do work.

The "extras" section includes a 75-minute interview with Carsen, Renée Fleming, and others about a different iteration the Carsen production in London; it contains lots of interesting stuff. I would also call your attention to four clips of two different productiona at the Dutch National Opera, a company with an outstanding reputation for inventive approaches to standard works. The first, from 2004, shows how you can do Octavian's Act II arrival without any glitz whatever; the two interviews show many glimpses of the 2015 production, as well as being interesting for what the people are saying. And the fourth, the complete Trio from the 2015 production, shows that the singing is every bit as good as the staging is inventive. Other goodies include some other versions of the two big scenes, plus an orchestral suite that reminds you of all the best tunes.

AS SEEN IN CLASS
	London, 1985	Act III trio
OTHER COMPLETE PRODUCTIONS
	Salzburg 1962	complete — Chocolate scene — Act II opening — Act II end — Mariandel — Act III end
	Met 2017	complete — Chocolate scene — Act II opening — Act II end — Mariandel — Act III end
SOME EXTRAS
	About the Carsen production	Carsen, Fleming, et al.
	Dutch National Opera	2004: Octavian's arrival, Act II 2015: Intro by conductor and director 2015: Intro by various singers 2015: Final trio
	Other Presentation Duets	Munich 1979 Vienna 1984 Salzburg 2012
	Other trios	Munich 1979 Berlin 1986 Met 2010
	Orchestral suite	Frankfurt Radio Symphony (Andrés Orozco-Estrada)


IMAGES
The thumbnails below cover the slides shown in class, though there may be a few small discrepancies. Click the thumbnail to see a larger image. Click on the right or left of the larger picture to go forward or back, or outside it to close.