Western Health Advantage Season of Performing Arts
SATURDAY, MARCH 11, 2017 Ann E. Pitzer Center, UC Davis
Brian Jagde, tenor with special guest
Joyce El-Khoury, soprano Robert Mollicone, Piano
RO B ERT A N D M A RG RI T
MONDAVI CENTER
FO R T H E PERFO R M I N G A RTS PRES EN TS
BRIAN JAGDE, tenor WITH SPECIAL GUEST
JOYCE EL-KHOURY, soprano ROBERT MOLLICONE, Piano MONDAVI CENTER PRESENTING PROGRAM Saturday, March 11, 2017 • 8 pm Ann E. Pitzer Center, UC Davis Individual support provided by Barbara K. Jackson The Mondavi Center expresses its appreciation to the UC Davis Department of Music for the use of Ann E. Pitzer Center Recital Hall for tonight’s performance.
“Un dì felice” from La Traviata Verdi “Sempre libera” from La Traviata Verdi “Donna non vidi mai” from Manon Lescaut Puccini Intermezzo to Act III of Manon Lescaut Puccini “Chi il bel sogno di Doretta” from La Rondine Puccini “O soave fanciulla” from La Bohème Puccini INTERMISSION “Già nella notte densa” from Otello Verdi “Regnava nel silenzio” from Lucia di Lammermoor Donizetti “Vidino divná, presladká” from Rusalka Dvořák Prelude to Act III of Werther Massenet “Pourquoi me réveiller” from Werther Massenet “Adieu, notre petite table” from Manon
Massenet
“Toi! Vous! ... N’est ce plus ma main?” from Manon Massenet The artists and fellow audience members appreciate silence during the performance. Please be sure that you have switched off cellular phones, watch alarms and pager signals. Videotaping, photographing and audio recording are strictly forbidden. Violators are subject to removal.
BRIAN JADGE, TENOR
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“Un dì felice” and “Sempre libera” from La Traviata (1852–1853) Giuseppe Verdi Born October 10, 1813 in Le Roncole, Italy. Died January 27, 1901 in Milan.
At a party in her Parisian home, the courtesan Violetta finds herself drawn to a young man, Alfredo Germont, who, a friend tells her, has admired her from afar for some time. Alfredo warns the consumptive Violetta that she will kill herself if she persists with her present mode of living, and then confesses that he has loved her since the day he first saw her a year before in Un dì felice. Violetta responds that she is incapable of love, and can only offer Alfredo friendship. He departs. Violetta, alone, muses on the night’s happenings, and is surprised at how strangely Alfredo’s words have affected her (É strano! è strano!). She reveals her longing “to love and be loved” in the expressive aria Ah, forse’è lui, but soon dismisses these thoughts as hopeless folly for a woman of her sort. She says she will give up on love and renew her pursuit of pleasure (Sempre libera degg’io), but Alfredo’s voice floating in through the window gives her pause. Act I ends with Violetta’s brilliant commendation of the sensuous life. “Donna non vidi mai” and Intermezzo to Act III from Manon Lescaut (1890–1892) Giacomo Puccini Born December 22, 1858 in Lucca. Died November 29, 1924 in Brussels.
Manon Lescaut, Puccini’s third opera and his first popular success, was based on Abbé Prévost’s 1731 story that also inspired Massenet’s opera of 1884. In Puccini’s libretto, Manon, a young girl, has drawn the attention of two suitors: the wealthy but aging Geronte and the young Des Grieux. Des Grieux, immediately struck by Manon’s beauty, sings of his newfound love in Donna non vidi mai. He learns of Geronte’s plot to abduct the girl and implores her to flee with him to Paris to foil the plan. They rush off, but Geronte is confident that it will not be difficult to win her away from a penniless lover. Manon proves him correct. She takes up with Geronte to live in his luxurious Parisian apartments, though affection for Des Grieux still stirs in her heart. Des Grieux returns and rekindles their love. They are discovered by Geronte, who denounces Manon to the police for theft of jewelry. She is arrested, imprisoned and sentenced to deportation to America. Des Grieux’s anguished pleading touches the ship’s captain to allow him to sail from Le Havre with Manon. The opera ends on “a desolate plain near New Orleans,” where Manon, ill and exhausted, dies in her lover’s arms. The Intermezzo preceding Act III is subtitled “The Imprisonment. The Voyage to Havre.” Puccini prefaced
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it with a quotation from Prévost telling of Des Grieux’s ardent passion for Manon and his willingness to follow her anywhere. The Intermezzo opens with a portrayal of Manon’s bleak mood during her incarceration. Its melody, ripe chromaticism and intense longing reflect the pervasive influence of Wagner on the music of the late 19th century. The remainder of the Intermezzo, based on music associated with the lovers’ passion, is a touching remembrance of happier times. “Chi il bel sogno” from La Rondine (1914–1916) Giacomo Puccini In La Rondine (“The Swallow”), set in the elegant world of Second Empire Paris, Magda is attracted to the writer Prunier. He has started a poem about Doretta, his new literary heroine, but professes that he cannot finish it, and invites Magda to do so. She complies in the sensuous aria Chi il bel sogno. “O soave fanciulla” from La Bohème (1893–1896) Giacomo Puccini Four poor but high-spirited bohemians live together in a Parisian garret. Marcello, a painter, suggests that they smash a chair to fuel the waning fire on this chilly Christmas Eve, but Rodolfo, a poet, offers the manuscript of his latest work instead. The philosopher Colline arrives with the disappointing news that he has been unable to pawn a bundle of old books, but Schaunard, the musician, appears with food and fuel and some extra cash from a new patron. He suggests that they celebrate his good fortune at the Café Momus in the Latin Quarter. Rodolfo stays behind to finish an article. There is a knock on the door. Rodolfo opens it to find Mimi, his neighbor, whose candle has gone out on the way to her flat. She asks him to light it. They are immediately drawn to each other and in the rapturous duet O soave fanciulla sing of their newfound love before leaving to join the bohemians at the Café Momus. “Già nella notte densa” from Otello (1884–1887) Giuseppe Verdi Otello, the Moorish general of the Venetian army and governor of 15th-century Cyprus, returns home amid a violent storm after his victory over the Turkish fleet. When the storm has passed, and before Iago, Otello’s ensign, can execute his plan to undermine the love of the general and his wife, Desdemona, out of revenge for promoting another officer instead of himself, the lovers sing a duet Già nella notte densa (“Now, in the Darkness of the Night”) to close Act I — She loved me for the dangers I had passed, and I loved her that she did pity them. Otello leads his wife into the castle as stars and moon appear from behind the clouds.
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“Regnava nel silenzio” from Lucia di Lammermoor (1835) Gaetano Donizetti Born November 29, 1797 in Bergamo, Italy. Died there April 1, 1848.
Lucia di Lammermoor, based on Sir Walter Scott’s 1819 romance The Bride of Lammermoor, takes place in Scotland at the end of the 17th century. Lucia has fallen in love with Edgardo, the sworn enemy of her brother, Enrico, Lord of Lammermoor. In Act I, Scene 2, she awaits the arrival of Edgardo on the grounds of the family’s castle for a clandestine meeting. Lucia tells her faithful companion, Alisa, that she has had a terrifying vision of being beckoned by the ghost of a young girl who, according to legend, was stabbed to death by an ancestor on that very spot and fell into the dark waters of a nearby well; her body was never recovered. In the brilliant aria Regnava nel silenzio, Lucia recounts the old tale and sings of her comforting love for Edgardo. “Vidino divná” from Rusalka (1900) Antonín Dvořák
Born September 8, 1841 in Nelahozeves, Bohemia. Died May 1, 1904 in Prague.
Dvořák’s opera tells the story of the water sprite Rusalka, who falls in love with a human Prince and enlists the aid of a witch to transform herself into a beautiful woman, in return for which she must give up the power of speech and accept that she will be accursed forever if her love fails. The Prince returns Rusalka’s affection and asks her to marry him, but he soon finds his fiancée silent and unresponsive, and instead is enticed by a scheming Princess visiting his court. Rusalka is changed back into a sprite. When the Princess betrays her suitor, however, the Prince returns to Rusalka in her lake, kisses her, and dies in her arms. At the close of Act I, when Rusalka and the Prince first meet, he sings the passionate aria Vidino divná (“Beautiful vision, delightful. Are you a woman or a fairy tale?”) Prelude to Act III and “Pourquoi me réveiller “ from Werther (1885–1887) Jules Massenet
Charlotte, the daughter of a prominent family in 1780s Frankfurt. Charlotte, however, is promised in marriage to Albert, and she resists returning Werther’s love. Werther nevertheless continues to correspond with her, and he appears unexpectedly at her home three months after her marriage to press his suit. Charlotte, realizing her own feelings for Werther, falls into his arms but then rejects his advances. The next day Werther mortally wounds himself with a pistol that he borrowed from Albert. Charlotte arrives just as Werther is dying, and they share their first, and last, kiss in his final moments. In Act III, set on the Christmas Eve after Charlotte’s wedding, Werther returns to her while Albert is away. He realizes that his feelings for her are reciprocated, but she cannot act on them. She bids him farewell. The strong, conflicting emotions of their encounter are presaged by the Prelude that opens the Act. During their meeting, they reminisce about their shared experiences, and Werther takes their favorite book from the shelf, the romantic ballads of the Medieval Irish folk hero Ossian, and translates one as a meditation on the sorrows of love in the aria Pourquoi me réveiller. “Adieu, notre petite table” and “Toi! Vous!” from Manon (1882–1883) Jules Massenet In Massenet’s Manon of 1884, the titular character falls in love with the young nobleman Des Grieux during a chance encounter at an inn in Amiens. They go off together to Paris. They find happiness in their Parisian apartment, but Manon is irresistibly attracted to riches and worldly glamour, and she accepts the proposal of the wealthy tax collector Brétigny to become his mistress. Alone, Manon sings a tender farewell to her life with Des Grieux in Adieu, notre petite table. Des Grieux, heartbroken, becomes a student at the seminary of St. Sulpice to forget Manon, but she still harbors her love for him, so makes her way into the church and wins back his heart in the duet Toi! Vous! ©2017 Dr. Richard E. Rodda
Born May 12, 1842 in Montaud, France. Died August 13, 1912 in Paris.
In Massenet’s opera, based loosely on Goethe’s influential epistolary novel, Werther, a young man of passion and melancholy, has conceived an unquenchable love for
BRIAN JADGE, TENOR
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Verdi: “Un dì felice” from La Traviata ALFREDO Un dì felice, eterea, Mi balenaste innante, E da quel dì tremante Vissi d’ignoto amor. Di quell’amor ch’è palpito Dell’universo intero, Misterioso altero Croce e delizia al cor.
One happy day you flashed lightly into my life, and since then I’ve lived in tremulous possession of that unspoken love, the pulse of the whole world, mysterious, unattainable, the torment and delight of my heart. VIOLETTA
Ah, se ciò è ver, fuggitemi. Solo amistade io v’offro; Amar non so, nè soffro Un così eroico amore. Io sono franca, ingenua; Altra cercar dovete; Non arduo troverete Dimenticarmi allor.
If that is true, then leave me. Friendship is all I can offer you. I don’t know how to love, I couldn’t feel so great an emotion. I’m being honest with you — sincere ... You should look for someone else, then you wouldn’t find it hard to forget me.
Verdi: “Sempre libera” from La Traviata É strano! ... è strano! ... In core scolpiti ho quegli accenti! Saria per mia sventura un serio amore? Che risolvi, o turbata anima mia? Null’uomo ancora t’accendeva ... O, gioia ch’io non conobbi, esser amata amando! E sdegnarla poss’io per l’aride follie del viver mio?
It’s strange ... it’s strange! His words are carved in my heart. Would real love be a misfortune for me? What do you say, my troubled soul? No man has ever been your light. Oh, joy that I never knew, of loving and being loved! Shall I now disregard it for the empty follies of my life?
Ah, fors’è lui che l’anima solinga ne’ tumulti, godea sovente pingere de’ suoi colori occulti! Lui, che modesto e vigile, all’egre soglie ascese, e nuova febbre accese destandomi all’amor? A quell’amor, quell’amor ch’è palpito dell’universo, dell’universo intero, misterioso, misterioso altero, croce e delizia, delizia al cor.
Ah! perhaps it is he, who, when my soul was lonely and troubled, used to tint it with invisible colors, invisible colors. He who, humbly and watchfully, came to the threshold of my sickroom, and kindled in me a new fever waking my heart to love! Ah, such love, such love so tremulous! Out of the universe, the heavenly universe, mysteriously, mysteriously from on high, come sorrow and gladness to the heart. (She wakens from her reverie.)
Follie! Follie! delirio vano è questo! Povera donna, sola, abbandonata in questo popoloso deserto,
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Folly! Folly! This is madness! For me, a poor woman, alone and abandoned in this populated desert
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che appellano Parigi, che spero or più? Che far degg’io? Gioire, di voluttà nei vortici perire. Sempre libera degg’io folleggiare di gioia in gioia, vo’ che scorra il viver mio pei sentieri del piacer. Nasca il giorno, o il giorno muoia, sempre lieta ne’ ritrovi A diletti sempre nuovi dee volare il mio pensier.
which is called Paris, what am I hoping for? What should I do? Enjoy myself! Then end in a vortex of dissipation. Ever free my heart must be, as I flit from joy to joy, I want my life to glide along the paths of pleasure. May the dying or dawning day always find me in haunts of mirth, and to ever-new delights may my thoughts soar and fly.
Puccini: “Donna non vidi mai” from Manon Lescaut Donna non vidi mai simile a questa! A dirle: io t’amo, a nuova vite l’alma mia si desta. “Manon Lescaut mi chiamo.” Come queste parole profumate mi vagan nello spirto e ascose fibre vanno a carezzare. O susurro gentil, deh! non cessare! “Manon Lescaut mi chiamo.” Susurro gentil, deh! non cessar!
Never have I beheld so fair a maiden! To tell her: I love you, awakened my spirit to new life. “My name is Manon Lescaut.” How those fragrant words wander in my spirit and caress my quivering heart. Oh gentle murmur, ah! may it never cease! “My name is Manon Lescaut.” Gentle murmur, ah! may it never cease!
Puccini: “Chi il bel sogno di Doretta” from La Rondine Chi il bel sogno di Doretta potè indovinar? Il suo mister come mai finì?
Who can divine Doretta’s wonderful dream? What was the end of her mystery?
Ahimè! un giorno uno studente in bocca la baciò e fu quel bacio rivelazione: Fu la passione! Folle amore! Folle ebbrezza! Chi la sottil carezza d’un bacio così ardente mai ridir potrà?
Alas! One day a student kissed her lips, and this kiss became a revelation: Passion it was! Love’s entrancement! Wild intoxication! Who can ever recall the subtle caress of so ardent a kiss?
Ah! mio sogno! Ah! mia vita! Che importa la ricchezza se alfine è rifiorita la felicità! O sogno d’or poter amar così!
Ah! my dream! Ah! my life! What do I care for riches if at last happiness should bloom again! Oh golden dream to love so!
BRIAN JADGE, TENOR
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Puccini: “O soave fanciulla” from La Bohème RODOLFO O soave fanciulla, o dolce viso di mite circonfuso di alba lunar, in te ravviso il sogno ch’io vorrei sempre sognar!
Oh lovely girl, oh sweet face suffused with the light of the rising moon, in you I see the dream incarnate I’d like to dream forever! MIMI
Ah! tu sol comandi, amor!
Oh, love, alone command me! RODOLFO
Fremon già nell’anima … … le dolcezze estreme. Nel bacio freme amor!
My soul’s already throbbing … ... with the sweetness of passion. Love trembles in a kiss! MIMI
Oh! come dolci scendono le sue lusinghe al core, tu sol comandi, amor!
Oh, how sweetly his flattery falls upon my heart. Love, alone command me! (as he tries to kiss her)
No, per pietà!
No, please! RODOLFO
Sei mia!
You’re mine! MIMI
V’aspettan gli amici.
Your friends are waiting for you. RODOLFO
Già mi mandi via?
Are you sending me away already? MIMI
Vorrei dir … ma non oso …
I’d like to say … but dare not … RODOLFO
Di’.
Say it! MIMI
Se venissi con voi?
Suppose I came with you? RODOLFO
Che? Mimi! Sarebbe così dolce restar qui. C’è freddo fuori.
What? Mimi! It would be lovely to stay here. It’s cold outside. MIMI
Vi starò vicina!
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I shall be near you!
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RODOLFO E al ritorno?
And when we return? MIMI
Curioso!
Wait and see! RODOLFO
Dammi il braccio, mia piccina.
Give me your arm, my sweet. MIMI
Obbedisco, signor!
I obey, Monsieur! RODOLFO
Che m’ami di’.
Say you love me. MIMI
Io t’amo!
I love you! MIMI, RODOLFO (as they go out)
Amor! Amor! Amor!
Ah, love, love, love!
Verdi: “Già nella notte densa” from Otello OTELLO Già nella notte densa s’estingue ogni clamor. Già il mio core fremebondo s’ammansa in questo amplesso e si rinsensa. Tuoni la guerra e s’inabissi il mondo se dopo l’ira immensa vien quest’immenso amor!
Now, in the darkness of the night, all harsh sounds die away. And now my turbulent heart finds in this embrace a calm refreshment. May cannons roar and may the world collapse, if after the immeasurable destruction comes this immeasurable love! DESDEMONA
Mio superbo guerrier! Quanti tormenti, quanti mesti sospiri e quanta speme ci condusse ai soavi abbracciamenti! Oh! Com’è dolce il mormorare insieme: te ne rammenti? Quando narravi l’esule tua vita e i fieri eventi e i lunghi tuoi dolor, ed io t’udia coll’anima rapita in quei spaventi, coll’estasi nel cor.
My splendid warrior! What anguish, what deep sighs and what high hopes have strewn the path to our glad union! Oh, how sweet to murmur thus together! Do you remember? You used to tell me of your life in exile, of violent deeds and suffering long endured, and I would listen, transported by the tales that terrified, but thrilled my heart as well. OTELLO
Pingea dell’armi il fremito, la pugna e il vol gagliardo alla breccia mortal, l’assalto, orribil edera, coll’ugna al baluardo e il sibilante stral.
I would describe the clash of arms, the fight and violent thrust towards the fatal breach, the assault, when hands, like grisly tendrils, clung to bastions amid the hissing darts.
BRIAN JADGE, TENOR
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DESDEMONA Poi mi guidavi ai fulgidi deserti, all’arse arene, al tuo materno suol; narravi allor gli spasimi sofferti e le catene e dello schiavo il duol.
Then you would lead me to the glaring desert, to scorching sands, the country of your birth; and you would relate your sufferings, tell me of chains and slavery’s agony. OTELLO
Ingentilia di lagrime la storia il tuo bel viso e il labbro di sospir; scendean sulle mie tenebre la gloria, il paradiso e gli astri a benedir.
Softened by your tears, your lovely face and sighing lips, the tale became less harsh; upon my darkness shone a glory, a heavenly radiance and all the starry host, in benediction. DESDEMONA
Ed io vedea fra le tua tempie oscure splender del genio l’eterna beltà.
And I descried upon your dusky forehead the splendor of your genius’ deathless beauty. OTELLO
E tu m’amavi per le mie sventure, ed io t’amavo per la tua pietà.
And you loved me for the dangers I had passed, and I loved you that you did pity them. DESDEMONA
Ed io t’amavo per le tue sventure e tu m’amavi per la mia pietà.
And I loved you for the dangers you had passed, and you loved me that I did pity them. OTELLO
E tu m’amavi …
And you loved me … DESDEMONA
E tu m’amavi …
And you loved me … OTELLO
Ed io t’amavo …
And I loved you … OTELLO, DESDEMONA
… per la tua/mia pietà.
… that you/I did pity them. OTELLO
Venga la morte! e mi colga nell’estasi di quest’amplesso il momento supremo! Tal è gaudio dell’anima che temo, temo che più non mi sara concesso quest’attimo divino nell’ignoto avvenir del mio destino.
Let death come now! that in the ecstasy of this embrace I meet my hour of hours! Such rapture of the soul makes me afraid, fearful that never more may be vouchsafed this state of bliss in all the unknown destiny to come. DESDEMONA
Disperda il ciel gli affanni e amor non muti col mutar degli anni.
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May heaven dispel all cares and may love change not with the changing years.
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OTELLO A questa tua preghiera “Amen” risponda la celeste schiera.
To this your prayer may all the heavenly host reply “Amen.” DESDEMONA
“Amen” risponda.
May it reply “Amen.” OTELLO
Ah! La gioia m’innonda si fieramente … che ansante mi giacio … Un bacio …
Ah! Joy floods my breast so violently … it takes my breath away … A kiss … DESDEMONA
Otello! Otello! OTELLO Un bacio … ancora un bacio. Già la pleiade ardente in mar discende.
A kiss … another kiss. Already the blazing Pleides sink ’neath the waves. DESDEMONA
Tarda è la notte.
The night is advanced. OTELLO
Vien … Venere splende.
Come … Venus is radiant. DESDEMONA
Otello!
Otello! (They go slowly towards the castle, clasped in each other’s arms.)
Donizetti: “Regnava nel silenzio” from Lucia di Lammermoor Regnava nel silenzio Alta la notte e bruna … Colpia la fronte Un pallido raggio di etra luna … Quando un sommeso gemito Fra l’aure udir si fè … Ed ecco, Ecco su quel margine … L’ombra mostrarsi, L’ombra mostrarsi a me. Ah! Qual di chi parla, Muoversi il labbro suo vedea, E con la mano esanime Chiamarmi a se parea, Stette un momento immobile, Poi ratta dileguò … E l’onda pria sì limpida Di sangue rosseggiò.
In the silence reigned The night, deep and dark … A faint ray Of gloomy moonlight fell upon my brow. When a subdued moan Was heard on the breeze, And here, Here on that ledge. The ghost showed itself, The ghost showed itself to me. Ah! As one who speaks I saw her move her lips. And with her lifeless hand. She seemed to beckon me to her. She remained one moment motionless, Then quickly vanished … And the water that was so clear before Was tinged red with blood.
BRIAN JADGE, TENOR
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Egli è luce A giorni miei, E conforto, E conforto al mio, al mio penar. Quando, rapito in estasi Del più cocente ardore Col favellar del core … Mi giura eterna fè, eterna fè, In estasi, Del più cocente ardore, Col favellar del core, mi giura eterna fè, Gli affanni miei dimentico Gioia diviene il pianto … Parmi che a lui d’accanto Si schiuda il ciel per me.
He is the light Of my days, He is the comfort, To my suffering. When rapt in ecstasy Of burning rapture Speaking from his heart … He swears eternal faith, In ecstasy, Of burning rapture, Speaking from his heart, He swears eternal faith, I forget my sorrows, My tears turn to joy … It seems that with him at my side That heaven opens for me.
Ah! Quando rapito in estasi Del più cocente ardore, Col favellar del core, Mi giura eterna fè, Gli affanni miei dimentico Gioia diviene il pianto. Parmi che a lui d’accanto Si schiude il ciel per me.
Ah! When rapt in ecstasy Of burning rapture, Speaking from his heart, He swears me eternal faith. I forget my sorrows, My tears turn to joy. It seems that with him at my side Heaven opens for me.
Dvořák: “Vidino divná, presladká” from Rusalka Vidino divná, přesladká, jsi-li ty člověk nebo pohádka? Př išla jsi chránit vzácné zvěř i, kterou jsem zahléd’ v lesa šeř i? Př išla-lis prosit za ni, sest ř ičko bílých laní? Anebo sama, jak vst ř íč mi jdeš koř istí lovcovou býti chceš?
Beautiful vision, delightful. Are you a woman or a fairy tale? Do you want to protect that precious creature I have just seen in the forest? Are you come to beg for her life? Are you and the doe of kindred blood? Or do you yourself, coming to me, Intend to be the hunter’s trophy?
Unable to speak, Rusalka stretches out her hands towards him. Svírá ti ústa tajemství, č i navždy jazyk tv ůj ztich’? Něma-li ústa tvá, Bůh to ví, vylíbám odpověd’ z nich! Odpověd’ záhadám, jež mne sem lákaly, jež mne sem volaly přes tmí, přes skály, abych tu koneč ně v blažený dnešní den, dítĕ, tvým pohledem náhle byl okouzlen! Co v srdci tvém jest ukryto, máš-li mne ráda, zjev mi to!
Secrets, perhaps, have closed your lips, Or are you for always mute? If your lips are mute, I swear to God They will answer to my kiss! Explain the mysteries that have lured me here, That have been calling me over thorns, over rocks, So that I finally, on this blissful day, Could feel the enchantment of your lovely gaze! What is there hidden in your heart? If you do love me, tell it me.
Rusalka throws herself into his arms.
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Vím, že jsi kouzlo, které mine a rozplyne se v mlžný rej leč dokud čas náš neuplyne, ó pohádko má, neprchej! Můj skončen lov nač myslit na ň? Tys nejvzácnější moje la ň. Tys hvězdička zlatá v noc temnou pohádko má, pojd’ se mnou!
I know you’re but magic that will pass And dissolve in the rolling mists — But until our time expires Oh, fairy tale, do not vanish! My hunting ends — why think of it? You’re the most precious of my does! Golden star shining in the night — Fairy tale mine, ah, come with me!
Massenet: “Pourquoi me réveiller” from Werther “Pourquoi me réveiller, ô souffle du Printemps? Pourquoi me réveiller? Sur mon front je sens tes caresses, et pourtant bien proche est le temps des orages et des tristesses! Pourquoi me réveiller, ô souffle du Printemps? Demain, dans le vallon, viendra le voyageur, se souvenant de ma gloire première. Et ses yeux vainement chercheront ma splendeur: ils ne trouveront plus que deuil et que misère!” Hélas! Pourquoi me réveiller, ô souffle du Printemps?
“Why awaken me, oh breath of spring? Why awaken me? On my brow I feel thy caresses and yet close at hand is the time of storms and sorrows! Why awaken me, oh breath of spring? Tomorrow, into the valley, will come the traveler remembering my former glory. And vainly will his eyes seek my splendor: they will find only misery and grief!” Alas! Why awaken me, oh breath of spring?
Massenet: “Adieu, notre petite table” from Manon Adieu, notre petite table Qui, nous réunit si souvent! Adieu, notre petite table, Si grande pour nous cependant! On tient, c’est inimaginable … Si peu de place ... en se serrant ... Adieu, notre petite table! Un même verre était le nôtre, Chacun de nous, quand il buvait, Y cherchait les lèvres de l’autre ... Ah! Pauvre ami, comme il m’aimait! Adieu ... notre petite table.
Farewell, our little table, Which brought us together so often! Farewell, our little table, Which seemed so large to the two of us! It’s unimaginable, how little space we take … How little space ... when we’re embracing ... Farewell, our little table! We used the same cup, The two of us, when we each drank, When we tried to find each other’s lips ... Ah! My poor friend, how he loved me! Farewell ... our little table.
Massenet: “Toi! Vous!” from Manon DES GRIEUX Toi! Vous!
You here! You! MANON
Oui, c’est moi, moi!
Yes, it is I! DES GRIEUX
Que viens-tu faire ici? Va-t-en! Va-t-en! Éloigne-toi!
What are you doing here? Go away! Go away! Go away!
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PROGRAM
MANON Oui! Je fus cruelle et coupable! Mais rappelez-vous tant d’amour! Ah! dans ce regard qui m’accable, lirai-je mon pardon, un jour?
Yes, I was cruel and to blame! But remember the intensity of our love! In this glance that shatters me now, will I see some day that I am forgiven? DES GRIEUX
Éloigne-toi!
Go away! MANON
Oui! Je fus cruelle et coupable! Ah! Rappelez-vous tant d’amour! Rappelez-vous tant d’amour!
Yes, I was cruel and to blame! Ah! Remember the intensity of our love! Remember the intensity of our love! DES GRIEUX
Non! j’avais écrit sur le sable ce rêve insensé d’un amour que le ciel n’avait fait durable que pour un instant, pour un jour!
No! I wrote on sand this wild dream of love that Heaven sustained for only an instant, for a day! MANON
Oui! je fus coupable!
Yes, I was cruel! DES GRIEUX
J’avais écrit sur le sable.
I wrote on sand. MANON
Oui! je fus cruelle!
Yes! I was cruel! DES GRIEUX
C’était un rêve que le ciel n’avait fait durable que pour un instant, pour un jour! Ah! perfide Manon!
It was a dream that Heaven sustained for only an instant, for a day! Ah! Faithless Manon! MANON
Si je me repentais ...
If I repented ... DES GRIEUX
Ah! perfide! perfide!
Ah! Faithless! Faithless! MANON
... est-ce que tu n’aurais pas de pitié?
... would you not feel some pity? DES GRIEUX
Je ne veux pas vous croire. Non! vous êtes sortie enfin de ma mémoire ainsi que de mon cœur!
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I do not want to trust you. No, you’ve finally been expelled from my memory as well as from my heart!
PROGRAM
MANON Hélas! Hélas! L’oiseau qui fuit ce qu’il croit l’esclavage, le plus souvent la nuit d’un vol désespéré revient battre au vitrage! Pardonnez-moi!
Alas! Alas! The bird that escapes what it thinks is servitude, very often comes back in the night in a desperate flight, to beat against the glass! Forgive me! DES GRIEUX
Non! No! MANON Je meurs à tes genoux. Ah! rends-moi ton amour si tu veux que je vive!
I am dying at your feet. Ah! Give me back your love if you want me to live! DES GRIEUX
Non! il est mort pour vous!
No, my love for you is dead! MANON
L’est-il donc à ce point que rien ne le ravive! Écoute-moi! Rappelle-toi! N’est-ce plus ma main que cette main presse? N’est-ce plus ma voix? N’est-elle pour toi plus une caresse, tout comme autrefois? Et ces yeux, jadis pour toi pleins de charmes, ne brillent-ils plus à travers mes larmes? Ne suis-je plus moi? N’ai-je plus mon nom? Ah! regarde-moi! Regarde-moi! N’est-ce plus ma main que cette main presse, tout comme autrefois? etc.
Is it so dead that nothing can bring it back to life? Listen to me! Remember! Is this no longer my hand pressing yours? Is this no longer my voice? Is it no more for you like a caress, just as it used to be? And my eyes, at one time full of charm for you, are they no longer sparkling through my tears? Am I no longer myself? Have I no longer my name? Ah! Look at me, look at me! Is this no longer my hand pressing yours, just as it used to do? etc. DES GRIEUX
Ô Dieu! Soutenez-moi dans cet instant suprême!
Oh Lord! Protect me in this supreme moment! MANON
Je t’aime!
I love you! DES GRIEUX
Ah! Tais-toi! Ne parle pas d’amour ici, c’est un blasphème!
Ah, don’t speak! Don’t talk about love in this place, it’s blasphemy! MANON
Je t’aime!
I love you! DES GRIEUX
Ah! Tais-toi! Ne parle pas d’amour!
Ah! Don’t speak! Don’t talk about love!
BRIAN JADGE, TENOR
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PROGRAM
MANON Je t’aime!
I love you! DES GRIEUX
C’est l’heure de prier ...
It is the hour of prayer ... MANON
Non! Je ne te quitte pas!
No! I will not leave you! DES GRIEUX
On m’appelle là-bas ...
They’re calling me down there ... MANON
Non! Je ne te quitte pas! No! I will not leave you! Viens! Come! N’est-ce plus me main que cette main presse, Is this no longer my hand pressing yours, tout comme autrefois? just as it used to do? DES GRIEUX Tout comme autrefois!
Just as it used to do! MANON
Et ces yeux, jadis pour toi pleins de charmes, n’est-ce plus Manon?
And my eyes, at one time so full of charm for you, is this no longer Manon? DES GRIEUX
Tout comme autrefois!
Just as it used to be! MANON
Regarde-moi! Ne suis-je plus moi? N’est-ce plus Manon?
Look at me! Am I any different? Is this no longer Manon? DES GRIEUX
Ah! Manon! Je ne veux plus lutter contre moi-même!
Ah! Manon! I cannot struggle against myself any longer. MANON
Enfin!
At last! DES GRIEUX
Et dussé-je sur moi faire crouler les cieux, ma vie est dans ton cœur, ma vie est dans tes yeux! Ah! Viens! Manon! Je t’aime
And even should I cause the Heaven to come crashing down on my head, my life is in your heart, my life is in your eyes. Ah! Come, Manon! I love you! MANON
Je t’aime!
I love you! DES GRIEUX
Je t’aime!
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I love you!
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
BRIAN JAGDE American tenor Brian Jagde has quickly emerged as one of the most engaging and exciting artists of his generation. Jagde makes several highly anticipated role debuts in the 2016–17 season, including Radamès in a new production of Aida at San Francisco Opera; Maurizio (Adriana Lecouvreur) at the Royal Opera House; and Froh (Das Rheingold) in his first appearance with the New York Philharmonic. House debuts include Pinkerton (Madama Butterfly) at the Teatro Massimo and Washington National Opera; Don José (Carmen) at the Bayerische Staatsoper; and he performs for the first time at the Teatro Real as Macduff (Macbeth) and Oper Stuttgart as Cavaradossi (Tosca). He also presents a concert, highlighting works by Verdi, Puccini, Massenet, Bernstein and more. The event is featured as the first Mondavi Center-hosted performance, in collaboration with soprano Joyce El-Khoury and pianist Robert Mollicone at the new Ann E. Pitzer Center in Davis, California. In the 2015–16 season Jagde made house debuts at the Teatro San Carlo as Don José (Carmen), led by Zubin Mehta; Houston Grand Opera as the Prince (Rusalka); and Palm Beach Opera as Bacchus (Ariadne auf Naxos). He also returned to Minnesota Opera in his role debut as Bacchus, and sang Don José in return engagements at Deutsche Oper Berlin and San Francisco Opera, in the United States premiere of Calixto Bieito’s thrilling production. Jagde recently debuted at the Royal Opera House as Pinkerton and sang Cavaradossi in his first appearance at Lyric Opera of Chicago. He also gave a ‘radiant’ and ‘glorious’ (San Francisco Classical Voice) solo recital debut at the Mondavi Center in Davis, California, with pianist Craig Terry. Previous engagements include debuts at The Metropolitan Opera as Count Elemer (Arabella); Don José (Carmen) at Opéra de Limoges; Cavaradossi at Santa Fe Opera and Deutsche Oper Berlin; Rodolfo (La bohéme) with the Ópera de Bellas Artes; Ismaele (Nabucco) at the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia; and the Prince (Rusalka) and Narraboth (Salome) at Opera San Antonio. He was also seen as Pinkerton at San Francisco Opera; Matteo (Arabella) with Minnesota Opera; Rodolfo with the Münchner Philharmoniker and the Castleton Festival; and Narraboth at Santa Fe Opera. Jagde made his European debut in the title role of Werther and Macduff at the Teatr Wielki Opera Poznan in Poland. In addition to his arts education volunteer efforts with various organizations and schools, Jagde serves on
the Advisory Board for Time In Kids, a NY-based nonprofit providing arts access to at-risk children. Jagde has received numerous accolades, including top prize at the Loren L. Zachary Competition (2014) and second prize in Plácido Domingo’s Operalia Competition (2012). Jagde won additional honors at Operalia for his interpretations of Wagner-Strauss repertoire, receiving the Birgit Nilsson Prize. He is a graduate of San Francisco Opera’s Adler and Merola Programs.
JOYCE EL-KHOURY In the 2016–2017 season, Joyce ElKhoury makes several major debuts: first in London at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden as Violetta in La traviata; at the Glyndebourne Festival, also as Violetta; and with Opéra National de Bordeaux as Leila in Les Pêcheurs de Perles. She will make her role and house debuts with Opera Philadelphia as Liù in Turandot, and also as Salome in Massenet’s Herodiade with Washington Concert Opera. Last season, El-Khoury performed Violetta in La traviata with the Canadian Opera Company in Toronto; Musetta in La bohème with the Bayerische Staatsoper in Munich; Tatyana in Eugene Onegin with North Carolina Opera; and joined the roster of San Diego Opera to perform the role of Tatyana Bakst in Jake Heggie’s new opera Great Scott, alongside Frederica von Stade, Nathan Gunn, Isabel Leonard and Anthony Roth Costanzo. El-Khoury garnered raves when she starred in the title role of Maria Stuarda at Seattle Opera, replacing an ailing colleague in addition to giving her own scheduled performances, in some instances singing back to back engagements. On the concert stage, El-Khoury debuted with the Orchestre de Paris in Rossini’s Stabat Mater, under the baton of Jesús LópezCobos, and performed in concerts in Austria with El īna Garanča, and in Spain with Juan Diego Flórez. Engagements in the 2014–15 season included Violetta in La traviata with Lyric Opera of Kansas City and the Savonlinna Opera Festival in Finland. She took on the title role of Tobias Picker’s Emmeline with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, to critical acclaim. She was heard in concert with Juan Diego Flórez at the Beiteddine Festival in Lebanon; performed Juliette in Roméo et Juliette with Austin Lyric Opera; made a return to Dutch National Opera to sing Musetta in La bohème, and joined Vancouver Opera as Rosalinde in Die Fledermaus. Additionally, ElKhoury performed and recorded the role of Pauline in Donizetti’s Les Martyrs with Opera Rara at the Royal Festival Hall in London. continued
BRIAN JADGE, TENOR
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ABOUT THE ARTISTS
JOYCE EL-KHOURY continued Born in Lebanon and brought up in Canada, El-Khoury earned her Bachelor of Music at the University of Ottawa. She received her Artist Diploma from the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia, and is a graduate of the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artist Development Program. She is a first prize winner in many competitions including: the Loren L. Zachary Competition, the Opera Index Competition, the George London Foundation and the Mario Lanza Vocal Competition.
ROBERT MOLLICONE Pianist and conductor Robert Mollicone is a member of the San Francisco Opera music staff, where he serves as coach, prompter and assistant conductor; he is also a frequent guest at such companies as Seattle Opera, Utah Opera, The Dallas Opera and Opera San Jose. He has prepared productions with and assisted many of today’s leading conductors, including Jesús López-Cobos, Stephen Lord, Donald Runnicles, Patrick Summers and Nicola Luisotti. These nearly 40 productions since 2010 span the breadth of the operatic repertoire, including Ariadne auf Naxos, Turandot, La Cenerentola, Les Troyens, La Finta Giardiniera and Show Boat. A commitment to the propagation of American opera led Mollicone to work on the 25th anniversary production
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of Nixon in China as well as Moby-Dick, Dolores Claiborne and The Secret Garden. He also conducted performances of Weiser’s Where Angels Fear to Tread at Opera San Jose, and participated in the workshop for Marco Tutino’s Two Women. Mollicone served as head coach and accompanist for the premiere of Jake Heggie and Terrence McNally’s Great Scott at The Dallas Opera. Equally at home on the concert stage, Mollicone collaborates frequently with both rising stars and veteran singers including Denyce Graves, Theo Lebow, Elisabeth Bishop, Andrea Carroll, Simon Estes, Nicholas Phan and Jamie Barton. He made his Carnegie Hall debut alongside soprano Melody Moore in May 2016. In the summer of 2015, Mollicone was invited to conduct a program of opera scenes at Wolf Trap Opera. He later debuted, whilst preparing Luisa Miller for the opening of San Francisco Opera’s 2015–16 season, as co-composer for trixxie carr’s one-woman show, Salome, Dance for Me. Mollicone is a graduate of San Francisco Opera’s Adler Fellowship, as well as of the Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Program at Washington National Opera. He holds a Master of Music from Boston University, where he studied with Shiela Kibbe.