Opera on the Move in the Nordic Countries during the Long 19th ...

254 Kristel Pappel
The singers, the director, the musical director, the chorus and the
orchestra
Up until the1870s the Tallinn City Theatre had a mixed company comprising
two or three opera singers and a variety of actors with good singing
skills (who were essential, especially in smaller companies). A separate
opera company was hired in 1872, but the practice of putting actors in
smaller roles persisted. Singers (as well as actors and conductors) came to
Tallinn from all over the German-language cultural space, especially Prussia
(Berlin, Stettin, Elbing, Königsberg), Lübeck, Hamburg, Saxony (Dresden,
Leipzig), Darmstadt, Mannheim and other places (Pappel 2003, 180).
The theatre had close connections with the Riga theatre and there was a
constant exchange of people. In terms of training, singers learned mainly
by practising, and took private lessons if they had the resources: this applied
to Tallinn City Theatre artists as well. It is noteworthy that a Berlin
critic (quoted in RZ, 28.08.1872) referred to members of the Tallinn City
Theatre’s first opera company as “naturals” (Naturalisten), meaning that
they had rather natural voices, unlike artists with polished vocal skills and
performance ability. Beginners came to a Tallinn-sized city in order to gain
stage experience in various roles. At the other end of the scale were artists
whose best years were behind them, as well as the mediocre but brave
singers who were common everywhere. As was typical at the time, the
company was in constant flux, and people rarely lasted for more than two
seasons. The contracts normally covered one season (Pappel 2003, p. 53),
often justified on the assumption that small-city audiences became bored
with the same faces. 9
In smaller theatres such as that in Tallinn in the nineteenth century the
theatre producer (Theaterdirektor) may also have been a director (Regisseur),
a role that was not usually named. The first time a director was specifically
mentioned was in 1832 (Pappel 2003, p. 177), and the opera director
(Opernregisseur) was mentioned in 1845 (Pappel 2003, p. 177). During
the second half of the century most opera directors in Tallinn were former
singers, especially bass singers who could also take on smaller roles. It is
worth pointing out here that at the time direction (Regie) meant placing
singers and the choir in groups (Gruppen) or tableaux, as well as deciding
9 The population of Tallinn in 1871 was 29,162, of which 34.4 per cent were Germans,
51.8 per cent were Estonians and 11.3 per cent were Russians. By1881 the number
had grown to 45,880. It should be mentioned here that German was the home language
of educated Estonians, and “German” and “Estonian” may refer to social status, not
necessarily to nationality.