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

Performative elements and sources
265
produced Aida for the first time in the 1890/91 season, clearly used. 24 Given
the small size of the chorus, those scenes were largely cut, as were the
ballet scenes due to the lack of dancers. Similar cuts were quite common
in the smaller German theatres, and even on prominent stages the Chorus
of the Priests in Act II was cut in the 1940s 25 because it required additional,
highly skilful singers. The theatre chorus barely managed to portray people
and prisoners.
The vocal scores used by conductors contained notes about which instruments
should be introduced at what moments, which would play solo
and which would accompany. If a typical string section was playing it was
simply written as Archi or Streicher, in the case of brass instruments Blech,
and so on. If the orchestra lacked certain instruments the score had to be
re-orchestrated, which was the case with Aida. After the introduction in
the first scene of Act I Verdi had divided the cello group into three parts
to achieve a muffled sound. There must have been only one cellist in the
theatre orchestra because, according to the vocal score, the three imitative
voices were played on a viola, a cello and a bassoon. There were more
changes of a similar kind. At the same time there are surprisingly many
hand-written observations, indicting very careful preparatory work. There
are many notes about tempi and dynamics – in which bar to have a bigger
crescendo, when to emphasise piano, when ritenuto should not be forgotten,
for example. Such detailed work culminated in a worthy result – the
reviews praised the musical presentation. What is even more significant is
that it was after the production of Aida in 1890 that the Tallinn audience
started to appreciate Verdi.
Conclusion
The famous tenor Karel Burian, who in his youth was a member of the
Tallinn City Theatre <strong>Opera</strong> Company, remembers the beginning of his engagement
in Tallinn:
I announced in a letter where I lived and that I was waiting for the instructions.
[---] Thereupon it was announced that I shall sing Troubadour
at the season opening. I was relieved. It was one of my old school
parts, although I had no recollection of the lyrics ever since the Brno
24 TMM, fund Mo 256. The vocal score was published by G. Ricordi (Milan) and Ed.
Bote & G. Bock, Berlin; text only in German.
25 Information from Prof. Dr. h.c. Joachim Herz, opera director, Dresden, October 2001