Turandot was Puccini’s
last opera and this disc was issued
contemporaneously with that explaining
Falstaff. In my review
of the Falstaff Explained
I was critical of some of the musical
extracts of other works chosen to make
certain points and also the failure
to point out aspects of Verdi’s musical
construction. I have no such reservations
in respect of this issue although I
will disagree with the statement (tr.
4) dealing with Puccini’s writing for
the tenor voice, that ‘No composer
wrote more prolific and thrilling music
for it than Puccini, he surpassed even
Verdi in this respect’. Yes there
are thrilling tenor arias in Manon Lescaut,
Tosca, Boheme, Butterfly, Fanciulla
del West and, of course in Turandot.
Needless to say the disc opens (tr.
1) with extracts from Nessun Dorma.
It goes on to state that Turandot was
the last manifestation of 300 years
of Italian Opera as a popular entertainment
and not merely that of the elite pace-setters
of society. That as a statement truly
reflects the reality of the history
of Italian opera. I recently read an
interview with Mirella Freni, a great
interpreter of many of Puccini’s heroines.
Born in 1935 she noted that in over
fifty years on the opera stage she had
never sung a work written in her lifetime.
As the narrative notes, with the death
of Puccini and the conclusion of Turandot,
operatic works rich in tunes had gone
it seems for ever (tr. 3). The narrative
gives a brief outline (tr. 2) of the
300 year history of Italian opera from
Monteverdi and Cavalli in the early
sixteen hundreds. There is mention of
the age of Bel Canto, and the works
of Rossini, Bellini and Donizetti, before
paying tribute to the dominance of the
rest of the 19th century
by Verdi. There is an illuminating discourse
on the feeling that, by the end of that
century, Italian opera had lost its
way; the initiative had crossed the
Alps. Wagner’s influence is illustrated
by a brief extract from the Flying Dutchman.
The more seamless style of his music
was distinctly different from the older
Italian tradition of set numbers, be
they arias, duets or ensembles. So too
was Wagner’s use of the orchestra as
a major protagonist and his use of musical
motifs that are also a feature of Turandot.
The narrative contends that Italian
opera responded with the verismo movement,
operas based on the dramas of real life.
Whilst that is certainly accepted, I
am less sure that Bizet’s Carmen (1875)
was an influence. Anyway there is a
brief extract of the Carmen overture
before mention of Mascagni and Leoncavallo
and extracts from their popular verismo
operas Cavalleria Rusticana and Pagliacci.
However, as is noted, verismo was a
false dawn for popular Italian opera,
a last burst of creative splendour before
imploding - much as great Empires do!
On the life of Puccini,
the narrative recounts how, as a young
man destined for the Church, he walked
fifteen miles from his home in Lucca
to hear a performance of Aida at Pisa
(tr. 3). It changed his life and he
entered the Milan Conservatoire. It
is noted that his early operas Le Villi
and Edgar are only rarely revived but
after Manon Lescaut his fame spread
to the operatic capitals of the world.
Puccini’s career spanned over 30 years
and produced, in Tosca, Boheme and Butterfly
three of the great staples of opera
houses all over the world. In respect
of Turandot, the narrative tells how,
when Puccini died, the score was only
completed to the death of Liu in act
3. He had left sketches for the completion
of the work (tr. 5). The publisher Ricordi,
and the conductor Toscanini, asked Franco
Alfano, a composer in his own right,
to complete the work, around fifteen
minutes of music. Since that time others
have also added endings, most recently
Berio in a completion that finds favour
with some musicians. The plot is outlined
and also the use by Puccini of a pentatonic
(five note) scale to illustrate the
oriental motifs in the work. The narrative
then takes the listener through the
story with regular musical extracts
(trs. 5-16). This is done with exemplary
clarity and skill. Particular note is
made of the last pages that Puccini
himself wrote, Liu’s funeral procession
after her death by torture initiated
by Princess Turandot to elicit the name
of the unknown Prince (tr. 14). This
also gives rise to comment on how Puccini
seemed to love cruelty, a preoccupation
to be found in many of his works. Also
recounted is the story of the premiere,
conducted by Toscanini. The narrative
states that when Toscanini came to the
end of Puccini’s composition, as distinct
from Alfano’s, the conductor put down
his baton with the words, in Italian,
‘at this point the maestro died’ and
left the platform, the performance not
completed. My previous understanding
was that Toscanini merely interrupted
the premiere and put down his baton
with the words ‘at this point the maestro
laid down his pen’. I would not, however,
like that minor detail to detract from
the excellence of this issue. Like Verdi’s
last opera, Turandot has been, for a
long time, less popular than many of
his other works. The three tenors have
aroused interest in it and this disc
will further enhance the understanding
and pleasure to be derived from listening
to what is a very fine work, albeit
one that can be a little difficult at
first listening; much like Verdi’s Falstaff
in fact. Recommended to opera lovers
of all ages and types.
Robert J Farr
Princess Turandot, Giovanna Casolla (sop); Prince
Calaf, Lando Bartolini (ten); Liu, a young slave
girl, Masako Deguci (sopr); The Emperor Altoum
Francisco Heredia (ten); Timur, dispossessed
foreign king, Felipe Bou (bass) 
