Puccini and The Girl
History and Reception of The Girl of the Golden West
248 pages
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32 halftones, 4 line drawings, 25 musical examples, 12 tables
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6 x 9
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© 2005
Set in the American West during the California Gold Rush, La fanciulla del West marked a significant departure from Giacomo Puccini's previous and best- known works. Puccini and the Girl is the first book to explore this important but often misunderstood opera that became the earliest work by a major European composer to receive an American premiere when it opened at New York's Metropolitan Opera House in 1910.
Adapted from American playwright David Belasco's Broadway production, The Girl of the Golden West, Fanciulla was Puccini's most consciously modern work, and its Met debut received mixed reviews. Annie J. Randall and Rosalind Gray Davis base their account of its creation on previously unknown letters from Puccini to his main librettist, Carlo Zangarini. They mine musical materials, newspaper accounts, and rare photographs and illustrations to tell the full story of this controversial opera. Puccini and the Girl considers the production and reception of Puccini's "cowboy" opera in the light of contemporary criticism, providing both fascinating insight into its history and a look to the future as its centenary approaches.
Adapted from American playwright David Belasco's Broadway production, The Girl of the Golden West, Fanciulla was Puccini's most consciously modern work, and its Met debut received mixed reviews. Annie J. Randall and Rosalind Gray Davis base their account of its creation on previously unknown letters from Puccini to his main librettist, Carlo Zangarini. They mine musical materials, newspaper accounts, and rare photographs and illustrations to tell the full story of this controversial opera. Puccini and the Girl considers the production and reception of Puccini's "cowboy" opera in the light of contemporary criticism, providing both fascinating insight into its history and a look to the future as its centenary approaches.
“Engrossing. . . . An eminently readable, ideally direct and information-packed book.”—William Fregosi, Opera Today
"Perhaps this brilliantly researched volume will help Fanciulla find its rightful place in the operatic repertory."
"In Puccini and The Girl Randall and Davis not only provide important new documentary information, they also succeed beautifully in offering original interpretative perspectives. Their book will forever change how we think about Puccini's American opera."
"A delightful read. Randall and Davis's book is a welcome contribution to opera studies. A thoughtful blend of cultural and documentary interpretation, Puccini and The Girl brings a neglected work to life."—Marcia J. Citron, author of Opera on Screen
"Puccini and The Girl is both new and original. It is new in the wealth and significance of the documentation it reviews, in particular the thirty or so previously unknown letters from Puccini to Zangarini as well as the copious accounts that shed light on critical aspects of the first complete performance of Fanciulla del West at New York's Metropolitan Opera House. The book is original in its presentation and fundamentally American viewpoint, fitting for Giacomo Puccini's 'American' opera. Puccini and The Girl is an essential contribution, sure to be treasured by all those intending to celebrate the centennial of this extraordinary opera in 2010."—Gabriella Biagi Ravenni, Founder of Centro studi Giacomo Puccini, Lucca, Italy
"I loved everything about this book. As so many of us singers, conductors, and directors have always known, Puccini reached new frontiers with this opera, not only in the 'West' of Belasco's play, but more importantly in creating the most riveting, daring, and forward-looking music drama of his lifetime. That he was so misunderstood and underappreciated for this is heartbreaking. Randall and Davis give us a fully emotional account, with the most insightful and illuminating scholarship of this critically underestimated work of genius. I sing the highest praises for this richly revelatory and relevant book."—Catherine Malfitano
"Welcome for its spirited defence of this sadly neglected opera."—BBC Music Magazine
"A rare and engrossing work of scholarship that can be enjoyed on several levels. For the Puccini-lover, to say nothing of one who has a special interest in La Fanciulla del West, it will provide a wealth of information not previously available, particularly all in one place. Anyone interested in the creative process will find it exposed and examined clearly. The scholar will recognize the fascinating chance discovery, the thrill of the chase and the deep rewards of work undertaken lovingly and with rigorous care by the dedicated and passionate co-authors. . . . what Randall and Davis have produced is an eminently readable, ideally direct and information-packed book that's an absorbing study of a great and increasingly popular masterwork."—Opera Today
Contents
List of Illustrations
Acknowledgments
Part I - Setting the Stage
Chapter 1. New Documents, New Approaches
Chapter 2. The Opera's Story: Texts and Subtexts
Part II - Creating the Opera
Chapter 3. Puccini and La fanciulla, 1903-7
Chapter 4. Minnie Returns
Chapter 5. Puccini, Publicity, and the 1910 Premiere
Part III - Critical Perspectives
Chapter 6. Operatizing America
Chapter 7. Redemption and Other Critical Orthodoxies
Chapter 8. Staging La fanciulla del West in 2010
Appendixes
A. Puccini's Letters to Zangarini: Table and Italian Texts
B. Italian Texts of Quotations
C. Zangarini's Libretti: Table and Commentary
D. Metropolitan Opera Performance History
E. Discography and Videography
Bibliography
Index
Acknowledgments
Part I - Setting the Stage
Chapter 1. New Documents, New Approaches
Chapter 2. The Opera's Story: Texts and Subtexts
Part II - Creating the Opera
Chapter 3. Puccini and La fanciulla, 1903-7
Chapter 4. Minnie Returns
Chapter 5. Puccini, Publicity, and the 1910 Premiere
Part III - Critical Perspectives
Chapter 6. Operatizing America
Chapter 7. Redemption and Other Critical Orthodoxies
Chapter 8. Staging La fanciulla del West in 2010
Appendixes
A. Puccini's Letters to Zangarini: Table and Italian Texts
B. Italian Texts of Quotations
C. Zangarini's Libretti: Table and Commentary
D. Metropolitan Opera Performance History
E. Discography and Videography
Bibliography
Index
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