Part 7 (2/2)

change

-froi! Ah!

Grace, grace pour moi-meme, pour toi-meme.]

The phrase ”Grace, grace,” in which Isabelle implores Robert of Normandy's forgiveness, occurs three times. When it recurs for the last time, a change from the printed text is not only justifiable; it is demanded, in order to give additional intensity and power to the phrase, and to avoid the monotony caused by mere repet.i.tion. This modification is all the more defensible, as the composer has subst.i.tuted the orchestra, with the strings _tremolo_, for the rhythmical harp-figure with which he accompanies the phrase on its first and second presentations. Here is the accepted traditional change:

[Music: Grace, grace pour moi-meme, pour toi-meme.]

Again, to sing the final cadenza of this air as Meyerbeer briefly indicated it, would be impossible and absurd:

[Music: (as printed)

ah! grace pour moi.

(as sung)

ah! grace, ah! grace pour moi.]

Other changes have their origin in the fact that sometimes a great climax is rendered impossible of realization because the musical phrase culminates on a vowel-sound difficult of emission on that note, and devoid of sonority; another word has sometimes to be subst.i.tuted.

For this reason, in the first air of Alice in the same opera (_Robert_), ”_Va, dit-elle_,” a verbal rearrangement is always resorted to:

[Music: Sa mere va prier pour lui, sa mere va prier pour lui, sa mere va prier pour lui, va prier]

To avoid the disagreeable and ineffective result produced by the high descending pa.s.sage on the word ”lui” (p.r.o.nounced in English as ”lwee”), the last few bars are performed thus:

[Music: sa mere va prier, sa mere va prier]

When _La Tosca_ (Puccini) was produced in French at the Opera-Comique, Paris, the unfortunate artist to whom was allotted the tenor role was expected by the translator to sing at full voice, and after a cras.h.i.+ng chord from the entire orchestra, marked _ffff_ in the score, the following words:

[Music: au peril de ma vie]

As it was found to be out of the question to produce the effect desired with the words as they stood, the phrase was afterwards changed to:

[Music: pour combattre l'infame]

Frequently modifications, most happy in their effect, are due to the inspiration of a particularly gifted artist.

Madame Viardot-Garcia, finding the phrase of the cabaletta in the aria ”_Se Romeo t'uccise_” (_Romeo e Giulietta_, Bellini) somewhat weak and ineffective, made the skilful _pointage_ here given:

[Music: (as printed)

Ma su voi ricada il sangue

(as sung by Mme. Viardot-Garcia)

<script>