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A Beautiful Romance or the Fickleness of Love? Eugene Onegin, Inside and Out
By David LU
While searching for inspiration for an opera in the spring of 1877, TCHAIKOVSKY was told by a friend to adapt one from Eugene Onegin, a novel in verse by the great Russian author Alexander PUSHKIN. Vehemently against the idea for a time because the novel was too famous (a timeless classic for both its literary level and meaning), he believed undertaking such a task would be highly stressful and could end up being a flop. But after some thought, the temptation of the plot and characters' personalities related through PUSHKIN's alluring poetry was too enticing, so he set to work on writing outstanding music for and an in-depth interpretation of the story to produce what became his most popular and most frequently performed opera.
Since so many people had read the novel, TCHAIKOVSKY was able to leave out some of the plot and focus on the key scenes, and he called it an opera of "lyrical scenes," his purpose being to break away from the narrative mode common to operas of the time. The novel is one of PUSHKIN's iconic lessons for the present from the past, a spot-on critique of social phenomena of the time, especially the way the character of the protagonist, a "superfluous man," delves deep into the heart. Although TCHAIKOVSKY had no intention of allowing PUSHKIN's critique to deeply influence the opera, he still portrayed, with refined strokes, the dramatic core of the idea that "character determines fate," giving the piece overall a romantic, poetic atmosphere of a musical drama despite the seriousness of the issue.
TCHAIKOVSKY laid bare his innovation for opera in the piece, building dramatic tension in the changing state of the characters' inner selves, brilliant solo after solo and ensemble after ensemble blurring the distinction between arias and recitatives. In the famous letter scene and duel scene, the orchestra plays music that matches the characters' mood changes to create a proper foundation. The music is full of contrasts, the depth of which is exemplified in how it describes the waltz of upper society and the dance of the rural farmers, and the vast difference between the seemingly similar sisters Tatyana and Olga. It thus presents a sorrow for the changes that take place with time and serves as a reflection on the impermanence in life.
PUSHKIN's and TCHAIKOVSKY's fates had highly coincidental connections to Eugene Onegin. PUSHKIN lost a duel with his wife's lover, meeting the same tragic fate as his character LENSKY at the age of just 37, while TCHAIKOVSKY began to be pursued through the medium of letters by a female student of his, much like the character Tatyana expresses her love to Onegin in a letter. Afraid of hurting his pursuer, TCHAIKOVSKY agreed to marry her, but the marriage quickly brought him physically and psychologically to the verge of collapse and thus came to an abrupt end after only a few weeks. Within a few months though, he remarkably bounced back and became re-enabled to complete the opera, sparing the art realm a great loss.
Eugene Onegin is one of the most classic Russian operas of all time, the script and music representing well the acme of 19th-century Russian drama and music. Weiwuying invites you to its opera-in-concert performance of this masterpiece in the Concert Hall in early 2025 to enjoy a radiant tapestry of literature and music.
Program
2/21(Fri)19:30
TCHAIKOVSKY's Eugene Onegin Opera in Concert
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