A Life for the Tsar

A Life for the Tsar (Russian: "Жизнь за царя", Zhizn' za tsarya) is a "patriotic-heroic tragic opera" in four acts with an epilogue by Mikhail Glinka. During the Soviet era the opera was known under the name Ivan Susanin (Russian: "Иван Сусанин").

A Life for the Tsar
Opera by Mikhail Glinka
Osip Petrov as Ivan Susanin in the premiere
Native title
Russian: "Жизнь за царя", Zhizn' za tsarya
Librettist
LanguageRussian
Premiere
9 December 1836 (1836-12-09)
Bolshoi Kamenny Theatre, Saint Petersburg

The original Russian libretto, based on historical events, was written by Nestor Kukolnik, Egor Fyodorovich (von) Rozen, Vladimir Sollogub and Vasily Zhukovsky. It premiered on 27 November 1836 OS (9 December NS) at the Bolshoi Kamenny Theatre in St. Petersburg. The historical basis of the plot involves Ivan Susanin, a patriotic hero of the early 17th century who died in the expulsion of the invading Polish army for the newly elected Tsar Mikhail, the first of the Romanov dynasty, elected in 1613.[1]

History

Composition history

The plot of A Life for the Tsar had been used earlier in 1815, when Catterino Cavos, an Italian-Russian composer, had written a two-act singspiel with the same subject and title. The original title of the opera was to be Ivan Susanin, after the hero, but when Nicholas I attended a rehearsal, Glinka changed the title to A Life for the Tsar as an ingratiating gesture.[1] This title was retained in the Russian Empire.

In 1924, under the new Soviet regime, it appeared under the title Hammer and Sickle, but that production was not successful and was shelved. On 26 February 1939 it reappeared under the title Glinka had originally chosen, Ivan Susanin.[2]

Glinka and the writers with whom he was associated chose, in Susanin, a hero of Russian nationalism well suited to the mood of the time. The opera was immediately hailed as a great success, and became the obligatory season-opener in the Imperial Russian opera theaters. A Life for the Tsar occupies an important position in Russian musical theater as the first native opera to win a permanent place in the repertoire. It was one of the first Russian operas to be known outside Russia.

Performance history

The opera was given its premiere performance on 27 November 1836 in Saint Petersburg conducted by Catterino Cavos with set designs by Andreas Roller. It was followed several years later with its premiere in Moscow on 7 September (Old Style) 1842 in a new production with sets by Serkov and Shenyan.

Fyodor Shalyapin as Susanin
Fyodor Shalyapin as Susanin

Glinka's play was featured heavily throughout the Romanov tercentenary celebrations. It was performed in a gala performance at Marinsky Theatre,[3] Performances of A Life for the Tsar was staged throughout Imperial Russia by schools, regiments and amateur companies. Pamphlets and the penny press printed the story of Susanin "ad nauseam", and one newspaper told how Susanin had showed each and every soldier how to fulfill his oath to the sovereign. The image of the seventeenth century peasant features prominently at the bottom of the Romanov Monument in Kostroma, where a female personification of Russia gave blessings to a kneeled Susanin. In Kostroma, Tsar Nicholas II was even presented with a group of Potemkin peasants who claimed to be descendants of Susanin.[4]

Publication history
  • 1857, piano-vocal score, as A Life for the Tsar, Stellovsky, St. Petersburg
  • 1881, full score, as A Life for the Tsar, Stellovsky, St. Petersburg
  • 1907, new edition by Rimsky-Korsakov and Glazunov, Belyayev, Leipzig
  • 1942, as Ivan Susanin, Muzgiz
  • 1949, as Ivan Susanin, Muzgiz
  • 1953, as Ivan Susanin, Muzgiz

Influences

In keeping with Glinka's European training, much of A Life for the Tsar was structured according to conventional Italian and French models of the period. Nevertheless, several passages in the opera are based on Russian folk songs or folk melodic idioms that become a full part of the musical texture.

Most importantly, this opera laid the foundation for the series of Russian nationalistic historical operas continued by works such as Serov's Rogneda, Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov, Rimsky-Korsakov's Maid of Pskov, Tchaikovsky's The Oprichnik or Mazeppa, and Borodin's Prince Igor.

Roles
Role Voice type World premiere,
St. Petersburg
27 November (Old Style) (9 December, NS) 1836
(Conductor: Catterino Cavos)		 Moscow premiere
7 September (Old Style) 1842
(conductor: Ivan Iogannis )
Ivan Susanin, a peasant of the village of Domnino bass Osip Petrov Dmitriy Kurov
Antonida, his daughter soprano Mariya Stepanova Mariya Leonova
Vanya, Susanin's adopted son contralto Anna Petrova-Vorobyova Anfisa Petrova
Bogdan Sobinin, a militiaman, Antonida's fiance tenor Lev Leonov Alexander Bantyshev
Commander of the Polish Detachment bass Sergey Baykov
A Polish courier tenor I. Makarov
Commander of the Russian Detachment bass Aleksey Yefremov
Chorus and silent: Peasant men and women, militiamen, Polish nobles and ladies, knights

Performance practice

As popular as the opera was, its monarchist libretto was an embarrassment to the Soviet state. After some unsuccessful attempts were made to remedy this situation, in 1939 the poet S. M. Gorodetsky rewrote the text to remove references to the Tsar and otherwise make the libretto politically palatable.[5]

Synopsis
  • Time: The autumn of 1612 and the winter of 1613.[6]

Act 1

The village of Domnino

Antonida is eager to marry Sobinin, but her father, Susanin, refuses permission until a Russian has been duly chosen to take the tsar's throne. When Sobinin informs him that the Grand Council in Moscow has chosen a tsar, everyone celebrates.

Act 2

Poland

In a sumptuous hall, the nobility celebrates the Polish dominance over the Russians by singing and dancing. Suddenly, a messenger comes in with the news that Mikhail Romanov has been selected as the tsar of Russia but is now in hiding. The Poles vow to overthrow him.

Act 3

Susanin's cabin

Susanin and his adopted son, Vanya, pledge to defend the new tsar. Susanin blesses Sobinin and Antonida on their upcoming wedding when a detachment of Polish soldiers bursts in to demand the tsar's whereabouts. Instead, Susanin sends Vanya to warn the tsar while Susanin leads the soldiers off the trail into the woods. Antonida is devastated. Sobinin gathers some men to go on a rescue mission.

Act 4

A dense forest

Sobinin reassures his men of the rightness of their mission. When night falls, in a part of the forest near a monastery, Vanya knocks at the gates and alerts the inhabitants to spirit the tsar away. Susanin has led the suspicious Polish troops into an impassable, snow-covered area of the forest. The Poles sleep while Susanin waits for the dawn and bids farewell to his children. A blizzard sets in, and when day breaks, the Poles awake. They realise that Susanin has deceived them and so kill him.

Epilogue

Red Square, Moscow.

Across the stage walks a crowd of people, celebrating the triumph of the new tsar. Alone in their own solemn procession, Antonida, Sobinin and Vanya mourn Susanin. A detachment of Russian troops comes upon them, discovers their connection with Susanin and comforts them. As the scene changes to Red Square, the people proclaim glory to the tsar and to Susanin's memory.

Principal arias and numbers
Overture

Act 1

Cavatina and Rondo: "To the field, to the field," «В поле, в поле» (Antonida)

Act 2

Chorus: Polonaise, Полонез
Dance: Krakowiak, Краковяк
Dance: Waltz, Вальс
Dance: Mazurka, Мазурка

Act 3

Song: "When they killed the little bird's mother," «Как мать убили у малого птенца» (Vanya)

Act 4

Aria: "Brother in the darkness we are not able to find our enemy," No. 18; (Sobinine)
Aria: "They sense the truth!", «Чуют правду!» No. 21; (Susanin)

Epilogue

Chorus: "Glory, Glory to you, holy Rus'!", «Славься, славься, святая Русь!» (People)

Orchestral excerpts heard in the concert hall consist largely of the overture and the Polish numbers of the second act. Another excerpt that is also used by concert bands and military bands is the Slavsya finale arranged for wind band as a fanfare. It is famous for being used in the Moscow Victory Parade of 1945 and in other military parades since then. It is also a sung piece by choral groups. The finale piece was adapted for and has been also part of the repertoire of the world-famous Alexandrov Ensemble since 2004.

Instrumentation

The opera is scored for two flutes, two oboes (second oboe doubling cor anglais), two clarinets (in B flat and A), two bassoons, four horns, two clarino natural trumpets, three trombones, ophicleide, timpani, bells, harp, strings, as well as two offstage wind bands or concert bands, offstage clarinet in A, offstage chromatic (valved) trumpet, offstage drum, offstage bells. Some pieces are also scored for full orchestra, including the dance segments. The finale piece, another popular composition played in patriotic concerts and other events, can be also arranged for a full military band or concert band with the bells and chromatic trumpets and also for the Balalaika and the Bayan accordion, as heard in several cover versions.

Recordings

Source: operadis-opera-discography.org.uk

  • 1947, Aleksander Melik-Pasheyev (conductor), Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra and Chorus, Maksim Mikhaylov (Susanin), Nataliya Shpiller (Antonida), Georgiy Nelepp (Sobinin), Yelizaveta Antonova (Vanya), Fyodor Svetlanov (Sigizmund King of Poland), Sergey Khosson (Russian soldier), Ivan Skobtsov (Polish messenger)
  • 1955, Oscar Danon (conductor), Chorus of the Yugoslav Army and Orchestra of the National Opera, Belgrade; Miroslav Čangalović (Susanin); Maria Glavachevich (Antonida); Militza Miladinovich (Vanya); Drago Startz (Sobinin). Decca LP set, no. LXT5173-6. Recorded September–October 1955.[7]
  • 1957, Igor Markevitch (Conductor), Artistes et Choeurs de l'Opera de Belgrade (Chef des Choeurs: Oscar Danon); Orchestre de l'Association des Concerts Lamoureux; Boris Christoff (Susanin); Teresa Stich-Randall (Antonida); Nicolai Gedda (Sobinin); Mela Bugarinovitch (Vania). Recorded in Paris on 26 November through 18 December 1957.
  • 1986, Ivan Marinov (Conductor), Sofia National Opera Orchestra, Sofia National Opera Chorus; Nicola Ghiuselev (Susanin), Elena Stoyanova (Antonida), Cristina Angelakova (Vanya), Roumen Doikov (Sobinin), Dimiter Stanchev, Angel Petkov.
  • 1989, Emil Tchakarov (Conductor), Sofia National Opera Chorus (chorus masters: Lyubomir Karoleev and Hristo Kazandjiev); Sofia Festival Orchestra; Boris Martinovich (Susanin); Alexandrina Pendachanska (Antonida); Chris Merritt (Sobinin); Stefania Toczyska (Vanya); Stoil Georgiev (Commander of the Polish detachment); Mincho Popov (Polish messenger); Konstantin Videv (Commander of the Russian detachment). Recorded in Sofia (Hall 1, National Palace of Culture) on 9–15 September 1989.
  • 1992, Alexander Lazarev (Conductor), Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra and Chorus, Evgeny Nesterenko (Susanin), Marina Mescheriakova (Antonida), Alexander Lomonosov (Sobinin), Elena Zaremba (Vanya), Boris Bezhko (Polish Voivode). Kultur/NVC Arts DVD
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References
  1. Osborne (2007) p. 143
  2. Norman Davies, Europe
  3. Figes, p. 4–5 & 10
  4. Figes, p. 10–11
  5. Hodge (1998) p. 4
  6. Act 4 and the Epilogue can contain more than one set of stage decor. For more detailed plot descriptions, see Osborne (2007) p. 144 and Annesley (1920) pp 697-700. Although Annesley states that the libretto was based on Prosper Mérimée's Les faux Démétrius, épisode de l'histoire de Russie, that is impossible since the latter was not published until 1853.
  7. Philip Stuart. Decca Classical, 1929-2009 (Discography) .

Sources
  • Annesley, Charles (pseudonym of Charles and Anna Tittmann) (1920). The Standard Operaglass: Detailed Plots of Two Hundred and Thirty-Five Celebrated Operas. Brentanos
  • Hodge, Thomas P. (1998). "Susanin, Two Glinkas and Ryleev: History-Making in A Life for the Tsar" in Wachtel, Andrew ed. Intersections and Transpositions: Russian Music, Literature, and Society. Northwestern University Press. ISBN 0-8101-1580-8
  • Osborne, Charles (2007). The Opera Lover's Companion. Yale University Press. ISBN 0-300-12373-6
  • Figes, Orlando. A People's Tragedy: The Russian Revolution 1891–1924. London: The Bodley Head. ISBN 9781847922915.
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