Mlada ( ) is an opera-ballet in four acts, composed between 1889 and 1890 by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, to a libretto by Viktor Krylov that was originally destined for an aborted project of the same name from 1872. The composer was "somewhat ahead of his time, in that he combined within one scenic whole song, movement, dance, decor, reality and make-believe. Both real people and their 'souls' appear: the physical world alternates with the mystical, the commonplace with the magical, and dry land with water-the transformations are continuous."
"In the middle of Rimsky-Korsakov's Mlada, a fantasy tale about ancient pagan Slavs, the spectators suddenly find themselves in the palace of Cleopatra. The Egyptian scene exudes sensuality ...." Rimsky-Korsakov said, "Among my musical impressions of Paris [at the World Exhibition, summer 1889] I reflect on music in Hungarian and Algerian cafes. The virtuoso playing of a Hungarian orchestra on tsevnitsas (Pan flutes) gave me the idea of introducing this ancient instrument ... during the dances at Cleopatra's. In an Algerian cafe, I was attracted to the beat of a large drum .... This effect I also borrowed for the scene of Cleopatra."
Performance history The St. Petersburg premiere of Rimsky-Korsakov's setting of the libretto was given on 1 November 1892 and conducted by Eduard Nápravník. The scene designers were Ivan Andreyev and Mikhail Bocharov; balletmasters were Lev Ivanov and Enrico Cecchetti.Taruskin, Richard. Mlada (ii). In: The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. Macmillan, London and New York, 1997, p. 417-418. The first production of Mlada was not a success, and it did not become a regular repertory item. (The decor, however, was reused for Petipa's 1896 revival of the ballet adaptation of the scenario by composer Ludwig Minkus, which had premiered in 1879).
Other notable performances of Rimsky-Korsakov's Mlada were given in 1904 in St. Petersburg in the Great Hall of the St. Petersburg Conservatory by Tsereteli's opera company; in 1913 in Moscow by the Zimin Opera; and in 1923 in Petrograd at the State Theatre of Opera and Ballet.
On 25 December 1988 a new production was mounted at the Bolshoi by its director Alexander Lazarev with designer Valery Levental, producer Boris Pokrovsky and ballet-master Andrei Petrov. The cast included Makvala Kasrashvili as Voislava, Oleg Kul'ko as Yaromir, Galina Borisova as Morena, Boris Morozov as Prince Mstivoi, and the ghost of Mlada and Cleopatra were danced by Nina Ananiashvili;Grigoriev, Yury. USSR (Moscow) - Mlada rediscovered. Opera, April 1989, Vol.40 No.4, p. 474-475. it was also issued on video and DVD directed by Barrie Gavin.Hall, George. Review of Mlada video. Opera, July 2006, Vol.57 No.7, p. 871.
A semi-staged complete performance was given at the Barbican in London in May 1989 by the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Michael Tilson Thomas with Sergei Leiferkus, Makvala Kasrashvili, Edward R. White jnr, Felicity Palmer, and Alfreda Hodgson among the cast.Jacobs, Arthur. Mlada. London Symphony Orchestra at the Barbican Hall, May 7. Opera, July 1989, Vol.40 No.7, p. 883-884. The Bolshoy production was performed in a 4,000-seat venue as part of Glasgow's 1990 European City of Culture festival, which also marked the first British appearance of the Bolshoy Opera.Jacobs, Arthur. Glasgow's glasnost: a Bolshoy triumph. Opera, October 1990, Vol.41 No.10, p. 1176-78.
Roles RoleVoice typePremiere cast1 November 1892(Conductor: Eduard Nápravník)Rimsky-Korsakov: Mlada. In: Kaminski, Piotr. Mille et Un Opéras. Fayard, 2003, p. 1275-76.Mstivoy, prince of RethrabassFyodor StravinskyVoyslava, his daughtersopranoEvelina SonkiYaromir, prince of ArkonatenorMikhail MikhaylovShade of Princess MladadancerMarie PetipaLumir, Czech singeraltoMariya DolinaMorena, goddess of the underworld, appearing in the first act in the form of the old woman Svyatokhnamezzo-sopranoMaria PiltzThe Moor from the CaliphatetenorVasily KarelinThe NovgorodiantenorGrigory UgrinovichWife of the Novgorodianmezzo-sopranoElena MarkovskayaA VarangianbaritoneMaksim TitovTiunbassAleksandr KlimovHigh Priest of RadegastbaritoneV.N. YefimovChornobogchorus of bassesKashchéy the Immortalchorus of tenorsChumá (Plague), god of pestilencesilent roleCherv' (Worm), god of faminesilent roleTopelets, god of floodssilent roleShade of Queen CleopatradancerChorus, silent roles: Maidens, armor-bearers and retinue of Mstivoy, merchants, supplicators, people of various Slavic lands, priests and priestesses of Radegast, trumpeters, wood-sprites, werewolves, kikimoras, witches, ghosts of the deceased, ghosts of dancers, of black male and female slaves of Queen Cleopatra, spectres of bogatïrs, Slavic gods
Synopsis Time: The ninth or tenth century Place: The Slavic lands of the Baltic sea-coast, in the city of Rethra, near the Labe (Elbe) river, in modern-day Germany.List of characters and Setting from
Act 1 Voyslava has killed Mlada, Yaromir's bride, with a poisoned wedding-ring, in order to have him for herself but he rejects her. Voyslava's old nurse offers to support her provided she pledges allegiance to Morena, the goddess of the underworld. When Prince Yaromir comes by his followers to celebrate mid-summer Morena's bewitches him, but in his enchanted sleep he has a vision of Voyslava murdering Mlada with a poisoned ring.
Act 2 At the midsummer folk festival near the city of Rethra the people dance. Entry of the princes. The priest of the god Radegast prophesies by means of a horse oracle. In the circle of dancing couples, the spirit of Mlada intervenes between Yaromir and Voyslava. Yaromir rushes off after Mlada and Voyslava curses Morena who spell has failed to overcome Yaromir's love.
Act 3 By night Mlada leads Yaromir up Mount Triglav, where the dead gather, and he begs her to welcome him to the spirit word. With thunder and a crimson moon the Witches' Sabbath commences. Chernobog conjures a vision of Cleopatra for Yaromir but at cock's crow he decides to return to the Temple of Radegast and ask assistance from the priests.
Act 4 Yaromir, at the Temple of Radegast, is shown by the spirits that Voyslava is guilty. She arrives and confesses her sin while saying it was her love for him to caused it; he kills her with his sword. With her last breath she calls on Morena, with whom Voyslava had made a compact, who destroys the temple and the city of Rethra with storms and an earthquake, but Yaromir is united with Mlada in heaven.
Concert excerpts Two orchestral works were derived from the opera by the composer. The first, Night on Mt. Triglav, is an arrangement of Act 3. The second is a suite. Suite from the Opera-Ballet Mlada (1894)
The Redowa appears in Act 1. The Lithuanian Dance and the Indian Dance are taken from Act 2, Scene 5. The cortège is the well-known Procession of the Nobles (, literally, Procession of the Princes), and appears in Act 2, Scene 3.
Night on Mt. Triglav (1899–1901) This is a purely orchestral arrangement of Act III, restyled as a lengthy symphonic poem for orchestra. Approximately a half-hour in duration, the program in the printed score follows the action of the opera during the corresponding act of the opera. Instrumentation Piccolo, 2 Flutes, Alto Flute (doubles on 3rd flute), 2 Oboes, English Horn, 3 Clarinets, Bass Clarinet, 3 Bassoons (3rd doubles on Contrabassoon), 6 Horns, 3 Trumpets, 3 Trombones, Tuba, Timpani, Bass Drum, Cymbals, Triangle, Side Drum, Strings.
Use in broadcast media "Procession of the Nobles" was used as the theme for the PBS public affairs program Agronsky & Co. and its successor, Inside Washington, and was used between 1957 and 1969 as the opening theme for the UK TV programme What the Papers Say.
Recordings role key: conductor/Voyslava/Morena/Yaromir/Mstivoy
Yevgeny Svetlanov/Tugarinova/Kulagina/Makhov/Korolyov, 1962, audio studio, with Tatyana Tugarinova (Voyslava), Nina Kulagina (Morena), Vladimir Makhov (Yaromir), Alexey Korolyov (Mstivoy), Moscow Radio Symphony Chorus, Moscow Radio Symphony Orchestra, Melodiya Alexander Lazarev/Kasrashvili/Borisova/Kulko/Nikolsky, 1989, Moscow video, Videoland Lazarev/Gavrilova/Borisova/Kulko/Nikolsky, 1992, Moscow video, Teldec Michael Tilson Thomas/Kazarnovskaya/Poretsky/Grigorian/Martirossian, 2002, live in San Francisco, pirate Valery Gergiev/Khudoley/Savova/Armonov/Petrenko-M, 2004, live in Amsterdam, Premiere Opera
References Notes
Sources Abraham, Gerald. "Rimsky-Korsakov's Mlada," in On Russian Music. London: W. Reeves, 1939; rpt. New York: Books for Libraries, 1980. Rimsky-Korsakov, N.A. My Musical Life. Ed. with an introduction by Carl van Vechten; translated by Judah A. Joffe. 3rd American ed. A. A. Knopf, 1942.
External links Piano-vocal score of the opera (Russian/French) at IMSLP Russian libretto in a Word .doc file