Puccini's famous opera, - Mechanical Music Digest · Puccini's famous opera," Madame Butterfly," are here presented as a novel offering. Each roll is ~~::--"'ll> devoted to an act,

H R E E Pianola ro lls ofPuccin i ' s famous opera," Mad ame Butterfly," areher e presented as a noveloffering . Each roll is

~~::--"'ll> devoted to an act, andthe principal incidents of the work areso arranged, tha t t oget her they forma melodious and enjoyable survey of t heentire opera.

Some incidents of t he opera havenecessarily been om itted from theseroll s-also have t hese portions of vocalrecitatives been left out that serve on lyto interrupt the swift flow of this ex­qui sitely charming and at the same timeintensely dramatic music.

By means of the Met rostyie line everyepisode takes on the actual lyric ordramatic hue that it assumes in stageperformance; and t he Themodist addsits important artistic share toward en-

han cing and making bold th e beautifulthem es of this work. .

The chie f purpose of th e a rra ngerhas been to do justice to the manyrav ishi ng beauties of th is mu sic, and at

. th e same time to present it in a conciseform'. The in cid ents h er e arranged a reso culle d as to present dramatic se ­quence- t he action of th e d ra ma inskele to n-as th e follow ing ana lysissho ws .

~~

Originall y "Madame Butterfly" wasa sto ry , written by John Luther Lon g .Th en David Belasco fashioned it into adram a - both forms of presentationmeetin g with immense public a pproval.L. lllica and G. Giacosa, well-known asItali an colla bora t eurs of op era' libretti ,mad e the op era book of this work, andthen G iacomo Puccini composed thebeauti ful mu sic to this Japanese trag edy.And among th e opera suc cesses of recen tyears non e ha s made so d eep and lastingan impression on the public as h as th ismelodiou s work. Mo re th an that , it scharm g rows with time- a first hearinginvites man y ot hers .

This well -known tal e, t ell s th e storyof an Amer ican naval officer ' s love fora J apanese maiden. Care-free and of

easy con science , he looks up on theaffair as of pa ssing mom ent - hemarries h er in Japan, and accord ing tothe law s of her country. They livehappily in a little home on a bluff over­look ing th e harbor of Nagasaki. Th enh is boat is ordere d away and he leav esher. After his depa rt ure a son is bornto him, but he knows nothing of this.H e goes back to h is native Ameri caand marries t he woman of his choi ce.

After a lapse of th ree years he re­t urns t o Nagasaki and find s that thelittle Japan ese has been awa it ing himan xiously and has never falter ed in hertrem endous love for him.

Tragic is the end, and the story go esswift ly to its close. Sh e meets th ewife and promi ses to g ive the boy tohis father if he will com e to claim it inan hour. Then she takes leave of herbelov ed offspring, blindfolds him andkill s herself.

Sentiment, exot ic charm and tragedyare all wonderfully merg ed - thesethree moving moods have been caughtby th e com poser Puccini with amazingskill and cleverness. The mu sic isnothing if n ot inspi red.

Act I.(I ) Introduction and Lieut. Pinkerton 's Toast to

Am eri ca; (~) Pinkerton's Fascination forButterfly; (3) Arri val of Butterfly an d Her

Relation s; (4) Th e Stirrup Cup ; (5) Fallof Evening; (6) Finale-Love Duet.

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Roll No. 77749.. 79693

T79693919159191~

Pri ce, $1.75.. ~.~5

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1.75~ . 50

A QUAINT Japanese house lindgarden greets the eye as the cur­tain parts. Wistaria, lind trees

abloom with cherry blossoms, overhangthe roof of the dwelling lind are bankedon both sides of the stage. In thebackground t he scene slopes awaydisclosing the harbor of the .Iapanesecity of Nalfasuki. The United Statesbattleship' Abraham Lincoln" is rid­ing at anchor, and various native craftsdot the waters.

A brief and characteri sticall y oddand interesting Introduction (I ) pr e­cedes the risin g of th e curta in. T hismu sic holds the ear by it s animate dbu stle rather th an by it s char m ofmelody , and yet it se rves to esta blis h areceptive mood for t he openi ng scene .

Curtly this Introduction goes to itsclose an d th ere is heard a strain from" The Star Spangled Banner," wh ichis the motive of Li eu tena n t Pinkerton'stoast to h is native land ( I- con tin ued) .H e proclaim s h is gospel of li fe to hisfriend, t he Amer ican Cons ul Sharpless,stationed at Nagasaki, and defin es it as"Life is not worth t he living if t heAmerican cannot win the best andfair est of each coun t ry . "

So he has concl ude d to marry inJ apanese fash ion, which leav es h imfree to annul t he marriage bond in amon t h, a lt hough he has leased t hehouse to hold h is fa ir Japan ese mai d enfor a term of nine-h un dred and ninety­nine years- al so in true J apanesefashion.

Then Pinkerton describes to Sha rp ­less the cha rms of th e J ap an ese wh ohas W OIl h is heart for th e momen t .T his is beauti fully and melod iouslydon e in th e solo- " Is' t love or fancv "{2). She is Cho-C ho-San , ca lied'Madame But t erfly , " and Sha rp less

j oins him in praises of the girl ,. buttakin g her love more se rious ly th an doesthe light-h earted Pinker ton . Th is isone of t he most beautiful episo des in th een ti re ope ra .

There is a sudden veering of mood,the music ex pressing breathless hast eas Goro, the wedding brok er an no uncesthat Butterfly and her relations a reclimbing the hill (3) . In an in st an ta broad st ra in of melod y is lau nch ed ,and as Butterfly sings the first notes ofher g reet ing from the d istance. Gradu­ally the mu sic g rows louder an d fu lleras she a pproac hes , and a hu ge andst irring climax is reared.

Th e wedding cer emony is performed ,then Pinkerton mixes a st irrup cup (4),the mu sic taking on an unimut ed hu e,indicati ve of lightness and gai ety .

Night now se ttle s upon th e prettyscene . In th e harbor the ships d isplayth eir twinkling lights, th e J apan eselanterns, swing ing under the eaves ofth e roof are lighted, and a t th c en­tranc e to th e ga rden u light is placedin th e stone Iantern . A won d er fulfeeling of th e peace of an Orientalni ght tails upon the scene , and t hemu sic (5) reflects th is wonder full y.Butterfly , squa tt ing on the veranda ofth e house, a rranges her ha ir before ahand-mirror , while Pinkerton , from aben ch, ga zes admiringly at her.

Then comes the fina le, the LoveDuet (6) which is spun .wit h melodyfrom beginning to end . Th e moon hasrisen , and the whole ch arming sceneis now suffused with moonlight andsentiment . The two lover s sing oft hei r happiness in a wonderfu l du et,in wh ich t he lyric gi fts of th e composerPuccini a re d isplayed at th eir full est.It is th e acme of melody , heard her e,and with this the act fittingly clos es .

Act II.(1) Introduction and Su zuki's Gri ef ; (2) Butler tly's

Fai th in Pinkerton's Return; (3) Her Chantto Her Child; (4) Ga the ring Che rry

Blossom s for P inkerton 's Return ;(5) Finale-The Nig ht's Vigil,

65-Not e Pi anola Roll No. 77755 Price ,$1.7565-Not e Metrostyle .. 79701 .. 2.2565-Note Th emodist T79701 2.5088-Note P ianola 91925 1.7588-Note Th emodist 91922 2.50

A GAIN a terse Introduction (I) isft em ploy ed to fix th e listen er's

mood for th e action and mu sic ofthis act, The stage picture is theinterior of Butterfly 's house. In therear is a large open casement, or sh osi,through which there is to be had aglimpse of the garde n , A wealth ofcolor greets the eye , and a wid e spread ­in g cherry tree simply drips blossomsand scents the air. On the left of theroom t he re is an image of Buddha,before which Suzuki, the se rvant , is

kneeling in prayer. She is appealingto her gods to aid her mist ress Butterfly,who has been deserted by Pinkerton.He left her when his ship, "AbrahamLincoln" was ord ered to other waters,but had Kiven Butterfly the promiseto return 'when th e robins nestagain."Three years have elapsed without wordor sign from him, and the brave littl eJ ap anese woman has spent h er nightsin t ears and anguish. Now Suzuki ispra ying that Butterfly may be relievedof her sorrow.

Butterfly has rem aine d motionlessduring Suzuki's prayer, now chides herse rvan t gentl y , bidding her weep nomor e. She has fait h in Pinkerton'sreturn, which she expres ses by a beauti­ful solo (2), concluding in a wonder­ful climax.

Then Consul Sharpless enters to saythat he has had a letter from Pinkerton.Butterfly, without waiting to hear thegrave import of the missive rushes fromthe room, overjoyed, and brings in th echild that was born to he r by Pinkerton.This sh e has aptly named "Trouble."It was born after Pinkerton ha d be enorde red away . In a ll pride she showsSharpless the child and chants to it (3)II lovely song extolling it and its beautieslind tell s Sharpless to send a message toPinkerton asking h im to ha sten tohis own .

Sh arpless leaves, heavy in heart, andhis som bre message und eli vered-whichwas that Pinkerton had married a gi rlof his own land, and that he and hisbride were on their way to Nagasaki.

After a bri ef space , th e booming ofa cannon is heard from th e harbor , andButterfly and Suzuki rush ou t on th eve randa , to see whose arrival itannounces. With the ai d of a g lass th eysee that it is an Am erican warship andd ecipher the nam e" Abraham Lincoln ."Then unrest rain ed joy con sumes both,for th ey know t hat Pinkerton has com e.In a burst of happiness and melody (4)Butterfly orders Suzuki to " shake thatche rry tree until every flower, white assnow flutt er s down:" Th ey gather armsfull ofbranch es and flowers and decoratethe room, filling every nook with spraysand buds. This episod e is, m usica lly,irresistible in it grace and cha rm, itseems at mom ents even to exhale thefragran ce of th e blossom s of J apan .

Butterfly mak es her toil et to receiveher lover, putting on the wedding go wnand arranging her hair . E vening comes j

and as darkness threaten s, th e paperscre en blinds of th e window, or shos i,a re drawn. Butterfly, Suzuki, and thech ild , "Trouble," sta t ion them selv esa t the window. Butterfly cuts threet iny hol es in the paper window panes,

each on th e level wit h th e eyes of thewatch ers. And then (5) begins thenight's vigil.

Th e moon has risen, and th e light isseen t hrou g-h th e ric e paper window.F rom afar is heard t he ch ant of voices ,th e one message t hat comes to thewatc hers from the great wid e worldouts ide of t hat littl e lonesome room.The baby soon fall s asl eep , so do esSuzuki ; but Butterfly re mai ns moti on­less a t her pos t , watch in g rigidly forthe re turn of t he man for wh om she haswept an d prayed thr ee years. It is apath et icall y tende r and to uch ing-scene ,and as t he voices die a way in the di s­t an ce- and beautiful mu sic this is-thecurtain d escends and shuts out thistragic and appea lin g picture.

Act III.( I) Introduction-The Break of Day : (~) Con sul

Sha rpless' Reproa ch to Pinkerton : (3) Pinkerton 'sFarew ell: (4) Butterfly's Leave-taking of

Her Child : (5) Final e-Butterfly s Death.

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Price, $1.75.. ~.~5

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A LL night long have the threefi faithful souls k ept vigil, unre-

warded by the appearance ofPinkerton . Quite a lengthy and veryexpressive I ntroduction preced es therising of th e cu rtain on th is act (1)by far the len gthiest of th e three pr e­lud es of t he opera . I t d epicts theb reak of day, but with its initial sta te ­ment it presages the tragic doom thatis inevitable in this story . Little bylittle does th e music in crease in volume,melodiously mounting climax es and

receding again . Then, away in t hedi stance and from the d irect ion of t heharbor th ere are heard the call s ofsailors and th e cl:mgingofanchor cha in s.

Now th e curtain r ises , showing t hescen e as a t th e fall of th e previou s cur­tain . Butterfly stands mot ionless , gaz ­ing out into th e distance, while thebaby and Suzuki are fast asleep. Thefirst st rea ks of dawn a ppear in the sky ,and grad ually the rosy hue of ea rlymorning spreads - the mu sic all t hewhile forming a wonderful changing ,inter esting background .

Butte rfly carries t he ba by up t henarrow wind ing stairs to his be d. Th enkn ock ing is heard, and Suzuki go esto t he door to admit P in kerton lindSharpless. They learn that Butterflyhas kept vig il all n igh t lind 11:Is nowfallen asleep, worn with fatigu e,Pinker ton is torn by remorse , h is con ­sci en ce smites him. He can make noam ends to Butterfly , for he has bro ug hthis Am erican brid e with him . So hegiv es Sh arpl ess mon ey with which toprovid e for Butterfly . Sharpless re- .pr eaches him (2 ) for h is hea rt lessness ;and Pinkerton, wit h tears in h is eye s,ta kes far ew ell of this little home ( 3) .

Then Pinker ton leaves. Butterflydescends, sees Suzuki, Sharpless andth e st range lady, She divines lit oncethat th is is P inkerton 's wife. T here

is a to uching scene in which Butterflypromises to let Pinkerton have hi s sonif he will come for him in an h our.Then she sends th em all away . Suzuk idraws the blinds of the room and finallylea ves her mistress alon e. Butterflyseeks her son , " T rouble ," fondles him,and in a wonderful lyric burst ofmelody (4) sh e takes leave of her ch ildin t he song beginning " My son, sentme from heaven , straight from thet hrone of glory." After that sheblindfolds h im , places an Ameri canflag in h is han d. Then she goes behind

-t he sc reen , wraps a veil a bout her throatand kills herse lf with the same daggert hat caused her fa t her-s deat h .

A rush of ste ps and the noise ofknocking and call ing a re h ea rd (5).P inkerton and Sharpless ru sh in , th eformer crying her name appealt ngl y.Bu tterfly has dragged h er self to h erchild , embraces him an d then falls li fe­less. P inkerto n sin ks to hi s knees ,sob bing, wh ile Sh arpless li ft s up thechild and k isses it fondly. Accom­pa n ied by a shrieki ng , di sson ent chord ,the cur tain falls upon th is d ramaticscene. This final chord rings in t he ,ea rs and memory of t he li st ener quitea long t ime after th e music has ceased ,as some p iercing m usical p er iod , e ffect ­ively placed at the end of the sti rringd ramatic sto ry.

GA RBE D with the mu sic of Puccinithis tale has b ecome a lyricmasterpiece as w ell as a dram­

atic one . Every poig nant moment hasbeen emphas izcd , every ly r ic bit hasbeen mad e more lovely by the in spiredmu sic that ha s here come from the penof th is most gifted I ta llan ma st er ,Pu ccini.

Strange combinations of nationalitieshave co nspi red to create "MadllmeButterfly," since it is a.Iupun cse subjecttreated by two American authors, an dset t o mu sic by an Italian . H oweve rin con gruous this may appear, the fac tremains that " Ma dame Butterfly " isa mast erwork among modern writingsfor t he op era stage .