Eugene Onegin (opera)
| Eugene Onegin | |
|---|---|
| Opera by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky | |
Leonid Sobinov as Vladimir Lensky, 1898
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| Description | lyrical scenes |
| Native title | Russian: Евгений Онегин (Yevgény Onégin) |
| Librettist | |
| Language | Russian |
| Based on |
Eugene Onegin by Alexander Pushkin |
| Premiere | 29 March 1879 Maly Theatre, Moscow |
Eugene Onegin (Russian: Евгений Онегин, Yevgény Onégin), Op. 24, is an opera ("lyrical scenes") in 3 acts (7 scenes), composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The libretto, organised by the composer and Konstantin Shilovsky, very closely follows certain passages in Alexander Pushkin's novel in verse, retaining much of his poetry. Shilovsky contributed M. Triquet's verses in Act 2, Scene 1, while Tchaikovsky himself arranged the text for Lensky's arioso in Act 1, Scene 1, and almost all of Prince Gremin's aria in Act 3, Scene 1.
Eugene Onegin is a well-known example of lyric opera, to which Tchaikovsky added music of a dramatic nature. The story concerns a selfish hero who lives to regret his blasé rejection of a young woman's love and his careless incitement of a fatal duel with his best friend.
The opera was first performed in Moscow in 1879. There are several recordings of it, and it is regularly performed. The work's title refers to the protagonist.
In May 1877, the opera singer Yelizaveta Lavrovskaya spoke to Tchaikovsky about creating an opera based on the plot of Pushkin's verse novel Eugene Onegin. At first this idea seemed wild to the composer, according to his memoirs. Tchaikovsky felt that the novel wasn't properly strong in plot – a dandy rejects a young country girl, she successfully grows into a worldly woman, he tries to seduce her but it is too late. The strength of the novel resided in its character development and social commentary, as well as in the beauty of its literary delivery. Soon enough however and after a sleepless night, Tchaikovsky came to embrace the idea. He was soon growing excited about the suggestion and created the scenarios in one night before starting the composition of the music.
Tchaikovsky, with the assistance of Konstantin Shilovsky, used original verses from Pushkin's novel and chose scenes that involved the emotional world and fortunes of his heroes, calling the opera "lyrical scenes." The opera is episodic; there is no continuous story, just selected highlights of Onegin's life. Since the original story was so well known, Tchaikovsky knew his audience could easily fill in any details that he omitted. A similar treatment is found in Puccini's La bohème. The composer had finished the opera by January 1878.
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