Key words: multicultural Italy, localization of opera, Figaro's wedding
China Library Classification Number: J805 Document Identification Number: Part A Number:1008-3359 (2021) 06-0159-03.
First, the historical and cultural origins of China and Italy
China and Italy are the cradles of eastern and western history, and their cultures have a long history. In the stormy history, the cultures of the two countries are inextricably linked. As early as the Western Han Dynasty, the long Silk Road closely linked the two empires, and businessmen were the main body of cultural exchanges between the two countries. During the Yuan Dynasty, Italy under the Pope sent missionaries to distant China to promote cultural exchanges between the two countries. Kyle Poirot, a famous businessman, and many missionaries went to the East and created many travel notes introducing the history, culture and geography of China, which greatly promoted the cultural exchange between China and the West and opened a new chapter in the cultural exchange between the two countries. After the founding of New China, more and more vocal music scholars traveled across the ocean to study and communicate in Italy, the birthplace of opera, and a number of outstanding artists emerged to be active on the world opera stage. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Italy in 1970, the exchange of music and culture has been a strong support for bilateral relations for half a century. The development and popularization of Italian opera art in China has opened a door for China to deeply understand and understand Italian music and culture.
Second, Italian opera entered China.
The birth of Italian opera can be traced back to Florence at the beginning of17th century. Until the end of19th century, after the long development and evolution of Baroque period, classicism period and The Romantic Period, Italian opera occupied the mainstream position of the whole European opera and was a great cultural and artistic treasure. However, at that time, China was under the feudal rule of the Qing Dynasty for a long time, and the policy of closing the country to the outside world seriously restricted the exchanges in economy, culture and science, which led to the failure of many western cultural and artistic forms, including traditional Chinese opera, to enter China. It was not until the founding of New China that the Italian classic Opera La Traviata rehearsed by the Central Opera House was staged in Tianqiao Theater, marking the premiere of western opera in New China. The premiere of western opera in China has aroused widespread concern from all walks of life, and the response has been very enthusiastic. Adhering to the tenet of "literature and art should serve the workers, peasants and soldiers and the common people", the Central Opera House translated the Italian opera La Traviata into Chinese and sang it, which was a great success. When rehearsing China's first western opera, we considered letting elegant art enter the lives of thousands of families and ordinary people. Therefore, when western opera first appeared on the stage of China, its localization in China began to take root. With the gradual establishment of diplomatic relations between New China and western countries and the deepening of reform and opening up, the literary and art circles have ushered in the spring of a hundred flowers, and western operas premiered in China.
Third, the birth and development of Xi opera in Europe
Xi opera, as its name implies, is an opera with comedy elements. Its music is light and lively, its content is humorous, and its ending is often a happy reunion or victory. Xi opera prevailed in Europe in the18th century. Its original form is the "inter-act drama" of orthodox opera, and its content has nothing to do with orthodox opera. This is a short play, which is often performed in the form of humorous pranks. The aim is to please the audience and let them relax for a while while enjoying the serious opera. Intermittent plays usually last more than ten minutes and consist of two characters and a small band. Later, this kind of inter-act drama was separated from opera and became a form of comic opera corresponding to opera. The first comedy opera was born in Italy. It's The Housekeeper and the Maid, written by the composer Peggy in 1733. The script was written by Gennaro Antonio Federio in Italy based on a short comedy by playwright J.Neri. There are only three roles in the whole play: Uberto (single old aristocrat, bass), Schell Pi Na (maid, soprano) and Vespen (footman, dumb horn). The whole play is short, about 50 minutes, with two acts. The first act (22 minutes) includes overture, a duet, three arias and three recitations; The second act (28 minutes) consists of a duet, two arias and three recitations. The band configuration is also relatively simple, with aria with violin, viola, harpsichord and bass; The recitative is accompanied by harpsichord and bass. The story is short but full of interest. It tells the story of how the clever maid Shel Pi Na finally became a noble lady and head of the family through tricks. The whole opera is lively in melody, humorous in language and full of the breath of city life, which is deeply welcomed and loved by the general public. 1752, the Italian Siegel Opera Troupe visited Paris, France, and its performance "Housekeeper Maid" caused the famous "Siegel Opera Debate", which finally contributed to the birth of French Siegel Opera. Hip-hop operas in different countries have their own characteristics. Italian hip-hop opera uses songs with folk songs or in the form of segmented songs as aria, and uses spoken English instead of clear recitation. French opera prefers dialogue to recitation, and its musicality is weak. Xi opera is called folk drama in Britain, which originated from the beggar's opera staged in London in 1728. British folk drama is mainly composed of folk songs, urban minor and pop dance music, and has absorbed a few arias from other operas. Dialogue is used instead of reciting, and it is conducted in English. 18 In the 1950s, German comic operas came into being, which were called singing operas. German operas use large sections of German dialogues and arias use the melody of German songs, which has strong national characteristics. Although Xi opera presents different national characteristics in European countries, the similarity lies in the pursuit of "natural" artistic expression under the influence of the European Enlightenment. The content of opera is no longer a myth or historical theme, but reflects the life of ordinary people in real life. The main features of the development of Xi opera in Europe are the use of its own language and the prominence of its own music.
Fourthly, the localization evolution of the Italian comedy opera The Wedding of Figaro in China.
The Italian comedy opera The Marriage of Figaro is an opera in the classical period and one of the three most outstanding operas created by Mozart. The Italian script was adapted by Lorenzo da Ponte from the comedy of the same name by French playwright Pierre Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais. It has four acts, telling the story that the wise and brave third-class people represented by Figaro and Susanna struggled with the feudal aristocratic forces represented by Count Almaviva and finally won. The whole opera is full of comic elements and dramatic conflicts, such as emotional conflicts between the opposite sex, such as the suspicion between Figaro and Susanna, and the marriage between the count and the countess. The contradiction between the same sex, such as the mutual ridicule between Susanna and Ma Serena, and the witty game between Figaro and the count. The intricate relationships and conflicts between the characters in the play enhance the comic color of the story, and duet plays a very important role in opera, which not only depicts the characters' personalities, but also gives them the heavy responsibility of expressing dramatic conflicts. The Marriage of Figaro was directed by Mozart himself and premiered at the Austrian National Opera House in Vienna on 1786.
After nearly two centuries,1May, 983, the first graduates of the Opera Department of the Central Conservatory of Music put Marriage of Figaro on the stage of China for the first time. The premiere was sung in Chinese script, and the melody was subtracted from the recitation. Presented in the form of China's "drama", it has been widely concerned and praised. This performance opened the door for the comedy opera The Wedding of Figaro to enter China. Although the original Italian script was not used in the premiere, singing in the easy-to-understand mother tongue deepened the understanding of the plot by more China audiences and made more audiences interested in Italian opera. Among them, China's "drama" recitation form has been widely used for reference by later generations, with far-reaching influence. With the development of the times, professional musicians have a deeper understanding of Italian opera. On the basis of respecting the original opera "The Wedding of Figaro", they incorporated China elements and even local elements into the scene, costumes and language, resulting in a localized evolution with China characteristics. The following lists the localization cases of The Marriage of Figaro in different regions of China from 2008 to 2020, as well as the localized characteristic elements adopted.
According to the above cases, it can be seen that during the localization evolution of China's comedy opera "The Wedding of Figaro", there appeared the phenomenon of scene localization and language localization, which was reflected in the local characteristics of stage props, costumes and makeup and actors' performances. The most obvious feature is the localization of language, that is, the "recitation tone" which combines singing and recitation rhythm in Italian opera is adapted into Chinese dialogue with local dialect characteristics. This evolution has caused two different voices: some viewers believe that removing the language barrier of recitation and localizing and citizenizing Italian classic comedies will help to improve the dramatic effect of comedies and make them more easily accepted and loved by China audiences. Another part of the audience thinks that different art forms may not be suitable for everyone's taste, and the localized evolution form contains too many China elements and sketch performances, which destroys the original flavor of the opera.
In fact, opera is a popular art form in western society. In China, opera is not divorced from the elegant art of the masses, but because of the differences in language, music and aesthetic concepts between China and the West, the distance between opera and the audience in China has been widened. The author thinks that it is reasonable to localize the evolution of Xi Opera in China on the basis of respecting the original works. Tracing back to the source, Xi opera prevailed in Italy, France and Germany in the18th century, and their common characteristics are life-oriented, full of comedy and the adoption of their own national languages. However, the comic operas in the three countries all have different local characteristics: French comic operas integrate singing, speaking and acting, and sing the plot in a similar tone of recitation; Italian comic opera is a combination of recitation and aria, which has more musical continuity; German crosstalk also uses the way of singing and speaking in vain, but the theme and melody style have their own national characteristics. Today, in the 2 1 century, Italian comic opera is a traditional art introduced to China from the west. Only by adapting to the cultural soil of China can we take root and sprout in this land. To popularize western opera in China, we must first make the audience in China love opera, conform to the audience's aesthetics, enter the audience's heart and arouse their * * *. Therefore, the form of Italian opera itself must be "localized" to meet the aesthetic needs of domestic audiences. Xi opera is the most suitable drama for "localization" because its plot is close to life and its music style is relaxed and clear. It is precisely because of its flexible characteristics that The Wedding of Figaro has achieved its unique charm with local characteristics in the localization evolution of various regions in China.
As a bridge between traditional Italian opera and modern China audience's aesthetic needs, "localization" combines the music art in Italian opera with China's language, costumes, customs, quyi and other cultural elements, so that China audience can appreciate opera art more intuitively. Understanding the music and plot through "localized opera" will stimulate the audience's interest in the original opera, thus prospering the performance market of Italian opera in China. From the big background, "harmony without difference" is the only way for the world's multiculturalism. We should learn from foreign cultures reasonably, explore the integration of different elements, and carry out "localization" innovation and transformation of Italian comic opera on the premise of strictly respecting original art, so as to promote the integration of elegant art and humanistic aesthetics and promote the popularization and development of Italian comic opera in China.