Judit and Mélisande, the heroines(?) of the sole operas of Bartók and Debussy; married to the equally dubious heroes, Duke Bluebeard and Prince Golaud. Both women strive for a sort of freedom – Judit in exploring Bluebeard’s psyche and Mélisande in her illicit love affair with Golaud’s half brother, Pelléas – both attempts are fated, doomed.
The two operas that have become repertoire pieces, one Expressionist, the other Symbolist/Impressionist:
Bartók:
A kékszakállú herceg vára
[In Duke Bluebeard’s Castle]
1:00 Prologue
2:35 “See this is Bluebeard’s Castle”
6:05 “So this is Bluebeard’s Castle. No windows? No daylight?”
9:41 “Why did you come with me?”
11:54 “I see seven dark doorways”
16:31 1st Door – The Torture Chamber
19:56 “The dark foundations of my castle tremble…”
20:48 2nd Door – The Armory
23:18 ” The dark foundations of my castle tremble…”
24:35 “Why are you waiting? Why not open it?”
24:53 3rd Door – The Treasury
27:13 4th Door – The Garden
32:00 5th Door – The Duke’s Land
36:19 “Look how my castle shines”
37:41 “I will not have any doors closed to me”
38:35 “I will give you just one more key”
39:19 6th Door – The Lake of Tears
43:31 “Come, Judith”
44:05 “I will not open the seventh door.”
48:37 “I know, Bluebeard, what is hidden behind the seventh door.”
52:38 7th Door
55:40 Dawn, Noon and Evening
57:28 Night
59:45 “And now it will always be night.”
Debussy: Pelléas et Mélisande
Act I 00:00
Act 2 29:57
Act 3 58:05
Act 4 1:21:06
Act 5 2:12:01
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