Mistral: Miréio se va ópera
- Martino Alba, Pilar (coord.)
Publisher: Dykinson
ISBN: 978-84-9031-005-2
Year of publication: 2012
Pages: 29-44
Type: Book chapter
Abstract
The staging of Mistral's play, Mirèio, written in a minority language as it is Provenzal, and known by the readers for the self translation into French, aroused a great interest in the public who came to the performance. Gounod's music and Michel Carré's libretto had all the possibilities of success. In addition, if we say that other two important musicians of the moment like Saint-Saëns and Bizet were checking the work, it was sure to be a complete success. Nevertheless, Michel Carré could only grasp mistralian's spirit of the work in the first act, which was almost perfect; but from there on the work was declining and, although the music was excellent, the opera did not take hold of the public and did not obtain the awaited success