4/7/09.  Hofmannsthal’s Text: Der Rosenkavalier

Film Clip:  Der Rosenkavalier, Act 3, Marschallin & Ochs

Lecture: Hofmannsthal’s Text: Der Rosenkavalier

Der Rosenkavalier & the Comic Opera Tradition:

• ex: Molière’s Monsieur de Pourceaunac (1669) & Scapin (1671); Beaumarchais’s Marriage de Figaro (1784);
• commedia dell’arte: Valzacci & Annina (Italians!)

Set in Vienna c. 1745:

Marschallin:

Baron Ochs von Lerchenau:

Sophie:

Octavian:

In-Class Writing Assignment:  Do you agree with the Marschallin that all men are alike & that Octavian is essentially a younger version of Ochs (with better manners)?  —or— Do you think that there is a possibility of “eternal love” for Octavian & Sophie?

Voice Distribution in Der Rosenkavalier