Proserpine (Saint-Saëns)

Background#

After the Camille Saint-Saëns became intrigued by August Vacquerie’s play (Proserpine, written in 1838) and the Italian aspects of it, Saint-Saëns and Vacquerie agreed on composing Proserpine in the Italian style. A trip to Florence by Saint-Saëns inspired this setting and atmosphere of the opera.

Instrumentation and composition#

Along with vocal soloists and an SATB chorus, Proserpine features: an off-stage orchestra (flute, viola, violoncello, harp, organ, bell) and an on-stage orchestra (piccolo, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, English horn, 2 clarinets (A/B♭), 2 bassoons, contrabassoon, 4 horns (D/F/A/G), 2 cornets (A/B♭), 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion (triangle, bass drum, cymbals), harp, strings). Proserpine features no spoken dialogue. Saint-Saëns used leitmotifs, a compositional technique commonly associated with Wagner, whom he greatly admired.

Performance history#

• On March 14th, 1887, Proserpine was performed for the first time in Paris at the Théâtre de l’Opéra-Comique.
• It was performed in concert and recorded on October 7th and 9th in Munich in 2016. The cast was joined by the Munich Radio Orchestra, the Flemish Radio Choir, and Ulf Schirmer as the conductor. The project was sponsored by Palazzetto Bru Zane, one of many of their recordings of lesser-known French operas.

Reception#

At the time of its premiere, critics of Proserpine, as well as the general public, found it unusual (due to a lack of spoken dialogue) and its composition inordinately complex for a theatrical work.