Ivanhoe (opera) - Music

Music

The Gramophone calls Ivanhoe "one of the most important works in the history of British opera." The Gramophone quoted conductor David Lloyd-Jones as saying that in writing the opera,

"Sullivan ... was very much in touch with all the music of his time.... There are bits which are definitely Wagnerian: the use of dotted rhythms, always in 4/4 time – you get the whiff of Meistersinger or Lohengrin, I think. There is, also, for example, a remarkable duet at the end of Act 2, I would say Verdian in its sweep. There are, of course, the stand-up arias, never a full ensemble until right at the end. Rebecca's aria is a very interesting piece. Whenever she is singing he uses the cor anglais to stress the sort of Eastern quality, and Sullivan claimed that this theme was one he had heard as a student in Leipzig, when he had attended a service at the Synagogue there. You can tell, and he quickly establishes it in the music, that he was not writing an operetta! Look at this, very early on, some virtuoso stuff. It needs a really accomplished orchestra. He had always been cramped by the small orchestra, only ever one oboe, that he had to make do with at the Savoy. Here he was really able to expand, you can feel it in the music."

Richard Traubner, writing in Opera News, disagrees: "Ivanhoe ... reflects the ballad-rich British grand operas Sullivan grew up with, by Balfe (The Bohemian Girl) or Wallace (Maritana). The skill and flair Sullivan exhibits in the Savoy operettas in humor, gaiety and superb word-setting are barely required in Ivanhoe. It sounds instead like an extension of the hoary oratorio form popular in Victorian Britain ... with its plethora of hymn-like numbers interspersed with ballads of no particular interest and some strong ensembles." Traubner continues, "Sullivan's score would have been wonderful for a film, with its numerous Korngoldian fanfares and stirring, very English-national choruses. The long drinking scene in Act I, with its 'Glory to those who fight for the true Cross', and the 'Ho, Jolly Jenkin' ensemble with Friar Tuck, also referring to drinking, are the most exciting things in the opera. Sadly, the dramatic arias required for an opera to achieve universal popularity are largely absent. ... Rebecca's prayer does have a certain Near Eastern aroma".