Vocal characterisation of the dramatis personae in Paavo Heininen’s Silkkirumpu op. 45 and Kaija Saariaho’s Adriana mater

Abstract

This article discusses the composer’s contribution to the vocal characterisation of the dramatis personae in contemporary opera. The composer can formulate the musical and expressive content of the soloists’ vocal parts to create a distinctive musical identity for each character. Throughout the course of the drama, the characters’ changing attitudes, emotions and moods are expressed through transformed constructions of their vocal parts, and the meanings are mediated to the audience largely through the combined effect of the various components in their vocal characterisation. By observing the vocal characterisation, as indicated by the composer in the score, vocal parts must thus be approached as compound analytical objects, in which various dimensions combine to create the appropriate musical and dramatic effect. This article describes the vocal characterisation of the dramatis personae in Paavo Heininen’s opera Silkkirumpu (The Damask Drum) op. 45 (1981-1983) and in Kaija Saariaho’s Adriana Mater (2005). Heininen’s The Autumns (1970) for mixed choir and Reality (1978) for soprano and instrumental ensemble are introduced as pre-works of Silkkirumpu. The examination of vocal writing in these pieces thus extends the discussion to vocal music other than opera. Following a brief description of the concept of vocal characterisation in general and an introduction of the analytical approach, the text focuses on musical examples. In conclusion, it is suggested that the analytical approach could be extended to include the unique aspects of vocal performances.

Keywords:

• contemporary opera
• vocal characterisation
• Paavo Heininen
• Kaija Saariaho

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. The issue has been recently discussed by Duncan (2004) and Novak (2015).

2. Meyer’s (1989, 14–16) categories of primary and secondary parameters are widely used. The primary parameters are syntactic: they are hierarchical in nature and thus, in relation to each other, can create a closure.

3. Heininen wrote only in Finnish. In his article “Sarjallisuus” (Serialism) he gives a thorough list of musical parameters, including categories and subcategories of pitch organization, harmony, rhythm, dynamics, topics and timbre (Heininen 1998, 58–62). He calls his compositional practise “multi-dimensional serialism”, not as a strict serial technique, but as an aesthetic ideal of creating a balanced artistic expression in which all parameters are of equal importance and create a compound effect. He writes: “Kunkin parametrikäyrän mitoitus on laadittava siten, että ne yhdessä tukevat ja selventävät toisiaan.” (The parameters must be composed so that together they strengthen and clarify each other; ibid., 70) and further (ibid., 81) “Komplekseihin kokonaisparametreihin voi sisältyä myös … semanttisia parametreja. Kuulumattomien rytmien, näkyvien viiva- ja väri-intensiteettien, kielen foneettisen ja kuvallisen sisällön osalta Silkkirumpu onkin juuri laajennettua sarjallisuutta.” (Some of the complex parameters can be … semantic. In Silkkirumpu the soundless rhythms, visible intensities of colours and lines, the phonetic and symbolic content of language are parameters in expanded, multi-dimensional serialism.) Translations by the author.

4. Rothstein (2008) describes appearances of focal pitch in the context of Italian Romantic opera, yet considers the phenomenon related to pitch centricity in twentieth-century music.

5. For example, Agawu (1992) and Suurpää (2014, 50–58) discuss various starting points for studying the relation between text and music.

6. Composing for voice is discussed already in Rimski-Korsakov’s Principles of Orchestration (1912; Rimski-Korsakov & Šteinberg, 1964, 132–139). Along with explaining the properties of voice categories, the author gives advice for setting the text and for use of vowels, in particular.

7. Orchestral characterisation is discussed in studies of certain operas. See, for example, Everett (2006, 170–200; Everett, 2013, 329–345; Everett, 2015), Jaakkola (2020), Rupprecht (2001, 32–106, 245–289) and Weigel-Krämer (2012).

8. After completing works for piano op 32a and 32b (Heininen, 1978b) Heininen abandoned the strict serial technique.

9. I use Straus’s (2005) concepts in my discussion of the musical examples.

10. Cone (1974) introduced the concept of musical persona, which is recently discussed in Hatten (2019).

11. Reality’s instrumental ensemble includes flute (muta piccolo), oboe (muta English horn), clarinet in Bb, bassoon, horn in F, piano, violin, viola and violoncello. A single percussionist handles vibraphone, marimba, tubular bells, campanelli, bongos, side drums, tom-tom, claves, castagnets, temple blocks, cowbells, maracas, flexaton, vibra-slap, cymbals, triangles and crotales. Reality’s large percussion section is a feature in common with Silkkirumpu.

12. Unfortunately, there is no recording of the premier of Reality. However, another performance was recorded by the Finnish Radio Broadcasting Company (YLE Finland). Jane Manning performs the piece with the Avanti chamber ensemble conducted by Olli Pohjola. There is a copy of this undated recording in Heininen’s archive, and he kindly allowed me to study it. Jane Manning (1938–2021), who indeed had extensive experience in contemporary vocal music, performs the demanding part passionately, following Heininen’s score in incredible detail.

13. The orchestra also takes part in characterising the dramatis personae in Silkkirumpu. Firstly, Heininen’s orchestration is mostly chamber-like: the orchestral forces are used sparsely, to avoid dominance over the soloists’ voices. The only real orchestral tutti is heard in the opera’s final scene, when the soloists are already silenced. Of course, the orchestration changes throughout the course of the drama, creating a suitable atmosphere for each number. Secondly, the timbre of certain instruments or orchestral sections is chosen to portray the character at their first entrance on stage. The light accompaniment of the flutes in “Duet” supports the pastoral topic and highlights the attributes associated with the Princess’s character. When the treachery of her nature is revealed, the flute is no longer heard with her. The brief (and ironic) introductory fanfare, performed by the orchestral brasses, characterises the Courtier in “Promesso”. The brasses accompany the performances of the dignified messenger later as well. The Gardener is introduced in his “Cantilena”, his actions tightly interacting with the violoncello solo. The association between the character and the instrument, created in the opera’s opening scene, is strong indeed: the cantabile statements of the violoncello solo are easily attributed to the Gardener, even if the soloist is completely silent. The violoncello is, of course, a natural choice for the Gardener’s alter ego: the legato sound of a string instrument is close to the human voice, and the violoncello operates in the register of a male baritone. See Jaakkola (2020, 124–126, 142–144).

14. Frymoyer (2017) draws attention to the essential features of the topics in her discussion on conventional topics and their appearances in contemporary music.

15. On irony in general, see, e.g., Behler (1990), Colebrook (2004) and Klein (2009). Musical irony, in particular, is discussed by authors such as Sheinberg (2000), Everett (2009) and Frymoyer (2017).

16. The Finnish poem is by Eeva-Liisa Manner, the English translation by the author.

17. Howe (2016) and Taruskin (2005, Vol IV, 514, 517–518) discuss the musical manifestation of obsession in various musical contexts.

18. The number could be linked with mad scenes in opera generally. In nineteenth-century Italian opera such scenes usually depict the mental breakdown a female character, portrayed by the virtuosic coloratura technique in the soloist’s part (Pugliese, 2004, 23–42; Willier, 2002). Along with Verdi’s Othello and Berg’s Wozzeck, there is a male protagonist’s mad scene in Musorgsky’s Boris Godunov and in Britten’s Peter Grimes.

19. On the applications of musical contour, see R. Morris (1993) or Jaakkola (2020, 41–47).

20. Adriana Mater’s libretto was written by Amin Maalauf. The premier took place in 2006 in Paris, the stage director being Peter Sellars. The full score of Adriana Mater is openly available for study on the composer’s official website (see Saariaho, 2005a).

21. See also Stoianova (2007).

22. Everett (2015, 87–88) shows Saariaho’s sketches for Adriana Mater’s rhythmic construction.

23. The librettist Amin Maalouf is Lebanese. His experiences of the war in the Middle East had an impact on Adriana Mater’s story and the atmosphere, according to Saariaho (Pettitt, 2006, p. 287).

24. The melodic lines in the soloist’s parts frequently realise pitch collections of various major or (harmonic) minor scales, occasionally also those of the church modes. The pitches in the melodic lines usually unfold such that the impression of a certain major of minor mode is not reinforced, with the exception of the implied E minor in Tsargo’s vocal style. Given that Saariaho’s music in general consists of successive, stable harmonic situations, on the phrase level the harmony tends not to be progressive. As an example, although the characters consistently use the pitch collection of E minor in their quartet in Tableau 7 (bb. 92–104), chordal progressions are avoided, whereas the stable harmonic situation manifesting the mode is sustained. Saariaho (1987) explains her vision of the relations between harmony and timbre in her article. She prefers progressions and formal processes based on timbral transformations, whereas the vertical aspect of harmony is highlighted.

25. Melodic variation is an essential aspect of Heininen’s compositional practice in Silkkirumpu, in which several characteristic melodic shapes gain thematic and symbolic significance. The perceived similarity between the shapes and their varied forms is seldom based on exactly the same intervallic structures. Instead, the association is created by their similar contours or basic contours; see Jaakkola (2020, 18–20, 279). Saariaho’s practice resembles that of Heininen.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Inkeri Jaakkola

Doctor of Music Inkeri Jaakkola completed her studies at the Sibelius Academy of the University of the Arts Helsinki. Her doctoral dissertation Beneath the Laurel Tree: Text-Music Relationships in Paavo Heininen’s Opera Silkkirumpu (The Damask Drum), op. 45 was published in 2020. Jaakkola’s scholarly interest is focused on music analysis and on interdisciplinary studies combining approaches of various arts and research fields. Jaakkola works as a permanent lecturer of music theory at the Sibelius Academy. In addition, she is a composer, and her works are available either published or in the Music Finland Sheet Music Library.