Of Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari’s works only “I quattro rusteghi” (The Four Ruffians) is really well-known, but other operas are also well worth rediscovering, for example “La vedova scaltra” and “Sly”.

Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari was an eclectic composer, a traveller between different worlds. As the son of a German father and an Italian mother, throughout his life the cultural traditions of Germany and Italy were of equal importance at the heart of his artistic work. Wolf-Ferrari’s output consistently spanned between instrumental music influenced most notably by the traditions of “German” symphonic and chamber music, and a musico-dramatic output focussing on the genres of Italian music theatre. He explored these with the possibilities for composing in the 20th century in mind. Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari’s compositional approach, developed on the basis of these two influences, can quite rightly be described as unique: he can neither be classified as simply belonging to the Italian verismo tradition, nor did he follow the line of the so-called “generazione dell’ottanta” which grappled with the updating of national traditions, particularly of instrumental music, beyond the horizon of current trends.

By the time of the premiere of the three-act musical comedy “Le donne curiose (Inquisitive Women] in 1903 in Munich, Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari was regarded internationally as a composer of rank. Drawing on one of Carlo Goldoni’s most popular comedies, premiered in 1753 in Venice to great success, he succeeded in creating new perspectives on comic music theatre in the 20th century; perspectives derived from the adaptation of the original Italian spoken theatre, but also involving a productive examination of the traditional forms of musical comedy and opera buffa.

La vedova scaltra

Further Goldoni operas followed, and it is no exaggeration to claim that Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari pursued a productive involvement with the traditions of comic music theatre in an individual way, so that his works appear as a systematic unfolding of the possibilities of the comic. In the three-act commedia lirica “La vedova scaltra” (The cunning widow) after Goldoni’s 1748 comedy of the same name, premiered in March 1932 in Rome, Wolf-Ferrari encapsulated this adaptation of history and pushed it to extremes, so to speak.

The wealthy widow Rosaura decides to remarry. Four suitors are available to choose from: an Englishman, a Frenchman, a Spaniard and an Italian. Rosaura is undecided: she finds the Englishman generous, the Frenchman gallant, the Spaniard respectable, and the Italian passionate. Hence she devises a list – aided in this ruse by Arlecchino and the servant Marionette – and puts the faithfulness of the men to the test. Only the Italian Conte del Bosco Nero proves to be steadfast, and naturally the Venetian Rosaura finally takes him as her husband.

Against this background, Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari develops an all-embracing stylistic pluralism. The nationalities and the different mentalities of the four suitors find their clearly-defined comic character in a densely-woven web of stylistic quotations and allusions, which at times highlights the comic above the cliché of interconnections.  And whilst the verbal banter between the Italian and the mother tongues of the other suitors constantly underlines the national differences, Wolf-Ferrari shapes the title heroine’s emanations of feeling in a concise, effusive waltz gesture.

The fact that Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari placed a woman on the stage in “La vedova scaltra”, one who intelligently weighs up the emotional as well as the rational requirements of her actions, demonstrated emancipatory traits and portrayed a modern kind of woman, compared with the conventions of verismo opera. “La vedova scaltra” is also stylistically a modern and unique work in Italian music theatre of the time through its prevailing pluralism of forms, gestures and techniques, which were available to the composer in all their complexity. In the process Wolf-Ferrari did not compose a neoclassical opera, but a music theatre work which uses the difference in styles dramaturgically, presents them, collages them in a virtuoso way, and fits them together to form a comedy which is more topical and effective today than ever.


Sly, ovvero La leggenda del dormiente risvegliato

Giovacchino Forzano wrote the libretto for the opera “Sly, ovvero La leggenda del dormiente risvegliato” [Sly, or The Legend of the Sleeper Awoken] for Wolf-Ferrari. Based on his play of the same name, premiered in 1920 in Milan, Forzano conceived a libretto which followed in a long tradition and is testimony to the author’s high literary aspirations. On the one hand, Forzano drew on a fairy tale from “1001 Nights”, and on the other hand he made reference to Shakespeare’s “The Taming of the Shrew”. Out of the comic tinker Sly, an alcoholic poet and singer develops, and following a traumatic experience he takes his own life.

The fact that Lord Westmoreland can play a game with Sly, and that Sly is taken in by the deception of his being a rich man, can only be understood against the background of his failed ambition and his longing for fulfilment. The social differences between the penniless poet and the rich, noble manipulator form the dramaturgical backbone of the opera – culminating in the cynical offer that Sly could enter service with Lord Westmoreland as a poet or court jester. Ultimately the opera culminates in a tragic misunderstanding and a “senseless” death, for whilst Dolly, the mistress of Lord Westmoreland, initially makes herself available as the lackey in the intrigue, she soon realises – but too late – her true feeings for the poet.

In musico-dramatic terms Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari’s legend “Sly” proves to be a verismo opera in many respects. The first act in the London tavern, in which a farcical, raucous atmosphere unfolds, is based on an overarching system of musical quotations and allusions to old English, Scottish and Irish folk tunes. Thus Wolf-Ferrari underpins the turbulent events with music which is realistic for the location of the plot.

Sly received a glittering premiere on 29 December 1927 at the Teatro alla Scala di Milano. As well as the acclaimed singers, it was the fascinating staged dimension of the evening in particular which contributed to the work’s success for audience and press alike. The first act presents a finely-nuanced social panorama in a picturesque staged ambience. The second act is based on the constituent principle for verismo dramaturgy of a ‘play within a play’ – Ruggero Leoncavallo achieved this in exemplary fashion in “Pagliacci” – and derives its special effect from the confrontation between appearance and reality, between reality and fiction, and the resulting treatment of suspense. The third act ultimately finds in the inhospitable vaulted cellar an eloquently-staged symbol for the social decline, the emotional liminal experience, and the tragic end of the poet-singer Sly.

After its Milan premiere, Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari’s “Sly” quickly established itself in the repertoire, particularly in German-speaking countries. But by the mid-1930s interest rapidly declined, and there were only isolated productions of any artistic significance. It is worth newly discovering the relevance of the opera for today.

Hans-Joachim Wagner
(from [t]akte 2/2018 – translation: Elizabeth Robinson)