Riccardo Eugenio Drigo (
ru.Russian is the most geographically widespread language of Eurasia, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages, and the largest native language in Europe...
Риккардо Эудженьо Дриго), a.k.a.
Richard Drigo (30 June 18461 October 1930) was an Italian composer of
balletBallet is a formalized type of performance dance, which originated in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century French courts, and which was further developed in England, Italy, and Russia as a concert dance form...
music and
Italian OperaItalian opera is both the art of opera in Italy and opera in the Italian language. Opera was born in Italy around the year 1600 and Italian opera has continued to play a dominant role in the history of the form until the present day. Many famous operas in Italian were written by foreign composers,...
, a theatrical
conductorConducting is the act of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. Orchestras, choirs, concert bands and other musical ensembles often have conductors.-Nomenclature:...
, and a
pianistA pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers....
.
Drigo is most noted for his long career as
kapellmeisterKapellmeister is a German word designating a person in charge of music-making. The word is a compound, consisting of the roots Kapelle and Meister . Kapelle derives from the Latin word capella. Thus, originally, the word was used to refer to somebody in charge of music in a chapel...
and Director of Music of the renowned Imperial Ballet of St. Petersburg, Russia, for which he composed music for the original works and revivals of the choreographers
Marius PetipaMarius Ivanovich Petipa was a ballet dancer, teacher, and choreographer...
and
Lev IvanovLev Ivanovich Ivanov was a Russian ballet dancer and choreographer and later, Second Balletmaster of the Imperial Ballet....
. Drigo also served as Chef d’orchestre for Italian opera performances of the orchestra the Imperial Mariinsky Theatre. During his career in St. Petersburg, Drigo conducted the premieres and regular performances of nearly every ballet and Italian opera performed on the Tsarist stage, and was considered to be one of the finest theatrical conductors in Europe.
Drigo is equally noted for his original compositions for the ballet and his adaptations of already-existing scores. He is also well-known for the myriad of supplemental
pasPas or PAS may be:* Pas , in Spain* PAS Giannina, a Greek football club from Ioannina* PAS Tehran F.C., a defunct Iranian football club from Tehran* PAS Hamedan F.C., an Iranian football club from Hamedan...
,
variationsVariation or Classical Variation in ballet is a solo dance. As with an Aria in opera, which allows the singer to demonstrate his or her interpretive skills, the variation in ballet has the same function...
and incidental dances he composed
ad hocAd hoc is a Latin phrase which means "for this [purpose]". It generally signifies a solution designed for a specific problem or task, non-generalizable, and which cannot be adapted to other purposes....
for insertion into existing ballets. Many of these pieces are still performed regularly today, though the composer is often not properly credited for them. Among Drigo's original scores for the ballet, he is most noted for
Le TalismanThe Talisman - Fantastic ballet in 4 Acts-7 Scenes, with choreography by Marius Petipa, and music by Riccardo Drigo. Libretto by Konstantin Augustovich Tarnovsky and Marius Petipa....
(Petipa, 1889);
La Flûte magique (Ivanov, 1893);
Le Réveil de Flore (Petipa, 1894); and
Les Millions d’Arlequin (a.k.a.
Harlequinade) (Petipa, 1900). Drigo's score for
Les Millions d’Arlequin spawned a popular repertory piece
Serenade, which the composer later adapted into the song
Notturno d'Amour for
Beniamino GigliBeniamino Gigli, was an Italian opera singer. The most famous tenor of his generation, he was renowned internationally for the great beauty of his voice and the soundness of his vocal technique. Critics sometimes took him to task, however, for what was perceived to be the over-emotionalism of his...
. Drigo's work on
TchaikovskyPyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
[The subject's names are also transliterated Piotr, Petr, or Peter; Ilitsch, Ilich, Il'ich or Illyich; and Tschaikowski, Tschaikowsky, Chajkovskij and Chaikovsky...]
's score for
Swan Lake—prepared for the important revival of Petipa and Ivanov—is certainly his most well-known adaptation of existing music.
There are many pieces set to the music of Drigo that are still performed today, many of which are considered cornerstones of the classical ballet repertory. Many of these pieces were arranged long after Drigo left Russia, and/or were set to music fashioned from his full-length scores:
Le Corsaire Pas de Deux; the
La Esmeralda Pas de DeuxLa Esmeralda is a ballet in 3 acts, 5 scenes, inspired by Notre Dame de Paris by Victor Hugo, originally choreographed by Jules Perrot; with music by Cesare Pugni and design by William Grieve , D. Sloman , Mme...
; the
La Esmeralda Pas de Six; the
Diane and Actéon Pas de Deux;
The Talisman Pas de DeuxThe Talisman - Fantastic ballet in 4 Acts-7 Scenes, with choreography by Marius Petipa, and music by Riccardo Drigo. Libretto by Konstantin Augustovich Tarnovsky and Marius Petipa....
; the
Harlequinade Pas de Deux; and the
Ocean and the Pearls Pas de Trois. Many of Drigo's supplemental variations, etc. can be found in such repertory pieces as the
Paquita Grand pas classiquePaquita is a ballet in two acts and three scenes, with libretto by Joseph Mazilier and Paul Foucher. Originally choreoghraphed by Joseph Mazilier to the music of Edouard Deldevez. First presented by the ballet of the Théâtre de l’Académie Royale de Musique in Paris on 1 April, 1846...
, the
La Fille mal gardée pas de deuxLa Fille mal gardée is a comic ballet presented in two acts, inspired by Pierre Antoine Baudouin's 1789 painting, La Réprimande/Une Jeune Fille Querellée par sa Mère. The ballet was originally produced and choreographed by the Ballet Master, Jean Dauberval, to a musical pastiche adapted from...
and the ballets
La EsmeraldaLa Esmeralda is a ballet in 3 acts, 5 scenes, inspired by Notre Dame de Paris by Victor Hugo, originally choreographed by Jules Perrot; with music by Cesare Pugni and design by William Grieve , D. Sloman , Mme...
,
The Fairy Doll,
Le CorsaireLe Corsaire is a ballet typically presented in three acts, with a scenario originally created by Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges, loosely based on the poem The Corsair by Lord Byron. Originally choreographed by Joseph Mazilier to the music of Adolphe Adam. First presented by the ballet of the...
and
La BayadèreLa Bayadère is a ballet, originally staged in four acts and seven tableaux by the Ballet Master Marius Petipa to the music of Ludwig Minkus. It was first performed by the Imperial Ballet at the Imperial Bolshoi Kamenny Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia, on...
.
Life
Riccardo Eugenio Drigo was born in
PaduaPadua is a city in the Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Padua and the economic and communications hub of the area. Padua's population is 212,500 . The city is sometimes included, with Venice , in the Padua-Venice Metropolitan Area, having a population of c...
,
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
on 30 June 1846. His father Silvio Drigo was a
barristerA barrister is a lawyer found in many common law jurisdictions that employ a split profession in relation to legal representation. In split professions, the other types of lawyers are mainly solicitors...
and his mother, a noble Lupati, was active in politics. None of Drigo's family was distinguished in music, but at the age of five he began taking his first piano lessons from a family friend, the Hungarian Antonio Jorich. Drigo excelled quickly, and by his early teens he attained some local celebrity as a pianist. His father eventually agreed to allow Drigo to attend the prestigious Venice Conservatory, where he studied under Antonio Buzzolla, a student of
Gaetano DonizettiDomenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti was an Italian composer from Bergamo, Lombardy. Donizetti's most famous work is Lucia di Lammermoor , and arguably his most immediately recognizable piece of music is the aria "Una furtiva lagrima" from L'elisir d'amore...
. Drigo scored his first compositions in his early teens, which were primarily
romances'Romances' is a bolero album by Luis Miguel, released in 1997. It won the Grammy Award for Best Latin Pop Performance at the 1998 awards. The album debuted at #14 on The Billboard 200 chart, and at the time was the highest debut ever for an album on Spanish language...
and
waltzThe waltz is a ballroom and folk dance in time, performed primarily in closed position.- History :There are several references to a sliding or gliding dance,- a waltz, from the 16th century including the representations of the printer H.S. Beheim...
es. In 1862 he was allowed to perform some of his pieces with the local amateur orchestra in Padua. Through this performance, the young Drigo began to show interest in conducting.
Drigo graduated from the conservatory in 1864, and was hired as a rehearsal pianist at the Garibaldi Theatre in Padua. His experience as a rehearsal pianist soon lead him to find work as a conductor for various amateur opera troupes in
VicenzaVicenza, a city in northern Italy, is the capital of the eponymous province in the Veneto region, at the northern base of the Monte Berico, straddling the Bacchiglione. Vicenza is approximately 60 km west of Venice and 200 km east of Milan....
,
RovigoRovigo is a town in the Veneto region of North-Eastern Italy, the capital of the eponymous province. -Geography:...
,
UdineUdine is a city in northeastern Italy, in the middle of Friuli-Venezia Giulia region, between the Adriatic sea and the Alps , less than 40 km from the Slovenian border. Its population was 99,030 in 2008, and that of its urban area was 174,000.- History :Udine is the historical capital of Friuli...
and
VeniceVenice is a city in northern Italy, the capital of the region Veneto, a population of 271,367 . Together with Padua, the city is included in the Padua-Venice Metropolitan Area . The city historically was an independent nation...
.
At age twenty-two, Drigo presented his first opera at the Garibaldi Theatre. The two-act
Don Pedro di Portogallo (
Don Pedro of Portugal) premiered to considerable success on 25 July 1868, but performances had to be cancelled due to a
choleraCholera, sometimes known as Asiatic or epidemic cholera, is an infectious gastroenteritis caused by enterotoxin-producing strains of the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. Transmission to humans occurs through eating food or drinking water contaminated with Vibrio cholerae from other cholera patients...
epidemic which closed all theatres in the vicinity of Padua for some time.
Drigo's first major opportunity as a conductor occurred in 1868 when the Garibaldi Theatre's kapellmeister fell ill on the eve of the first performance of Costantino Dall'Argine's 1867 comic opera
I Due Orsi (
The Two Bears). When the
concertmasterThe concertmaster/mistress, is the leader of the first violin section of an orchestra. In the UK, the term commonly used is leader...
refused to conduct the performance, he recommended Drigo, if only because he was the rehearsal pianist, and as such knew the score intimately. Drigo's conducting was a great success, and soon he was named second kapellmeister.
Drigo gained experience serving as conductor in provincial theatres throughout Italy and various parts of Europe over the next ten years, and soon was conducting at some of the most celebrated operas in the great theatres of Europe. Among the performances were
BizetGeorges Bizet was a French composer and pianist of the Romantic era. He is best known for the opera Carmen.-Biography:Bizet was born at 26 rue de la Tour d'Auvergne in the 9th arrondissement of Paris in 1838...
's
CarmenCarmen is a French opéra comique by Georges Bizet. The libretto is by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée, first published in 1845, itself influenced by the narrative poem The Gypsies by Alexander Pushkin...
in
SevilleSeville is the artistic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level. The inhabitants of the city are known as Sevillanos or...
, Rossini's
The Barber of SevilleThe Barber of Seville, or The Useless Precaution is an opera buffa in two acts by Gioachino Rossini with a libretto by Cesare Sterbini...
in
MarseilleMarseille , formerly known as Massalia , is the 2nd most populous French city as well as the oldest city in France...
, Donizetti's
L'elisir d'amoreL'elisir d'amore is a melodramma giocoso in two acts by the Italian composer Gaetano Donizetti. Felice Romani wrote the Italian libretto after Eugène Scribe's libretto for Daniel-François-Esprit Auber's Le philtre .The premiere was at the Teatro della Canobbiana, Milan on 12 May 1832.- Performance...
and
Caterina Cornaro in
VeniceVenice is a city in northern Italy, the capital of the region Veneto, a population of 271,367 . Together with Padua, the city is included in the Padua-Venice Metropolitan Area . The city historically was an independent nation...
,
GounodCharles-François Gounod was a French composer, best known for his Ave Maria as well as his operas Faust and Roméo et Juliette.-Biography:...
's
FaustFaust is a grand opera in five acts by Charles Gounod to a French libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré from Carré's play Faust et Marguerite, in turn loosely based on Goethe's Faust, Part 1...
in
ParisParis is the capital of France and the country's most populous city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, and
BelliniVincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini was an Italian opera composer. His most famous works are La Sonnambula and Norma...
's
La sonnambulaLa sonnambula is an opera semiseria in two acts, music by Vincenzo Bellini to an Italian libretto by Felice Romani, based on a ballet-pantomime by Eugène Scribe....
and
NormaNorma is a tragedia lirica or opera in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini with libretto by Felice Romani after Norma, ossia L'infanticidio by Alexandre Soumet. First produced at La Scala on December 26, 1831, it is generally regarded as an example of the supreme height of the Bel canto tradition...
at
La ScalaLa Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the New Royal Theatre of La Scala La Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally...
. In time he was conducting some of the first performances of
WagnerWilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director and essayist, primarily known for his operas...
's operas at La Scala.
In 1878 Drigo's life would change drastically. During the opera season in Padua the director of the St. Petersburg Imperial Theatres, Baron Karl Karlovich Kister, attended a performance of Donizetti's
L'elisir d'amore which Drigo conducted. Kister was much impressed with Drigo's conducting talent, which was done without the aid of a score. Drigo then presented Kister with some of his own compositions, and soon Kister offered Drigo a six-month contract to conduct the St. Petersburg Imperial Italian Opera.
Russia
Almost immediately after arriving in St. Petersburg, Drigo was conducting the entire repertory of the Imperial Italian Opera, which at that time performed at the Imperial Mariinsky Theatre. He impressed the management a great deal, conducting such works as
VerdiGiuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi was an Italian Romantic composer, mainly of opera. He was one of the most influential composers of the 19th century...
's
AidaAida is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni, based on a scenario written by French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette...
and
Un ballo in mascheraUn ballo in maschera , is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi with text by Antonio Somma. The opera's first production was at the Teatro Apollo, Rome, 17 February 1859....
from memory. It was custom in Imperial Russia for all theatrical performances to be reported in detail in the newspapers, and Drigo's performances were always reported with praise —
" ... the young gentleman will stay here a long time ..." commented one columnist after attending an opera which Drigo conducted.
By 1879 Drigo's contracts had been renewed for seven consecutive one-year terms, allowing him three months out of the year to travel to Padua and to pursue other conducting assignments abroad. At the opera in
SevilleSeville is the artistic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level. The inhabitants of the city are known as Sevillanos or...
, Drigo conducted seventeen performances of twelve operas in seventeen days. Upon returning to St. Petersburg the Spanish ambassador to Russia awarded Drigo the
Order of Charles IIIThe Royal and Distinguished Spanish Order of Carlos III was established by the King of Spain Carlos III by means of the Royal Decree of 19 September 1771, with the motto Virtuti et mérito. Its objective is to reward people for their actions in benefit to Spain and the Crown...
on behalf of the government of
SpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.
[The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though España , Estado español and Nación española are used interchangeably...]
in honor of this feat.
In 1884 Drigo conducted the St. Petersburg premiere of
PonchielliAmilcare Ponchielli was an Italian composer, largely of operas.-Biography:Born in Paderno Fasolaro, now Paderno Ponchielli, near Cremona, Ponchielli won a scholarship at the age of nine to study music at the Milan Conservatory, writing his first symphony by the time he was ten years old.Two years...
's
I LituaniI Lituani is an opera consisting of a prologue and three acts by Amilcare Ponchielli to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni, based on the historical poem Konrad Wallenrod written by Polish poet Adam Mickiewicz...
, which was presented under the title
Aldona. That same year Drigo traveled to Italy at the behest of
Giacomo PucciniGiacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini was an Italian composer whose operas, including La bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly and Turandot, are among the most frequently performed in the standard repertoire...
to conduct the Venetian premiere of his opera
Le VilliLe Villi is an opera-ballet in two acts composed by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Ferdinando Fontana, based on the short story Les Willis by Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr. Karr's story was in turn based in the Central European legend of the Willis, also used in the ballet Giselle...
at the Teatro La Fenice. The great composer was so pleased with Drigo's conducting that he telegraphed his appreciation to Drigo for years to come on the anniversary of the premiere. In 1884 Drigo conducted the inaugural performance at Padua's Teatro Nuovo, which was re-named the Teatro Verdi and renovated by the architect Achille Sfondrini. For the performance, the Mayor of Padua granted Drigo the
Order of the cavaliere di Gran CroceThe Military Order of Italy is the highest military order of the Italian Republic and the former Kingdom of Italy. It was founded as the Military Order of Savoy, a national order of chivalry, by the King of Sardinia, Vittorio Emanuele I, Duke of Savoy in 1815...
. In 1885 Drigo returned to Milan's
Teatro dal VermeThe Teatro Dal Verme is a theatre in Milan, Italy located on the Via San Giovanni sul Muro, on the site of the former private theatre the Politeama Ciniselli. It was designed by Giuseppe Pestagalli to a commission from Count Francesco Dal Verme, and was used primarily for plays and opera...
to conduct the premiere of Ponchielli's
Marion Delorme.
Drigo's abilities as a pianist were much celebrated in his day. At La Scala he often accompanied the great violinist
Antonio BazziniAntonio Joseph Bazzini was an Italian violinist, composer and teacher born in Brescia, Italy. As a composer his most enduring work is his chamber music which has earned him a central place in the Italian instrumental renaissance of the 19th century...
during concerts. Drigo was often called upon to perform for the Imperial Russian Court by Tsar Alexander III, and accompanied touring musicians during concert tours at the Imperial Bolshoi Theatre (principal theatre of the Imperial Russian Opera and Ballet until 1886). Drigo was a close friend and colleague of
Anton RubinsteinAnton Grigorevich Rubinstein was a Russian pianist, composer and conductor. As a pianist he was regarded as a rival of Franz Liszt, and he ranks amongst the great keyboard virtuosos...
, and the two musicians were known to play piano for many hours into the night.
On Drigo presented his second Italian operetta, the comic-opera
La Moglie Rapita (
The Abducted Wife). The work was well-received, but did not last long in the repertory due to the reforms which soon took over the St. Petersburg Imperial Theatres.
Composer and conductor
In 1884
Emperor Alexander IIIAlexander III Alexandrovich reigned as Emperor of Russia from 13 March 1881 until his death in 1894.-Early life:...
disbanded the Imperial Italian Opera in an effort to solidify the art of Russian operetta, which left Drigo, the company's kapellmeister, without a position. In 1886 the St. Petersburg Imperial Ballet's kappellmeister, Alexei Papkov, retired after thirty-four years of service, leaving the company without a principal conductor. Drigo took over the position before the beginning of the 1886-1887 season. He made his debut as ballet conductor on with a performance of the old grand ballet
The Pharaoh's DaughterThe Pharaoh's Daughter , is a ballet choreographed by Marius Petipa, to the music of Cesare Pugni, with libretto by Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges from Théophile Gautier's Le Roman de la Momie...
, set to the score of
Cesare PugniCesare Pugni was an Italian composer of ballet music, a pianist and a virtuoso violinist. In his early career he composed operas, symphonies, and various other forms of orchestral music...
, which was the most popular work in the repertory of the Imperial Ballet. In attendance for the performance was the Emperor and his wife, the Empress Maria Fyodorovna, both of whom were fanatic balletomanes (the Russian ballet of that time was maintained lavishly at the expense of the Imperial purse). So impressed was the Emperor by Drigo's conducting that during the final curtain calls he gave the conductor a standing ovation, and ordered the rest of the house to follow suit.
In 1886 the Imperial Theatre's official composer of ballet music, the Austrian
Ludwig Minkus----Ludwig Minkus a.k.a. Léon Fyodorovich Minkus was an Austrian composer of ballet music, a violin virtuoso and teacher.Minkus is most noted for the music he composed while serving as Ballet Composer of the St...
, retired from his post. In light of this the director of the St. Peterbsurg Imperial Theatres,
Ivan VsevolozhskyIvan Alexandrovich Vsevolozhsky was the Director of the Imperial Theatres in Russia from 1881 to 1898.A competent administrator, Vsevolozhsky ran the Imperial Theatres with a determination for excellence...
, abolished the position of staff ballet composer in an effort to diversify the music supplied for new works. Minkus was the second composer to occupy the position of Ballet Composer of the St. Petersburg Imperial Theatres, a position originally created in 1850 for Cesare Pugni. Both composers were known as "specialists" — being highly skilled in creation of the
musique dansante then in vogue for the ballet. They were required by contract not only to create the scores for new works quickly and to order, but to compose supplemental
pasPas or PAS may be:* Pas , in Spain* PAS Giannina, a Greek football club from Ioannina* PAS Tehran F.C., a defunct Iranian football club from Tehran* PAS Hamedan F.C., an Iranian football club from Hamedan...
,
variationsVariation or Classical Variation in ballet is a solo dance. As with an Aria in opera, which allows the singer to demonstrate his or her interpretive skills, the variation in ballet has the same function...
, incidental dances, etc. whenever requested, as well as the endless task of correcting and adapting existing scores for the numerous revivals put on by the company. Since Drigo was well known as a capable composer, the director Vsevolozhsky employed him in the dual capacity of kapellmeister and Director of Music, a position which would require Drigo to fulfill all of the duties of the staff composer with regard to adapting and correcting scores at the behest of the Ballet Master.
In 1886 the Imperial Theatre's renowned Premier Maître de Ballet, the Frenchman
Marius PetipaMarius Ivanovich Petipa was a ballet dancer, teacher, and choreographer...
, revived
Jules PerrotJules-Joseph Perrot was a dancer and choreographer who later became Balletmaster of the Imperial Ballet in St. Petersburg, Russia...
's 1841
romanticThe Romantic Ballet is defined primarily by an era in ballet in which the ideas of Romanticism in art and literature influenced the creation of ballets. The era occurred during the early to mid 19th century primarily at the Théâtre de l'Académie Royale de Musique in Paris and Her Majesty's Theatre...
masterpiece
La EsmeraldaLa Esmeralda is a ballet in 3 acts, 5 scenes, inspired by Notre Dame de Paris by Victor Hugo, originally choreographed by Jules Perrot; with music by Cesare Pugni and design by William Grieve , D. Sloman , Mme...
for the visiting Italian ballerina
Virginia ZucchiVirginia Zucchi was an Italian dancer. Her career as a ballerina spanned from 1864 to 1898, and she was known as "the Divine Virginia" for her artistry, expressiveness, and virtuosity....
. For the revival Drigo was assigned the task of refurbishing the old score of Cesare Pugni. As was the custom at that time when reviving an old work, Petipa wanted to add new numbers to the ballet, and particularly a novelty for the ballerina. The Ballet Master had no desire to look outside of the theatre for a composer to score the dances he required, and so approached Drigo, who happily composed a new
Pas de six designed to showcase the dramatic gifts of Zucchi that consisted of a virtuoso violin solo for the great
Leopold AuerLeopold Auer , was a Hungarian violinist, teacher, conductor and composer.- Prodigy :...
(principal violinist of the Imperial Theatre's orchestra) in the
Adage; and a
Pas des Bohémiens (
Bohemian Dance). The revival premiered to great success on . In attendance for the premiere were the Emperor and Empress, both of whom considered
La Esmeralda to be among their favorite works. After the performance the Emperor met with Drigo on stage to congratulate him on his additional material as well as his conducting. Placing his hand on Drigo's shoulder, he commented that
" ... the music was magnificent! Under your direction the orchestra has made much progress." Drigo's additional numbers from 1886 remain part of the performance score for
La Esmeralda to the present day, and are also included in famous repertory excerpts such as the
La Esmeralda Pas de Six and the
La Esmeralda Pas de Deux.
With the success of his work on the score of
La Esmeralda, the director Vsevolozhsky gave Drigo his first commission to compose an original score for the ballet. This was
La Forêt enchantée (
The Enchanted Forest), which was not only Drigo's first full-length ballet score but also the first original work choreographed by the Imperial Theatre's newly appointed Second Maître de Ballet
Lev IvanovLev Ivanovich Ivanov was a Russian ballet dancer and choreographer and later, Second Balletmaster of the Imperial Ballet....
.
La Forêt enchantée was staged especially for the graduation performance of the Imperial Ballet School, with the top graduates in the leading roles. The work premiered on on the stage of the school's theatre, and was subsequently transferred to the stage of the Mariinsky Theatre, where it premiered on with the Italian ballerina Emma Bessone in the lead role of Ilka. Although Ivanov's choreography was not well-received, Drigo received considerable praise for his score. A critic from the St. Petersburg newspaper
The New Time complimented Drigo's music:
"The music of this ballet is outstanding in a symphonic sense, reveals an experienced composer, a man with taste, and an excellent orchestrator. There are beautiful melodies in it, the rhythms are not overdone, and everything is listened to with pleasure from beginning to end."
Marius PetipaMarius Ivanovich Petipa was a ballet dancer, teacher, and choreographer...
was equally impressed with Drigo's score for
La Forêt enchantée. In 1888 the Ballet Master was preparing his next work,
La VestaleThe Vestal - Grand ballet in 3 Acts-4 Scenes, with choreography by Marius Petipa and music by Mikhail Ivanov.The ballet was first presented by the Imperial Ballet on February 17/29, 1888 at the Imperial Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia...
, a colossal
grand ballet set in the ancient
Roman EmpireThe Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean. The term is used to describe the Roman state during and after the time of the first emperor,...
. The score was written by the music critic Mikhail Ivanov, who counted
Pyotr Ilyich TchaikovskyPyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
[The subject's names are also transliterated Piotr, Petr, or Peter; Ilitsch, Ilich, Il'ich or Illyich; and Tschaikowski, Tschaikowsky, Chajkovskij and Chaikovsky...]
among his instructors. Ivanov provided what was at that time considered to be a highly symphonic score for the ballet, and the visiting ballerina for whom the work was produced, the Italian Elena Cornalba, appealed to Petipa for additional, more
"dansante" music for her variations. Having just witnessed a performance of
La Forêt enchantée, she requested that Drigo should be the composer responsible for supplemental dances she required. This Drigo did, composing two additional variations for Cornalba known as
L'echo (
The Echo), which was written as a
canonIn music, a canon is a contrapuntal composition that employs a melody with one or more imitations of the melody played after a given duration . The initial melody is called the leader , while the imitative melody, which is played in a different voice, is called the follower...
; and a
Valse mignonne (
Sweet Waltz). Drigo also wrote an extra variation for the character of Cupid known as
L'amour, and a variation for the ballerina Maria Gorshenkova. Three of these pieces were later published.
Le Talisman
When plans were made for the next ballet starring Elena Cornalba, the ballerina requested that Drigo should be the composer responsible for the entire score. This was
Le TalismanThe Talisman - Fantastic ballet in 4 Acts-7 Scenes, with choreography by Marius Petipa, and music by Riccardo Drigo. Libretto by Konstantin Augustovich Tarnovsky and Marius Petipa....
(
The Talisman), a work which told the story of a Hindu Goddess who descends to earth in order to test her heart against the temptations of earthly love. The ballet premiered on on the occasion of Cornalba's benefit performance. Despite a sumptuous production with many inspired choreographic episodes, the ballet's mise-en-scène proved to be a mediocre success. Nevetheless Drigo's score was much celebrated, and was hailed as a masterwork of ballet music. The artist Alexander Benois told in his memoirs of his extreme delight with Drigo's score, which he said inspired a "short infatuation" in him as a young student at the
Saint Petersburg State UniversitySaint Petersburg State University is a Russian federal state-owned higher education institution based in Saint Petersburg and one of the oldest, largest and most prestigious universities in the country. It is made up of 19 specialized faculties, 13 research institutes, Canada College, Faculty of...
:
Following the successes of his additional music for
La Esmeralda and
La Vestale and his scores for
La Forêt enchantée and
Le Talisman, Drigo repeatedly received commissions from both Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov to compose supplemental
variations,
pas and incidental dances for insertion into older ballets. By the time Drigo left Russia in 1919, nearly every ballet in the repertory of the St. Petersburg Imperial Theatres contained many of the composer's own additional pieces, and it even became a symbol of one's status as a dancer for Drigo to supply new music for a variation choreographed by Petipa. Drigo later commented in his memoirs that he composed about 80 such pieces. More often than not Drigo received no extra payment for such compositions. During the late 19th century Petipa began to mount revivals of older ballets with increasing frequency, and the Ballet Master called upon Drigo to revise the scores accordingly.
In 1889 Drigo took up residence in the
St. Petersburg Grand HotelGrand Hotel Europe vies with Corinthia Nevskij Palace Hotel and Hotel Astoria for the title of the most luxurious five-star hotel in Saint Petersburg, Russia. One of great hotels of the 19th-century Europe, it opened its doors to the public on January 28, 1875, replacing an earlier inn situated on...
, which was to remain his home for the next thirty years. It was at this time that Drigo developed a close friendship with
Pyotr Ilyich TchaikovskyPyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
[The subject's names are also transliterated Piotr, Petr, or Peter; Ilitsch, Ilich, Il'ich or Illyich; and Tschaikowski, Tschaikowsky, Chajkovskij and Chaikovsky...]
, who was in the process of composing the score for
Marius PetipaMarius Ivanovich Petipa was a ballet dancer, teacher, and choreographer...
's
The Sleeping Beauty for the Imperial Ballet. On the eve of the general rehearsal of the ballet Drigo fell ill, and asked Tchaikovsky if he could conduct the orchestra himself. To Drigo's astonishment Tchaikovsky insisted that if he conducted the orchestra he would ruin his score, and so Drigo, still ill, consented to conduct the rehearsal. The shy and reserved Tchaikovsky was ever after grateful to Drigo for his exceptional conducting, particularly after the premiere on . Drigo eventually conducted nearly 300 performances of
The Sleeping Beauty at the Mariinsky Theatre. Two years later Drigo conducted the premiere of Tchaikovsky's next work,
The NutcrackerThe Nutcracker Op. 71, is a fairy tale-ballet in two acts, three scenes, by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, composed in 1891–92. Alexandre Dumas père's adaptation of the story "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King" by E. T. A...
, on .
La Flûte magique and Le Réveil de Flore
In 1893 Drigo composed another score for the graduation ceremonies of the Imperial Ballet school. This was the one-act ballet
La Flûte magique (
The Magic Flute), which told the story of an enchanted instrument that compelled all within earshot to dance when it was played. The ballet was staged by Lev Ivanov, and premiered on to great success on the stage of the ballet school's theatre, with a cast that included the young Mikhail Fokine in the lead role of Luc. Due to the success of the student performance,
La Flûte magique was transferred to the Mariinsky Theatre, where it was presented in an expanded staging on . Drigo's score was highly praised by critics:
Drigo's next score was written for Petipa's work
Le Réveil de Flore (
The Awakening of Flora), an anacreontic ballet in one-act that was produced especially for the celebrations held at
PeterhofPeterhof is a municipal town within Petrodvortsovy District of the federal city of Saint Petersburg on the southern shore of the Gulf of Finland . It hosts one of two campuses of Saint Petersburg State University...
in honor of the wedding of the Grand Duchess Xenia Alexandrovna to the
Grand Duke Alexander MikhailovichGrand Duke Alexander Mihailovich of Russia, Александр Михайлович Aleksandr Mihailovits was a dynast of the Russian Empire, a naval officer, an author, explorer, the brother-in-law of Emperor Nicholas II, and an advisor of the said Emperor.Alexander was born the son of Grand Duke Michael...
. The premiere on was a grand occasion, with an audience composed of the whole of the Imperial court. For his score for
Le Réveil de Flore, Emperor Alexander III granted Drigo the
Order of St. AnnaThe Order of St. Anna was a Holstein and then Russian order of chivalry established by Karl Friedrich, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp on 14 February 1735, in honour of his wife Anna Petrovna, daughter of Peter the Great of Russia. The motto of the Order was "Amantibus Justitiam, Pietatem, Fidem"...
.
As with
La Flûte magique,
Le Réveil de Flore was transferred to the stage of the Mariinsky Theatre, where it was given for the first time on . The ballet soon became a favorite of the ballerinas of the era, among them
Mathilde KschessinskaMathilda Feliksovna Kschessinskaya Mathilda Feliksovna Kschessinskaya Mathilda Feliksovna Kschessinskaya ( , (also known as Her Serene Highness Princess Romanova-Krasinskaya from 1921) was a Russian ballerina from a family of Polish origin. Her father...
(who created the principal role of Flora),
Tamara KarsavinaTamara Platonovna Karsavina was a famous Russian ballerina, renowned for her beauty, who was most noted as a Principal Artist of the Imperial Russian Ballet and later the Ballets Russes of Serge Diaghilev. After settling in England, she began teaching ballet professionally and would become...
and particularly Anna Pavlova, who included an abriged version of the work on her legendary world tours.
Swan Lake
In late 1894 Drigo prepared an important revision of Tchaikovsky's score for
Swan LakeSwan Lake is a ballet, op. 20, by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, composed 1875–1876. The scenario, initially in four acts, by Vladimir Begichev and Vasiliy Geltser was fashioned from Russian folk tales as well as an ancient German legend, which tells the story of Odette, a princess turned into a swan...
, originally produced at the Imperial Bolshoi Theatre of Moscow in 1877. Following the success of
The Sleeping Beauty and
The NutcrackerThe Nutcracker Op. 71, is a fairy tale-ballet in two acts, three scenes, by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, composed in 1891–92. Alexandre Dumas père's adaptation of the story "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King" by E. T. A...
, Ivan Vsevolozhsky—director of the St. Petersburg Theatres—expressed interest in reviving the ballet. Drigo later recalled: Tchaikovsky died on just as plans to revive
Swan Lake were beginning to come to fruition. A revival of the complete work was then planned for the Imperial Ballet's 1894-1895 season, in a staging by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov. Tchaikovsky's brother
ModestModest Ilyich Tchaikovsky was a Russian dramatist, opera librettist and translator.-Biography:...
approved that Drigo should be entrusted with the task of revising the score, which the composer did in accordance with Petipa's instructions. In his memoirs Drigo touched on his revision to the score: The revival premiered on at the Mariinsky Theatre with the Prima ballerina assoluta
Pierina LegnaniPierina Legnani was an Italian ballerina, a terre-à-terre virtuosa extraordinaire, considered one of the greatest ballerinas of all time. From 1893 until 1901 she was Prima Ballerina Assoluta with the Tsar's Imperial Ballet at the Maryinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg. Legnani trained at La Scala...
in the dual role of Odette/Odile. Drigo's version of Tchaikovsky's score has remained the definitive performance edition of
Swan Lake, and is still used to one degree or another by ballet companies throughout the world. Nevertheless, Drigo is rarely given credit when his revisions are performed.
La Perle
Drigo's next score for the ballet was the grand
piece d'occasion La Perle (sometimes known in Russian as
Чудесная жемчужина —
The Miraculous Pearl), produced especially for the gala held at the Imperial Bolshoi Theatre of Moscow in honor of the coronation of Tsar Nicholas II and Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna. The ballet's scenario was based on the danced tableau
La Pérégrina from
VerdiGiuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi was an Italian Romantic composer, mainly of opera. He was one of the most influential composers of the 19th century...
's opera
Don CarlosDon Carlos is a five-act Grand Opera composed by Giuseppe Verdi to a French language libretto by Camille du Locle and Joseph Méry, based on the dramatic play Don Carlos, Infant von Spanien by Friedrich Schiller...
, and was produced lavishly by Marius Petipa.
La Perle premiered on after a performance of
GlinkaMikhail Ivanovich Glinka , was the first Russian composer to gain wide recognition inside his own country, and is often regarded as the father of Russian classical music...
's
A Life for the TsarA Life for the Tsar , as it is known in English, although its original name was Ivan Susanin is a "patriotic-heroic tragic opera" in five acts with an epilogue by Mikhail Glinka...
, with the ballet companies of both Moscow and St. Petersburg participating in the performance. Set in an under-water kingdom,
La Perle told the story of how the Earth Genie attempted to abduct the White Pearl, causing a collosal battle of the elements of the earth and the sea. The ballet featured elaborate stage transformations and a grand
apotheosisApotheosis , refers to the exaltation of a subject to divine level...
—
The Triumph of the Amphitrions— befitting the royal occasion for which it was produced. The performance included six first-class danseuses of both the St. Petersburg and Moscow troupes—Pierina Legnani, Adelaide Giuri, Lyubov Roslavleva,
Mathilde KschessinskaMathilda Feliksovna Kschessinskaya Mathilda Feliksovna Kschessinskaya Mathilda Feliksovna Kschessinskaya ( , (also known as Her Serene Highness Princess Romanova-Krasinskaya from 1921) was a Russian ballerina from a family of Polish origin. Her father...
, Claudia Kulichevskaya and Anna Johanssen. Drigo later commented in his memoirs of how difficult it was to compose effective variations for the ballerinas while still maintaining variety. The score—which boasted offstage choruses—impressed the new Emperor, and Drigo was granted the
Order of Saint StanislausThe Order of Saint Stanislaus , also spelled Stanislas, was an Order in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and The Kingdom of Poland between 1765 and 1831....
.
La Perle included a celebrated piece that came to be known as
The Ocean and the Pearls pas de trois. In 1912 the Ballet Master Alexander Gorsky added the piece to his revival of
Arthur Saint-LéonArthur Saint-Léon was the Maître de Ballet of St. Petersburg Imperial Ballet from 1859 until 1869 and is famous for creating the choreography of the ballet Coppélia.-Biography:...
and the composer Cesare Pugni's 1864 ballet
The Little Humpbacked HorseThe Little Humpbacked Horse, or The Tsar Maiden is a ballet in 4 Acts-8 Scenes with apotheosis. The original choreography was by Arthur Saint-Léon, and was set to music by Cesare Pugni...
at the Mariinsky Theatre. The piece has survived in an independent form and remains a popular repertory excerpt with ballet companies throughout the world. Drigo's music is often erroneously credited to Cesare Pugni.
Les Millions d’Arlequin
In 1899 Petipa began work on the scenario for a ballet based on episodes from the Italian
commedia dell’arteCommedia dell'arte is a form of improvisational theatre that began in Italy in the 16th century, maintained its popularity through the 17th century, and is still performed today. Performances were mostly unscripted, held outside and used few props...
, which he called
Les Millions d’ArlequinLes millions d'Arlequin is a ballet in two acts with libretto and choreography by Marius Petipa and music by Riccardo Drigo. First presented at the Imperial Theatre of the Hermitage by the Imperial Ballet in St. Petersburg, Russia on...
(
The Millions of Harlequin). At the same time he also produced a libretto for an allegorical ballet titled
Les Saisons (
The Seasons), which expressed the four seasons through Petipa's classical formula of various'pas, variations and elaborate Grand pas. Originally Petipa intended to commission the score of
Les Millions d’Arlequin from Drigo's close friend and colleague,
Alexander GlazunovAlexander Konstantinovich Glazunov was a Russian composer of the late Russian Romantic period, music teacher and conductor...
. In turn Drigo was originally intended to compose the score for Petipa's
Les Saisons, but both composers developed an affinity for the other's assigned ballet, and Glazunov adamantly expressed that the subject of
Les Millions d’Arlequin was perfect in every respect for the Italian composer's talents. In the end Glazunov was commissioned to compose the score for
Les Saisons, and Drigo that of
Les Millions d’Arlequin.
While working on the score for
Les Millions d’Arlequin, Drigo took daily walks through the
St. Petersburg Summer GardenThe Summer Garden occupies an island between the Fontanka, Moika, and the Swan Canal in Saint Petersburg and shares its name with the adjacent Summer Palace of Peter the Great....
and along the banks of the
Neva RiverThe Neva is a river in northwestern Russia flowing from Lake Ladoga through the western part of Leningrad Oblast and the city of Saint Petersburg to the Neva Bay of the Gulf of Finland...
, all the while thinking of his native Italy. During one such daily walk, Drigo composed the ballet's famous
SerenadeIn music, a serenade is, in its most general sense, a musical composition, and/or performance, in someone's honor. There are three general categories of serenade in music history....
, which he set to the accompaniment of a solo
mandolinA mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It is descended from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family...
. Other pieces of note were the
Berceuse de Columbine, written especially for the harpist Albert Zabel and the melodious
Valse des alouettes.
The ballet premiered at the Imperial Theatre of the Hermitage on with the Prima ballerina assoluta
Mathilde KschessinskaMathilda Feliksovna Kschessinskaya Mathilda Feliksovna Kschessinskaya Mathilda Feliksovna Kschessinskaya ( , (also known as Her Serene Highness Princess Romanova-Krasinskaya from 1921) was a Russian ballerina from a family of Polish origin. Her father...
in the role of Columbine and the danseur Gyorgy Kyaksht in the role of Harlequin. The audience included the Emperor and Empress as well as the whole of the Imperial court. Within moments of the final curtain, the typically subdued courtly audience erupted into thunderous applause. The composer received a tumultuous reception as he went before the curtain and was mobbed by several princes and Grand Dukes who tripped over one another in their enthusiasm to congratulate him. Due to her delight in Drigo's score, the Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna commanded two additional court performances of
Les Millions d’Arlequin at the Mariinsky Theatre, the first given on . When plans were under way to publish Drigo's score in
piano reductionA piano reduction is sheet music for the piano that was once music for other instruments that was reduced to its most basic components within a two line staff for piano...
by the publishing company
ZimmermannZimmermann was founded in 1876 by Julius Heinrich Zimmermann. Originally, it manufactured wind instruments for the Russian and German market. From 1885 it published methods for all musical instruments. During the First World War, Zimmermann’s branches in Saint Petersburg, Moscow and Riga were...
, many of Drigo's colleagues urged the composer to dedicate his score to the Empress. Drigo's request was then submitted to the Minister of the Imperial Court, which brought about a lengthy correspondence by a commission set up to investigate whether or not Drigo's character, background and music were worthy of his offering a dedication to a Russian Empress. The response was favorable and the dedication was graciously accepted.
Later years in Russia
In the spring of 1902, Drigo and a group of dancers from the Imperial Ballet were invited by
Raoul GunsbourgRaoul Samuel Gunsbourg was a Romanian opera director, impresario, composer and writer....
, director of the
Opéra de Monte-CarloThe Opéra de Monte-Carlo is an opera house located in the principality of Monaco.With the lack of cultural diversions available in Monaco in the 1870s, Prince Charles III, along with the Société des Bains de Mer, decided on the construction of an opera house on a high spot overlooking the...
, to produce a ballet in
MonacoMonaco , officially the Principality of Monaco , is a small sovereign city-state located in South Western Europe on the northern central coast of the Mediterranean Sea, having a land border on three sides only with France, and being about away from Italy. Its size is just under 2 km² with an...
. Drigo composed the music for the ballet-divertissement titled
La Côte d'Azur (
The French Riviera), set to a libretto by
Prince Albert IAlbert I, Prince of Monaco was the tenth reigning Prince of Monaco and the tenth Duke of Valentinois from 10 September 1889 until his death.-Early life:...
. The ballet premiered at the Salle Garnier on 30 March 1902, and featured the Prima ballerina
Olga PreobrajenskaOlga Iosifovna Preobrajenska was probably the best loved ballerina of the Russian Imperial Ballet....
.
Drigo's final original full-length ballet score was also Marius Petipa's final work — the fantastical
La Romance de la rose et le papillon (
The Romance of the Rose and the Butterfly). The ballet was to have had its premiere at the Imperial Theatre of the Hermitage on but was abruptly canceled, the official reason given being the outbreak of the
Russo-Japanese WarThe Russo-Japanese War or the Manchurian Campaign in some English sources, was a conflict that grew out of the rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
. It was the belief of the newly appointed director of the St. Petersburg Imperial Theatres, Vladimir Telyakovsky, that the Imperial Ballet had become stagnant under Petipa's leadership. In light of the fact that Petipa still legally held the position of Premier Maître de Ballet of the company, Telyakovsky began to make efforts to drive the eighty-five year old Ballet Master from the theatre; the cancellation of the premiere of
La Romance de la rose et le papillon was one such attempt that finally led to Petipa's retirement in 1905.
Drigo also fell victim to Telyakovsky's disfavor. When the composer and conductor
Gustav MahlerGustav Mahler was a Bohemian-born Austrian composer and conductor. He was best known during his own lifetime as one of the leading orchestral and operatic conductors of the day...
visited a ballet performance conducted by Drigo in 1902, he was invited by the directorate to watch the performance in the Director's lodge. Mahler expressed to Telyakovsky his surprise at the fact that Drigo rarely used his left hand when conducting, and that he had been impressed by his ability to synchronize the music and stage action. Mahler had informed Telyakovsky that he wished to meet Drigo and congratulate him for his abilities as a conductor. Telyakovsky purposefully avoided arranging the meeting, and it was only days later that the Secertary of the Italian Embassy—who had been sitting directly behind Mahler—informed Drigo of the exchange.
In 1909 Drigo prepared a new version of his score for
Le Talisman for a revival staged by the Ballet Master and former danseur Nikolai Legat. The revival premiered on at the Mariinsky Theatre, with an audience consisting of the Dowager Empress Marie Fyodorovna. The cast featured Olga Preobrajenska as the Goddess Niriti and
Vaslav NijinskyVaslav Nijinsky was a Russian ballet dancer and choreographer of Polish descent. Nijinsky was one of the most gifted dancers in history, and he grew to be celebrated for his virtuosity and for the depth and intensity of his characterizations...
, who caused a sensation in the role of Vayou, the God of Wind. Drigo was then invited by
Giulio Gatti-CasazzaGiulio Gatti-Casazza was an Italian opera manager. He was general manager of La Scala in Milan, Italy and later the Metropolitan Opera in New York City.-Biography:...
to assist in mounting
Le Talisman at
La ScalaLa Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the New Royal Theatre of La Scala La Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally...
. The ballet was presented as
Le Porte-bonheur (
The Bracelet) in a staging by the Ballet Master Luigi Tornelli, which premiered on 18 July 1908.
Drigo had been vacationing in his native Italy during the outbreak of
World War IWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
in 1914, which prevented him from returning to Russia for another two years. Soon after his arrival in Petrograd he was evicted from his home at the Grand Hotel, which was converted to offices for the newly established Soviet government. For a time Drigo was forced to live in considerable poverty in a camp with a group of his fellow Italian émigrés. He later recalled in his memoirs of the many cold evenings he spent with his close friend and colleague
Alexander GlazunovAlexander Konstantinovich Glazunov was a Russian composer of the late Russian Romantic period, music teacher and conductor...
waiting for hours in bread lines and subsequently carrying their rations home through the snow on a sled. Upon his first enagagment as conducter after his return to the former Imperial Mariinsky Theatre, Drigo received a fifteen-minute standing ovation from the audience.
Drigo returns to Italy
In 1919 Drigo was finally repatriated to his native Italy. For his farewell gala at the former Imperial Mariinsky Theatre, the Ballet Master Fyodor Lopukhov mounted a new version of Drigo and Petipa's final collaboration, the ballet
La Romance de la rose et le papillon which Lopukhov staged under the title
Le Conte du bouton (
The Tale of the Rosebud). At the close of the gala, the bass
Feodor ChaliapinFeodor Ivanovich Chaliapin was the most famous Russian opera singer of the 20th century...
read an emotional farewell speech in both Italian and Russian. Allowed to take only 60 kilograms of his possessions with him on his return to Italy, Drigo left everything in Russia with the exception of his manuscript score for
La Romance de la rose et le papillon, which he used as a pillow during his two-month journey through
OdessaOdessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .Odessa was founded by Hacı I Giray, the Khan of Crimea, in 1240...
and
ConstantinopleConstantinople was the imperial capital of the Roman Empire , the Byzantine/Eastern Roman Empire , the Latin Empire , and the Ottoman Empire...
to his native Padua.
In 1920 Drigo accepted the post of kapellmeister to the Garibaldi Theatre in Padua where he had begun his career many years before. In 1926 he composed the
comic operaComic opera, or light opera, denotes a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending.Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th century Italy. By the 1730s, a new operatic genre, opera buffa, emerged as an alternative to opera seria...
Flaffy Raffles for the Opera company of Padua's Teatro Verdi, and in 1929 his last work was given, the opera
Il garofano bianco ('The White Carnation') at the Garibaldi Theatre. He spent the remainder of his life conducting and composing various songs (including a vocal version of the famous serenade from
Les millions d’Harlequin, which
Beniamino GigliBeniamino Gigli, was an Italian opera singer. The most famous tenor of his generation, he was renowned internationally for the great beauty of his voice and the soundness of his vocal technique. Critics sometimes took him to task, however, for what was perceived to be the over-emotionalism of his...
made a world-wide hit with) and masses. He died on 1 October 1930 at the age of 74, in his birthplace, Padua.
Operas
- Don Pedro di Portogallo. 25 July 1868, Teatro nuovo du Padova, Padua
Padua is a city in the Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Padua and the economic and communications hub of the area. Padua's population is 212,500 . The city is sometimes included, with Venice , in the Padua-Venice Metropolitan Area, having a population of c...
.
- La Moglie Rapita. , Imperial Mariinsky Theatre.
- Flaffy Raffles. ? 1926, Teatro Verdi, Padua.
- Il Garafano Bianco. ? 1929. Garibaldi Theatre, Padua.
Ballets
- La Forêt enchantée. Ballet fantastique in one act. Choreography by Lev Ivanov
Lev Ivanovich Ivanov was a Russian ballet dancer and choreographer and later, Second Balletmaster of the Imperial Ballet....
. , Imperial Ballet School. , Imperial Mariinsky Theatre.
- Le Talisman. Grand ballet in four acts and seven tableaux with prologue and apotheosis. Choreography by Marius Petipa
Marius Ivanovich Petipa was a ballet dancer, teacher, and choreographer...
. , Imperial Mariinsky Theatre.
- La Flûte magique. Ballet comique in one act. Choreography by Lev Ivanov. , Imperial Ballet School. , Imperial Mariinsky Theatre.
- Le Réveil de Flore. Ballet anacréontique in one act. Choreography by Marius Petipa. , Imperial Theatre of Peterhof
Peterhof is a municipal town within Petrodvortsovy District of the federal city of Saint Petersburg on the southern shore of the Gulf of Finland . It hosts one of two campuses of Saint Petersburg State University...
. . , Imperial Mariinsky Theatre.
- La Perle. Grand ballet in one act with apotheosis. Choreography by Marius Petipa. , Imperial Bolshoi Theatre of Moscow. , Imperial Mariinsky Theatre.
- Les Dryades prétendues. Ballet in one act, two tableaux. Choreography by Pavel Gerdt
Pavel Andreyevich Gerdt, also known as Paul Gerdt , was the Premier Danseur Noble of the Imperial Ballet, the Bolshoi Kamenny Theatre, and the Mariinsky Theatre for 56 years, making his debut in 1860, and retiring in 1916...
. , Imperial Theatre of the Russian Museum of His Majesty Emperor Alexander IIIThe State Russian Museum is the largest depository of the Russian fine art in St Petersburg....
. Music based on airs from Cesare PugniCesare Pugni was an Italian composer of ballet music, a pianist and a virtuoso violinist. In his early career he composed operas, symphonies, and various other forms of orchestral music...
's score for the ballet Éoline, ou La Dryade.
- Les Millions d’Arlequin
Harlequinade is a type of theatrical performance piece, originally a slapstick adaptation of the Commedia dell'arte, which dates back to Italy in the 16th century...
(a.k.a. Harlequinade). Harlequinade in two acts. Choreography by Marius Petipa. , Imperial Theatre of the Hermitage. , Imperial Mariinsky Theatre.
- La Côte d’Azur. Ballet in two acts. Choreography by Alexander Shiryaev. 30 March 1902, Salle Garnier, Monte-Carlo.
- La Romance de la rose et le papillon. Ballet fantastique in one act, three tableaux. Choreography by Marius Petipa. , Imperial Theatre of the Hermitage (never premiered).
- Le Porte-bonheur (revival of Le Talisman). Choreography by Luigi Tornelli. 18 July 1908, La Scala
La Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the New Royal Theatre of La Scala La Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally...
, MilanMilan in Italy, is the capital of the region of Lombardia and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while the urban area is the fifth largest in the E.U. with an estimated population of 4.3 million...
.
- Le Conte du bouton (revival of La Romance de la rose et le papillon). Choreography by Fyodor Lopukhov. 16 April 1919, Mariinsky Theatre.
Revisions to existing scores
- La Esmeralda
La Esmeralda is a ballet in 3 acts, 5 scenes, inspired by Notre Dame de Paris by Victor Hugo, originally choreographed by Jules Perrot; with music by Cesare Pugni and design by William Grieve , D. Sloman , Mme...
, 1886. Original score by Cesare PugniCesare Pugni was an Italian composer of ballet music, a pianist and a virtuoso violinist. In his early career he composed operas, symphonies, and various other forms of orchestral music...
, 1844.
- Catarina, ou La Fille du bandit, 1888. Original score by Cesare Pugni, 1846.
- La Sylphide
La Sylphide is one of the world's oldest surviving romantic ballets. There are two versions of the ballet; the version choreographed by the Danish balletmaster August Bournonville is the only surviving version to date....
, 1892. Original score by Jean-Madeleine Schneitzhoeffer, 1832.
- Le Roi Candaule, 1891. Original score by Cesare Pugni, 1868.
- Swan Lake
Swan Lake is a ballet, op. 20, by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, composed 1875–1876. The scenario, initially in four acts, by Vladimir Begichev and Vasiliy Geltser was fashioned from Russian folk tales as well as an ancient German legend, which tells the story of Odette, a princess turned into a swan...
, 1895. Original score by Pyotr Ilyich TchaikovskyPyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
[The subject's names are also transliterated Piotr, Petr, or Peter; Ilitsch, Ilich, Il'ich or Illyich; and Tschaikowski, Tschaikowsky, Chajkovskij and Chaikovsky...]
, 1877.
- Les Caprices du Papillon, 1895. Original score by Nikoli Krotkov, 1889.
- Les Élèves de Dupré, 1897 (one act version of Marius Petipa's L'Ordre du Roi). Original score by Albert Vinzentini (based the airs of Johann Strauss II
Johann Strauss II was an Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas...
, Léo DelibesClément Philibert Léo Delibes was a French composer of ballets, operas, and other works for the stage.-Biographical data:...
, Daniel AuberDaniel François Esprit Auber was a French composer.-Biography:The son of a Paris print-seller, Auber was born in Caen in Normandy. Though his father expected him to continue in the print-selling business, he also allowed his son to learn how to play several musical instruments...
, Jules MassenetJules Massenet was a French composer best known for his operas. His compositions were very popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and he ranks as one of the greatest melodists of his era. Soon after his death, his style went out of fashion, and many of his operas fell into almost...
, and Anton RubinsteinAnton Grigorevich Rubinstein was a Russian pianist, composer and conductor. As a pianist he was regarded as a rival of Franz Liszt, and he ranks amongst the great keyboard virtuosos...
), 1886.
Supplemental pieces for various ballets
- La Vestale. Original score by Mikhail Ivanov (1888).
- Variation for Elena Cornalba known as L'echo (1888)
- Variation for Elena Cornalba known as the Valse Mignonne (1888)
- Variation for Maria Anderson known as L'amour (1888)
- Variation for Maria Gorshenkova (1888)
- The Pharaoh's Daughter
The Pharaoh's Daughter , is a ballet choreographed by Marius Petipa, to the music of Cesare Pugni, with libretto by Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges from Théophile Gautier's Le Roman de la Momie...
. Original score by Cesare PugniCesare Pugni was an Italian composer of ballet music, a pianist and a virtuoso violinist. In his early career he composed operas, symphonies, and various other forms of orchestral music...
(1862).
- Pas de sabre (1885)
- Variation orientale for Virginia Zucchi (1885)
- Pizzicato (1898)
- Variation for Mathilde Kschessinska (1898)
- Polonaise variation for Anna Pavlova (c. 1902)
- Giselle
Giselle, ou Les Wilis is a ballet in two acts with a libretto by Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges and Théophile Gautier, music by Adolphe Adam, and choreography by Jean Coralli and Jules Perrot. The librettist took his inspiration from a poem by Heinrich Heine...
. Original score by Adolphe AdamAdolphe Charles Adam was a French composer and music critic. A prolific composer of operas and ballets, he is best known today for his ballets Giselle and Le Corsaire , his operas Le postillon de Lonjumeau , Le toréador and Si j'étais roi , and his...
(1841).
- Variation for Elena Cornalba (c. 1888)
- La Esmeralda. Original score by Cesare Pugni (1844).
- Pas de six for Virginia Zucchi (1886)
- Adaptation of the Pas des fleurs into a Grand pas classique (1899)
- Pizzicato variation for Olga Preobrajenska (1899)
- Variation for Nikolai Legat (1901)
- Pygmalion, ou La Statue de Chypre
Pygmalion, ou La Statue de Chypre is a ballet in 4 Acts-6 Scenes, with choreography by Marius Petipa and music by Prince Nikita Trubestkoi....
. Original score by Prince Nikita Trubestkoi (1883).
- Variation for Pierina Legnani (1895)
- L’Ordre du Roi. Original score by Albert Vinzentini (1886).
- Pas d'action known as Le Pêcheur et la Perle (c. 1887)
- Variation for Mathilde Kschessinska (1897)
- Variation for Nikolai Legat (1897)
- Le Roi Candaule. Original score by Cesare Pugni (1868).
- Pizzicato for Carlotta Briaza (1891)
- Adaptation of the Pas de Vénus (1891)
- Adaptation of the scene La Naissance du papillon (1891)
- Adaptation of the Pas de Vénus (1891)
- Bacchanale (1891)
- Variations for the three graces (1903)
- The Little Humpbacked Horse. Original score by Cesare Pugni (1864).
- Variation for Pierina Legnani for the final Grand pas (1895)
- Unknown variations for the so-called "Under-water scene" (1895)
- Variation for the Nereid Queen (1895)
- Variation for Olga Preobrajenska (1905)
- Music for a new prologue (1895)
- Le Miroir magique. Original score by Arsenii Koreshchenko (1903)
- Variation for Mathilde Kschessinskaya (1903)
- Variation for Sergei Legat (1903)
- La Source
La Source is a ballet in three acts/four scenes with a score collaborated on by Léo Delibes and Ludwig Minkus . In Vienna it was called Naïla, die Quellenfee ....
. Original score by Léo DelibesClément Philibert Léo Delibes was a French composer of ballets, operas, and other works for the stage.-Biographical data:...
and Ludwig Minkus----Ludwig Minkus a.k.a. Léon Fyodorovich Minkus was an Austrian composer of ballet music, a violin virtuoso and teacher.Minkus is most noted for the music he composed while serving as Ballet Composer of the St...
(1866)
- La Fille mal gardée
La Fille mal gardée is a comic ballet presented in two acts, inspired by Pierre Antoine Baudouin's 1789 painting, La Réprimande/Une Jeune Fille Querellée par sa Mère. The ballet was originally produced and choreographed by the Ballet Master, Jean Dauberval, to a musical pastiche adapted from...
. Original score by Peter-Ludwig Hertel (1864)
- Variation for Hedwige Hantenberg (1894)
- Variation for Alexander Gorsky (1897)
- Variation for Mathilde Kschessinska (1903)
- Coppélia
Coppélia is a sentimental comic ballet with original choreography by Arthur Saint-Léon to a ballet libretto by Saint-Léon and Charles Nuitter and music by Léo Delibes. It was based upon two macabre stories by E. T. A. Hoffmann, Der Sandmann , and Die Puppe...
. Original score by Léo Delibes (1870)
- Variation for Pierina Legani (1894)
- Male variation (c. 1900)
- Le Corsaire
Le Corsaire is a ballet typically presented in three acts, with a scenario originally created by Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges, loosely based on the poem The Corsair by Lord Byron. Originally choreographed by Joseph Mazilier to the music of Adolphe Adam. First presented by the ballet of the...
. Original score by Adolphe Adam (1856)
- Grand pas de deux for Emma Bessone and Enrico Cecchetti (1887)
- Pas d'action (a.k.a. Le Corsaire pas de deux) adagio set to Drigo's nocturne Dreams of Spring and a coda (1915)
- La Bayadère
La Bayadère is a ballet, originally staged in four acts and seven tableaux by the Ballet Master Marius Petipa to the music of Ludwig Minkus. It was first performed by the Imperial Ballet at the Imperial Bolshoi Kamenny Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia, on...
. Original score by Ludwig Minkus (1877)
- Variation for Mathilde Kschessinska (c. 1900)
- La Naïade et le pêcheur (a.k.a. Ondine, ou La Naïade). Original score by Cesare Pugni (1843 and 1858)
- Adage for Anna Pavlova (1903)
- Variation for Sergei Legat (1903)
- Two variations for the Grand pas des Naïades (1903)
- Mlada
Mlada is a Fantastic ballet in 4 Acts/9 Scenes, with choreography by Marius Petipa, and music by Ludwig Minkus.The ballet was first presented by the Imperial Ballet on December 2/14 , 1879 at the Imperial Bolshoi Kamenny Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia...
. Original score by Ludwig Minkus (1879)
- Variation for Mathilde Kschessinska (1896)
- Danse des slaves (1896)
- La Camargo
Camargo is a "Grand ballet" in 3 acts/9 scenes, with choreography by Marius Petipa, and music by Ludwig Minkus. The libretto, by Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges and Marius Petipa, is based on an incident in the life of the 18th century dancer Marie Camargo, in which she and her sister...
. Original score by Ludwig Minkus (1872)
- Grand pas de deux for Pierina Legnani and Sergei Legat (1901)
- Don Quixote
Don Quixote is a ballet originally staged in four acts and eight scenes, based on an episode taken from the famous novel Don Quixote de la Mancha by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally choreographed by Marius Petipa to the music of Ludwig Minkus. First presented by the Ballet of the Imperial Bolshoi...
. Original score by Ludwig Minkus (1869)
- Variation for Mathilde Kschessinskaya for the Grand pas des Dryades (1902)
- Variation for Mathilde Kschessinskaya known as L'Éventail (1902)
- La Sylphide
La Sylphide is one of the world's oldest surviving romantic ballets. There are two versions of the ballet; the version choreographed by the Danish balletmaster August Bournonville is the only surviving version to date....
. Original score by Jean-Medeleine Schneithoeffer (1832)
- Pas des Sylphides (1892)
- Danse écossaise (1892)
- Variation for Varvara Nikitina (1892)
- Adage for Varvara Nikitina and Pavel Gerdt (1892)
- Paquita
Paquita is a ballet in two acts and three scenes, with libretto by Joseph Mazilier and Paul Foucher. Originally choreoghraphed by Joseph Mazilier to the music of Edouard Deldevez. First presented by the ballet of the Théâtre de l’Académie Royale de Musique in Paris on 1 April, 1846...
. Original score by Edouard DeldevezÉdouard Deldevez was a French violinist, conductor, composer, and music teacher. He is also known as Ernest or Ernst Deldevez. The names Edmé or Émile are occasionally substituted for Edouard.-Biography:Édouard Deldevez was born and died in Paris, France. He won many prizes as a violinist...
(1846)
- Variation for Anna Pavlova (1904)
- Variation for Varvara Rykhliakova (c. 1900)
- La Tulipe de Haarlem. Original score by Baron Boris Vietinghoff-Scheel (1887)
- Romance variation for Vera Trefilova (1903)
- Danse des Gobelins (1903)
- The Fairy Doll. Original score by Josef Bayer
Josef Bayer was an Austrian composer and the director of the Austrian Court Ballet from 1883 until his death. He was born and died in Vienna...
(1888)
- Pas de trois for Mathilde Kschessinskaya, Sergei Legat and Nikolai Legat (1903)
- Variation for Olga Chumakova as the French Doll (1903)
Copyright caution
Riccardo Drigo died in 1930. Based upon his nationality and the date of his death, all works by Riccardo Drigo may be protected in copyright in France, Spain, Colombia, the Ivory Coast, and possibly Mexico. In addition, any works by Drigo first published in 1923 or later may also be protected in copyright in the United States.