Be sure to write your name and class period on the first line of your blog entry. Also, notice that this blog is due before 3:00pm Friday, Dec. 19.
On Monday we wrote down questions about Orientalism, Bizet, Carmen, and The Pearl Fishers that we want to ask Seneca when he visits on Wednesday. Write one of your questions and the answer. Make your answer complete and use examples from one or more of the texts that we've studied recently.
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Where was The Pearl Fishers first performed?
It was first performed in 1863 at the Theatre-Lyrique in Paris. It was Georges Bizet's first opera and he wrote it when he was 25. It is a french opera and is still performed all around the world.
Heather Thomas Period 2
Is there something more than a friendship between Zurga and Nadir?
No. They are best friends and the friendship song shows the bond they have. People now portray the song as they have a relationship, but back when the play first came out in 1863, the audience had the perspective of just a friendship, as it was written.
Cristina Rice
Period 2
Why did they pick Sri Lanka?
They had to pick Sri Lanka because back then the governments had laws that you couldn't do plays about certain stuff. The play was not aloud to be preformed in Ancient Mexico so they thought Sri Lanka would be a good place to do it because they didn't have to worry about those laws.
Stephanie Bateman Period 2
What was Georges Bizet's first successful opera?
The first few operas of Bizet's were fairly unsuccessful. The first one that really brought out his true ability to write operas was The Pearl Fishers of 1863.
Kristina Thorson
Per 2
Q: Why do people fish for pearls, even though the danger is so high? What is pearl fishing?
A: People fished for pearls because Natural pearls and cultured pearls are very expensive and sought after.
Pearl fishing was usually done by women because it was believed that women could hold their breathe longer and had an extra layer of fat to keep them warm. They are called Amas.
Sara McCallum
Period 6
Q: Why was Leila chosen to be the guardian priestess in Zurga's village?
A: Every year, the local custom is to consecrate a virgin, who is always the prettiest girl available, to the gods. She will live in seclusion and pray for the pearl fishers safety during the dangerous months when they're diving. Since, Leila is the prettiest woman available, who is also a virgin, she was chosen to pray for the pearl fishers.
Megan Pinzon period 4
Was orientalism seen as racism back then?
No, they didn't think of it as racism. They did set it in a different place so the french people weren't offended and because they couldn't place it in France due to censors.
Lacey Helmuth 4
What is the basic plot of "pearl fishers" besides knowing who the characters are?
Zurga and Nadir are in love with the same girl, Leila. Zurga is elected king by the pearl fishers. They decide that their friendship is worth more than this girl, and put her aside. Somehow, Nadir is reminded of Leila and knows she is the girl that is supposed to be unidentified. They start messing around behind everyones backs, but Leila knows this is a bad idea and begs Nadir to leave. They are caught and Zurga sentences them both to death. There is a fire in the village and the loveers are allowed to escape happily.
Christin Thrane period 4
What was Bizet's inspiration for Carmen?
A novella by prosper merimee which was inspired by "The Gypsies" a russian narrative poem by Pushkin.
Preston Longoni Period 4
Why didn't the Pearl Fishers take place in Colombian Mexico?
Because at the time, diplomatic relations between Second Empire France and Mexico were breaking down. A year later the French army invaded Mexico. In effort to avoid rubbing the French government the wrong way, the producers at the Theatre Lyrique switched the location to Sri Lanka.
Jordan Adam Per. 4
Is the Seattle Opera's production of the Pearl Fishers set in traditional Sri Lanka?
Judging by the pictures and videos on Seattle Opera's website, the production is almost certainly set in Sri Lanka. Costumes include "oriental" elements like veils, scanty pastel colored outfits, and gold jewelry. The set also includes a large stone head that looks like a Buddha head. Since Sri Lankans are mostly Buddhist, that looks like a pretty good indication of Sri Lanka being the setting. The production generally looks like its generally set in Sri Lanka generally. In general.
Tess Opincarne
Period 6
What is the effect of Orientalism on The Pearl Fishers?
Bizet setting the opera in Sri Lanka rather than France allows him to address subjects that otherwise would be considered "taboo." For example, the opera can be more sensual, and the costumes more extreme, when they are supposed to be Sri Lankans rather than "respectable Frenchmen." Additionally, the story can make sense set in Sri Lanka, where Pearl Fishing takes place, as opposed to using a French trade where a priestess protecting a village would make no sense.
andrew song period 6
What Voice Class are the 3 main characters?
Leila is a soprano
Nadir is a tenor
and Zurga is a baritone
Erika hodges
Per.2
How were Leila, Nadir, and Zurga related to eachother in a sense?
Nadir and Zurga are best friends.
Leila is a preistess that has to pray for the pearl fishers.
Leila is the woman that Zurga and Nadir almost lose their friendship over but decide that she is not as important as them being friends is.
Sam Bellefeuille P-6
How long did it take Bizet to complete the Pearl Fisher?
- It took Bizet 4 months to complete the opera. It was produced in September 1863.
Dathan Bauman
period 2
Do people still dive for pearls?
No, in the present pearls are collected in pearl farms.Particles implanted in the oyster encourage the formation of pearls. Today's cultured pearl industry produces millions of high quality pearls every year.
Alex Garcia Period 6
Q: Do you find examples of Orientalism, such as those in Carmen, to be a form of racism or have an intentional racist proposition?
A: I do not feel that the opera "Carmen" withheld a theme of racism. The attitude towards th cigar-smoking women and the mildly negative depiction of the gypsies could be interpreted as racism but was not in the play to bring forth this underlaying theme of racism. I feel as if the gypsies and cigar-women were in the opera simply for their roles within the plot and entertainment purposes. By no means, do I believe that the opera "Carmen" was created to address racism as an issue and it's sole purpose was to entertain the people of France.
Stephanie Morgan
Period 6
Q: What is the “Friendship” Duet?
A: The “Friendship” Duet is a famous song sung between the characters Nadir and Zurga from the opera The Pearl Fishers. The duet is made for a tenor (Nadir) and a baritone (Zurga) and is about the friends first seeing the beautiful girl Leila they both fall in love with and the song also describes the friend’s undying love and devotion to each other.
Megan Housekeeper
Period 6
How are Carmen and The Pearl Fishers essentially different?
Carmen uses more spoken dialogue and Pearl Fishers is more melodically driven. I think that this was probably a cause of the popularity of Carmen over Pearl Fishers, Carmen is a more intense drama, acted more like a play/musical, and The Pearl Fishers offers a different, melodic french feel. Carmen is much more culturally popular, and the music is much more relatable and almost everyone knows several of the songs from it one way or another. There are several obvious differences in the pieces; the locations are very different and I think that The Pearl Fishers offers an even more exotic feel then Carmen.
Shae Hurst Pereiod 6
What is the ending to the Pearl Fishers we are seeing at Seattle Opera?
Zurga sets the village on fire right before Nadir and Leila are going to be killed. The village goes into panic because of the fire and in the comotion Zurga sets his friend and Leila free. He feels it is the right thing to do even though he is jelous of Nadir. Zurga is able to accept that Nadir and Leila are in love and that he couldn't live with him self if they were killed. The two then escape, and Zurga remains in the village.
Brian Penoyer, Period 2
Is there an important motiff in The Pearl Fishers?
Sort of, the friendship motiff shows up throughout the show, but it isn't as significant as the fate motiff in Carmen.
Bergen Anderson per. 2
My question was, Where was The Pearl Fishers supposed to be set originally?
As we learned through reading the Pearl Fishers study guide, the opera was originally supposed to be set in Pre-Columbian Mexico, however it was changed to the "exotic" Shri Lanka.
Mackenzie Engel
Period 6
What are some characteristics specific to French opera music?
The French language was created to appeal to the ear, as was the music of this language. Both are intended to be flowing and smooth. Bizet and other French composers like him valued balance above everything else. The goal was to prevent any one element of the opera from overwhelming another. For example, in the Pearl Fishers, the music was composed in such a way that it would not overwhelm the words.
Michelle Le, period 2
Other than "Carmen" and "The Pearl Fishers", what other popular operas did Bizet create?
Bizet isn't really well known for any other opera. He is best known for "Carmen," which unfortunately he never found out was extremely successful because he died. He did however win a competition at the Bouffes-Parisiens theater when he first began composing, with his Docteur Miracle.
Jessica Karr, p.4
Q:Why did Sri Lankans feel the need to fish for pearls?
A: Pearls were considered extremely rare and valuable, most likely because the extreme difficulty and dangerousness of actually obtaining them.
Selena Swaim, per. 2
The study guide mentioned alternate endings to The Pearl Fishers, what are they?
One ending is where Nadir and Leïla are about to be executed, but then Zurga arrives, telling the fishers to delay and return to the camp to save their children from the fire. In the mean time we find out that he set the fire to cause a distraction allowing them to escape. The original opera ends there, with Nadir and Leïla joyfully in love and Zurga alone and unsure of his fate. However, when the opera was revived after Bizet's death, the ending was changed, and Nourabad, who remained behind and heard Zurga's confession, stabs him to death at the final curtain.
Mandi DeLaVergne
Period 6
Q: Why is it important to study orientalism?
A: It is important to study orientalism because it shows us how people thought and acted in earlier times. In "Carmen" orientalism is used a lot in showing who was considered frenchmen or gypsies. There was a lot of stereotyping which was essentially based off of the idea of orientalism.
One of our questions was was this opera a popular play not only in out country but in other contries as well. After researching this question we found that this opera was very popular throughout all of Europe. As far as in this country, this play is a good play for revinue boosting.
Chris Hong Period 6
How many times is The Pearl Fishers performed every year?
The Pearl Fishers is being performed over 50 times a year. this really shows how popular and main streen opera this is. i was really surprised by this number.
Kyle Glaser P. 2
Are any other operas performed by Bizet besides Carmen and The Pearl Fisher?
No, he wrote other operas but they were all either not finished or were not popular at all so they werent performed. He did write other forms of music such as symphonies but most of his later work was a failure until his death.
Jinny Kim p.4
Who was the first compose of Orientalism?
The first type of musical Orientalism was the turkish style which, according to "Jonathan Bellman". He remarks that few had heard it and virtually no-one remembered it. Also the turkish style was the product of the European Imagination.
Where was the Pearl Fishers first performed?
It was performed originally in Paris in 1863 at the TheaterLyrique in Paris, France.
leticia lopez period 4
Why was the Locatin changed to Sri Lanka instead of Mexico?
They changed the location because there was alot of like complications with the government between the French and Mexico as we read in the Booklet that the oprea people gave us. they wanted Mexico at first because pearl fishing was quite common there but because of all the politics they were forced to move it to Sri Lanka where the opera still succeded in its ability to move people
Andrew Pilgrim Period 4
What are the vocal breakdowns of the primary performers?
Zurga is a baritone, Nadir is a tenor, Leila is a soprano, and Nourabad is a bass. Pearl fishers contains, in the four main characters, four of the six voice types of opera singers.
Montana Ferris / Period 2
Question: Aside from Carmen and Pearl Fishers, what other operas has Bizet created?
Answer: Although he did not write the original stories for these two operas, he did create both The Fair Maid of Perth and Dijamileh. The rest of his operas failed and never were preformed.
Stuart Dransfield
Period 4
Who was the composer of the Peral Fishers, and why didnt this composer have a lot more sucessful plays?
George Bizet comducted the Peral Fishers. The reason why he didnt have a lot more sucessful plays was because, even though his ideas for plays were really good he could never think his ideas all the way through.
Dan Reisz Period 6
What is The Pearl Fishers also know as?
Les pêcheurs de perles
Regan McComb p. 6
What is the Friendship Duet in the Pearl Fishers?
The Friendship Duet is a song sung between Nadir and Zurga which is a very famous duet. Nadir sings the tenor part and Zurga sings the baritone part. The duet is about when Zurga and Nadir first see the priestess Leila and fall in love with her at first sight.
Karin Ochsner Period 4
Was the Pearl Fisher a successful opera?
It was one of the most successful operas Bizet wrote apart from Carmen.
Kaiti Staup Period 4
Why does the opera take place in Sri Lanka?
The opera takes place in Sri Lanka because the French government wouldn't allow Bizet to insinuate that the actions of the characters were representative of the French people as a whole. Also Bizet had to think rationally about how successful the play would be while it was preformed in France. With characters from a exotic place and "other" people portraying the characters the play had a better chance of success that it would have if it took place in France.
Kayla Aldridge
Period 4
Where did Pearl Fishers take place?
Pearl Fishers took place in a fishing community on the coast of Sri Lanka before the age of the European Exploration.
Nathan Zimmerman, Per. 6
Question:
How does The Pearl Fishers fit into the category of Orientalism?
Answer:
The Opera of The Pearl Fishers by Bizet fits into orientalism because of its subject matter and its location. The category of Orientalism is defined by works that portray exotic foreign lands with subject matter not usually accepted in mainstream culture of the time. The subject of The Pearl Fishers is about two men having love for the same woman. Furthermore the location is set in Sri Lanka which is far from the beaten path of France where Bizet is from. For these reasons, The Pearl Fishers is an orientalist piece.
Brendan Connor Per. 4
What is the earlies form of orientalism?
turqeurie style from the late 15th century
Bryttany Enge... Sorry Schindler! Period 6
What type of music is heard in this opera?....
As I learned from the online website about the Pearl Fishers as well as the recordings we have heard in class, I found that the music in the Pearl Fishers is generally of lighter sounds. In fact, most French operas are built upon the lighter instruments, for example flutes and violins. The Friendship Duet in the Pearl Fishers is a perfect example of lighter sounds that French operas tend to produce. Compassionate, and loving sounds are produced during this duet. One can hear the glorious devotion that Zurga and Nadir have towards each other; the audience also hears the bond forming as the two swear eternal friendship in the bright, impassioned tones of this glorious duet.
... also Mr. Shindler, I have been meaning to ask you whether or not you received my common application Teacher Recommendation invitation, but I keep forgetting. Anyway, I know that a very, very long time ago you said you could, however seeing as it is much, much later, I was wondering if you would still like to write me a recommendation, I know that circumstances change so I understand if you say no... I am sorry I'm asking you through a blog but there was no other way in contacting you due to the snow and closed schools, etc. I hope you will see this post soon, oh and I'm sorry my blog is late too.... Thanks Mr. Shindler!
Spencer asavadejkajorn. Period 4
Is the pearl fishers going to be performed in it's original setting or is their going to be a different take on it?
After looking at the previews online of this years performance it looks as if it will be in it's original setting.
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