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The opéra fantastique by Jacques Offenbach, Tales of Hoffmann premiered on the 10th of February in 1881. Tales was based on three short stories by E. T. A. Hoffmann.
There was an extraordiary interpretation of the opera in a 1951 British Technicolor film written, produced and directed by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. It starred Robert Rounseville, Moira Shearer, Robert Helpmann and Léonide Massine; all film or ballet legends.
I loved the film but it didn't get great reviews. Following its world premiere in New York City, Bosley Crowther of The New York Times wrote:
Firmly seated n the Pantheon of beautiful and melodic arias of opera is Belle nuit, ô nuit d'amour (The barcarolle) from the third act of Tales. A barcarolle is a traditional folk song sung by Venetian gondoliers,
or a piece of music composed in that style. The aria occurs during the
second story of the opera and my favorite version of it was in the film.
While in Venice Hoffmann falls for Giulietta, a courtesan,
but she seduces him to steal his reflection for the magician
Dapertutto. The languid tempo of the music was brilliantly matched to
the movement of the gondola as it slowly glides down the Venetian lagoon with the long scarf of Giulietta trailing in the water behind the boat (link below).
Olympia sings Les oiseaux dans la charmille
(The birds in the arbor, nicknamed "The Doll Song"), during which she
runs-down and needs to be wound-up before she can continue. Hoffmann is
tricked into believing his affections are returned, to the bemusement of
Nicklausse, subtly attempting to warn his friend. While dancing with Olympia, Hoffmann falls on
the ground and his glasses break. At the same time, Coppélius appears,
tearing Olympia apart to retaliate against Spalanzani after cheating him
of his fees. With the crowd ridiculing him, Hoffmann realizes he loved
an automaton.
Then there is the delightful aria, Klein-Zack, sung by Robert Rounseville; a sort of tavern drinking song with many stanzas. There is a great version sung by Hanns Nocker on YouTube (link below).
The soundtrack was recorded at Shepperton Studios, located in Shepperton, Surrey, England, between May and September 1950, with the orchestra conducted by Sir Thomas Beecham. Decca obtained permission from London Films to release the soundtrack on LP. In response, Beecham sued: he had not approved the release, because the soundtrack did not truly represent his interpretation of the opera, due to the changes made for the film. On 20 March 1951 he failed to obtain a High Court injunction to prevent the release, but received assurances that it would be clearly labelled as taken from the soundtrack.
The three-record boxed album set included a beautiful 5.5" x 5.5" Libretto (link below) illustrated with stills from the film; the film is in color but the images are black and white.
Tracklist:
Side 1:
A1 - Prologue - 20:30
A2 - First Tale (Beginning
Side 2:
B1 - First Tale (Continued) - 22:05
Side 3:
C1 - First Tale (Conclusion) - 21:10
C2 - Second Tale (Beginning
Side 4:
D1 - Second Tale (Conclusion) - 19:25
Side 5:
E1 - Third Tale (Beginning - 23:16
Side 6:
F1 - Third Tale (Conclusion) - 20:22
F2 - Epilogue
Credits:
Baritone Vocals – Bruce Dargavel
Bass Vocals – Fisher Morgan, Owen Brannigan
Chorus – The Sadler's Wells Chorus*
Composed By – Jacques Offenbach
Conductor – Sir Thomas Beecham
Contralto Vocals – Monica Sinclair
Orchestra – The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Soprano Vocals – Ann Ayars, Dorothy Bond, Margherita Grandi
Tenor Vocals – Grahame Clifford, Murray Dickie, René Soames, Robert Rounseville
Notes:
London maroon labels with silver text
Long playing microgroove full frequency range recording
The original sound track of the London Films production
Made in England
Box printed in U.S.A.
Includes a 5.5 x 5.5 in. booklet and a London Records opera recordings catalog
Barcode and Other Identifiers
Matrix / Runout (Side A Label): ARL.735R
Matrix / Runout (Side B Label): ARL.736
Matrix / Runout (Side C Label): ARL.737R
Matrix / Runout (Side D Label): ARL.738R
Matrix / Runout (Side E Label): ARL.739
Matrix / Runout (Side F Label): ARL.740R
Matrix / Runout (Side 1 runout stamped): CA ARL-735-2D R H RT 21
Matrix / Runout (Side 2 runout, stamped): ARL-736-2DR M RT 1
Matrix / Runout (Side 3 runout stamped): CA ARL-737-1DR M RT 21
Matrix / Runout (Side 4 runout stamped): ARL-738-2DR BU RT 1
Matrix / Runout (Side 5 runout stamped): CA ARL-739-2DR BB RT 21
Matrix / Runout (Side 6 runout stamped): CA ARL-740-2DR A RT 21
Offenbach*, Sir Thomas Beecham, The Sadler's Wells Chorus* And The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra – The Tales Of Hoffmann
Label: London Records – LLPA-4, London Records – XLL.346, XLL.347, XLL.348
Format: 3 × Vinyl, LP Box Set
Country: US
Released: 1951
Genre: Classical, Stage & Screen
Style: Modern, Romantic, Opera
Viewfinder links: 
There was an extraordiary interpretation of the opera in a 1951 British Technicolor film written, produced and directed by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. It starred Robert Rounseville, Moira Shearer, Robert Helpmann and Léonide Massine; all film or ballet legends.
Tales of Hoffmann movie poster
I loved the film but it didn't get great reviews. Following its world premiere in New York City, Bosley Crowther of The New York Times wrote:
[D]espite its opulence, coupled with a brilliant rendering of the score by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra under Sir Thomas Beecham's bristling baton and some masterly singing of the libretto (in English) by a host of vocal cords, this film version of the opera is, in toto, a vastly wearying show. And that is because it sates the senses without striking any real dramatic fire ... The inevitable question about this picture is how close does it come to matching the beauty and excitement of the same producers [sic] The Red Shoes? Although the two films are basically different, a comparison is fair to this extent: The Red Shoes had warmth and vitality, Tales of Hoffmann is splendid and cold.
Ya can't please everybody!
One of the opera's most-famous arias is in the first act of the opera. It is sung by Olympia, an automaton created by the scientist Spalanzani. Hoffmann falls in love with her, not knowing she is a mechanical doll To warn Hoffmann,
his friend, Nicklausse, possessing the truth about Olympia, sings a story of a
mechanical doll with the appearance of a human, The legend of Kleinzack (Klein-Zack) (link below) but Hoffmann ignores him. Coppélius, Olympia's co-creator and this
act's incarnation of Nemesis, sells Hoffmann magic glasses to make
Olympia appear as a real woman.
The Olympia act, as staged at the 1881 première
Then there is the delightful aria, Klein-Zack, sung by Robert Rounseville; a sort of tavern drinking song with many stanzas. There is a great version sung by Hanns Nocker on YouTube (link below).
The soundtrack was recorded at Shepperton Studios, located in Shepperton, Surrey, England, between May and September 1950, with the orchestra conducted by Sir Thomas Beecham. Decca obtained permission from London Films to release the soundtrack on LP. In response, Beecham sued: he had not approved the release, because the soundtrack did not truly represent his interpretation of the opera, due to the changes made for the film. On 20 March 1951 he failed to obtain a High Court injunction to prevent the release, but received assurances that it would be clearly labelled as taken from the soundtrack.
The three-record boxed album set included a beautiful 5.5" x 5.5" Libretto (link below) illustrated with stills from the film; the film is in color but the images are black and white.
Side 1:
A1 - Prologue - 20:30
A2 - First Tale (Beginning
Side 2:
B1 - First Tale (Continued) - 22:05
Side 3:
C1 - First Tale (Conclusion) - 21:10
C2 - Second Tale (Beginning
Side 4:
D1 - Second Tale (Conclusion) - 19:25
Side 5:
E1 - Third Tale (Beginning - 23:16
Side 6:
F1 - Third Tale (Conclusion) - 20:22
F2 - Epilogue
Credits:
Baritone Vocals – Bruce Dargavel
Bass Vocals – Fisher Morgan, Owen Brannigan
Chorus – The Sadler's Wells Chorus*
Composed By – Jacques Offenbach
Conductor – Sir Thomas Beecham
Contralto Vocals – Monica Sinclair
Orchestra – The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Soprano Vocals – Ann Ayars, Dorothy Bond, Margherita Grandi
Tenor Vocals – Grahame Clifford, Murray Dickie, René Soames, Robert Rounseville
Notes:
London maroon labels with silver text
Long playing microgroove full frequency range recording
The original sound track of the London Films production
Made in England
Box printed in U.S.A.
Includes a 5.5 x 5.5 in. booklet and a London Records opera recordings catalog
Barcode and Other Identifiers
Matrix / Runout (Side A Label): ARL.735R
Matrix / Runout (Side B Label): ARL.736
Matrix / Runout (Side C Label): ARL.737R
Matrix / Runout (Side D Label): ARL.738R
Matrix / Runout (Side E Label): ARL.739
Matrix / Runout (Side F Label): ARL.740R
Matrix / Runout (Side 1 runout stamped): CA ARL-735-2D R H RT 21
Matrix / Runout (Side 2 runout, stamped): ARL-736-2DR M RT 1
Matrix / Runout (Side 3 runout stamped): CA ARL-737-1DR M RT 21
Matrix / Runout (Side 4 runout stamped): ARL-738-2DR BU RT 1
Matrix / Runout (Side 5 runout stamped): CA ARL-739-2DR BB RT 21
Matrix / Runout (Side 6 runout stamped): CA ARL-740-2DR A RT 21
Offenbach*, Sir Thomas Beecham, The Sadler's Wells Chorus* And The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra – The Tales Of Hoffmann
Label: London Records – LLPA-4, London Records – XLL.346, XLL.347, XLL.348
Format: 3 × Vinyl, LP Box Set
Country: US
Released: 1951
Genre: Classical, Stage & Screen
Style: Modern, Romantic, Opera
Jacques Offenbach
Tales of Hoffmann libretto
Net links:
Jacques Offenbach
Tales of Hoffmann film cast
Tales of Hoffmann libretto
YouTube links:
Jacques Offenbach
Tales of Hoffmann (movie trailer)
Les contes d'Hoffmann (complete) (2 hr., 26 min., 27 sec.)
Barcarolle
The Doll's Song
Klein-Zack (1971 film)
Styrous® ~ Sunday, February 10, 2019
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