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- [00:14]
Pat Wright
Welcome to another edition of Opera for Everyone. I'm your host, Pat Wright, and I'm thrilled to welcome back to the show Grant.
- [00:21]
Grant
Glad to be here.
- [00:22]
Pat Wright
Grant. I'm thrilled you're here, and I am thrilled about the opera that we're going to discuss today. I recently spent some time talking about the Magic Flute on Opera for Everyone, and now I found an opera that has Zoroaster as a character, in fact, as the title of the opera by a French composer. And I know that you can bring a lot of knowledge, insight and help to understanding the characters in this story. Zoroaster by composer Jean Philippe Rameau.
- [00:54]
Grant
Yeah, I am so delighted to get to talk about Zoroastrianism with you because most of the time when I start talking about Zoroastrianism, people will say things like, stop. Whenever I try to bring up, you know, any ancient religion that people have never heard of, people usually try to, like, get me to, like, change the topic to something that they've heard of, like sportsball. So, you know, here I am, and I'm delighted to be here.
- [01:17]
Pat Wright
Well, Grant, this is your chance, because knowing about ancient religion, Zoroastrianism, actually will help us to understand this opera a little bit better. I mentioned it's by Jean Philippe Rameau, who is a very important figure in the history of French opera. He's from the Baroque period. And this opera is. It premieres in 1749, though the version that we're going to listen to and the most commonly performed, when in fact this is performed version, is a revision that he made in 1756. So before we talk about any more of this, I'd like to just set the mood, get us ready for some beautiful baroque music by listening to some of the overture to Zoroaster by Jean Philippe Rameau. Well, that introduction of beautiful baroque music really sets the scene for us in this time period. The premiere of this opera was 1749, and it was revised, substantially revised, in 1756. In fact, the critics in 1749 called it long, dry, dark, difficult. It was very heavy with the message of Zoroastrianism, Freemasonry, and a lot of the big change that occurred in three of the acts, three of the grand opera, five acts. A lot of the big changes that occur with the 1756 edition. This is the edition that you generally hear these days. If you, in fact, do hear this. The 1756 version beefs up the romantic elements. The two main women characters in the opera, as we talk through it, they had very minor roles, but part of what you go to opera for is some sort of human interaction, Love story being the most classic of those. So the love story element is beefed up. But this is 1756, and it is still shot through with ideas of Zoroastrianism, as the title would imply, and Freemasonry. Our librettist was a Freemason also. But this is an Enlightenment piece, no question.
- [06:46]
Grant
And the joke about the Enlightenment is the period of the Enlightenment starts with Voltaire's birth and ends with Voltaire's death. We'll get back to the chap Voltaire in a moment. But it's this political movement that begins in the early 18th century and in certain ways hasn't really ended. It is the place where liberalism with a small L, that is to say, the political movement that has been dominant in the west for decades and or centuries, depending on where you are, and represents this idea of people as able to make their own choices, individuals having thoughts and ideas for themselves, freedom of speech and the press. These kind of things are shot through with the DNA of the Enlightenment. The idea that tradition is something, at the very least, to be questioned and in many cases to be criticized or even outright discarded.
- [07:50]
Pat Wright
Yeah. And liberalism, in this case, meaning coming from the word free, freedom, liberty, those are all that word, and not modern political usage of it, necessarily.
- [08:01]
Grant
And it's in many ways in opposition to traditional modes, in particular the monarchy, the aristocracy and the ecclesiarchy, the traditional political power of the institutional church.
- [08:15]
Pat Wright
I think I just learned a new word. Ecclesiarchy. Church leaders.
- [08:21]
Grant
Yeah, church leaders functioning in a political sense, in the sense of direct control over politics, not advocacy or influence, but rather having direct temporal authority.
- [08:34]
Pat Wright
Okay, I didn't mean to interrupt your train of thought there, but when I learn a new word, I like to make a note of it.
- [08:40]
Grant
Yeah, I think it's a real word, honestly. Sometimes you just smash two Greek words together in English and you end up with something. Yeah. And many rulers or aristocrats or clergy who tried to jump onto this bandwagon. And in the case of the monarchs, you would see these people who call themselves enlightened despots, people who use their absolute power in order to further the ideas of progress that were central to the concept of Enlightenment.
- [09:07]
Pat Wright
You know, it's interesting, opera has kind of a curious or an interesting place in this whole discussion, because this is an opera that is presenting a lot of Enlightenment ideals, ideals about how people should behave and what they should value. But the history of opera, other places too, but particularly in France, It's a court entertainment. Yes, it spreads beyond the court, and there are theaters that are opened in the earlier part of the century. But it is, at its heart, an aristocratic endeavor. These operas were traditionally performed for the king and the court. In fact, fascinatingly, Louis xiv, when he was still just a boy king and there was a regent, he loved music, he loved the arts, and he would participate in so many of the dances that went along in theatrical productions. And we've mentioned before on opera for everyone, that dance is integral to French opera, and that history goes way, way back as well. In fact, in our opera in Zoroastre, the number of opportunities for dance are almost countless. Several in each of the five acts. It's a grand opera, so there are five acts, and there is dance opportunity in every single one of them. Not necessarily a huge long ballet, but part of what Rameau does here is he tries very hard to integrate the dance to make it part of the storytelling, rather than just, okay, we're going to sit to the side and watch the dancers entertain us for a little while, which is what happens in some of the earlier and later French operas. But I want to get back to Voltaire for a minute. Voltaire, that thinker par excellence of the Enlightenment, that man who was happy to poke fun and criticize existing power structures, whether they be clergy members or aristocracy. He really believed in the individual dignity of man. A lot of things that he wrote were critical. Candide, you might know it as a musical and almost an operetta, but it's one of his ways of telling a story to poke fun at these power structures. Voltaire, did you know, was a friend of Rameau's, our composer here today.
- [11:23]
Grant
And Voltaire similarly used Zoroastrianism as a example of some of the ideas that he was trying to convey.
- [11:31]
Pat Wright
Makes perfect sense. Well, this. This opera is 1749 is when it first comes out, and the revision I already mentioned, but it was right after Rameau's first successful opera, by the way, he was a very successful musician. He wrote a treatise on music, almost considered an academic in the field of music, that came out when he was younger, in 1722, his Treatise on harmony. But when he's a little bit older, age 50, he writes his first opera, and it's a big success. Arguably, it's still his most enduring and popular opera, Hippolyte and Arisi, based on traditional mythological characters, which was traditional right from the beginning of opera. Voltaire saw that production wildly successful, and he was struck by Rameau's abilities, his Genius. In fact, this may not make sense if we don't know who Lully is. So I'll just say that the dominant person in French opera before Rameau was named Lully. Hopefully we'll talk about him later on. Another opera for everyone. But this dominant man who was completely favored by the king, Voltaire said, oh, Rameau. He's the man who has the misfortune to know more about music than Lully. So Voltaire had great respect for Rameau and Voltaire tried his hand at being a librettist. In fact, he writes three librettos for Rameau. The first one is the most intriguing to me. It's called Samson 1733. Same year as that first opera. It's rehearsed. So it's a completed work. It is rehearsed, but it is shut down by the censors because it's the Samson and Delilah story. And religious themes were forbidden. They were not permitted to present this work. Wouldn't you have loved to have seen that?
- [13:28]
Grant
Oh, absolutely. And it speaks to something interesting here, which is that they were trying to present religious themes. And at least to the modern eye, it seems odd that traditional powers with respect to the church would be opposed to that. But there is something very interesting about Enlightenment thought, which can be easily caricatured as anti religious because it was generally anti clerical. But there is something about sincerity in religion, in politics, in everything else, where the goal is not simply to be cynical or to discard everything or to say that none of this matters, but rather to look to a more real or authentic version of things. And so, yeah, to really open up the Bible and do this religious story and take it on and take it seriously was frightening to certain people in power who didn't want these things explored and questioned and talked about. But there is something that is. We might almost use the word pious about the attempt.
- [14:33]
Pat Wright
Yeah, it's true. Well, speaking of Voltaire, I have to share with you one of his little quips on this topic.
- [14:39]
Grant
Voltaire had the best quips. Check any quote book he has.
- [14:43]
Pat Wright
A kind of interesting comment to make about the opera and the French people. Traditionally, all of the operatic themes. You think of the earliest operas that we know about, Orpheus and Eurydice and on through all of these classical mythological figures who feature in them, including Rameau's first opera, Voltaire said, on Sundays at Mass, the French people are Catholics, but at the opera they are all pagans.
- [15:11]
Grant
Oof.
- [15:12]
Pat Wright
And it's true, it's fascinating that they would be upset about a topic from The Bible, the book. They accept being presented. I suppose it's just too easy for things to go wrong. But they're completely comfortable with all of the Greek and Roman mythology that being the basis for their entertainments.
- [15:29]
Grant
Yeah. There's something interesting about the safety of things that are distant. And once you get close to home and once you start thinking about things that are close to home, well, you might start to notice things that otherwise you wouldn't want to notice. I think of what we said about the Hallelujah Chorus and the extraordinary extent to which it is a perhaps anti monarchical, but certainly the anti. The current monarchs of Britain.
- [15:54]
Pat Wright
Current meaning in Handel's day?
- [15:56]
Grant
In Handel's day, yes. Although, you know, the Jacobites still haven't been restored, so. And yet famously, it gets associated with the King being in awe of it.
- [16:06]
Pat Wright
Well, that's because he stood up.
- [16:07]
Grant
Yes.
- [16:10]
Pat Wright
Honestly, that is a great illustration of the concept of the power of music. Along with, for example, Zalomeh, which I spoke about with you and Jocelyn. Previously on Opera for Everyone. The opera was permitted before the play was permitted to be seen. So it's always a little dicey with biblical topics. But interestingly, sometimes you can get away with more in a musical format. There's a lot of message that Rameau and his librettist are getting through to the people who see this potentially with this religious figure. They can dramatize this religious figure because he's, as you mentioned, distant. He's not from their own religion. But it resonates very clearly with a lot of the ideas of the church that they're part of. And it also seems to resonate with the monarchical powers and yet throwing in a lot of freemasonry ideas. We'll talk about them as we talk about the story. Speaking of the story, shall we open with our first scene?
- [17:14]
Grant
Absolutely. What happens in this opera?
- [17:16]
Pat Wright
Well, quite a lot happens, but our opening scene is a scene of devastation. It's a war torn countryside. We're not given any of the details about what's happened or why, or the politics doesn't matter. But the people are suffering. They have lost their leader and there is need for the next person in line to assume the throne. The first people we hear from, however, are not what we would call the good guys in this opera. It's the power hungry Abrahmana. He is, we learn very quickly, someone who serves. Could I just call it the dark side?
- [17:56]
Grant
Yeah, I think that would be an appropriate way to say it. In fact, it's particularly appropriate because light and Dark Day and Night are essential to understanding both Zoroastrian thought and, indeed, the flow of this opera itself.
- [18:10]
Pat Wright
Let's get a sense of Abrahmani and some of his colleagues who support him in his quest for power. You're listening to Opera for Everyone. And that was from one of the characters in Jean Philippe Rameau's Zoroastre, Zoroaster. I mean, could we just say right up front, apologies for mispronounced names. It's a French opera.
- [19:38]
Grant
It's Persian names going through a Greek translation of a Persian name, but also not exactly Persian. Something proto. Yeah, no. As nihilistic as we get about pronunciation with any of the biblical things, this is even more so.
- [19:53]
Pat Wright
I hadn't really thought of it in.
- [19:54]
Grant
Those terms, but never mind the fact that I feel entirely confident that neither of us are going to be able to pronounce any of the Persian words correctly, and at least one of us isn't going to be able to pronounce the French words correctly. So that's just where we're at. And in general, we're going to be a little imprecise sometimes with language and terminology, because the interaction between Zoroastrianism, Christianity, Islam and Freemasonry, all of which come into play here, means that a lot of these ideas have been filtered through multiple languages and religions and worldviews.
- [20:33]
Pat Wright
Well, Abrahmani, the man we just heard from there with that nice, deep, low read, in this case, evil voice, he is upset and he has a plan. He's angry because Amalite, one of our main female performers in this show, not part of the dark side, part of what we would consider the light side here. She is possibly heir apparent. There are two women who are heir apparent to this throne that has been vacated by the death of the leader. But Amalit is the one that Abrahmane pines after, the one he falls in love with, but she has rejected him. We haven't seen her yet, but he tells us that she has rejected him and she's in love with Zoroaster. In fact, he says, setting up this dichotomy right up in the beginning. Zoroaster is loved, but hate is my portion. He's angry at her, but he has a plan. And pretty quickly he's going to associate himself with the other woman who has a claim on the throne. Erinice. Erinice also has a claim on the throne. And we get a sense that through this opera, although it's never said explicitly, that the people's preference will play a part in which of these Potential claimants to the throne will ascend, in each case assuming with a male partner as well. But before this other claimant to the throne, Erinice, shows up on stage, Abramene is talking with. I almost want to call him his henchmen. They are some of the priests who serve the same master that Abramenes serves.
- [22:21]
Grant
And this is where I think we jump in with some of the basics of Zoroastrianism. Zoroastrianism is a deeply ancient religion. It still exists today, practiced in fairly small numbers, primarily in India, although its ancestral homeland is Iran, Persia. There are Zoroastrians still around today, but it is today a very small religion. And once upon a time, it was one of the great religions of the world. It dominated a huge area, and the imprint of its thought can be found in many religions and philosophies to this day.
- [22:59]
Pat Wright
Didn't you once tell us that the Magi in the Christmas story of the New Testament were probably Zoroastrian priests?
- [23:07]
Grant
Yeah, that's certainly what the word magi means. Magi, or a mage, if you will, or magus is the proper term for a Zoroastrian priest. And in the opera Zoroaster is referred to as the founder of the Magi, referring to his role in creating this religion.
- [23:27]
Pat Wright
Yes. And also in the program to the 1756 edition, he's referred to as the inventor of magic.
- [23:36]
Grant
Mmm, okay. And there is this charm and allure to a lot of people about Zoroastrianism. You see a lot of it reflected in today's pop culture, particularly in the world of fantasy. Because Zoroastrianism is a fundamentally dualistic religion. It posits that there is a good God, Ahura Mazda, or in the opera Oromasis, and there is an evil God, you might say a devil who is Ahriman. Or in the opera, same name. Excellent. I love that.
- [24:10]
Pat Wright
And that's who we were saying. That's who all of these characters currently on stage in the beginning of the opera, that's who they serve, this dark force, this dark God. Devil.
- [24:22]
Grant
Yeah. And so I will sometimes refer to Uhura Mazda as a God and this opposing figure as a devil. You could also say light side and dark side. There are a lot of terms you could use here. And no, the terms God and devil are not precisely accurate because those are being implicitly filtered through Christianity. And yet Christianity and Zoroastrianism and Islam have been in communication since the very beginning. Yes, the later Christian ideas of a whole hierarchy of angels with names and roles. This is in many ways a borrowing from Zoroastrianism, the Islamic ideas about genies, who are originally these spiritual forces in their own world, get overlaid onto the Zoroastrian idea of this host of good and evil spirits. And for that reason, in this French play, we hear Ahura Mazda, or God, as we might say referred to as the king of the genie, orimasis as.
- [25:26]
Pat Wright
They call him in this. Yes, the king of the genies. Exactly how he's identified in a cast list.
- [25:31]
Grant
So those are the basics of the religion. There is good and truth and order and love and contentment and piety and all the good things in the world which are associated with these benevolent spirits, ultimately stemming from God or Mazda. And then on the other hand, you have all of these malevolent spirits, the devas, these demonic, you might say fallen, although the exact account of their origin varies depending on who you ask. But these darker spirits that seek the opposite of virtue, the opposite of happiness and contentment and order and justice and all the rest of it. And in the earliest teaching of Zoroaster or Zarathustra as his name is sometimes given, a lot of the ideas of these other figures as being demonic are mixed up with the idea of them as being gods that exist but are false gods in that they should not be worshipped. It takes a different tack than, say, Judaism or Christianity, where the other gods simply don't exist. It says, those gods exist, but don't worship them. They stem from places of disorder or evil or rebellion against the Creator. And so instead, you should look for what is true and right and virtuous and discern how it relates to the one good God who created all the world.
- [27:02]
Pat Wright
Fascinating. And here we start off this story with these demonic forces laying out their priorities, their values, their game plan a little bit. But here we have a Brahmane complaining about being rejected by Ammalite. But she is. She is this ideal of a good woman that we will meet before too long. And he complains that because she has rejected me, I have to go another route. I have to triumph over love. So in his worldview, love is a bad thing. He says, I am going to defeat Zoroaster because that's the one she loves. I'm going to defeat him. He's been banished, but he still lives, and his henchmen are egging him on. You have to do more than just have him out of sight, out of the area. You have to do more. And Abramene is focusing on capturing the throne for himself, and he will need this other Claimant to the throne, Erinice, to ally with him. So Erin is going to come on the scene as soon as those other two guys take off. And they do. And Erinice says, I'm angry because I love Zoroaster and he doesn't love me. So we have two spurned lovers who are going to act on their anger and their disappointment at being rejected, and they're going to come up with their I'm rubbing my hands together, their evil plan. Interestingly, in this show, these two great evil forces, Abramane and Erinice, they decide to unite, but they are never a couple. They have shared goal, but they don't. I mean, they're really not capable of love. They think they are. She thinks she loves Zoroaster, he thinks he loves Amalite, but they're both rejected. And honestly, their credo is not love. It's revenge, vengeance and hate.
- [29:02]
Grant
And this is not the last time we're going to make a Star wars reference, because this is very much what you get with the Sith, who find themselves incapable of love because it is positive emotions that the light side comes from and negative emotions the dark side comes from. Yes. And this idea of these people who. Who can't feel real love or connection, but who are nonetheless almost playing the part because it is helpful to their role of anger and wrath and vengeance and lust for power.
- [29:30]
Pat Wright
Oh, it's so interesting that you use that phrase because when he talks about his goal here to get the throne, he talks about the segment seductive lure of the throne. That is exactly that. Lust for power. Well, now these two are on the stage together, they agree they must be united. And she says, let us reign only to serve hate. So hate is their guiding force.
- [29:58]
Grant
And hate, like other evils in Zoroastrianism, is understood as a almost personified thing.
- [30:06]
Pat Wright
These negative emotions will be personified by characters on the stage later on.
- [30:11]
Grant
And that's totally right and inappropriate. We do see versions of this sometimes. Again, most often in fantasy or sometimes science fiction. It's totally reasonable that we see these manifested versions of vengeance, hate and despair, because that is. That is true to the actual original religious system that is being talked about here. Not everything in this play is parts of it are doing their own thing. But the idea of those forces as being almost personal, of being these designs that will come upon human beings and seek their destruction, that is very authentic to the idea of Zoroastrianism.
- [30:53]
Pat Wright
Yes. Well, we're going to listen to a little piece here that starts with the two of them declaring, let us Unite in our fury. Let us taste the sweetness of crushing revenge. Those two have decided to unite in their fury and work towards a course of crushing revenge. Doesn't that sound fun?
- [32:02]
Grant
I mean, vengeance is often fun.
- [32:04]
Pat Wright
Well, perhaps, but I will tell you, there are not really comic moments in this particular opera.
- [32:10]
Grant
Not intentional ones, at least. Well, you know, my favorite take. Favorite comic take on personified forces of evil, by the way, is to be found in the original pilot for the Muppet show, which is. And this is true. Look it up. Called the Muppets. Colon. Sex and Violence.
- [32:26]
Pat Wright
Wait, wait, stop. The Muppets.
- [32:28]
Grant
Yeah, the Muppets.
- [32:29]
Pat Wright
Sex and Violence was the pilot for the Muppet show, that fun comedy variety hour that Kermit hosted.
- [32:35]
Grant
I mean, it was always there, just barely under the surface. Watch the Swedish Chef and think about it as a meditation on the nature of violence. I mean, like, you can't unsettle it.
- [32:42]
Pat Wright
Oh, okay. We need to get back to the Baroque period.
- [32:46]
Grant
They had the personified seven deadly sins, each represented as a colorful puppet. And it was, I think, kind of perfectly on the nose.
- [32:55]
Pat Wright
Okay. Unlike the Muppets, and in fact, unlike the Magic Flute, this does not have the comic interludes. We just are. Are completely serious about goodness and evil throughout this entire show. But there is some sumptuous music. The two characters that we've just heard, Abramane and Erenice, they have pledged to unite together, and they're going to seal that deal. And she says, because she's the one with the claim on the throne, if I am elevated to the leadership position, I will share my rule with you. Let the gods endorse me, and if you help me to become ruler, I will completely share my position with you. And if I betray my oath, you can hurl bolts upon my head and strike me down. Because he is known to be a man who possesses the power of magic.
- [33:46]
Grant
So how's that for a prenup?
- [33:48]
Pat Wright
Well, he reciprocates. He takes his magic wand, divides it in half, and gives her half of his magic wand, investing her with magical powers.
- [33:59]
Grant
And yet, if I know anything about Sith, it's that in the end of the day, they'll always look for an opportunity to betray each other.
- [34:05]
Pat Wright
Well, we'll see how that turns out. He tells her, I am giving you a power equal to my own. She's like, that's great. We've got a plan here, partner. You take care of the gods, and I'll take care of the revenge.
- [34:20]
Grant
So how does she know she didn't get the short end of the stick.
- [34:22]
Pat Wright
Okay, that's new scene. We've gone from dark and we're moving into the light here. In fact, critics of the day made fun of the alternating scenes between light and dark and even of the modern version that I watched of it. The modern presentation had all of the people either dressed in black or dressed in white or cream colors. The operatic version of the white hat, black hat dichotomy, so you know who's who.
- [34:53]
Grant
Yeah, there's not a lot of moral ambiguity going on here.
- [34:57]
Pat Wright
No. So in this light side, we're going to open with the chorus trying to comfort a woman who is sad. And this is the Amalite that we referred to earlier, that the bad guy wanted to love him. Of course, she couldn't. She is full of love, by the way, but her love is for Zoroaster. But we meet her first. And we meet her being comforted by a chorus and by a young woman of her court, Seyfi.
- [35:35]
Seyfi
Sa Sa.
- [36:23]
Pat Wright
Those are the kind youth of the Bactrian court offering their sympathy support to Amalit, who is grieving. Her beloved is in exile. That's Zoroaster. I mentioned the Bactrian court. Grant, can you explain to us where Bactria is?
- [36:40]
Grant
Roughly speaking? Afghanistan. It's in that general zone of northeastern Iran, Afghanistan kind of zone.
- [36:51]
Pat Wright
So it would have been Persia once upon a time.
- [36:53]
Grant
Yeah, it would have been Persia. There was actually a Bactrian state that encompassed a large portion of that area. But it is, for our purposes, most relevant as the probable historical homeland of Zoroaster.
- [37:07]
Pat Wright
Well, that makes perfect sense in this context then, doesn't it?
- [37:10]
Grant
Yes. Yes, it does.
- [37:11]
Pat Wright
Well, Amalite is not easily cheered because they're not really bringing her any news at all. And she is worried for his safety. And she is also worried that their separation might lead to him forgetting about her falling in love with someone else. But we've gotten enough information of good people and bad people in this opera to know that that's not going to happen.
- [37:34]
Grant
Yes, this is a story where love is true and evil is evil and wears black hats and twirls its mustache.
- [37:44]
Pat Wright
Yeah, it is pretty clearly signposted. And I did mention also, there's quite a lot of dancing in this show. I'm going to play just a little bit of this dance music to give you a flavor of it, but a libretto will tell you that this dance that is played right now after the scene that I've just described is about two lovers who have been separated and the supreme joy that they find after the torment of separation, the supreme joy that they find on being reunited. A little foreshadowing, I think.
- [39:03]
Seyfi
Sa.
- [39:35]
Pat Wright
So the dancing is part of what's meant to cheer her up. But she's gonna go a little deeper and a little darker, wondering, what if you find someone else that stirs your heart? How could that possibly be? I live only for you One of the pieces that's often cited in this opera for particular praise is this piece that I'll play a bit of right now, where she says, no, no. And in constant flame Cannot steal my love from me Our hearts are guided by their affections and have chosen each other as their portion. Tender love, delightful accord she's pinning her hopes and her beliefs on the fact that love is true not only for her, but also for him.
- [40:21]
Grant
Constant flame Constant Flame is one of the great images of Zoroastrianism. The Zoroastrian temples are referred to as fire temples. And in each one there is a sacred flame, and it is kept burning. The highest level of sacred flame is one that can come directly from the heavens, as in from a lightning strike. And the oldest one of these that is still kept burning is said to be 1500 years old.
- [40:51]
Pat Wright
1500 years of constant flame. As opposed to the inconstant flame that she fears.
- [40:58]
Grant
No, but Zoroaster, we on this side of history know that constant Flame is like, kind of his whole deal, right?
- [41:06]
Pat Wright
Okay. We're going to hear Amalit sing about that. Amalit is trying to steel herself to be strong and believe that Zoroaster is going to come back to her in Rameau's Zoroaster. Well, there's going to be a little more dancing because that's how this whole opera rolls, a little more dancing. And the chorus is going to alert us to the fact that this sunny light side scene seems to be changing. The sun's rays have grown pale. The earth quakes, by the way, these movements on the stage during this mid 18th century period of earthquakes. And we're going to have people flying in from above and being suspended over the stage. Thunder, lightning, all these different elements which we're reasonably accustomed to with all of our modern presentations on stage and in movies. But this was part of the delight of going to a show to see some of these things. So we're going to have a darkening stage. We're going to have an earthquake. And the chorus will even say, in case we didn't get the hint, what a tune. Terrible darkness.
- [43:07]
Grant
Might it mean the bad guys are coming?
- [43:08]
Pat Wright
Well, one of Them anyway. One of them, that Amelite is not currently aware has allied herself to the dark side. Erin appears, and Amelie is going to start to pour out her heart about her grief of her missing beloved. Doesn't go well, though. No, no, Erenice, we remember what she just did. She got half that magic wand. She's promised to share the power of her throne. And these are the two who are in line to inherit the supreme position, along with a partner. And Erin Issei says, time for pretense is over. You need to tremble and understand the extent of my hate and of my power. And Amelie is a little taken aback here. Her friend seems to have changed quite a bit. She's completely gone to the dark side, and she just gets stronger and stronger in her emotions. These words like hate and vengeance come up over and over again because that's. That's where she's located in the story, and that's who her personality is at this point.
- [44:20]
Grant
Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering. So quoth Jedi Master Yoda, yes.
- [44:30]
Pat Wright
Knew it was Star wars. Didn't know who. Well, yeah, it. She wants Amelie to be afraid. And Amelie is in despair at this point, or getting close to it. And with all of this raving from Erinice, all of those cheerful young Bactrians who were trying to cheer Amalit, they scurry away. They scatter. She's left alone. And she even says, I have been abandoned. All abandoned me. And Erinice summons cruel spirits to come and cause despair and torment Amalite. Because that's who they've got to get rid of in order for the two who made the pact in the beginning to take the throne.
- [45:12]
Grant
Looks like that magic wand really works, huh?
- [45:14]
Pat Wright
Yeah, so far. So far, that magic wand is doing what they want it to do. But Amalit, right at the end of this first act, Amalite will pray briefly. Just gods, please, please defend me. But our big finish for act one is going to be a chorus of the Furies. They seize Amalit and they carry her off, and they say, tremble, tremble. Innocence cries out in vain. After all that darkness and despair and torment, we need a little music to help us change pace and transition from that scene in Act 1 to the beginning of Act 2. We are now in the beginning of Act 2 of our five act grand opera by Jean Philippe Rameau, Zoroastre or Zoroaster. And we finally get to meet the man himself.
- [48:52]
Grant
And here we find him, like Odysseus, pining. But unlike Odysseus, it's Because he is here. Well, he's got an important mission he's trying to do.
- [49:03]
Pat Wright
Yeah.
- [49:04]
Grant
He is seeking the blessing of Urimasis or Huramazda, the God figure, the king of the genie of the light side, which will give him the power to protect the kingdom.
- [49:15]
Pat Wright
Yes. And Arimas is not a remote figure. He is in fact a character in this opera and he will tell Zoroastra that you are in my refuge and every day here has been serene, but there is trouble about you.
- [49:30]
Grant
By the way, the fact that he is portrayed as a character on stage is actually criticized in a Zoroastrian take on this that I was reading by an actual practicing Zoroastrian who is annoyed that Ahura Mazda would be represented in this very direct way. Ahura Mazda is supposed to be, as with other monotheistic or semi monotheistic conceptions of God, beyond a certain form.
- [49:56]
Pat Wright
Right. To have an actor playing him seems sacrilegious.
- [49:59]
Grant
Yes. And yet there is something that is fundamentally deeply pious about this.
- [50:05]
Pat Wright
Yes.
- [50:05]
Grant
In spite of that objection, the article that I was reading was actually generally very happy to see their religion represented in this way, because it is represented on the whole positively. And whether or not it's accurately, there are certainly core essential elements of Zoroastrianism, which is sometimes called Mazda ism, by the way, because Zoroastris himself is not the object of worship. It's a little like how Islam used to be referred to by a lot of people in the west as Muhammadism.
- [50:32]
Pat Wright
Yes, you can find it in old books.
- [50:34]
Grant
Oh, oh, absolutely, yeah. I mean, any, anything early 20th century or earlier, you'll generally find that term Muhammadism, which is generally considered quite offensive by Muslims because they make a very big distinction between Muhammad and Allah. But similarly here we have a distinction that is often made. We're still using the word Zoroastrian because that is common in our day in the West. It should be mentioned that the, the proper term that Zoroastrians use for their own religion is Mazda. Worship is basically what it amounts to. Mazdism is sometimes how it's rendered in English.
- [51:06]
Pat Wright
M A, Z, D, A. Is that right?
- [51:08]
Grant
Yes, yeah. The name Mazda was derived from Uhura Mazda, God of harmony, intelligence and wisdom in Zoroastrianism.
- [51:13]
Pat Wright
There we go. Well, Oro Mazdas, the character in this opera tells him, yes, it's serene here, but the earth is groaning because there's a pitiless monster who threatens everything and makes the people miserable. And of course Zoroaster knows that it's the character we met right up front. Abrahmane, he says, I know that he's the monster. And Zoroaster is afraid instantly because he knows Amalite is at risk from his horrible behavior. But Aromasus says you're the man to set things right. I've seen that you are steadfast and you triumph over. And this is really important, I know in Freemasonry you triumph over the charms of pleasure and the cruelest reverse. In other words, you have strength, you have fortitude. You stand up no matter what the challenges are. And heaven is now asking you to defend what is good and right. Zoroaster, he says, it is time for you to set the universe free.
- [52:17]
Grant
That's quite a mission, right? It's a little, little imposing. I mean, I don't know, I sometimes get nervous when I have to write an email. This guy's got to save the universe, right?
- [52:27]
Pat Wright
Right. He has to save the universe right? Now, again, a little bit of this beefed up love story. It would seem to me he's worried about Amelite. He's worried about his beloved. Yeah, I'll set the universe free, but I'm. Right now I'm really thinking about her. But all good will flow from this, only good. He says, I've never feared anything for myself. It's not my own safety I worry about, it's her safety that I worry about. Oramasa stays at this level of greater concern, guiding him along that route as well. He says, this is your task, but you will have immortal glory and you have a glorious destiny to fulfill. It's an installation ceremony of sorts that follows next. We have these four spirits that are recognized. I know in Freemasonry, I imagine you can tell me in Zoroastrianism also the spirits of fire and air and earth and water.
- [53:24]
Grant
Yes. In a classic Zoroastrian temple, it's important to have all four of those elements present.
- [53:30]
Pat Wright
Well, they come on stage usually as dancing representatives. These are not speaking parts, but these are representations. And Oromas essentially installs Zoroaster for his.
- [53:43]
Grant
Mission, which may sound familiar to those of you who have listened to the Magic Flute, Copper, for everyone did. There's an essential importance to the initiation ceremony. And this is again, very, very Masonic, very Freemasony. And it has. It definitely has connections with the way that clergy are installed in various religions. But in Freemasonry there is this sense. Ordinary people, at least ordinary from the point of view of their birth and people going about their day doing trades. These people, if they are of good standing, if they have virtue, they can take on essential and important roles. And that is a core idea to the Masonic ideals and indeed to Masonic practice. The ceremonies of initiation and the ceremonies of promotion are some of the most important things that goes on in Masonic lodges to this day.
- [54:40]
Pat Wright
Yes, and we'll see. Also referencing the Magic Flute, we have this initiation. Just as Tamino in the Magic Flute was initiated before he went on to his trials here, this feels like a religious ceremony. He is being initiated by the head God to take on this task and he will in fact face trials. The final part of this initiation rite that Zoroaster goes through is he is given what is described in some cases as a talisman, but in most librettos as the Book of Life. Ramasis gives him this Book of Life to accompany him on his journeys, on his quest.
- [55:22]
Grant
And that may have to do with Zoroastrianism to a certain extent. Certainly the sacred scriptures are important in Zoroastrianism. It also is very much an Enlightenment thing. The veneration of books in particular is a great Enlightenment ideal. And one of the most classically anti enlightenment things is the destruction of books. The burning of books has always been thought of as being the thing that you do to protest against or attack the idea of small L liberalism.
- [55:56]
Pat Wright
So let's listen to this final piece of this scene in the light side when Oramasis and the chorus and Zoroaster are celebrating his initiation and strengthening him for what lies ahead.
- [56:25]
Seyfi
Sa Sa.
- [58:46]
Pat Wright
You're listening to Opera for Everyone, a radio show and podcast that makes opera understandable, accessible and enjoyable for everyone.
- [58:56]
Grant
It airs Sundays from 9 to 11am Mountain Time on 89.1 Khol in beautiful Jackson, Wyoming. Please subscribe to the Opera for Everyone podcast. Make sure to smash that like button and rate comment and subscribe.
- [59:10]
Pat Wright
Please stay with us. The second half of today's show is coming right up. Welcome back to the second half of Opera for Everyone. I am your host, Pat Wright and I'm here with Grant.
- [59:28]
Grant
Happy to be here.
- [59:29]
Pat Wright
I'm so glad to have you here to fill out some of this story about Freemasonry, Zoroastrianism and Star Wars.
- [59:37]
Grant
Oh, it's so much fun. This is some good stuff to nerd out about.
- [59:41]
Pat Wright
It is. I mean, it is opera for everyone and different people will find a different place to enter. Maybe it's the love of the music, maybe it's just fascination with history nerding out. It can be a lot of different things. But I hope everyone's enjoying this very different sort of an opera.
- [60:00]
Grant
Did you know that a lot of people call Star Wars a space opera?
- [60:03]
Pat Wright
I didn't know that. I knew that it was sometimes referred to as a western.
- [60:08]
Grant
Huh. But it's. Oh, it's a space opera. I'm just saying there's a lot of music in that.
- [60:11]
Pat Wright
Yes, there's some very good music, but not necessarily sung dialogue.
- [60:17]
Grant
Yeah. And actually, the one time they do sing words to the music, we all pretend that we forgot it.
- [60:22]
Pat Wright
I forgot it.
- [60:22]
Grant
That's good. That's good. It's from the holiday special and it's better we all pretend.
- [60:27]
Pat Wright
Oh, yeah. I don't think I ever even saw that.
- [60:29]
Grant
Princess Leia sings words to the Star wars main theme and it's exactly as cringe as it sounds.
- [60:35]
Pat Wright
Okay, then back to our story. Back to Rameau, Jean Philippe Rameau and Zoroastre, the 1756 version that he created, which by the way became wildly more popular than the initial production, which was 1749. However, before we re enter our story, I'd like to just take a moment and thank the people who created this wonderful music that we've been listening to. This recording was made in France in the year 2001 with Les Art Florissant and William Christie. Zoroaster is sung by Mark Padmore. He's a haute contra. I don't think we've mentioned that yet. Haute contra is a. It's a very high tenor, not quite a counter tenor. That's why his voice is so different from all the other male voices in this show. Also on the light side we have Amalite and that is sung by Gae Mecali, she is a soprano. And Sefi, one of the women of her court, Stephanie Revada. On the dark side we have Abramane, that is a bass. Nathan Berg singing that role. Ernese, the Dark Princess is sung by Anna Maria Panzarella. And Vengeance, we haven't heard from Vengeance yet, but Vengeance Personified is sung by Mathieu Le Quart. And apologies for any mispronunciations and just want to say thank you so much for all this beautiful music that we've been listening to. So, Grant, you know what time it is?
- [62:06]
Grant
It's the Opera Helmet Quiz.
- [62:08]
Pat Wright
Are you ready to tell us what happened in the first act and a half? Lucky for you, we didn't get very far in the plot.
- [62:14]
Grant
Yeah, act and a half out of five acts. We're totally on track.
- [62:18]
Pat Wright
Well, we. We had to give a little background and side.
- [62:21]
Grant
Ground and underground, overground around ground, transdimensional space. Vaguely where the ground is stalling. Oh yeah.
- [62:29]
Pat Wright
What has happened thus far in the act and a half of our five act opera, Zoroaster?
- [62:34]
Grant
Well, once upon a time the world was created good. But dark forces decided to try and destroy everything. Fast forward some untold number of years and we have our hero and our villain. Although our hero is not to be seen quite yet. He's off on a. He's off on a business trip, as it were. And we have our villain Abramane and his new partner in crime, the pretender to the throne of Bactria, Erinice. And she wants to take over the country. And she is so angry at her rival Amalite, who has won both the throne and the heart of the man that Erinice wants. And wants is the right word because she doesn't really love, she can't quite love. And she allies herself with a powerful sorcerer and promises to rule together with him. And the two of them set off to try and overthrow the kingdom. She takes Amalite prisoner with the aid of evil demons summoned by the magic wand that has been shared with Erinice by Abramane. Meanwhile, in the castle of the King of the Genies, the God figure in this universe is meeting with Zoroastra, who misses the lovely Amaleite, but is here on an important errand and he is given enormous power. He is told that he is the chosen one to save the universe. And he is endowed with powerful gifts in an initiation ceremony that will give him the tools he needs, chief among them the Book of Life, to confront the forces of evil.
- [64:27]
Pat Wright
Nice. And I will add that at the end of that scene, the final thing that Arimasa does with Zoroaster is he embraces him and says, may order and peace, once restored to the universe, cause humankind to love their master as a father. Go hence where you will go and there shall you be. Interesting. So it's very supportive of the idea of a master being in charge. That's part of what I think a king would be more than okay with.
- [65:00]
Grant
Although this is the master beyond all kings and above kings. And so there is. There is something a little subversive about it. But yes, for the moment they are trying not to overthrow the order, but rather to re establish the rightful order.
- [65:15]
Pat Wright
Well, we've just been in the light side and it's time to visit the dark side. We are going to have a chorus of demons who are tormenting Amelit. She's chained and she is surrounded by these demons. That was our chorus of demons tormenting Amelite. Amelite, who you heard there at the end, she is calling out to the heavens to protect her, to save her. While the chorus of demons, on the other hand, they celebrate the underworld and talk about revenge and death and the things that you would expect them to.
- [66:24]
Grant
Talk about, they're kind of downers.
- [66:27]
Pat Wright
Well, it's going to get just a little bit worse or a little more specific anyway, because Erenice is going to come in an amplified repeat of the last encounter that these two women had. She's going to let Amalie know. Sure, we could stop the suffering that you are enduring. You just have to renounce the throne. In fact, renounce the throne or die.
- [66:48]
Grant
And then when she says, I'm not gonna renounce the throne, she goes to kill her. And I just keep thinking, Hamlet could learn a lot from Erenice in this moment.
- [66:59]
Pat Wright
I suppose so. But she is not successful in her attempt with the dagger. We have what feels like a little supernatural intervention there. There's a clap of thunder, there's lightning flashes, an iron gate has shattered.
- [67:14]
Grant
And then who shows up but my hero, the dashing prince, now armed with the powerful book. Hey, it's better than a flute.
- [67:26]
Pat Wright
I don't know. That flute did a lot of good stuff.
- [67:30]
Grant
He comes in and the dagger is cast from her hand.
- [67:35]
Pat Wright
Yes. And Erin say she is trembling, she is frightened. She questions her own power and ability because it seems like she's outmatched when Zoroaster shows up.
- [67:47]
Grant
And intriguingly, she says that her hand is disloyal not to her, but to her hatred. Her hatred is what she hoped her hand and her body would be loyal to. But in this moment, his power is able to overcome that.
- [68:02]
Pat Wright
Again, she identifies with hatred. She identifies Amelite with love, which is in total keeping with these Zoroastrian ideals. But Zoroaster is not sympathetic at all to Eriny se. In fact, he will remain so throughout the entire show. Zoroaster, I realize he goes through initiation rites and trials, but he doesn't really change as a person, as a character. Just speaking dramatically here. He is the man who he is. He is the embodiment of these good qualities. Erin say, I would argue dramatically speaking, might be the most interesting character in this entire show. She's a little more changeable in her feelings.
- [68:44]
Grant
Yes, she seems very human in a certain way. Both of the women, to an extent, are more human than their male counterparts.
- [68:50]
Pat Wright
Right. Who are just embodiments of their ideologies. That. That is true. Erinnise clings to this idea that revenge is going to solve her problems. If I can just exact revenge, I'll feel better, is more or less what she says. But she has nothing further to do here. The whole thing with the dagger didn't work out. She leaves. And that finally leaves our power couple together. On Amelit and Zoroaster are together. They are supported by the people of Bactria around them. Seifi is there as well, and he retains that determination about his mission, about what he is meant to accomplish. And he is so thrilled to see Amalit. And Amelie is full of worry for him that he's going to go and do battle with these evil forces. They continue to sing about the power of love and that love is what they're all about. There's dancing, by the way, of course. So amidst her concerns for Zoroaster's safety, Amelit does reflect and say something which I think is a little pearl of wisdom, perhaps. She says happiness is sometimes born of affliction. So talk about keeping a positive attitude about what's in front of you.
- [72:36]
Grant
And we're going to see by the end of the play if what she's saying is the truth.
- [72:42]
Pat Wright
Yes. Yes. And Zoroaster re emphasizes the importance of love alone and his belief and reliance on a beneficent God.
- [72:54]
Grant
And Zoroaster addresses the people and speaks to them of their queen who has been preserved. And he gives them an injunction. Cease to fear the criminal priests and renounce the cruel gods who strike when you implore them.
- [73:11]
Pat Wright
That almost sounds like Voltaire.
- [73:13]
Grant
Yes, and also sounds a little bit like the actual Zoroaster. May love alone offer our vows to the beneficent God whom I adore, that the devotion is to God. But also there's a rejection of these other divine presences, and that is authentic to a lot of what Zoroaster was doing, talking about the. The deities not deserving of worship. And it reflects the way that priesthood and divine power is used by the villain of this story to propagate evil. And it's a very, very Voltaire Enlightenment idea that the true connection with wisdom and the divine and the nature of things is obscured by corrupt priesthoods and misguided ideals.
- [73:59]
Pat Wright
Yeah, Freemasons all. By the way, Voltaire was a Freemason. Our Librettus Caiusac was a Freemason. And we don't have absolute proof, but it's pretty clearly indicated that Ramo himself was also Freemason. So all on board with this, let's hear this final musical piece of the second act, where Our forces of light have come together and are encouraging each other on.
- [74:59]
Seyfi
Sh Sa Ra.
- [76:16]
Pat Wright
This is opera for everyone and we are listening to and talking About Zoroaster, a mid 18th century opera by Jean Philippe Rameau.
- [76:41]
Seyfi
I'm in.
- [77:02]
Pat Wright
With act three, starting now of our five act opera. We are once again in the dark side with Abramane and Erise, and they continue to reinforce their evil plans with one another.
- [77:17]
Grant
Although there's a hint of disharmony now, very much so. He is concerned that she has given into her anger in a way that is unproductive. He wants to have a productive hatred that destroys their enemies and doesn't want her to be impatient and impulsive. He wants not to win a temporary victory destroying a feeble rival, but instead to triumph over the forces of good altogether.
- [77:49]
Pat Wright
Yes, he says, let us dare to commit great crimes and I expect from them a glorious prize. And one thing he repeats over and over again, which, I mean, it's so funny because it's translated in one copy of the libretto I have as might makes right. But if you look at the French, the translation is more like, all success is legitimate. As long as you succeed, it's legitimized. And that is what he sings right after he has caused Erinice to be enveloped by a cloud of darkness. He's blotted her out, sidelined her in his quest for success and vengeance.
- [78:29]
Grant
Wow, that alliance just didn't last all that long, did it?
- [78:33]
Pat Wright
Yeah, he feels that she has betrayed the terms of their agreement. And clearly she's going to feel that he has betrayed the terms of their agreement. I mean, what do you expect with the two bad guys anyway?
- [78:43]
Grant
Yeah, and it's clear that he did reserve enough power to vanquish her if he needed to if she became too impulsive or too inconvenient to his grander plan. He doesn't want mere revenge on a lover. He wants the defeat of the forces of good in their entirety.
- [79:00]
Pat Wright
And speaking of the forces of good, it's time for a little bit of the light side now. We're going to be back with Zoroaster and Amalite and they both will be singing about love. And Zoroaster will tell us our mutual flame's happiness is now to be ensured forever by marriage.
- [79:17]
Grant
And that's not the first nor last reference to love as fire. She referred in their last conversation to love's passion burning in her. And love as fire is a consistent theme through this play, and it very much ties in with the idea of fire as the embodiment of goodness in Zoroastrianism, the divine presence and of love as being like a fire, both in the common linguistic sense and also in terms of its ability to warm and light and potentially to destroy.
- [80:37]
Seyfi
Sam Ham Sa.
- [82:40]
Pat Wright
Here in Ramo, Zoroaster, we have a festive atmosphere as our two main good characters have pledged their love to each other. They are getting ready for their marriage and the people of Bactria have come in to help them celebrate. Another chance for some dancing and another.
- [83:00]
Grant
Chance for some theologizing from Zoroaster, who chimes in here to talk about how God is bountiful in their hearts, delight in obedience to God's laws and marriage. The particular union of people in love, which is very much imagined as a union of love here is lifted up as being pleasing to God, the God who is presented here's primary value is love and romantic love in particular, as a high expression of that.
- [83:32]
Pat Wright
Yes, the love and marriage are celebrated and mentioned repeatedly, repeatedly in this story. And here, Zoroaster, this is, by the way, the hinge point of the opera. Right in the middle of the opera. This is the peace known as the Hymn to the Sun. We're going to hear some of this, this Hymn to the sun, which is very much celebrating this light side, this bright side, the good in the world, praising light, purity and all that is.
- [84:11]
Seyfi
Sam Sa Sa.
- [87:16]
Pat Wright
Following this Hymn to the sun, we're getting coupling up. And it's not just Zoroaster and Amalit. It is various couples among the young Bactrians who are being put together and.
- [87:30]
Grant
Sanctified like those mass weddings, like in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, right?
- [87:35]
Pat Wright
Or almost like in the beginning of Guehomm Tell, William Tell. At any rate, it's not unusual to have a big festival and have a number of different couples united. However, before these lead people, Zoroaster and Amalit are themselves married once again. The stage is going to darken. We're going to hear a thunderclap. Things are going wrong.
- [88:04]
Seyfi
Sat.
- [89:33]
Pat Wright
Abramane, in this darkness amid the thunder will descend from above some of that stage machinery that was expected as part of a great spectacle.
- [89:43]
Grant
Poor Amalite under attack again. This does just seem to keep happening to her.
- [89:49]
Pat Wright
Zoroaster at this point is unable to save her. The chorus, all these young people that we saw, they exclaim that they are going to perish. And Zoroaster says, I'm going to defend you. I will. I'm going to defend you.
- [90:05]
Grant
And that's interesting, right? That so far we've seen him Motivated almost entirely by love. And earlier on, I'm elite refers to the fact that, yeah, it's great that she's going to get to be crowned, but, like, really, love is what drives her. But here he's taking on kingship, not in the sense of power, but in the sense of responsibility, that the people are in danger, the people are perished, the evil spirits, death and horror have been set upon them, and it is his job to protect them. And so he is going to save all of them. And he entrusts the good spirits with protecting Amelie, and he himself goes to confront the forces of darkness and save his people.
- [92:22]
Pat Wright
Ended. And in Act 4, for the entire act, we are with the dark side. We are in the subterranean temple of Ahriman, this evil devil, this leader of the evil side.
- [92:37]
Grant
And I love the description in the libretto. An ebony altar stained with blood in the background. That gets you some sense that we're in this dark fantasy world here, right?
- [92:48]
Pat Wright
And that is where Abrahmane goes for strength and for planning.
- [92:54]
Grant
And the underground thing is also very much in keeping. There's some speculation that our contemporary idea of hell as being below the earth and heaven as being in the skies owes a certain amount to Zoroastrian influence. There's no sense within the biblical scriptures, as we have them, of hell being below the earth. And so instead we have this idea. And in the scholarship of mythology, we sometimes talk about deities that are celestial deities of the heavens and deities that are chthonic, which is to say deities underneath the earth. And sometimes these are benevolent, but oftentimes they are, well, dangerous. And here they are outright evil. And they're under underground temple seeking the destruction of all that is good in the world. And there is just such a wonderful villain speech here. It's like Shakespeare level villainy. And my French is not good enough for me to do it in French, but just in English translation. Abraman declares, cruel tyrants that reign in my heart, Pitiless hate, implacable revenge. Spare me the horror of devouring remorse, or yield to to its violence in the depths of my soul. Great ardor is aroused by my resistance to reproach me for my fury. Crime unites its voice with the cries of innocence. I see the depths of the abyss into which I run. And it's just. I mean, twirling goatee, mustache. This is a man out for blood, he is.
- [94:29]
Pat Wright
And his partner in crime as a were who he enveloped in a dark cloud. She's going to re emerge in this subterranean scene. And she's a little more conflicted than he is.
- [94:40]
Grant
And particularly she's upset because off screen, the battle is going poorly for them.
- [94:56]
Seyfi
Present in you forever Sa.
- [96:15]
Grant
The soldiers are unable to vanquish Zoroastria. In fact, their weapons turn against themselves. And there's an echo here of ancient stories where those who war against the gods find their weapons don't avail them. I'm thinking of, for instance, Euripides, the Bacchae, where the soldiers find that their weapons are turned harmless as soon as they seek to harm the acolytes of the God Dionysus. And we see something very similar here.
- [96:43]
Pat Wright
Right? And she is despairing that they have all this. This lovey dovey stuff going on and that seems to be working for them. How is that possible? Shouldn't the anger and the hatred be stronger? She's trying to reconcile that and make sense of it. And an Abrahmane is going to tell her. Hatred, which has the skill to act, commands power to every task. If hatred is purposeful enough, it will prevail.
- [97:11]
Grant
Which is a wonderful Sith Lord statement.
- [97:14]
Pat Wright
Yeah, well, that makes sense. Well, it's a lengthy scene with dances, of course, with the demons dancing around. And he calls on supreme evil. He convinces Erinice that she should rejoin and redouble her efforts. She seems a little wavering, but she agrees to go along.
- [97:37]
Grant
And there's an inverted echo here, a shadow version of the ritual of initiation, the previous heavenly ritual that imbues Zoroaster with power. We see them here doing the inverted version of that, where they call upon the darkness and they say, dreadful Ahriman, feed your rightful fury in streams of blood. Author of ills and adversities that afflict the earth and sea, I have revealed to the universe you, as the absolute master of the world, wield your vengeful arm. And so he seeks to bring the supreme God of evil, but all the gods of Ahriman to his side to see the forces of good destroyed.
- [98:26]
Pat Wright
And this is where we get the anthropomorphization of hate and vengeance and despair. In fact, vengeance sings a bit. And he's happy, he's gleeful. He likes it when people are out for revenge. They all seem quite angry, but he seems like, yeah, this is how the world is meant to be. Vengeance.
- [98:46]
Grant
And eventually she joins in and sings with him. Fly, cruel company, unleashed all your fury. Dread ministers of the most mighty empire, you, spirits that desire only to harm can compel to unite. They are gathered together to go and destroy. And she is. She is won over despite the treachery that he has shown. And they call upon these incarnate forces of evil.
- [99:17]
Pat Wright
The piece of music that we're going to play in just a moment is the final piece of this fourth act. And it is a piece that is like a piece you will hear in many opera. Aux armes to arms. It is the traditional rallying cry when you have an army about to go face its enemy.
- [99:36]
Grant
And a key part is given to this booming voice from underground, this chthonic voice of terror. The voice from underground. The voice of Ahraman, the devil.
- [100:11]
Seyfi
Ra Sauce.
- [102:02]
Pat Wright
This is opera for everyone. And we're ready to talk about the final act of the five act opera Zoroastro by Jean Philippe Rameau. Well, in this act we are on the field where the kings of Bactria are to be crowned, which is an.
- [102:17]
Grant
Interesting place to have a battle.
- [102:19]
Pat Wright
It is an interesting place for a battle because the coronation depends on victory.
- [102:25]
Grant
Yeah. And I mean, in real life, a lot of the most dramatic coronations happened on battlefields. Even if it wasn't the great ceremonial one that they would do later. The way that you would know and declare who your ruler was to be. Was victory on the field.
- [102:41]
Pat Wright
Yeah. Battlefield promotion. Not exactly, but sort of. Well, here we get this interesting character, Erinice. She is still struggling with where she's going to come down in this light.
- [102:54]
Grant
And dark struggle and struggling, particularly here, that in the moment when Zoroaster himself is in mortal danger, she almost backpedals. She's worried for him. All of a sudden, instead of just desiring vengeance, she remembers in this moment a little bit of her original desire for him and doesn't want to see harm come to him.
- [103:18]
Pat Wright
Right. And he's not having any of it. He does not trust her, he does not believe her.
- [103:24]
Grant
And he's right too, because as soon as he says anything remotely defiant to her, she invokes the wrath of the furious priests and the gods in the underworld, all of which are coming for him.
- [103:39]
Pat Wright
Yeah. Don't you know who I am? Don't you know how powerful I am and my friends are?
- [103:43]
Grant
And then he says, I defy the barbarian gods and hate their criminal priests. It is on the ruins of their bloody altars that my triumph is prepared.
- [103:53]
Pat Wright
Oh, she's. It's not going to work for her, is it? In a terrible, frightful enchantment, myself who adore you, while shaking with horror, I was roused by transports of the sinister horde. She tries to explain to him why she did what she did, but he still is not going to relent. He does not going to trust her or believe that she's made any kind of conversion.
- [104:19]
Grant
And indeed, in the end, he alludes to the idea of Ernese having some kind of remorse. And she says, yes, remorse, you have stilled its voice. Our fate is to hate each other. And this is ultimately all she can do is hate him. Because victory and power and possession is all she cares about in the end. And if she is to be defeated, she will be defeated defiantly, with rage in her heart.
- [104:55]
Pat Wright
Yeah, this is why I think she's such an interesting character, because she toys with it, but it's just not in her. It's not in her to transform.
- [105:04]
Grant
No, she's like Gollum that way.
- [105:09]
Pat Wright
Well, as she departs, Zoroaster will let us know that she runs from abyss to abyss seeking the power that eludes her. He's confident in his own sense of righteousness and that he will be victorious.
- [105:27]
Grant
And then something bad happens.
- [105:29]
Pat Wright
Oh no.
- [105:31]
Grant
The baddies grab Amalite again.
- [105:35]
Pat Wright
Poor Amalite.
- [105:37]
Grant
Yes, this is the third time for those of you keeping count of how many times the princess has been kidnapped and taken to another castle. And so Zoroaster once again has to figure out what is he going to do. And he is, in this moment, confronted by the great host of the enemy. All the dark characters, all the evil that we have met so far is assembled before him, armed and armored, and they say worship the choice the gods have made, implying that it is the gods who have chosen them, the forces of darkness for victory, because they feel so powerful.
- [106:19]
Pat Wright
That's what all of Act 4 was about them gathering their power together and reading signs that they thought were favorable to their side. And they even say, if you even try to rescue her, Zoroaster, she will be sacrificed on our altar. But Zoroaster is not defeated.
- [106:38]
Grant
He trusts to Heaven and Heaven's justice in this moment. Even though he's told that to attack his enemies in this moment means the destruction of his beloved, he trusts that she will be kept safe. And so he calls upon Heaven fall monsters into the depths of the underworld. And all of them are sucked to the depths beneath.
- [107:03]
Pat Wright
Yeah. He has power in his prayer, in his plea. Again, another chance for some fabulous stage machinery having all of these demons sucked down into the bowels of the earth. We have lightning and everyone's swallowed up.
- [107:18]
Grant
So do we think. Do we think Amelite is going to be okay?
- [107:20]
Pat Wright
I do. I do.
- [107:22]
Grant
And Orimasis appears and says, this has been one more time that Heaven has sought to Try your virtue. And yes, he's shown it.
- [107:33]
Pat Wright
Yeah. That he doesn't. He keeps the. The big picture in mind. He knows that heaven will treat Amelit kindly, but he doesn't just focus on her, he focuses on his full mission to bring justice to the world.
- [107:50]
Grant
Yes. And there's this. This digression that Ramas makes about how the essential thing about a ruler is love between the ruler and those who are ruled. This is that. That idea of enlightened rule where it matters what the people think. This isn't quite democracy. Democracy isn't a thing that is really in the air quite yet.
- [108:13]
Pat Wright
No.
- [108:13]
Grant
But this is a sense of popular ascent to rule. That the ruler must have the best interests of the people at heart and that it is important that the people actually support that ruler rather than simply being intimidated into subservience.
- [108:29]
Pat Wright
Right. After all, this is France in the mid 18th century, still a country that buys into the concept of divine right of kings officially on official levels. So kings are divinely anointed. Kings have the blessing of heaven and therefore should have the support of their people. But part of the way you demonstrate that you have the blessing of heaven to be monarch is with your goodness and your virtuous behavior. And that's what's being displayed here.
- [109:03]
Grant
And there's also something slightly subversive about it that the God of this universe is not saying you are divinely appointed, therefore you're divinely appointed. He's saying the divine appointment is apparent in the people's ascent to being governed by you. And that is essential. That the people want Zoroaster and amulet's rule. That is their desire. They don't vote for them, but they would if they could. And that is a important enlightenment ideal.
- [109:35]
Pat Wright
Very much so. And these good spirits will appear to dance once again and celebrate that the evil has been defeated and things have been set right. We have the right person, the right people in charge.
- [111:16]
Grant
Ra Kinos.
- [112:23]
Pat Wright
Zoroaster has Amelite. That's been set right. And this couple is finally going to get to go through with a marriage celebration here at the end and all the people celebrating with them.
- [112:37]
Grant
And one last time we get that idea of love being a fire together. Amalit and Zoroaster Singh. All my soul is bent on love May love keep it ever in thrall May love keep it ever aflame.
- [112:55]
Pat Wright
Grant, I cannot thank you enough for joining me on Opera for everyone to talk about this. Not often heard but fascinating and beautiful opera. Thank you so much.
- [113:06]
Grant
It's been a delight to be here.
- [113:52]
Seyfi
SA Sa Samur SA.
- [116:59]
Pat Wright
Thanks for listening to another episode of Opera for Everyone.
- [117:03]
Grant
If you enjoyed our show and would like to hear more, please subscribe to the Opera for Everyone podcast and of.
- [117:08]
Pat Wright
Course, join us any Sunday morning from 9 to 11am Mountain Time on 8901 Khol Jackson, Wyoming to hear us on the radio. Opera can be challenging, but everyone loves a good story, and a story set to music is even better. Our mission is to make opera understandable.
- [117:30]
Grant
Accessible and enjoyable because we believe opera is for everyone.