The Tale of Tsar Saltan (Rimsky-Korsakov)

"The Tale of Tsar Saltan" () to arise magically on the island, and Gvidon is hailed by its inhabitants as its Prince.

Act 3

"Scene 1"

By the shore of Buyan, the merchant ships have left, and Gvidon laments his being separated from his father. The Swan-Bird finds a way to help him: she changes him into a bumblebee so that he can fly over the sea as a stowaway on Saltan's ship to visit him incognito in Tmutarakan.

"Scene 2"

The sailors arrive at Tmukarakan from their visit to Buyan. The sailors tell of the wonders of Gvidon's island (the magically appearing city itself, a magic squirrel, and the thirty-three bogatyrs from the sea), but the two older sisters try to stop them from creating any interest in Saltan's visiting the island; Gvidon stings each of the sisters in the brow. Babarikha then tries to trump the sailors by speaking of a fabulous Princess on the sea, to which Gvidon stings her in the eye and blinds her. Saltan decides to visit the island, but, in view of the havoc caused by the bumblebee, forbids that breed of insect from ever entering the palace again.

Act 4

"Scene 1"

Gvidon, again by the seashore of Buyan, longs for a bride. The Swan-Bird appears. Gvidon tells her of the Princess that he heard about at Tmutarakan, and the Swan-Bird transforms into that very Princess. His mother and a chorus of maidens enter and bless the prospect of their wedding.

"Scene 2"

Gvidon, with his mother aside, awaits the arrival of Saltan. When the ship arrives with Saltan and his retinue, the Tsar greets Gvidon (whom he does not yet know as his son), and expresses regret for his rash treatment of his wife. Although Gvidon tries to cheer him up with the three wonders, only the presence of Militrisa can assuage Saltan's guilt. The Princess-Swan appears and reveals the Tsar's long-lost wife. The older sisters beg forgiveness, which in his happiness Saltan grants; and everyone then joins in a celebration of the upcoming wedding of Gvidon and the Princess-Swan.

Gallery of illustrations

Ivan Bilibin made the following illustrations for Pushkin's tale in 1905. Bilibin would later provide designs for the premieres of Rimsky-Korsakov's version of "Boris Godunov" (1908), and "The Golden Cockerel" (1909). The "Flight of the mosquito" episode was not included in the opera by Rimsky-Korsakov (nor that of the fly) for the sake of brevity, but Bilibin's illustration otherwise corresponds to the "Flight of the Bumblebee" from Act 3.

Principal arias and numbers

Act 1
:Introduction–"The Tsar's Departure And Farewell"Act 2
:Introduction–"The Tsaritsa and Her Son Afloat in the Barrel"Act 3
:"Flight of the Bumblebee"Act 4
:Introduction to Scene 2–"The Three Wonders":Saltan's aria

Repertory status

"The Tale of Tsar Saltan" is not part of the standard operatic repertoire in the West. The latest production in the United States was probably that at Indiana University in April 1987, in English.

Concert excerpts

*Suite from the Opera "The Tale of Tsar Saltan", Op. 57 (1903):Сюита из оперы "Сказка о царе Салтане", соч. 57
#Introduction to Act I -- "The Tsar's Departure And Farewell"
#Introduction to Act II -- "The Tsaritsa and Her Son Afloat in the Barrel"
#Introduction to Act IV, Tableau 2 -- "The Three Wonders" («Три чуда»)

*The "Flight of the Bumblebee" is also performed in countless arrangements at concerts and recitals, but is not part of the Suite.

Discography

Audio Recordings ("Mainly studio recordings")

Source: [http://www.operadis-opera-discography.org.uk www.operadis-opera-discography.org.uk]
*1959, Vasily Nebolsin (conductor), Bolshoy Theatre Orchestra and Chorus, Ivan Petrov (Tsar Saltan), Evgeniya Smolenskaya (Tsaritsa Militrisa), Larisa Nikitina (Tkachikha), Yelizaveta Shumilova (Povarikha), Evgeniya Verbitskaya (Babarikha), Vladimir Ivanovsky (Tsarevich Gvidon), Galina Oleinichenko (Tsarevna Swan-bird)

Bibliography

*
* Neff, Lyle. "The Tale of Tsar Saltan": A Centenary Appreciation of Rimskij-Korsakov's Second Puškin Opera," in "The Pushkin Review", v. 2, 1999, pp. 89-133.