BLOG: Divinity and Desire
Divinity and Desire:
Metrical Characterization in Puccini’s Edgar
By Mario Antonio Marra
Introduction
When Edgar premiered in 1889 at the Teatro alla Scala, Giacomo Puccini was a thirty-year-old composer with only one other opera, Le Villi, to his name. The work was considered a failure at its premiere, receiving only six performances. Despite this, Puccini was able to undertake numerous revisions thanks to the continued financial and artistic support of Giulio Ricordi, who believed strongly in the young composer’s potential.
That potential is evident throughout Edgar. The score already displays many hallmarks of Puccini’s later masterpieces: a sophisticated understanding of the human voice, richly colored orchestration, and an instinctive ability to evoke visceral emotional responses from the audience. At the same time, the opera reveals a composer in the process of discovering his unique artistic identity. One of the most compelling aspects of this experimentation is Puccini’s use of meter as a means of musical characterization, particularly in distinguishing the opera’s two central female figures: the virtuous Fidelia and the seductress Tigrana.
Meter as Musical Language
In music, meter refers to the organization of beats into recurring patterns. The most common groupings are duple meter (such as 2/4 and 4/4) and triple meter (such as 3/4 and 9/8), defined by the number of beats in each measure. While meter serves a structural purpose, composers have long used it symbolically as well.
Fidelia: Divinity and the Sacred
Fidelia—whose name derives from the Latin fidelis, meaning “faithful”—embodies spiritual devotion, moral clarity, and pastoral simplicity. She seeks a life of harmony with both Edgar and God, expressing forgiveness and concern for Edgar’s soul even in the face of his moral failings.
Puccini consistently associates Fidelia with triple and compound meters built on groupings of three. This choice is deeply resonant: the number three has long symbolized the Holy Trinity—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—and, in earlier musical traditions, was often linked with perfection, balance, and divinity.
Fidelia’s first entrance, “O fior del giorno, salve alba serena,” unfolds in 6/4, its flowing melodic line and gentle rhythmic motion creating an atmosphere of serenity and reverence. The music mirrors her perception of the natural world as a reflection of divine beauty.
Fidelia’s Introduction, Act I
O fior del giorno, salve alba serena! Oh flower of the day, hail, serene dawn!
Speranza ed esultanza ! … Inno gentil! Hope and exultation! …Gentle hymn!
Di celestial profumo è l’aura piena… The air is filled with celestial fragrance…
A similar metrical language appears in her Act III aria, set in 3/4 time. Here, as she mourns Edgar and contemplates his soul’s ascent to heaven, the triple meter reinforces the spiritual dimension of the moment. The music and text work together to suggest transcendence, faith, and the promise of salvation.
Fidelia’s Aria, Act III
O Edgar, la tua memoria Oh Edgar, your memory
Sarà il mio sol pensiero! Shall be my only thought!
Lassù, nella tua gloria, Up there, in your glory,
M’attendi, Edgar, lassù! Await me, Edgar, up there!
Tigrana: Earthliness and Profanity
In stark contrast, Tigrana represents sensuality, rebellion, and moral transgression. Her name, likely derived from tigre (“tiger”), evokes danger, predation, and untamed instinct—qualities that align with her character.
Puccini underscores Tigrana’s character through her consistent association with duple meter (2/4 and 4/4). Unlike Fidelia’s spiritually symbolic triple groupings, these meters are more grounded and common. This metrical choice situates Tigrana firmly in the earthly realm, emphasizing immediacy, physicality, and impulsive desire.
Her musical introduction is particularly striking: dissonant tremolos, agitated string writing, and descending melodic gestures create an atmosphere of tension and menace. Puccini leaves little ambiguity in his characterization, even marking one passage “Allegro Satanico,” explicitly linking Tigrana with blasphemy and opposition to the sacred.
Tigrana’s Introduction, Act I
In Act III, her reaction to Edgar’s death further reinforces this portrayal. Set in 2/4, her music conveys urgency and self-interest rather than genuine grief. Her first concern—that no one witness her mourning—reveals a character driven more by appearance and impulse than by sincere emotional or spiritual depth.
“Finite son le esequie…”
Finite son le esequie… The funeral rites are over…
Nessun vedrà il mio lutto! No one shall see my mourning!
Edgar: Absence of Identity
Caught between these two opposing forces, Edgar emerges as a fundamentally unstable figure. His inability to commit—either to Fidelia’s spiritual ideal or to Tigrana’s sensual world—defines his character.
Puccini reflects this instability through Edgar’s lack of a consistent metrical identity. Rather than possessing his own musical language, Edgar adopts the meter of whichever woman he is aligned with at a given moment. When with Fidelia, he sings in triple meter, expressing a desire for moral redemption and to live as a god-fearing member of a contrite and obedient society. When with Tigrana, he shifts into duple meter, embracing passion and freedom from the bounds of societal norms.
This fluidity is not a sign of versatility but of weakness. Edgar’s music reveals him as a man without a moral or emotional center, shaped entirely by external influences. This lack of purpose and indecision leads to his erratic and often unbelievable behavior as the opera progresses.
Conclusion
Although Edgar failed to secure a lasting place in the operatic repertoire, it offers valuable insight into Giacomo Puccini’s early development as a dramatist and musical storyteller. His use of meter as a tool for characterization demonstrates a sophisticated awareness of how musical structure can convey meaning beyond the text.
Through the contrasting metric identities of Fidelia and Tigrana—and the conspicuous absence of one for Edgar—Puccini constructs a musical framework that mirrors the opera’s central moral conflict. In doing so, he not only experiments with compositional technique but also lays the groundwork for the psychological depth and expressive precision that would later define his greatest works.
