Bartók Duke Bluebeard's Castle

Title: Bartók Duke Bluebeard's Castle
Creator: Ewans, Michael
Relation: Journal of Music Research Online Vol. 11, Issue 2020, p. 1-8
Relation: https://www.jmro.org.au/index.php/mca2/article/view/238
Publisher: University of Adelaide
Resource Type: journal article
Date: 2020
Description: This article is in two parts. The first part elucidates the meaning of Béla Balázs's symbolist mystery play, which Bartók set to music in Duke Bluebeard’s Castle. I consider first whether it is designed to illuminate universal truths about relationships between men and women, or just the relationships of intensely private men like Bartók himself. Then the psychologically complex sequence of events at each door is analysed. The second part is devoted to Bartók’s music. The occurrences of the ‘blood motif’ are evaluated, followed by a discussion of the music for each sequence in which Judit persuades Bluebeard to give her another key. The article concludes with an analysis of the almost ritualistic sequence in which Bluebeard invests Judit with a crown, jewels and a cloak, and sends her to take her place alongside his three former wives.
Subject: Béla Balázs; Béla Bartók; Bluebeard; Judith; Carl Leafstedt
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1477156
Identifier: uon:49922
Identifier: ISSN:1836-8336
Language: eng
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