What do you know about opera translation?

by Target Language Translation Services

- November 16 2021

Operas come in many languages, but the majority are in French, Italian, or German. And while it’s easy to imagine an audience full of pretentious fuddy-duddies who all speak six languages sitting in the theater understanding every word, that’s far from the case. Over the past several decades, companies have realized that by making the linguistic element more accessible, they are able to address a stigma that has long kept newcomers away from. For example, from "Ah je ris de me voir" from Gounod's Faust, to the well-known Mozart aria sung by Dr. Bartolo in The Barber of Seville, the beautiful arias from all types of classical music works can be best appreciated when they are translated properly.

About Opera Translation

Unlike typical transcription jobs, translating librettos is a time-honored practice that takes enormous skills. The existing melodic lines must fit perfectly with the flow, bounce and rhythm of the original piece. The original text's meaning should be played fast and loose by the transcriptionist, so that the English performance is equivalent to the initial opera. While it sometimes may be a stark contrast to the original, it should fit the melodic line wholly, and can mimic certain words to make sure that the librettos are enjoyable to read.

For example, in this scene from “The Magic Flute,” the German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder has the sorry bird catcher bidding farewell to all pretty maidens. He then adds: “Will sich eine um mich Armen,/Eh ich hänge, noch erbarmen;/Wohl, so lass ich’s diesmal sein! Rufet nur, ja oder nein!” Mr. McClatchy comes up with something at once touching and funny. In the first two lines Papageno, turning to the audience, poses poignant questions: “Is my face just one big puddle?/Aren’t I cute enough to cuddle?” Although it’s a leap from the actual meaning of the original, it mimics the German words and fits the melodic line perfectly.

Where is Opera Translation Applied

European-language librettos can be edited to grasp audience attention and mirror what is happening onstage.

If you're at a performance at Lyric and most other major opera companies worldwide, there are generally three ways that opera buffs typically encounter English versions of European-language librettos from earlier eras, which were mostly composed in verse form.

First, there are the literal translations included in the program books for opera recordings, or published separately. The intent here, most often, is simply to indicate what the words mean.

Then there are supertitles in the opera house. Here the translations can be as literal or free as the translator wants. But of necessity the lines are cut to the essentials, so as not to distract the audience’s attention from what is happening onstage. Titles are distracting, of course, but most operagoers find the tradeoff worth it.

Finally are the translations prepared for English performances, which involve free-wheeling adaptations of the original that maintain the rhyme schemes but often convey just an approximation of what is being said.

If you're sitting at home just listening to a CD or streaming an opera online, you can follow along with the libretto (text). A great many complete operas on CD include the full libretto and translation.

If you're watching on TV, more operas on DVD give you access to subtitles.

Receive an Understanding from an Audience

To better understand the ways in which opera pieces are translated to match the rhythm scheme and the original imagery, it's a good idea to learn how to master capturing the meaning of poetic words to match the directness of the language. Rather than being appreciated on the page, it is more significant to blend words and music that can be heard clearly from the stage. Clearly projected words make for a better overall show and when performed in front of an audience filled with people who speak the same language, the charming English version will flow with the melodic lines and it will be sung with precise diction.

This article is reprinted from GMR, The NEW York Times and Lyric Opera of Chicago.

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