Der Fliegende Holländer Is the April 29, 2017, Metropolitan Opera Saturday Matinee Broadcast

Summary: The April 29, 2017, Metropolitan Opera Saturday matinee broadcast is Der Fliegende Holländer, a German-language opera by Richard Wagner.

Yannick Nézet-Séguin rarely spends more than two weeks away from his feline trio: Rafa, a two-year-old Highland Lynx (above), four-year-old Rodolfo and 14-year-old Mélisande: Yannick Nézet-Séguin @nezetseguin via Twitter March 29, 2017: Yannick Nézet-Séguin @nezetseguin via Twitter March 29, 2017

Der Fliegende Holländer (“The Flying Dutchman”), an opera concerning redemptive love by German composer Wilhelm Richard Wagner (May 22, 1813-Feb. 13, 1883), is the April 29, 2017, Metropolitan Opera Saturday matinee broadcast.

Unlike many opera composers, Richard Wagner tackled both the libretti and the scores for his operas. The literary source for Wagner’s German libretto is The Memoirs of Mister von Schnabelewopski (Aus den Memoiren des Herrn von Schnabelewopski), 19th century German writer Heinrich Heine’s 1834 retelling of the legend of a sea captain doomed to sail the oceans for eternity.

Wagner’s personal inspiration for Der Fliegende Holländer was a hapless sea voyage from Riga, Latvia, to London, England, that lasted for three and one-half weeks instead of its projected eight days. He recalled the storm-riddled, protracted voyage in his Autobiographical Sketch, published in 1843:

“This voyage I never shall forget as long as I live; it lasted three and a half weeks, and was rich in mishaps. Thrice did we endure the most violent of storms, and once the captain found himself compelled to put into a Norwegian haven. The passage among the crags of Norway made a wonderful impression on my fancy; the legends of the Flying Dutchman, as I heard them from the seamen’s mouths, were clothed for me in a distinct and individual colour, borrowed from the adventures of the ocean through which I then was passing.” (pp. 13-14)

Wagner’s Der Fliegende Holländer premiered Jan. 2, 1843. The venue was Semperoper, the opera house of the Sächsische Staatsoper Dresden (Saxon State Opera), in the historic center of Dresden, Saxony, east central Germany. The premiere took place in Semperoper’s first building, a medley of Early Renaissance, Baroque and Greek classical revival styles designed by German architect Gottfried Semper (Nov. 29, 1803-May 15, 1879). A fire destroyed the first building in 1869. Today’s Semperoper is the third building, reconstructed around the second building’s World War II-gutted shell.

Wagner sets his opera along the Norwegian coast. The time is not specified.

The exacting composer intended for intermission-free performance of Der Fliegende Holländer. Opera houses either follow Wagner’s directive or observe a three-act version. The Metropolitan Opera’s 2016-2017 production honors Wagner’s directive.

The Saturday matinee broadcast of Aida begins at 1 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (5 p.m. Coordinated Universal Time). The estimated run time for the performance is about 2 hours 21 minutes.

Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts all performances, including the Saturday matinee broadcast, of Der Fliegende Holländer. His birthplace is Montreal, Quebec, eastern Canada. The Canadian conductor debuted with the Met’s 2009 production of Carmen by Georges Bizet (Oct. 25, 1838-June 3, 1875).

On Thursday, June 2, 2016, the Metropolitan Opera confirmed Yannick Nézet-Séguin as the Met's new music director. The Montrealer assumes the title of music director designate for the 2017-2018 season. His busy schedule, which includes serving through the 2025-2026 season as the Philadelphia Orchestra's eighth music director, keeps Yannick Nézet-Séguin from assuming the official title as the Met's music director before the 2020-2021 season.

Yannick Nézet-Séguin's predecessor, James Levine, who has held the position since 1976, conducted Die Entführung aus dem Serail by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Jan. 27, 1756-Dec. 5, 1791) on May 7, 2016, for his final performance as the Met's music director. James Levine has returned during the 2016-2017 as Music Director Emeritus.

Michael Volle appears in the opera’s title role. He was born in Freudenstadt, Baden-Württemberg, southwestern Germany. The German baritone opera singer debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in 2014 as Mandryka in Arabella by Richard Georg Strauss (June 11, 1864-Sept. 8, 1949).

Amber Wagner appears as Norwegian sea captain Daland’s daughter, Senta, whose self-effacing love breaks the Flying Dutchman’s curse. Amber Wagner’s birthplace is Santa Barbara, California. The American soprano debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in 2011 as Anna in Nabucco by Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (Oct. 10, 1813-Jan. 27, 1901).

Franz-Josef Selig appears as Daland, the Norwegian sea captain who agrees to marry his daughter, Senta, to a stranger, the accursed Flying Dutchman, in exchange for a treasure chest. He was born in Mayen, Rhineland-Palatinate, west central Germany. The German bass opera singer debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in 1998 as Sarastro in Die Zauberflöte by 18th century Classical Era composer Wolfgang Mozart (Jan. 27, 1756-Dec. 5, 1791).

Dolora Zajick appears as Mary, Senta’s nurse. Her birthplace is Salem, Marion County, northwestern Oregon. The American mezzo-soprano debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in 1989 as Amneris in Verdi’s Aida.

Jay Hunter Morris appears as Erik, a huntsmen who wishes to marry Senta. He was born in Paris, Lamar County, northeastern Texas. The American operatic tenor debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in 2007 as Števa in Jenufa by Czech composer Leoš Janáček (July 3, 1854-Aug. 12, 1928).

Ben Bliss appears as the young steersman whose sleepy watch allows the other-worldly Flying Dutchman to drop anchor alongside Daland’s ship. His birthplace is Prairie Village, Johnson County, northeastern Kansas. The American tenor debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in 2014 as Vogelgesang in Wagner’s Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg (“The Master-Singers of Nuremberg”). This season Ben Bliss also appears as Tamino in Mozart's The Magic Flute.

Operabase, an online database, places Richard Wagner at number 5 in a ranking of 1,281 most popular composers for the five seasons from 2011/2012 to 2015/16. Der Fliegende Holländer places at 24 in the list of 2,658 most popular operas.

The Metropolitan Opera’s 2016 Repertory Report gives performance statistics through Oct. 31. Der Fliegende Holländer holds place 48, with 154 performances, for the period from first Met performance, Nov. 27, 1889, to last performance, May 14, 2010. The Metropolitan Opera’s 2016-2017 season falls outside the report’s parameters.

The takeaway for Der Fliegende Holländer as the April 29, 2017, Metropolitan Opera Saturday matinee broadcast is the composer’s presentation of his cherished female and male archetypes who push redemptive love beyond death.

Maestro Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts all performances, including the April 29, 2017, Saturday matinee broadcast, of Richard Wagner's Der Fliegende Holländer in the 2016-2017 Met Opera season: The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera via Facebook April 12, 2017

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Yannick Nézet-Séguin rarely spends more than two weeks away from his feline trio: Rafa, a two-year-old Highland Lynx (above), four-year-old Rodolfo and 14-year-old Mélisande: Yannick Nézet-Séguin @nezetseguin via Twitter March 29, 2017, @ https://twitter.com/nezetseguin/status/847244514968215553

Maestro Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts all performances, including the April 29, 2017, Saturday matinee broadcast, of Richard Wagner's Der Fliegende Holländer in the 2016-2017 Met Opera season: The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera via Facebook April 12, 2017, @ https://www.facebook.com/MetOpera/photos/a.134969600532.229232.20807115532/10158637537195533/

For further information:

"Composers: Composers Ranked by the Number of Performances of Their Operas Over the Five Seasons 2011/2012 to 2015/16." Operabase > Opera Statistics.
Available @ http://operabase.com/top.cgi?lang=en

Cooper, Michael. "Yannick Nézet-Séguin to Succeed James Levine as Met Opera's Music Director." The New York Times. June 2, 2016.
Available @ https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/03/arts/music/yannick-nezet-seguin-to-succeed-james-levine-as-met-operas-music-director.html?

Le German Blog. "Yannick Nézet-Séguin: Symphonic Rise." Le Germain Hotels > Le Germain Blog. April 1, 2017.
Available @ https://www.legermainhotels.com/en/blog/85/yannick-nezet-seguin-symphonic-rise

Metropolitan Opera. “The 2016-17 Live in HD Season.” YouTube. July 11, 2016.
Available @ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEUgcdapvKg

Metropolitan Opera. "Der Fliegende Holländer: Overture." YouTube. March 30, 2017.
Available @ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYgLhJz1vJY

The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera. "Maestro Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts Wagner's Der Fliegende Holländer (The Flying Dutchman) opening April 25. . . .Photo by Jonathan Tichler/Met Opera." Facebook. April 12, 2017.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/MetOpera/photos/a.134969600532.229232.20807115532/10158637537195533/

The New York Times @nytimes. "Yannick Nézet-Séguin will succeed James Levine as the Metropolitan Opera's music director." Twitter. June 2, 2016.
Available @ https://twitter.com/nytimes/status/738351471788462080

“Performances Statistics Through October 31, 2016.” MetOpera Database > The Metropolitan Opera Archives > Repertory Report.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/Database%20Opera%20Statistics.xml

Tommasini, Anthony. "James Levine Ends a Climactic Season With the Met Orchestra." The New York Times. May 27, 2016.
Available @ https://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/28/arts/music/james-levine-ends-a-climactic-season-with-the-met-orchestra.html?

Wagner, Richard. “Autobiographic Sketch (Autobiographische Skizze).” Richard Wagner’s Prose Works. Vol. I: The Art-Work of the Future, Etc.: 1-19. Translated by William Ashton Ellis. Second edition. London, England: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner & Co., 1895.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/stream/richardwagnerspr011341mbp#page/n37/mode/1up

Yannick Nézet-Séguin @nezetseguin. "Tomorrow 1st orchestra rehearsal of Flying Dutchman . . . . Excited beyond belief! (Nice help studying)." Twitter. March 29, 2017.
Available @ https://twitter.com/nezetseguin/status/847244514968215553