Related Pages

Original Liner Notes of this Recording

The Lyric Theater Company Recordings

Utopia, Limited at the G&S Archive

Utopia, Limited at Wikipedia

The Lyric Theater Company Utopia

Liner Notes of the Recording

The Making of the Recording

The present album contains the first complete recording of Utopia, Limited ever made on records of any speed. It is not, however, the first time that music from Utopia has appeared on records. In 1954, a record of orchestral excerpts from Gilbert and Sullivan operettas conducted by Stanford Robinson was released on the Decca/London label. In addition to excerpts from the familiar operettas, the album included the Entrance of the Court (#15) and the Drawing Room Music (#16) from Utopia, as well as the General Dance (#26) from The Grand Duke. About four yearas later, this same collection was rerecorded in stereo by the Pye Co.

In the summer of 1957, Lyric Theater presented the first Washington, D. C., production of Utopia, Limited, and shortly thereafter, a limited-edition recording was made available. This was a two-record set which contained no dialogue and in which several musical numbers were either eliminated or abridged by cuts. Ever since this limited pressing sold out, Lyric Theater has been contemplating a new recording of Utopia.

The opportunity presented itself in an unusual way. During the summer of 1963, the company was preparing a production of Gilbert and Cellier's The Mountebanks, a work which has lain practically forgotten for the past seventy years. The project had to be scrapped, however, for the shipment of vocal scores from London did not arrive in time to allow adequate preparation of the work, so a substitution had to be made.

It was immediately evident that this was an opportune time to do a new production and recording of Utopia, and as a result six performances were given during August, 1963. The present recording was made in four sessions totalling fifteen hours on professional equipment. Although the original master tape was in two-channel stereo, only a monaural disc version has been processed. It is an odd coincidence that the release date of this album (May, 1964) should coincide with the release of five [sic] vocal excerpts from Utopia as recorded on Decca/London by the D'Oyly Carte Opera Co. It is to be hoped that the release of those excerpts (#2, 2A, 7, 12, 13, and 18) will whet the appetites of record listeners for the complete work presented herein.

Sullivan in the 1890's

Utopia, Limited is a work conceived in the most bitter years of both author and composer, yet throughout there is a prevailing gaiety in the music as well as in the libretto which gives no hint of the struggles that went into its creation. Most of the lyrics that Gilbert presented to Sullivan must have appeared at first impossible to set to music. The 2nd Act Finale completely defeated the composer, whereupon Gilbert proposed that Sullivan write the music first, to which he would somehow fit words. The result must have been disastrous, however, as a new finale (the one printed in the score) was written and composed a few nights after the première.

There has been much material written pro and con about Sullivan's creativity in the 1890's, mostly unfavorable. It should be noted that, for those who maintain that his heart was not in operetta, almost all that he composed in the last decade of his life was for the musical stage.

Following the "carpet quarrel" of 1890, both Gilbert and Sullivan were each determined to prove that he could exist independently of the other. Sullivan's one grand opera, Ivanhoe, to a libretto by Julian Sturgis, was premièred in 1891, and The Mountebanks, an operetta by Gilbert with music by Alfred Cellier, was produced in January of 1892. Both works were received politely, but neither one was a success by Savoy standards.

Sullivan kept trying, however. Haddon Hall, with libretto by Sydney Grundy, was written and produced in 1892, and The Chieftain, a revision of an early operetta, The Contrabandista of 1867, was presented in 1893. Again, both works were failures. It was then that Richard D'Oyly Carte, the faithful producer of all Gilbert and Sullivans since 1875, managed to bring the shaky partnership back together for Utopia, Limited.

Following this work, which was a moderate success, came The Grand Duke (the last G&S collaboration), The Beauty Stone, The Rose of Persia, and a ballet, Victoria and Merrie England, all failures. The composer's last work, The Emerald Isle, was left unfinished at his death in 1900, and was finished by Edward German, himself a successful composer of operettas.

There is no need to review here all of the various critical opinions concerning this last decade of Sullivan's life. It seems incredible, though, that a composer as clever as Sullivan could deteriorate as much as the critics say he did. It is not possible to judge adequately the merits of all these works just by reading the libretti and playing the scores over on the piano. Only full stage productions will give both listeners and critics an opportunity to pass impartial judgement on these works. The Lyric Theater has tried, by means of its productions of Utopia and The Grand Duke, to do its part in bringing about increased appreciation for them.

Critical Overview of Utopia

It should be evident upon repeated hearings of Utopia that here is an operetta which has been unjustly neglected—an operetta which contains some of its author's most brilliant satire, and some of its composer's most brilliant music. While it would be unfair to place Utopia in the same class with the three best Gilbert and Sullivan collaborations, The Mikado, Iolanthe, and The Gondoliers, it would not be unreasonable to put it at the head of the remaining operettas.

The criticisms that can be justly made against Utopia would include: its excessive length, caused by several scenes of dialogue (the opening scene, for instance) in which Gilbert allowed the action to drag; the lack of any sustained human interest in the work—even the scenes between the lovers are filled with biting satire; some rather second-rate lyrics (which are fortunately covered up by some first-rate music); the tendency by both author and composer to quote from earlier works to please the crowd (as in Paramount's mention of the Mikado in the dialogue; and in the appearance of Captain Corcoran of H.M.S. Pinafore, now transformed, because of his advanced years, into a bass—complete with his "motto music" intact); and the very large cast required, especially on the male side, which makes the work difficult to perform by the average group.

Criticisms notwithstanding, the work as a whole goes over well on the stage because of its sharp dramatic contrasts, its opportunities for imaginative staging and designing, and its exuberant music. The vocal writing throughout demands good voices in all the parts. The orchestral scoring contains many technically difficult passages, especially for the string instruments. For the present recording, a chorus of 25 voices and an orchestra of 23 (8 strings, 15 winds) were used. Contained among the singers and players were high school and college students, and adult amateurs from the Washington area.

Text of the Recording

Mention should be made of the text used in the present recording, as it differs somewhat from the printed vocal score. The basis for this version was the set of orchestral parts used, which were discovered in Boston, and which are now in the possession of the Lyric Theater. They were evidently copied from the original Savoy set for the American première, and they contain some music which was cut by the time the vocal score was printed.

It was thus decided to record the work complete from this source, as there was no doubt as to its authenticity. The handwriting and brand of music paper used would certainly date the parts in the 1890's, and everything about the orchestration indicates that it is a direct copy of Sullivan's original. Those familiar with the first night versions of the operettas know that there was a solo for Zara (#11) which immediately preceded the 1st Act Finale (originally #12), but it was cut following the first night, and the manuscript was destroyed. The set of parts used here had a No. 11 listed and marked "omitted," and the numbering of the Finale was #12. This solo, as well as the original 2nd Act Finale, exist now only as lyrics, and are, therefore, unable to be included in this complete recording.

Of foremost interest among the additional music contained in this album is the Introduction, which has long been considered lost (or so Gervase Hughes reports in his book on Sullivan's music). Except for the first 22 bars, it is nothing more than the charming Gavotte from the Drawing Room Scene in Act II. It must have been cut because of a desire to shorten the length of the operetta, and because it contains only 22 bars of music not heard during the work itself. Any doubts that this is the long lost Introduction should be dispelled by a careful examination of the opening chorus. This chorus is predominantly in the key of D, but it commences with an introduction sounding repeated A's, followed by a lengthy process of modulation into D. There would be no need for this modulation at the beginning of an operetta unless there had been some music in the key of A preceding it. The Introduction ends in A.

The second addition occurs on p. 24 of the vocal score, 3rd line—the 2nd and 3rd bars should be repeated. The next addition is between Nos. 7 and 8. The libretto indicates that the troopers interrupt the dialogue when Captain Fitzbattleaxe is introduced. The parts contained a No. 7A, which is heard on the recording. The side drum is directed to be played on stage, the only instance of stage music in this operetta.

At the conclusion of No. 8 (p. 49), there was originally a coda of 8 bars which was probably intended as exit music for the chorus, but it must have been discarded sometime during the original production. During Lyric Theater's production, the coda was used as originally intended.

No. 22 concludes with an orchestral coda (p. 141) during which couples dance. It was clearly marked with a repeat, indicating that it was originally necessary to repeat it to get the couples off stage.

The last two additions were not contained in the parts and are original compositions. These are the Fanfare, which follows #25 on p. 152, and the choral response in the succeeding dialogue. The libretto indicates that a Flourish should get the King on his entrance, so I wrote one in the style of Sullivan. The libretto was again the source for the choral "Ulalica" in the final dialogue. I took as a model the setting of this "word" found several times in the 1st Act Finale.

Musical Analysis

A detailed musical analysis of Utopia, Limited would take far too much space, but a few comments on the music might enhance the enjoyment of the work. A good example of Sullivan's ability to develop a theme in many different ways occurs in No. 2 ["O make way for the wise men"] where the chorus sings the main theme in 3/4 time, after which Scaphio and Phantis sing a modified version in a gay 6/8 rhythm. During the dance, as well as in the final choral response, Sullivan gives us the actual theme, its note values now transformed into 6/8 time.

It should be noted that throughout the operetta, Scaphio, Phantis, and Tarara sing only what might be described as "patter." They are never given any lyrical melodic lines, for this would be out of line with their characterization as established by Gilbert. The dance music for Scaphio and Phantis in No. 3 recurs in No. 19, when King Paramount mocks the shady pair.

No. 4 ["Quaff the nectar"] is actually a long musical scene, similar in construction to the famous opening scene in The Gondoliers, in that it is made up of a number of short choruses, solos, recitatives, and orchestral interludes. This type of scene resembles opera more than operetta in that it develops dramatic situations entirely through music, without the interruption of spoken dialogue. During the first recitative of this scene, Sullivan gives a brief quotation from the British patriotic air "Rule Brittania." This tune, introduced in a tongue-in-cheek manner, appears also in the 1st Act Finale (No. 11) and at the beginning of the 2nd Act Finale (No. 26).

Listeners will notice that No. 8 ["Ah! gallant soldier"] is actually a musical continuation of No. 7 ["O maiden rich"]. Here Sullivan has unified the entire scene by quoting the main themes of the earlier number. There is also a brief double chorus (p. 45) in which the ladies' part comes from No. 7 and the men's part is new in No. 8.

The 1st Act Finale is one of the longest in Gilbert and Sullivan. Extremely clever is the way in which each of the "Flowers of Progress" is introduced, separated by a short chorus. It is during this Finale that the famous quotation from H.M.S. Pinafore occurs—preceded by a wildly harmonized quote from the "Sailor's Hornpipe." The concluding C Major section of this Finale is one of the most exuberant endings in all Gilbert and Sullivan, and it brings the 1st Act to a brilliant close.

Sullivan wrote some of his most beautiful music for the love duet (No. 13) in which the orchestral accompaniment is especially enchanting. Soon afterwards occurs a clever takeoff on minstrel-show music (No. 14) which never fails to bring down the house. The humor of the lyrics, and the "interruptions" of the "Flowers of Progress," have made this number a hit with audiences.

Following the Minstrel Song occurs the Drawing Room Scene, for which Sullivan provided some genuinely dignified music. The court enters ceremoniously (No. 15), and then the debutantes enter to the strains of a Gavotte (No. 16), already heard in the Introduction. After a short slap at "God Save the Queen," we hear the beautiful unaccompanied chorus, "Eagle High," which is concluded by a sonorous orchestral coda.

The orchestration in this scene is of the highest caliber. Strings display their sonority in the middle section of No. 15, and their agility in No. 16. Woodwinds are also featured in this number, as well as the brass. The trio section of No. 16 is scored for 2 Cornets-à-pistons, 3 trombones, and strings pizzicato. The full orchestral tutti is heard in the coda of No. 17, complete with Bass Drum and Cymbals.

No. 20 ["With wily brain upon the spot"] is an unusual number in many ways: first, it is in the difficult key of B Major; second, its introduction contains music never heard again during the remainder of the number; and third, it is written mainly in a declamatory style—the singers carry on a sung dialogue over a continuously flowing orchestral accompaniment totally unrelated. Only at the end of each verse do the voices come together with the orchestra and present the theme together.

Beginning with Mr. Goldbury's song (No. 21), we have a succession of seven musical numbers unbroken by dialogue, which helps to move the 2nd Act along more quickly to its conclusion. No. 21 leads directly into the charming Quartet (No. 22) written in Minuet styoe. This is followed by Lady Sophy's beautiful song (No. 23), which, in turn, is followed by the dramatic scene between her and the King, after which they do a Graceful Dance. This dance and the succeeding Tarantella are orchestral display-pieces.

"Upon our Sea-Girt Land" (No. 25) is a furious chorus in C minor, one of the rare cases of a completely minor number in Sullivan. Utopia, Limited concludes with a Finale (No. 26) that is a patriotic song in the heroic key of E Flat Major, in which all sing the praises of Great Britain.

Utopia, Limited calls for an orchestra consisting of the following: 2 Flutes (the 2nd doubling on Piccolo), 1 Oboe, 2 Clarinets in Bb and A, 2 Bassoons, 2 Horns in D, Eb, E and F, 2 Cornets-à-pistons in Bb and A, 3 Trombones, Timpani, Bass Drum, Cymbals, Triangle, Side Drum, Tambourine, Castanets, Side Drum on stage, and the usual Strings.

Editor's Note

These notes were published with the original pressing of the Lyric Theater Company Utopia, which is very rare these days, as it came out in a limited edition of about 250 copies. I thought that the notes were sufficiently interesting to be worth reproducing. I have added headings in the above article, to make it easier for readers to see its structure and read it in logical pieces. Aside from that, the article is as published in 1964.

John Landis is about as enthusiastic about Utopia as it is possible to be. At one point, he even opines that it is better than all of the other G&S operas except The Mikado, Iolanthe, and The Gondoliers. I have encountered very few people who would go this far—it is certainly not my own view—but Landis nevertheless makes some astute remarks about the opera.

Research on Sullivan was at a far more primitive state in 1964 than today. There was no Sir Arthur Sullivan Society, and Arthur Jacobs' comprehensive biography was still two decades away. Landis, therefore, may be forgiven one or two factual lapses. For example, he dismisses most of Sullivan's operas of the 1890's as failures. In the case of Ivanhoe and The Rose of Persia, this is demonstrably false. His 1897 ballet, Victoria and Merrie England, was a success by any measure: members of the Royal Family came to see it nineteen times!

Despite these errors, this is a very well written article for 1964 and still offers much wisdom for the present day.