Pauline Viardot, the supposed inspiration for Consuelo
Pauline Viardot (pronounced [po.lin vjaʁ.do]; 18 July 1821 – 18 May 1910) was a leading nineteenth-century French mezzo-soprano, pedagogue, and composer of Spanish descent.
Her marriage did not stop the steady stream of infatuated men. The Russian novelist Ivan Turgenev in particular fell passionately in love with her after hearing her rendition of The Barber of Seville in Russia in 1843. In 1845, he left Russia to follow Pauline and eventually installed himself in the Viardot household, treated her four children as his own, and adored her until he died. She, in turn, critiqued his work and through her connections and social abilities, presented him in the best light whenever they were in public. The exact status of their relationship is a matter of debate. Other men closely linked to her included the composers Charles Gounod (she created the title role in his opera Sapho) and Hector Berlioz (who initially had her in mind for the role of Dido in Les Troyens, but changed his mind, which led to a cooling of his relations with the Viardots).[6]
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From the reality of the world to the sensitivity of writing ...
"I must find some of my former happiness," she said to herself; the one that I have tasted for a long time and which consisted entirely in loving and being loved by others. The day when I sought their admiration, they took away their love, and I paid too much for the honors that they put in place of their benevolence. Let us therefore make ourselves obscure and small, in order to have neither envious, nor ungrateful, nor enemies on the earth. The slightest mark of sympathy is sweet, and the greatest expression of admiration is mixed with bitterness. If there are proud and strong hearts to whom praise is enough and triumph consoles, mine is not one of them, I have tried it too cruelly ”.
George Sand Extract from Consuelo page 327, from the first volume of the Charpentier 1845 edition.
Illustrations: George Sand by Nadar (private coll and BNF)
De la réalité du monde à la sensibilité de l'écriture...
« Il faut que je retrouve une partie de mon ancien bonheur, se disait-elle ; celui que j'ai goûté longtemps et qui consistait tout entier à aimer les autres et à en être aimée. Le jour où j'ai cherché leur admiration, ils m'ont retiré leur amour, et j'ai payé trop cher les honneurs qu'ils ont mis à la place de leur bienveillance. Refaisons-nous donc obscure et petite, afin de n'avoir ni envieux, ni ingrats, ni ennemis sur la terre. La moindre marque de sympathie est douce, et le plus grand témoignage d'admiration est mêlé d'amertume. S'il est des cœurs orgueilleux et forts à qui la louange suffit et que le triomphe console, le mien n'est pas de ce nombre, je l'ai trop cruellement éprouvé».
George Sand
Extrait de Consuelo page 327, du tome premier de l'édition Charpentier 1845.
Illustrations : George Sand par Nadar (coll privée et BNF)
Consuelo (novel)
| Author | George Sand |
|---|---|
| Country | France |
| Language | French |
| Publisher | Louis de Potter |
Publication date
| 1842-1843 [1] |
Published in English
| 1850 [2] |
Consuelo is a novel by George Sand, first published serially in 1842-1843 in La Revue indépendante, a periodical founded in 1841 by Sand, Pierre Leroux and Louis Viardot. According to The Nuttall Encyclopædia, it is "[Sand's] masterpiece; the impersonation of the triumph of moral purity over manifold temptations."
The character of Consuelo was supposedly modeled after Louis Viardot's wife, the soprano Pauline Viardot. Pauline Viardot was a good friend of both Sand's and of her lover, Frédéric Chopin.
First sentence[edit]
"Go on then, young ladies, shake your heads at me, but I'll tell you this... the best behaved and the cleverest girl among you is... — no, I won't tell you who, because she is the only one of my class who has any modesty. I am afraid that if I pointed her out here, she would instantly lose that rare virtue. It is one that I wish the rest of you had more of..." —
Synopsis[edit]
Consuelo is a Spanish girl abandoned in Italy whose voice attracts the old maestro Porpora. Through him she is presented to Count Zustiniani. The latter, after her successful début on the stage, falls in love with her, but is repulsed. When her early lover Angoletto forgets her, Consuelo is sent by Porpora to the home of a German family in Bohemia. Her entrance into this household prepares the way for the sequel, La Comtesse de Rudolstadt (1843).[1]
Theatrical treatments[edit]
Two operas are based on this novel:
- Consuelo by Alfonso Rendano (1888)
- Consuelo by Giacomo Orefice (1895)
References[edit]
- ^ This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: . New International Encyclopedia. 1905.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Wood, James, ed. (1907). . The Nuttall Encyclopædia. London and New York: Frederick Warne.
External links[edit]
- The book on Project Gutenberg in French:
- (in French) Consuelo, audio version
- Consuelo at the Open Library. Includes English editions.
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