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''Juha'' is a three-act opera by Aarre Merikanto, with a Finnish libretto by Aino Ackté based on the 1911 novel of the same name by Juhani Aho. Although completed by 1922, it was only finally staged at the music college in Lahti on 28 October 1963.〔Arni E. Juha. In: ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera''. Macmillan, London and New York, 1997.〕 The story is a drama of a love triangle: the older husband Juha, his young wife Marja, and her seducer the merchant Shemeikka. Set in the 1880s in Kainuu in northern Finland, the human tragedy is based around the harsh realities of a farming community and the clash of their lifestyle with the more worldly nomadic Karelians, represented by Shemeikka. ==Background== Ackté first offered the libretto to Sibelius, who, after two years, declined to set it, explaining in a letter to Ackté that he believed the text should be subservient to the ‘absolute music’ of the score, and he felt unable to achieve that with what he called Aho’s “masterpiece”.〔(Salmenhaara, Erkki. Jean Sibelius and The Tempest, 1993 (originally published in ''Finnish Music Quarterly'', 4, 1993.) ) Accessed 13 April 2011.〕 ''Juha'' was Merikanto's second opera, following ''Helena'' in 1912.〔Salmenhaara, E. Aarre Merikanto. In: ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera''. Macmillan, London and New York, 1997.〕 Having composed ''Juha'' from 1919 to 1922, Merikanto submitted it to the board of the national opera in Helsinki who were worried by its modernity. As he had no response from them, Merikanto withdrew the work and did not compose any further operas.〔 A ‘safer’ version was written by Leevi Madetoja and premiered at the Finnish National Opera in 1935.〔 The third act of Merikanto's version was broadcast on 3 December 1958, the year before the composer’s death. After the Lahti premiere ''Juha'' was accepted at the Finnish National Opera in 1967, leading to a recording for Finlandia, and a production at Savonlinna in 1971, revived the following year. A later production was toured to the Edinburgh Festival in 1987.〔Milnes R. 'Juha' renewed. ''Opera'', Festivals 2002, 32-35.〕 The opera has also been seen in Hagen, Evanston and Essen.〔(Häyrynen, Antti. Aarre Merikanto's Juha: The cornerstone of Finnish modern opera (Performance history) ). Accessed 13 April 2011.〕 A new production was mounted at Helsinki Opera House in December 2011.〔December Spotlight. ''Opera'', December 2011, p1540.〕 The music is most powerful when embodying the raw emotions of the characters: Juha's passive suffering, and his forgiveness for his wife contrasted with his wild rage when he attacks and cripples Shemeikka; Marja's love for Shemeikka and pain when he turns from her; Anja’s moving lyricism, whose love for Shemeikka is unrequited.〔(Oliver ME. CD review of recording conducted by Saraste. ''Gramophone'', August 1996. )〕 Janáček's terseness and Szymanowski’s richness are points of reference, although the composer has a unique voice his own.〔Allison J. Finland – Savonlinna; review. ''Opera'', October 2003, 1224-6.〕 One reviewer has even described the piece as “one of the great operas of the () century”.〔(Rickards G. CD review of Madetoja’s Juha. ''Gramophone'', November 1992. ) Accessed 13 April 2011.〕 However, although there are parallels with the Janáček of ''Jenůfa'' or ''Káťa Kabanová'', there is also a “high-Romantic, rhapsodic” use of the orchestra. Instrumental characterization of the cast is also used: Juha with brass and low woodwind, while Shemeikka’s sound world is bright and at times veristic; Marja is often accompanied by solo violin or flute. In the long third act interlude, the themes and instrumental colours of the three main protagonists are worked through sonata-form development.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Juha (Merikanto)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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