Dangerous Liaisons: The Music
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| Full Libretto |
| Complete Original Concept Recording |
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| 3-CD Collectors Edition |
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| Piano/Vocal Songbook |
On Composing the Score to Dangerous Liaisons
by Malcolm Caluori
This is a period story, and when Johnathan
and I took on the project, we decided almost immediately to keep it in its original setting. This
decision led me to make several choices about how I wanted the music to sound, and the show itself to feel. With
any period in history comes a period in musical history. With this show, at least as far as the setting
is concerned, we are dealing with the specific musical atmosphere of the French Baroque, bringing with it a rich milieu of
developing musical forms, the birth of chamber music and, handily enough, a strong social and artistic focus on the phenominal
rise of the opera.
This
Dangerous Liaisons is
not a period piece; it is not a Baroque opera. But, absent television and radio, there was a strong convergence
of music with the life of the eighteenth century aristocrat, needful of entertainment. I felt that it was not
only necessary, but also inevitable that the taste of the score should involve more than just mere indications of the music
of the period. It was important to embroider the sounds of the time into the score in order to take the audience
into the world of these characters.
So in the (unapologetically tonal) score one
can expect the drama of each scene to be told using musical devices of our own time, but tinged with, say, rhythms characteristic
to the period, and the sounds of a harpsichord, or perhaps a pair of recorders. Further, there are no low brass
instruments in the orchestration, only horns and a single trumpet. The style is lyric drama. A number of orchestral interludes
and theavy use of arioso and parlante further blurs the lines between opera and musical theatre, and a strong
nod to Baroque recitative helps to lend a sense of period. You'll find, also, parody of the comic opera
buffa, and the occasional spoken line glancing toward French opéra comique. The score includes instances
of rondeau, minuet, and chamber music in the style of the French Baroque; and I especially enjoyed writing the polyphony
of the several vocal ensembles, also derived from operatic technique.
Perhaps the boldest statement made with regard
to this sensibility is to be found in the Intermedio. An entire structural element unto itself, it presents the back-story
of the Marquise. Independent of the ongoing plot, this important background is presented between the two acts, in the form
of a variety of vignettes involving situation drama and dance, reminiscent of the intermezzi that were performed between the
acts of operas in the Baroque period, though musically it is very different. As the Italian term intermezzo evolved
in meaning to later include purely instrumental works, I deliberately chose the older term intermedio, in order to
specifically invoke the original practice of the mini-drama given between acts.
But even considering such stylistic references,
the score also features lullaby, patter song, two big waltz numbers, Latin chant, liebestod, a mad scene, even barbershop
quartet. As composer, still the drama itself must always come first. Any special elements employed should be selected and
used in the service of telling the story. And this story, in particular, is so dense that there really is no room for empty
indulgeance. Everything packed into the score must be functional, efficient and revealing, as well as imaginative
and entertaining. Caught in a reality where one either misleads or is misled, the characters presented in Johnathan's libretto
are deeply human, each navigating insecurity in a unique way. The many-layered quality of this timeless story - dynamic layers
of character, atmosphere, facade and psychology - well befits today's eclectic artistic expression. Our workboxes are now
stocked with such variety, of style, of color, of technique; the game of choosing for the dramatic need at hand has made this
score a joy to create.
As well as composing and orchestrating the score to Dangerous Liaisons, Malcolm Caluori also cast and produced
the Original Concept Recording, directed the music and vocalists and personally oversaw the coordination of all aspects of the recording process, including
sound design and effects, editing, mixing, mastering, and graphic design.
The Complete Original Concept Recording
Complete, every note. It's just like sitting in on the whole show!
This 3CD set, the only recording available of the original version in its entirety, includes
liner notes with a full reprint of Johnathan Daniel Steppe's intricate and compelling original libretto, and features Malcolm
Caluori's dramatic draft orchestrations. The talented cast includes Shaun Whitley's amazing Valmont and powerhouse
Maura Carey Neill as the Marquise.
Official Selections (Piano/Vocal)
Specially adapted authoritative arrangements by the composer. 2nd Edition
A unique volume, the Dangerous Liaisons Official Selections
contains solos and duets for all voice types, hand chosen by the librettist and composer. Based on the original orchestrations,
the arrangements have been specially adapted by the composer himself specifically for independant vocal performance with piano.
A distinctive (and affordable) joy for professionals and musical theatre enthusiasts alike!
Limited Time, save over
45% when you get the Dangerous Liaisons CD!
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here to learn more about this item.
The Intermedio (In Full score)
The unforgettable Reflections sequence, including its Prelude.
The original version of the powerful "Intermedio" from Dangerous
Liaisons, in Full Score. Music by Malcolm Caluori. Libretto by Johnathan Daniel Steppe. For solo mezzo-soprano, mixed
voices and orchestra. The Marquise de Merteuil recounts a series of brief episodes from her life and childhood in a dramatic
explanation of her wickedness.
~ RUNNING ORDER ~
1. PROLOGUE: The Vow
A. Andiamo Udire il Mare
B. At the Opera
C. Volanges’ Supper Party
D. Gercourt – The Vow
ACT I
3. Correspondences:
A. The Shoemaker
B. The Warning to Tourvel
C. Like a Rosebud
D. Something More Than Love
4. Madame de Tourvel
5.
The Deal
6. The Chevalier
Dançeny
7.
Hunting
8.
The Village
9.
I Found a Letter
10.
Valmont’s Arrival
11. Mail
12. The Game
13. The Plan
14. In the Garden
15. The Meeting – If Only
16. A Quandary
17. Merteuil’s Recitative
18. Letters from Dançeny
19. Unfinished Work – If He Were
Here
20. Merteuil’s
Success
21. Correspondences
(Reprise): “Guardian Angel”
22. Valmont’s Return
23. Confrontations
24. The Garden Song
25. The Fires Within
26. The Key
27. She Closes Her Eyes
28. The Seduction
29. A Simple Time
30. Cécile’s Confession
31. Finale: Secrets
INTERMEDIO 32. Prelude
33. Reflections
ACT II
34. The Storm
35. The Nature of Man
36. Valmont’s Recitative
37. Rumors
38. Seasons Running From Ourselves
39. Forever
40. A Heart to Run to
41. The Lioness
42. Valmont’s Success
43. Motherhood
44. Correspondences:
A.
Friendship and Love
B.
When My Heart’s Most Torn
C.
An Episode in Secrecy
D.
A Story
45. Speak Gently
46. The Game (Reprise)
47. It’s Not My Fault
48. Soliloquy
49. Promise Me Anything
50. The Argument
51. Salve Regina – The Veil is Torn
52. The Duel
53. When Silence Reigns
