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1. Mihail Jora, about Oedip

2. Subject of the opera (source 1)

3. Subject of the opera (source 2)

1. Mihail Jora, about Oedip (Top)

Never have I known an artist more passionately fond of his work and more steadfast in its pursuit than George Enescu.

He not only recommended the same steadfastness to everybody, but was the first to adopt it with unbounded joy and intense almost voluptuous delight. Here is what he wrote on the day he was sixty: "I shall not speak here of music, because music speaks for itself, but I will confess my cult for the great vital factor : work, everyday patient work, carried on in such a way that it should no longer be a painful effort but a useful pleasure. It sometimes happens that moral and material obstacles coming in a host should weaken your elan for work, and, after a while, make you miss that constant impulse that used to burn in your soul. Beware then and try by all means to overcome those obstacles; lock your door and see only your closest friends; impress on them the silence and the respect due to your work, to your time… Collect yourself, remember the infinite sweetness of living hours on end, immersed in your own activity". And further down : "Try it, you who have not felt the real sweetness of labor, you who hold the superstition that work is a burden devised, to make you pay for the right of living on our poor earth; try to work for the mere pleasure of concentrating your forces in a certain direction, and make the fruit of your work, ever richer, better and more beautiful".

This is therefore the high moral conception that Enescu had of the way an artist should make use of his time and creative power. His lifelong activity has illustrated this principle. In connection with the educational function of art in which he strongly believed, Enescu wrote these noble lines : "To dream usefully, to pursue an active controlled dream, this must be the artist’s goal". (Bernard Gavoty: "Les souvenirs de Georges Enesco" Paris 1955)

An artist who should be a guide and the bearer of a message, the man who sacrifices everything for the sake of his art and makes that art appeal to the hearts of the people, this is the true artist G. Enescu thought of; it is his own self as recorded by the example of his life and work.

When he wrote : "Nothing on earth attracted me, but music, music was my truth …", he confessed the devotion he felt for his art, for that "truth" as he called it, which he offered the people with ardor and humility. This great man who used to say : "I am here not to conquer, but to serve", never knew the sting of mean ambition and desires. He only wished to serve art and, by means of art, man he respected and believed in. Enescu always addressed people with exquisite politeness. His modesty was no disguised haughtiness, but a form of respect towards the people, and implicitly the mark of his confidence in man’s moral quality.

It is this love of man and trust in his moral features that Enescu has illustrated in the work of his life "Oedipus".

In this musical drama, whose libretto was all along influenced by the composer, one feels the working of a modern and powerful mind. Exceeding the brutal fatalism of Greek philosophy, but through the medium of its noble myths, Enescu’s "Oedipus" demonstrates man’s unlimited power, thus assigning him a new place in the cosmic economy and a new dignity in front of the surrounding world.

This musical drama and its problems preoccupied Enescu for a quarter of a century. It was the keystone of his career and of his thought. Here is what he himself confesses :

"I have often thought that any human life, be it successful or not, has its romance, its secret drama. My mainstring, my drama and my romance are all included in the three syllables which Sophocles rendered famous : "Oe-dip-us". It is not up to me to state whether Oedipus is or is not the most accomplished of my works. But I am fully entitled to say that it is the one I cherished most… I have put in it everything that was mine, up to the point of becoming almost identified with my hero… I did not want to make Oedipus a god, but a being of flesh and blood like you and me. And if certain notes which I endowed him with impressed some people, it is - I think - because they found in his drama a fraternal echo". (Bernard Gavoty: "Les souvenirs de Georges Enesco" Paris 1955)

Man’s drama facing and fighting destiny is deeply impressive. How awe-inspiring is for instance the scene when Oedipus and the Sphinx that slumbers like an implacable panther in a dim twilight (against the remote background of a nightmarish music) meet in a noble adversity. Oedipus has roused the monster and must answer his questions. And this is what the Sphinx asks :

It is true that the denouement of Enescu ‘s musical tragedy is more optimistic than that of Sophocle’s: in his last hour, the hero recovers his sight and asks Theseus to follow him to the sacred groves of Collonnos, where he will find supreme peace.

This rebel who denies having had any conscious participation in his crimes and who proclaims his innocence, curses the gods and charges with parricide all the Thebans who drove him our of their city, without asking themselves if he was guilty or responsible for his crimes.

"You are the parricides!" he addresses the Thebans. "I am innocent, innocent, innocent … My will was never in my crimes… I have overcome destiny, I have defeated the gods…" And this cry of triumph is underlined by the orchestra where the motif of man’s victory surges with utmost vigor.

Oedipus is not longer a vanquished man, but a victor. He has understood that man has not to account for his mistakes in front of the gods, but towards his own conscience. And when, confronted with his own self, ma acquires both a balance and the force to look the universe in the face, he has won the battle.

The very musical substance of the prelude of the drama is based on the exposition of three main themes : the motif of destiny, the motif of parricide and the motif of man’s victory. The latter will be, as we have already said, triumphantly emphasized in the last part of the drama.

We have stated above that nowhere in Enescu‘s work do is confidence in man’s moral nature and his love of man find better expression then they do in "Oedipus". The participation of the composer in his work was so effective that he ended by identifying himself not only with the main character, but even with the dramatic substance of the play. Here is what he tells us himself about the scene between the Sphinx and Oedipus:

"The moment when Oedipus, guessing the right answer, avoids the trap the Sphinx had laid for him, I had to go, by ways of music, beyond that which words could suggest, I had to create a state of almost unbearable tension. The Sphinx feels his end nearing and shrieks like a night-bird frightened by the hunter. I had to invent that shriek, to imagine the unimaginable. When I lay down my pen, after finishing that scene, I felt I would go mad…". (Bernard Gavoty: "Les souvenirs de Georges Enesco" Paris 1955)

Indeed, only such a fusion of the soul with the artistic substance can engender powerful and stirring works capable of rousing strong emotions in other men; and this is what Enescu aimed at.

The man in him was perfectly consistent with his outlook on man. His life itself has illustrated his conception. He was the first to carry out tasks he had recommended to others, and he even achieved things that few people could have achieved : he was never defeated, neither by circumstances nor by his own infirmities. When his shoulders were too weak for the violin and his arm had grown too feeble to hold the baton, he overcame his condition composing up to the last hour that wonderful Chamber-Symphony, and dreaming of many others.

The stream of thoughts, the fragments of high noble dreams that passed uninterruptedly trough his soul, like the waters of a mountain river, had to be materialized. They required both a state of great excitement and great anxiety.

"My days are numbered. There is not enough time left to me to say what I have to say. Yet never had I felt a greater desire to express my thoughts, never have I sensed in myself so many captive impulses that ask to be set free" (Bernard Gavoty: "Les souvenirs de Georges Enesco" Paris 1955). It is an extraordinary confession coming from a vigorous soul, whom a tired body was drawing towards the realm of darkness.

George Enescu’s death, the same as the death of Oedipus, was not an end in gloom but in brightness. Like his hero he won his dignity and his place of honor in the gallery of true man. Because he was not only a great artist, but a great man as well.

And if the sound of his violin or of his piano will henceforth never be heard alive on any stage of the world, in return his lofty thoughts, his sonorous dreams will always spring forth like founts of light towards immeasurable skies.

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2. Subject of the opera (source 1) (Top)

In the royal palace of Thebes, the people (warriors, shepherds, women) join in the festivities given in honor of the birth of King Laios's and Queen Jocasta's son. Just as the royal couple, at the High Priest's request, are about to name the infant, the aged and blind Tiresias interrupts the merry-making. Reproaching Laios for having disobeyed Apollo's injunction to bear no descendants, he reveals the gods' hideous punishment: one day, the new-born babe will murder his father and marry his mother! Appalled, Laios summons a shepherd and orders him to abandon the infant in the mountains.

Twenty years later. In King Polybus's and Queen Merope's palace in Corinth, the young Oedipus, filled with dark forebodings, refuses to take part in the games and the singing: he has just returned from the Delphic Oracle, who has revealed to him his terrible fate. He longs to flee the palace of his adoptive parents (whom he believes to be his actual mother and father). The queen sends her counselor, Phorbes, to him, but Oedipus refuses to reveal the cause of the torment. To Merope herself he expresses his doubt: someone had once called him a foundling. Merope protests; she is not to know that her true son died at birth and was replaced by Oedipus, whom the Shepherd had not the heart to abandon. Oedipus's desire to flee Corinth grows more intense, and he confides the real reason to Merope, who flees, appalled. Oedipus, left alone, decides to confound Destiny; he will leave Corinth and do his utmost to prevent the ghastly prophecy from coming true.

At the crossroads guarded by the statue of Hecate, the Shepherd who once saved Oedipus's life tends his herd under a menacing storm. Oedipus appears, and hesitates over which road to take. He is even tempted to return to Corinth, since for three nights now he has no longer been visited by terrifying dreams. A violent flash of lightning brings him to a standstill: he suspects a trap, and brandishing his club, curses the gods who persecute him. At that moment, Laios emerges on his chariot from one of the roads; roughly demanding right of way, he insults and strikes Oedipus, who is self-defense brings the club down and kills Laios and his two companions. as the storm finally breaks, he takes flight. The awestruck Shepherd takes stock of what has happened.

Outside the date of Thebes, the Sphinx, a blook-thirsty monster in the form of a winged lioness with a woman's head, crouches. She exacts tribute from the Thebans, and kills all those who cannot answer her riddle. Oedipus offers to confront her, and thus save the city. The watchman reveals to him that he who defeats the Sphinx shall be made King of Thebes and receive Laios's recently widowed queen, Jocasta, as wife. Oedipus rouses the Sphinx, who asks the perennial question: what is greater than Destiny? Oedipus, filled with courage, does not hesitate; man is stronger than Destiny! Mortally defeated, the Sphinx breaks into a deathly laugh and dies uttering the disquieting phrase, `The future will tell thee whether the dying Sphinx weeps in her defeat or laughs in her victory!' But the city celebrates its liberation with a triumphant reception for Oedipus, who is offered the crown; and with it Jocasta's hand.

Another twenty years have passed. Having thrived under Oedipus's reign in peace and prosperity, Thebes is now stricken with the plague. Jocasta's brother, Creon, sent to Delphi to consult the Oracle, returns with the gods' verdict: the plague will only stop when Laios's murderer, who is actually in the city, has been unmasked and punished. Creon has also summoned the old Shepherd, witness of the crime, as well as the soothsayer Tiresias. Oedipus swears to uncover the culprit, who will be exiled if he gives himself up, but otherwise cursed and thrown to the wrath of the gods. Tiresias, disturbed, remains silent. But when Oedipus's suspicions fall on him, the blind old soothsayer points at Oedipus himself. Oedipus, believing this to be a plot hatched by Creon to usurp the throne, drives both Tiresias and Creon away. Meanwhile, Jocasta, as she tries to soothe him, describes the place and circumstances of Laios's murder, and thus plants in Oedipus a horrible suspicion of the truth. The Shepherd confirms this, and then Phorbas, come to fetch Oedipus to succeed Polybus in Corinth, reveal that Polybus and Merope were only his adoptive parents. With all the pieces of the infernal puzzle now assembled, Oedipus at last understands. After Jocasta, horrified at being her son's wife, has committed suicide, Oedipus emerges from the palace with his face smeared in blood: to punish himself for these abominable crimes, even though he does not bear the guilt for them, he has plucked out his eyes. Condemned to exile by Creon and his men - for this is the only way to save the city - Oedipus accedes, but he does not depart alone: Antigone, his favorite daughter, will share his wanderings and guide his footsteps.

More years have passed. The scene is a flowery grove near Athens, where peace and justice reign under Theseus the Wise with the protection of the benevolent Eumenides, once the ferocious Furies. Bent with age, Oedipus appears, led by Antigone, who describes the spot to him. He senses that it is the end of his long road: here he will peacefully die. Suddenly Creon bursts in: Thebes is again under threat, and he offers Oedipus the throne back. When Oedipus indignantly refuses, Creon seizes Antigone as hostage. She is saved by the arrival of Theseus and the Athenians. Creon then attempts to smear Oedipus with insults, but Oedipus protests; always with all his might, he has fought the infernal trap laid by the gods; he is innocent, he has conquered Destiny. The wise men of Athens drive Creon away, give justice to Oedipus and allow him to end his days peacefully with them. Oedipus then takes leave of everyone, even his beloved Antigone: followed only by Theseus, he walks through the moss and the flowers, his eyesight restored (`I, who had to be led, shall lead in my turn'), to the spot where he will die in a blaze of light.

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3. Subject of the opera (source 2) (Top)

In the royal palace of Thebes, the birth of a son to King Laios and his wife Jocasta is being celebrated. The people – warriors, shepherds, women-are dancing and rejoicing at the event. When the dance is over, the High Priest asks the parents of the new born :

so that he should for ever live?

In their turn, Jocasta and Laios ask :

Jocasta :

Laios :

At this very moment, a moaning breaks abruptly the merry atmosphere : the one who wails is the old, blind prophet Tiresias. He chides Laios for having disregarded Apollo’s commandment not to let this child de born :

Asked about the fate of the child, Tiresias announces the merciless will of the Gods, to punish the fact that Laios defied their command.

And father to his brothers.

Tiresias leaves, and the people follow him horrified. Laios calls a shepherd to whom he entrusts the child :

Twenty years have passed. In the palace of Polybus and Merope of Corinth, Oedipus listens the songs which come from afar : the people are making merry, But the young man is haunted by gloomy thoughts . Under the obsession of the crime which has been prophesized, Oedipus wants to flee form the house of Polybus and Merope whom he believes to be his parents, so as to escape from the fate which awaits him. His love for his parents, the people and the places of his childhood prevents him from leaving, but, on the other hand, the fear that the prediction might come true urges him to fly as far as possible from the land where he spend his youth.

Realizing his anxiety, Merope sends her counselor Phorbas to find out the cause of her son’s moral torments, and to invite him to the feast. Oedipus stubbornly refuses to join the party and does not answer to the questions of Phorbas. Merope then decides to come and see for herself. Deeply worried she asks Oedipus :

Oedipus tells her that at a banquet, somebody called him : "Foundling" and asks Merope swears he is her son . And in truth, she did not know that her own child had died immediately after birth and had been secretly replaced by Laios’ son whom the shepherd of Thebes had not had the courage to kill. Hearing the oath of the woman he believed to be his mother. Oedipus still persists in his decision to lave Corinth. He discloses to Merope the horrible secret : once when preparing to offer a sacrifice to Apollo, the Delphi oracle told him :

Horrified, Merope flies, while Oedipus announces his decision to face destiny and to struggle in order to prevent the fulfilling of the prophecy :

At a crossing of three roads, above which towers the ancient statue representing the three-faced goddess Hecate, the shepherd who, twenty years before had given the infant Oedipus to Phorbas, plays the flute while watching over his herd in the midst of solitude . A frightful storm suddenly breaks out. The frightened goats disperse, and the shepherd runs to bring them back together. There comes Oedipus, the wanderer, who had left Corinth in order to prevent the fulfillment of the prophecy. He hesitates, not knowing which of the three roads he should take.

Is that your justice, powerful Gods?

To the sun!

At this very moment, Laios and two men in escort appear on one of the three roads. Seeing Oedipus in his way, the King asks him to let the road free, he insults him and tries to strike him with his scepter. Defending himself, Oedipus hits Laios with the mace he was carrying in his hand. The King falls dead, and his guards who assault Oedipus are also slain. Oedipus vanishes while the storm grows stronger.

The shepherd, the horrified witness of this scene, runs towards the spot where the tragedy took place, and stooping over the three victims finds out, to his horror, that Laios and his two companions are dead.

A great misfortune has befallen the Theban city. A dreadful Sphinx, a monster with a woman’s face, a lion’s body and the wings of a bird, stands at the gates of the city demanding ever new human sacrifices. Stopping the passers by on their way, the monster compels everybody to answer "questions which cannot be solved". But as nobody could find the clue to his riddles, the people perished, torn by his merciless claws. In his turn, the Sphinx is to perish himself as soon as a mortal gives him the right answer.

Hearing about the sufferings of the Thebans, Oedipus decides to face the monster and free the city of this calamity. He passes near the watchman of the city who laments over the fate of the inhabitants of Thebes, and courageously approaches the Sphinx, having made up his mind to solve the mystery. The watchman informs him that the rulers of the city have decided that the man who will rid Thebes of the Sphinx shall get the crown and at same time the hand of the beautiful Jocasta, the widow queen.

Roused from his deep slumber, the Sphinx faces Oedipus threateningly :

Telling Oedipus of the blind power of destiny which exceeds even that of the Gods, the Sphinx asks the question :

Oedipus has not a moment of wavering. Thinking of his own struggle waged against destiny, he answers sure of himself :

On hearing the answer, the Sphinx bursts out in mocking laughter but gradually the laughter turns into a wail of agony : Oedipus had solved the mystery which had cost the lives of so many people.

The Sphinx dies, defeated by Oedipus. The day breaks and the sound of brass bands comes from the city. Full of joy, the people cheer the saviour of their city. In the midst of the general enthusiasm, Creon, Jocasta's brother, sets the crown on the head of Oedipus, proclaiming him King of Thebes and husband of Jocasta.

Many years have elapsed since Oedipus was elected King of Thebes. Under his wise reign the people enjoyed a long period of peace and prosperity. But a new misfortune befell Thebes, killing young and old ; the plague has turned the city into a huge graveyard.

Funerals permanently pass along the streets, carrying the victims of the disease to the place of incineration. Mourning over the dead, the afflicted people implore the assistance of the King. Oedipus answers that he waits for the return of Creon, whom he has sent to Delphi to ask Apollo how the city can be saved from the distress. Creon arrives and announces the will of the Gods: to save people from the scourge of the plague, the murderer of Laios who dwells within the city walls must be found and punished.

Creon adds that he was summoned before the King the shepherd who had once been the witness of Laios’ murder; he had also summoned the old Tiresias, the blind man who knows the past and sees into the future. Oedipus orders that all measures should be taken to find the murderer, suggesting that the later should present himself of his own free will.

Enters Tiresias. The crowd respectfully makes room for him. But Tiresias refuses tot answer the King’s questions. The King charges the old man with the murderer of Laios, unable to find any other reason for his silence. Finally Tiresias tells Oedipus:

Believing that the words of Tiresias are inspired by Creon who wants to bereave him of his throne, Oedipus banishes them both. In her endeavour to calm his anger, Jocasta discloses to Oedipus the conditions in which Laios was murdered at the crossing of three roads, thus unwittingly instilling for the first time in the soul of her husband, the suspicion that he himself might be guilty of the murder. The shepherd called by Creon confirms the words of Jocasta, while Phorbas, sent by Polybus and Merope to take Oedipus back to Corinth, reveal the truth in connection with his birth.

Thus, putting together the remembrances of the shepherd – who had not only witnessed the murder of Laios, but was the very person who had saved the infant Oedipus from death, taking him to Corinth – with the assertions of Phorbas and his own remembrances, Oedipus realizes that he is the son of Laios and Jocasta, and hence the murderer of his father and his mother’s husband.

Horrified, Jocasta kills herself, and Oedipus crushed by the revelation of the crimes committed against his will, puts out his own eyes, submitting himself to the severest sentence. With a bleeding face he appears in front of the crowd :

Creon and his men demand that Oedipus should take the road of exile :

In deep sorrow, Oedipus bids farewell to his children and takes the road of exile, in order to save the city from the plague. In her filial love, Antigona, his dearest daughter, offers to accompany him.

While the people deplore the misfortunes which have befallen Thebes, Oedipus and Antigona leave the city.

A blossoming grove in the neighborhood of Athens, where King Theseus reigns, ruling wisely over his people. Followed by some counsellors he strolls about the grove. Oedipus, guided by Antigona, and bowed with age and wanderings arrives on the spot. She describes him the surroundings :

Oedipus decides to remain there putting an end to his wanderings. Bur here comes Creon, accompanied by some Thebans. Artfully he addresses Oedipus :

But Oedipus remains unflinching:

Seeing that his sham friendliness cannot deceive Oedipus, Creon tries to ravish Antigona, so as to force the old man to follow him, in order to save Thebes from the new misfortunes which it has been afflicted with. Antigona’s cries for help are heard by Theseus, who comes accompanied by some Athenians. Creon tries to detract Oedipus in the eyes of Theseus :

Oedipus protests against these charges being conscious of his innocence :

To save the lives

I have defeated the Gods!

The Athenians, brought up in spirit of respect for man’s civic dignity and belief in man’s responsibility, consider Oedipus is right and approve that the miserable wanderer, whose life was an uninterrupted struggle with Destiny, should remain in their city. They drive away Creon and his men.

Feeling death near, Oedipus, however, takes leave from the Athenians, and even from Antigona, his devoted guide :

With the peace of mind of one who has fought blind Fate and vanquished it, Oedipus invites Theseus to follow him among the flowers and weeds, and to listen to the sweet voices of spring brooks, towards the place where he will pass away in a flood of light.

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