musicians of old

Chapter 727 "Ship Shadow and Enemy Attack"!

"Woo--Woo--"

The alto oboe sobbed in the audience's ears, and the solo "Shepherd's Motive" was like a elegy to the dead.

A short and sad prelude, which leads to an even sadder string sound stream, with a complex rhythm interwoven with glissando, which reminds people of the gasps of the dying.

Act Three, the final curtain opens!

The gray bed, the quietly burning gas lamp, the narrow and old interior decoration; the knight Tristan lying on the bed, the squire Kuvenal standing dejectedly beside him, the old shepherd wearing blind glasses sitting on the edge of the steps

At the edge of the stage, withered trees and forests, dilapidated castle towers, and a castle gate covered in rubble can be vaguely seen.

It turns out that the camera of this scene has switched to the Brittany castle in Tristan's hometown.

The sad sound of the woodwind horns and the dusty civilian clothes worn by everyone in the castle can make people vaguely guess what it means for their fate after the taboo in the garden that night was exposed.

In the first scene, “On Death,” the blind shepherd sings a low recitative:

"Answer me, Kuvenal! My friend, is he not awake yet?"

The band's texture flowed slowly and painfully, Kuvenal held his sword, shook his head dejectedly and sang:

"If he wakes up, he will leave us forever.

If the 'doctor' doesn't show up, the only person who can help us

You still see nothing? Or no ships appearing on the sea?"

The shepherd then sang: “If that were the case, you would hear another tune, more joyful than the one I can play!

Now, tell me honestly, old friend. What happened to our master?"

"Don't ask, don't ask, you will never understand." Kuvenal glanced at the dying Tristan, then sighed, "Pay attention and observe carefully. If you see a ship, play the most cheerful and bright tune!"

There is no doubt that the dying Tristan longed to see Isolde again.

The lyrics of the servants and shepherds seem to be a hopeful wait, but the next moment, all kinds of terrifying "illusion" scenery appear on the stage!

First, all kinds of bizarre and hideous color blocks were swirling and floating everywhere, and suddenly Isolde seemed to be standing high behind Tristan again - still a girl in gorgeous princess clothes - Tristan tried his best to turn over and touch her, but only a pile of empty clothes was left.

Tristan, whose spirit had collapsed, finally struggled to sit up, but she appeared in those triangular or tetrahedral color clusters.

At a slightly wrong moment, Tristan, who was chasing her around, tried to hug her, but her body suddenly bled profusely, and her scarlet head rolled down! .

At that time, Tristan was stabbed in the vitals by Melotte's sword, and was demoted to a commoner and sent back home on the ship. He had been tossed around in the wind and rain all the way, and was now on his last legs.

This time he got out of bed, it was just a flash of inspiration caused by the hallucinations in his head.

"This potion! This potion! This horrible potion!

How furiously it surges in my spirit and brain!

There is no cure, no sweet death,

It will free me from the pain of desire!"

Tristan stumbled and sang in agony.

He recalled his childhood, his parents, how he became a knight, how he fought bravely on the battlefield, how he first met Isolde, and the moment when they drank the "poison" of atonement together.

When Tristan sang "That ship! It wanders on the sea forever!", his arms were shaking violently and his vocal cords tore out metallic high notes!

"Never, never, shall I find rest,

The night pushes me toward the day,

Endlessly tormenting me,

Expose it to the sun and let it admire it!"

The lights on the stage spun around, and Tristan suddenly woke up and shouted, "The terrible potion that brought me pain was made by me. I mixed it myself! I am enjoying sipping happiness!"

"Curse! The person who brewed you!" He roared to the sky and then fell to the ground unconscious.

"My master!" "Tristan!" Kuvenal and the shepherd exclaimed, and the final act came to the second scene, and white smoke and water vapor began to float on the stage.

This makes people feel a little cold and empty and anxious.

But things like smoke can easily make some viewers with rich imagination think of hopeful things like the "sailing" and "ships" mentioned just now!

Perhaps, Isolde is getting closer?

"Are you still alive? Has this curse taken you away?"

"Oh, God, no!" "He's still moving, he's still alive!"

The calls of the two people beside him changed from worry to joy, and the chromatic lines of the "Tristan Chord" and "Desire Motive" in the orchestra also underwent beautiful deformation, gently intertwining with the shepherds' songs.

"Haven't you seen the ship yet?"

Tristan was in a worse state when he woke up. The blood on his face was no different from that of a dead person, but he uttered a series of anxious questions -

“Kuvenal, what, you haven’t seen her yet?

You stupid guy, get to the watchtower!

I see it so clearly, don’t miss it!”

Kuvenar was also anxious. He climbed up the ladder and approached the blockhouse, panting with a frown on his face.

"Ha! That ship! I saw it approaching from the north!" At one moment Kuvenar finally breathed a sigh of relief and shouted excitedly!

"She is still alive and weaving my life?" Tristan trembled violently and stretched out his right arm.

"Look how bravely it sails and how its sails are blown up," Kuvenal sang in admiration.

"How does it track? How does it fly? That flag? That banner?"—"Merry and bright is the festive banner on the string!"

The two of them sang a compact male duet, and the lines formed by the strong sounds interspersed by the orchestra showed the audience the composer's superb counterpoint writing skills!

"Ah, joy! In the bright daylight, Isolde is coming to me!" - "Joy! Light!"

"Can you still see her?"—"The ship disappeared behind the rocks!"

"Behind the reef!? Is it dangerous!?" - "The waves are raging there, the ship will sink!" "Who is at the helm there?" - "The safest sailor!"

"Will he betray me? Will he be one of Mellot's men?" - "Trust him as much as you trust me!"

"You are a traitor too! Can you still see?" - ".Gone!"

Emotions and hopes rise and fall, just like the unpredictable and rough seas of a voyage.

"It's over, it's over!" Tristan sang in despair.

"No, it's here! It's here safely!" Kuvenar shouted again.

"Kuvenal, my most loyal friend! All my wealth and possessions are given to you today!" Tristan, whose mood was completely out of control, called the poor servant a "traitor" and then loudly praised his loyalty.

Hope is at hand.

It’s a pity that Tristan’s condition has really reached the end of its rope.

I've waited too long. It's really too long.

"She's there, she's waving!" Kuvenar reported what he saw, but in a blink of an eye he discovered that Tristan was not in a good condition. He had collapsed to the ground with a large pool of blood in front of him that he had just vomited!

He hurriedly dragged Tristan back to the bed.

"Oh, the sun."

"Oh, the day"

"Ah, the day is joyous and bright!"

"My blood is boiling, my body and mind are excited." During the dragging, Tristan's mind was already confused, his thoughts were intermittent, and he was in and out of coma several times.

"Tristan, my love!" The haunting soprano voice finally came from afar.

"What? I heard the light!?"

In his last moments, Tristan straightened his body and leaned forward, but he was too weak to sit up.

“Why, I heard there was a light?

Ha, lights! The lights are out!

Go to her! Go to her!"

When Isolde, dressed in plain clothes, appeared on stage, Fanning instructed the orchestra to play the "Light Motive".

The shepherds' cheerful flutes move up and down, while the glockenspiel and glass harmonica strike out in mirror-image series.

Its high-frequency overtones reflect and merge between the wooden walls of the theater, creating the illusion of an "angel chorus"!

".Isolde?" Tristan closed his eyes, breathed weakly, and sang his last line in this play.

He raised his right hand slightly, then turned his head slightly to the side, and there has been no sound since then!

"It's me, it's me, sweetest love!"

"Get up quickly and listen to my call again!" Isolde hugged him from behind, but found that he was already dead, and she couldn't help but feel excruciating pain!

Fatal wound, vast ocean, everything is too late!

"Must she now stand before you and call you,

The one who braved the ocean just to be with you for the pleasure of it?"

The sad soprano voice echoed in the theater!

“It’s too late, stubborn fellow.

Do you intend to punish me with this most severe punishment, without mercy for my painful crime?

Can I no longer tell you my complaints?

Just once, huh? Just once!"

Isolde burst into tears. She took off her coat and slowly covered Tristan's body.

"Kuvenal, listen!"

"Another ship is coming!!!"

The blind shepherd tapped the ground with his staff, and suddenly there came from the band the sound of solemn brass horns and short string vibrations!

A battle is about to break out!

The alert singing voice instantly awakened Kuvenal. He quickly climbed up the steps and looked into the distance.

"I recognized Mark and Mellotte!"

"Take up your weapons and stones, and help me! Go to the door!"

This loyal knight squire summoned his spirit and quickly entered a state of combat readiness!

The enemies were coming at an extremely fast speed, and in a blink of an eye, figures appeared in the depths of the stage.

"Mark is there with his men! Give up, we are outnumbered!" Several guards hurried over from the gate.

"Go back to your post and help!" Kuvenar shouted angrily.

The loyal attendant glanced at the distraught Isolde next to him, and then a look of determination emerged in his eyes. He paused the sword in his hand and sang with determination and resolution:

"As long as I'm alive, no one can come in!"

(End of this chapter)