The Mexican 'Nightingale' reborn : Local resident writes Angela Peralta opera for Mazatlan stage

lossaltosonline.com

ednesday, 05 November 2014 00:07

Written by - Special to the Town Crier

Courtesy of Roger Bourland 
The opera composed by Los Altos resident Roger Bourland is scheduled to premiere Nov. 14 and 15 in Mazatlan, Mexico.

Thanks to Los Altos resident and composer Roger Bourland, the renowned 19th-century Mexican opera singer Angela Peralta will finally star at her eponymous theater in Mazatlan, Mexico, an opportunity she missed more than 130 years ago when she died of yellow fever.

An ensemble is scheduled to perform Bourland’s first grand opera, “The Dove and the Nightingale,” Nov. 14 and 15.

Bourland, who moved to Los Altos from Los Angeles three years ago with his husband, two dogs and two African gray parrots, has an extensive musical background. He previously taught at UCLA and has written many choral, chamber and orchestral works.

“The Dove and the Nightingale” (performed in Mazatlan in Spanish as “La Paloma y el Ruisenor”) is the story of Peralta’s final days in Mazatlan before her death, a whirlwind of opera tours, an illicit affair and jealous run-ins with her lover’s ex-wife.

Peralta, according to Bourland, “wanted to bring opera to her people in Mexico.” She led her opera company throughout Mexico, even performing in sand pits.

But Peralta never made it to the Mazatlan stage. Yellow fever, a random tragedy born in Panama’s mosquito-infested bilge water where Peralta’s boat docked, killed her and most of her troupe.

The story is not all tragic, though: On her death bed, Peralta finally marries the love of her life.

And with November’s performances, “she will finally sing in the (Angela Peralta) theater,” Bourland said.

An opera ‘for the people’

The opera has been a long time coming, and not just for Peralta. Bourland first stumbled on her story in 2003 on a trip to Mazatlan. He thought the story perfect fodder for opera.

“(The story is) quite beautiful and very accessible,” said Scott Dunn, orchestral conductor for the opera.

Bourland worked five years on the piece, researching the diva’s story and writing the music. Raul Rico Gonzalez, director of performance and the art school Cultura Mazatlan, loved the work in progress and decided to produce it.

The finished product takes some creative liberties with the story and operatic conventions. For example, the character of Rosa, Peralta’s lover’s ex-wife, is entirely fictional. Bourland wanted to explain Peralta’s long-standing affair with her lover, so he created another woman, also a singer – the dove to Peralta’s nightingale.

“Many people think she’s the most interesting person,” Bourland said of Rosa.

Bourland’s creativity also extends to the music, which boasts more melody than most music in 20th- and 21st-century operas.

“I want to write music and I want you to cry, I want you to get goosebumps, I want you to laugh,” Bourland said.

“I think people will be able to come out of the theater humming some tunes,” Dunn said.

Still, Bourland knows that writing catchier music instead of dramatic songs may not sit well with critics expecting a modernist opera.

“I’m not writing it for the New York Times critic,” he said. “It’s an opera for the people. … I think the audience will love it.”