Bluebeard’s Castle: “Mystery” opera and the quest for wholeness

The Bartók opera Bluebeard’s Castle, with a libretto by the poet Béla Balázs, is a “mystery” in the old-fashioned sense of the term, rather far removed from the fairytale by Perrault. Both the ballad by Balázs and the music draw upon Transylvanian cultural sources, experimenting with integrating ancient and modern. The poetic structure of the songs turns the tale towards legend. Bartók’s treatment of the voices, orchestration, and use of archetypal musical structures transforms the legend into a myth, and reveals two kernels at its core. The name Kékszakállú (Bluebeard), treated as a vocal incantation for Judit, is a call to life. The word “castle” is associated with stone, paralysis, and the need to bring to life. Musical myths, in which Hermes is an actor, are characterized by a dynamic of reversal/inversion. Music, by bringing opposites together, serves as a force that organizes the whole.