来自其他艺术媒介的灵感

小琼：暑假过后，我回到了纽约，刻意避开歌剧领域，去了很多博物馆看展览。但当我来到大都会艺术博物馆，在去往著名的印象派画廊的路上时， 一尊奥古斯特·罗丹的大理石雕塑吸引了我的眼球， 让我突然又想起了歌剧！

小薇：艺术都是相互关联的。两个世纪前，歌德说过“音乐是流动的建筑，建筑是凝固的音乐”， 所以你看到雕塑会想到歌剧是完全合理的。是的， 我在你的照片中看到了歌剧史上的两位杰出人物： 奥菲欧和优丽迪茜。

小琼：是的，这个来自希腊神话的悲伤爱情故事确实让人类的脆弱永记史书：奥菲欧按照指引带着优丽迪茜走出冥界，却最终忍不住回头看看她是否还跟在身后。从蒙特威尔第（1607 年）到格鲁克（1762 年），甚至是离现在更近一些的马修·奥库安（2020 年），他们笔下创作出的音乐，让观众对这两个角色产生了巨大的共鸣。希腊神话真实地概括了人类的行为，正如中国神话告诉我们世界是如何形成的那样。

小薇：毕竟，奥菲欧作为音乐之神，显然是艺术领域的重要人物。罗丹的这件雕塑（创作于1893 年）生动地捕捉到一个非常戏剧性的瞬间。

小琼：当我们谈论音乐能够通过声音讲述故事这个问题时，罗丹的雕塑捕捉到了一个关键时刻， 强调了优丽迪茜的失重状态，仿佛飘浮在空中，她的头发与洞穴的墙壁交织在一起。你可以清晰地看到奥菲欧在入口处犹豫不决，并用手捂住了眼睛（遵照冥王哈迪斯的指示，在他们返回人间的路上奥菲欧不能看他的妻子）。

小薇：但这个悲剧的结局是如此著名：奥菲欧最终忍不住转身，而优丽迪茜永远消失了。在这座雕塑中，你可以看到奥菲欧的身体有开始转动的意图，而他遮在眼上的手也开始放松。

小琼：优丽迪茜看起来还没有完全走出洞穴（就像大理石背景中一样），但整体是具有失重感的。

小薇：这正好证明了伟大的故事能激发艺术家的创作。我们很幸运能看到这么多分享同一个主题的作品，并跨越了这么多不同的艺术媒介。

小琼：下次参观大都会艺术博物馆时，请在80 号展厅停下来，近距离地仔细看看这座罗丹的雕塑。它绝不会令人失望的！

Joan： I’ve been back in New York City after the summer holidays， avoiding opera and going to a lot of museum exhibitions. But while I was visiting the Metropolitan Museum of Art， on my way to the famous Impressionist galleries， an Auguste Rodin marble sculpture caught my eye and suddenly I was thinking about opera again！

Valery： The arts are all interrelated. Two centuries ago， Goethe said that “music is liquid architecture; architecture is frozen music，” so it makes perfect sense regarding opera and sculpture. And yes， I see in your photos two prominent figures in operatic history： Orpheus and Euridice.

Joan： Yes， this sad love story from Greek mythology literally immortalized human frailty： Orpheus guiding Euridice out of the underworld， unable to resist turning around to check if she is still there. Musical settings from Monteverdi （1607） to Gluck （1762）— or even more recently by Matthew Aucoin （2020）— create tremendous audience empathy for these two characters. Greek myths truly encapsulate human behavior， just as Chinese myths teach us about how our world is formed.

Valery： After all， Orpheus is the god of music， clearly an important figure in the arts. And this sculpture by Rodin （dating from 1893） expressively captures a very dramatic moment.

Joan： When we talk about music being able to tell stories through sound， Rodin’s sculpture captures a crucial moment emphasizing the weightlessness of Euridice， as if floating in air， her hair enmeshed with the cave walls. And you see Orpheus at the entrance hesitating， his hand over his eyes （following the instructions of Hades not to look at his wife on their way back to earth）.

Valery： But the tragic ending is so famous： he turns around and she disappears forever. In this sculpture， you can see his body beginning to turn， and the grip of his hand on his brow also beginning to loosen.

Joan： Euridice looks like she’s not quite out of the cave （as in the marble background）， yet there’s no sense of weight.

Valery： It just goes to prove that great stories inspire artists. We are so fortunate to see so many works that share the same subject， across so many different artistic media.

Joan： Next time anyone visits the Metropolitan Museum of Art， please stop by Gallery 80 and have a close look at this Rodin sculpture. You will not be disappointed！