Entr’acte Entry Points

Divided into four short acts, Carmen makes brilliant use of entr’actes, or musical interludes, to forge musical transitions among the distinct settings in which each act takes place: a border crossing, a party in the back of a tractor trailer, a mountain pass, and outside a rodeo. Along with the opera’s famous prelude, these entr’actes frame the dramatic action to follow, establishing important themes or motifs or setting the tone for upcoming scenes accompanying extended dance sequences.  

In this activity, students will be led through a series of “listening maps,” or visual designs that organize, highlight, or classify various elements of a piece of music. Each listening map will be dedicated to either the prelude or one of the opera’s entr’actes and focus on a particular aspect of the score: theme, orchestration, and dynamics. Finally, students will have the chance to design their own listening maps for an additional section of Carmen, emphasizing whatever characteristics of the piece they find most interesting.  

STEP 1. REVIEW  

Begin by going over the musical structure of the opera, which comprises four acts and a prelude. Acts I, II, and III are each followed by an entr’acte (French for “between the act”), a short musical interlude that serves to transition between larger sections of a play or musical work. You might encourage students to brainstorm why a composer like Bizet might include entr’actes in an opera like Carmen. Ask:  

• What dramatic purpose does an entr’acte serve? Why might it be useful or impactful to divide the acts of an opera with different pieces of music?  
• How might entr’actes serve a theatrical purpose? Are the settings on either side of each interlude the same? Why might the scenic design be relevant to the use of musical interludes?  
• What could be the musical reasons for including entr’actes? If they are accompanied by dance sequences or some other kind of choreography, what purpose might that serve?  

STEP 2. LISTEN  

First, distribute the handouts included with this guide. There are individual listening maps for the prelude and first and third entr’actes, as well as a blank template for students to design their own visualization of the second entr’acte.  

Have students turn to the first map handout and play the opera’s prelude (Track 8) until the “fate motif,” when the score suddenly shifts from A major to D minor. Students should listen as they follow along with the prelude listening map. You are welcome to play the piece multiple times until students feel like they know it well.  

The prelude listening map highlights the piece’s use of phrasing and theme. Each image of a horse represents a phrase, and the position or appearance of each horse (i.e., whether it’s running at full speed or walking steadily) suggests the musical character of that phrase. Rearing horses, meanwhile, represent cadences or ends of phrases—which can be enlarged or extended depending on the case. The sizes of the individual horses can also indicate dynamics.  

Once the class has listened to the prelude multiple times, you can open a class discussion about how they understood the map. Ask: 

• What aspects of the piece does this diagram represent? 
• How many sections are there in this part of the prelude? Do any of them repeat? 
• What does each image represent? Why are some of the horses different? Why are some running, while others are walking? Why are some standing on two legs? Why are some smaller or larger? 
• Why does this map use images of horses to represent musical phrases? (It begins with the primary motif from the “Toreador Song” in Act II!) 
• Are there any similarities or differences among the individual phrases, for example in terms of length, structure, or tone?  

After covering the prelude, move on to the Act I entr’acte (Track 9) and distribute the corresponding listening map, which focuses on orchestration. As with the previous excerpt, have students listen to the piece several times while following along on their maps. They are welcome to take notes or make observations on their handouts.  

Once the class has listened to the first entr’acte multiple times, you can open a class discussion about how they understood the map. Ask:  

• What aspects of the piece does this diagram represent? 
• Do you recognize any of the images used in the map? If so, what are they? Do they clue us in to what elements of this piece the visual is conveying? 
• How many sections are there in the first entr’acte? Do any of them repeat? 
• Which instruments are used most frequently in this interlude? Which are used together, and which on their own? 
• How does this choice of instruments contribute to the sound of the piece? Would it feel or sound different if played on different instruments?  

Finally, students can continue to the Act III entr’acte (Track 10). Distribute the corre- sponding listening map, which focuses on dynamics, and have students listen to the piece several times while following along with their handouts.  

Once the class has listened to the third entr’acte multiple times, you can open a class discussion about their understanding of the map. Ask:  

• What aspects of the piece does this diagram represent?  
• Do you recognize any of the images used in the map? If so, what are they? Do they clue us in to what elements of this piece the visual is conveying?  
• How many sections are there in the third entr’acte? Do any of them repeat?  
• How does the structure of this piece compare to the first two examined? Is it more or less complex?  
• How does the dynamic organization of the entr’acte contribute to the sound or tone of the piece? How might it sound with different dynamics?  

STEP 3. DESIGN  

After listening to the three tracks and learning how various kinds of listening maps can highlight distinct elements of individual pieces, students are now ready to create their own interpretive diagrams. Distribute the final handout, which is a blank listening map template for the Act II entr’acte, with one section dedicated to each appearance of the main theme. Then, have students listen to the piece (Track 11) several times before they begin designing. In fact, you may decide to play the piece on a loop while students are brainstorming their own maps. You can also distribute colored pencils or markers or other craft materials if students would like to use them.  

Before students begin designing, encourage them to consider the following questions:  

• What is the structure of this entr’acte?  
• How many sections are there? Do any repeat?  
• What aspect of this piece do they want to highlight?  
• How will they visually represent that element (e.g., with a particular image, color, text)?  
• Are there any elements from the previous maps that they would like to include in their own?  
• Are there any elements from the previous pieces that those maps didn’t highlight? How would their own map convey that aspect of this piece?  
• How can they make sure other students could read and understand their map?  

STEP 4. SHARE  

When every student has finished their listening map, invite them to share with the class. Encourage other students to try to guess what each map is highlighting and how its imagery works. Did any students focus on similar elements of the piece? Do any maps seem to contradict each other? You can also ask the class what they found most difficult about the exercise, and if they would do anything differently if they had another chance to complete it.

If students are using laptops, tablets, or other devices in class, you can invite them to create their own listening maps with software like PowerPoint or Keynote or online resources like Canva. Or, for a homework assignment, you can ask students to select an additional section from Carmen—for example, an aria or chorus number—and have them complete a digital listening map using any kind of visualization tool they find useful. In addition, students can submit a written portion describing how their listening map works and why they chose to analyze that particular piece.