Griselda (Antonio Maria Bononcini): Difference between revisions

Griselda
Griselda
Opera by Antonio Maria Bononcini
	The composer
Librettist	Apostolo Zeno
Language	Italian
Based on	Boccaccio's The Decameron (X, 10, "The Patient Griselda")
Premiere	19 January 1718; Teatro Regio Ducale, Milan

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Griselda is an opera (dramma per musica) in three acts composed by Antonio Maria Bononcini. The opera uses a slightly revised version of the 1701 Italian libretto by Apostolo Zeno that was based on Giovanni Boccaccio's The Decameron (X, 10, "The Patient Griselda").^[1] The opera was dedicated to Prince Maximilian Karl von Löwenstein, the Austrian governor of Milan, who died during the opera's world première on 26 December 1718 at the Teatro Regio Ducale in Milan. Nevertheless, Bononcini's opera was well received and enjoyed several revivals during the eighteenth century.

His brother, Giovanni Bononcini, wrote an even more popular version of his own to Zeno's libretto in 1722.^[2]

Roles[edit]

Roles, voice types, premiere cast
Role	Voice type	Premiere cast^[3] 26 December 1718
Griselda, wife of Gualtiero	soprano	Aurelia Marcello
Gualtiero, King of Thessaly	contralto (originally a castrato)	Domenico Tempesti
Roberto, brother of Corrado	soprano (en travesti)	Eleonora Scio
Corrado, Prince of Apulia	tenor	Giovanni Battista Pinacci
Costanza, missing daughter of Griselda and Gualtiero	contralto	Agata Landi
Ottone, a Sicilian nobleman	bass	Luca Mingoni

Synopsis[edit]

Detail from *The Story of Patient Griselda*, painted circa 1500

Act 1[edit]

Years before the action begins, Gualtiero, King of Sicily, had married a poor shepherdess, Griselda. The marriage was deeply unpopular with the king's subjects and when a daughter, Costanza, was born, the king had to pretend to have her killed while secretly sending her to be brought up by Prince Corrado of Apulia. Now, faced with another rebellion from the Sicilians, Gualtiero is forced to renounce Griselda and promises to take a new wife. The proposed bride is in fact Costanza, who is unaware of her true parentage. She is in love with Corrado's younger brother, Roberto, and the thought of being forced to marry Gualtiero drives her to despair.

Act 2[edit]

Griselda returns to her home in the countryside where she is pursued by the courtier Ottone, who is in love with her. She angrily rejects his advances. Gualtiero and his followers go out hunting and come across Griselda's cottage. Gualtiero foils an attempt by Ottone to kidnap Griselda and allows her back to the court, but only as Costanza's slave.

Act 3[edit]

Ottone still resolutely pursues Griselda and Gualtiero promises him her hand as soon as he himself has married Costanza. Griselda declares she would rather die and, moved by her faithfulness, Gualtiero takes her back as his wife. He reveals the true identity of Costanza and allows her to marry Roberto.

Sources[edit]

^ The Oxford Dictionary of Opera, by John Warrack and Ewan West (1992), 782 pages, ISBN 0-19-869164-5
^ Malcolm Boyd, Lowell Lindgren: "Griselda (i)", Grove Music Online ed. L. Macy (Accessed November 21, 2008), (subscription access)
^ Casaglia, Gherardo (2005). "Griselda, 26 December 1718". L'Almanacco di Gherardo Casaglia (in Italian).

External links[edit]

Libretto

[Oxford-1] The Oxford Dictionary of Opera, by John Warrack and Ewan West (1992), 782 pages, ISBN 0-19-869164-5

[Grove-2] Malcolm Boyd, Lowell Lindgren: "Griselda (i)", Grove Music Online ed. L. Macy (Accessed November 21, 2008), (subscription access)

[3] Casaglia, Gherardo (2005). "Griselda, 26 December 1718". L'Almanacco di Gherardo Casaglia (in Italian).

[1]

[2]

[3]

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+{{Infobox opera
-'''''Griselda''''' is a [[dramma per musica]] in three acts that was composed by [[Antonio Maria Bononcini]]. The [[opera]] uses a slightly revised version of the 1701 Italian [[libretto]] by [[Apostolo Zeno]] that was based on [[Giovanni Boccaccio]]'s ''[[The Decameron]]'' ([[Summary_of_Decameron_tales#Tenth_tale_.28X.2C_10.29|X, 10]], "The Patient Griselda"). The opera was dedicated to Prince [[Maximilian Karl von Löwenstein]], the [[Austrian people|Austrian]] governor of [[Milan]], who sadly died during the opera's world première on 26 December 1718 at the [[Regio Ducal Teatro]] in [[Milan]].
+| name              = Griselda
+| composer          = [[Antonio Maria Bononcini]]
+| image             = Antonio Maria Bononcini.jpg
+| image_upright     = 0.7
+| caption           = The composer
+| librettist        = [[Apostolo Zeno]]
+| language          = Italian
+| based_on          = Boccaccio's ''[[The Decameron]]'' ([[Summary of Decameron tales#Tenth tale (X, 10)|X, 10]], "The Patient Griselda")
+| premiere_date     = {{Start date|1718|01|19|df=y}}
+| premiere_location = [[Teatro Regio Ducale]], Milan
+}}
+'''''Griselda''''' is an [[opera]] (''[[dramma per musica]]'') in three acts composed by [[Antonio Maria Bononcini]]. The opera uses a slightly revised version of the 1701 Italian [[libretto]] by [[Apostolo Zeno]] that was based on [[Giovanni Boccaccio]]'s ''[[The Decameron]]'' ([[Summary of Decameron tales#Tenth tale (X, 10)|X, 10]], "The Patient Griselda").<ref name="Oxford">''The Oxford Dictionary of Opera'', by [[John Warrack]] and Ewan West (1992), 782 pages, {{ISBN|0-19-869164-5}}</ref> The opera was dedicated to Prince [[Maximilian Karl Albert, Prince of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rochefort|Maximilian Karl von Löwenstein]], the Austrian governor of Milan, who died during the opera's world première on 26 December 1718 at the [[Teatro Regio Ducale]] in Milan. Nevertheless, Bononcini's opera was well received and enjoyed several revivals during the eighteenth century.
+His brother, [[Giovanni Bononcini]], wrote an even more popular [[Griselda (Giovanni Bononcini)|version of his own]] to Zeno's libretto in 1722.<ref name="Grove">Malcolm Boyd, Lowell Lindgren: "Griselda (i)", ''[[Grove Music Online]]'' ed. L. Macy (Accessed November 21, 2008), (subscription access)</ref>
-==Music==
-Bononcini's revised version of  Zeno’s original text is for the most part not much different for he only deleted or altered a handful of the original 34 [[arias]]. The superbly wrought score shows off Bononcini's usual strengths for [[musical texture|textural]] depth and [[contrapuntal]] complexity, two elements essential for any master composer of the [[baroque]] era. Yet, in spite of its frequent Baroque textural complexities, Bononcini began to experiment with [[Classical period (music)|classical music]] features and pre-classical features predominate in the opera. For example, two thirds of the arias are in major keys, two-thirds are vivacious, and only three of the 38 songs feature the slow, [[Dotted note|dotted rhythms]] that indicate pathos in the [[Baroque music|baroque period]].
 ==Roles==
 {| class="wikitable"
+|+{{sronly|Roles, voice types, premiere cast}}
 !Role
-!Voice type
+![[Voice type]]
-!Premiere Cast,<br>26 December 1718<br>
+!Premiere cast<ref>{{Almanacco|dmy=26-12-1718|match=Griselda}}</ref><br>26 December 1718
 |-
 |Griselda, ''wife of Gualtiero''
 |[[soprano]]
+|Aurelia Marcello
-|
 |-
-|Gualtiero, ''King of Thessaly''
+|Gualtiero, ''King of [[Thessaly]]''
-|[[contralto]] (origanally a [[castrato]])
+|[[contralto]] (originally a [[castrato]])
+|Domenico Tempesti
-|
 |-
 |Roberto, ''brother of Corrado''
-|soprano (originally castrato)
+|soprano (''[[en travesti]]'')
+|Eleonora Scio
-|
 |-
-|Corrado, ''Prince of Puglia''
+|Corrado, ''Prince of [[Apulia]]''
 |[[tenor]]
+|Giovanni Battista Pinacci
-|
 |-
 |Costanza, ''missing daughter of Griselda and Gualtiero''
 |contralto
+|Agata Landi
-|
 |-
 |Ottone, ''a Sicilian nobleman''
 |[[bass (vocal range)|bass]]
+|Luca Mingoni
-|
-|-
 |}
 ==Synopsis==
+[[File:The Story of Patient Griselda circa 1490.jpg|thumb|Detail from ''The Story of Patient Griselda'', painted circa 1500]]
-Place: Near [[Palermo]] in [[Sicily]].
+===Act 1===
-[[Image:The Story of Patient Griselda circa 1490.jpg|thumb|180 px|right|Detail from ''The Story of Patient Griselda'', painted circa 1500]]
+Years before the action begins, Gualtiero, King of Sicily, had married a poor shepherdess, Griselda. The marriage was deeply unpopular with the king's subjects and when a daughter, Costanza, was born, the king had to pretend to have her killed while secretly sending her to be brought up by Prince Corrado of Apulia. Now, faced with another rebellion from the Sicilians, Gualtiero is forced to renounce Griselda and promises to take a new wife. The proposed bride is in fact Costanza, who is unaware of her true parentage. She is in love with Corrado's younger brother, Roberto, and the thought of being forced to marry Gualtiero drives her to despair.
-King Gualtiero has married Griselda, a peasant woman and his longtime mistress, and fears that she will not be accepted among the nobility. Concerned that a rebellion might arise, the king desides he must prove that Griselda is worthy to be their queen and the mother of their future king. He tests her virtue and steadfastness with a series of cruel ordeals, including telling her a lie that their long-lost daughter was killed on his orders. Gualtiero banishes Griselda from the court and announces that he intends to take another wife, the young woman Costanza, who is, unknown to all, their missing daughter. Costanza is highly upset over the king's proposal as she is in love with Roberto, the younger brother of Corrado, Prince of Puglia.
+===Act 2===
-Meanwhile, Griselda has returned to the humble cottage where she once lived. A beautiful woman, she has caught the attention of Ottone, a Sicilian nobleman, who attempts to woo her. After refusing him, Ottone threatens to kill her infant son, Everardo, unless she agrees to marry him. Griselda refuses and flees to the palcace where she is permitted to stay as a servant to Costanza. Gualtiero, as a final test, orders Griselda to marry Ottone, which she refuses to his satisfaction. The king reveals his true motive for tormenting her and accepts her again as his queen to the satisfaction of Costanza and Roberto who can now be reunited. Ottone, who confesses to have stirred up the nobles in the hope of winning Griselda, is forgiven.
+Griselda returns to her home in the countryside where she is pursued by the courtier Ottone, who is in love with her. She angrily rejects his advances. Gualtiero and his followers go out hunting and come across Griselda's cottage. Gualtiero foils an attempt by Ottone to kidnap Griselda and allows her back to the court, but only as Costanza's slave.
+===Act 3===
+Ottone still resolutely pursues Griselda and Gualtiero promises him her hand as soon as he himself has married Costanza. Griselda declares she would rather die and, moved by her faithfulness, Gualtiero takes her back as his wife. He reveals the true identity of Costanza and allows her to marry Roberto.
 ==Sources==
+{{reflist}}
-*{{wikicite|id=idGroveMusicOnline|reference=Malcolm Boyd, Lowell Lindgren: "Griselda (i)", ''Grove Music Online'' ed. L. Macy (Accessed November 21, 2008), [http://www.grovemusic.com (subscription access)]}}
+==External links==
+*[http://www.librettidopera.it/zpdf/griselda.pdf Libretto]
+{{Portal bar|Opera}}
+{{Griselda}}
+{{Authority control}}
 [[Category:Operas]]
 [[Category:Operas by Antonio Maria Bononcini]]
 [[Category:1718 operas]]
+[[Category:Italian-language operas]]
+[[Category:Operas based on literature]]
+[[Category:Operas based on works by Giovanni Boccaccio]]

v t e Giovanni Boccaccio's Griselda (1353)
Operas	Griselda (1718, A. Bononcini) Griselda (1722, G. Bononcini) Griselda (1721, Scarlatti) Griselda (1735, Vivaldi) Grisélidis (1891 Massenet)
Other	"The Clerk's Tale" (1390s story) Patient Grissel (1590s play)
Related	"Golden Slumbers" (1969) Master of the Story of Griselda