Šárka (Janáček)
| Opera dates | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Šárka |
| Shape: | Opera in three acts |
| Original language: | Czech |
| Music: | Leoš Janáček |
| Libretto : | Julius Zeyer |
| Literary source: | Julius Zeyer |
| Premiere: | November 11, 1925 |
| Place of premiere: | National Theater Brno |
| Playing time: | approx. 1 ½ hours |
| Place and time of the action: | Bohemia, amazing time |
| people | |
Šárka (JW 1/1) is an opera in three acts by Leoš Janáček based on a libretto by Julius Zeyer based on his own drama (1887). The premiere took place on November 11, 1925 in the National Theater in Brno .
action
The material is based on the legendary Maiden War . The Amazone Šárka and her troop of warlike virgins persecute men who show a lack of respect for Přemysl . This leads to the death of the hero Ctirad, whom Šárka loves. She sacrifices herself during her lover's funeral.
Instrumentation
The orchestral line-up for the opera includes the following instruments:
- Woodwinds : two flutes , two oboes , English horn , two clarinets , bass clarinet , two bassoons , contrabassoon
- Brass : four horns , two trumpets , three trombones , tuba
- Timpani , drums : tam-tam , bells
- harp
- Strings
Work history
Šárka is Janáček's first opera. It is based on a libretto by Julius Zeyer that he had actually written for Antonín Dvořák . Zeyer therefore refused Janáček the text rights. Nevertheless, he drafted the short score in 1887 and orchestrated the first two acts the following year, making a few changes. After 1916, after the rights to Zeyer's libretto had expired, he revised the work again, leaving the instrumentation of the third act to his student Osvald Chlubna . A final revision took place in 1924 in preparation for the premiere.
The premiere took place on November 11, 1925 in the National Theater Brno under the direction of František Neumann with Emil Olšovský as Ctirad and Hana Pírková as Šárka. Directed by Otakar Zítek. There were further productions in Olomouc in 1938, in Brno in 1958 and in Ostrava in 1978.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Jiří Vysloužil: Šárka. In: Piper's Encyclopedia of Musical Theater. Vol. 3. Works. Henze - Massine. Piper, Munich and Zurich 1989, ISBN 3-492-02413-0 , p. 185 f.
Beginning of a novel (1894) | Jenůfa (1904) | Mr Brouček's excursions (1920) | Káťa Kabanová (1921) | The cunning little fox (1924) | Šárka (1925) | The Makropulos Case (1926) | From a house of the dead (1930, posthumous) | Osud (1958, posthumous)