Aci, Galatea e Polifemo
Work data | |
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Original title: | Aci, Galatea e Polifemo |
Shape: | Dramatic cantata / Serenata a tre |
Original language: | Italian |
Music: | georg Friedrich Handel |
Libretto : | Nicola Giuvo |
Literary source: | Ovid , Metamorphoses |
Premiere: | July 19, 1708 |
Place of premiere: | Naples |
Playing time: | approx. 1 ½ hours |
Place and time of the action: | mythical time |
people | |
Aci, Galatea e Polifemo ( HWV 72 ) is a dramatic cantata or a Serenata a tre in a part by Georg Friedrich Handel ( music ) with a libretto by Nicola Giuvo . Handel wrote the work in Italy, where he was staying for study purposes. The premiere took place on July 19, 1708 in Naples for the wedding of Tolomeo Saverio Gallio, Duke of Alvito, with Beatrice Tocco di Montemiletto. The latter was Aurora Sanseverino's niece , who commissioned the work.
action
The plot follows a story from Book 13 of Ovid's Metamorphoses . The nymph Galatea , a daughter of the sea god Nereus , is happily in love with Aci , the son of King Faunus of Lazio. The one-eyed giant Polifemo also desires them. Out of jealousy, he kills Aci with a boulder. Galathea asks Nereus to turn Aci's blood into a silver spring and to let him live on as a river god so that she can find him again in the water.
layout
Although the content of the work is almost identical to Handel's Masque Acis and Galatea (HWV 49a) composed in 1718 , there are no musical similarities between these two works. Only in the new version of HWV 49b from 1732 did Handel take over some sentences.
The musical affects are very differentiated. Each aria is in a different key, so that all keys commonly used at the time appear in the score. The instrumental line-up includes strings and basso continuo as well as a recorder , two oboes and two trumpets . Compared to other contemporary works of the genre, the instruments are combined in a more varied and experimental way. There is an aria (“Fra l'ombre e gl'orrori”) which is accompanied only by muted violins , recorder and violone without a harpsichord , and the aria “Se m'ami, oh caro” uses two solo cellos. The role of Polifemo is a particular challenge for the singer due to its large vocal range from D to a1 .
Performance history and discography
After the world premiere in 1708, there were several other contemporary performances in Italy, for example in December 1711, on July 26th and September 26th, 1713 and in early December 1722.
The first re-performance in recent times was in 1961 as part of the Göttingen Handel Festival. Günther Weißenborn was the musical director .
There are now several CD recordings of the work:
- Harmonia Mundi 1901253 (1998): London Baroque , conductor: Charles Medlam with Emma Kirkby (Aci), Carolyn Watkinson (Galatea) and David Thomas (singer) (Polifemo)
- Erato / Virgin 7243545557 (2003): Le Concert d'Astrée , conductor: Emmanuelle Haïm with Sandrine Piau (Aci), Sara Mingardo (Galatea) and Laurent Naouri (Polifemo)
- Brilliant Classics 93665 (2008): Contrasto Armonico , direction: Marco Vitalie with Stefanie True (Aci), Luciana Mancini (Galatea) and Mitchell Sandler (Polifemo)
- Dynamic CDS 64512 (2011): Cappella della Pietà de 'Turchini , direction: Antonio Florio with Sara Mingardo (Aci), Ruth Rosique (Galatea) and Antonio Abete (Polifemo)
- Glossa GCD 921515 (2013): La Risonanza , direction: Fabio Bonizzoni with Roberta Invernizzi (Aci), Blandine Staskiewicz (Galatea) and Lisandro Abadie (Polifemo)
Furthermore, a DVD of a scenic performance from 2009 from the Teatro Carignano in Turin has been released. The production and set design are by Davide Livermore . The musical performers are those of the Dynamic recording from 2011.
literature
- Hans Joachim Marx : Handel's oratorios, odes and serenatas: a compendium , Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen 1998, ISBN 3-525-27815-2 .
Web links
- Aci, Galatea e Polifemo, HWV 72 : Sheet music and audio files in the International Music Score Library Project
- Score in the Handel edition by Friedrich Chrysander (1892).
- Text booklet for the performance at the Salzburg Whitsun Festival 2011 (PDF), accessed on September 8, 2014.
- Review of October 23, 2013 of the CD by Ensemble La Risonanza ( Memento of October 31, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) on BR-Klassik , accessed on September 8, 2014.
- Pictures of the staged performance in Frankfurt am Main in 2010 at Barock am Main , accessed on September 8, 2014.
Individual evidence
- ^ Discography at Allmusic , accessed on September 8, 2014.