Beatrice di Tenda
| Work data | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Beatrice di Tenda |
Premiere poster from 1833 |
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| Shape: | Tragedia lirica in two acts |
| Original language: | Italian |
| Music: | Vincenzo Bellini |
| Libretto : | Felice Romani |
| Literary source: | Historical events and a ballet of the same name by Antonio Monticini |
| Premiere: | March 16, 1833 |
| Place of premiere: | Teatro La Fenice , Venice |
| Playing time: | about 3 hours |
| Place and time of the action: | The castle of Binasco near Milan , 1418 |
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Beatrice di Tenda is the penultimate opera (original name: "tragedia lirica") by the bel canto composer Vincenzo Bellini . The libretto is by Felice Romani . The opera premiered on March 16, 1833 at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice with the celebrated soprano Giuditta Pasta in the title role.
action
place and time
The opera takes place at the beginning of the 15th century in the existing Binasco Castle in the outskirts of Milan . There are no other domains of the Viscontis, the action only takes place in the castle. The setting within the castle changes from Agneses' apartment (first act, second scene), into the garden (first act, third scene) and into the basement of the castle / the vestibule in front of the prisons (second act, second scene). The court hearing with the performance of the choir as a meeting of the tribunal also takes place in the castle.
The plot of the opera only lasts roughly two to three days, from Visconti's announcement that he no longer wants to be married to Beatrice, to Beatrice's execution.
first act
In Binasco Castle the courtiers meet Filippo Maria Visconti , Duke of Milan. Visconti confesses that he is in love with Agnese del Maino and is therefore tired of his wife Beatrice. The courtiers encourage Visconti. Agnese sings about her love for Orombello, who comes into her apartment. But Agnese has to find out that Orombello loves Beatrice, not her. She swears vengeance. Beatrice accuses her husband of behavior in the palace garden. Visconti comes into the garden and accuses her of being unfaithful and trying to rebel. As evidence he cites Orombello's stolen letters and documents about rebel subjects from Beatrice's room. Next to a statue of her first husband, Facino Cane de Casale , Beatrice conjures his spirit. Orombello appears and asks Beatrice to flee Visconti with him. He confesses his love for her, but Beatrice rejects him. Visconti, Agnese and the courtiers surprise Orombello while he kneels at Beatrice's feet. Visconti now believes to have found definitive evidence of Beatrice's infidelity. He has Beatrice and Orombello thrown into the dungeon.
Second act
Orombello confessed to having a relationship with Beatrice under torture. A court hearing is being prepared in the courtyard of the palace. Orombello is brought before the tribunal. He revoked his confession in front of Beatrice, but the tribunal decided to bring them back to the dungeon. Visconti confesses his love for Agnese and his doubts about signing the death warrant. But then the news was brought to him that the castle was about to be besieged by the former Facino Canes troops. He signs the death warrant. Beatrice leaves prison proudly saying she was able to withstand the torture. Agnese enters and confesses to Beatrice that she started the intrigue out of jealousy. Beatrice, sentenced to death, forgives the whole congregation and asks that they pray not for herself but for those she leaves behind.
layout
Instrumentation
The orchestral line-up for the opera includes the following instruments:
- Woodwinds : flute piccolo , two flutes , two oboes , two clarinets , two bassoons
- Brass : four horns , two trumpets , three trombones
- Timpani , drums : bass drum , cymbals
- harp
- Strings
- Incidental music: not differentiated
Historical background
Beatrice di Tenda, Duchess of Milan (1372–1418)
Beatrice, daughter of Wilhelm Lascaris di Ventimiglia , Count of Tenda, whose Ligurian family descended from the deposed Byzantine imperial family of the Laskarids , married between 1395 and 1398 the condottiere Facino Cane de Casale , who let her participate in his political decisions. After his death in 1412, at the age of forty, she married the then twenty-year-old Duke Filippo Maria Visconti . Through this marriage, Beatrice was able to keep the territories of her late husband, and Visconti, in turn, was able to dispose of Canes' troops in order to regain his rule. At the beginning of the marriage Beatrice exercised a certain influence on Visconti, who subordinated numerous towns, estates and castles to her. The relationship deteriorated, however, in 1418, at the height of the crisis, Beatrice was arrested on charges of adultery with Orombelli and beheaded at Binasco Castle.
Filippo Maria Visconti, third Duke of Milan (1392–1447)
After his father's death in 1402 he inherited the title and lands . Violent factional battles weakened his rule and accelerated the fragmentation of his territory. After the murder of his brother Giovanni Maria Visconti , he married Beatrice di Tenda at the suggestion of his advisors. Through the connection he gained additional lands, wealth, but above all a strong mercenary army . After Beatrice was beheaded, Visconti was able to strengthen the connection to the Duke of Savoy through a marriage with his daughter Maria, which was probably never completed, and thus mitigated the consequences of his severe defeat at Maclodio (October 11, 1427). In the last years of his reign, Visconti's careless approach drove him into political isolation, so that Venice was able to systematically conquer the Visconti territories. Visconti bequeathed the duchy to his son-in-law in 1446, who was married to his legitimate natural daughter Bianca Maria (from his lover Agnese de Maino).
Only the two main characters of the opera are historically documented. The name Agnese de Maino appears in the sources , but only in connection with a mistress Visconti, details are not known.
The libretto by Felice Romani but focuses little on a historical source. It was created at the suggestion of Bellini, who had seen a ballet of the same name in Milan in 1832. In addition, the libretto is also based on other contemporary operas or theater. The libretto can therefore be read as an adaptation of a material that has already been widely received and staged. Various motifs that appear in opera can also be found in other contemporary operas.
dramaturgy
It is noticeable that the hierarchical structures in Beatrice di Tenda are, so to speak, divided into two parts. On the realpolitical level, Filippo Maria Visconti dominates all the other characters in the opera, he has absolute authority over his followers as well as over his wife. Beatrice, Orombello and Agnese seem to be roughly on the same hierarchical level. On the moral level, however, Beatrice di Tenda is a lot higher than her husband.
Basic conflicts
Beatrice di Tenda vs. Filippo Maria Visconti
Visconti's dependence on his wife, who is twenty years older than him, to whom he owes the recovery of his lands, troops and thus his life in the aristocratic class, is one of the basic conflicts between the two protagonists. Visconti refuses to show her gratitude to Beatrice for the advantages he is getting from the marriage. In addition, there is Visconti's love for Agnese, about which Beatrice knows nothing.
Beatrice di Tenda vs. Agnese di Maino
In the second scene of the first act, Agnese feels a disgrace when she interprets Orombello's declaration of love as addressed to her. In fact, Orombello loves Beatrice. Agnese then threads an intrigue against Beatrice and Orombello and makes a pact with Visconti. In the last scene Agnese Beatrice confesses her offense and asks her forgiveness. The noble Beatrice grants her pardon.
Filippo Maria Visconti vs. Orombello
After Visconti learns that Orombello has instigated a political uprising against Visconti in order to be able to escape with Beatrice, he puts him in prison and has him tortured until he confesses to having had an affair with Beatrice.
Social order
Between the unnamed “people” and the nobles (Filippo and Beatrice) there are a number of “intermediate figures” who cannot be assigned to the noble class, but who can nevertheless help determine important decisions. Agnese di Maino and Orombello are probably not nobles (the libretto does not mention the state, a noble family of Mainos and Orombellos cannot be found in the sources of the 15th century), but they have a great influence on Beatrice and Filippo and thus on the course of action.
Because of their noble origins, Beatrice di Tenda and Filippo Maria Visconti are clearly above Agnese di Maino and Orombello and at the top of the social order. Even if both Beatrice and Filippo could actually be put into the same category, it is Filippo who has final decision-making power. Beatrice inherited the rule from her late husband, which means that she was more or less superior to Filippo before marrying. But through the marriage she is again subordinate to Filippo. Even if the spouses are mutually dependent, the balance of power is still not balanced. Filippo can arrest his wife and have her beheaded.
Work history
Emergence
Bellini wanted a libretto based on a ballet by Antonio Monticini (Beatrice di Tenda), which he had seen in Milan in 1832. Felice Romani wrote the libretto within a month. Two months before the planned premiere, Romani had only finished the duet by Agnese and Orombello and the Cavatina by Beatrice. After his great successes with Norma and La sonnambula (both 1831), Bellini feared a fiasco like that with Zaira , which was also written in great haste.
| role | Pitch | Cast of the premiere |
|---|---|---|
| Beatrice di Tenda | soprano | Giuditta pasta |
| Filippo Maria Visconti | baritone | Orazio Cartegenova |
| Agnese del Maino | Mezzo-soprano | Anna del Serre |
| Orombello | tenor | Alberico Curioni |
| Anichino | tenor | Alessandro Giacchini |
| Rizzardo del Maino | tenor |
reception
The premiere had to be postponed ten days at short notice. As feared, the opera did not go down well with the audience, who had great expectations. Both before and after the first production, the opera was discussed negatively in the newspapers. Although the premiere in 1833 was unsuccessful, it was performed on various stages in Italy, later also in other parts of Europe and in the United States, before being forgotten. It was not until 1959, on the 100th anniversary of Bellini's death, that the opera was staged again, and from then on it was played more frequently.
Recordings
| year | Cast (Beatrice, Orombello, Agnese, Filippo) |
Conductor, opera house and orchestra |
Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1966 |
Joan Sutherland , Luciano Pavarotti , Josephine Veasey , Cornelius Opthof |
Richard Bonynge , London Symphony Orchestra , Ambrosian Opera Chorus |
Audio CD: Decca Cat: 433 706-2 |
| 1986 |
Mariana Nicolesco , Vincenzo La Scola , Stefania Toczyska , Piero Cappuccilli |
Alberto Zedda , Monte Carlo Orchestra and Prague Philharmonic Choir |
Audio CD: Sony Cat: SM3K 64539 |
| 1987 |
June Anderson , Don Bernardini, Elena Zilio, Armando Ariostini |
Gianfranco Masini, La Fenice Orchestra and Choir (live recording; source and conductor doubtful) |
Audio CD: Opera d'Oro Cat: OPD-1174 |
| 1992 |
Lucia Aliberti , Martin Thompson, Camille Capasso, Paolo Gavenelli |
Fabio Luisi , Deutsche Oper Berlin Choir and Orchestra |
Audio CD: Berlin Classics Cat: 0010422BC |
| 1992 |
Edita Gruberová , Don Bernardini, Vesselina Kasarova , Igor Mozorov |
Pinchas Steinberg ORF Symphony Orchestra , Vienna Children's Choir |
Audio CD: Nightingale Classics Cat: NC 070560-2 |
| 2002 |
Edita Gruberová , Raúl Hernández, Stefania Kaluza, Michael Volle |
Marcello Viotti Zurich Opera House Orchestra and Choir |
DVD: TDK Cat: DVOPBDT |
literature
- Joseph A. Boromé: Bellini and 'Beatrice di Tenda' . In: Music and Letters , Vol. 42, Oxford 1961, pp. 319ff.
- Charles S. Brauner: Textual Problems in Bellini's Norma and Beatrice di Tenda . In: Journal of the American Musicological Society , 1976.
- Carl Dahlhaus , Sieghard Döhring (ed.): Bellini - Beatrice di Tenda . In: Piper's Encyclopedia of Musical Theater . Opera, operetta, musical, ballet. Volume 1, Munich / Zurich 1986-1997, pp. 254-257.
- Pier Candido Decembrio : Life of Filippo Maria Visconti and Acts of Francesco Forza . In: Marie Herzfeld (ed.): The age of the Renaissance . Selected Sources on the History of Italian Culture, 1st Series, Volume 7, Jena 1913.
Web links
- Beatrice di Tenda : Sheet music and audio files in the International Music Score Library Project
- Libretto (Italian), Milan 1833. Digitized in the Internet Archive
- Work information and libretto (Italian) as full text on librettidopera.it
- Beatrice di Tenda (Vincenzo Bellini) in the Corago information system of the University of Bologna
- Plot and libretto of it at Opera Guide landing page for URL upgrade currently unavailable
- Discography on Beatrice di Tenda at Operadis
Individual evidence
- ^ Friedrich Lippmann : Beatrice di Tenda. In: Piper's Encyclopedia of Musical Theater. Volume 1: Works. Abbatini - Donizetti. Piper, Munich / Zurich 1986, ISBN 3-492-02411-4 , p. 255.
Adelson e Salvini (1825) | Bianca e Fernando (1826) | Il pirata (1827) | La straniera (1829) | Zaira (1829) | I Capuleti ei Montecchi (1830) | La Sonnambula (1831) | Norma (1831) | Beatrice di Tenda (1833) | I puritani (1835)