Deborah (Handel)

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Work data
Original title: Deborah
Title page of the libretto, London 1744

Title page of the libretto, London 1744

Shape: Oratorio in three parts
Original language: English
Music: georg Friedrich Handel
Libretto : Samuel Humphreys
Literary source: Bible , Book of Judges
Premiere: February 21, 1733
Place of premiere: King's Theater on Haymarket, London
Place and time of the action: Israel in the time of the judges
people

Deborah ( HWV 51 ) is an oratorio in three parts by Georg Friedrich Händel ( music ) with a libretto by Samuel Humphreys . The premiere took place on February 21, 1733 at the King's Theater on Haymarket in London.

action

The plot of the oratorio is based on stories from the Bible in chapters 4 and 5 of the Book of Judges . It plays in a single day. After twenty years of foreign rule by the Israelites by the Canaanites , the prophetess Deborah predicts the death of the opposing general Sisera at the hand of a woman. The Canaanites are defeated in a battle, and the Israelite Jael kills the sleeping Sisera in his tent.

First part

First scene (numbers 1 to 13). The overture begins with a musical description of the conflict between the Israelites and the Canaanites. In the choir "Immortal Lord of earth and skies" ("You God of power, you God of strength") the Israelites reaffirm their trust in God. The judge Deborah now appoints Barak , the son of Abinoam, as general. To win he only needs to rely on God and follow his inspiration. The choir confirms this ("Forbear thy doubts!" ​​/ "Throw off your shyness!") And calls to arms. Barak accepts the order. After another prayer for God's help, Deborah prophesies that the leader of the Canaanites will perish at the hand of a woman. Barak praises the women who deserve the same fame as the men.

Second scene (numbers 14 to 17). The Israelite Jael appears and asks for an end to the violence. Deborah sees in a vision how Jael is surrounded and protected by angels ("Choir of angels, all around thee" / "Rings umlagern Engelschaaren"). Her virtue will make her the pride of her sex that day. Jael describes her joy in the aria "To joy He brightens my despair" ("He returns fear and pain in joy").

Third scene (numbers 18 to 22). Abinoam is proud of his son Barak and advises him to prepare for both victory and death, to behave virtuously and to leave everything else to heaven. Barak is ready to fight: "All danger disdaining, For battle I glow" ("Despising all danger I burn for battle").

Fourth scene (numbers 23 to 25). A herald from the opposing camp of Siseras appears and offers negotiations. Barak rejects him. The Israelites are now ready for battle.

Fifth scene (numbers 26 to 28). Deborah and Barak express their confidence. The first part ends with a hopeful prayer of thanks from the choir.

Second part

First scene (number 25). Deborah, Barak, Abinoam, Jael and the Israelites await Sisera's attack on Mount Tabor. A choir of Israelite priests and a choir of Baal priests of the enemy each support their people.

Second scene (numbers 26 to 49). Sisera calls on the Israelites to submit (“At my feet extended low”). Deborah rejects this because God himself is his enemy (“In Jehovah's awful sight” / “Before Jehovah is splendor”). This is followed by a verbal dispute between Sisera and Barak about the power of their gods Jehovah and Baal , which is recorded by the choirs of the Baal priests and the Israelites and their respective high priests and represents the climax of the plot. Deborah warns Sisera of the wrath of God and sends him and his people away. Barak and the Israelites are now on fire: "The great King of Kings will aid us today" ("The ruler of the world, he frees us today").

third part

First scene (numbers 50 to 52). After a great military symphony, the victorious Israelites return from persecuting the Canaanites. The Baal priests were taken prisoner. The choir celebrates with the words "Now the proud insulting foe Prostrate in the dust lies low" ("Now the bitter death robbery, the proud hero lies in the dust").

Second scene (numbers 53 and 54). Abinoam greets his son Barak with relief, who has fulfilled his warlike task.

Third scene (numbers 55 to 65). Jael delivers the news that Sisera is dead. The Baal priests lament their leader with the words “Doleful tidings, how ye wound!” (“Woe, that's our hoard!”). After Barak's request, Jael now tells how Sisera fled to her house after the lost fight. After she refreshed him with milk, he fell asleep. She then grabbed a nail and hammer and nailed him to the floor through her temple. A triumphant aria ("Tyrant, now no more we dread thee" / "Wüthrich! This country is no longer afraid of you") ends her report. Deborah and Barak praise their work. The oratorio ends with a jubilant choir (“Let our glad songs to Heav'n ascend”) with an “Alleluja”.

Emergence

At the time the oratorio was written, Handel had major financial problems with his opera company due to the competition with the rival opera company Opera of the Nobility ("Adelsoper"), which was founded in June 1733. These should be mitigated by the introduction of large-scale English-language oratorios, encouraged by Esther's success in the previous year. Handel composed the score for Deborah in a hurry in January and February 1733. He used parts of earlier works for this. The oratorio is therefore a so-called pasticcio . It was finished on February 21st, so there were three weeks left for rehearsals. Handel's hope of success was so great that he doubled the entrance fees for the orchestra and box seats for the staged premiere in 1733 in London's Haymarket Theater with the opera stars of the time and a hundred participants. This led to public protests and resistance from subscribers. The work was popular with the public, but financially only moderately successful. Nevertheless, it was performed several times in the following years. Only the performance of Athalia in Oxford was able to make up for the financial losses.

layout

Handel's employee Samuel Humphreys wrote the libretto for the oratorio. He had previously done the English translations of the Italian operas staged in the King's Theater and helped revise the text of the new version by Esther . He developed the biblical text from the Book of Judges further. This particularly concerned the roles of Barak's father Abinoam, the Canaanite herald, and the Israelite people. Jael is not the wife of the Kenite Heber, but a companion of Deborah.

Handel used parts of earlier works for the music of Deborah . So it's a so-called pasticcio . Individual movements come from the Brockes Passion (1716), from Il trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno (1707), the Dixit Dominus (1707), the dramatic cantata Aci, Galatea e Polifemo (1708) and the Ode for the Birthday of Queen Anne (1713). The three final choirs are based on the anthems , including the opening choir "Immortal Lord of earth and skies", which corresponds to Chandos-Anthem No. 9 "O praise the Lord with one consent" from 1717/18.

What is striking is the great effort involved in the cast. Some of the choirs have eight voices (double choirs) and there are large-scale orchestral effects with trumpets and timpani. In addition to the oboe and string ensembles, the orchestra provides three French horns, three trumpets with timpani and two organs. Two bassoons belong to the oboe ensemble. In the strings, the violins are occasionally divided into three parts and the violas into two parts.

Performance history and discography

In 1733, the year of its premiere, the work was performed a total of six times in London and then also performed in Oxford. In the following years it was performed again several times. The last performance during Handel's lifetime took place in 1756 at the Covent Garden Theater . The cast of the premiere was:

There are now several CD recordings of the work:

literature

Web links

Commons : Deborah  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ German version of the libretto as it is printed in Chrysander's edition.
  2. ^ Discography at Allmusic , accessed on September 9, 2014.