Egeria (metastasis)
| Work data | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Egeria |
Image from the libretto from 1764 |
|
| Shape: | Festa teatrale |
| Original language: | Italian |
| Music: | First setting by Johann Adolph Hasse |
| Libretto : | Pietro Metastasio |
| Premiere: | April 24, 1764 |
| Place of premiere: | Vienna |
| Place and time of the action: | Source of the Egeria near Rome |
| people | |
Egeria is a libretto for a Festa teatrale in one act by Pietro Metastasio . It was performed for the first time in the setting by Johann Adolph Hasse on April 24, 1764 to celebrate the coronation of Joseph II as Roman-German King in Vienna.
action
The action takes place at the source of the nymph Egeria , which was described by the Roman poet Juvenal in his third satire. The scene depicts an openwork illuminated grotto containing a clear pond. This is fed from the spring by a waterfall breaking through the rocks. One side is shaded by the sacred forest, while the other is adjacent to an old ruin. In the background you can see the wide landscape with trees and buildings, and in the distance you can see the hills of Rome. The gods Venus and Mercurius as well as Mars and Apollon appear sitting on clouds from both sides. They are each accompanied by geniuses . In the common entrance choir, they summon the nymph Egeria to appear and restore peace between them. Egeria slowly rises from the lake, accompanied by naiads who rest on islands of aquatic plants and crystals. Mercurius explains the reason for the dispute to Egeria: the gods have decided to put someone at the side of the empress to support her in the government of the Roman Empire. Both Venus, the mother of Aeneas (the progenitor of the Romans), and Mars, the father of Romulus (founder of the city of Rome) claim the right to choose him. This quarrel had so divided the gods that he and Apollo were sent to ask for advice. Only Egeria could restore peace in heaven and happiness on earth, as she had already succeeded in other cases. Egeria's concerns about the significance of the Fall are rejected by all four gods. She had already recognized the leadership qualities (strength, greatness, wisdom, untouched faith, piety and justice) of Numa Pompilius (the legendary second king of Rome) and encouraged him to accept the crown. Egeria can no longer refuse. In view of the importance of the decision, she only asks for some time to think it over. She then asks Mercurius and Apollon about their role in the argument. Each of the two supports one of the opponents. Mercurius believes a victory of Mars would ruin the arts of peace, while Apollo considers it important to epic poetry. Once this has been resolved, nothing stands in the way of the actual discussion, and the gods and the choir of geniuses urge Egeria to finally begin.
Venus gives the first speech in which she first describes the unfortunate circumstances surrounding the war. In her aria, she wishes that the earth would then find its way back to productivity and love. Mars, on the other hand, criticizes the “soft leisure of peace” ( “molli ozi di pace” ), which contradicts the warlike character of the Austrian people. He juxtaposes Venus' portrayal of the peasant expelled from the war with the image of the soldier, softened by love and indolence, who can no longer fulfill his tasks in an emergency. It is now up to Egeria to make the decision. She declares that neither war nor peace should rule alone: "Se l'ardor solo o il gelo / Regnasse ognor per tutto, / Non nascerebbe un frutto" ("When heat or frost rule everything / no fruit is born") . Only Joseph possessed the necessary qualities on both sides to take over the office. All gods agree to the election and extol the new Roman king.
history
Maria Theresia commissioned Metastasio to write a short text for the celebrations of Archduke Joseph as Roman Emperor in 1764 . The work was easier for him than with some of his previous works such as Atenaide , which can partly be explained by the fact that he was able to write for professional singers and not, as before, had to take into account amateur actors from the imperial family. The work was therefore already completed on January 16. He tried to combine the required brevity with the splendor necessary for the celebration. After the new King Joseph, crowned in Frankfurt, returned to Vienna, Hasse's setting was performed there with great pomp on April 24, and Metastasio was extremely impressed by the performance.
«Avanti ieri fu rappresentata l'annessa Festa teatrale [...]. Senza impulso di partito, e con quella sincerità che professo specialmente con voi, posso assicurarvi che non ho mai sentita musica più armoniosoa, magistrale e popolare insieme di quella che ha scritta il Sassone in questa occasione: onde è stata conosciuta, applaudita non solo dagli intendenti, ma anche da quelli che sono al mondo unicamente per vegetare »
“Then yesterday the enclosed Festa teatrale was performed [...]. Without taking sides, and with the sincerity I show you in particular, I can assure you that I have never heard music more harmonious and at the same time more masterful and popular than that which Il Sassone wrote on this occasion: therefore it did not become only valued, praised and admired by connoisseurs, but also by those who only vegetate in the world. "
The singers and costumes (Augusto Gennaer and Giorgio Speck) as well as the stage sets (Antonio de Dannè) and the theater machinery (Pietro Rizzino) contributed equally to the success. The Egeria was represented by Rosa Tartaglini Tibaldi , the Venere by Maria Teresa Sartori Dupré , the Mercurio by the old castrato Gaetano Guadagni (Mercurio, alto), the Marte by the tenor Giuseppe Tibaldi and the Apollo by Giovanni Toschi . A few days later, Metastasio described the performance as his greatest success in Vienna in another letter.
The entrance scene contains all components of the Rococo style. However, a dramatic plot cannot develop in this lovely landscape. As in some of Metastasio's serenatas from the 1730s, it consists of a quarrel between gods. In contrast to most of these earlier works, however, this is not about a psychological or moral issue. Instead, the dispute relates directly to the courtly occasion of the celebration, which is clearly mentioned at the beginning. Metastasio's art is mainly shown in how he delays the decision of the dispute. He also succeeds in looking at the motif used in La pace fra la virtù e la bellezza from a new perspective. The judge is not divine here. All elements of the scene - the water and the plants - refer to Egeria's earthly roots. Their qualifications are explained with their successful participation in the coronation of the mythical King Numa . This also gives rise to the connection with the occasion of the celebration, the coronation of Joseph - like Numa - as the "Roman King". The enumeration of Numa's virtues therefore corresponds to praise for the virtues of Joseph.
Unlike in Metastasio's earlier serenatas, the protagonists do not emphasize their own merits, but attack those of their opponents. Venus' description of the war turns into a diatribe against Mars. Metastasio alludes to the Seven Years' War, which ended the previous year . The initially ironic answer from Mars, the god of war, is shaped by this memory. This explains his hint that one can also triumph in adversity. Egeria's final decision corresponds to the simple synthesis of La pace fra la virtù e la bellezza : Both must unite, and only Archduke Joseph is suitable for the office.
Settings
The following composers set this libretto to music:
| year | composer | premiere | Performance location | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1764 | Johann Adolph Hasse | April 24, 1764, Burgtheater | Vienna | “Festa teatrale” for the coronation of Joseph II as Roman-German King ; Also at the Palazzo Reale in Naples listed |
| 1789 | Bernardo Ottani | 1789 | unsure | |
| 1800 | Tantari | 1800 |
literature
- Jacques Joly: Les fêtes théâtrales de Métastase à la cour de Vienne, 1731–1767. Pu Blaise Pascal, 1978, ISBN 978-2845160194 , pp. 371-382 ( partly online at Google Books)
Web links
Digital copies
- ^ Libretto (Italian) of the opera by Johann Adolph Hasse, Florence 1764 as digitized version at the Munich Digitization Center .
Individual evidence
- ^ A b c Don Neville: Metastasio [Trapassi], Pietro (Antonio Domenico Bonaventura). In: Grove Music Online (English; subscription required).
- ↑ Metastasio, Pietro in Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart , p. 50861 ff (cf. MGG vol. 9, p. 229 ff.) Bärenreiter-Verlag 1986 ( digital library volume 60).
- ↑ a b Joly p. 371
- ↑ a b Egeria (Johann Adolf Hasse) in the Corago information system of the University of Bologna , accessed on March 29, 2015.
- ↑ Joly p. 272
- ↑ Joly p. 373
- ↑ Joly p. 374
- ↑ Joly p. 375
- ↑ Joly p. 377 f.
- ↑ Joly p. 379
- ↑ Joly p. 380
- ^ Heinrich Ludolf Ahrens: Hasse and the Graun Brothers as Symphony Orchestra , p. 426 ( online at Google Books ).