Médée (Charpentier)

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Work data
Original title: Médée
Title page of the libretto, Paris 1693

Title page of the libretto, Paris 1693

Shape: Tragédie lyrique in a prologue and five acts
Original language: French
Music: Marc-Antoine Charpentier
Libretto : Thomas Corneille
Premiere: 4th December 1693
Place of premiere: Palais-Royal , Paris
Playing time: about 3 hours
Place and time of the action: Corinth (Greece), mythical time
people

prolog

  • La Victoire / The Victory ( soprano )
  • La Gloire / Fame (soprano)
  • Bellonne ( old )
  • two shepherdesses (2 sopranos)
  • Leader of the people ( bass )
  • a shepherd ( tenor )
  • Inhabitants of the Seine landscape, heroic shepherds ( choir )

action

  • Créon / Creon , King of Corinth (bass)
  • Médée / Medea , Princess of Colchis (soprano)
  • Nérine, Confidante Médées (soprano)
  • Créuse / Kreusa , daughter of Créons (soprano)
  • Cléone, Familiar Créuses (soprano)
  • L'Amour / love (soprano)
  • an Italian (soprano)
  • two ghosts (2 sopranos)
  • Jason , Prince of Thessaly (tenor)
  • Arcas, Jason's confidante (tenor)
  • Oronte, Prince of Argos ( baritone )
  • two Corinthians (tenor, high-contre )
  • two Argier (Haute-Contre, Bass)
  • La Jalousie / Jealousy (tenor)
  • La Vengeance / Revenge (bass)
  • three prisoners (soprano, alto, haute-contre)
  • Corinthians, inhabitants of Argos, entourage of Créons, entourage of Orontes, prisoners of L'Amour, demons, guards, spirits (chorus)

Médée (H. 491) is an opera (original name: Tragédie en musique ) in a prologue and five acts by Marc-Antoine Charpentier based on a libretto by Thomas Corneille .

action

prolog

Rural area, embellished by nature, with rocks and waterfalls

A group of shepherds and shepherds pays homage to Louis XIV. Victory, fame and Bellona appear as allegorical figures in a palace. They declare that they are on Ludwig's side and that the war will not disturb the spectacle in which love is sung about.

first act

Public square with triumphal arch, statues and trophies on pedestals

Médée and Jason are currently under the protection of King Créon of Corinth. The Thessalian ruler Akastos demands that Créon be surrendered as revenge for the death of his father Pelias . Oronte, king of Argos, will come to Corinth to make an alliance with Créon against Thessaly. As a pledge for the alliance, Créon's daughter Créuse has been promised to him.

Médée is outraged by her confidante Nérine about Jason, whom she believes to be unfaithful. Nérine points out that Créuse has already been promised Oronte and that Jason therefore has little hope of her. Jason returns from talking to Créuse. Créon has not yet made a decision, but Jason hopes that Créuse will work with her father to protect him and Medea.

When Médée leaves, Jason reveals to Arcas that he loves Créuse. But he doesn't have the heart to confess this to Médée. Arcas warns him of what Desperate Médée would be able to do.

Oronte is solemnly received, but because of his marriage he is put off by Créon.

Second act

Porch with a large portico

Créon assures Médée of his protection, but asks her to leave his court because the people view her presence there with displeasure. At the same time, Jason has to stay with Créon to defend his empire. Médée gets ready to leave and leaves her children to Créuse to look after.

During a conversation between Créon and Créuse it becomes clear that a connection between Créuse and Jason has already been decided. So both Médée and Oronte have been deceived.

The act ends with a divertissement of the prisoners of love.

Third act

Summoning place Médées

Médée and Oronte lament the betrayal of those who love them. When Jason comes to Médée, she tells him to allow her exile. He replies that they will get back together after the war.

Nérine tells Médée of Jason's infidelity, which she learned from Arcas. Médée swears revenge, even if Nérine warns that if she punishes Jason, she will only punish herself.

Médée conjures up the spirits of the underworld who bring her a cauldron. A poison is mixed to poison a dress that she will give to Créuse.

Fourth act

Forecourt of a palace, in the background a splendid garden

Jason and Cléone admire Créuse in their new dress. Médée comes to Créon and demands that the marriage between Oronte and Créuse be concluded immediately. Créon mocks her and orders his guards to take her. Then Médée enchants the guards who are now holding the king. Eventually she turns him into madness.

Fifth act

The Médées Palace

Image from the libretto, Amsterdam 1695

Médée swears to Nérine that she will include Jason's children in her revenge. Créuse begs her to take the disaster off her father, but Médée demands that she marry Oronte immediately.

Cléone arrives and reports that Créon took his own life with Orontes sword. Créuse curses Médée and promises that Jason will avenge this crime. But Médée touches her with her wand and the poison in her dress takes effect.

Créuse dies in Jason's arms and he swears revenge. Médée appears in the air, sitting on a kite, tells him that she has killed his children, and disappears. The statues of the palace fall and demons set the palace on fire.

Instrumentation

The orchestral line-up for the opera includes the following instruments:

Work history

Title page of the score, Paris 1694

The premiere took place on December 4, 1693 in the Palais-Royal . Marthe Le Rochois (Médée), Françoise Moreau (Créuse), Dumesnil (Jason) and Jean Dun (Créon) sang the leading roles.

The opera was well received, repeated several times and gallantly and benevolently discussed at the Mercure . The following year the score was published in print. Nevertheless, unlike Lully's tragedies , the work did not have a long life. It was sacred works to which Charpentier owed his fame. It must be considered unfortunate that he ventured into the secular field with Médée when at the same time believers in a Paris parish were discussing the morality of the theater in general and opera in particular. Critical and defensive writings went back and forth, soon singers were the special target of “Babylonian girls” or “sirens” who were supposed to be able to poison and kill souls “through their ears”. Jean-Nicolas de Francine, head of the Académie royale de musique at the time , lost a lot of money that he had spent on its production due to the early cancellation of the piece. A possible resumption in Lille is only documented for 1711 .

Opera only experienced a rebirth at the end of the 20th century . William Christie played it twice, first in 1984. In the same year, the first staged performance took place at the Opéra de Lyon, directed by Robert Wilson .

literature

  • Corinna Herr: Medea's anger. A “strong woman” in operas of the 17th and 18th centuries. Herbolzheim 2000.
  • Valérie Sinn: Medea and Médée. Motivation for revenge on Seneca and Thomas Corneille. In: Antike und Abendland Vol. 54, 2008, pp. 141–159

Web links

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

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Herbert Schneider : Médée. In: Piper's Encyclopedia of Musical Theater . Volume 1: Works. Abbatini - Donizetti. Piper, Munich / Zurich 1986, ISBN 3-492-02411-4 , pp. 550-551.
  2. 1693 - Médée à l'Opéra on charpentier.culture.fr, accessed on June 15, 2017.
  3. Jérôme de La Gorce: L'Opéra à Paris au temps de Louis XIV. Histoire d'un théâtre , Paris 1992, pp. 92–95.