Solimano (Hasse)

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Work data
Title: Solimano
Original title: Solimano
Shape: Opera seria
Original language: Italian
Music: Johann Adolph Hasse
Libretto : Giovanni Ambrogio Migliavacca
Premiere: February 5, 1753
Place of premiere: Opera house at the Zwinger in Dresden
Place and time of the action: Turkey , 16th century
people
  • Solimano (Soliman / Süleyman), Turkish Grand Sultan and father of Selim (tenor)
  • Selimo (Selim), Soliman's son from his first marriage (Altkastrat)
  • Osmino (Osmin), half-brother of Selim, son of the current sultana Roselana with Grand Vizier Rusteno
  • Rusteno (Rustem), power-hungry grand vizier (soprano castrato)
  • Narsea, daughter of the Shah of Persia, Tacmantes; loves Selim and is loved by him (Alt)
  • Emira, sister of Narsea, loves Osmin (soprano)
  • Acomate (Akomas), Aga of the Janissaries (Soprano Castrato)

Solimano is a baroque opera in three acts based on a libretto by Giovanni Ambrogio Migliavacca , which was first set to music by Johann Adolph Hasse . Hasse's Opera seria (original genre name Dramma per musica ) was premiered in Dresden in 1753 .

The libretto

The opera's libretto is by Giovanni Ambrogio Migliavacca . It was his first libretto, which he wrote after he had been appointed court poet at the court of the Saxon electors on the recommendation of Metastasio in 1752 .

action

The plot revolves around the historical person of Suleyman I “the Magnificent” (Italian: Solimano). Later operas of the same name are based on the same development as in the first version for Hasse described here. The names and functions of some roles are the most significant changes. The texts of the recitatives and arias hardly differ from those of the first version.

The action takes place in the encampment of the Ottoman army, near Babylon .

first act

Selim, son of Sultan Soliman, returns victorious from the military campaign against the Persians to the camp. Among the prisoners brought with them are the Persian princesses Narsea and Emira. Selim falls in love with Narsea, his half-brother Osmin with Emira.

However, the four's happiness comes to an abrupt end when their father Soliman appears. Rustem, the Grand Vizier, whispered to him that Selim was planning to overthrow him, his father, and even kill him. He is also accused of deliberately allowing the Shah of Persia to escape and wanting to make peace with him. Despite an attempt to appease Acomates, Soliman has his son jailed for high treason. Prince Selim himself does not have a say.

Second act

Acomates and Narsea try again in vain to prove the innocence of the prince. Osmin also wants to help his brother, which Selim only accepts when he swears that he only loves Emira and not Narsea. The Sultan demands that Selim and Narsea give up their love on pain of death. When Narsea and Selim say goodbye with a heavy heart, so as not to anger Soliman any further, Soliman also enters the scene, is touched by so much affection and promises to forgive the two. However, both are not convinced of this promise.

Third act

The Sultan is sent a forged letter from the power-hungry Grand Vizier Rustem, which is supposed to prove that Selim is negotiating with the Shah of Persia, Tacmantes, and is therefore guilty of high treason. Soliman then issues the death sentence for his son. When he hands it to Rustem, Acomates manages to take it. He knows that because of the imprisonment of their glorious leader Selim, the soldiers are now rebelling.

Now it also emerges that vizier Rustem and the sultana have spun the intrigue against Selim in order to secure rule for their son Osmin. When Osmin confesses to the Sultan that the letter that is supposed to prove Selim's guilt is a forgery, he is appalled.

In the meantime the army has also deployed in front of the sultan's palace. At the same time, Acomates and Selim who he freed from prison appear. The latter is greeted happily by the soldiers. Selim and his father speak out, Grand Vizier Rustem is dismissed from the Sultan's service and Acomates is appointed his successor. Selim and Narsea as well as Osmin and Emira hug each other and are happy.

The world premiere in Dresden

The splendid, much-acclaimed premiere took place on February 5, 1753 at the Dresden Zwinger Court Theater. The individual roles were filled as follows:

The performance set standards in many respects, but also did not burden the state caste little. Nevertheless, after the premiere there were still twelve performances (on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays), all of which were obviously more than sold out. According to Fürstenau, “ladies from the court” rented “Swiss guardsmen” at the twelfth performance in order to keep seats occupied until their arrival, about which the city ladies paused not a little ”(= excited).

The famous Giuseppe Galli da Bibiena was responsible for the stage design and furnishings, and he generally made a name for himself with his pompous furnishings. Obviously he could draw on the full for Solimano.

The geographical background naturally contributed even more to debauchery - and Galli-Bibiena evidently did not leave out any stereotype and lavishly painted the Dresden court of how a Turkish sultan, his court, including soldiers and courtiers, as well as Persian princesses and oriental splendor would have to imagine. Bibiena's stage sets were particularly praised, namely the "final transformation, which" portrayed the Turkish camp with the view of Babylon in nighttime lighting on the Tigris, on which many ships could be seen.

The ballets that Pitrot had arranged were no less popular. "Between each main story, they were Königl. Dancers presented the most innovative dancers, which put the eyes of those high and low spectators in awe, as it were, as their dancers only admiring movements, jumps, figures and speed, as well as politeness ”, the execution of which in each of the thirteen performances was changed. “At the end of the opera, Pitrot appeared as Bassa with a large entourage; at the same time four large elephants "led by foolishly dressed funny dwarfs" appeared with towers, on each of which there were 2 dancers and 2 dancers who "descended at an admirable speed" "and with special dancing of the opera always a happy end after 8 o'clock" did. "

The elephants mentioned in this dance routine were dummies. But there were also real elephants on the stage - and many other real animals, especially when Selimos entered, who returns victorious and with numerous booty from the war with Persia, in Act 1 (Scene 1 / VII), “which really is on horseback happens and besides the extremely valuable Turkish and Persian horses, also various other living animals, such as elephants, cameels and dromedaires (sic), so in general the royal. Stable given for this, according to Asiatic usage, splendidly cleaned up, with in the wake ”etc.

There was also an equally large number of extras staff. "There were from Soliman's entourage:" Bassen, Veziers and other noble guards, bodyguards or archers, so-called Solachi, noble boys or so-called Icogliani, interpreters of the law or so-called imams, "Moors as noble boys with Narsea and Emira; In Selim's suite appeared: "Aga and basses on horseback, Persian prisoners of both sexes, slaves and Moors, field music, janissaries or guard on foot, spadis or guard on horseback." Still there were: "Soldiers from different Asian and European places with their basses, officers and other persons necessary for field music, kettledrums, drums, flags, horse tails, etc., who are initially divided into two bulls, but afterwards unite with the janissaries, and make up the entire Ottoman Army "."

In addition to stage design and equipment superlatives, ginal reports present the performances of the instrumental soloists and the orchestra. The oboist Besozzi is particularly praised in the great aria by Selimo (Recit. Obl. Aria, Andante in C major). The already mentioned “Franco-German” Johann Christian Trömer wrote about it: “The man with skin bois he wanted to show people how with his breath he can bite into clouds.”

Modern performances

A modern re-performance of the original version took place as part of the Innsbruck Festival for Early Music in August 1997. The Collegium Vocale and Concerto Köln performed under the musical direction of René Jacobs . The performance on August 16, 1997 was broadcast live on the radio by ORF. At the Innsbruck performance, the individual roles were cast as follows:


literature

Migliavacca, Giannambrogio; Hasse, Johann Adolf: Solimano. Drama Per Musica, Da Rappresentarsi Nel Teatro Della Regia Elettoral Corte Di Dresda Nel Carnevale Dell'Anno MDCCLIII. Dresda: Stössel, 1753 (parallel title: Soliman, a Singspiel, which was performed at the Royal Pohln. And Churfürstl. Sächs. Hof-Theater in Dresden, during Carnevals time in 1753)

  • Moritz Fürstenau : On the history of music and theater at the court of the electors of Saxony and kings of Poland. Friedrich August I (August II) and Friedrich August II (August III) . Kuntze, Dresden 1862, p. 272–276 ( PDF; 12.1 MB in Google Book Search).
  • Lindau, Martin Bernhard: History of the capital and residence city of Dresden from the earliest to the present time. Volume 2. Dresden: Kuntze, 1862: p. 305
  • Newly opened historical correspondence of old and new Curiosis Saxonicis. 1753: p. 66ff.
  • Rita Laurance: Hasse's Solimano

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Moritz Fürstenau: On the history of music and theater at the court of the electors of Saxony and kings of Poland. Friedrich August I (August II) and Friedrich August II (August III) . Kuntze, Dresden 1862, p. 274 ( PDF; 12.1 MB in the Google book search).
  2. ^ Johann Christian Trömer (1697–1756), actually Oberpostcommissar in Dresden, at the same time under the alias "Deutschfanzos" a popular versemaker and correspondent of the "Curiosa Saxonica" and the "Dresdner Merckworthiness", took up this seat emergency in his review of the opera and commented - This time probably half in French, half Chinese style: "Swei things eat and you do wrong in Dresden and in the world - in the Opera-Aus the place and in the world the money."
  3. ↑ extremely resourceful
  4. ↑ just admire their craftsmanship
  5. ^ Moritz Fürstenau: On the history of music and theater at the court of the electors of Saxony and kings of Poland. Friedrich August I (August II) and Friedrich August II (August III) . Kuntze, Dresden 1862, p. 273–274 ( PDF; 12.1 MB in the Google book search). with quotations from the original reporting in the Curiosa Saxonica (newly opened historical correspondence of old and new Curiosis Saxonicis) 1753 p. 66ff.
  6. ↑ Trömmer also reports on this, who describes the elephants as "swei so elephants of so invention".
  7. ^ Moritz Fürstenau: On the history of music and theater at the court of the electors of Saxony and kings of Poland. Friedrich August I (August II) and Friedrich August II (August III) . Kuntze, Dresden 1862, p. 274–276 ( PDF; 12.1 MB in Google book search). with quotations from the original reporting in the Curiosa Saxonica (newly opened historical correspondence of old and new Curiosis Saxonicis) 1753 p. 66ff.
  8. ^ Quoted from Moritz Fürstenau: On the history of music and theater at the court of the electors of Saxony and kings of Poland. Friedrich August I (August II) and Friedrich August II (August III) . Kuntze, Dresden 1862, p. 276 ( PDF; 12.1 MB in the Google book search).