Demofoonte (Mysliveček) (1775)
Encyclopedia
Demofoonte is an opera
in three acts by the Czech composer Josef Mysliveček
. It was the composer's second setting of this popular libretto by Metastasio
first produced in 1733 (it was common in the second half of the eighteenth-century for composers to set Metastasian texts dozens of times over). It was typical for subsequent setting of Metastasian dramas to incorporate significant alterations, and this setting retains the augmentation of the role of Timante that is found in the composer's first setting of this text. All of Mysliveček's operas are of the serious type in Italian referred to as opera seria
.
on 20 January 1775, the birthday of king Charles III of Spain
, the former ruler of the Kingdom of Naples
whose birthday and nameday were still celebrated with operatic productions under the rule of his son Ferdinand
. It was very successful at its premiere, to the point that the prima donna
for the production, Antonia Bernasconi, specially brought arias from it with her to her next engagement in London
.
. Timante's younger brother Cherinto is accompanying her to the kingdom of Thrace, however he falls in love with her. Meeting Creusa, Timante admits that he cannot marry her, but does not explain why.
Dircea has been caught while trying to flee the country and imprisoned, and Demofoonte orders the immediate sacrifice of Dircea. Timante tries to release her but with no success. He is also imprisoned. Creusa asks Demofoonte for mercy. The king releases Timante and Dircea, and Timante decides to give up the throne in favour of Cherinto.
Suddenly they find a letter revealing that Dircea is the daughter of Demofoonte, which makes Timante and Dircea brother and sister. Timante is in despair, and tries to avoid Dircea. However another letter reveals that Timante is the son of Matusio. Everybody is happy. The marriage of Timante and Dircea becomes legal, and Cherinto is the real crown prince and can marry Creusa. No more virgins are sacrificed, since Timante is no longer the "innocent usurper of the throne".
Act I, scene 2 - Aria of Dircea, "In te spero o sposo amato"
Act I, scene 3 - Aria of Demofoonte, "Per lei fra l'armi"
Act I, scene 4 - Aria of Timante, "Sperai vicino al lido"
Act I, scene 5 - Aria of Cherinto, "T'intendo ingrata" [a non-Metastasian text]
Act I, scene 7 - Aria of Creusa, "Non curo l'affetto"
Act I, scene 8 - Aria of Cherinto, "Balena in quel sembiante" [a non-Metastasian text]
Act I, scene 12 - Aria of Dircea, "Padre, perdona, o pene"
Act I, scene 14 - Accompanied recitative for Timante, "Sposa mio ben"
Act I, scene 14 - Aria of Timante, "La dolce compagna vedersi rapire" [a non-Metastasian text]
Act II, scene 1 - Aria of Creusa, "Tu sai chi son tu sai"
Act II, scene 2 - Aria of Timante, "Prudente mi chiedi?"
Act II, scene 4 - Aria of Matusio, "E soccorso d'incognita mano"
Act II, scene 6 - Aria of Dircea, "Se tutti i mali miei"
Act II, scene 7 - Aria of Cherinto, "No, non chiedo amate stelle"
Act II, scene 9 - Aria of Demofoonte, "Perfidi, già che in vita"
Act II, Scene 10 - Accompanied recitative for Timante and Dircea, "Sposa. Timante"
Act II, scene 10 - Duet for Dircea and Timante, "La destra ti chiedo"
Act III, scene 1 - Aria of Adrasto, "Se ti bramassi estinto" [a non-Metastasian text]
Act III, scene 4 - Accompanied recitative for Timante, "Misero me"
Act III, scene 5 - Aria of Timante, "Misero pargoletto"
Act III, scene 6 - Aria of Demofoonte, "Odo il suono de' queruli accenti"
Act III, scene 7 - Aria of Dircea, "Che mai risponderti"
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
in three acts by the Czech composer Josef Mysliveček
Josef Myslivecek
Josef Mysliveček was a Czech composer who contributed to the formation of late eighteenth-century classicism in music...
. It was the composer's second setting of this popular libretto by Metastasio
Metastasio
Pietro Antonio Domenico Trapassi, better known by his pseudonym of Metastasio, was an Italian poet and librettist, considered the most important writer of opera seria libretti.-Early life:...
first produced in 1733 (it was common in the second half of the eighteenth-century for composers to set Metastasian texts dozens of times over). It was typical for subsequent setting of Metastasian dramas to incorporate significant alterations, and this setting retains the augmentation of the role of Timante that is found in the composer's first setting of this text. All of Mysliveček's operas are of the serious type in Italian referred to as opera seria
Opera seria
Opera seria is an Italian musical term which refers to the noble and "serious" style of Italian opera that predominated in Europe from the 1710s to c. 1770...
.
Performance history
The opera was first performed at the Teatro San Carlo in NaplesNaples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
on 20 January 1775, the birthday of king Charles III of Spain
Charles III of Spain
Charles III was the King of Spain and the Spanish Indies from 1759 to 1788. He was the eldest son of Philip V of Spain and his second wife, the Princess Elisabeth Farnese...
, the former ruler of the Kingdom of Naples
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples, comprising the southern part of the Italian peninsula, was the remainder of the old Kingdom of Sicily after secession of the island of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers rebellion of 1282. Known to contemporaries as the Kingdom of Sicily, it is dubbed Kingdom of...
whose birthday and nameday were still celebrated with operatic productions under the rule of his son Ferdinand
Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies
Ferdinand I reigned variously over Naples, Sicily, and the Two Sicilies from 1759 until his death. He was the third son of King Charles III of Spain by his wife Maria Amalia of Saxony. On 10 August 1759, Charles succeeded his elder brother, Ferdinand VI, as King Charles III of Spain...
. It was very successful at its premiere, to the point that the prima donna
Prima donna
Originally used in opera or Commedia dell'arte companies, "prima donna" is Italian for "first lady." The term was used to designate the leading female singer in the opera company, the person to whom the prime roles would be given. The prima donna was normally, but not necessarily, a soprano...
for the production, Antonia Bernasconi, specially brought arias from it with her to her next engagement in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere cast, 20 January 1775, Teatro San Carlo, Naples |
|---|---|---|
| Demofoonte, king of Thrace | tenor Tenor The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2... |
Giuseppe Tibaldi |
| Dircea, secret wife of Timante | soprano Soprano A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody... |
Antonia Bernasconi |
| Timante, believed to be the son of Demofoonte and hereditary prince of Thrace | soprano castrato Castrato A castrato is a man with a singing voice equivalent to that of a soprano, mezzo-soprano, or contralto voice produced either by castration of the singer before puberty or one who, because of an endocrinological condition, never reaches sexual maturity.Castration before puberty prevents a boy's... |
Ferdinando Tenducci |
| Creusa, a princess of Phrygia, intended bride of Timante | soprano | Elisabetta Fiorentini |
| Cherinto, a son of Demofoonte, in love with Creusa | soprano castrato | Giuseppe Pugnetti |
| Matusio, believed to be the father of Dircea | tenor | Michele Mazziotti |
| Adrasto, captain of the royal guards | alto Alto Alto is a musical term, derived from the Latin word altus, meaning "high" in Italian, that has several possible interpretations.When designating instruments, "alto" frequently refers to a member of an instrumental family that has the second highest range, below that of the treble or soprano. Hence,... |
Celidea Squillace (in a breeches role Breeches role A breeches role is a role in which an actress appears in male clothing .In opera it also refers to any male character that is sung and acted by a female singer... ) |
Synopsis
The Thracian king Demofoonte asks the oracle of Apollo how long the practice of the annual sacrifice of a virgin will continue. The answer is puzzling: "as long as the innocent usurper sits on the throne". The nobleman Matusio tries to protect his daughter Dircea from being sacrificed. He and Demofoonte are unaware that Dircea is secretly married to Timante, the son of Demofoonte and the heir to the throne. Demofoonte wants Timante to marry Creusa, a princess of PhrygiaPhrygia
In antiquity, Phrygia was a kingdom in the west central part of Anatolia, in what is now modern-day Turkey. The Phrygians initially lived in the southern Balkans; according to Herodotus, under the name of Bryges , changing it to Phruges after their final migration to Anatolia, via the...
. Timante's younger brother Cherinto is accompanying her to the kingdom of Thrace, however he falls in love with her. Meeting Creusa, Timante admits that he cannot marry her, but does not explain why.
Dircea has been caught while trying to flee the country and imprisoned, and Demofoonte orders the immediate sacrifice of Dircea. Timante tries to release her but with no success. He is also imprisoned. Creusa asks Demofoonte for mercy. The king releases Timante and Dircea, and Timante decides to give up the throne in favour of Cherinto.
Suddenly they find a letter revealing that Dircea is the daughter of Demofoonte, which makes Timante and Dircea brother and sister. Timante is in despair, and tries to avoid Dircea. However another letter reveals that Timante is the son of Matusio. Everybody is happy. The marriage of Timante and Dircea becomes legal, and Cherinto is the real crown prince and can marry Creusa. No more virgins are sacrificed, since Timante is no longer the "innocent usurper of the throne".
Vocal Set Pieces
Act I, scene 1 - Aria of Matusio, "O più non tremar non voglio"Act I, scene 2 - Aria of Dircea, "In te spero o sposo amato"
Act I, scene 3 - Aria of Demofoonte, "Per lei fra l'armi"
Act I, scene 4 - Aria of Timante, "Sperai vicino al lido"
Act I, scene 5 - Aria of Cherinto, "T'intendo ingrata" [a non-Metastasian text]
Act I, scene 7 - Aria of Creusa, "Non curo l'affetto"
Act I, scene 8 - Aria of Cherinto, "Balena in quel sembiante" [a non-Metastasian text]
Act I, scene 12 - Aria of Dircea, "Padre, perdona, o pene"
Act I, scene 14 - Accompanied recitative for Timante, "Sposa mio ben"
Act I, scene 14 - Aria of Timante, "La dolce compagna vedersi rapire" [a non-Metastasian text]
Act II, scene 1 - Aria of Creusa, "Tu sai chi son tu sai"
Act II, scene 2 - Aria of Timante, "Prudente mi chiedi?"
Act II, scene 4 - Aria of Matusio, "E soccorso d'incognita mano"
Act II, scene 6 - Aria of Dircea, "Se tutti i mali miei"
Act II, scene 7 - Aria of Cherinto, "No, non chiedo amate stelle"
Act II, scene 9 - Aria of Demofoonte, "Perfidi, già che in vita"
Act II, Scene 10 - Accompanied recitative for Timante and Dircea, "Sposa. Timante"
Act II, scene 10 - Duet for Dircea and Timante, "La destra ti chiedo"
Act III, scene 1 - Aria of Adrasto, "Se ti bramassi estinto" [a non-Metastasian text]
Act III, scene 4 - Accompanied recitative for Timante, "Misero me"
Act III, scene 5 - Aria of Timante, "Misero pargoletto"
Act III, scene 6 - Aria of Demofoonte, "Odo il suono de' queruli accenti"
Act III, scene 7 - Aria of Dircea, "Che mai risponderti"