La canterina
Encyclopedia
La canterina Hob.
28/2, is a short, two act opera buffa
by Joseph Haydn
, the first one he wrote for Prince Esterhazy
. Based on the intermezzo from the third act of Niccolò Piccinni
's opera L'Origille (1760), it lasts about 50 minutes. It was written in 1766, and was premiered in the fall of that year.
It was originally intended as a pair of intermezzi
, each of the two acts coming between the acts of an opera seria
. Similar works include La serva padrona
by Pergolesi
and Pimpinone
by Telemann
.
When Don Pelagio leaves, Gasparina calls Don Ettore back in. Don Pelagio has left something behind, however, and returns to catch Gasparina and Don Ettore together. Don Pelagio and Don Ettore are both angry at having been deceived and taken advantage of by the women. Don Pelagio decides to throw the women out of their apartment, which he had given them, and begins to carry away their belongings.
Gasparina pleads for forgiveness and mercy, and Don Pelagio is swayed. Not only does he allow her to stay in the apartment, but he brings his own belongings to the women. Gasparina continues to take advantage of the situation, pretending to faint. The men lavish her with money and diamonds, which have a curiously restorative effect. In the end, the men recognize Gasparina's greed, but nonetheless willingly hand over their riches.
The comic potential is enhanced by Don Ettore being played as a pants role
— that is, by a woman. The role of Apollonia can also be played by a man.
There are two good quartets, and all characters but Don Ettore have arias to sing.
Hoboken-Verzeichnis
The Hoboken-Verzeichnis is the catalogue of over 750 works by Joseph Haydn as compiled by Anthony van Hoboken.Unlike Ludwig von Köchel's catalogue of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's works, or Otto Erich Deutsch's catalogue of Franz Schubert's works, which are both arranged chronologically by date of...
28/2, is a short, two act opera buffa
Opera buffa
Opera buffa is a genre of opera. It was first used as an informal description of Italian comic operas variously classified by their authors as ‘commedia in musica’, ‘commedia per musica’, ‘dramma bernesco’, ‘dramma comico’, ‘divertimento giocoso' etc...
by Joseph Haydn
Joseph Haydn
Franz Joseph Haydn , known as Joseph Haydn , was an Austrian composer, one of the most prolific and prominent composers of the Classical period. He is often called the "Father of the Symphony" and "Father of the String Quartet" because of his important contributions to these forms...
, the first one he wrote for Prince Esterhazy
Esterházy
The House of Esterházy was a Hungarian noble family in Hungary beginning in the Middle Ages. From the 17th century they were among the great landowner magnates of the Kingdom of Hungary, during the time it was part of the Habsburg Empire and later Austria-Hungary.-History:The Esterházys arose...
. Based on the intermezzo from the third act of Niccolò Piccinni
Piccinni
Piccinni may refer to:Tribe of American woodpeckers Picini of the subfamily Picinae-music:*Teatro Piccinni, Italian theater in Bari, Apulia, named after*Niccolò Piccinni, Italian composer and grandfather of...
's opera L'Origille (1760), it lasts about 50 minutes. It was written in 1766, and was premiered in the fall of that year.
It was originally intended as a pair of intermezzi
Intermezzo
In music, an intermezzo , in the most general sense, is a composition which fits between other musical or dramatic entities, such as acts of a play or movements of a larger musical work...
, each of the two acts coming between the acts of an 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...
. Similar works include La serva padrona
La serva padrona
La serva padrona is an opera buffa by Giovanni Battista Pergolesi to a libretto by Gennaro Antonio Federico, after the play by Jacopo Angello Nelli. The opera is only 45 minutes long and was originally performed as an intermezzo between the acts of a larger serious opera...
by Pergolesi
Giovanni Battista Pergolesi
Giovanni Battista Pergolesi was an Italian composer, violinist and organist.-Biography:Born at Iesi, Pergolesi studied music there under a local musician, Francesco Santini, before going to Naples in 1725, where he studied under Gaetano Greco and Francesco Feo among others...
and Pimpinone
Pimpinone
Pimpinone, TWV 21:15, is a comic opera by the German composer Georg Philipp Telemann with a libretto by Johann Philipp Praetorius. Its full title is Die Ungleiche Heirat zwischen Vespetta und Pimpinone oder Das herrsch-süchtige Camer Mägden...
by Telemann
Georg Philipp Telemann
Georg Philipp Telemann was a German Baroque composer and multi-instrumentalist. Almost completely self-taught in music, he became a composer against his family's wishes. After studying in Magdeburg, Zellerfeld, and Hildesheim, Telemann entered the University of Leipzig to study law, but eventually...
.
Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere cast 11 September 1766 / 16 February 1767 |
|---|---|---|
| Don Ettore | 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... |
Leopold Dichtler |
| Apollonia | 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... |
Barbara Fux-Dichtler |
| Don Pelagio | tenor | Karl Friberth |
| Gasparina | soprano | Anna Maria Weigl-Scheffstoss |
Synopsis
Gasparina, the songstress, and her "mother", Apollonia, are visited by Don Ettore, a young man who attempts to woo Gasparina with fabric and jewels stolen from his mother. When Don Pelagio, Gasparina's singing instructor and benefactor, arrives, the women attempt to disguise Don Ettore as a merchant and send him away. Don Pelagio teaches Gasparina a new aria he has written for her and asks her to marry him.When Don Pelagio leaves, Gasparina calls Don Ettore back in. Don Pelagio has left something behind, however, and returns to catch Gasparina and Don Ettore together. Don Pelagio and Don Ettore are both angry at having been deceived and taken advantage of by the women. Don Pelagio decides to throw the women out of their apartment, which he had given them, and begins to carry away their belongings.
Gasparina pleads for forgiveness and mercy, and Don Pelagio is swayed. Not only does he allow her to stay in the apartment, but he brings his own belongings to the women. Gasparina continues to take advantage of the situation, pretending to faint. The men lavish her with money and diamonds, which have a curiously restorative effect. In the end, the men recognize Gasparina's greed, but nonetheless willingly hand over their riches.
The comic potential is enhanced by Don Ettore being played as a pants 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...
— that is, by a woman. The role of Apollonia can also be played by a man.
There are two good quartets, and all characters but Don Ettore have arias to sing.