La rencontre imprévue
Encyclopedia
Les pèlerins de la Mecque ou La rencontre imprévue Wq. 32 (The Unexpected Encounter, or,The Pilgrims to Mecca) is a comédie mêlée d'ariettes
, a form of opéra comique
, composed in 1763 by Christoph Willibald Gluck
to a libretto by Louis Hurtaut Dancourt after the 1726 play by Alain René Lesage and d'Orneval.. The death of Isabella of Parma, the archduke
's wife, occasioned a revision of the spoken text downplaying the feigned death by which princess Rezia tests her beloved. The work was first performed in this form as La rencontre imprévue at the Burgtheater
, Vienna
on January 7, 1764, and although often revived as Die Pilger von Mekka, the original version was not premiered until 1990.
La rencontre imprévue was adapted and supplied with new music by Haydn as L'incontro improvviso
(1775) and the 1780 revival of Gluck's version presumably inspired the plot of Mozart's The Abduction from the Seraglio. In 1784 Mozart wrote a set of variations for piano (K.455) on Osmin's aria "Unser dummer Pöbel meint" ("Les hommes pieusement"). In 1887 the variations were orchestrated by Tchaikovsky as the final movement of his orchestral Suite No.4 "Mozartiana"
.
Comédie mêlée d'ariettes
Comédie mêlée d'ariettes is a form of French opéra comique that developed in the mid 18th century following the Querelle des Bouffons dispute over the respective merits of the French and Italian styles, between serious drama and comedy in opera.The best-known ones are Christoph Willibald Gluck's...
, a form of opéra comique
Opéra comique
Opéra comique is a genre of French opera that contains spoken dialogue and arias. It emerged out of the popular opéra comiques en vaudevilles of the Fair Theatres of St Germain and St Laurent , which combined existing popular tunes with spoken sections...
, composed in 1763 by Christoph Willibald Gluck
Christoph Willibald Gluck
Christoph Willibald Ritter von Gluck was an opera composer of the early classical period. After many years at the Habsburg court at Vienna, Gluck brought about the practical reform of opera's dramaturgical practices that many intellectuals had been campaigning for over the years...
to a libretto by Louis Hurtaut Dancourt after the 1726 play by Alain René Lesage and d'Orneval.. The death of Isabella of Parma, the archduke
Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor
Joseph II was Holy Roman Emperor from 1765 to 1790 and ruler of the Habsburg lands from 1780 to 1790. He was the eldest son of Empress Maria Theresa and her husband, Francis I...
's wife, occasioned a revision of the spoken text downplaying the feigned death by which princess Rezia tests her beloved. The work was first performed in this form as La rencontre imprévue at the Burgtheater
Burgtheater
The Burgtheater , originally known as K.K. Theater an der Burg, then until 1918 as the K.K. Hofburgtheater, is the Austrian National Theatre in Vienna and one of the most important German language theatres in the world.The Burgtheater was created in 1741 and has become known as "die Burg" by the...
, Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
on January 7, 1764, and although often revived as Die Pilger von Mekka, the original version was not premiered until 1990.
La rencontre imprévue was adapted and supplied with new music by Haydn as L'incontro improvviso
L'incontro improvviso
L’incontro improvviso is an opera in three acts by Joseph Haydn first performed at Eszterháza on 29 August 1775 to mark the four-day visit of Archduke Ferdinand, Habsburg governor of Milan and his consort Maria Beatrice d'Este...
(1775) and the 1780 revival of Gluck's version presumably inspired the plot of Mozart's The Abduction from the Seraglio. In 1784 Mozart wrote a set of variations for piano (K.455) on Osmin's aria "Unser dummer Pöbel meint" ("Les hommes pieusement"). In 1887 the variations were orchestrated by Tchaikovsky as the final movement of his orchestral Suite No.4 "Mozartiana"
Orchestral Suite No. 4 (Tchaikovsky)
The Orchestral Suite No. 4 Op. 61, more commonly known as Mozartiana, is an orchestral suite by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, written in 1887 as a tribute to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart on the 100th anniversary of that composer's opera Don Giovanni...
.
Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast, January 7, 1764 (Conductor: - ) |
|---|---|---|
| Ali | haute-contre Haute-contre The haute-contre is a rare type of high tenor voice, predominant in French Baroque and Classical opera until the latter part of the eighteenth century.-History:... |
Godard |
| Osmin, his servant | tenor | Pierre-Nicolas Oyez |
| Rezia, beloved of Ali, prisoner of the Sultan | soprano | |
| Amine, Balkis & Dardané, her attendants in the harem | 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... |
|
| Vertigo. a painter | bass | |
| Calender Qalandariyah The Qalandariyyah , Qalandaris or Kalandars are wandering Sufi dervishes. The term covers a variety of sects, not centrally organized. One was founded by Qalandar Yusuf al-Andalusi of Andalusia, Spain.... , a dervish Dervish A Dervish or Darvesh is someone treading a Sufi Muslim ascetic path or "Tariqah", known for their extreme poverty and austerity, similar to mendicant friars in Christianity or Hindu/Buddhist/Jain sadhus.-Etymology:The Persian word darvīsh is of ancient origin and descends from a Proto-Iranian... |
bass | |
| Le Sultan | tenor | |
| Le chef de caravane | bass | |
External links
- Amazon review of John Eliot GardinerJohn Eliot GardinerSir John Eliot Gardiner CBE FKC is an English conductor. He founded the Monteverdi Choir , the English Baroque Soloists and the Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique...
's recording