Tancredi
Tancredi is a melodramma eroico (opera seria or 'heroic' opera) in two acts by composer Gioachino Rossini and librettist Gaetano Rossi, based on Voltaire's play Tancrède (1759). The opera made its first appearance in Venice at the Teatro La Fenice on February 6, 1813, after Il signor Bruschino premiered in late January, giving the composer less than a month to have completed Tancredi. The overture, borrowed from La pietra del paragone, is a popular example of Rossini's characteristic style, and is a regular part of the concert and recording repertoire.
This opera is considered by Stendhal, Rossini's earliest biographer, to be Rossini's greatest masterpiece. The title role of Tancredi is so vocally demanding that casting the part has traditionally proved to be challenging. It requires a true contralto or a mezzo-soprano with a strong lower register who possesses great vocal agility and endurance. The title role encompasses two lengthy arias and four duets.
Though Rossini first composed his opera with a happy ending in mind (as required by the opera seria tradition), he eventually had the poet Luigi Lechi rework the libretto to emulate the original tragic ending by Voltaire. Thus, in the Ferrara ending, Tancredi wins the battle but is mortally wounded. Only then does he learn that Amenaide never betrayed him, and Agirio marries the lovers in time for Tancredi to die in his wife's arms. In the Venice ending (1816), the dying Solamir professes Amenaide's innocence, and Tancredi returns home in triumph. It is in this version that the opera is usually performed today.[citation needed]
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[edit] Performance history
[edit] 19th century
Tancredi premiered in 1813 at La Fenice in Venice with Adelaide Malanotte in the title role and it was soon mounted at major opera houses throughout Italy, including the Teatro Comunale di Bologna (1814), the Teatro Apollo in Rome (1814), the Teatro Regio di Torino (1814), La Fenice (1815), the Teatro del Fondo in Naples (1816), and the Teatro San Moisè in Venice (1816).
The opera was first performed in England at the King's Theatre in London on 4 May 1820 with Fanny Corri-Paltoni as Amenaide. Its French premiere was given by the Théâtre-Lyrique Italien at the Salle Louvois in Paris on 23 April 1822 with Giuditta Pasta in the title role. It was performed in Portugal for the first time at the Teatro Nacional de São Carlos on 18 September 1822 and was given its La Scala premiere on 8 November 1823 with Brigida Lorenzani as Tancredi. The United States premiere occurred on 31 December 1825 at the Park Theatre in New York City using the revised version by Lechi. The Paris Opéra mounted the work for the first time with Maria Malibran in the title role on 30 March 1829.
[edit] 20th and 21st century
After a 1833 revival at the Teatro Comunale di Bologna, Tancredi was not mounted again until almost 120 years later. The Maggio Musicale Fiorentino revived the work on 17 May 1952 with Giulietta Simionato in the title role, Teresa Stich-Randall as Amenaide, Francesco Albanese as Argirio, Mario Petri as Orbazzano, and Tullio Serafin conducting.
Following the discovery of the long-lost tragic ending and the preparation of the critical edition by Philip Gossett and others at the University of Chicago in 1976,[1] the work was revived 25 years later, at which time mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne performed the title role with the Houston Grand Opera on 13 October 1977. Ms. Horne, who is now strongly associated with the title role, insisted on the tragic Ferrara ending, citing that it is more consistent with the overall tone of the opera. Indeed, most of the recordings of this opera today use the Ferrara conclusion, while some include the Venice finale as an extra track.
Horne's triumphant performance of Tancredi in Houston soon led to invitations from other opera houses to sing the role, and it is largely through her efforts that the opera enjoyed a surge of revivals during the latter half of the 20th century. She sang the part for performances at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma (1977), the San Francisco Opera (1979), the Aix-en-Provence Festival (1981), La Fenice (1981, 1983), and the Lyric Opera of Chicago (1989) among others.
While Tancredi is not one of the more frequently mounted operas, it has now become less of a rarity on the opera stage. Contralto Ewa Podleś achieved recognition in the title role, performing it at the Vlaamse Opera (1991), La Scala (1993), the Berlin State Opera (1996), the Canadian Opera Company (2005), the Caramoor International Music Festival (2006), the Teatro Real (2007) and Opera Boston (2009) among others. She also recorded the role on the Naxos label in 1995. Bulgarian mezzo-soprano Vesselina Kasarova has also been praised in the role, singing it at the Salzburg Festival (1992), the Opera Orchestra of New York (1997), and on a 1996 recording with the Bavarian Radio Chorus and Munich Radio Orchestra.
Pier Luigi Pizzi staged a lauded[by whom?] production of Tancredi at the Teatro Rossini in Pesaro in 1999, a production which was later transported to the Rossini Opera Festival in 2004. In 2005 it went to Rome and Florence (where it was filmed for DVD with Daniela Barcellona in the title role), and then was presented by the Deutsche Oper Berlin in 2011, with Alberto Zedda conducting. Barcellona sang Tancredi again in a new staging of the opera at the Teatro Regio di Torino in November 2009 after reprising the part in February 2009 at the Teatro de la Maestranza. The Theater an der Wien mounted the work for the first time in October 2009 with Vivica Genaux in the title role and René Jacobs conducting. The Théâtre des Champs-Élysées presented the opera in concert in December 2009 with Nora Gubisch as Tancredi.
[edit] Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast, February 6, 1813 (Conductor: - ) |
|---|---|---|
| Tancredi, an exiled Syracusean soldier | contralto or mezzo-soprano | Adelaide Melanotte-Montresor |
| Amenaide, the daughter of a noble family, in love with Tancredi | soprano | Elisabetta Manfredini Guarmani |
| Argirio, father of Amenaide; head of his family, at war with the family of Orbazzano | tenor | Pietro Todràn |
| Orbazzano, the head of his noble family, at war with the family of Argirio | bass | Luciano Bianchi |
| Isaura, friend to Amenaide | contralto | Teresa Marchesi |
| Roggiero, Tancredi's squire | mezzo-soprano or tenor | Carolina Sivelli |
| Knights, nobles, squires, Syracusans, Saracens; ladies-in-waiting, warriors, pages, guards, etc | ||
[edit] Synopsis
[edit] Background
The city of Syracuse is tethered by conflict and war between the Byzantine empire, with which it has an unstable truce, and the Saracen armies headed by Solamir. Not only is Syracuse exhausted by external war, but internal war as well; the soldier Tancredi and his family have been stripped of their estates and inheritances, and he himself has been banished since his youth. Two more noble families — headed by Argirio and Orbazzano — have been warring for years. Argirio and his family — his wife and his daughter, Amenaide — have been residing as guests of the Byzantine court, where Tancredi presides in exile. Also present in the court is Solamir, the Moorish general, who wishes for the lovely Amenaide's hand in marriage in hopes that he can create a Saracen-Syracusean alliance. However, Amenaide is secretly in love with Tancredi.
[edit] Act 1
Warring nobles Argirio and Orbazzano have agreed to a truce in the face of a greater threat: the approaching army of Solamir. The Senate has already given Tancredi's confiscated estates to Orbazzano, and now Argirio offers him his (Argirio's) daughter, Amenaide, in marriage. She dutifully consents to the arrangement, although she loves the exiled Tancredi. Soon, a letter she sends to her love falls into the hands of Orbazzano's agent near Solamir's camp. Amenaide has deliberately omitted Tancredi's name for his protection, and so it is assumed that the letter was intended for Solamir. A furious Orbazzano publicly reveals the letter at his own wedding ceremony, and Amenaide is sentenced to death for treason.
[edit] Act 2
Tancredi, who has returned incognito and offered his service to Argirio, believes that his love has been betrayed. Despite this, he challenges Orbazzano to a duel in defence of Amenaide's honor and life. He wins the duel, killing Orbazzano and winning Amenaide's freedom, before leading his fellow Syracusans into battle against Solamir.
[edit] Recordings
| Year | Cast (Tancredi, Amenaide, Argirio, Orbazzano) |
Conductor, Opera House and Orchestra |
Label[2] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | Fiorenza Cossotto, Lella Cuberli, Werner Hollweg, Nicola Ghiuselev |
Gabriele Ferro, Capella Coloniesis and Chorus of Westdeutschen Rundfunks |
Audio CD: Fonit Cetra Cat: 2564 69972-7 |
| 1981 | Marilyn Horne, Lella Cuberli, Ernesto Palacio, Nicola Zaccaria |
Ralf Weikert, La Fenice Orchestra and Chorus (Recording of a performance in La Fenice, December) |
Audio CD: Mondo Musica Cat: MFOH 1074 |
| 1992 | Bernadette Manca di Nissa, Maria Bayo, Raul Gimenez, Ildebrando D'Arcangelo |
Gianluigi Gelmetti Radio Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, Stuttgart (Recording of a performance at the Schlosstheater Schwetzingen |
DVD: Arthaus Musik Cat: 100 206 (Europe); 100 207 (US) |
| 1995 | Ewa Podleś, Sumi Jo, Stanford Olsen, Pietro Spagnoli |
Alberto Zedda, Collegium Instrumentale Brugense, Capella Brugensis (recorded at the Poissy Theatre and the Centre Musical-Lyrique-Phonographique, Île de France, from 26 to 31 January 1994) |
Audio CD: Naxos Cat: 8.660037-8 |
| 1995 | Vesselina Kasarova, Eva Mei, Ramón Vargas, Harry Peeters |
Roberto Abbado, Münchener Sinfonieorchester, Bayrischer Rundfunkchor |
Audio CD: RCA Victor Cat: 09026 68349-2 |
| 2003 | Daniela Barcellona, Mariola Cantarero, Charles Workman, Nicola Ulivieri |
Paolo Arrivabeni, Orchestra e Coro del Teatro Lirico Giuseppe Verdi di Trieste |
DVD: Kicco Classics Cat: KCOU 9004 |
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- Notes
- ^ , Philip Gossett, "A Happy Ending to the Tragic Finale of Tancredi " in Divas and Scholars: Performing Italian Opera pp 148-152
- ^ Recordngs of Tancredi on operadis-opera-discography.org.uk
- Cited sources
- Gossett, Philip, Divas and Scholars: Performing Italian Opera, Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 2006 ISBN 978-0-226-30482-3
- Other sources
- Holden, Amanda (Ed.), The New Penguin Opera Guide, New York: Penguin Putnam, 2001. ISBN 0-140-29312-4
- Osborne, Charles, The Bel Canto Operas of Rossini, Donizetti, and Bellini, Portland, Oregon: Amadeus Press, 1994 ISBN 0931340713
- Osborne, Richard, Rossini, Ithaca, New York: Northeastern University Press, 1990 ISBN 1555530885 ISBN 1-55553-088-5
- Toye, Francis, Rossini: The Man and His Music, Dover Publications, 1987. ISBN 0486253961 ISBN 0-486-25396-1,
[edit] External links
- Full score of the overture to this opera
