Dido and Aeneas
Dido and Aeneas | |
---|---|
Opera by Henry Purcell | |
Librettist | Nahum Tate |
Based on | Book IV of Virgil's Aeneid |
Premiere | 1689 Josias Priest's girls' school, London |
Dido and Aeneas (Z. 626)
The influence of Cavalli's opera Didone is also apparent. Both works use the prologue/three acts format and there are similarities between, for instance, Mercury's solo in Didone and the solo "Come away fellow sailors" in Purcell's work.
Background and context
Before Dido and Aeneas, Purcell had composed music for several stage works, including nine pieces for Nathaniel Lee's Theodosius, or The Force of Love (1680) and eight songs for Thomas d'Urfey's A Fool's Preferment (1688). He also composed songs for two plays by Nahum Tate (later the librettist of Dido and Aeneas), The Sicilian Usurper (1680) and Cuckold's Haven (1685). Dido and Aeneas was Purcell's first (and only) all-sung opera and derives from the English masque tradition.
Libretto
Originally based on Nahum Tate's play
Although the opera is a tragedy, there are numerous seemingly lighter scenes, such as the First Sailor's song, "Take a boozy short leave of your nymphs on the shore, and silence their mourning with vows of returning, though never intending to visit them more." Musicologist Ellen T. Harris considers the callousness and cynicism of the song to underline the "moral" of the story, that young women should not succumb to the advances and promises of ardent young men.[7]
Score
No score in Purcell's hand is
Performance history
Premiere and early revivals
A letter from the Levant merchant Rowland Sherman associates Dido and Aeneas with Josias Priest's girls' school in Chelsea, London no later than the summer of 1688.[13] The first performance may have taken place as early as 1 December 1687,[14] and evidence suggests that the opera was performed at the school again in 1689.[3] Several scholars have argued that the work was composed for the English court, either for Charles II (and perhaps as early as 1684)[4][5] or for James II.[15] Following the Chelsea performances, the opera was not staged again in Purcell's lifetime. Its next performance was in 1700 as a masque incorporated into Beauty the Best Advocate, an adapted version of Shakespeare's Measure for Measure at Thomas Betterton's theatre in London.
After 1705 it disappeared as a staged work, with only sporadic concert performances, until 1895 when the first staged version in modern times was performed by students of the Royal College of Music at London's Lyceum Theatre to mark the bicentenary of Purcell's death.[16] Dido and Aeneas received its first performance outside England on 14 December 1895 in a concert version at the University Society in Dublin.
20th- and 21st-century performances
Dido and Aeneas premiered in the United States at the Plaza Hotel in New York City on 10 February 1923 performed by the girls of the Rosemary School, although The New York Times noted that "considerable liberties" had been taken with the score.[17] A concert version with professional musicians organised by the Society of Friends of Music took place on 13 January 1924 at the New York City Town Hall, using a score edited by Artur Bodanzky, who also conducted the performance.[18]
As new critical editions of the score appeared, and with the revival of interest in Baroque music, the number of productions steadily increased. After
Adaptations
A version of the opera adapted to modern dance was choreographed by the American Mark Morris, who originally danced both the roles of Dido and the Sorceress. It premiered on 11 March 1989 at the Théâtre Varia in Brussels.[22] It has since been performed many times and was filmed in 1995 by Canadian director Barbara Willis Sweete, with Morris in the roles of Dido and the Sorceress.[23] The production was subsequently seen at the Grand Théâtre in Luxembourg, Opéra national de Montpellier, and Sadler's Wells Theatre in London. In both the Morris and the Waltz adaptations, the characters are each portrayed by both a singer and a dancer, with the dancers on stage and the singers performing from the side of the stage or the orchestra pit.
Roles
Role | Voice type | |
---|---|---|
Dido (also known as Elissa), Queen of Carthage | soprano or mezzo-soprano[24] | |
Belinda, Dido's handmaid | light soprano | |
Second Woman, Another Handmaiden | soprano or mezzo-soprano | |
Aeneas, Trojan Prince | tenor or high baritone[25] | |
Sorceress/Sorcerer | mezzo-soprano, contralto, countertenor or bass[26] | |
First Witch/Enchantress | mezzo-soprano | |
Second Witch/Enchantress | mezzo-soprano | |
Spirit, in form of Mercury | soprano or countertenor | |
First Sailor | tenor[27] | |
Chorus, SATB: all members at one point or another represent courtiers, witches, cupids, and sailors. |
Synopsis
Act 1
Dido's court
The opera opens with Dido in her court with her attendants. Belinda is trying to cheer Dido up, but Dido is full of sorrow, saying 'Peace and I are strangers grown'. Belinda believes the source of this grief to be the Trojan Aeneas, and suggests that Carthage's troubles could be resolved by a marriage between the two. Dido and Belinda talk for a time: Dido fears that her love will make her a weak monarch, but Belinda and the Second Woman reassure her that "The hero loves as well." Aeneas enters the court, and is at first received coldly by Dido, but she eventually accepts his proposal of marriage.
Act 2
Scene 1: The cave of the Sorceress
The Sorceress/Sorcerer is plotting the destruction of Carthage and its queen, and summons companions to help with evil plans. The plan is to send her "trusted elf" disguised as Mercury, someone to whom Aeneas will surely listen, to tempt him to leave Dido and sail to Italy. This would leave Dido heartbroken, and she would surely die. The chorus join in with terrible laughter, and the Enchantresses decide to conjure up a storm to make Dido and her train leave the grove and return to the palace. When the spell is prepared, the witches vanish in a thunderclap.
Scene 2: A grove during the middle of a hunt
Dido and Aeneas are accompanied by their train. They stop at the grove to take in its beauty. A lot of action is going on, with attendants carrying goods from the hunt and a picnic possibly taking place, and Dido and Aeneas are together within the activity. This is all stopped when Dido hears distant thunder, prompting Belinda to tell the servants to prepare for a return to shelter as soon as possible. As every other character leaves the stage, Aeneas is stopped by the Sorceress's elf, who is disguised as Mercury. This pretend Mercury brings the command of Jove that Aeneas is to wait no longer in beginning his task of creating a new Troy on Latin soil. Aeneas consents to the wishes of what he believes are the gods, but is heart-broken that he will have to leave Dido. He then goes off-stage to prepare for his departure from Carthage.
Act 3
The harbour at Carthage
Preparations are being made for the departure of the Trojan fleet. The sailors sing a song, which is followed shortly by the Sorceress and her companions' sudden appearance. The group is pleased at how well their plan has worked, and the Sorceress sings a solo describing her further plans for the destruction of Aeneas "on the ocean". All the characters begin to clear the stage after a dance in three sections, and then disperse.
The palace
Dido and Belinda enter, shocked at Aeneas’ disappearance. Dido is distraught and Belinda comforts her. Suddenly Aeneas returns, but Dido is full of fear before Aeneas speaks, and his words only serve to confirm her suspicions. She derides his reasons for leaving, and even when Aeneas says he will defy the gods and not leave Carthage, Dido rejects him for having once thought of leaving her. After Dido forces Aeneas to leave, she states that "Death must come when he is gone." The opera and Dido's life both slowly come to a conclusion, as the Queen of Carthage sings her last aria, "When I am laid in Earth", also known as "Dido's Lament." The chorus and orchestra then conclude the opera once Dido is dead by ordering the "cupids to scatter roses on her tomb, soft and gentle as her heart. Keep here your watch, and never, never part."[28]
Recordings
The first complete recording of the opera was made by Decca Records in 1935 with Nancy Evans as Dido and Roy Henderson as Aeneas,[29] followed in 1945 by HMV's release with Joan Hammond and Dennis Noble. Kirsten Flagstad, who had sung the role at the Mermaid Theatre in London, recorded it in 1951 for EMI with Thomas Hemsley as Aeneas. Dido and Aeneas has been recorded many times since the 1960s with Dido sung by mezzo-sopranos such as Janet Baker (1961), Tatiana Troyanos (1968), Teresa Berganza (1986), Anne Sofie von Otter (1989) and Susan Graham (2003). In addition to Joan Hammond and Kirsten Flagstad, sopranos who have recorded the role include Victoria de los Ángeles (1965), Emma Kirkby (1981), Jessye Norman (1986), Catherine Bott (1992), Lynne Dawson (1998), and Evelyn Tubb (2004).
Beginning with two pioneering recordings of the work with original instruments:
Several performances of the opera have been filmed and are available on DVD, most recently the 2008 performance at the Opéra-Comique in Paris conducted by William Christie and directed by Deborah Warner (FRA Musica FRA001)[32] and the 2009 performance at London's Royal Opera House conducted by Christopher Hogwood and directed by Wayne McGregor (OpusArte OA1018D). The Mark Morris dance version of the opera is also preserved on DVD (recorded 1995, Image Entertainment 8741) as is the dance version by Sasha Waltz (recorded 2005, Arthaus Musik 101311). Leopold Stokowski made a string orchestra arrangement of "Dido's Lament". Others who have recorded it include Matthias Bamert, José Serebrier, Richard Egarr and Iona Brown.
See also
References
Notes
- ^ "Z" refers to the Zimmerman catalogue of Purcell's works by the American musicologist Franklin B. Zimmerman
- ^ White, Bryan, 'Letter from Aleppo: dating the Chelsea School performance of Dido and Aeneas', 426
- ^ a b White, Bryan, 'Letter from Aleppo: dating the Chelsea School performance of Dido and Aeneas', 417
- ^ a b Pinnock, Andrew, 'Which Genial Day? More on the court origin of Purcell's Dido and Aeneas, with a shortlist of dates for its possible performance before King Charles II’, Early Music 43 (2015), 199–212
- ^ a b Bruce Wood and Andrew Pinnock, "'Unscared by turning times'? The dating of Purcell's Dido and Aeneas,"
- ^ a b c d e f Price in Grove
- ^ Harris (1990) p. 17
- ^ Price, Henry Purcell and the London Stage, 239
- ^ Price, Henry Purcell and the London Stage, 239–245
- ^ Holman, Henry Purcell, 200–201
- ^ Holman, Henry Purcell, 200
- ^ Purcell (1991) p. iv
- ^ White, Bryan, 'Letter from Aleppo: dating the Chelsea School performance of Dido and Aeneas', 420
- ^ White, Bryan, 'Letter from Aleppo: dating the Chelsea School performance of Dido and Aeneas', 422
- ^ Keates (1996) p. 179 and Walkling (August 1994) p. 469
- ^ Crozier (1987) p. 114
- ^ Rosenthal and Warrack (1979) p. 134; The New York Times (11 February 1923) p. 19
- ^ Harris (1990) p. 157 lists this performance as the US premiere
- ^ Melanie Eskenazi, The Royal Opera & The Royal Ballet – Dido and Aeneas / Acis and Galatea" Archived 9 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine on classicalsource.com
- ^ City Wall Productions' website Archived 8 January 2014 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "What's On: Details on Opera North's website operanorth.co.uk
- ^ Mark Morris Dance Group
- ^ Walker (9 July 1995) p. C1
- ^ The original score was written for soprano, but can be performed by mezzo-sopranos. See Price (1984) p. 247
- ^ The original score was written for tenor, but is often performed by high baritones. See Harris (1990) pp. 60–62
- ^ Price and Cholij, ‘Dido's Bass Sorceress’
- ^ The part was originally played by a woman, although as early as 1700 the part was customarily played by a tenor. See Purcell (1971) p. v
- ^ Synopsis based on Kobbé (1987) pp. 1010–1014.
- ^ Darrell (1936) p. 371
- ^ Boyden et al. (2002) p. 30
- ^ Associated Press (7 December 2004)
- ^ Jordy (9 December 2009)
Sources
- Boyden, Matthew et al., "Dido and Aeneas", The rough guide to opera 3rd edition, Rough Guides, 2002. ISBN 1-85828-749-9 For a more detailed discussion of "early instrument Dido recordings, consult https://www.nytimes.com/1999/05/30/arts/music-raising-the-stakes-in-a-purcell-opera.html
- Darrell, R.D., The Gramophone Shop Encyclopedia of Recorded Music, The Gramophone Shop, Inc., 1936
- Harris, Ellen T., Henry Purcell's Dido and Aeneas, Oxford University Press, 1990. ISBN 0-19-315252-5
- Holman, Peter, Henry Purcell (Oxford, 1995).
- Holst, Imogen, "Purcell's librettist, Nahum Tate" Henry Purcell 1659–1695 Essays On His Music, Imogen Holst (ed.), Oxford University Press, 1959, pp. 35–41
- Jordy, Catherine, "Flamboyante tragédie au Comique", Forum Opéra, 9 December 2009 (accessed 19 January 2010, in French)
- Keates, Jonathan, Purcell: A biography, Northeastern University Press, 1996. ISBN 1-55553-287-X
- Kobbé, Gustav, The Definitive Kobbé's Book of Opera. The Earl of Harewood (ed.), 1st American ed., G.P. Putnam's and Sons, 1987, pp. 1010–1014.
- Mark Morris Dance Group, Work details: Dido and Aeneas
- Grove Music Online, ed. L. Macy (accessed 31 December 2005), grovemusic.com Archived 16 May 2008 at the Wayback Machine(subscription access)
- Price, Curtis, Henry Purcell and the London stage, Cambridge University Press, 1984. ISBN 0-521-23831-5
- Price, Curtis and Irena Cholij, ‘Dido's Bass Sorceress’, The Musical Times, Vol. 127 (Nov. 1986), 615–618
- Pinnock, Andrew, ‘Deus ex machina: A royal witness to the court origin of Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas.’ Early Music, 40 (2012): 265–278.
- Pinnock, Andrew, ‘Which Genial Day? More on the court origin of Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas, with a shortlist of dates for its possible performance before King Charles II’, Early Music 43 (2015), 199–212
- Purcell, Henry, Dido and Aeneas (vocal score), Edward Dent and Ellen Harris (eds.), Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1991.
- Purcell, Henry, Dido and Aeneas (vocal and full score), Margaret Laurie and Thurston Dart (eds.), Novello, 1971
- Walker, Susan, "Every inch a diva. Opposites attract dancer Mark Morris. They define his life and his art" Archived 24 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Toronto Star, 9 July 1995, p. C1
- Walkling, Andrew (1995). "Political Allegory in Purcell's Dido and Aeneas". .
- White, Bryan, 'Letter from Aleppo: dating the Chelsea School performance of Dido and Aeneas', Early Music 37 (2009), 417–428. https://doi.org/10.1093/em/cap041
- White, Eric Walter, "New Light on Dido and Aeneas" Henry Purcell 1659–1695 Essays On His Music, Imogen Holst (ed.), Oxford University Press, 1959, pp. 14–34
- Wood, Bruce and Andrew Pinnock, "'Unscarr'd by turning times'? The dating of Purcell's Dido and Aeneas," Early Music 20 (1992), 372–90
External links
- Analysis in French Archived 23 July 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- Libretto at Stanford University
- Free excerpts Archived 14 April 2010 at the Wayback Machine from a recording by the New Trinity Baroque orchestra
- Internet Movie Database listing Archived 10 May 2004 at the Wayback Machine
- Dido and Aeneas: Free scores at the Choral Public Domain Library (ChoralWiki)
- BBC Radio 4 programme about "Dido's Lament"
- Dido and Aeneas: Scores at the International Music Score Library Project
- The Purcell Society
- Public domain recording, 1951, (mp3 files) on www.liberliber.it.
- Free Online opera guide on Purcell's Dido and Aeneas An opera portrait with synopsis, commentary, music analysis, anecdotes