La vestale (Mercadante)
Encyclopedia
La vestale is an opera
by the Italian
composer Saverio Mercadante
. It takes the form of a tragedia lirica in three acts. The libretto
, by Salvadore Cammarano, is heavily influenced by Spontini's more famous opera on the same theme, La vestale
(1807).
Mercadante's opera was first performed at the Teatro San Carlo, Naples
on 10 March 1840.
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...
by the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
composer Saverio Mercadante
Saverio Mercadante
Giuseppe Saverio Raffaele Mercadante was an Italian composer, particularly of operas. While Mercadante may not have retained the international celebrity of Gaetano Donizetti or Gioachino Rossini beyond his own lifetime, he composed as impressive a number of works as either; and his development of...
. It takes the form of a tragedia lirica in three acts. The libretto
Libretto
A libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata, or musical. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...
, by Salvadore Cammarano, is heavily influenced by Spontini's more famous opera on the same theme, La vestale
La vestale
La vestale is an opera composed by Gaspare Spontini to a French libretto by Etienne de Jouy. It was first performed at the Paris Opéra in Paris on December 15, 1807 and is regarded as Spontini's masterpiece...
(1807).
Mercadante's opera was first performed at the Teatro San Carlo, Naples
Naples
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 10 March 1840.
Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast (Conductor: - ) |
|---|---|---|
| Licinio Murena | 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... |
Timoleone Barattini |
| Lucio Silano | bass | Michele Benedetti Michele Benedetti Michele Benedetti was an Italian bass particularly associated with Rossini roles.-Career:... |
| Metello Pio | bass | Pietro Gianni |
| La gran vestale (the chief Vestal Virgin) | mezzo-soprano Mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano is a type of classical female singing voice whose range lies between the soprano and the contralto singing voices, usually extending from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above... |
Anna Salvetti |
| Emilia | 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... |
Adelina Spech-Salvi |
| Giunia | mezzo-soprano | Eloisa Buccini |
| Decio | tenor | Domenico Reina Domenico Reina Domenico Reina was a Swiss bel canto tenor, notable for creating roles in the operas of Vincenzo Bellini, Gaetano Donizetti, Saverio Mercadante and other Italian composers.... |
| Publio | baritone Baritone Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or... |
Paul Barroilhet Paul Barroilhet Paul-Bernard Barroilhet was a French operatic baritone.-Career:Barroilhet studied at the Conservatoire de Paris and then with Davide Banderali in Milan... |
Recordings
| Year | Cast (Emilia, La Gran Vestale, Guinia, Decio) |
Conductor, Opera House and Orchestra |
Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | Angela Vercelli, Licia Falcone, Miriam Pirazzini, Giuseppe Gismondo |
Giuseppe Ruisi, Orchestra of Altamura and Chorus of Altamura (Recording of a performance at Civitavecchia on 26 August) |
78rpm: A.N.N.A. Record Company Cat: ANNA 1012 |
| 1987 | Dunja Vejzović Dunja Vejzovic Dunja Vejzovic , née Crnković, in Zagreb, Croatia, on October 20, 1943, is an acclaimed operatic soprano who began her career with the Zagreb National Theatre, where she made her "real" debut in 1970, as Ariel in Stjepan Šulek's Oluja... , Filka Dimitrova, Paola Romanò, Gianfranco Cecchele |
Vjekoslav Šutej Vjekoslav Šutej Vjekoslav Šutej was a prominent Croatian orchestral conductor.-Overview:Šutej studied conducting under Igor Gjadrov at the Zagreb Music Academy, before obtaining his Master of Music degree in Rome in the class of Franco Ferrara.From 1979 to 1989 he was art director and chief conductor at the... , Teatro Nazionale Croato di Spalato Orchestra and Chorus |
Audio CD: Bongiovanni GB 2065/66-2 |
| 2004 | Doriana Milazzo, Danna Glaser, Agata Bienkowska, Dante Alcalá |
Paolo Arrivabeni, Krakow Philharmonic Orchestra and Wexford Festival Opera Chorus (Recorded at performances in the Theatre Royal Theatre Royal Theatre Royal is the name of many theatres, especially in the United Kingdom. The name was once an indication that the theatre was a patent theatre, with a Royal Patent without which performances of serious drama would be illegal.United Kingdom:... , Wexford on 23, 26, 29 October) |
Audio CD: Marco Polo Cat: 8.225310-11 |