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Last week we looked at music for Independence Day. This week we'll resume our operatic timeline and look a one piece by Antonio Salieri and two early pieces by Mozart. We'll also hear some very, very high notes in a soprano aria, and some very, very low notes in a bass aria.
Youtube Clip of the Week
Italian composer Antonio Salieri is mainly known today as one of Mozart's rivals. Legend has it that he even helped cause Mozart's early death at the age of 35. Actually, Salieri was a one of the most famous and respected composers of his day. In fact he was commissioned to write the opera Europa Riconosciuta (Europa Revealed) for the grand opening the new La Scala opera house in Milan, Italy in 1778.
Mozart's early opera seria, or serious opera, Idomeneo (1781), is based on Roman Mythology and King Idomeneo who makes a deal with Neptune. While Idomeneo had been at sea during a very violent storm, he swore to the sea god Neptune that he would sacrifice the first person he met once ashore in Crete, Greece. That person was Idomeneo's only son, Idamante. Torn with guilt and grief, Idomeneo does not fulfill his promise and Neptune enacts his revenge on Crete through storms and a sea serpent. Idomeneo must sacrifice his son to appease Neptune.
We'll see Mexican tenor Ramon Vargas sing Idomeneo's difficult Act II aria "Fuor del mar." in it, Idomeneo still feels as if he is in as much danger as if he was on the sea, despite being on land. He wonders if he is as close to disaster as when he was shipwrecked. In this modernized production rom the Salzburg Festival you'll see an actor portraying Neptune.
In Mozart's 1782 singspiel, Die Entführung aus dem Serail (The Abduction from the Harem), Osmin, the servant of the Sultan Selim, celebrates when he catches two wrongfully held couples that are attempting to escape. This aria is very difficult because of the runs or fast notes in it, and the trecherously low D that is just too low for most basses to sing. German bass Kurt Moll was famous for this role. He has no difficulty at all with the low notes!
Opera on the Radio this weekend
This weekend WRTI, 90.1 FM features Richard Wagner's opera Das Rheingold, the first opera in his four-part operatic mini-series, Der Ring des Niebelung in a performance taped live from the Los Angeles Opera. It stars bass Vitalij Kowaljow, mezzo-soprano Michelle DeYoung and baritone Gordon Hawkins. Don't forget to tune in on Saturday at 1:00 PM, or click here to listen to WRTI on your computer!
Don't forget to invite your friends to sign up to receive these alerts by emailing their name, school, and age to us at outreach@operaphila.org. Again, if you have suggestions of things you'd like to see, please let me know and I'll find a few clips as well.
Until next week...
Last week we looked at music for Independence Day. This week we'll resume our operatic timeline and look a one piece by Antonio Salieri and two early pieces by Mozart. We'll also hear some very, very high notes in a soprano aria, and some very, very low notes in a bass aria.
Youtube Clip of the Week
Italian composer Antonio Salieri is mainly known today as one of Mozart's rivals. Legend has it that he even helped cause Mozart's early death at the age of 35. Actually, Salieri was a one of the most famous and respected composers of his day. In fact he was commissioned to write the opera Europa Riconosciuta (Europa Revealed) for the grand opening the new La Scala opera house in Milan, Italy in 1778.
| The opera was performed at La Scala in 2004 to celebrate the reopening of La Scala as it had been closed for almost three years because of renovations. The opera hadn't been performed in so long that the whole score had to be reprinted based on the original score in La Scala's library. The opera is known for having two very difficult and very high soprano roles. In this clip, we'll hear Europa's aria "Numi, respiro… Ah, lo sento Europa" in which Princess Europa pleas to the Prince Isséo to protect the lives of her family members. She tearfully begs him to forget their former love, since she has managed to forget it. Diana Damrau sings this very difficult aria which brings her up to a high F#, not once, but twice! |  Bravura coloratura soprano Diana Damrau |
Mozart's early opera seria, or serious opera, Idomeneo (1781), is based on Roman Mythology and King Idomeneo who makes a deal with Neptune. While Idomeneo had been at sea during a very violent storm, he swore to the sea god Neptune that he would sacrifice the first person he met once ashore in Crete, Greece. That person was Idomeneo's only son, Idamante. Torn with guilt and grief, Idomeneo does not fulfill his promise and Neptune enacts his revenge on Crete through storms and a sea serpent. Idomeneo must sacrifice his son to appease Neptune.
We'll see Mexican tenor Ramon Vargas sing Idomeneo's difficult Act II aria "Fuor del mar." in it, Idomeneo still feels as if he is in as much danger as if he was on the sea, despite being on land. He wonders if he is as close to disaster as when he was shipwrecked. In this modernized production rom the Salzburg Festival you'll see an actor portraying Neptune.
In Mozart's 1782 singspiel, Die Entführung aus dem Serail (The Abduction from the Harem), Osmin, the servant of the Sultan Selim, celebrates when he catches two wrongfully held couples that are attempting to escape. This aria is very difficult because of the runs or fast notes in it, and the trecherously low D that is just too low for most basses to sing. German bass Kurt Moll was famous for this role. He has no difficulty at all with the low notes!
Opera on the Radio this weekend
This weekend WRTI, 90.1 FM features Richard Wagner's opera Das Rheingold, the first opera in his four-part operatic mini-series, Der Ring des Niebelung in a performance taped live from the Los Angeles Opera. It stars bass Vitalij Kowaljow, mezzo-soprano Michelle DeYoung and baritone Gordon Hawkins. Don't forget to tune in on Saturday at 1:00 PM, or click here to listen to WRTI on your computer!
Don't forget to invite your friends to sign up to receive these alerts by emailing their name, school, and age to us at outreach@operaphila.org. Again, if you have suggestions of things you'd like to see, please let me know and I'll find a few clips as well.
Until next week...
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