Music composed by Gioachino Rossini. Libretto by Andrea Leone Tottola
after Jean Racineís Andromaque.
First Performance: 27 March 1819, Teatro San Carlo,
Naples
| Principal Characters: | |
| Ermione [Hermione], daughter of Menelaus and HÈlËne, promised to Pyrrhus |
Soprano |
| Andromaca [Andromaque], widow of Hector and captive of Pyrrhus | Contralto |
| Astianatte [Astyanax], son of Andromaque | Silent |
| Pirro [Pyrrhus], son of Achille, king of …pire (Ipiros) | Tenor |
| Oreste, son of Agamemnon | Tenor |
| Pilade [Pylade], friend of Oreste | Tenor |
| Fenicio [Phoenix], tutor to Achille and then to Pyrrhus | Bass |
| Cleone [ClÈone], confidante of Hermione | Mezzo-Soprano |
| Cefisa [CÈphise], confidante of Andromaque | Mezzo-Soprano |
| Attalo [Attalus], servant of Pyrrhus | Tenor |
Setting: Buthrot, city of …pire (Ipiros), in a room of
Pirro’s palace.
Synopsis:
After having defeated the Trojans, Pirro returns to his country with
numerous prisoners among which there is Andromaca and her child, Astianatte.
Pirro breaks his promise to Ermione because of his love for Andromaca.
Remaining faithful to the memory of Hector, Andromaca rejects his advances.
Oreste, who has been sent to Buthrote by the Greek kings to demand that Pirro
fulfill his duty, declares his love to Ermione. Yet Ermione, tormented by
jealousy, seeks to regain the heart of Pirro. Ermione rejects Oreste and his
demand for the death of Astianatte (so as to avoid inevitable revenge). But,
Pirro, in the presence of the court and Ermione, asks Andromaca to marry him.
Andromaca falsely consents to the wedding, but in reality she wants only to
save her child. Humiliated, Ermione induces Oreste to kill Pirro. When Oreste
shows her the bloody dagger, Ermione is horrified and calls the Furies upon
him. Oreste, stunned and delirious, is dragged away by his companions to a
ship.
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the complete libretto.
image=http://www.operatoday.com/Andromaque.png
image_description=La Douleur et les regrets d’Andromaque sur le corps d’Hector son mari by Jacques-Louis David (1783) [MusÈe du Louvre]
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first_audio_name=Gioachino Rossini: Ermione
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first_audio_link=http://www.operatoday.com/Ermione1.m3u
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product_title=Gioachino Rossini: Ermione
product_by=Ermione: Linda Maguire
Andromaca: Diana Mondague
Pirro: Jorge Lopez-YaÒez
Oreste: Bruce Ford
Pilade: Paul Austin Kelly
Fenicio: Gwynne Howell
Glyndebourne Festival Orchestra, Andrew Davis (cond.)
Live performance, 30 May 1995, Glyndebourne