Music composed by Johann Strauss II.
Libretto by Richard GenÈe based on Henri Meilhac and Ludovic HalÈvy/Karl Haffner.
First performance: 5 April 1874 at the Theater an der Wien, Vienna.
Category: Redbox
Victorien Sardou ó A Tale of Two Operas
Victorien Sardou (1831-1908) was a popular French dramatist during the later half of the 19th Century. He, along with EugËne Scribe, combined melodrama and realism to a produce a more serious form of drama that emphasized careful plot construction.
AbbÈ PrÈvost’s Manon Lescaut
The Story of the Chevalier Des Grieux and Manon Lescaut by AbbÈ PrÈvost stands as one of the great works of French literature. It first appeared in 1731 as an appendix to the series, Memoirs and Adventures of a Man of Quality. It was later revised in 1753 for independent publication under the title Les Aventures du chevalier Des Grieux et Manon Lescaut with illustrations by Pasquier and Gravelot.
An Introduction to Paciniís Saffo
By early 1835 Giovanni Pacini had written almost fifty operas during the course of a career launched in 1813. He was tired and he was discouraged. Not only had his earlier works been overshadowed by the force of Rossiniís musical personality, but even after the departure of the Pesarese from Italy in 1823, Paciniís star did not shine brighter. In his fascinating Memoirs, the composer examined these years and acknowledged his own limitations. Though the first performances of his Irene, o Líassedio di Messina (Naples, Teatro San Carlo, 30 November 1833) were largely rescued by the singers, Pacini knew the creative vein he had been mining was empty. Maturing under the spell of Rossini, he had not yet shown himself to be more than an able follower: ìI began to realize that I should withdraw from the field.óBellini, the divine Bellini, and Donizetti had surpassed me.î
Das Rheingold — An Overview
Das Rheingold is the first of the four works that constitute Der Ring des Nibelungen. On the title page of Der Ring des Nibelungen, Wagner refers to Das Rheingold as a Vorabend (a preliminary evening). Nevertheless, Das Rheingold sets the foundation on which the remainder of the Ring is built.
The Operatic Pushkin
Aleksandr Sergeevich Pushkin (1799-1837) is generally considered Russiaís greatest poet. According to Andrew Kahn, his contemporaries held him ìabove all the master of the lyric poem, verse that is famous for its formal perfection and its reticent lyric persona, and infamous for its resistance to translation.î [Alexander Pushkin, The Queen of Spades and Other Stories, trans. Alan Myers, Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press, 1997]