F Cavalli: Erismena, The Warden’s Garden, New College, Oxford, 7 July, 2010.
This year’s choice of Cavalli’s opera Erismena for the annual New Chamber Opera production in the Warden’s Garden in New College was particularly appropriate. The opera was performed in the English manuscript version recently acquired by the Bodleian Library for £85,000, following an appeal launched largely on the initiative of the Warden and by Michael Burden, Director of NCO. The importance of this find is that it is the earliest known translation of an opera into English, dating from the middle of the seventeenth century.
At a Cavalli Conference held in New College on 15 June, the manuscript was discussed by a number of distinguished experts revealing almost complete ignorance of the circumstances of the translation, what motivated it, who translated it, whether it was ever performed, let alone before whom or with what reception, though hints of possible references to unknown works exist. It became clear in performance however that immense care had been taken to fit the translation of the libretto to Cavalli’s music, coming over more naturally in the English language than most adaptations of Italian opera libretti.
The Erismena manuscript contains, as well as the three Acts of the opera, a previously unknown allegorical Prologue for Fortune, Beauty, Virtue and Fancy, in English, which was performed at the end of the Conference. It was announced that during the course of the Conference it had been established that the music was by Cavalli thus enhancing the musical value of the manuscript; the discovery was too late to allow the Prologue to be performed as part of the opera.
So how does Erismena rate? The fear was that it would prove to be purely of historical interest. Far from it! The balmy atmosphere in the Warden’s Garden, preceded by smoked salmon and champagne in the Cloisters combined to make this a thoroughly enjoyable light-hearted evening’s entertainment. This is not a great opera. In relation to the composer’s best known opera, La Calisto (OM No 282), it stands as amusing operetta, with little depth of characterisation and with over elaboration of plot – as I understand it typical of the vast explosion of popular opera in Venice in the baroque era but unlikely to make it into a major opera house today. The cast of nine represent a group of characters, some, known or unknown to themselves, in disguise until the denouement, falling in and out of love with each other. Erismena herself (Ruby Hughes) is disguised as a soldier until revealed at the end as daughter of King Erimante (Giles Underwood), in love with Aldimira (around whom the plot revolves, strikingly performed by Merryn Gamba), as a slave until revealed as a Princess Stella who has replaced Erismena in the affections of Prince Idraspe (Daniel Auchinloss), disguised as Erineo until revealed as Aldimira’s brother and bestows her on Orimeno (countertenor Philip Jones), whom she has previously spurned. Mention must also be made of Rachel Lindop playing Aldimira’s nurse Alcesta, sardonically representing the mature woman’s point of view, and Kate Semmens playing a buddy of Aldimira with characteristic charm.
Although every word could be heard, it would have been impossible to follow the plot without the scene by scene synopsis included in the programme, unreadable in the second half in fading light. But by this time one had sorted the various O’s, E’s and A’s of the cast and could enjoy the wit of their exchanges to the accompaniment of the tuneful score (if a little long on recitative) performed by the Band of Instruments, with a notable contribution from the theorbo of Richard Mackenzie. It was directed from the keyboard by Steven Devine.
At a Cavalli Conference held in New College on 15 June, the manuscript was discussed by a number of distinguished experts revealing almost complete ignorance of the circumstances of the translation, what motivated it, who translated it, whether it was ever performed, let alone before whom or with what reception, though hints of possible references to unknown works exist. It became clear in performance however that immense care had been taken to fit the translation of the libretto to Cavalli’s music, coming over more naturally in the English language than most adaptations of Italian opera libretti.
The Erismena manuscript contains, as well as the three Acts of the opera, a previously unknown allegorical Prologue for Fortune, Beauty, Virtue and Fancy, in English, which was performed at the end of the Conference. It was announced that during the course of the Conference it had been established that the music was by Cavalli thus enhancing the musical value of the manuscript; the discovery was too late to allow the Prologue to be performed as part of the opera.
So how does Erismena rate? The fear was that it would prove to be purely of historical interest. Far from it! The balmy atmosphere in the Warden’s Garden, preceded by smoked salmon and champagne in the Cloisters combined to make this a thoroughly enjoyable light-hearted evening’s entertainment. This is not a great opera. In relation to the composer’s best known opera, La Calisto (OM No 282), it stands as amusing operetta, with little depth of characterisation and with over elaboration of plot – as I understand it typical of the vast explosion of popular opera in Venice in the baroque era but unlikely to make it into a major opera house today. The cast of nine represent a group of characters, some, known or unknown to themselves, in disguise until the denouement, falling in and out of love with each other. Erismena herself (Ruby Hughes) is disguised as a soldier until revealed at the end as daughter of King Erimante (Giles Underwood), in love with Aldimira (around whom the plot revolves, strikingly performed by Merryn Gamba), as a slave until revealed as a Princess Stella who has replaced Erismena in the affections of Prince Idraspe (Daniel Auchinloss), disguised as Erineo until revealed as Aldimira’s brother and bestows her on Orimeno (countertenor Philip Jones), whom she has previously spurned. Mention must also be made of Rachel Lindop playing Aldimira’s nurse Alcesta, sardonically representing the mature woman’s point of view, and Kate Semmens playing a buddy of Aldimira with characteristic charm.
Although every word could be heard, it would have been impossible to follow the plot without the scene by scene synopsis included in the programme, unreadable in the second half in fading light. But by this time one had sorted the various O’s, E’s and A’s of the cast and could enjoy the wit of their exchanges to the accompaniment of the tuneful score (if a little long on recitative) performed by the Band of Instruments, with a notable contribution from the theorbo of Richard Mackenzie. It was directed from the keyboard by Steven Devine.