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CHAN 3074 Book Cover.qxd 22/8/07 4:35 pm Page 1 CHAN 3074(2) CHANDOS O PERA IN ENGLISH CHAN 3074 BOOK.qxd 22/8/07 4:40 pm Page 2 Giuseppe Verdi (1813–1901) Aida Opera in four acts Lebrecht Collection Lebrecht Libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni, after a scenario by Auguste Mariette English version by Edmund Tracey The Pharaoh, King of Egypt ..................................................................................Peter Rose bass Amneris, his daughter ..............................................................Rosalind Plowright mezzo-soprano Aida, an Ethiopian slave..................................................................................Jane Eaglen soprano Amonasro, King of Ethiopia, Aida’s father ............................................Gregory Yurisich baritone Radames, Captain of the Guards ..................................................................Dennis O’Neill tenor Ramfis, chief priest............................................................................................Alastair Miles bass The High Priestess......................................................................................Susan Gritton soprano A Messenger ........................................................................................................Alfred Boe tenor Geoffrey Mitchell Choir Philharmonia Orchestra Gareth Hancock • Timothy Redmond assistant conductors Giuseppe Verdi David Parry 3 CHAN 3074 BOOK.qxd 22/8/07 4:40 pm Page 4 COMPACT DISC ONE Time Page Time Page Scene 2 1 Prelude 4:04 [p. 86] 13 ‘Almighty, almighty Phtha’ 3:11 [p. 91] High Priestess, Priestesses, Ramfis, Priests Act I (36:05) 14 Sacred Dance of the Priestesses 2:00 [p. 92] Scene 1 15 ‘The gods have shown you favour’ 1:18 [p. 92] 2 ‘Yes, Ethiopia once again has dared’ 1:43 [p. 86] Ramfis, Priests Ramfis, Radames 16 ‘Great Godhead we petition thee’ 4:04 [p. 92] 3 ‘I pray that I be chosen’ 1:04 [p. 86] Ramfis, Radames, Priests, Priestesses 4 ‘Goddess Aida, fair as a vision’ 3:33 [p. 86] Radames Act II (39:34) 5 ‘Have you just heard a joyous tale’ 2:38 [p. 86] Scene 1 Amneris, Radames 17 ‘We hear the hymns and cheering’ 2:54 [p. 93] 6 ‘Aida!’ 1:31 [p. 87] Slave-girls, Amneris Radames, Amneris 18 Dance of the Young Moorish Slaves 2:16 [p. 94] 7 ‘Alas, I hear the cries of war’ 2:00 [p. 87] 19 ‘No more now!’ 0:49 [p. 94] Aida, Amneris, Radames Amneris 8 ‘Grave is the cause’ 3:10 [p. 88] 20 ‘Now the battle is over your people suffer’ 4:03 [p. 94] Pharaoh, Messenger, Aida, Radames, Amneris 21 ‘Tremble! I know your secret…’ 1:35 [p. 95] 9 ‘Now go forward noble army’ 3:06 [p. 89] Amneris, Aida Pharaoh, Ramfis, Chorus, Aida, Radames, Amneris, Messenger 22 ‘But look with pity on my distress…’ 1:57 [p. 95] 10 ‘As victor then return!’ 3:15 [p. 90] Aida, Amneris 11 ‘The sacred names of a father and lover’ 0:49 [p. 91] 23 ‘Now go forward noble army’ 1:26 [p. 96] 12 ‘Hear me, ye gods, pity my cry!’ 2:42 [p. 91] Chorus, Amneris, Aida Aida 24 ‘Hear me, ye gods, pity my cry!’ 1:23 [p. 96] Aida 4 5 CHAN 3074 BOOK.qxd 22/8/07 4:40 pm Page 6 COMPACT DISC ONE Time Page Time Page Act III (30:24) Scene 2 1 ‘Thou art to great Osiris’ 2:01 [p. 103] 25 ‘Glory to Isis, goddess fair’ 3:27 [p. 97] Chorus, High Priestess Populace, Priests 2 ‘Come to the shrine of Isis’ 1:59 [p. 103] 26 Trumpet Fanfare 1:45 [p. 97] Ramfis, Amneris, Chorus 27 Ballabile 1:55 [p. 97] 3 ‘Soon Radames will come!’ 2:33 [p. 103] 28 ‘Glorious warrior Radames’ 2:10 [p. 97] 4 ‘Oh, skies of blue’ 4:00 [p. 103] Populace, Priests Aida 29 ‘Valiant pride of your country’ 1:38 [p. 98] 5 ‘I come, full of concern’ 1:09 [p. 104] Pharaoh, Radames 6 ‘Once again you will see our lofty forests’ 3:42 [p. 104] 30 ‘Worship and glory to all the gods on high’ 1:39 [p. 98] Amonasro, Aida Ramfis, Priests, Aida, Amneris, Amonasro, Pharaoh 7 ‘No more my daughter’ 0:34 [p. 106] 31 ‘As you see, I am wearing the colours of my King’ 4:53 [p. 99] Amonasro, Aida Amonasro, Aida, Slave-girls, Prisoners, Ramfis, Priests, 8 ‘Father… the Egyptians… have not… enslaved me…’ 2:29 [p. 106] Amneris, Populace, Radames Aida, Amonasro 32 ‘O King, by holy Isis’ 2:39 [p. 100] 9 ‘At last I see you, my sweet Aida…’ 1:21 [p. 106] Radames, Pharaoh, Amneris, Priests, Populace, Famfis 10 ‘Your people rise again, arming for battle…’ 1:42 [p. 106] 33 ‘Glory to Isis, goddess fair’ 3:05 [p. 101] Radames, Aida Pharaoh, Populace, Slave-girls, Prisoners, Ramfis, Priests, 11 ‘We’d leave this white oppressive heat’ 4:24 [p. 107] Aida, Radames, Amneris, Amonasro Aida, Radames TT 79:52 12 ‘Ah no! We’ll leave here!’ 2:00 [p. 108] Radames, Aida, Amonasro 13 ‘You! Amonasro! You! The King?’ 1:30 [p. 109] Radames, Aida, Amonasro 14 ‘We’re betrayed!’ 1:00 [p. 109] Amneris, Aida, Amonasro, Radames, Ramfis 6 7 CHAN 3074 BOOK.qxd 22/8/07 4:40 pm Page 8 Time Page Act IV (31:27) Scene 1 15 ‘My hated rival has escaped me’ 3:01 [p. 110] Amneris 16 ‘Soon all the priests will gather here’ 2:18 [p. 110] Amneris, Radames 17 ‘Ah! You must live’ 2:48 [p. 111] Clive Barda/PAL Clive 18 ‘Who will save you, wretched madman’ 1:47 [p. 112] Amneris, Radames 19 ‘Alas! I feel I’m dying…’ 2:13 [p. 112] Amneris, Ramfis, Priests 20 ‘Spirit of Isis on us all descending!’ 1:53 [p. 112] Ramfis, Priests, Amneris 21 ‘Radames! Radames! Radames!’ 4:15 [p. 113] Ramfis, Priests, Amneris 22 ‘Priests of Isis: you’re guilty of murder!’ 2:33 [p. 114] Amneris, Ramfis, Priests Scene 2 23 ‘The fatal cover’s now in place’ 2:26 [p. 114] Radames, Aida 24 ‘My heart foretold this horrifying sentence’ 3:01 [p. 115] Aida, Radames 25 ‘Almighty Phtha’ 5:12 [p. 115] Priestesses, Priests, Aida, Radames, Chorus, Amneris TT 62:00 The extended version of the ballet music, written for Paris, is not included on this recording. The Royal Opera’s production of Aida 8 CHAN 3074 BOOK.qxd 22/8/07 4:40 pm Page 10 by events off-stage. On the public front, the gates of Thebes, the last two acts are enacted Giuseppe Verdi: Aida battle that Radames wins; on the private, the in more confined circumstances and consist to intriguing of the jealous Amneris, which a large extent of duets for the four principals. ‘Tinta’ – colour is the neatest translation – is of more than in Don Carlos written not long culminates in the onstage confrontation with They also confirm that, while the characters of the essence in Verdi’s mature operas. Indeed it is before and disclosing a quite different ‘tinta’, Aida where, by devious means, she manages to Aida, Radames and Amonasro are hardly the defining quality of his operatic private conflicts take place within the context uncover Aida’s secret love for Radames. This changed by extreme circumstances, that of composition. It is a quality he shares with of public politics and pomp. It is Verdi’s scene, in its turn, proves a prelude to the great Amneris considerably alters. These series of Britten, few others, and is one of the factors genius immediately to introduce both ceremonial scene of triumph which initially duets find Verdi at his most inspired. They are that make both such great creators in the genre. elements into his drama. In the very first scene gained Aida its fame. It has everything: choral supplemented by two solo passages, in which Each of Verdi’s works has a ‘tinta’ that is specific Egyptian general Radames becomes aware of a magnificence, inspiriting dances, bags of local Aida and Amneris respectively dig deep into to that piece and to none other. Nowhere is conflict between his duty to his country and colour in the eruption of the famous their emotional states. They demonstrate how that truer than of Aida (1871, composed for the his love for the Ethiopian slave-girl, Aida, and ‘Egyptian’ trumpets, and other instrumental unerringly Verdi makes them reveal their inner inception of the Cairo Opera House). Princess Amneris realises that Aida is a rival for devices leading to Radames’s triumphal entry, selves and motivations. From the first bars of the Prelude (Verdi, the love of Radames. Once an Ethiopian then the appearance of the Ethiopian Act III begins with another stroke of after the premiere, composed an Overture but invasion is announced, led by Aida’s father prisoners. There, suddenly, we are back with compositional mastery. Against a background immediately discarded it as inferior to what he Amonasro, and the Egyptian Pharaoh private matters. Amonasro whispers to his of gently swaying music depicting the Nile, had already written) we are wafted into the proclaims Radames as leader in the fight daughter Aida not to reveal his true status as and an off-stage chorus, Amneris and Ramphis mysterious, perfumed air of ancient Egypt and against the enemy, the private and public Ethiopian ruler; then he describes his defeat in disembark from a boat and enter a temple to its world of conflicting loyalties, priestly confrontations are truly under way. They are battle and appeals for clemency. Aida backs up pray. Aida comes out of the shadows and sings intransigence and hot love. The chromatic emphasised by Aida’s solo ‘Ritorna vincitor’ her father’s plea; the Priests vigorously dissent. the romanza, ‘O patria mia’ (‘Oh, dearest theme, introduced on the high strings, which (‘As victor then return’) where her contrasting All this is timed in masterly fashion by home’), a late and inspired addition to the will become recognised as Aida’s motif, and emotions, paternal love for her father, Verdi.