DOCSLIB.ORG

Alexandra Deshorties

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Alexandra Deshorties Saverio Clemente Andrea De Amici Luca Targetti Born in Montreal from a French family, Alexandra Deshorties studied at the Marseilles Conservatory, continued her education at the Manhattan School of Music then entered the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artists Development Program where she graduated and made her House debut as the High Priestess in Aida. She appeared then on that stage as Elettra in Idomeneo, Fiordiligi in Cosí fan tutte, Konstanze in Die Entführung aus dem Serail, Donna Anna in a new production of Don Giovanni and Contessa in Le Nozze di Figaro, all of which were conducted by James Levine. She also performed on that stage as Musetta in La Bohéme and Tytania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Other opera engagements have included Fiordiligi in Così fan tutte at the San Francisco Opera, the Seattle Opera, the Cincinnati Opera, the Gran Teatre del Liceu, the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, the Palau de las Artes in Valencia, the Aix-en-Provence Festival, the La Coruña Festival and in the Jonathan Miller production at the Brooklyn Academy of Music; Donna Anna in Don Giovanni at the Los Angeles Opera, Cincinnati Opera, Gstaad Festival and the Aix-en-Provence Festival (in the Peter Brook production which was released on DVD in Europe); Elettra in Idomeneo for Houston Grand Opera; Contessa in Le Nozze di Figaro for the Peter Mattei Festival in Luleå; Cleopatra in Giulio Cesare with Seattle Opera; the title role in Lucia di Lammermoor at the Portland Opera Repertory Theater; Violetta in La Traviata at the Arizona Alexandra Deshorties Opera, Valentine in Les Huguenots at the Bard Festival. On the concert platform she has appeared with the Munich Philharmonic, Soprano the Los Angeles Philharmonic (at the Hollywood Bowl), Seattle Symphony, the National Symphony Orchestra, the Baltimore Symphony and at the Salzburg Festival. She has worked with conductors such as David Atherton, Janick Nezet- Seguin, Edward Gardner, Daniel Harding, Rene Jacobs, James Levine, Marko Letonja, Steven Lord, Daniele Rustioni, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Robert Spano, Michael Stern and Patrick Summers. Alexandra Deshorties has also performed selections from Berlioz’ Les Nuits d’été, Brahms’s Liebeslieder Waltzes, and vocal music by Anton Weber with Maestro Levine and the Met Chamber Ensemble in Weill Recital Hall. She gave her recital debut at Roy Thomson Hall in Toronto. Among her recent and future engagements Desdemona in Otello and Juliana Bordereau in The Aspern Papers for Dallas Opera, the title- role Medea for Glimmerglass Opera, Elisabetta in Roberto Devereux for Welsh National Opera, Juno in La Calisto for Cincinati Opera, Donna Anna in Don Giovanni for Norwegian Opera, the title-role in Medea for Grand Theatre de Geneve, Elisabetta in concert version of Maria Stuarda for the Astoria Music Festival/Oregon, Giulia in La Vestale for Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie, the title role in Iphigénie en Tauride for Lisboa, Bard of Germania/Queen of the Wood in the world-premiere of Iain Bell’s In Parenthesis for Welsh National Opera and ROH Covent Garden, the title roles in Elisabetta, regina d'Inghilterra for Theater an der Wien and in Norma for Geneve and two other Elisabetta, in Maria Stuarda for Theater an der Wien, in Gloriana in Madrid, the Italian debut in Medea at Macerata Opera Festival. September 2016 InArt Management Via San Gregorio 53, 20124 Milano Tel. +39 02 97 37 41 66 / Fax +39 02 97 37 42 33 [email protected] www.inartmanagement.com Saverio Clemente Andrea De Amici Luca Targetti InArt Management Via San Gregorio 53, 20124 Milano Tel. +39 02 97 37 41 66 / Fax +39 02 97 37 42 33 [email protected] www.inartmanagement.com .
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Coa-Program-For-Web.Pdf
    HOUSTON GRAND OPERA AND SID MOORHEAD, CHAIRMAN WELCOME YOU TO THE TAMARA WILSON, LIVESTREAM HOST E. LOREN MEEKER, GUEST JUDGE FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2021 AT 7 P.M. BROADCAST LIVE FROM THE WORTHAM THEATER CENTER TEXT TO VOTE TEXT TO GIVE Text to vote for the Audience Choice Award. On page Support these remarkable artists who represent 9, you will see a number associated with each finalist. the future of opera. Text the number listed next to the finalist’s name to 713-538-2304 and your vote will be recorded. One Text HGO to 61094 to invest in the next generation vote per phone number will be registered. of soul-stirring inspiration on our stage! 2 WELCOME TO CONCERT OF ARIAS 2021 SID MOORHEAD Chairman A multi-generation Texan, Sid Moorhead is the owner of in HGO’s Overture group and Laureate Society, and he serves Moorhead’s Blueberry Farm, the first commercial blueberry on the company’s Special Events committee. farm in Texas. The farm, which has been in the Moorhead family for three generations, sits on 28 acres in Conroe and Sid was a computer analyst before taking over the family boasts over 9,000 blueberry plants. It is open seasonally, from business and embracing the art of berry farming. He loves to the end of May through mid-July, when people from far and travel—especially to Europe—and has joined the HGO Patrons wide (including many fellow opera-lovers and HGO staffers) visit on trips to Italy and Vienna. to pick berries. “It’s wonderful.
    [Show full text]
  • Iphigénie En Tauride
    Christoph Willibald Gluck Iphigénie en Tauride CONDUCTOR Tragedy in four acts Patrick Summers Libretto by Nicolas-François Guillard, after a work by Guymond de la Touche, itself based PRODUCTION Stephen Wadsworth on Euripides SET DESIGNER Saturday, February 26, 2011, 1:00–3:25 pm Thomas Lynch COSTUME DESIGNER Martin Pakledinaz LIGHTING DESIGNER Neil Peter Jampolis CHOREOGRAPHER The production of Iphigénie en Tauride was Daniel Pelzig made possible by a generous gift from Mr. and Mrs. Howard Solomon. Additional funding for this production was provided by Bertita and Guillermo L. Martinez and Barbara Augusta Teichert. The revival of this production was made possible by a GENERAL MANAGER gift from Barbara Augusta Teichert. Peter Gelb MUSIC DIRECTOR James Levine Iphigénie en Tauride is a co-production with Seattle Opera. 2010–11 Season The 17th Metropolitan Opera performance of Christoph Willibald Gluck’s Iphigénie en This performance is being broadcast Tauride live over The Toll Brothers– Metropolitan Conductor Opera Patrick Summers International Radio Network, in order of vocal appearance sponsored by Toll Brothers, Iphigénie America’s luxury Susan Graham homebuilder®, with generous First Priestess long-term Lei Xu* support from Second Priestess The Annenberg Cecelia Hall Foundation, the Vincent A. Stabile Thoas Endowment for Gordon Hawkins Broadcast Media, A Scythian Minister and contributions David Won** from listeners worldwide. Oreste Plácido Domingo This performance is Pylade also being broadcast Clytemnestre Paul Groves** Jacqueline Antaramian live on Metropolitan Opera Radio on Diane Agamemnon SIRIUS channel 78 Julie Boulianne Rob Besserer and XM channel 79. Saturday, February 26, 2011, 1:00–3:25 pm This afternoon’s performance is being transmitted live in high definition to movie theaters worldwide.
    [Show full text]
  • William Kentridge Brings 'Wozzeck' Into the Trenches
    William Kentridge Brings ‘Wozzeck’ Into the Trenches The artist’s production of Berg’s brutal opera, updated to World War I, has come to the Metropolitan Opera. By Jason Farago (December 26, 2019) ”Credit...Devin Yalkin for The New York Times Three years ago, on a trip to Johannesburg, I had the chance to watch the artist William Kentridge working on a new production of Alban Berg’s knifelike opera “Wozzeck.” With a troupe of South African performers, Mr. Kentridge blocked out scenes from this bleak tale of a soldier driven to madness and murder — whose setting he was updating to the years around World War I, when it was written, through the hand-drawn animations and low-tech costumes that Metropolitan Opera audiences have seen in his stagings of Berg’s “Lulu” and Shostakovich’s “The Nose.” Some of what I saw in Mr. Kentridge’s studio has survived in “Wozzeck,” which opens at the Met on Friday. But he often works on multiple projects at once, and much of the material instead ended up in “The Head and the Load,” a historical pageant about the impact of World War I in Africa, which New York audiences saw last year at the Park Avenue Armory. Mr. Kentridge’s “Wozzeck” premiered at the Salzburg Festival in 2017. Zachary Woolfe of The New York Times called it “his most elegant and powerful operatic treatment yet.” At the Met, the Swedish baritone Peter Mattei will sing the title role for the first time; Elza van den Heever, like Mr. Kentridge from Johannesburg, plays his common-law wife, Marie; and Yannick Nézet- Séguin, the company’s music director, will conduct.
    [Show full text]
  • Ernesto Ramirez
    ERNESTO RAMIREZ Tenor OPERA REPERTOIRE DATE ROLE (OPERA) COMPOSER COMPANY 2020 Bound Handel/Lau Against the Grain Theatre 2019 Duke (Rigoletto)* Verdi Edmonton Opera Don Jose (Carmen) Bizet Kitchener‐ Waterloo Symphony† 2018 Don Jose (Carmen) Bizet Opera Kelowna Rodolfo (La boheme) Puccini Pacific Northwest Opera, WA 2017 Stefano (Filumena) Estacio/Murrell Calgary Opera 2016 Almaviva (Il barbiere di Siviglia) Rossini Saskatoon Opera Pinkerton (Madama Butterfly) Puccini Opera de León, Mexico 2015 Ottavio (Don Giovanni) Mozart Opera de Bellas Artes, Mexico Edgardo (Lucia di Lammermoor) Donizetti Pacific Opera Victoria 2014 Bénédict (Béatrice et Bénédict) Berlioz Minería Symphony, Mexico Roberto (Roberto Devereux) Donizetti Canadian Opera Company Stiffelio (Stiffelio) Verdi Opera in Concert Tamino (Die Zauberflöte) Mozart Opera de Bellas Artes, Mexico 2013 Don Ramiro (Cenerentola) Rossini Teatro Bicentenario, Mexico Nadir (Pearl Fishers) Bizet Opera Hamilton 2012 Leicester (Maria Stuarda) Donizetti Pacific Opera Victoria Nemorino (L’elisir d’amore) Donizetti Opera Folies Lyriques, France Ruiz (Il Trovatore) Verdi Canadian Opera Company Alfred (Die Fledermaus) Strauss Canadian Opera Company* Rinaldo (Armida) Rossini Opera In Concert, Toronto 2011 Nemorino (L’elisir d’amore) Donizetti Opéra de Angers‐Nantes, France 2010 Don Ramiro (Cenerentola) Rossini Wildbad Rossini Festival, Germany Arturo (I Puritani) Bellini Opera in Concert, Toronto 2009 Alfredo (La Traviata) Verdi Sarasota Opera Nemorino (L’elisir d’amore) Donizetti Sarasota Opera Turridu (Cavalleria Rusticana) Mascagni Il Canto Opera Association, Montreal† 2008 Decio (La Vestale) Mercadante Opera in Concert, Toronto Tamino (Die Zauberflöte) Mozart Boston Opera Institute* Almaviva (Il barbiere di Siviglia) Rossini Boston Opera Institute 2007 Rodolfo (La bohème) Puccini Boston Opera Institute Orfeo (Hostage) Hedricks Boston Opera Institute Mr.
    [Show full text]
  • An Interview with Jake Heggie
    35 Mediterranean Opera and Ballet Club Culture and Art Magazine A Chat with Composer Jake Heggie Besteci Jake Heggie İle Bir Sohbet Othello in the Dansa Âşık Bir Kuğu: Seraglio Meriç Sümen Othello Sarayda FLÜTİST HALİT TURGAY Fotoğraf: Mehmet Çağlarer A Chat with Jake Heggie Composer Jake Heggie (Photo by Art & Clarity). (Photo by Heggie Composer Jake Besteci Jake Heggie İle Bir Sohbet Ömer Eğecioğlu Santa Barbara, CA, ABD [email protected] 6 AKOB | NİSAN 2016 San Francisco-based American composer Jake Heggie is the author of upwards of 250 Genç Amerikalı besteci Jake Heggie şimdiye art songs. Some of his work in this genre were recorded by most notable artists of kadar 250’den fazla şarkıya imzasını atmış our time: Renée Fleming, Frederica von Stade, Carol Vaness, Joyce DiDonato, Sylvia bir müzisyen. Üstelik bu şarkılar günümüzün McNair and others. He has also written choral, orchestral and chamber works. But en ünlü ses sanatçıları tarafından yorumlanıp most importantly, Heggie is an opera composer. He is one of the most notable of the kaydedilmiş: Renée Fleming, Frederica von younger generation of American opera composers alongside perhaps Tobias Picker Stade, Carol Vaness, Joyce DiDonato, Sylvia and Ricky Ian Gordon. In fact, Heggie is considered by many to be simply the most McNair bu sanatçıların arasında yer alıyor. Heggie’nin diğer eserleri arasında koro ve successful living American composer. orkestra için çalışmalar ve ayrıca oda müziği parçaları var. Ama kendisi en başta bir opera Heggie’s recognition as an opera composer came in 2000 with Dead Man Walking, bestecisi olarak tanınıyor. Jake Heggie’nin with libretto by Terrence McNally, based on the popular book by Sister Helen Préjean.
    [Show full text]
  • Naxcat2005 ABRIDGED VERSION
    CONTENTS Foreword by Klaus Heymann . 4 Alphabetical List of Works by Composer . 6 Collections . 88 Alphorn 88 Easy Listening 102 Operetta 114 American Classics 88 Flute 106 Orchestral 114 American Jewish Music 88 Funeral Music 106 Organ 117 Ballet 88 Glass Harmonica 106 Piano 118 Baroque 88 Guitar 106 Russian 120 Bassoon 90 Gypsy 109 Samplers 120 Best Of series 90 Harp 109 Saxophone 121 British Music 92 Harpsichord 109 Trombone 121 Cello 92 Horn 109 Tr umpet 121 Chamber Music 93 Light Classics 109 Viennese 122 Chill With 93 Lute 110 Violin 122 Christmas 94 Music for Meditation 110 Vocal and Choral 123 Cinema Classics 96 Oboe 111 Wedding 125 Clarinet 99 Ondes Martenot 111 White Box 125 Early Music 100 Operatic 111 Wind 126 Naxos Jazz . 126 Naxos World . 127 Naxos Educational . 127 Naxos Super Audio CD . 128 Naxos DVD Audio . 129 Naxos DVD . 129 List of Naxos Distributors . 130 Naxos Website: www.naxos.com NaxCat2005 ABRIDGED VERSION2 23/12/2004, 11:54am Symbols used in this catalogue # New release not listed in 2004 Catalogue $ Recording scheduled to be released before 31 March, 2005 † Please note that not all titles are available in all territories. Check with your local distributor for availability. 2 Also available on Mini-Disc (MD)(7.XXXXXX) Reviews and Ratings Over the years, Naxos recordings have received outstanding critical acclaim in virtually every specialized and general-interest publication around the world. In this catalogue we are only listing ratings which summarize a more detailed review in a single number or a single rating. Our recordings receive favourable reviews in many other publications which, however, do not use a simple, easy to understand rating system.
    [Show full text]
  • Così Fan Tutte
    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Così fan tutte CONDUCTOR Opera in two acts James Levine Libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte PRODUCTION Lesley Koenig Saturday, April 26, 2014, 1:00–4:40 pm SET & COSTUME DESIGNER Michael Yeargan LIGHTING DESIGNER Duane Schuler STAGE DIRECTOR Robin Guarino This production of Così fan tutte was made possible by a generous gift from Alberto Vilar. Additional funding was provided by the Metropolitan Opera Club; the Denenberg Foundation, in honor of Dan Denenberg; The DuBose and Dorothy Heyward Memorial Fund; and the late Mr. and Mrs. Samuel L. Tedlow. The revival of this production is made possible GENERAL MANAGER Peter Gelb by a gift from DOLCE & GABBANA. MUSIC DIRECTOR James Levine PRINCIPAL CONDUCTOR Fabio Luisi 2013–14 Season The 184th Metropolitan Opera performance of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Così fan tutte This performance is being broadcast live over The Conductor Toll Brothers– James Levine Metropolitan Opera International IN ORDER OF VOCAL APPEARANCE Radio Network, sponsored by Ferrando Toll Brothers, Matthew Polenzani America’s luxury homebuilder®, with Guglielmo generous long-term Rodion Pogossov* support from Don Alfonso The Annenberg Maurizio Muraro Foundation, The Neubauer Family Fiordiligi Foundation, the Susanna Phillips Vincent A. Stabile Endowment for Dorabella Broadcast Media, Isabel Leonard and contributions from listeners Despina worldwide. Danielle de Niese* This performance is Cello Continuo also being broadcast David Heiss live on Metropolitan Opera Radio on Harpsichord Continuo SiriusXM channel 74. Howard Watkins* Saturday, April 26, 2014, 1:00–4:40 pm This afternoon’s performance is being transmitted live in high definition to movie theaters worldwide. The Met: Live in HD series is made possible by a generous grant from its founding sponsor, The Neubauer Family Foundation.
    [Show full text]
  • Renée Fleming Sings Her First La Traviata
    DAVID GOCKLEY, GENERAL DIRECTOR PATRICK SUMMERS, MUSIC DIRECTOR Subscribe Now! 2002–2003 Season Renée Fleming sings her first La Traviata. See it FREE when you SUBSCRIBE NOW! DHoustonivas,divas,divas! Grand Opera celebrates “The Year of the Diva.” Renée Fleming will at long last sing her first Violetta—and, where might this Experience all the anticipated debut happen? The Met? La Scala? Vienna? No, Renée has chosen to excitement and premiere this significant role here at Houston Grand Opera. In a year of firsts— Susan Graham’s first Ariodante and The Merry Widow and Elizabeth Futral’s benefits of a full first Manon—Ms.Fleming’s Violetta will be a defining moment in the world of opera. season subscription: The season begins with the return of Ana Maria Martinez as Mimi in Puccini’s • Free parking beloved La Bohème. Laura Claycomb,the young Te x a s soprano who had • Free subscription to audiences on their feet in this season’s Rigoletto,will return in Donizetti’s Scottish Opera Cues magazine masterpiece, Lucia di Lammermoor.The season closes with the world premiere of • Free season preview The Little Prince,when Oscar-winning composer Rachel Portman turns Antoine CD or cassette de Saint-Exupéry’s much loved novel into a magical and moving opera. • Free lost ticket replacement Extraordinary singers in extraordinary productions.As a full season subscriber, • Exchange privileges you get 7 operas for the price of 6. That means you can see Renée Fleming’s debut • 10% discount on as Violetta for free! I urge you to take advantage of this offer, it’s the only way we additional tickets can guarantee you a seat.
    [Show full text]
  • LA VESTALE GASPARE SPONTINI Alessandro De Marchi & Eric Lacascade
    PRESS FILE OPERA LA VESTALE GASPARE SPONTINI Alessandro de Marchi & Eric Lacascade 13, 15, 17, 20, 22 October 2015 20:00 25 October 2015 15:00 CIRQUE ROYAL / KONINKLIJK CIRCUS Opéra en trois actes, version française Livret de Victor-Joseph Etienne de Jouy Premiere Salle Montsansier, Paris, 15/12/1807 NEW PRODUCTION I – INTRODUCTION WITH BIOGRAPHIES THE FLAMES OF THE VESTAL ALTAR SET THE SCORE ALIGHT Since La Vestale, not a note of music has been written that wasn’t stolen from my scores!’ Gaspare Spontini was himself aware of how innovative and influential his score was. He turned opera in a new direction by conceiving the whole score on the basis of a compelling dramatic conception involving naturalistic effects, orchestration, and musical form, thereby pointing the way for such opera composers as Rossini, Wagner, Berlioz, and Meyerbeer. As a grand opera it was ahead of its time and was full of spectacular scenes showing a Vestal Virgin’s forbidden love for a Roman general; it made Spontini the most important composer of the Napoleonic period. Here directing his first opera, the French stage director Éric Lacascade focuses on a highly topical subject: ‘More than passionate love, what is at stake in this opera is the liberation of a woman who frees herself from the power of religious authority.’ COMPOSER & WORK Born in 1774 in Italy, Gaspare Spontini (1774-1851) imposed a new style to French music, mixing his Neapolitan inspiration to the genre of French lyric tragedy and thus creating what may be termed as Grand Historic Opera. The Italian composer, who became French in 1817, began a brilliant career in Rome and Venice after his studies at the Royal Conservatory of Naples.
    [Show full text]
  • 2005 Distinguished Faculty, John Hall
    The Complete Recitalist June 9-23 n Singing On Stage June 18-July 3 n Distinguished faculty John Harbison, Jake Heggie, Martin Katz, and others 2005 Distinguished Faculty, John Hall Welcome to Songfest 2005! “Search and see whether there is not some place where you may invest your humanity.” – Albert Schweitzer 1996 Young Artist program with co-founder John Hall. Songfest 2005 is supported, in part, by grants from the Aaron Copland Fund for Music and the Virgil Thomson Foundation. Songfest photography courtesy of Luisa Gulley. Songfest is a 501(c)3 corporation. All donations are 100% tax-deductible to the full extent permitted by law. Dear Friends, It is a great honor and joy for me to present Songfest 2005 at Pepperdine University once again this summer. In our third year of residence at this beautiful ocean-side Malibu campus, Songfest has grown to encompass an ever-widening circle of inspiration and achievement. Always focusing on the special relationship between singer and pianist, we have moved on from our unique emphasis on recognized masterworks of art song to exploring the varied and rich American Song. We are once again privileged to have John Harbison with us this summer. He has generously donated a commission to Songfest – Vocalism – to be premiered on the June 19 concert. Our singers and pianists will be previewing his new song cycle on poems by Milosz. Each time I read these beautiful poems, I am reminded why we love this music and how our lives are enriched. What an honor and unique opportunity this is for Songfest.
    [Show full text]
  • Lucia Di Lammermoor GAETANO DONIZETTI MARCH 3 – 11, 2012
    O p e r a B o x Teacher’s Guide table of contents Welcome Letter . .1 Lesson Plan Unit Overview and Academic Standards . .2 Opera Box Content Checklist . .9 Reference/Tracking Guide . .10 Lesson Plans . .12 Synopsis and Musical Excerpts . .44 Flow Charts . .49 Gaetano Donizetti – a biography .............................56 Catalogue of Donizetti’s Operas . .58 Background Notes . .64 Salvadore Cammarano and the Romantic Libretto . .67 World Events in 1835 ....................................73 2011–2012 SEASON History of Opera ........................................76 History of Minnesota Opera, Repertoire . .87 così fan tutte WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART The Standard Repertory ...................................91 SEPTEMBER 25 –OCTOBER 2, 2011 Elements of Opera .......................................92 Glossary of Opera Terms ..................................96 silent night KEVIN PUTS Glossary of Musical Terms . .101 NOVEMBER 12 – 20, 2011 Bibliography, Discography, Videography . .105 werther Evaluation . .108 JULES MASSENET JANUARY 28 –FEBRUARY 5, 2012 Acknowledgements . .109 lucia di lammermoor GAETANO DONIZETTI MARCH 3 – 11, 2012 madame butterfly mnopera.org GIACOMO PUCCINI APRIL 14 – 22, 2012 FOR SEASON TICKETS, CALL 612.333.6669 620 North First Street, Minneapolis, MN 55401 Kevin Ramach, PRESIDENT AND GENERAL DIRECTOR Dale Johnson, ARTISTIC DIRECTOR Dear Educator, Thank you for using a Minnesota Opera Opera Box. This collection of material has been designed to help any educator to teach students about the beauty of opera. This collection of material includes audio and video recordings, scores, reference books and a Teacher’s Guide. The Teacher’s Guide includes Lesson Plans that have been designed around the materials found in the box and other easily obtained items. In addition, Lesson Plans have been aligned with State and National Standards.
    [Show full text]
  • "Casta Diva" from Bellini's
    “Casta Diva” from Bellini's “Norma”--Rosa Ponselle; accompanied by the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus, conducted by Giulio Setti (December 31, 1928 and January 30, 1929) Added to the National Registry: 2007 Essay by Judy Tsou (guest post)* Rosa Ponselle “Casta Diva” is the most famous aria of Vincenzo Bellini’s “Norma” (1831). It is sung by the title character, a Druidess or priestess of the Gauls, in the first act. The opera takes place in Gaul between 100 and 50 BCE when the Romans were occupiers. The Gauls want Norma to declare war on the Romans, who have been oppressing them. Norma is hesitant to do so because she is secretly in love with Pollione, the Roman proconsul, and with whom she has borne two children. She assuages the people’s anger and convinces them that this is not the right time to revolt. She asserts that the Romans will eventually fall by their own doing, and the Gauls do not need to rise up now. It is at this point that Norma sings “Casta Diva,” a prayer to the moon goddess for peace, and eventually, conquering the Romans. When things between her and Pollione go sour, Norma tries to kill their children but ultimately cannot bring herself to do so. Eventually, she confesses her relationship with Pollione and sacrifices herself on the funeral pyre of her lover. “Norma” was the first of two operas commissioned in 1830 for which Bellini was paid an unprecedented 12,000 lire. “Norma” premiered on December 26, 1831 at La Scala, and the second opera, “Beatrice di Tenda,” premiered in 1833, but in Venice (La Fenice).
    [Show full text]