2020 I 2021 SEASON

MOZART LUCIO STAGED OR CONCERT VERSION

PERFORMANCE PERIOD

JUNE 26 - JULY 18 2021

insulaorchestra.fr LUCIO SILLA

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) Lucio Silla (1772) Duration : 3h with one interval

Alessandro Liberatore, Lucio Silla Personnel : Franco Fagioli, Cecilio 5 soloists, 26 choir singers, 36 musicians Olga Pudova, Giunia Chiara Skerath, Cinna Diffusion : Ilse Eerens, Celia from June 26 to July 18 2021

Insula orchestra Laurence Equilbey, conductor Rita Cosentino, stage director

Lucio Silla, a Roman dictator, is in love with Giunia, who prefers to remain faithful to Cecilio. The latter consequently hatches a plot to murder Lucio Silla. The enterprise fails but the dictator ultimately forgives the two lovers and even abandons power.

When he composed Lucio Silla for the Teatro Regio Ducale in Milan, Mozart was only sixteen, and the emotions and tribulations that the young composer himself was experiencing can be seen through the torment of the young Roman dictator. Making light of the norms of seria, Mozart expresses the passion and torment of the human soul, the confusion and self-doubt, with depth and intensity, yet agility, lightness and infinite grace. The bold and subtle vocal modulations, the sophisticated orchestration and solemn accents in the choir emphasise that Mozart here seems far closer to the Beethoven of Fidelio than the big of his time, establishing the opera as a forerunner of the Romantic aesthetic.

The staging by Rita Cosentino uses symbolic props and displays thorough lightings that contributes to the valorization of this rare opera.

IN THE PRESS

About Mozart’s Lucio Silla by Insula orchestra (Spring 2016 tour)

“Not for nothing Laurence Equilbey refers to her proximity to (“he was an alche- mist”). She managed to unfold a wide array of colours from the historic instruments of the excellent Insula orchestra and she demonstrates a true passion for music. The evening ends in a thunder of applause. This Lucio Silla could flourish in Vienna.” Ernst Strobl, Salzburger Nachrichten

“Insula orchestra played Mozart’s intricate score with élan and sensitivity. The many sforzando and fortepiano markings were meticulously observed and there was admirable attention to orchestral de- tail. Period brass were excitingly raspy and the strings had a bright sonority.” Jonathan Sutherland, Bachtrack

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insulaorchestra.fr AUDIO RECORD

Excerpt from Mozart ‘s Lucio Silla, with Insula orchestra and Laurence Equilbey.

MOZART CDS

MOZART MOZART REQUIEM VÊPRES SOLENNELLES D’UN CONFESSEUR MESSE DU COURONNEMENT Sandrine Piau, Sara Mingardo, Sandrine Piau, Werner Güra, Renata Pokupić, Christopher Purves Benjamun Bruns, Laurence Equilbey, Andreas Wolf, accentus, Laurence Equilbey, Insula orchestra accentus, Insula orchestra naïve September 2014 Warner Classics – Erato April 2017 « And for all Equilbey’s avoidance of theatricality it’s the sense of detail, care and “Laurence Equilbey signs an interpretation attention she imparts as well as fluency that of the Coronation Mass where animation makes her interpretation memorable ». tends towards euphoria without risking any BBC Music Magazine disequilibrium.” Le Monde

SUPPORTERS

CONTACTS

Samuel Serin, Managing Director Josquin Macarez, Artistic Delegate [email protected] [email protected] +33 (0)6 03 21 13 67 +33 (0) 6 73 58 53 18

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