George Frideric Handel
Terpsicore
Terpsicore (HWV)(8b) is a prologue in the form of an opéra-ballet by George Frideric Handel. Handel composed it in 1734 for a revision of his opera Il pastor fido which had first been presented in
Performance history#
Il pastor fido, a pastoral opera first performed in 1712, had not been a success with audiences. This was probably due to the fact that it was lacking in the sort of spectacular scenic effects and larger than life emotions of Handel’s then sensational previous opera Rinaldo . Among other performances, Terpsicore was seen in a choreographed staging at the Manoel Theatre, Malta, and the Château de Versailles Spectacles, France, in 2013.
Synopsis#
Erato, muse of lyric poetry, and her followers, call on Apollo, who descends from heaven with some of the Muses. They summon Terpsicore, who gives a demonstration of the power of dance, illustrating diverse emotions through use of movement. Solo singers and chorus join together to praise the virtuous deeds of wise men that are going to be celebrated in the ensuing opera.
Context and analysis#
The German-born Handel, after spending some of his early career composing operas and other pieces in Italy, settled in London, where in 1711 he had brought Italian opera for the first time with his opera Rinaldo. A tremendous success, Rinaldo created a craze in London for Italian opera seria, a form focused overwhelmingly on solo arias for the star virtuoso singers. Handel had composed numerous Italian operas for London, with varying degrees of success; some were enormously popular. At the end of the 1734 season, the lease Handel had on the King’s Theatre in the Haymarket expired and he found another base for his operatic activity in the new theatre built by John Rich in Covent Garden. Il Pastor Fido, with the newly composed prologue Terpsichore, opened his new season there. It is the only example of a Handel opera with a prologue, and is patterned on the similar extended prologues in the works of Jean-Philippe Rameau, blending operatic arias, choruses, and dancing. The work opens with a chorus, followed by a bravura aria each for Apollo and Erato. Terpsicore demonstrates the power of dance in a series of contrasted dance movements, interspersed with duets and solos from the singers. The work concludes with vocal soloists, chorus and dancers joining in a praise of virtue and wisdom. Terpsicore is scored for two recorders, two oboes, bassoon, two horns, strings, organ, theorbo and continuo (cello, theorbo, harpsichord).
Recording#
Katalin Farkas, soprano, Derek Lee Ragin, counter-tenor, Capella Savaria, conductor Nicholas McGegan. Recorded 1993.CD:Hungaroton Cat:31193
- Composer
- George Frideric Handel