Robert le Diable by Giacomo Meyerbeer is regarded as a musical milestone, a definitive statement in the 19th-century development of French grand opera from the tragedie lyrique of Lully, Rameau, Gluck and Spontini. The libretto by Eugene Scribe and Germain Delavigne was derived from the medieval legend of "Robert the Devil". First performed on 21 November 1831 at the Paris Opera, the work brought Meyerbeer international celebrity.Robert le Diable remains a legend in the annals of opera. The fascinating story reveals a complex imagery and symbolism that touches on the deepest intuitions of...
Robert le Diable by Giacomo Meyerbeer is regarded as a musical milestone, a definitive statement in the 19th-century development of French grand opera...
This study examines how the cultures of Egypt, Mesopotamia and Greece, with their highly developed senses of religion and spirituality, provide a useful and even crucial context for a fuller study and understanding of the Bible. The beliefs and practices of these ancient civilizations embodied in such important literary works as the Egyptian Book of the Dead, the Sumerian/Akkadian Epic of Gilgamesh, and Homer's perennially sublime Iliad and Odyssey, as well as the great Hellenic tragedies, are major cultural legacies that have enriched civilization and indubitably deepen our understanding of...
This study examines how the cultures of Egypt, Mesopotamia and Greece, with their highly developed senses of religion and spirituality, provide a usef...
Vasco de Gama was the last collaboration between Giacomo Meyerbeer and Eugene Scribe, the famous playwright and librettist. The work had intermittently preoccupied them both since 1838, and it had become legendary as L'Africaine years before its completion. The first version of the opera became known as the Vecchia Africana of the long years of Meyerbeer's anxious labours on this most troublesome of his operas An adoring public gave Meyerbeer a tumultuous posthumous accolade on the premiere of L'Africaine on 28 April 1865, a year after his death. This opera which involved Meyerbeer and...
Vasco de Gama was the last collaboration between Giacomo Meyerbeer and Eugene Scribe, the famous playwright and librettist. The work had intermittentl...
1 and 2 Samuel constitute some of the finest historical writing in all of literature. Written largely as historical biography, these narratives offer commentary on formative events in the history of Ancient Israel. The moral and spiritual repercussions of these events, and of the persons involved, are highlighted. They are also important from a prophetic viewpoint, in that they tell of the founding of Israel's Kingdom under David. These events foreshadow the coming of Israel's true King and the establishment of the Kingdom under the Messiah. The kings Saul and David, and the teachings of the...
1 and 2 Samuel constitute some of the finest historical writing in all of literature. Written largely as historical biography, these narratives offer ...
In his lifetime, the opera composer Fromental Halevy was considered the leader of the French school; his admirers included Wagner, Berlioz, and later Mahler. Today, he is chiefly remembered for his grand tragic opera La Juive (1835). Halevy, a native of Paris, was active when the French capital was at the centre of the operatic world. His 30 operas worked within established genres of grand opera and opera-comique, and many of them attained considerable popularity across Europe and the wider world (such as La Reine de Chypre 1841, Charles VI 1843, Les Mousquetaires de la reine 1846, and Le Val...
In his lifetime, the opera composer Fromental Halevy was considered the leader of the French school; his admirers included Wagner, Berlioz, and later ...
On 29 February 1836, Les Huguenots, a grand opera by Giacomo Meyerbeer (1791-1864), with words by Eugene Scribe (1791-1861) and Emile Deschamps (1791-1871), was performed for the first time, at the Paris Opera. It was to be one of the most successful productions ever staged at the Opera, with 1,126 performances in Paris over the next hundred years, and, in the process, breaking all box office records. It became Meyerbeer's most popular work, with thousands of stagings throughout the world.Les Huguenots is a huge exploration of faith, tolerance, hatred, extermination, love, loyalty,...
On 29 February 1836, Les Huguenots, a grand opera by Giacomo Meyerbeer (1791-1864), with words by Eugene Scribe (1791-1861) and Emile Deschamps (1791-...
For a period of close to half a century, French grand opera, as exemplified by the works of Giacomo Meyerbeer and his school, was the preferred form of music for the theatre in most of the civilized world. During the July Monarchy, French grand operas, with their plots drawn from historical events, tended to be received as metaphors for current political themes. Meyerbee's Le Prophete illustrates the complex, contested nature of political meaning during this period. This opera was set in the context of the emerging liberal historiography pioneered by Jules Michelet, and reactions to it...
For a period of close to half a century, French grand opera, as exemplified by the works of Giacomo Meyerbeer and his school, was the preferred form o...
In his lifetime, the opera composer Fromental Halevy was considered the leader of the French school; his admirers included Wagner, Berlioz, and later Mahler. Today, he is chiefly remembered for his grand tragic opera La Juive (Paris, 1835), a unique work exploring the nature of freedom, faith, and tolerance. It has enjoyed rediscovery in recent times, and its perennial challenge to our presuppositions makes it a work of intense artistic significance. Halevy worked in the heady context of Paris after the 1830 Revolution and before the debacle of 1870-when the French capital was at the centre...
In his lifetime, the opera composer Fromental Halevy was considered the leader of the French school; his admirers included Wagner, Berlioz, and later ...
Michael Trimble Robert Ignatius Letellier Dale Hesdorffer
An aspect of dying in opera, rarely observed or commented on, is Sudden Unexpected Death. There are many deaths in this melodramatic genre: most follow expected causes like murder, suicide, or old age. This book explores those deaths which occur without obvious natural causes. These are often central to the overall drama of the opera, representing denouements forming the epiphany of the story and the apotheosis for the audience. The book identifies 50 operas where such events occur, exploring the role of the dramatis personae, the circumstances of their dying, and specific themes that emerge....
An aspect of dying in opera, rarely observed or commented on, is Sudden Unexpected Death. There are many deaths in this melodramatic genre: most follo...
