Belisario
Encyclopedia
Belisario is a tragedia lirica, or opera
, in three acts by Gaetano Donizetti
. Salvadore Cammarano wrote the Italian
libretto
after Luigi Marchionni's adaptation of Eduard von Schenk's play. The plot is loosely based on the life of the famous general Belisarius
of the 6th century Byzantine Empire
. It premiered to critical and popular success on February 4, 1836 at the Teatro La Fenice, Venice
. Its popularity continued through the 19th century, but modern productions are rare.
Irene and the populace greet the victor Belisarius. Antonina hates her husband because Proclus, the slave of Belisarius, has confessed on his deathbed, that upon command of his master he had exposed her son on the shore of the ocean, thus causing his death. The Emperor Justinian
greets his commander and grants his prayer for the release of the prisoners. The captive, Alamir, who adores Belisarius, refuses to leave him. (Recitative and duet: "What do I see, does Alamir reject my gift?") The general adopts him in place of his long lost son. Irene congratulates her father, but Antonina has already begun her work of hate, by traducing Belisarius to Justinian, and the innocent man is accused of high treason and thrown into prison on the evidence of his wife.
Alamir and his friends lament the fate of Belisarius, whose eyes have been put out by his enemies, falsely construing and disobeying the commands of the emperor. Alamir swears vengeance. (Aria: "Tremble, Byzantia, I will repay.") Irene clad as a youth arrives to act as guide to her father, who is about to be released from prison. (Duet: "Oh thou, who in terrible darkness.")
As the clang of weapons is heard Irene leads Belisarius to a cave for safety. Alamir now leads the army of the Alannae against Byzantium to avenge Belisarius. Belisarius confronts him and recognises him as his son through an amulet. At his father's request, the son leaves the ranks of the enemies of Byzantium, and the Alannae, now under the command of Ottavio, march to Byzantium, having no fear, as the emperor's army is bereft of its leader.
Hall in Byzantium
Antonina, in remorse, tells the emperor that her testimony against Belisarius was false. Irene approaches with news of the victory and informs Antonina that Alamir is her son, and that it was the slave, not Belisarius, who had planned his death. Meanwhile the blind Belisarius has led the Byzantine army and defeated the Alann, who had threatened Byzantium, but an arrow has mortally wounded him. He is carried in dying, and the sorrowing emperor promises to be a father to Alamir and Irene.
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
, in three acts by Gaetano Donizetti
Gaetano Donizetti
Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti was an Italian composer from Bergamo, Lombardy. His best-known works are the operas L'elisir d'amore , Lucia di Lammermoor , and Don Pasquale , all in Italian, and the French operas La favorite and La fille du régiment...
. Salvadore Cammarano wrote the Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
libretto
Libretto
A libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata, or musical. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...
after Luigi Marchionni's adaptation of Eduard von Schenk's play. The plot is loosely based on the life of the famous general Belisarius
Belisarius
Flavius Belisarius was a general of the Byzantine Empire. He was instrumental to Emperor Justinian's ambitious project of reconquering much of the Mediterranean territory of the former Western Roman Empire, which had been lost less than a century previously....
of the 6th century Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
. It premiered to critical and popular success on February 4, 1836 at the Teatro La Fenice, Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
. Its popularity continued through the 19th century, but modern productions are rare.
Roles
| Role | Voice type Voice type A voice type is a particular kind of human singing voice perceived as having certain identifying qualities or characteristics. Voice classification is the process by which human voices are evaluated and are thereby designated into voice types... |
Premiere Cast, 4 February 1836 (Conductor: — ) |
|---|---|---|
| Antonina, Belisario's wife | soprano Soprano A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody... |
Carolina Ungher Caroline Unger Caroline Unger was an Austro-Hungarian contralto.Born in Vienna, she studied in Italy; among her teachers were Aloysia Weber Lange and Domenico Ronconi. Her stage debut, in her native city, came in 1821, when she performed in Mozart's Così fan tutte, a performance for which Franz Schubert had... |
| Irene, their daughter | mezzo-soprano Mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano is a type of classical female singing voice whose range lies between the soprano and the contralto singing voices, usually extending from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above... |
Antonietta Vial |
| Belisario, general of the army | baritone Baritone Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or... |
Celestino Salvatori |
| Giustiniano, emperor of the Orient | bass Bass (voice type) A bass is a type of male singing voice and possesses the lowest vocal range of all voice types. According to The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, a bass is typically classified as having a range extending from around the second E below middle C to the E above middle C... |
Saverio Giorgi |
| Alamiro, prisoner of Belisario | tenor Tenor The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2... |
Ignazio Pasini |
| Eudora | soprano | Amalia Badessi |
| Eutropio, head of the imperial guard | tenor | Adone Dell'Oro |
| Eusebio, caretaker of the prison | bass | Giovanni Rizzi |
| Ottario | bass | Giovanni Rizzi |
| Senators, veterans, shepherds, guards, captives, people | ||
Act 1
The hall in the emperor's palaceIrene and the populace greet the victor Belisarius. Antonina hates her husband because Proclus, the slave of Belisarius, has confessed on his deathbed, that upon command of his master he had exposed her son on the shore of the ocean, thus causing his death. The Emperor Justinian
Justinian I
Justinian I ; , ; 483– 13 or 14 November 565), commonly known as Justinian the Great, was Byzantine Emperor from 527 to 565. During his reign, Justinian sought to revive the Empire's greatness and reconquer the lost western half of the classical Roman Empire.One of the most important figures of...
greets his commander and grants his prayer for the release of the prisoners. The captive, Alamir, who adores Belisarius, refuses to leave him. (Recitative and duet: "What do I see, does Alamir reject my gift?") The general adopts him in place of his long lost son. Irene congratulates her father, but Antonina has already begun her work of hate, by traducing Belisarius to Justinian, and the innocent man is accused of high treason and thrown into prison on the evidence of his wife.
Act 2
Before the prisonAlamir and his friends lament the fate of Belisarius, whose eyes have been put out by his enemies, falsely construing and disobeying the commands of the emperor. Alamir swears vengeance. (Aria: "Tremble, Byzantia, I will repay.") Irene clad as a youth arrives to act as guide to her father, who is about to be released from prison. (Duet: "Oh thou, who in terrible darkness.")
Act 3
In the mountainsAs the clang of weapons is heard Irene leads Belisarius to a cave for safety. Alamir now leads the army of the Alannae against Byzantium to avenge Belisarius. Belisarius confronts him and recognises him as his son through an amulet. At his father's request, the son leaves the ranks of the enemies of Byzantium, and the Alannae, now under the command of Ottavio, march to Byzantium, having no fear, as the emperor's army is bereft of its leader.
Hall in Byzantium
Antonina, in remorse, tells the emperor that her testimony against Belisarius was false. Irene approaches with news of the victory and informs Antonina that Alamir is her son, and that it was the slave, not Belisarius, who had planned his death. Meanwhile the blind Belisarius has led the Byzantine army and defeated the Alann, who had threatened Byzantium, but an arrow has mortally wounded him. He is carried in dying, and the sorrowing emperor promises to be a father to Alamir and Irene.
Recordings
- Gianandrea GavazzeniGianandrea GavazzeniGianandrea Gavazzeni was an Italian pianist, conductor , composer and musicologist.Gavazzeni was born in Bergamo. For almost 50 years, starting from 1948, he was principal conductor at La Scala, Milan, in 1966-68 being its music and artistic director.He had his Metropolitan Opera debut on 11...
conducting the Teatro la Fenice Orchestra and Chorus with Nicola Zaccaria, Giuseppe Taddei, Leyla GencerLeyla GencerLeyla Gencer, or Ayşe Leyla Çeyrekgil was a world-renowned Turkish operatic soprano.Known as "La Diva Turca" and "La Regina" in the opera world, Gencer was a notable bel canto soprano who spent most of her career in Italy, from the early 1950s through the mid-1980s, and had a repertoire...
, Mirna Pecile, Unberto Grilli, Rina Pallini, Brundo Sebastian, Giovanni Antonini, Augusto Veronese, Alberto Carusi (live from May 14, 1969) (Opera d'Oro) - Gianfranco Masini conducting the Teatro Colón Orchestra and Chorus with Mara Zampieri, Renato BrusonRenato BrusonRenato Bruson is an Italian operatic baritone. Bruson is widely considered one of the most important Verdi baritones of the late 20th and early 21st century. He was born in Granze near Padua, Italy.-Biography and career:...
, Vittorio Terranova, Stefania Toczyska, Nino Meneghetti (live, Buenos Aires) (Myto 2 MCD 045.301)