L'equivoco stravagante
Encyclopedia
L'equivoco stravagante is an opera
tic dramma giocoso
in two acts by Gioachino Rossini to an Italian
libretto
by Gaetano Gasbarri. It was Rossini's first attempt at writing a full two-act opera.
, on 26 October 1811. It was only performed three times before the police closed the production down, possibly because the text touched on the subject of army desertion. The music of the overture was subsequently lost.
The opera was first produced in the United States (in English translation as The Bizarre Deception) by the Bronx Opera
in January 2004.
Ermanno loves Ernestina, who is attracted to the rich, but foolish, Buralicchio. Ermanno's scheming results in Ernestina being arrested on suspicion of having deserted from the army (and really being a man in disguise), but he rescues her, and all ends happily.
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...
tic dramma giocoso
Dramma giocoso
Dramma giocoso is the name of a genre of opera common in the mid-18th century. The term is a contraction of "dramma giocoso per musica" and is essentially a description of the text rather than the opera as a whole...
in two acts by Gioachino Rossini to an 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...
by Gaetano Gasbarri. It was Rossini's first attempt at writing a full two-act opera.
Performance history
L'equivoco stravagante was first performed at the Teatro del Corso, BolognaBologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
, on 26 October 1811. It was only performed three times before the police closed the production down, possibly because the text touched on the subject of army desertion. The music of the overture was subsequently lost.
The opera was first produced in the United States (in English translation as The Bizarre Deception) by the Bronx Opera
Bronx Opera
The Bronx Opera is a Bronx, New York opera company founded in 1967 by artistic director and music director Michael Spierman.The company performs two operas a year, both with full orchestra, one lesser known opera in the fall, and an opera from the Standard repertoire in the spring.Performances are...
in January 2004.
Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast, October 26, 1811 (Conductor: Giuseppe Boschetti ) |
|---|---|---|
| Gamberotto, a rich farmer | bass | Domenico Vaccani |
| Ernestina, literature-loving daughter of Gamberotto | contralto Contralto Contralto is the deepest female classical singing voice, with the lowest tessitura, falling between tenor and mezzo-soprano. It typically ranges between the F below middle C to the second G above middle C , although at the extremes some voices can reach the E below middle C or the second B above... |
Marietta Marcolini Marietta Marcolini Marietta Marcolini was an Italian operatic contralto.Marcolini was born in Florence. The date of her stage debut is unknown but she was appearing in Venice in 1800... |
| Buralicchio, wealthy young man, promised to Ernestina | bass | Paolo Rosich |
| Ermanno, poor young man, in love with Ernestina | 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... |
Tommaso Berti |
| Rosalia, Ernestina's maid' | 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... |
Angiola Chies |
| Frontino, Gamberotto's servant and confidant of Ermanno | tenor | Giuseppe Spirito |
Synopsis
- Place: Italy
- Time: Early 19th Century
Ermanno loves Ernestina, who is attracted to the rich, but foolish, Buralicchio. Ermanno's scheming results in Ernestina being arrested on suspicion of having deserted from the army (and really being a man in disguise), but he rescues her, and all ends happily.
Recordings
| Year | Cast: Gamberotto, Ernestina, Buralicchio, Ermanno |
Conductor, Opera House and Orchestra |
Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Marco di Felice, Petia Petrova, Marco Vinco, Vito Martino |
Alberto Zedda Alberto Zedda Alberto Zedda is an Italian conductor and musicologist, a specialist of the 19th century Italian repertoire.Zedda studied in his native Milan with Antonino Votto and Carlo Maria Giulini, and made his debut there as conductor in 1956, with Il barbiere di Siviglia... , Czech Chamber Soloists and Chorus |
Audio CD: Naxos Opera Classics Cat: 8.660087-88 |
| 2008 | Bruno de Simone, Marina Prudenskaja, Marco Vinco, Dmitry Korchak |
Umbero Benedetti Michelangeli, Orchestra Haydn di Bolzano e Trento (Recorded at the Rossini Opera Festival Rossini Opera Festival The Rossini Opera Festival is an opera festival held in August of each year in Pesaro, Italy, the birthplace of the opera composer Gioachino Rossini.... ) |
DVD: Dynamic (record label) Dynamic (record label) Dynamic is an Italian independent record label located in Genoa. Founded in 1978, it specialises in classical music and opera, especially rarely performed works and has produced several world premiere recordings... Cat: 33610 |