Oedipe à Colone
Encyclopedia
Œdipe à Colone is an operatic 'tragédie lyrique' by Antonio Sacchini
first performed at Versailles
on January 4, 1786 in the presence of King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette
. The libretto
, by Nicolas-François Guillard
, is based on the play Oedipus at Colonus
by Sophocles
. The premiere, intended to inaugurate the new theatre at Versailles, was not a success, possibly due to the quality of the performances, the staging or the acoustics. Marie Antoinette promised Sacchini a better production at Fontainebleau
in the autumn, but the Affair of the Diamond Necklace
meant she was unable to have her wish. The news that the production was cancelled is said to have hastened the death of the already seriously ill composer on October 9, 1786. Œdipe was given a posthumous performance at the Paris
Opéra
on February 1, 1787. This time the audience was warmly appreciative and the opera became one of the most popular pieces in the repertoire for several decades, reaching a total of almost 600 performances by 1844.
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, King of Thebes
. Oedipus has been expelled from the city after it was revealed he had killed his father and married his mother. Now blind and aged he wanders through Greece accompanied only by his daughter Antigone. Meanwhile, the throne of Thebes has been divided between Oedipus' two sons, Eteocles and Polynices. But the two have quarrelled and Eteocles has driven out Polynices, who seeks refuge with Theseus
, King of Athens
.
, timpani
, and strings
. Like most classical period works, the presence of continuo instruments like bassoons and harpsichord
is assumed as well. Some modern performances have used a thunder sheet
to represent the stormy anger of the gods portrayed at the end of Act I.
Antonio Sacchini
Antonio Maria Gasparo Sacchini was an Italian opera composer.Sacchini was born in Florence, but was raised in Naples, where he received his musical education at the San Onofrio conservatory. He wrote his first operas in Naples, thereafter moving to Venice, then London and eventually Paris, where...
first performed at Versailles
Versailles
Versailles , a city renowned for its château, the Palace of Versailles, was the de facto capital of the kingdom of France for over a century, from 1682 to 1789. It is now a wealthy suburb of Paris and remains an important administrative and judicial centre...
on January 4, 1786 in the presence of King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette
Marie Antoinette
Marie Antoinette ; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was an Archduchess of Austria and the Queen of France and of Navarre. She was the fifteenth and penultimate child of Holy Roman Empress Maria Theresa and Holy Roman Emperor Francis I....
. The 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 Nicolas-François Guillard
Nicolas-François Guillard
Nicolas-François Guillard was a French librettist. He was born in Chartres and died in Paris, the recipient of a government pension in recognition of his work writing librettos. He was also on Comité de Lecture of the Paris Opéra...
, is based on the play Oedipus at Colonus
Oedipus at Colonus
Oedipus at Colonus is one of the three Theban plays of the Athenian tragedian Sophocles...
by Sophocles
Sophocles
Sophocles is one of three ancient Greek tragedians whose plays have survived. His first plays were written later than those of Aeschylus, and earlier than or contemporary with those of Euripides...
. The premiere, intended to inaugurate the new theatre at Versailles, was not a success, possibly due to the quality of the performances, the staging or the acoustics. Marie Antoinette promised Sacchini a better production at Fontainebleau
Fontainebleau
Fontainebleau is a commune in the metropolitan area of Paris, France. It is located south-southeast of the centre of Paris. Fontainebleau is a sub-prefecture of the Seine-et-Marne department, and it is the seat of the arrondissement of Fontainebleau...
in the autumn, but the Affair of the Diamond Necklace
Affair of the diamond necklace
The Affair of the Diamond Necklace was a mysterious incident in the 1780s at the court of Louis XVI of France involving his wife, Queen Marie Antoinette. The reputation of the Queen, which was already tarnished by gossip, was ruined by the implication that she had participated in a crime to defraud...
meant she was unable to have her wish. The news that the production was cancelled is said to have hastened the death of the already seriously ill composer on October 9, 1786. Œdipe was given a posthumous performance at the Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
Opéra
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...
on February 1, 1787. This time the audience was warmly appreciative and the opera became one of the most popular pieces in the repertoire for several decades, reaching a total of almost 600 performances by 1844.
Roles
| Cast | Voice type | Premiere, 1786 (Conductor:Jean-Baptiste Rey Jean-Baptiste Rey Jean-Baptiste Rey was a French conductor and composer.Rey was born at Lauzerte. He remains the longest-serving conductor of the Paris Opera; his tenure spans from the last years of the monarchy to Napoleon's Empire... ) |
|---|---|---|
| Antigone Antigone In Greek mythology, Antigone is the daughter of Oedipus and Jocasta, Oedipus' mother. The name may be taken to mean "unbending", coming from "anti-" and "-gon / -gony" , but has also been suggested to mean "opposed to motherhood", "in place of a mother", or "anti-generative", based from the root... |
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... |
Anne Chéron-Cameroy ("m.lle Dozon") |
| Polynice | 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... |
Étienne Lainez |
| Thésée Theseus For other uses, see Theseus Theseus was the mythical founder-king of Athens, son of Aethra, and fathered by Aegeus and Poseidon, both of whom Aethra had slept with in one night. Theseus was a founder-hero, like Perseus, Cadmus, or Heracles, all of whom battled and overcame foes that were... |
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... |
Louis-Claude-Armand Chardin ("Chardiny") |
| Œdipe Oedipus Oedipus was a mythical Greek king of Thebes. He fulfilled a prophecy that said he would kill his father and marry his mother, and thus brought disaster on his city and family... |
baritone | Augustin-Athanase Chéron |
| Eriphile | soprano | Anne-Marie Jeanne Gavaudan, aînée |
| Le grand prêtre, the High Priest | 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... |
Jean-Pierre Moreau |
| Un coryphée, a coryphaeus | bass | |
| Une athénienne, an Athenian woman | soprano | |
| Un Herault, a herald ( | baritone | |
Synopsis
Background
The plot is based on the myth of OedipusOedipus
Oedipus was a mythical Greek king of Thebes. He fulfilled a prophecy that said he would kill his father and marry his mother, and thus brought disaster on his city and family...
, King of Thebes
Ancient Thebes (Boeotia)
See Thebes, Greece for the modern city built on the ancient ruins.Ancient Thebes was a Boeotian city-state , situated to the north of the Cithaeron range, which divides Boeotia from Attica, and on the southern edge of the Boeotian plain...
. Oedipus has been expelled from the city after it was revealed he had killed his father and married his mother. Now blind and aged he wanders through Greece accompanied only by his daughter Antigone. Meanwhile, the throne of Thebes has been divided between Oedipus' two sons, Eteocles and Polynices. But the two have quarrelled and Eteocles has driven out Polynices, who seeks refuge with Theseus
Theseus
For other uses, see Theseus Theseus was the mythical founder-king of Athens, son of Aethra, and fathered by Aegeus and Poseidon, both of whom Aethra had slept with in one night. Theseus was a founder-hero, like Perseus, Cadmus, or Heracles, all of whom battled and overcame foes that were...
, King of Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
.
Act 1
The opera begins with Polynices and Theseus striking a pact: Polynices will marry Theseus' daughter, Eriphyle, and Theseus will help him retake the throne of Thebes, thus forging an alliance between that city and Athens. The Athenians celebrate and Theseus and Polynices go to the temple to offer a sacrifice. Polynices feels guilty he banished his father Oedipus from Thebes. As he sacrifices, the temple fire goes out, a symbol of the anger of the Furies.Act 2
Polynices wanders outside the temple where he sees an old man being led by a girl. It is Oedipus and Antigone. Oedipus senses the presence of the Furies and is sent temporarily insane. Antigone pleads with the gods to have mercy on her father. A crowd appears and when they learn the identity of Oedipus they want to drive him away, but Theseus stops them and offers the old man his hospitality.Act 3
Polynices tells Antigone he is so remorseful he would give up everything, including Eriphyle, to be forgiven by his father. Antigone tries to reconcile Oedipus and his son, but Oedipus reacts by accusing her of disloyalty and cursing both Polynices and Eteocles. Only when Polynices begs his father to kill him with his own hands does Oedipus take pity on his son. This act of forgiveness earns the mercy of the gods. The wrath of the Furies is appeased.Instrumentation
Œdipe à Colone is scored for 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 hornsHorn (instrument)
The horn is a brass instrument consisting of about of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. A musician who plays the horn is called a horn player ....
, timpani
Timpani
Timpani, or kettledrums, are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum, they consist of a skin called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally made of copper. They are played by striking the head with a specialized drum stick called a timpani stick or timpani mallet...
, and strings
String section
The string section is the largest body of the standard orchestra and consists of bowed string instruments of the violin family.It normally comprises five sections: the first violins, the second violins, the violas, the cellos, and the double basses...
. Like most classical period works, the presence of continuo instruments like bassoons and harpsichord
Harpsichord
A harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It produces sound by plucking a string when a key is pressed.In the narrow sense, "harpsichord" designates only the large wing-shaped instruments in which the strings are perpendicular to the keyboard...
is assumed as well. Some modern performances have used a thunder sheet
Thunder sheet
A thunder sheet is a thin sheet of metal used to produce sound effects for musical or dramatic events. The device may be shaken, causing it to vibrate, or struck with a mallet....
to represent the stormy anger of the gods portrayed at the end of Act I.
Recordings
Order of characters: Œdipe, Antigone, Polynice, Thésée, Eriphile, the High Priest, an Athenian woman, a coryphaeus, a herald- MRF (Morgan Recording Federation) 153 (1977) - 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:...
, Radmila BakočevićRadmila BakocevicRadmila Bakočević , is a Serbian operatic soprano who had a major international opera career that began in 1955 and ended upon her retirement from the stage in 1982...
, Herbert Handt, Juan OncinaJuan OncinaJuan Oncina was a Spanish tenor, particularly associated with Rossini and light Donizetti roles, one of the leading tenore di grazia of the 1950s.- Life and career :...
, Maria Candida, Robert Amis El-Age, Nicoletta Panni, Walter Brighi (tenore), Giuseppe Scaleo - Coro e Orchestra da camera “Alessandro Scarlatti” Napoli Radiotelevisione italiana, conducted by Franco CaraccioloFranco CaraccioloFranco Caracciolo was an Italian conductor. He studied piano and composing at the Conservatoire of S. Pietro a Majella in Naples, and conducting at the Accademia di Santa Cecilia in Rome...
(radio live recording 1971, sung in ItalianItalian languageItalian 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...
) - Dynamic 494/1-2 CD - Sviatoslav Smirnov (baritone), Manon Feubel (soprano), Fabrice Mantegna (tenor), Daniel Galvez-Vallejo (tenor), Raphaëlle Farman (soprano), Jacques Gay (bass-baritone), Géraldine Casey (soprano), not indicated, Chœur de Chambre et Orchestre de la Camerata de Bourgogne, conducted by Jean-Paul PeninJean-Paul PeninJean-Paul Penin is a French conductor.-Biography:Jean-Paul Penin is a graduate of the Strasbourg Conservatory of Music and the University of Strasbourg where he obtained a PhD. in biophysics in 1974 and a Master's degree in musicology in 1978...
(first world recording June 2004, published 2005) - Naxos, 2006 CD - François Loup (bass-baritone), Nathalie Paulin (soprano), Robert Getchell (tenor), Tony Boutté (tenor), Kirsten Blaise (soprano), Jonathan Kimple (bass-baritone), Kara Morgan, Philip Cave (tenor), Jason Kaminski (baritone), Opera LafayetteOpera LafayetteOpera Lafayette is an is an opera company based in Washington, D.C. that produces French operas from the 17th and 18th Centuries. It was founded in 1995 by Ryan Brown and performs at the Kennedy Center, among other venues....
Orchestra and Chorus, dir. Ryan BrownRyan Brown (conductor)Ryan Brown is an American classical conductor.- Biography and career :Ryan Brown was born into a musical family in California: his mother was a pianist, and his father was a pianist and conductor. He benefited from having a number of well-known musicians both staying and playing music in his home...