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chances of regaining the position once held by his ancestors will be ruined. Guido, nevertheless, is prepared to renounce everything for love. He reveals that his lover is Elena, daughter of the outlawed
Sigifredo, and that he plans to secretly leave the town with her. Ubaldo is aghast, as he realises why Elena has rejected his own declaration of love, but he conceals his agitation and agrees to help Guido, notwithstanding the likely rage of Ezzelino. Left alone, Ubaldo first considers betraying Guido to Ezzelino, but then resolves to abduct Elena instead.
133:. The story is tragic and violent, filled with romantic intrigues and twisted passions. The part of Elena is one of Mercadante's outstanding soprano vocal roles. Her opening romanza is one of the opera's finest highlights, although he later replaced it with an equally brilliant florid cavatina. The finale to the third act is another extremely strong number. The skillfully wrought ensemble reflects the dramatic tension of the script, as the denouement comes to its tragic conclusion."
111:: varied forms, cabalettas banished, crescendos out, vocal lines simplified, fewer repeats, more originality in the cadences, proper regard paid to the drama, orchestration rich but not so as to swamp the voices, no long solos in the ensembles (they only force the other parts to stand idle to the detriment of the action), not much bass drum, and a lot less brass band"
19:
402:
and excited at the prospect of marriage with Guido. Her servant
Gualtiero tells her that a pilgrim who is approaching the palace is her father in disguise. Sigifredo and Elena embrace, and he tells her that Belluno has fallen to Ezzelino but that he has escaped so that he can die in his home town.
438:
Elena prays to her dead mother to allow her to die. Guido confronts her, but he is still not entirely convinced that she acted out of free will. Elena is about to explain everything when the bell for the execution of
Sigifredo rings, and she re-asserts that she loves Ubaldo. Furious, Guido leaves
416:
Boemondo tells Ubaldo that
Sigifredo is now held in a secret location. Elena arrives. Boemondo says that Ubaldo will explain what she must do to save her father's life, and leaves. Ubaldo informs Elena that, if Sigifredo is not to be executed, Guido must marry Imberga, and she (Elena) must marry
389:
Ubaldo's entourage cannot understand why he is so melancholic They leave when his friend Guido enters. Guido asks Ubaldo to help him: Boemondo (Ezzelino's henchman) wishes him to marry his daughter
Imberga, but his heart belongs to another. Ubaldo points out that, if Guido defies Boemondo, his
456:
Elena waits with
Gualtiero for the overdue arrival of Ubaldo and Sigifredo. She sends Gualtiero to find out what has happened. The wedding procession for Guido and Imberga can be heard offstage, and Elena prays for Guido's happiness and her own death. Ubaldo and his men arrive as the offstage
447:
Ubaldo has returned empty-handed from his mission to release
Sigifredo from prison. He is upset that Boemondo has double-crossed Elena: Sigifredo had already been executed. He knows that he has lost Elena for ever, and he and his followers swear to abandon Boemondo and return to the Guelph
424:
Boemondo's adherents arrive to celebrate the fall of
Belluno to Ezzelino. Boemondo announces that he will show mercy to his enemy Sigifredo's daughter if she will name someone as her protector. Guido and Ubaldo await her decision with trepidation. Provoked by Boemondo, she reluctantly names
154:
Although not successful in its initial performance in Naples, "it achieved a considerable success in the rest of Italy and Europe where it was performed in several places between 1839 and 1860 with twenty performances at La Scala in the 1843 autumn season". It was performed at
403:
He hides as Ubaldo enters to tell Elena that he and his men are about to carry her off. Sigifredo emerges to protect Elena, but Ubaldo's followers appear and drag
Sigifredo away to prison. Ubaldo reluctantly goes with them, and Elena, left behind, falls into a faint.
457:
music becomes more joyous, and then
Gualtiero returns with the news of Sigismondo's death. Elena has a vision of Sigifredo waiting for her in heaven and dies. Ubaldo laments her loss, and the chorus comment that an angel missing from heaven has now returned there.
140:
A work of harmonic daring, subtlety and originally orchestrated, it suddenly makes sense of oft-quoted comparisons between Mercadante and Verdi. It has the overall coherence one looks for and finds in middle and late Verdi – a surprising anticipation, for
417:
him. Ubaldo tells her that he loves her, but, when she repulses him, he reveals that a scaffold for her father's death is being built and that Sigifredo will die very soon if she does not consent to the marriage. She gives in, and they leave together.
420:
Guido is brought in under guard and left alone. His sense of foreboding is confirmed when Boemondo tells him that Elena has betrayed him, and that this will be confirmed before long. Guido is distraught and longs for death.
205:
425:
Ubaldo. The Act ends with Guido accusing her of treachery and asking Imberga to marry him, Ubaldo expressing his love for Elena, Boemondo and Imberga gloating, and Elena lamenting her fate.
118:
seems to match up with the new concepts: greater involvement of the orchestra; fewer vocal "fireworks"; a more simple vocal line but more adventuresome harmonies and drama when compared to
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had disappeared from the repertory by the late 19th century. It was not until the mid-1900s that his operas began to see the light of day, and the revival of
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777:
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In 1999, with almost the same cast as had appeared at Wexford (including Monica Colonna in the title role), the opera was presented at the
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125:"Mercadante wanted to break free from any formulas developed by earlier composers, especially those of Rossini......The
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97:, laying out his ideas about how opera should be structured, following the "revolution" begun in his previous opera,
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on 1 January 1839 as part of the Carnival Season. While not successful at the time, the opera was revived at
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Review by Alexander Weatherson in "Newsletter No. 77" of The Donizetti Society, Surrey, England, July 1999
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In a 20th-century examination of Mercadante's operas by Patric Schmid, a critical comment noted:
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is given to the bass-baritone voice, and the villain was played by the famous French tenor
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National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland and Wexford Festival Opera Chorus
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Rose, Michael (1998), “Mercandante, (Giuseppe) Saverio (Raffaele)" in
690:", in the booklet accompanying the 1997 recording of that opera at the
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Bryan, Karen M., "Mercadante's Experiment in Form: The cabalettas of
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707:, Vol. Three, pp. 334–339. London: MacMillan Publishers, Inc.
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372:, Northern Italy, a Guelph town occupied by the Ghibellines under
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Elena is overjoyed to hear that her father has escaped to nearby
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did not take place until the October 1997 performances at the
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Adapted from the 1997 Wexford Festival Opera programme book.
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Couling, Della (trans.), "Saverio Mercadante (1795–1870)"
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Orchestra Scarlatti di Napoli and the RAI Napoli Chorus
84:
145:
dates from 1838, the year before Verdi's first opera.
568:Kaufman, Tom, "The Neglected Bel Canto Composers",
944:
582:Rita Laurance, "All Music Guide" on answers.com
37:in three acts by 19th-century Italian composer
973:Opera world premieres at the Teatro San Carlo
771:
592:Schmid, Patric, "Rediscovering Mercadante",
107:"I have continued the revolution I began in
778:
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212:, who created the role of Elena da Feltre
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17:
362:Time: 1250, during the war between the
170:But, like most of Mercadante's operas,
945:
785:
562:
149:
759:
750:Website of The Donizetti Society, UK
646:on operadis-opera-discography.org.uk
679:. L'Almanacco di Gherardo Casaglia
596:, vol. 26, No.4 (April 1975), p.332
13:
623:Premiere cast from Casaglia (2005)
263:Guido's friend; in love with Elena
81:in 1843 with twenty performances.
14:
989:
743:
732:, New York: Penguin Putnam, Inc.
704:The New Grove Dictionary of Opera
694:released on the Marco Polo label.
535:(Recorded at performances at the
439:as Elena again prays for death.
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45:, well known as librettist of
1:
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93:in 1838, Mercadante wrote to
953:Operas by Saverio Mercadante
7:
730:The New Penguin Opera Guide
452:Scene 3: Sigifredo's palace
434:Scene 1: Sigifredo's palace
394:Scene 2: Sigifredo's palace
353:
10:
994:
671:Casaglia, Gherardo (2005).
480:Opera House and Orchestra
315:Elena's father; a fugitive
281:Minister of ruler Ezzelino
241:Giuseppina Ronzi de Begnis
227:(Conductor: Nicola Festa)
210:Giuseppina Ronzi de Begnis
924:
826:Caritea, regina di Spagna
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724:Rose, Michael (2001), in
666:Donizetti Society Journal
572:, online at meyerbeer.com
475:Ubaldo, Boemondo, Guido)
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346:Knights, Ladies, Soldiers
344:
85:Mercadante's "revolution"
428:
406:
379:
200:
958:Italian-language operas
443:Scene 2: Ubaldo's house
385:Scene 1: Ubaldo's house
364:Guelphs and Ghibellines
297:also in love with Elena
163:in January 1842 and in
752:Retrieved 3 March 2010
605:Couling (trans.), p. 8
570:The Meyerbeer Fan Club
374:Ezzelino III da Romano
213:
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208:
21:
925:Named for Mercadante
542:Audio CD: Marco Polo
978:Operas set in Italy
834:Francesca da Rimini
491:Orianna Santunione,
329:Sigifredo's servant
249:Boemondo's daughter
150:Performance history
52:Lucia di Lammermoor
43:Salvatore Cammarano
41:from a libretto by
810:Didone abbandonata
787:Saverio Mercadante
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69:took place at the
39:Saverio Mercadante
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23:Saverio Mercadante
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544:Cat: 8.225064-65
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339:Michele Benedetti
256:Emilia Gandaglia
95:Francesco Florimo
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932:Teatro del Fondo
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525:Nicola Ulivieri
473:(Elena, Imberga,
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71:Teatro San Carlo
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874:Elena da Feltre
802:Elisa e Claudio
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688:Elena da Feltre
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675:Elena da Feltre
668:6, London, 1988
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307:Paul Barroilhet
273:Adolphe Nourrit
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172:Elena da Feltre
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143:Elena da Feltre
91:Elena da Feltre
89:When composing
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30:Elena da Feltre
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642:Recordings of
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523:Luigi Petroni,
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157:Covent Garden
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127:romantic hero
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120:Il giuramento
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109:Il giuramento
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100:Il giuramento
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842:I due Figaro
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497:Vito Tatone,
495:Angelo Mori,
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62:Il trovatore
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963:1839 operas
539:, October)
327:Gualtiero,
313:Sigifredo,
222:Voice type
167:that July.
947:Categories
882:La vestale
850:I briganti
551:References
478:Conductor,
461:Recordings
279:Boemondo,
701:, (Ed.),
509:Cat: 121
247:Imberga,
47:Donizetti
914:Virginia
866:Il bravo
728:,(ed.),
358:Source:
354:Synopsis
302:baritone
261:Ubaldo,
253:soprano
79:La Scala
67:premiere
65:. The
906:Pelagio
818:Nitocri
655:Sources
448:cause.
400:Belluno
368:Place:
295:Guido,
236:soprano
184:Ireland
131:Nourrit
968:Operas
917:(1866)
909:(1857)
901:(1846)
893:(1842)
885:(1840)
877:(1839)
869:(1839)
861:(1837)
853:(1836)
845:(1835)
837:(1831)
829:(1826)
821:(1824)
813:(1823)
805:(1821)
794:Operas
736:
718:
711:
483:Label
370:Feltre
285:tenor
232:Elena
165:Dublin
161:London
75:Naples
33:is an
594:Opera
556:Notes
514:1997
488:1970?
468:Year
429:Act 3
407:Act 2
380:Act 1
319:bass
268:tenor
219:Role
201:Roles
176:Elena
116:Elena
57:Verdi
35:opera
734:ISBN
716:ISBN
709:ISBN
471:Cast
334:bass
195:Lugo
55:and
664:",
193:in
182:in
159:in
103::
73:in
59:'s
49:'s
949::
186:.
122:.
779:e
772:t
765:v
683:.
677:"
673:"
531:,
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
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