From: warkent@ltisun14.epfl.ch (Ken Warkentyne)
Subject: What's Opera Doc? (Actually a review of Dido and Aeneas)
Organization: Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne---Laboratoire de
        Teleinformatique
Date: Wed, 16 Dec 1992 14:01:03 GMT
Followup-To: rec.music.misc



Given that naughty Tex Avery has been censored out of existence in the
Excited States, we should be thankful that the genius of Fritz
Freling was more anodyne.  What North American of the pre-robot-toy-
half-hour-advert cartoon era can forget the hilarious sendups
of Opera in "The Rabbit of Seville" or "What's Opera Doc"?
However, although I consider these two cartoons to be great works of
comic art, I find it unfortunate that they are not likely to increase
appreciation of Opera.

Actually, I must admit that I used to dislike Opera quite intensely,
and am still unable to appreciate a lot of it. However, through a
shaky personal voyage leading from the Three Penny Opera through masses
for two or three voices (cf William Byrd) to big choral works (Verdi's
Requiem and Quatro Pezze Sacre - look for the Giuliani conducted version),
I have finally arrived at Don Giovanni and Le Nozze di Figaro.
I will even willingly confess to listening to anything by Pavarotti
(The Essential Pavarotti is a wonderful disc with a collection of airs
from mainly Italian operas and popular music).  But my favourite
Opera is one of those rarest of creatures, an English Opera, being
Henry Purcell's _Dido and Aeneas_.

_Dido and Aeneas_ with Andrew Parrott conducting and Emma Kirkby
in the role of Dido is _the_ Opera for those who fail to appreciate
Puccini or Donizetti as sung by various gravitationally challenged people.
First of all it is relatively short, clocking in at just over 56 minutes
in the Parrott version.  Secondly, instead of those annoying
declaimed sequences that are an attempt at "operatic dialogue", the
recitativo secco, Purcell's recitatives are of high musical interest.
Thirdly, Emma Kirkby sings with a divinely pure "un-operatic" voice.
Fourthly, the music, which is of the late 17th century and full of
sad minor keys, fits so well with the words of the libretto.
Well anyway those are my reasons.

A Summary of the Opera

The first act begins with a cheerful enough injunction for
Dido to "shake the cloud from off your brow."  For she has
fallen in love with Aeneas, and is "pressed with torment not
to be confessed", the latter a beautiful air of adolescent
melancholy.  Love triumphs and act closes on their betrothal.

Act two introduces the Sorceress, sung by Jantina Noorman,
who will wreck the happiness of the two protaganists.  The Sorceress
is somewhat comic but underlayed with the necessary quantity of real
spite and menace.  In the half lit dark of the theatre you laugh at
her antics; but at night in bed you may have nightmares.
In the second scene we have a brief moment of happiness for the
lovers, but the melancholy hinted at in the fairly upbeat
first act returns and resituates this scene in a mood of twilight (airs
"Thanks to these lonesome vales" and "Oft she visits this lone
mountain").  The act concludes with the gullible Aeneas, a sort of
mythological Duddly Doright, being taken in by the Sorceress's
deception as a false messenger of Jove commands Aeneas to ship out.

In act three, the logic of injured love dictates the tragic
conclusion.  The witches celebrate the apparent success of their
machinations, Dido spurns the repentant Aeneas and forsees
her death. The end.

As this summary indicates, the libretto is quite sketchy, to say
the least.  But the holes in the action are not terribly important
because this is such an age-old and universal story that we do not really
need to have the details filled in.

The Taverner Players provide the accompaniment on "authentic" period
violins, viola, lutes and guitar.  The quality of the recording
is excellent.

Henry Purcell - DIDO AND AENEAS
With Emma Kirby, Judith Nelson, David Thomas, the Taverner Choir,
and the Taverner Players.
Conductor Andrew Parrott
Chandos Records CHAN 8306
--
Ken Warkentyne - warkent@ltisun.epfl.ch
                 Laboratoire de Teleinformatique, EPFL, Suisse.
x-gateway: rodan.UU.NET from love-hounds to rec.music.gaffa; Sat, 19 Dec 1992 19:11:31 EST
Date: Sat, 19 Dec 1992 19:08:26 -0500
From: scasterg@waltham.columbus.oh.us (Stuart Castergine)
Errors-To: Love-Hounds-request@uunet.uu.net
Subject: re: HAPPY RHODES Review
Message-ID: <a757bf09@waltham.columbus.oh.us>