SKU: BA.BA04064
ISBN 9790006495696. 33.1 x 25.9 cm inches. Nicola Francesco Haym.
After Giulio Cesare and Tamerlano , Rodelinda is the third masterly opera that Handel composed between December 1723 and January 1725. The words were written by Nicola Haym , the author of many other Handel librettos. The first performance took place at the King’s Theatre in the Haymarket, London , on 13 February 1725. Rodelinda thrives entirely on the ethical supremacy of conjugal love, and thus prefigures the great operas by Gluck and Beethoven on the same subject. The plot is taken from the history of the Lombard royalty. Oskar Hagen’s revival of Rodelinda in 1920 ushered in the modern Handel opera movement. The work forms the climax to a series of dramatic masterpieces that includes Handel’s most significant operas. Handel returned to Rodelinda on two occasions, in December 1725 and in May 1731. Many far-reaching changes were necessary owing to the different skills of the new singers. For example, Handel wrote three new arias and a duet for the first revival. Yet the changes he made for this performance, doubtless to accommodate the needs and wishes of the singers, also improve the work’s dramatic substance. Our vocal score is based on the Urtext of the full score published in the Halle Handel Edition (II/16) and reproduces the various alternative readings and versions in an appendix.
About Barenreiter Urtext
What can I expect from a Barenreiter Urtext edition?
MUSICOLOGICALLY SOUND - A reliable musical text based on all available sources - A description of the sources - Information on the genesis and history of the work - Valuable notes on performance practice - Includes an introduction with critical commentary explaining source discrepancies and editorial decisions ... AND PRACTICAL - Page-turns, fold-out pages, and cues where you need them - A well-presented layout and a user-friendly format - Excellent print quality - Superior paper and binding
SKU: BA.BA04066
ISBN 9790006495832. 33 x 26 cm inches. Text Language: Italian. Nicola Francesco Haym.
This volume of the “Halle Handel Edition†presents the music of the second version of the opera which was premiered on 28 December 1720 at the King's Theatre, Haymarket, London as well as the amendments made for November 1721 revival. The appendix includes the amendments for the January/February 1728 version.The first season of the Royal Academy ended on 25 June 1720. The new vocal soloists arrived in London in September. As the first version of “Radamisto†had been a great success during the first season, Handel revised the opera for the oncoming season to accommodate it to his new more proficient cast.The revision was extensive. It included:1) Changes to the vocal range of Radamisto (soprano to alto for the singer Senesino), Zenobia (alto to soprano for the female singer Durastanti) and Tiridate (tenor to bass for the singer Boschi),2) compositions of new arias and ensembles,3) significant changes to the plot consisting of the reduction of Fraartes’ role from brother to servant Tiridates and the omission of his not so original love affair to Zenobia.For most of Handel's operas it can be said that the first version is the best version. This is due to the fact that when a work was performed again in later seasons, Handel was often forced to make changes due to casting constraints which often affected the equilibrium and the dramatic context of the work. “Radamisto†is an exception to this rule – the December 1720 adaptation is a much more superior composition than the version performed in April of the same year.
SKU: BA.BA04074
ISBN 9790006497850. 33.1 x 25.6 cm inches.
Handel’s opera Lotario was first heard at the King’s Theater in the Haymarket on 2 December 1729 and had a run of nine performances. Though never revived in the composer’s lifetime, Handel reused many of its arias in his later operas, sometimes altering the words. The historical background of the plot is the conflict between Otto I (912–973) and Berengar of Ivrea for the Italian crown and Otto’s marriage to the Italian queen Adelaide in 951. In the course of composition, the name of the hero (“ Ottone †in Salvi’s libretto) was altered to “ Lotario †since Handel had already written an opera entitled Ottone on the life of Otto II (955–983) in 1722. The vocal score contains the version composed for the performances of December 1729 and January 1730. It is based on the Urtext of the Halle Handel Edition.
SKU: BA.BA04045
ISBN 9790006443536. 33 x 26.1 cm inches. Text Language: Italian. Anonymus.
In 1734 Handel provided the pasticcio “ Oreste †for his third operatic enterprise which, following the bankruptcy of the Royal Academy and its successor academy, felt threatened by competition from the newly-founded Opera of the Nobility. Hence, the composer did not compile the work from favourite movements from his own and other composer's pieces as was usual at that time; rather in “ Oreste †he presented a selection of the most beautiful arias and ensembles exclusively from his own operas. In addition, he expanded the ballet and choral scenes which he thought would make a great impact after the move into the newly built Covent Garden Theatre. As most of the singers in his Italian company had been enticed away by the competition, Handel increasingly began to engage English virtuosi. He probably even worked on the new version of the libretto himself in order to place the new stars in the limelight to the best effect. The new vocal score is based on Volume 1 of the Supplement to Series II of the “Halle Handel†Edition edited by Bernd Baselt .
