SKU: BA.BA04096
ISBN 9790006550098. 33 x 26 cm inches. Text Language: Italian. Preface: Terence Best. Text: Carlo Sigismondo Capece.
The Italian oratorio La Resurrezione (The Resurrection) was written during Handel’s time in Rome. It was performed on Easter Sunday 1708 with great splendour and extravagance by a large orchestra conducted by Arcangelo Corelli in the Palazzo Bonelli, the Roman palazzo of Handel’s patron the Marchese Francesco Maria Ruspoli. In its dramatic structure and characterisation of the protagonists, the work displays a striking affinity with Italian opera. Lucifer’s raging sixty fourth notes call to mind the demon characters in Venetian opera and Maddalena’s arias are so full of expressive power and virtuosity that Handel later incorporated one of them into his opera Agrippina. The unusual musical richness of this work and the virtuosic and masterly shaping of the arias make it a welcome addition to any concert programme.
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.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 .
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.BA04050
ISBN 9790006443598. 33 x 26 cm inches. Language: German. Text: Feustking, Friedrich Christian.
“Almiraâ€, Handel’s first opera, was well received when premiered in 1705 at the Theater am Gänsemarkt in Hamburg. The director was Reinhard Keiser, who, remarkably, had himself already set Friedrich Christian Feustking’s text to music. The role of Fernando was sung by Johann Mattheson. The translation used by Handel leaves several Italian arias in their original language, resulting in a delightful mixture of German and Italian.The opera which, after sundry entangled romances, ends in the wedding of three couples, is characterised by exuberant scenes: the procession at Almira’s crowning ceremony, a duel, a prison scene and a masked-ball involving the three continents Europe, Africa and Asia. The vocal score to “Almira†by George Frideric Handel brings about a small sensation: Whilst conducting a reenactment of this work in 1732, Georg Philipp Telemann removed the Aria no. 28 “Ingrato, spietato†from his conducting score. Since then this aria has been deemed lost. Due to necessity only the edited vocal text devoid of any music was presented in the 1994 volume of the “Halle Handel Editionâ€. Thanks to a recently discovered contemporary manuscript copy from the beginning of the 18th century which was found in the music library of the Mariengymnasium in Jever, this aria has now been made available to performers for the first time in this new vocal score edition. Previous to this the corresponding pages could only be seen as a facsimile in an article of the “Göttinger Händel-Beiträgeâ€.Now the aria can be performed again. Furthermore, with the help of this new source, missing measures in the basso continuo which had initially been completed by the editor of the “Halle Handel Edition†volume, could be reconstructed from the basso continuo part of the Bellante aria “Ich brenne zwar†(no. 71).
SKU: BA.BA10720-01
ISBN 9790006550302. 33 x 26.5 cm inches. Text Language: Italian. Preface: Hans Dieter Clausen. Text: Haym, Nicola Francesco (nach Giacomo Francesco Bussani).
Giulio Cesare in Egittois by far Handel's most frequently performed opera owing its success not least to its subject matter, one of the best known love stories in world history. Already during Handel's lifetime the popular work was often staged and therefore adapted by Handel for each of the performance conditions. The editor Hans Dieter Clausen has succeeded in editorially defining and practically presenting these adaptations - essentially four versions - on the basis of a meticulous study of the sources within the framework of theHalle Handel Edition. The new edition allows for a performance of each of the four versions. The version of 1725 is particularly noteworthy because Handel newly devised the role of Sesto for the famous tenor Francesco Borosini.The libretto shows the Roman dictator Cesar in a friendly light. He instructs his enemy, the Egyptian tyrant Tolomeo, how to treat adversaries; he reconciles the widow and son of his enemy Pompeo who was murdered by Tolomeo; he is generous and just, hands on, but also diplomatic, thoughtful, aware of the limits of his power, and susceptible for art and nature. However, the actual protagonist of the opera is Cleopatra. In a masterly way Handel develops her character musically.In his extensive Foreword Hans Dieter Clausen not only decribes the genesis, historical background, reception and the edition of the opera, he also examines the musical and dramaturgical reworking of individual numbers inGiulio Cesare. Handel was such an expert in adapting arias for new purposes and other characters that he did not only meet the needs at hand but often the new version surpassed the original. In this way, the reader gains, in passing, a well-founded insight into Handel's work methods when designing and redevising his characters. The detailed Critical Commentary includes information on the comprehensive and highly complex source situation as well as on individual editorial decisions.
