''Feramors'' is an

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

in three (first version) or two (second version) acts by

Anton Rubinstein Anton Grigoryevich Rubinstein ( rus, Антон Григорьевич Рубинштейн, r=Anton Grigor'evič Rubinštejn; ) was a Russian pianist, composer and conductor who became a pivotal figure in Russian culture when he founded the Sa ...

to a libretto by

Julius Rodenberg Julius Rodenberg (originally ''Julius Levy''; 26 June 1831, Rodenberg – 11 July 1914, Berlin) was a German Jewish poet and author. He studied law at the universities of Heidelberg, Göttingen, Berlin, and Marburg, but soon abandoned jurisprud ...

. The story is based on ''

Lalla Rookh ''Lalla Rookh'' is an Oriental romance by Irish poet Thomas Moore, published in 1817. The title is taken from the name of the heroine of the frame tale, the (fictional) daughter of the 17th-century Mughal emperor Aurangzeb. The work consi ...

'' by the Irish poet

Thomas Moore Thomas Moore (28 May 1779 – 25 February 1852) was an Irish writer, poet, and lyricist celebrated for his ''Irish Melodies''. Their setting of English-language verse to old Irish tunes marked the transition in popular Irish culture from Irish ...

. The opera was composed in 1862.

Performance history

The opera was premiered at the

Semperoper The Semperoper () is the opera house of the Sächsische Staatsoper Dresden (Saxon State Opera) and the concert hall of the Staatskapelle Dresden (Saxon State Orchestra). It is also home to the Semperoper Ballett. The building is located on the ...

in Dresden on 24 February 1863, and had subsequent stagings in Vienna (1872), Milan (1874), Berlin (1879), and Danzig (1880). Its first production in Russia was an amateur performance in Saint Petersburg in 1884. The first professional production there was on 18 August 1898 at the

Mariinsky Theatre The Mariinsky Theatre ( rus, Мариинский театр, Mariinskiy teatr, also transcribed as Maryinsky or Mariyinsky) is a historic theatre of opera and ballet in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Opened in 1860, it became the preeminent music th ...

, conducted by

Felix Blumenfeld Felix Mikhailovich Blumenfeld (russian: Фе́ликс Миха́йлович Блуменфе́льд; – 21 January 1931) was a Russian and Soviet composer, conductor of the Imperial Opera St-Petersburg, pianist, and teacher. He was bor ...

. The reason for its late appearance on the Russian stage was competition from an opéra-comique on the same subject by

Félicien David Félicien-César David (13 April 1810 – 29 August 1876) was a French composer. Biography Félicien David was born in Cadenet, and began to study music at the age of five under his father, whose death when the boy was six left him an impoverish ...

Peter Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky , group=n ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most popu ...

, who heard the opera at the Berlin 1879 staging, liked the opera and wrote to

Nadezhda von Meck Nadezhda Filaretovna von Meck (russian: Надежда Филаретовна фон Мекк; 13 January 1894) was a Russian businesswoman who became an influential patron of the arts, especially music. She is best known today for her artistic ...

that "it comes from the period in which Rubinstein did all his best work, that is 20 years ago". Perhaps the same Berlin production of 4 March 1879 produced an interesting report in the ''

Musical Times ''The Musical Times'' is an academic journal of classical music edited and produced in the United Kingdom and currently the oldest such journal still being published in the country. It was originally created by Joseph Mainzer in 1842 as ''Mainzer ...

''; "Rubinstein's opera ... was successfully produced on the 4th ''ult.'' at the Royal Opera house at Berlin, the principal ''rôles'' being taken by Herr Niemann and Madame Mallinger; in consequence, however, of the latter having refused to sing certain portions of her part, the composer abstained from personally conducting his work."

Roles

Synopsis

Lalla, the princess of Hindustan, is engaged to marry the King of Bokhara, but falls in love with the minstrel Feramors, who turns out to be the King in disguise.

Recordings

There are a number of recordings of the ballet music from the opera, which includes a 'Torch Dance' and a 'Dance of Bayaderes', both written in the composer's style of exotic orientalism.

Notes

External links

* {{Authority control Operas German-language operas Operas by Anton Rubinstein 1863 operas Operas set in India Operas based on literature