''Il diluvio universale'' (''The great flood'') is an
azione tragico-sacra, or
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 librett ...
, by
Gaetano Donizetti
Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (29 November 1797 – 8 April 1848) was an Italian composer, best known for his almost 70 operas. Along with Gioachino Rossini and Vincenzo Bellini, he was a leading composer of the '' bel canto'' opera style dur ...
. The
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
libretto
A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...
was written by
Domenico Gilardoni after
Lord Byron
George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and Peerage of the United Kingdom, peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and h ...
's ''
Heaven and Earth'' and Francesco Ringhieri's tragedy ''Il diluvio'' (1788).
Performance history
19th century
The opera premiered at the
Teatro San Carlo
The Real Teatro di San Carlo ("Royal Theatre of Saint Charles"), as originally named by the Bourbon monarchy but today known simply as the Teatro (di) San Carlo, is an opera house in Naples, Italy, connected to the Royal Palace and adjacent t ...
,
Naples
Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...
on 6 March
[Black 1982, p. 25: Black notes that 28 February was the intended date, but due to illness, the premiere had to be postponed.] It failed to become an instant success.
It is known that for the premiere production to be accepted, it had to be given to the church censors in the form of an
oratorio
An oratorio () is a large musical composition for orchestra, choir, and soloists. Like most operas, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias. However, opera is mus ...
, since its planned production date was within the period of fasting. It was only allowed due to its being a biblical story.
Donizetti revised the opera and a new production opened on 17 January 1834 at Genoa's
Teatro Carlo Felice
The Teatro Carlo Felice is the principal opera house of Genoa, Italy, used for performances of opera, ballet, orchestral music, and recitals. It is located on the side of Piazza De Ferrari.
The hall is named for King Carlo Felice, and dates fr ...
. But after another staging in 1837 in Paris, it disappeared for 147 years.
20th century and beyond
The opera was not presented again until 1985 in Genoa.
The first production in Switzerland took place at
St. Gallen
, neighboring_municipalities = Eggersriet, Gaiserwald, Gossau, Herisau (AR), Mörschwil, Speicher (AR), Stein (AR), Teufen (AR), Untereggen, Wittenbach
, twintowns = Liberec (Czech Republic)
, website ...
where, since 2006, an opera is presented in the open air in front of the Cathedral around the first weekend of July. The production of ''Il diluvio'' was also given at the ''St. Galler Festspiele'' 2010 when Mirco Palazzi, Majella Cullagh and Manuela Custer appeared.
[Pardo, Daniel]
''Opera Today''
11 December 2005, online at operatoday.com. Retrieved 27 June 2010
Roles
Synopsis
The opera tells the biblical story of
the great flood
A flood myth or a deluge myth is a myth in which a great flood, usually sent by a deity or deities, destroys civilization, often in an act of divine retribution. Parallels are often drawn between the flood waters of these myths and the primaeval ...
.
Recordings
References
Notes
Cited sources
*Ashbrook, William and Sarah Hibberd (2001), in
Holden, Amanda (Ed.), ''The New Penguin Opera Guide'', New York: Penguin Putnam. . pp. 224 – 247.
*Black, John (1982), ''Donizetti’s Operas in Naples, 1822—1848''. London: The Donizetti Society.
Other sources
*Allitt, John Stewart (1991), ''Donizetti: in the light of Romanticism and the teaching of Johann Simon Mayr'', Shaftesbury: Element Books, Ltd (UK); Rockport, MA: Element, Inc.(USA)
*
Ashbrook, William (1982), ''Donizetti and His Operas'', Cambridge University Press.
*Ashbrook, William (1998), "Donizetti, Gaetano" in
Stanley Sadie
Stanley John Sadie (; 30 October 1930 – 21 March 2005) was an influential and prolific British musicologist, music critic, and editor. He was editor of the sixth edition of the '' Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' (1980), which was publ ...
(Ed.), ''
The New Grove Dictionary of Opera
''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'' is an encyclopedia of opera, considered to be one of the best general reference sources on the subject. It is the largest work on opera in English, and in its printed form, amounts to 5,448 pages in four volu ...
'', Vol. One. London: Macmillan Publishers, Inc.
*Loewenberg, Alfred (1970). ''Annals of Opera, 1597-1940'', 2nd edition. Rowman and Littlefield
*
Osborne, Charles, (1994), ''The Bel Canto Operas of Rossini, Donizetti, and Bellini'', Portland, Oregon: Amadeus Press.
*
Sadie, Stanley
Stanley John Sadie (; 30 October 1930 – 21 March 2005) was an influential and prolific British musicologist, music critic, and editor. He was editor of the sixth edition of the '' Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' (1980), which was publ ...
, (Ed.); John Tyrell (Exec. Ed.) (2004), ''
The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians
''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language ''Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and theo ...
''. 2nd edition. London: Macmillan. (hardcover). (eBook).
* Weinstock, Herbert (1963), ''Donizetti and the World of Opera in Italy, Paris, and Vienna in the First Half of the Nineteenth Century'', New York: Pantheon Books.
External links
Donizetti Society (London) website(Italian)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Diluvio universale, Il
Italian-language operas
Operas by Gaetano Donizetti
Operas
Operas set in the Levant
1830 operas
Noah's Ark in popular culture
Opera world premieres at the Teatro San Carlo
Operas based on the Bible