''Il Vologeso'' is a 1766 opera by

Niccolò Jommelli Niccolò Jommelli (; 10 September 1714 – 25 August 1774) was an Italian composer of the Neapolitan School. Along with other composers mainly in the Holy Roman Empire and France, he was responsible for certain operatic reforms including redu ...

based on the libretto of the same name by

Metastasio Pietro Antonio Domenico Trapassi (3 January 1698 – 12 April 1782), better known by his pseudonym of Pietro Metastasio (), was an Italian poet and librettist, considered the most important writer of ''opera seria'' libretti. Early life Me ...

based on the story of the Parthian king

Vologases IV Vologases IV ( xpr, 𐭅𐭋𐭂𐭔 ''Walagash'') was King of Kings of the Parthian Empire from 147 to 191. He was the son of Mithridates V (). Vologases spent the early years of his reign re-asserting Parthian control over the Kingdom of Char ...

. The opera was performed for the birthday, February 11, of

Charles Eugene, Duke of Württemberg Charles Eugene (German: ''Carl Eugen''; 11 February 1728 – 24 October 1793), Duke of Württemberg, was the eldest son, and successor, of Charles Alexander; his mother was Princess Marie Auguste of Thurn and Taxis. Life Born in Brussels, he ...

, at the court theatre at

Ludwigsburg Ludwigsburg (; Swabian: ''Ludisburg'') is a city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, about north of Stuttgart city centre, near the river Neckar. It is the largest and primary city of the Ludwigsburg district with about 88,000 inhabitants. It is ...

, the Duke's residence near

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the ...

Plot

Vologeso is a twice-over reworking of ''Lucio Vero'' a libretto by

Apostolo Zeno Apostolo Zeno (11 December 1668 in Venice – 11 November 1750 in Venice) was a Venetian poet, librettist, journalist, and man of letters. Early life Apostolo Zeno was born in Venice to a colonial branch of the Zeno family, an ancient Venet ...

set by Carlo Pollarolo for Venice in 1700. That libretto was revised for a production by Guido Lucarelli of Rinaldo di Capua’s setting of 1739. Jommelli's librettist Mattia Verazi then further revised the 1739 text. Set in Ephesus circa 164 A.D., the opera centres on a love triangle between Berenice Queen of Armenia, the victorious Roman general Lucio Vero, and Vologeso, the defeated king of the Parthians.

Cast

*Vologeso - King of the Parthians (male alto) *Lucio Vero - Roman general (tenor) *Berenice - Queen of Armenia (soprano) captured by Lucio *Aniceto - minister of Lucio. *Lucilla - Lucio Vero’s betrothed, love interest of Aniceto (mezzo) *Flavio - ambassador from Lucio Vero’s co-emperor, Marcus Aurelius.

Recordings

*''Il Vologeso'' - Vologeso - Jörg Waschinski, male soprano Lucio Vero - Lothat Odinius, tenor Berenice -

Gabriele Rossmanith Gabriele Rossmanith (born in 1956 in Stuttgart) is a German operatic soprano. She is particularly associated with the Hamburg State Opera The Hamburg State Opera (in German: Staatsoper Hamburg) is a German opera company based in Hamburg. Its ...

, soprano Lucilla - Helene Schneiderman, mezzo-soprano Aniceto - Daniel Taylor, counter-tenor Flavio - Mechthild Bach, soprano

Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra The Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra (Stuttgarter Kammerorchester) is a German chamber orchestra based in Stuttgart. Its principal concert venue is the Liederhalle, Stuttgart. History Karl Münchinger founded the orchestra in 1945, and served as its ...

Frieder Bernius Frieder is both a surname and a masculine given name, a variant of Friedrich. People with the name include: Surname: *Armin Frieder (1911–1946), Slovak Neolog rabbi *Bill Frieder (1942), former basketball coach *Katalin Frieder (1915–1991), Hun ...

Orfeo C420983F 3CDs Recorded December 1997 *''Il Vologeso''. Sebastian Kohlhepp, Sophie Marilley, Ana Durlovski, Helene Schneiderman,

Staatsorchester Stuttgart The Staatsorchester Stuttgart (Stuttgart State Orchestra; full name, ''Württembergisches Staatsorchester oder Orchester der Württembergischen Staatstheater'') is a German symphony orchestra based in Stuttgart. The orchestra is resident at the ...

Gabriele Ferro Gabriele Ferro is a Grand Prix motorcycle racer from Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its ...

. Naxos Blu-Ray 2018 *''Il Vologeso''. Stuart Jackson, Jennifer France, Gemma Summerfield, Angela Simkin, Tom Verney, Rachel Kelly The Mozartists Ian Page review
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vologeso 1766 operas Operas by Niccolò Jommelli