Il Ritorno Di Tobia on:
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' (''The Return of Tobias'') is an
review
James Manheim remarks, "The work clocks in at nearly three hours, which consigned it to the dustbin from its time until ours, and the present ecordingis one of just a few contemporary performances."
' (''The Return of Tobias'') is 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 ...
in two parts composed in 1775 by Joseph Haydn
Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...
( Hob. XXI:1). The work is the first oratorio the composer wrote and, according to Jones, was "his most extended and ambitious composition up to that time".Jones (2009:166)
The Italian-language 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 ...
of the work is by , brother of the composer Luigi Boccherini
Ridolfo Luigi Boccherini (, also , ; 19 February 1743 – 28 May 1805) was an Italian composer and cellist of the Classical era whose music retained a courtly and ''galante'' style even while he matured somewhat apart from the major Europea ...
. This libretto is harshly criticized by Olleson, who notes that the author de-dramatizes vivid episodes in the source (the story of Tobit in the Apocrypha
Apocrypha are works, usually written, of unknown authorship or of doubtful origin. The word ''apocryphal'' (ἀπόκρυφος) was first applied to writings which were kept secret because they were the vehicles of esoteric knowledge considered ...
), depriving Haydn of the opportunity for highly dramatic musical utterance.
The work was premiered in Vienna on 2 April 1775, under the sponsorship of the Tonkünstler-Societät
The Tonkünstler-Societät ("Society of Musicians") was a benevolent society for musicians in Vienna, which lasted from the mid-18th century to the mid-20th. Its purpose was "to support retired musicians and their families". Beginning in 1772, the ...
, a musician's benevolent society. The musical forces were substantial: Smither writes: "characteristic of the large forces used for the Tonkünstler-Societät concerts, the orchestra, chorus, and soloists possibly numbered more than 180 performers." He adds that the premiere was "enormously successful."Smither (1977:161)
In 1784, Haydn substantially revised the work, with cuts to make numbers shorter and new choruses, for another of the Tonkünstler-Societät's benefit concerts. It is thought that at this concert Haydn first met Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...
, who became his good friend. One of the soprano soloists was Nancy Storace
Anna (or Ann) Selina Storace (; 27 October 176524 August 1817), known professionally as Nancy Storace, was an English operatic soprano. The role of Susanna in Mozart's ''Le nozze di Figaro'' was written for and first performed by her.
Born in ...
, also a friend of Haydn, who later was Mozart's first Susanna in ''The Marriage of Figaro
''The Marriage of Figaro'' ( it, Le nozze di Figaro, links=no, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premie ...
''.
In 1808 the oratorio made a third appearance on the program of the Tonkünstler-Societät, this time in a revised version by the now-elderly composer's pupil, Sigismund Neukomm
Sigismond Neukomm or Sigismund Ritter von Neukomm fter ennoblement as a knight">ennoblement.html" ;"title="fter ennoblement">fter ennoblement as a knight(10 July 1778, in Salzburg – 3 April 1858, in Paris) was an Austrian composer and pianist ...
. The performance on the night of 22 December, which required the labors of most of the highly qualified musicians in Vienna, had regrettable consequences for a now-famous rival concert taking place in Vienna on the same evening, the benefit for Ludwig van Beethoven that premiered his Fifth and Sixth Symphonies.
Today, ''Il ritorno di Tobia'' is eclipsed by Haydn's later works in this genre – '' The Creation'' and '' The Seasons'' – and is seldom performed or recorded.Thus, in review
James Manheim remarks, "The work clocks in at nearly three hours, which consigned it to the dustbin from its time until ours, and the present ecordingis one of just a few contemporary performances."
Setting
Soloists: * Tobia (tenor
A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...
)
* Anna, Tobia's mother (alto
The musical term alto, meaning "high" in Italian (Latin: ''altus''), historically refers to the contrapuntal part higher than the tenor and its associated vocal range. In 4-part voice leading alto is the second-highest part, sung in choruses by ...
)
* Tobit, Tobia's father ( bass)
* Sara, Tobia's girlfriend (soprano
A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...
)
* Raffaele, an angel (soprano)
Hebrew choir (SATB) and orchestra
The venue of the event is the Tobias parents' house in Nineveh
Nineveh (; akk, ; Biblical Hebrew: '; ar, نَيْنَوَىٰ '; syr, ܢܝܼܢܘܹܐ, Nīnwē) was an ancient Assyrian city of Upper Mesopotamia, located in the modern-day city of Mosul in northern Iraq. It is located on the eastern ban ...
.
Recordings
* 1980 –Barbara Hendricks
Barbara Hendricks (born November 20, 1948) is an American operatic soprano and concert singer. Hendricks has lived in Europe since 1977, and in Switzerland in Basel since 1985. She is a citizen of Sweden following her marriage to a Swedish citiz ...
(Raffaelle), Linda Zoghby (Sara), Della Jones
Della Jones is a Welsh mezzo-soprano, particularly well known for her interpretations of works by Handel, Mozart, Rossini, Donizetti, and Britten.
Early life
Jones was born in Tonna, near Neath, Wales. She attended Neath Grammar School for Girl ...
(Anna), Philip Langridge
Philip Gordon Langridge (16 December 1939 – 5 March 2010)Millington (7 March 2010) was an English tenor, considered to be among the foremost exponents of English opera and oratorio.
Early life
Langridge was born in Hawkhurst, Kent, educ ...
(Tobia), Benjamin Luxon
Benjamin Matthew Luxon (born 24 March 1937, Redruth, Cornwall) is a retired British baritone.
Biography
He studied with Walther Gruner at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama (while working part-time as a PE teacher in the East End) and est ...
(Tobit) – Brighton Festival Chorus, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London, that performs and produces primarily classic works.
The RPO was established by Thomas Beecham in 1946. In its early days, the orchestra secured profitable ...
, Antal Doráti
Antal Doráti (, , ; 9 April 1906 – 13 November 1988) was a Hungarian-born conductor and composer who became a naturalized American citizen in 1943.
Biography
Antal Doráti was born in Budapest, where his father Alexander Doráti was a vi ...
– 3 CDs (Decca Records
Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...
)
* 1987 – Magda Kalmár (Raffaelle), Veronika Kincses (Sara), Klára Takács (Anna), Attila Fülöp (Tobia), Zsolt Bende (Tobit) – Budapest Madrigal Choir, Budapest State Orchestra, Ferenc Szekeres – 3 CDs (Hungaroton
Hungaroton is the oldest record and music publisher company in Hungary.
Hungaroton was founded in 1951, when its only competitors in the Hungarian music market were record labels like Melodiya, Supraphon and from other socialist countries. Pre ...
)
* 2006 – Roberta Invernizzi
Roberta Invernizzi (born 1966, in Milan) is an Italian soprano. She originally studied piano and double bass before turning to singing. She specialises in early music from the baroque and classical period of music.
She has sung in many operas ...
(Raffaelle), Sophie Karthäuser
Sophie Karthäuser (born May 1974) is a Belgian operatic soprano. She has performed internationally, especially in roles by Mozart such as Ilia in ''Idomeneo'' and Pamina in ''The Magic Flute''. She is also a recitalist, performing and recording ...
(Sara), Ann Hallenberg
Ann Hallenberg (born 17 March 1967) is a Swedish mezzo-soprano. She has a busy career on the stage and concert platform around Europe embracing roles by Rossini, Mozart, Gluck, Handel, Vivaldi, Monteverdi, and Purcell.
Hallenberg studied at the ...
(Anna), Anders J. Dahlin
Anders J. Dahlin (born March 12, 1975) is a Swedish tenor. He studied at the in Sweden, at the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo, and at the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen.
Music career
In 1998 he made his operatic debut at the N ...
(Tobia), Nikolay Borchev (Tobit) – VokalEnsemble Köln, Capella Augustina, Andreas Spering
Andreas Spering (born in 1966) is a German conductor and harpsichordist, who specializes in Early music. He is the younger brother of the conductor Christoph Spering.
Recordings
* ''Kantaten für Esterhazy'' by Joseph Haydn
* ''Siroe'', by Ge ...
– 3 CDs (Naxos
Naxos (; el, Νάξος, ) is a Greek island and the largest of the Cyclades. It was the centre of archaic Cycladic culture. The island is famous as a source of emery, a rock rich in corundum, which until modern times was one of the best abr ...
)
References
Notes Sources *Olleson, Edward (2009) "''Il ritorno di Tobia''". Article inDavid Wyn Jones
David Wyn Jones (born 1950) is a British musicologist. He is an expert on music of the Classical period, including that of Haydn and Beethoven.
Professional life
Wyn Jones received his Ph.D. from the University of Wales in 1978, on the basis of a ...
(2009) ''Oxford Composer Companions: Haydn''. Oxford University Press.
*Smither, Howard E. (1977) ''A History of the Oratorio''. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press.
External links
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ritorno di Tobia, Il Oratorios by Joseph Haydn 1775 compositions Oratorios based on the Bible